Lunch with Amy Newmark, the publisher of Chicken Soup for the Soul anthologies, Times Square, July 30, 2018
The following is a quote from the Chicken Soup for the Soul Communique for Aug./Sept.2018: "We hosted a contributor luncheon at Buca di Beppo Italian restaurant in Times Square on July 30th. There were more than two-dozen contributors there, including the very prolific Erika Hoffman (at least 13 stories in our recent books) and Cynthia Gary, who both flew up from North Carolina to join us! That’s amore!"
Sixteen contributions to Chicken Soup for the Soul
ENDORSEMENTS
Erika finds the common thread in the everyday occurrences of life, both poignant and funny, writing them in a way that makes the reader want to buy her a cup of coffee and hear more. Her sentences are well crafted and thoughtful - always a pleasure to read. -Leslie Moore, Editor Strand Media Group
Erika Hoffman's essays are funny, insightful, and plain good reading. - N.K. Wagner, Executive Editor, Page & Spine
And this from a former student... Erika, Please know that I would not have this success without taking your class. I just wouldn't have considered selling to this publication. Plus the positive-style class feedback, and your knowledgeable and spirited instruction helped inspire me. Thanks also for your ongoing communications, with reports on writing projects and the successes you are having. Helps keep the brain waves active, at least a little. - Maureen O' Brien
I took a writing class from Erika Hoffman through OLLI at Duke University. Even though I had several writing classes under my belt, she was the first to encourage, teach and support publishing. Every week we were provided with the many opportunities available and shown how to edit our stories to fit the publication. As a result, Chicken Soup for The Soul published a story I had written in class. She is a wonderful teacher who provides a positive environment for her students. -- Cathy Chernow During my thirty years of teaching, I loved helping my students find their voices through writing, but I seldom made time to work on my own writing. A few years ago I began taking writing classes, including Erika Hoffman's class on how to write for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. With the help of Erika Hoffman and the class, I wrote, revised, and submitted for publication a story about falling in love with a wonderful guy (now my husband) who did not fit my mom's rules for marriage. When I received the email, "Your story, 'Breaking the Rules for Love,' has made it to the first phase of our selection round," I felt that Erika deserved much of the credit. She helped me to find my voice and showed me a path to publication. Thank you, Erika! Suzanne Garner Payne I took a class from Erika at OLLI at Duke University on “Writing Chicken Soup for the Soul stories.” We learned how to write first person, inspirational stories – uplifting, but not sappy. I had published a non-fiction history book, so this was a new and somewhat daunting direction for me. Erika challenged us to write our own stories, based on the topics Chicken Soup was seeking. We read aloud and edited each other’s works. I completed two stories which I submitted to the publisher – the story about my mother is being published in a few months – this is particularly exciting because my mother is now 97 years old and she will be able to see her influence in print! I would not have been able to write this without Erika’s guidance and encouragement, and I am using those skills in crafting new essays. Nancy Haines
On April 27, 2019 Erika Hoffman was a presenter at the Triangle Area Freelancers' conference called WRITE NOW. Her power point revolved around writing the personal essay. The image above is of her just before she began speaking. TAF has produced two anthologies in which Erika has essays. In 2020, TAF Stays Home was published and in 2021 The TAF Reader: Books on a Freelancer Writer's Shelf came out.