Writers’ Workshop Intensive
January 31, 2025, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Cross Creek Room at Best Western Gateway Grand
This day-long Intensive learning experience will consist of four 90-minute sessions by subject matter experts. The sessions will be deep and detailed, aimed at giving attendees a clear, readily applicable understanding of each topic.
Registration for the workshop is separate from the Book Festival Exhibitor registration and you do not have to be an exhibitor to register for the workshop. The workshop fee is $80 and includes lunch. (Pay below.)
Workshop Agenda
8:30 –10:00 a.m. Power Up Your Prose—It’s simpler than you think.
Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, learn how to take your writing to the next level.
- Heighten the flavor with stories that capture the imagination, characters that enchant, and impact that matters
- Amp up the heat with words, paragraphs, and pages that sizzle
- Deliver a presentation that keeps readers turning page
If you’re serious about up-leveling your expertise, whether a you’re new writer or a veteran, this is a workshop you won’t want to miss.
About the Presenter: Lana McAra is an award-winning, international best-selling author and ghostwriter of 45 titles through traditional publishing with a million books sold. She has been teaching how to write fiction for 20 years. While Lana’s own work is fiction, she has ghostwritten 15 nonfiction books on health topics, personal development, business, and leadership. Lana currently serves as the president of the Northeast Florida Chapter of Sisters in Crime and is the host of The Fiction Writer’s Podcast.
10:30 a.m. –12:00 noon Searching for an Agent.
What do agents want? How do you find one? What’s the right query? How long do you wait for a response? Can you query multiple agents at the same time? Keeping track of whom you queried and when.
About the presenter: Sarah N. Fisk is a literary agent at the Tobias Literary Agency, representing all genres in Middle Grade and Young Adult as well as adult science-fiction, fantasy, romance, and select nonfiction. They have worked in the publishing industry as an editorial assistant, author’s assistant, publicist, and art director. Sarah is a former Pitch Wars mentor, board member, and Agent Liaison. They host the podcast Queries, Qualms, & Quirks and are one of the founding members of Disability in Publishing.
1:00 -2:30 p.m. Indy Publishing without pulling your hair out.
Many authors find KDP frustrating. This session will go step by step through the entire process, from typesetting to final printing. It will focus on where user errors occur and how to prevent them. Pros and cons of KDP competitors: Ingram Spark, Lulu, Draft2Digital, and Author Solutions will also be compared.
About the presenter: Richard Gartee is an award-winning novelist, poet, and nonfiction author who has been involved with Indy publishing since its earliest days. In related experience, he has also owned and operated a bookstore, managed two printing companies, and traditionally published fourteen editions of his textbooks.
3:00 -4:30 p.m. Marketing your books
A key issue for independent authors is how to attract readers. This session delves into marketing, publicity, and advertising strategies that have been proven to work for book sales, and will cover much more that the oft-bantered solutions of social media and author websites. The techniques are not genre specific and will work for mysteries, romances, paranormal, thrillers, self-help, and nonfiction.
About the presenter: J. Michael Orenduff, PhD is a retired professor and the former Chancellor of the University of Maine, President of the American University in Bulgaria, President of Bermuda College, and President of New Mexico State University. His award-winning murder mysteries have sold over 500,000 copies. His involvement with his current publisher puts him in the unique position to see and share which marketing strategies work.
Key Workshop Info
The Cross Creek Room entrance is located outside, to the left of the main hotel doors.
Start time is 8:30 a.m. January 31, 2025. Please be on time.
Eat breakfast before you come. Only coffee, tea, and similar beverages will be provided until lunch. Lunch will be provided, but not breakfast.
You may wish to bring a pen and notebook to take notes.
Registration
To register, click the Pay Now button below. On the PayPal screen, select to pay with a PayPal account or click the option to pay with a Credit card. The fee is $80.
When the payment transaction is complete, click the “Return to Merchant” option once and wait for the Thank You page to display.
Your registration confirmation will be the email receipt you receive from PayPal.
