Thanks for Being our Friends

We reconstituted SANDSWA because we thought there might be pent up demand for a local science writing organization. Judging by the response at yesterday’s Farmer & The Seahorse happy hour, we weren’t wrong.

We guesstimate around 50 people showed up – freelancers, PIOs, journalists, marketing and PR pros, postdocs, grad students and at least one PI. People came from UCSD, Salk, SBP, LIAI, the UT, Canale, CG Life, Little Dog. There were past, present and (possibly) future San Diego Business Journal biotech writers. Thanks everyone for coming. And if you couldn’t make it, we missed you.

In a way, it was like a big family reunion where everyone gets along. We got to meet (IRL) so many people we knew only via email. There were former colleagues reacquainting and more than a few who had held the same positions at different times.

On a personal note, I’ve been to science events where I’m the only writer, and I have to explain what I do. And I’ve been to PR and journalism events where I’m the only science writer, and I have to explain what I do. It was nice getting to skip the preamble.

So, what’s next? There will be networking, facility tours, speakers, book signings. Stay tuned for a calendar of events (coming soon). If there’s anything you’d like to see, please let us know.

In the interim, you can become a member – only $25 or $15 for fulltime students. Join by July 31 and your one-year membership becomes an 18-month membership. You won’t have to re-up until 2020.

On the social media side, please follow, like and retweet on Twitter @SANDSWA2. We will be opening our Facebook page soon as well, so watch out for that.

We’re also looking for volunteers. You can help plan events, take on administrative duties or submit a guest blog. Send us a nice note, sandswa.info@gmail.com. We want to keep in touch.