J.D. Barker: The Featured Presenter at the Write Stuff 2021

J.D. Barker, a New York Times best-selling author and book doctor, will lead several sessions at this year’s Write Stuff conference. 

J.D. (for Jonathan Dylan) is a master of suspense with a number of novels in print. His debut novel, Forsaken, was a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award. Other novels include Dracul, The Fourth Monkey, and She Has a Broken Thing Where Her Heart Should Be. He is currently collaborating with another best-selling author, James Patterson. 

J.D.’s books have been translated into two dozen languages and have been optioned for both film and TV.

He also worked as “book doctor” for more than 20 years. 

At the Write Stuff conference, he is leading a full-day book development workshop on Friday, March 26. Don’t miss it!

On Sunday, March 28, he will lead two sessions:

• Crossing Genres: From Indie to Traditional: Every Dirty Little Secret You Need to Know!
• An interview session: Taking questions from attendees

Learn more details about J.D. in this interview by publicity chair Kelly Shamblee: 

It’s on the Write Stuff YouTube channel.

Register for the conference here: https://greaterlehighvalleywritersgroup.wildapricot.org/page-1859773.

Harrision Demchick: A Featured Presenter at the Write Stuff 2021

Harrison Demchick, an author, musician, filmmaker, and editor, is one of the featured presenters at this year’s Write Stuff conference.  

Harrison is a developmental editor of fiction and memoir. He’s also a multi-optioned filmmaker, with his first film now in production.

At the conference, Harrison is leading three sessions on Saturday, March 27:

• It’s the End of the World as We Know It and I Feel Fine: Why character consequence and reaction are necessary for conflict and tension.
• Bad Math, or How Right and Left Brain Work Together: Why logic is so important to the magic of creative invention.
• The Blueprint, or Building the Perfect Draft: How a well-constructed outline helps craft a stronger story.

Learn more details about Harrison in this interview by publicity chair Kelly Shamblee: 

It’s on the Write Stuff YouTube channel.

Register for the conference here: https://greaterlehighvalleywritersgroup.wildapricot.org/page-1859773.

Tim Esaias: A Featured Presenter at the Write Stuff 2021

Tim Esaias

Timons “Tim” Esaias, a satirist, writer and poet, is one of the featured presenters at this year’s Write Stuff conference.  

Tim writes satire, speculative fiction, poetry, and the occasional essay. His work has appeared in over a dozen different countries, and fifteen languages.

At the conference he’ll be leading two half-day seminars on Thursday, March 25: 

• What to Put In & What to Take Out: How to remove meaningless stuff from your prose and put content back in.
• Selected Elements of Style: Style makes or breaks your chance of a sale.
  Tim shows how to make it your servant.

On Saturday, March 27, Tim will lead three sessions:

• Getting Combat on the Page: Putting military theory into practice.
• Don’t be a Bobble-Head: Avoiding those story-killing cliche reactions.
• Those First Few Lines: Four ways to start your story.

You can take a deeper dive with Tim in this interview by GLVWG publicity chair Kelly Shamblee: https://youtu.be/Gm5HvFGRgW8. It’s on the new Write Stuff YouTube channel.

Register for the conference here: https://greaterlehighvalleywritersgroup.wildapricot.org/page-1859773.

2021 Write Stuff Is Virtual

This year’s Write Stuff writers conference will be entirely virtual. We’ll have J.D. Barker, Tim Esaias, and Harrison Demchick as our presenters. All workshops will be recorded, so wherever you live–in whatever time zone–you’ll be able to attend. Learn more about this year’s conference here: https://greaterlehighvalleywritersgroup.wildapricot.org/page-1859773.

Updated Information for the 2021 GLVWG Anthology

Tags

Anthology, Essay, Fiction, Poetry

The GLVWG Anthology, “Writes of Passage”, with scheduled publication March 2021, to coincide with the Write Stuff Writers Conference™, March 11 – 13, 2021.

The Anthology Chair, Suzanne Mattaboni, provides the submission dates and guidelines below. 

Please Note: Only GLVWG members will be able to submit stories to the anthology. 

It’s a great way to exercise those writing chops while in quarantine.  So get writing.  

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From Suzanne Mattaboni – Submission Guidelines for the 2021 GLVWG Anthology

If you wish to be included in the 2021 GLVWG anthology, here is information for formatting your file, submitting your work, and what to expect next.

Entries are now being accepted.   Cut off for submissions is September 1, 2020. Only electronic submissions will be accepted (.doc or .docx).

Submission Criteria

The submissions link for the 2021 GLVWG Anthology, “Writes of Passage,” go to the www.glvwg.org page for information.  Here are the basics:

Work must not have been previously published. It must be an interpretation of the theme (“Writes of Passage”) and PG-13 in content (no explicit gore or sex—use discretion on strong language).

Word length:

• Fiction – 2,500 words max
• Essay – 500 words max
• Poem – 10 lines minimum, 65 lines max; 70 characters max per line

You may enter as many of these three categories as you wish, but you can only enter once in each category.

Formatting Your File

The title of your file should include your name and your story name. For example, “Brennan – Blast From the Past.” Your full name and email address should be on the first page of your submission. You could put it in a header (so it’s on every page) or simply put it in the upper left-hand corner of the first page.

The title of your work should be underlined and centered on the first page.  Use Times New Roman 12 point font and double-space your work. The first line in each paragraph should be indented; no extra space between paragraphs.

Again, members need to sign on www.glvwg.org for additional details and links to submit work.

Thanks, and I hope you’re staying well!

–Suzanne

 

Suzanne Mattaboni

GLVWG 2021 Anthology Chair

Novelist, Essayist & Orchestrator of Short Fiction. Pushcart-nominated fiction writer, ’80s podcaster, RuPaul fan, too-loud singer, practicing neurotic — gleefully proceeding anyhow.

You can contact Suzanne at:   suzanne@mattaboni.com 

And follow her on Twitter and Facebook

The GLVWG Write Stuff Conference, March 12 – 14 has been postponed

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE GLVWG CONFERENCE COMMITTEE

After much consideration and input from health professionals and some of our presenters, the Write Stuff Conference for March 12-14 has been postponed due to the growing concern over the Corona virus. We have never canceled before and did not do so lightly. Our first priority is to get the word out; we will then proceed as quickly as we can in keeping you updated on the resulting consequences of our decision as well as a future date.

 

Thank you for your understanding.

Kelly Jensen – Writer of Love Stories, Bibliophile, Gamer, Hiker, Cat Herder, Waiting for the Aliens

Tags

Kelly Jensen, World Building, Writing, Writing Conferences, Writing Craft, Writing Romance

Kelly Jensen, critically acclaimed and award winning Author, will join us at the GLVWG Write Stuff Writers Conference™, “2020 Vision”, on Saturday, March 14, at the Best Western Lehigh Valley Hotel & Conference Center.

Kelly will facilitate 3 sessions:

 Grab the Reader in the First Chapter

 Outlining is for Everyone

 Worldbuilding

 

** Scroll Down for Details **

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Biography:

If aliens ever do land on Earth, Kelly Jensen will not be prepared, despite having read over a hundred stories of the apocalypse. Still, she will pack her precious books into a box and carry them with her as she strives to survive. It’s what bibliophiles do. 

Kelly is the author of twelve novels, including the critically acclaimed Chaos Station series and the award-winning novel, Block and Strike. She has also published eight novellas and too many short stories to count. Some of what she writes is speculative in nature, but mostly it’s just about a guy losing his socks and/or burning dinner. Because life isn’t all conquering aliens and mountain peaks. Sometimes finding a happy ever after is all the adventure we need. 

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An Interview with Kelly Jensen

By Conference CoChair—Umber Rana

Q: Do you have a disciplined writing routine?  If so, what does it include? Do you have any pre-writing rituals or habits before you sit down?

Kelly: I do have a routine! I write Monday through Friday from 6 am to 9 am. I aim for 2000 words or a chapter every day. After getting my words down, I edit or work on administrative tasks. But words always come first.

I don’t really have any pre-writing rituals except to eat breakfast. I’m pretty focused on breakfast. I think about it the night before and cook something hot most days. It’s my writing fuel!

Q: Share the strangest source of inspiration for your writing that you can remember.

Kelly: One of my favorite books (To See the Sun) was inspired by a Harlequin Historical Romance set in Montana during the 1800s. It wasn’t a book I’d normally pick up on my own, but part of a judging packet for the RWA’s RITA contest. I enjoyed the book more than I thought I would. Marriages of convenience (arranged, mail-order-spouse) have long been one of my favorite romantic tropes, but it’s not one that works well for gay romance. So I decided to try writing one. I set my story on another planet, and as a nod to this unexpectedly good read, gave my planet a wild west sort of theme: a new colony at the far edge of the galaxy, populated by former miners and terraformers who’d like a companion to share their new lives with. It was a fun book to write, and an idea that might never have occurred to me without that great little historical!

Q: What advice can you give beginning authors in establishing their brand and media presence?

Kelly: Be your most authentic self. I agonized for years over my social media presence and my author brand, only to realize that my blog, my IG feed, and my Twitter and Facebook posts all said the same thing: I was a science fiction nerd who played too many video games, bought too many books, and liked to go hiking. For me, the best part was that I tend to write characters with the same hobbies as mine. So it all fit. I aim to be upbeat and personable without getting too personal.

Q: How do you find the stories and lives that become the subject of your books? How do you research?

Kelly: My stories nearly always start with a single character. I want to write a certain sort of person in a certain situation, and my plot (including the other main character(s)) flows from there. For example, my current WIP is about two men who have recently become empty nesters (like me!). I obviously got this idea while packing my daughter up for college and wondering what I was going to do with all my spare time. And thinking about how much I’d miss her.

For my novel Block and Strike, I wanted to share the experience of how studying a martial art helped me find my voice and become a more assertive person.

The Chaos Station series explores the effects of war on former soldiers, their families, and society.

But each of these books started with a single character. Oliver for my current WIP, who is now home alone wondering who he’ll share breakfast with (told you breakfast was important). In Block and Strike, Max learns to embrace his differences and to rise above the bullying he’s endured all his life. In the Chaos Station series, Felix finally figures out how to leave the war behind, and how to embrace the love of the man he never forgot.

Q: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Kelly: Slow down and take a break. You won’t forget how to write if you take a few weeks or even a few months off. Remember to recharge between books. And, most importantly, remember your process but don’t be a slave to it. Use what works, discard what doesn’t.

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Saturday, March 14, 2020

Grab the Reader in the First Chapter

First impressions last. Hook your reader with a compelling first chapter by learning how to introduce your characters, setting, and plot without giving away every secret in the book. We’ll discuss how to include just enough backstory (not too much), and how to tease your readers into turning to the next page.

Outlining is for Everyone

Don’t let the idea of an outline hold you back. Planning what you need to write every day doesn’t necessarily mean a long list of detail. What it can mean is writing faster and to the point with just a few minutes of planning ahead–before you start the book or a few minutes before you start writing!

Worldbuilding

Worldbuilding isn’t just for fantasy and science fiction. Readers want to know where they are, when they are, and how your story relates to the world it’s set in. Learn how to represent the familiar and create the unfamiliar in a way that won’t overwhelm your story or your characters. This workshop will include an exercise that may be shared with the class.

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“Moving and well written, Building Forever will leave you with a mansion-sized smile.”

—Sarina Bowen, USA Today bestselling author of Goodbye Paradise

“Jensen’s talent for world-building and memorable, unique secondary characters are on full display here in this fabulous series starter. Deeply felt emotions and a lovely romance have me eager for more in this world!”

—Annabeth Albert, author of Out of Uniform series

“Love is an adventure”

 

You can find all of Kelly’s books on Amazon

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Learn more about Kelly on her website: kellyjensenwrites.com

Follow her blog: kmkjensen.wordpress.com

And her social media links:

Facebook: /kellyjensenwrites

Twitter: @kmkjensen

Instagram: @kellyjensenwrites

Linktree: linktr.ee/kmkjensen

 

 

Lawrence Knorr – Publisher, Author, Professor, Eagles Fan

Tags

Hellbender Books, Lawrence Knorr, Milford House Press, Sunbury Press, Writing, Writing Conferences

Lawrence Knorr, founder and owner of Sunbury Press in Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania, will be at the GLVWG Write Stuff Writers Conference™, “2020 Vision”, at the Best Western Lehigh Valley Hotel & Conference Center.

Lawrence will be taking pitches on Saturday, March 14. 

“Sunbury Press is a rapidly growing publisher of a wide range of categories represented by six imprints. We typically receive approximately 1000+ proposals a year, publishing roughly 50 of them (about 5%). We choose to invest in those opportunities that we feel have the best chance in the current marketplace. We are always seeking new titles to publish including: history, historical fiction, police procedurals, crime thrillers, horror, steam punk, young adult, current events, science, reference, art history, ANY local/regional history, humor, spiritual/metaphysical, self-help, professional, memoirs, etc. If we didn’t mention your category — try us anyway!”

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Biography:

Lawrence Knorr is the co-owner of Sunbury Press, Inc. and has been involved with book publishing since 2000. He holds an MBA from Penn State University, and is a Project Management Professional (PMP), and Certified Scrum Master (CSM). Lawrence’s 30+ year career in information technology, as a programmer, analyst, project manager, CEO, and Chief Information Officer has prepared him well for the “Age of Content” – the era of eBooks, data integration, eCommerce, and networks. Lawrence has taught business and economics courses for over fifteen years at local colleges and is the author or co-author over twenty books. He is also an award-winning digital artist. Lawrence often speaks or is a panelist at numerous writers conferences and book fairs.

He is currently working on Graves of Our Founders and Tigers for a Day. He previously published a three volume set of his Knorr grandparents lineage entitled Seventy-One Years of Marriage: The Relations of George and Alice Knorr of Reading, Pennsylvania.

Click “Continue Reading” for An Inteview with Lawrence Knorr

Sarah Bolme – Author, Director of Christian Indie Publishing

Tags

Book Marketing, Christian Indie Publishers Association, Christian Writers, Indie Publishing, Sarah Bolme, Writing, Writing Conferences

 

Sarah Bolme,  Director of Christian Indie Publishers Association (CIPA). will be at the GLVWG Write Stuff Writers Conference™, “2020 Vision”, on Saturday, March 14, at the Best Western Lehigh Valley Hotel & Conference Center.

Sarah will discuss:  

Three Things to do Before You Publish

The number of books published each year keeps increasing. With so much competition, it is difficult to stand out and get your book noticed. Doing the three things presented in this session before you publish a book helps every author—whether traditionally or self-published—get a jump start on marketing to make their book stand out among the competition.

Sarah will also be hosting Marketing Sessions throughout Saturday.  To sign up for a consultation session, follow the instructions on the registration form. Your actual times for the consult will be assigned after registration is closed, and will be attached to your personal conference booklet upon signing in.

Biography:

Sarah Bolme provides assistance to small publishers and independently published authors marketing books to the Christian marketplace. Sarah is also the author of the award-winning book Your Guide to Marketing Books in the Christian Marketplace. The fourth edition will be released in February 2019.

Sarah is an independently published author and a traditionally published author. She is also the Director of Christian Indie Publishing Association (CIPA) an organization that exists to help small publishers and independently published authors market their books in the Christian marketplace.

Sarah’s  blog, Marketing Christian Books, is to educate and inform small publishers and independently published authors about publishing and marketing Christian books.

Click “Continue Reading” for Sarah’s interview

Jeanette Windle – Journalist, Political/Suspense Novelist, World Traveler

Tags

Jeanette Windle, Writing, Writing Articles, Writing Conferences, Writing Craft, Writing Non-Ficion, Writing Workshops

Jeanette Windle

Award-winning author and journalist, Jeanette Windle, will be at the GLVWG Write Stuff Writers Conference™, “2020 Vision”, on Saturday, March 14, at the Best Western Lehigh Valley Hotel & Conference Center.

Jeanette will hold three craft sessions: 

Using the Six Senses Purposefully

A Story to Tell – Your Own or Another’s

The A to Z of Writing a Sellable Article

** Scroll Down for Details **

Biography:

As daughter of missionary parents, award-winning author and journalist, Jeanette Windle grew up in the rural villages, jungles, and mountains of Colombia, now guerrilla hot zones. Her detailed research and writing is so realistic that it has prompted government agencies to question her to determine if she has received classified information. Currently based in Lancaster, PA, Jeanette has lived in six countries and traveled in more than thirty on five continents. Those experiences have birthed 16 international intrigue titles, including bestselling Tyndale House Publishers release Veiled Freedom, a 2010 ECPA Christian Book Award and Christy Award finalist, sequel Freedom’s Stand, a 2012 ECPA Christian Book Award and Carol Award finalist, and Congo Dawn, 2013 Golden Scroll Novel of the Year, the political/suspense best seller “CrossFire” and the Parker Twins juvenile mystery series.

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Saturday March 14, 2020

Using the Six Senses Purposefully

Bring Your Storytelling Alive! Fiction or non-fiction, effective telling of the story is what transports your reader into the world you want to share. And this is done most effectively through the six senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste, and that all-important sixth sense of the writer–emotion. Bring pen, paper and creativity because this will be a hands-on exercise.

A Story to Tell – Your Own or Another’s

Non-fiction biography is the bread-and-butter of freelance writing. Whether writing your own memoir or someone else’s life story, this workshop will walk you through the practicalities of breaking down, organizing, and weaving into story form a compelling life narrative. Not writing a full book? Principles apply as well to the personal experience short story/article.

The A to Z of Writing a Sellable Article

Where to find material or choose a topic? What makes an attention-grabbing lead and headline? What to include and how to organize? A great conclusion or just petering out? Taught by a twenty-year-veteran missions journalist and editor, this workshop lays out in practical steps how to turn out consistently exciting, tightly written articles, no matter your theme or subject matter.

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JEANETTE WINDLE FICTION

INTERNATIONAL INTRIGUE WITH INSPIRATIONAL IMPACT!!

“Jeanette Windle is a top-notch storyteller”—PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“You can’t finish a Windle novel without being deeply moved and better informed about the world around you.”—ROMANTIC TIMES

 

Jeanette Windle is profiled on Goodreads, and her books are available on Amazon.

 

You can find Jeanette Windle on her website:  http://jeanettewindle.com/

And you can follow her on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeanette.windle,

Twitter:   https://twitter.com/jeanettewindle