hi joy!!  (and everyone else):
 
i, too, went through a period of trying to get booked locally with no luck.  a couple of years after i started calling, i moved to a city with  a large weekly dance, hoping to get some calling experience.  but getting on the rotation was quite difficult - in fact, i never officially made it - i was on probation until i moved.  i called at glen echo and at two dance weekends before i was allowed to audition at my "home" dance.  in the end, it didn't really affect my calling career much.
 
joy, you make a bunch of great suggestions below.  there are dances everywhere - i contacted organizers all over the place.  i put a lot of miles on my car, for sure!  but that gave me the chance to let people see me call and hear my name.  if i worked hard and did a good job, people noticed and that got me more gigs.  
 
but the thing i like best is the concept of teaching beginners' workshops.  i consider that one of the most useful things i ever learned to do.  in fact, i concentrate far more on how i'm going to teach the class than i do anything else.
 
if i can teach the "newbies" to do everything i want them to do, i KNOW i can teach everyone else.  i never quite understand when organizers ask if i want the "regulars" to teach the class - i think it's not only the most important thing i do in terms of teaching, it's even more important in setting a happy and relaxed tone for the beginners.  i try to make it feel like a "party" right away, never a "class".  i also give them a chance to become familiar with my calling style, and i can emphasize what's in the first part of my program.  
 
i've seen a number of callers teach great classes - and in my mind, the thing that they all have in common is that they make people feel COMFORTABLE and COMPETENT.  gotta say i've seen some "great" callers teach classes that made me cringe, too!  in my mind, working on my teaching skills has done far more to improve my calling skills than anything else.
 
i've often had people comment that i am good at getting beginners to do "hard" dances.  my personal opinion is that i don't call "hard" dances.  what i do is make sure i know exactly how to teach every figure and that it is reasonable to do those figures in the amount of time allowed.  i regularly call grand squares for groups of beginners and dances such as kathy anderson's "tropical gentleman" at local dances.  
 
two tidbits - though i've called at dance weekends and big dances across the country, i prefer the smaller dances.  you get to know everyone and i think they're more fun.  also, i used to be a "square dance bigot" - HATED the things!  that is, until i heard callers like cis hinkle and kathy anderson and lisa greenleaf and ron buchanan and beth molaro and david kirchner and big bill sudkamp, who were all very good at it.  now i love 'em and love to call 'em.  what a difference a good teacher can make!
 
barb
 
http://www.barbkirchner.us
 
> From: joy2the at mindspring.com> To: callers at sharedweight.net> Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:12:35 -0400> Subject: Re: [Callers] Trouble Getting Gigs (very long)> > I can commiserate with your dilemma and have lots of thoughts running > through my head about this.> > I met a lot of resistance to getting booked in my local series...
> I started contacting organizers and especially dance-bookers for > dances within a 1-4 hour drive radius of me. I'd look at online > schedules and look for openings. I'd "cold-call" email them, > introducing myself...
> > So based on my experience, the first thing I'd advise is to expand > your range of potential gigs. Experience is experience even if you > have to drive to get there. Also, as one friend said, It's amazing > how much more talented you become when you come from 100 miles away!> > Looking back, I can see that I did a number of things to maximize > those experiences...
> After the dance, I thank the organizer for having me call for them > (even if things went poorly)...> > Another thing that helped my teaching/experience was regularly > teaching the beginners workshop for a local dance. That gave me lots > of opportunity to try different ways/methods/sequences of teaching the > basics within a certain time period...
> > Traveling some is not a bad way to go...Good luck!> > Joy Greenwolfe> Durham, NC> 
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