January
21: Debra Salonen
YRW member Debra Salonen has 29 published novels to her credit, the most recent the May 2011 Harlequin
Super Romance, A FATHER’S QUEST. A previous winner of Romantic Times’ Storyteller of the Year, in 2011 Debra’s
May 2010 Super Romance, UNTIL HE MET RACHEL, won Romantic Times’ 2010 Reviewers’ Choice award.
In October
Deb attended the 2011 Novelists, Inc. conference and returned with lots of current information to share with us. Her topic
is PLAN B: writing outside the box--as opposed to setting fire to said box and shoving it over a cliff. She’ll discuss
publishing options and career choices that can arise when you least expect them. In other words, a smart writer learns to
think on her feet while flying by the seat of her pants and sitting her fanny in the chair.
For more information
on Deb, visit her at Deb Salonen
February 18: A Workshop Trilogy
Christina
Gulke — A Night Out With Your Muse
Have you suffered from "writer's block"? Are
you looking for a writing jump-start? Learn how Christina shakes up her muse with music and film.
Sheri Humphreys — Taking the Backache Out
of Backstory
Sheri offers us several different backstory techniques and shares what works for her. She’ll
have character interview and outline templates available.
JoAnne Lucas — Person, Place & Things
A straight forward and often fun way to add
to a character & place.
We’ll also be presenting the 2012 SMOOCH!
March
17: Bonnie Hearn Hill
"Love and Murder in the Digital Age: What's Changed and What Hasn't"
Bonnie Hearn Hill is a national conference speaker who worked as a newspaper editor for 22 years, a job that, along with her
natural nosiness, increased her interest in contemporary culture. Prior to her new Star Crossed series from Running Press/Perseus
Books she wrote 6 thrillers for MIRA Books as well as numerous short stories, nonfiction books, and articles.
Bonnie founded The Tuesdays, a bonded and successful writing workshop in
Fresno and she also teaches an occasional online class.
Along
with her topic on the digital age, Bonnie will offer a critique of a sample of your writing as time allows. Bring two copies
of no more than 3 pages of your WIP for Bonnie's insight and suggestions.
For more information on Bonnie visit her website at www.bonniehill.com
April 21: SPECIAL PRE-RWA CONFERENCE WORKSHOP
Workshop Recordings: Honing Your Pitch
From RWA 2007
Conference in Dallas: Honing Your Pitch—Making the Most of Your Editor/Agent Appointment
Winnie Griggs, Michelle Grajkowski, Cori Deyoe
From 2008 RWA Conference in San Francisco: Honing Your Pitch—Making
the Most of Your 10 Minutes
Winnie Griggs, Laura Marie Altom, Melissa Endlich, Michelle Grajkowski
May 19: Kimberly
Van Meter
Kimberly Van Meter has 18 contemporary romance and romantic suspense novels to her credit. 2011 saw the release of Harlequin
Super Romances THE PAST BETWEEN US (March), A CHANCE IN THE NIGHT (April) and SECRETS IN A SMALL TOWN (May), and Harlequin
Romantic Suspense novels SWORN TO PROTECT (July) and COLD CASE REUNION (August). She’s got two new ebook novellas out,
too: A RED HOT MESS (March 2011) and THE RECKONING (April 2011).
You won’t want to miss Kimberly, speaking
on Keeping It Real In Romantic Suspense. She’ll cover her methods of blending love and danger, keeping the readers engaged
and biting their nails until the very end.
For more information on Kimberly, visit her website: Kimberley Van Meter
AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT MAY
***SPECIAL PRE-RWA CONFERENCE PITCH
CRITIQUE***
The
YRW Yahoo classroom will be open to all members for the month of May. In preparation for RWA National, members can participate
in critiquing each other’s pitches. They’ll also have a honed pitch ready for the Pitch Workshop in June.
June
16: SPECIAL PRE-RWA CONFERENCE WORKSHOP
Pitching Workshop: Getting Ready for National
Our published and PRO members play “agent”,
giving one-on-one opportunity to role play 5-minute agent pitch appointments. Participants should have a honed pitch
ready to go. Playing agent: Diane Story, Debra Salonen, Sheri Humphreys, Sharon Lathan, Donna O’Brien, and Kimberley
Smith.
July
No meeting! We will be at the RWA National Conference in Anaheim, July 25-28!
For more information on the RWA Conference and ProLitaracy
Signing visit the website at
Bill Belew is a problogger = he pays his sizeable Silicon Valley mortgage with revenue from his blog. Bill has taken 10
different and unrelated blog topics to more than 1 million unique visitors EACH and well over 50 million views overall.
Bill has two published (not-self) books. He is an in-demand speaker – Mexico’s largest Writers Conference, Asia’s
Largest Publishing. 
Literary Agent Scott Eagan, the founder of Greyhaus Literary Agency in Puget Sound, Washington, spoke on,
"Knowing your own niche and knowing how to research editors and agents." Along with sharing his insights
into the industry from an agent's point-of-view, Scott accepted pitches for representation. 
Our own Diane Story discussed "Creating the Protagonist." 
3 time Golden Heart finalist and debut release inspirational romance novelist Keli Gwyn spoke on "Rocking
Your Revisions!" Using chocolate liberally, Keli shared step-by-step processes for taking a story from promising to publishable.
Joan has been writing seriously for seven years and is a triple RWA Golden Heart finalist as well as a double
Daphne Du Maurier finalist. She sold her first two novels in a paranormal romantic suspense series to Kensington Brava
in June of 2010 and the first, FEVER, will debut in April 2012 with the next one, BLAZE, to follow.
Author Nancy Holder's work has appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, LA Times, amazon.com, LOCUS,
and other bestseller lists. A four-time winner of the Bram Stoker Award from the Horror Writers Association, she has also
received accolades from the American Library Association, the American Reading Association, the New York Public Library, and
Romantic Times.
