Geisha Marketing for Authors

Mid-Willamette Valley RWA's next online workshop will be "Geisha Marketing for Authors," taught by Deborah R. Magnus.

The definition of Marketing is: The process by which one creates customer interest in products or services. The definition of Geisha is: An entertainer whose skills include performing various arts such as classical music and dance.

The Geisha Marketing for Authors workshop is specifically designed and presented to show the true art of marketing, to imbue the power of passion, skill, creativity, understanding and talent to create a successful book marketing plan. If an author is now to do jobs like Publicity, Marketing or Promotions, they need to know the ropes. Each day one segment of Geisha Marketing will be explored, discussed and an assignment will be given. Assignments will be responded to and solutions explored.

1)      The Training for Geisha Marketing

a.       Tools, goals and creating perfection

b.      Polishing speaking, appearance and pride

2)      The Art of Geisha Marketing

a.       Building an Author Platform

b.      Building a Book Platform

c.       Social Networking at its best

3)      The Beauty of Geisha Marketing

a.       Marketing harmonies outside the norm

b.      Commitment to what art you have and will perform

c.       Finding and cultivating new lovers of your performance

4)      The Performance of Geisha Marketing

a.       Consistence, continuity and patience

b.      Short and long performances

c.       The harmony of presentation

5)      The Reputation of Good Geisha Marketing

a.       Follow up, building upon and the poetry of the "T" (testing) Ceremony

b.      The Geisha Marketer's agreement with their readers

The workshop will be held from November 7th through the 12th, and costs $25 for nonmembers (chapter members may take the workshop for free).  You can enroll through our website at http://www.midwillamettevalleyrwa.com.

About the instructor:  

Deborah Riley-Magnus has a twenty-seven year professional background in marketing, advertising and public relations as a writer for print, television and radio. She owns Paradigm Warriors, a small Author Success Coaching business focused exclusively on publicity, marketing and promotional solutions for authors.

She is also a writer, represented by Wylie-Merrick Literary Agency for fiction and non-fiction. She produces several pieces weekly for various websites including her author and writing websites and industry blog. She belongs to several writing and professional organizations and teaches various workshops on Author Success.

She has lived on both the east and west coast of the United States and has traveled the country widely. A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she currently lives, works and writes in Los Angeles, California.

Getting off on the Right Foot

Mid-Willamette Valley RWA's next online workshop will be "Getting off on the Right Foot," taught by our own Paty Jager.

This two week course will help you get to know your characters and their backstory to catapult you into the correct spot to start your book. You'll brainstorm until you find the best first sentence, paragraph, and page that will capture the attention of a reader and draw them into your story.

The workshop will be held from October 17th through the 30th, and costs $25 for nonmembers (chapter members may take the workshop for free).  You can enroll through our website at http://www.midwillamettevalleyrwa.com.

About Paty Jager:  Wife, mother, grandmother, and the one who cleans pens and delivers the hay; award-winning author Paty Jager and her husband currently farm 350 acres when not dashing around visiting their children and grandchildren. She not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.

She's held officer positions and been a member of RWA for twelve years. Other groups she belongs to are EPIC, COWG, Women Writing the West, and several online RWA chapters. Wild Rose Press has published eight of her books with one more to release in May 2011. Paty's contemporary western, Perfectly Good Nanny, won the 2008 EPPIE for Best Contemporary Romance.  She teaches workshops at RWA conferences and monthly meetings, to other writer groups, and online writing workshops. 

You can learn more about Paty at her blog: http://www.patyjager.blogspot.com, her website, http://www.patyjager.net or on Facebook.

Our Next Online Workshop: DEEP STORY: WHAT DOES NORA ROBERTS KNOW THAT YOU DON'T?

The Mid-Willamette Valley chapter of the Romance Writers of America will be offering several fabulous online workshops this year. 

We have an intriguing new workshop scheduled for May:

Deep Story: What Does Nora Roberts Know That You Don't?

May 2-27, 2011 (4 weeks - $25 non-MWV-RWA Members)

Instructor: Carol Hughes

What do Nora Roberts, Stephen King, George Lucas (STAR WARS), Stephen Spielberg (E.T.), Terry Russo (SHREK/PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN), and James Cameron (TITANIC/AVATAR) know about writing that makes them the mega stars that they are? How are they able to turn out the constant string of stories that they do while you are barely able to struggle to the final page of your current WIP? Why did TITANIC and AVATAR each gross over $1 BILLION in ticket sales in only a matter of weeks? Are you interested in learning the secret techniques that each of these mega stars has in common? It's not as hard as you think - not if you know the simple-to-master writing secrets that they know and haven't shared with you.

Seasoned pro or beginning writer, pansters or plotter - it doesn't make any difference. You already know that writing takes a lot of hard work, perseverance, talent and a hearty dose of luck. Without the necessary writing tools to craft your wonderful story ideas into a finished work that people want to buy, all the hard work, talent, luck and perseverance in the world is useless without a solid, well-crafted story full of multi-dimensional characters to make your story come alive for every reader - or movie-goer. Do you know what the 18 scenes are that every story contains, no matter its length or genre? Do you know what impact your character's mental gender has upon readers? Do you even know what your character's mental gender is? Do you know how your character's arc drives your story? Or how your story drives your character's arc? Do you know the quick and easy way to create heart stopping dilemmas for your characters that drive your readers wild? Do you know what the 4 throughlines of every story are? Do you know how to weave them together?

Every successful story contains characters that come alive for the reader. Every successful story is build on a solid, easy-to master, story structure that works every single time. Every successful story lives on in the hearts and minds of readers because their authors have mastered the simple secrets needed to turn them into writing super stars. And you can, too. Join us and give Nora Roberts something to worry about.

Instructor Bio: 

From Oscar's Annual Bash to Cannes' glitzy Red Carpet. From fabled palaces to rat-infested tunnels. From the floor of the Coral Sea to the vacuum of space. From the rain slicked streets of midnight Paris to the bombed out streets of Beirut at high noon. Writer Carol Hughes has lived and written about sights, adventures and characters that have dazzled audiences, and raised more than a few eyebrows, around the world. Dashing Alpha males, deadly killers, fictional red-haired mermaids, and celluloid heroes - she's known them all. She's navigated the killer-infested back alleys of Europe's grandest cities and the shark-infested corridors of Hollywood's studios - and picked up enough secrets and tips to make living - and writing - an adventure in itself.

Our own members get to take these workshops for FREE (if you've been waffling about joining the chapter, this is a great incentive!).

Space is filling quickly.  Don't miss out on this great workshop.  Nonmembers can sign up at our web site: http://www.midwillamettevalleyrwa.com/online.classes.htm

Our Next Online Workshop: WORLD-BUILDING FOR WRITERS

The Mid-Willamette Valley chapter of the Romance Writers of America will be offering several fabulous online workshops this year. 

We are fortunate to have experienced instructor Rebecca Lynn as our teacher this March:

World-Building for Writers

March 1-31, 2011 (4 weeks - $25 non-MWV-RWA Members)

Instructor: Rebecca Lynn

A world-building course focusing on all facets of fictional writing, not just on fantasy and paranormal books. Historical fiction and contemporary genre fiction writers need to know how to world-build, as well. World-building, at its foundation, is about incorporating details into narrative. This class will start with the basic building blocks of a world (whether known or invented) and move toward the integration of research and worldbuilding into narrative fiction.

Week One: You Are God - The building blocks of fictional worlds; the two main methods of world-building.

Week Two: The Genesis Effect - Organizing and ordering your fictional world; resources for world-building in genres.

Week Three: Hobbits and iPods and Claymores, Oh My - Integrity in your fictional world; dissecting student examples.

Week Four: Writer as Weaver - Integrating world-building details into narrative and dialogue.

Instructor Bio: 

Rebecca Lynn took an MFA in Creative Writing and an undergraduate degree in Linguistics and Literature, and has taught both writing and literature courses on the collegiate level. She has published short fiction as well as some short non-fiction, and academic articles.

Our own members get to take these workshops for FREE (if you've been waffling about joining the chapter, this is a great incentive!).

Space is filling quickly.  Don't miss out on this great workshop.  Nonmembers can sign up at our web site: http://www.midwillamettevalleyrwa.com/online.classes.htm

Our Next Online Workshop: STORY, THEME AND VEHICLE

The Mid-Willamette Valley chapter of the Romance Writers of America will be offering several fabulous online workshops this year. 

We are lucky to have multi-published and award-winning author Susan Meier as our instructor this February:

Story, Theme and Vehicle

February 1-25, 2011 (4 weeks - $25 non-MWV-RWA Members)

Instructor: Susan Meier

Have you ever written a book that was good, but simply didn't seem good enough? Or one that wasn't cohesive? Or one that should have been wonderful but seemed to fall flat? In STORY, THEME AND VEHICLE, Susan Meier explains how knowing your book's story type, story question, and the difference between its theme and its "vehicle" will keep your book focused. Learn the five easy steps to a synopsis and the four steps to a one-paragraph pitch.

Instructor Bio:  Susan Meier is the author of over 45 books for Harlequin and Silhouette and one of Guideposts' Grace Chapel Inn series books, THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS. Her books have been finalists for Reviewers Choice Awards, National Reader's Choice Awards and Cataromance.com Reviewer's Choice Awards, and nominated for Romantic Times awards. Her book, HER BABY'S FIRST CHRISTMAS won the traditional category in the 2009 More Than Magic contest. THE MAGIC OF A FAMILY CHRISTMAS is a finalist in the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence! HER PREGNANCY SURPRISE, her first release for the Harlequin Romance line, made both Walden's Bestseller List for Series Romance and Bookscan. In 2011, her BABY IN THE BOARDROOM series will be released in April, May and June.

Our own members get to take these workshops for FREE (if you've been waffling about joining the chapter, this is a great incentive!).

Space is filling quickly.  Don't miss out on this great workshop.  Nonmembers can sign up at our web site:

http://www.midwillamettevalleyrwa.com/online.classes.htm