About Jerri
PERSONAL AND CREDITS
Jerri Gibson McCloud is an Author/Artist/Sculptor, and
manufacturer, creating and designing dolls.
Before closing their factory in the year 2000 due to imports from the
orient, she traveled the world with her dolls, shared them with hundreds of
souls, bringing sunshine into their lives and giving them something to love.
During her sculpting and design career, she won numerous
awards of excellence, which included the prestigious “Doty” award and
“Dolls Award of Excellence.” As a young child, she loved dolls and this
served well in her doll design career.
Her writing career actually began with sculpting and
design. She wrote stories to accompany her dolls in magazine advertisements on
the back cover of Doll Reader Magazine and Dolls Magazine for many
years. Unable to find a photographer early in the business that could photograph
a doll, like a person instead of a table, she learned the art of photography,
and designed and produced her own catalogs and advertisements. She created and
wrote Collector Society Newsletters, and organized and implemented a yearly
Jerri Collector’s Society Convention hosted in local hotels in Charlotte, NC.
Jerri traveled to numerous doll signings each year and
occasionally TV and speaking shows. Little did she realize that this training
came in handy when she attended her first book signing in Winnsboro, SC, for two
stories she wrote in The Great Depression - How we Coped, Worked and Played,
with Editor/Publisher Margaret Bigger of A. Borough Books.
After closing the manufacturing plant, Jerri undertook
the challenge of becoming a writer, sharing her stories—some happy, some
tragic, with all who would read.
While interviewing a cousin for the genealogy book, she
became intrigued with his experiences during WWII as a bombardier on a B-17
Flying Fortress. This inspired her to write a historical fiction novel which is
currently her WIP (work in progress).
PUBLISHED WRITINGS:
History and Legends of THE GIBSONS OF SOUTH CAROLINA Chester and Fairfield Counties by Jerri Gibson McCloud
A 556-page genealogy book, 8 x 10, hardback, library
quality, that took five years of investigation and writing.
Published in September 2003
THE KISSING BOUGH
An anthology edited by Judith Simpson
One story: “A ‘Thank You’ Christmas,” by Jerri Gibson McCloud
INHERITING SCOTLAND
An anthology edited by Terri Alsop –
Story: “The Luck of the Six Pence,” by Jerri
Gibson McCloud
THE GREAT DEPRESSION - HOW WE COPED, WORKED AND PLAYED
An anthology edited by Margaret Bigger - Published by A. Borough Books
Two stories:
“My Two Little Worlds,” by Jerri Gibson McCloud
“Let’s Play Make Believe,” by Jerri Gibson McCloud
HISTORY:
Jerri is Past President of Charlotte Writers' Club (CWC) 2009-2010. This is her second year as President and her term is up in May 2010. She will continue to serve as Past President during 2010-2011.
During her Presidencies the following accomplishments took place:
Workshops:
Donald Maass - NY Agent/Teacher/Author - February 28, 2009 - 8 hour workshop. Chris Roerden - Noted Teacher/Author - November 14, 2009 - 7 hour workshop. Patrick LoBrutto - NY Editor/Teacher/Author - Future February 27, 2010 - 7 hour workshop Poetry Workshop - Famous Poet/Teacher - April 2010 - 7 hour workshop
She planned and implemented the entire workshops with the exception of the Poetry Workshop which she is helping Richard Taylor (Past President) setup.
Payment method on website:
Jerri acquired the PayPal contract for members of CWC and non-members to pay online for membership, workshops, books, etc. Tasha Steimer incorporated the PayPal merge all membership registrations, workshops, and book sales into the website: www.charlottewritersclub.org
Sound Equipment:
The sound equipment at Joseph-Beth Booksellers where CWC meets was so ineffective, Jerri researched and purchased through the club, a wonderful sound system that can serve them for years to come.
Electronic Newsletter:
Observing the needed change into the electronic world, Jerri worked with Kelly McKenzie, Newsletter Editor, to create an electronic newsletter that cut printing and postage costs significantly.
Other Duties:
Jerri answers a continuous stream of e-mails, writes a monthly President's Message, and holds regular board meetings.
Prior to Presidency:
Jerri served as Critique Group Coordinator - 2005-006
Jerri served as Critique Group Coordinator and Publicity Chairperson - 2005-2006 - She took numerous jobs because the club was at it's lowest membership and participation in recent years. CWC met in the Great Aunt Stella Church Building and were bumped from the basement meeting room to the Sanctuary. The rent continued at $200 per month plus $75 for a closet storage. The Sanctuary was NOT conducive to the meeting or visitation before or after the meeting. The building parking was dark and not in a good location. Parking was limited due to construction. We were lucky to average 30 people in attendance.
As the fiscal year came to a close, Jerri was asked if she would keep her jobs for the following year. Her reply, "No, not unless things changed greatly in the club," meaning President and location. She was assured by Tony Abbott, CWC Advisor, that he would see to it that a strong President was put into place. The decline of not just that particular year, but had started earlier and Jerri felt a lot of it was due to location.
Change of Venue:
Jerri contacted Joseph-Beth Booksellers at SouthPark for their room upstairs. She negotiated with the person in charge and got the room for free based on the fact that CWC members would eat at their Bistro, purchase books, and purchase other items. Ever since September 2006 CWC has been meeting upstairs in the open area set up each month for free at Joseph-Beth's. It has been a mutual agreement ever since. Membership began to grow for that first meeting under Richard Taylor, President, to 269 members at the end of Jerri's first year. Richard proved to be a great and likable President and an excellent asset to CWC.
Critique Groups:
Under Richard Taylor, Jerri actively worked with Richard to coordinate writing critique groups. They grew from three during Richard's term to eleven during Jerri's first Presidency in 2008-2009 with the help of Joseph Spencer coordinating these groups during the latter year.
Website:
In September 2006 Jerri also served as Webmaster. Prior to her taking over the website, the club paid $300 per year for web hosting and approximately $100 for the domain name. Jerri reduced those expenses to $76.60 for two years hosting fees and domain cost of $64.71 through the year 2018.
With a new website design, Jerri added a free CWC Newsletter copy to all who signed up. This alone created many new members.
Retiring from President:
Was Jerri be happy when her Presidential job was over? Jerri says, "Yes, indeed, however, I have loved every minute and will continue to support CWC an anyway I can. I desperately want to get back to my three novels, one of which I completed working with a New York Editor. Never could I trade the wonderful experiences I've had meeting and working with such terrific people and a great organization of writers. My job could not have been done had it not been for the CWC Board and members. My hat goes off to all of them."
Newsletter and Convention Book Clips
Jerri Gibson McCloud ©2005-11