Helvy Tiana Rosa is one of the 10 most famous female-writers in Indonesia, according to the national news TV station MetroTV, 2009. She is also one of the Top 500 Most Influential Muslims in The World (for Arts and Culture), listed by The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre, Jordan, and Georgetown University, 2009.

Helvy has been writing poetry and short stories since 1979. She has written more than 40 books. Her short stories have been translated into English, Arabic, French, Germany, Japanese, Swedish, etc.

After completed her bachelor and master's degree in literature from University of Indonesia (UI), Helvy has been teaching literature at Dept. of Indonesian Language & Literary at State University of Jakarta (UNJ). Now she is taking doctoral degree in language education in State University of Jakarta.

Helvy is a member of Majelis Sastra Asia Tenggara (the Southeast Asia Board of Literature) and Vice Chairwoman for the Indonesian chapter of the International League of Islamic Literature. She is also a Director at Lingkar Pena Publishing House. Helvy often represents Indonesia in literary events, both at home and abroad.

In 1991-2001, Helvy worked as a managing editor and then Editor in Chief of Annida Magazine--a famous Islamic teen magazine in Indonesia.

In 1990, she founded Teater Bening, an all-female Islamic teatre Group in Indonesia.

Helvy is the founding member of Forum Lingkar Pena (FLP) a writers group established in 1997. FLP now has more than 7,000 members and until 2008 has published more than 1000 book titles together with more than 50 publishers. FLP has branches in more than 125 cities across Indonesia and abroad.

In 2003-2006 Helvy was a member of the Literary Committee at Dewan Kesenian Jakarta (The Jakarta Arts Council).

Honors and Awards:

2009: SheCAN! Award, Tupperware.
2009: Kartini Award as one of The Most Inspiring Women in Indonesia, by Kartini Magazine
2008: Indonesian Inspiring Woman by Tabloid Wanita Indonesia
2008: Helvy brought Forum Lingkar Pena (FLP), a non profit organization which she established, to get Danamon Award 2008, a national award to recognize individual & groups who have significant contribution to the society.
2008: PKS Award as one of 100 Indonesia's Young Leaders
2008: Bukavu was selected as nominee of Khatulistiwa Literary Award 2008
2008: Award for Distinguished Lecturer by Universitas Negeri Jakarta
2007: Indonesian Woman Icon by Gatra Magazine
2007: Nominee in Indonesian Distinguished Award, in Arts & Culture, from XL
2006: IBF Award as Book Distinguished Person from IKAPI (The Association of Indonesian Publisher)
2006: Eramuslim Award as Literary Distinguished Person
2006: Distiguished Indonesian Islamic Woman by Alia magazine
2004: Award for Distinguished Indonesian Woman by Tabloid Nova and the Ministry for Women Empowerment
2004: Ummi Award, from Ummi Magazine
2002: Lelaki Kabut dan Boneka (Dolls and The Man of Mist) was judged as the best short story collection and won Pena Award
2000: One of Ten Prominent Indonesian Women Figures by Amanah Magazine
2000: 'Jaring-jaring Merah' (the Red Nets) was selected as one of the best short stories in a decade by literary magazine: Horison
1992: "Fisabilillah" won in Iqra National Poetry Contest, judged by HB Jassin & Sutardji Calzoum Bachri, etc.

Judul Buku : First Step To be A Writer
Penulis : Darmo Budi Suseno
Penerbit : Cakrawala
Cetakan : Pertama, April 2006
Tebal : 148 hlm
Benarkah menulis itu sulit? Bagi pemula atau orang yang baru memulai terjun ke dunia kata (kepenulisan) bisa jadi demikian. Tetapi bagi mereka yang sudah terbiasa, “menulis itu mudah”.
Kegiatan menulis sesungguhnya adalah proses mengubah cara ungkap kita yang semula melalui mulut (lisan), kemudian diganti dengan cara ungkap simbolik berupa huruf yang mempunyai makna atau pengertian tertentu. Kita sering menjumpai seseorang ketika bercerita, bertutur atau berargumentasi melalui lisan sangat menarik. Akan tetapi, saat si empunya cerita diminta untuk menuliskan argumentasi atau seluruh provokasinya tersebut, sungguh tidak menarik. Atau sebaliknya, orang yang biasa-biasa saja dan sangat pendiam tetapi ketika diminta menulis, hasilnya tulisan yang mengalir, berisi dan mengagumkan.
Menulis tak ubahnya bentuk keterampilan (skill) yang lain. Artinya semakin diasah, semakin bagus pula hasilnya. Proses menulis lebih banyak melibatkan berbagai aspek dalam diri seseorang dibandingkan dengan proses bicara (oral). Jika kegiatan berbicara prosesnya dimulai dari pikiran (otak), kemudian dibunyikan lewat lisan. Sementara kegiatan menulis prosesnya diawali dari melihat (mata), kemudian dicerna (otak), dirasa (hati), baru dituangkan melalui tangan dalam bentuk tulisan.
Diawali tema seputar seluk beluk dunia kepenulisan, serta persoalan-persoalan klasik bagi penulis pemula seperti: kehabisan ide, kaya ide tetapi tak mampu menuangkannya dalam bentuk tulisan dan banyak mempunyai tulisan tetapi tidak tau cara mengirimkannya pada media massa. Penulis pemula pada umumnya mempunyai ide atau gagasan yang meluap-luap. Tetapi ketika dituangkan dalam bentuk tulisan, hasilnya melebar dan tidak fokus. Ibaratnya ide sebesar gajah atau singa, tetapi produk yang dihasilkan sebesar tikus pun tidak. Menjadi seorang penulis terkenal, prosesnya antara penulis satu dengan yang lain berbeda-beda. Misalnya Pramudya Ananta Toer (Pram) harus mendekam di penjara selama bertahun-tahun —karena tulisannya berseberangan dengan rezim yang berkuasa— sebelum akhirnya menjadi penulis terkenal. Atau Joni Aryadinata yang sebelumnya hanya seorang tukang becak yang biasa mangkal di Malioboro. Tetapi, tinju seorang gali yang mendarat ke mulutnya telah mengubahnya menjadi penulis dan pembicara sastra yang disegani di negeri ini. Para penulis tersebut mempunyai kesamaan berupa motivasi yang tinggi dalam dirinya, pantang menyerah, ulet dan tabah. Tak kalah pentingnya sebelum terjun menjadi penulis adalah niat.
Menurut penulis buku ini, niat sangat menentukan karakter dan proses seseorang menjadi penulis di kemudian hari. Jika niatnya hanya sekedar mencari popularitas, atau hanya ingin tulisannya banyak dimuat di media dan mendapat uang, penulis tipe ini tidak akan bertahan lama. Tetapi seseorang yang menulis dengan disertai niat tulus, hati yang ikhlas serta kaya akan gagasan baru, bisa merubah dunia. Tulisannya akan abadi dikenang sepanjang zaman. Misalnya Rold Dahl dengan Trilogi Lord of the Rings, JK Rowling dengan Harry Potter, Karl Mark dengan Das Kapital-nya, Imam Ghazali dengan Ihya’ Ulumiddin-nya atau Pramudya Ananta Toer dengan Ken Arok-nya.
Selanjutnya dipaparkan cara membuat berbagai bentuk tulisan seperti cerpen, artikel, puisi resensi, feature, dan naskah drama disertai contoh-contohnya. Pembaca diajak untuk trampil menerapkan teori kepenulisan bukan sekedar menghafalkannya. Selain itu berbagai trik serta tips menulis kreatif juga disertakan dalam buku ini misalnya tips “jurus dewa mabuk” yang berisi strategi menulis hingga menjadi sebuah buku atau menembus media masa.
Kelebihan buku yang ada di tangan pembaca ini di antaranya: pertama, penulis buku ini sehari-harinya berprofesi sebagai pengajar pada Jogja Writing School (JWS) —sebuah institusi pendidikan yang bertujuan menghasilkan penulis-penulis berbakat— sehingga buku ini laksana “refleksi pengalaman nyata” penulisnya, bukan sekedar teori-teori tanpa fakta sebagai mana yang dijumpai dalam buku-buku sejenis.
Kedua, penulis buku ini sudah malang-melintang di dunia kepenulisan. Buku pertamanya Nasionalisme dan Cinta Iwan Fals sempat menjadi Best Seller di Jakarta, juga buku keduanya Dangdut Musik Rakyat adalah referensi utama bagi peneliti yang hendak menggali musik dandut. Tidak hanya sampai disitu, pembaca akan merasakan nuansa nyata dunia kepenulisan manakala membaca buku ini, dan buku ini layak dibaca para penulis pemula atau orang yang ingin terjun ke dunia kepenulisan.[] *) Penulis adalah Mahasiswa Program Pascasarjana Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta.

Actor in a Leading Role
• Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
• Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
• Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
• Colin Firth in “The King's Speech”
• James Franco in “127 Hours”
Actor in a Supporting Role
• Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
• John Hawkes in “Winter's Bone”
• Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
• Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
• Geoffrey Rush in “The King's Speech”
Actress in a Leading Role
• Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
• Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
• Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter's Bone”
• Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
• Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”
Actress in a Supporting Role
• Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
• Helena Bonham Carter in “The King's Speech”
• Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
• Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
• Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”
Animated Feature Film
• “How to Train Your Dragon” Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois
• “The Illusionist” Sylvain Chomet
• “Toy Story 3” Lee Unkrich
Art Direction
• “Alice in Wonderland”
Production Design: Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Karen O'Hara
• “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1”
Production Design: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
• “Inception”
Production Design: Guy Hendrix Dyas; Set Decoration: Larry Dias and Doug Mowat
• “The King's Speech”
Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Judy Farr
• “True Grit”
Production Design: Jess Gonchor; Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh
Cinematography
• “Black Swan” Matthew Libatique
• “Inception” Wally Pfister
• “The King's Speech” Danny Cohen
• “The Social Network” Jeff Cronenweth
• “True Grit” Roger Deakins
Costume Design
• “Alice in Wonderland” Colleen Atwood
• “I Am Love” Antonella Cannarozzi
• “The King's Speech” Jenny Beavan
• “The Tempest” Sandy Powell
• “True Grit” Mary Zophres
Directing
• “Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky
• “The Fighter” David O. Russell
• “The King's Speech” Tom Hooper
• “The Social Network” David Fincher
• “True Grit” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Documentary (Feature)
• “Exit through the Gift Shop” Banksy and Jaimie D'Cruz
• “Gasland” Josh Fox and Trish Adlesic
• “Inside Job” Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs
• “Restrepo” Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger
• “Waste Land” Lucy Walker and Angus Aynsley
Documentary (Short Subject)
• “Killing in the Name” Jed Rothstein
• “Poster Girl” Sara Nesson and Mitchell W. Block
• “Strangers No More” Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon
• “Sun Come Up” Jennifer Redfearn and Tim Metzger
• “The Warriors of Qiugang” Ruby Yang and Thomas Lennon
Film Editing
• “Black Swan” Andrew Weisblum
• “The Fighter” Pamela Martin
• “The King's Speech” Tariq Anwar
• “127 Hours” Jon Harris
• “The Social Network” Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter
Foreign Language Film
• “Biutiful” Mexico
• “Dogtooth” Greece
• “In a Better World” Denmark
• “Incendies” Canada
• “Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi)” Algeria
Makeup
• “Barney's Version” Adrien Morot
• “The Way Back” Edouard F. Henriques, Gregory Funk and Yolanda Toussieng
• “The Wolfman” Rick Baker and Dave Elsey
Music (Original Score)
• “How to Train Your Dragon” John Powell
• “Inception” Hans Zimmer
• “The King's Speech” Alexandre Desplat
• “127 Hours” A.R. Rahman
• “The Social Network” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Music (Original Song)
• “Coming Home” from “Country Strong” Music and Lyric by Tom Douglas, Troy Verges and Hillary Lindsey
• “I See the Light” from “Tangled” Music by Alan Menken Lyric by Glenn Slater
• “If I Rise” from “127 Hours” Music by A.R. Rahman Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong
• “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3" Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
Best Picture
• “Black Swan” Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver and Scott Franklin, Producers
• “The Fighter” David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg, Producers
• “Inception” Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan, Producers
• “The Kids Are All Right” Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte and Celine Rattray, Producers
• “The King's Speech” Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin, Producers
• “127 Hours” Christian Colson, Danny Boyle and John Smithson, Producers
• “The Social Network” Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, Michael De Luca and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
• “Toy Story 3” Darla K. Anderson, Producer
• “True Grit” Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
• “Winter's Bone" Anne Rosellini and Alix Madigan-Yorkin, Producers
Short Film (Animated)
• “Day & Night” Teddy Newton
• “The Gruffalo” Jakob Schuh and Max Lang
• “Let's Pollute” Geefwee Boedoe
• “The Lost Thing” Shaun Tan and Andrew Ruhemann
• “Madagascar, carnet de voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)” Bastien Dubois
Short Film (Live Action)
• “The Confession” Tanel Toom
• “The Crush” Michael Creagh
• “God of Love” Luke Matheny
• “Na Wewe” Ivan Goldschmidt
• “Wish 143” Ian Barnes and Samantha Waite
Sound Editing
• “Inception” Richard King
• “Toy Story 3” Tom Myers and Michael Silvers
• “Tron: Legacy” Gwendolyn Yates Whittle and Addison Teague
• “True Grit” Skip Lievsay and Craig Berkey
• “Unstoppable” Mark P. Stoeckinger
Sound Mixing
• “Inception” Lora Hirschberg, Gary A. Rizzo and Ed Novick
• “The King's Speech” Paul Hamblin, Martin Jensen and John Midgley
• “Salt” Jeffrey J. Haboush, Greg P. Russell, Scott Millan and William Sarokin
• “The Social Network” Ren Klyce, David Parker, Michael Semanick and Mark Weingarten
• “True Grit” Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff and Peter F. Kurland
Visual Effects
• “Alice in Wonderland” Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips
• “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1” Tim Burke, John Richardson, Christian Manz and Nicolas Aithadi
• “Hereafter” Michael Owens, Bryan Grill, Stephan Trojansky and Joe Farrell
• “Inception” Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb
• “Iron Man 2” Janek Sirrs, Ben Snow, Ged Wright and Daniel Sudick
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
• “127 Hours” Screenplay by Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy
• “The Social Network” Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin
• “Toy Story 3” Screenplay by Michael Arndt; Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich
• “True Grit” Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
• “Winter's Bone” Adapted for the screen by Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini
Writing (Original Screenplay)
• “Another Year” Written by Mike Leigh
• “The Fighter” Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson;
Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson
• “Inception” Written by Christopher Nolan
• “The Kids Are All Right” Written by Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg
• “The King's Speech” Screenplay by David Seidler