Meetings
Here is a complete list of our upcoming meetings for 2012:
January 7, 2012 - Book Chat/Published Author Panel - We will be discussing Anne Stuart’s romantic suspense “Ice Storm”. In addition, we will have a panel of our published authors ready, willing, and eager to answer your burning questions about the publishing world.
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February 4, 2012 - Group Critique - VFRW members will upload 5 pages of a work-in-progress to be critiqued ahead of time and reviewed at the meeting. Get your first pages in top shape and ready for contest and query submissions!
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March 3, 2012 - Terri Brisbin – Hooks and How to Use Them – From First to Last Word! A three-time RWA RITA® finalist, Terri has been writing romance fiction since 1995 and has had 18 historical and paranormal romances published since then. She’s now working on more romance novels, novellas and short stories for release from Harlequin Historical Romances and Kensington Brava.
A writer must grab the reader’s attention and keep it from sentence to sentence, paragraph to paragraph, page to page and chapter to chapter. And if that reader is an editor, hooking them from beginning to end is critical. Terri reviews the elements and importance of the first page and the first chapter and how effective hooks can be used in strengthening the pacing and structure throughout your book to the last word. (For beginning and experienced writers).
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April 7, 2012 - Diana Holquist and Ellen Hartman…The Virgin Widow’s Heart Stopped When She Saw the Workshop That Would Change Her Life Forever: How to Recognize Clichés and Use Them to Make Your Writing Shine (and sell!)
Change a weakness into a strength by learning to recognize and work with and against romance novel clichés to make your writing shine–and sell. Bring a 2-paragraph sample of an opening scene of your romance manuscript/book to the workshop, and we’ll see if we can work together to spot your clichés and change them for the better.
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May 5, 2012 - Kathy Kulig – Screen Writing Tools for Building Your Novel - Kathy Kulig is an award-winning author of sizzling paranormal, contemporary and erotic romances and the current President of Pocono Lehigh Romance Writers.
Whether you are just learning to write your first novel or have written several, screenwriting structure is a method that can be applied to crafting novels. By using Michael Hauge’s Three Act/Six Stage Plot structure, Kathy will use examples from movies to analyze this technique. Other topics to be covered will be the importance of the goal and how it should directly leapfrog to the climax, and also the 5 key turning points in all successful novels. Other topics discussed: Build your story foundations with three basic elements: Character, Desire and Conflict. Ways to create empathy for the hero and elicit emotion. What is premise? And why is it important.
Note: This workshop has been presented at the NJRW Conference and local writer’s groups.
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June 9, 2012 - To be announced.
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July 7, 2012 - To be announced.
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August 4, 2012 - Bob Mayer and his business partner, Jen Talty, will be giving us three one-hour workshops. We’ll start at 9am that day. The three workshops will cover the following topics: (1) The Original Idea: the heart of your story and key to selling your book. (2) Outlining and Plot: the events of your story. (3) Beyond the ebook: how do you sell it?
Bob Mayer is the NY Times bestselling author of factual thrillers. He’s been on bestseller lists in thriller, science fiction, suspense, action, war, historical fiction and is the only male author on the Romance Writers of America Honor Roll. Bob has presented for over 1,000 organizations both in the United States and internationally, including keynote presentations, all day workshops, and multi-day seminars. For more information see www.bobmayer.org.
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September 8, 2012 - Moving Your Fiction Forward. Award-winning fiction author Ellyn Bache will present an intense hour-and-a-half workshop about moving your fiction forward when you get stuck, with lots of writing prompts and ideas on how to make changes (often surprisingly small) to jumpstart the work.
Ellyn is the author of nine novels (including SAFE PASSAGE which became a Susan Sarandon film), a short story collection that won the Willa Cather Fiction Prize, a nonfiction journal, and several books for teens and children. Her latest novel is THE ART OF SAYING GOODBYE (William Morrow trade paper, 2011).
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October 6, 2012 - Writing Comedy. Discuss the ins and outs of writing comedy with Harlequin/Avalon author, Holly Jacobs.
Almost two and half million copies of Holly Jacobs’ books have sold worldwide. Her category romances have made Walden’s Bestseller List and won numerous awards such as the National Readers’ Choice Award, Holt Medallion, Bookseller’s Best, Golden Quill, Golden Leaf, More than Magic and Madcap Awards. She’s won two of Romantic Times’ Reviewers’ Choice Awards and also won their prestigious Career Achievement Award for Series Love and Laughter. She’s presented more than forty workshops across the U.S. on a variety of writing related subjects from writing romantic comedy to time management. You can visit her at www.HollyJacobs.com
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November 3, 2012 - How’d They Do That? An overly anal and mostly organized author will show her tricks for studying the craft and structure of some of her favorite authors. From category to single title, the three-act structure, as well as Margie Lawson’s EDITS System, will be implemented to break apart a book scene by scene to see how it’s done.
December, 2012 - Our VFRW holiday party! Details will be announced as we approach the date.