READINGS : Writers’ Bloc : A local chapter of a scribes’ association meets monthly to network and hear presentations on an array of topics.

Writers love to hobnob with other writers. This was just as true in the early 1900s, when Jack London and a few pen-wielding friends used to meet for shop talk at the Coppa Club in San Francisco. Out of that fellowship, eventually, came the California Writers’ Club, an association of scribes who kept their spirits up with the motto, “Sail on!”

Eighty-three years later, the club sails on still, and its San Fernando Valley chapter, founded in 1986, meets monthly for professional networking and presentations on a wide panoply of writerly topics. Members learn what’s hot and what’s not among today’s editors and publishers and also get help with their computer problems and feedback on their work.

Perhaps most valuable of all the club’s perks is the moral support generated by kindred spirits. “It’s lonely being a writer,” says Elizabeth Ziemba, a club member and small-press editor who has addressed the group on preparing short stories for submission to magazines. Ziemba finds relief from isolation in “just being with people who do what I do.”

According to club bylaws, writers who seek active membership must present recent publication credits, but anyone serious about writing may join as an associate, in any of five categories: fiction, nonfiction, photojournalism, poetry and playwriting. Even non-members are welcome--for a $5 charge--to come hear working professionals in a variety of genres lecture on such subjects as book packaging, stylistic trends in writing and how to market a manuscript.

Practical, up-to-date information, says longtime member Scott Sonders, a poet and Valley College writing teacher, “allows writers to remain dynamic in a world that’s constantly moving forward.”

Linda McCabe, who joined the club a year ago, says the diversity of speakers has helped her focus her amorphous urge to write. Moreover, she adds, “most writers don’t win Pulitzers right away. A club like this strengthens your faith in yourself, and your ability to keep going.”

Persistence will be one of writer Gerry Maddren’s subjects when she addresses the group tomorrow. Maddren, the author of a published mystery novel (“The Case of the Johannesberg Riesling,” Cliffhanger Press, 1988), another novel recently optioned for television, more than 50 short stories and a couple of books that never made it into print, began to write while raising seven children. She plans to read from her latest manuscript, a novel called “Real Revenge,” and talk about how she discovered her flair for the mysterious.

On Jan. 2, the club will host the Writer’s Exchange, a critical workshop in which authors divide up by literary genre and share their work. Myles Moran, club vice president for programs, encourages “anyone interested in words” to bring a manuscript and join in.

The workings of the publishing world will be the subject of a Feb. 8 presentation by Harry Neuman, a textbook wholesaler and 50-year veteran of the book business. “Most text publishers also handle trade books,” says Neuman, who plans to address “what writers should know about publishers’ interests” as well as common problems authors encounter in turning their manuscripts into books and articles.

On March 6, Patricia Seeley of Irvine-based Ranking Communications will discuss “Freelance Writing for Local Markets,” a subject she has covered in two booklets, the “Guide to Los Angeles Freelance Markets” and the “Guide to Orange County Freelance Markets.”

Screenwriter David Alexander, the April 3 speaker, will explain how he got from Portland, Ore.--where he made commercials and industrial films--to Hollywood, where he has written 10 scripts in three years. Two are under option and one has been made into a movie by Cannon Films. Alexander, a witty and polished writer, is expected to shed some light on the mysteries of spec writing, agent-hunting and simply surviving in a crowded, competitive arena.

Susan Patron, children’s book writer and a Los Angeles Public Library senior children’s librarian, will speak May 1 about writing picture books and short novels for children. Patron is the author of “Burgoo Stew” (1991) and “Five Bad Boys, Billy Que, and the Dustdobbin” (1992), both published by Orchard Books.

Where and When What: California Writers’ Club meetings at the Meeting Place (off the Food Court), Fallbrook Mall, 6633 Fallbrook Ave., Canoga Park. When: 1:30 p.m. the first Saturday of each month, except July and August. Cost: $25 a year to join, plus one-time $20 initiation fee. Non-members can attend for $5 per session. Call: Margie Davidson, club president, (818) 882-9952.