Bragging Rights for Ready Writers!

The release date of Beth Shriver's devotional book, Peace for Parents of Teenagers, is May 1st. Barnes & Noble of The Shops at Highland Village, TX, (4100 Deer Creek, Suite 100) will host the signing party on Saturday, May 22nd. Beth is also scheduled for a speaking engagement at First Baptist Church of Lewisville, TX, (1251 Valley Ridge Blvd.) on Wednesday, April 23rd. Congratulations, Beth. Way to go!

Mindy Obenhaus is a finalist in NTRWA's Great Expectations contest. Final round judge is Natalie Hanemann with Thomas Nelson.

Lee Carver came in second in Christian Writers of the West’s Phoenix Rattler Contest. The final judge was Melissa Endlich with Love Inspired Harlequin.

Lynne Gentry and Lisa Harris have launched a new blog at http://oneextraordinarygod.blogspot.com/

Dr. Richard Mabry is now working under a three-book contract with Abingdon Press. His first novel of medical suspense, Code Blue, launches April 1. The launch party will be 7:00-8:30 PM on April 8 at Legacy Books (toll road and Legacy). Ready Writers is so fortunate to have a medical doctor who volunteers opinions on our literary efforts. Let’s show our support and appreciation by turning out for his launch party.

Book two, Medical Error, publishes in September, book three next April--all are completed, and he’s getting good feedback on them. Dr. Mabry has a number of signings and blog interviews coming up, and he'll try to let the group know about them in advance.
He also has a meditation in the March-April Upper Room.

Marilyn Eudaly presented the workshop, Characters in a Writer's Zoo, at the February meeting of the CenTex chapter in Round Rock on February 20. We were treated to this presentation at our May, 2009, meeting. She has created a good seminar product.

Lena Nelson Dooley's book Love Finds You in Golden, New Mexico, will release May 1. There will be a Book Release party at Mardel Christian Store in Hurst, Hurstview Drive and Grapevine Highway on Saturday, May 1, 1-3 pm. You can sign up to receive a giveaway basket and you'll meet the people she dedicated the book to and find out the reason for each one. And she'll read a scene from the book.

Barnes & Noble, NE Mall, Hurst, TX will host an authors signing on Feb. 27th, 3-6pm. Featured writers are Shayla Black, Leanna Ellis, Gina Lee Nelson, Beth Shriver, Wendy Watson and others.

Mary Hollingsworth – Saturday, March 13th

What's Happening in the Publishing Industry Today?

Mary Hollingsworth will give an overview of the changes and trends in our industry today, including the influence of the struggling economy. She will talk about up-and-coming publishing options, such as e-books, print-on-demand books, and self-publishing as alternatives to traditional publishing. She'll talk about branding and how to build your writer's "brand" (identity) and platform through Social Media Marketing.
Who is Mary Hollingsworth?

Mary Hollingsworth is the author of more than one hundred books and products. Sales of her books now top seven million copies, and her books have appeared on best-seller lists more than one hundred times. Mary has been a freelance author and managing editor since 1988. During her writing career, she has had more than ninety other works published, including articles, poetry, plays, and songs.

Some of her best-known books are Just Imagine with Barney the Dinosaur—the first hardcover picture book produced with the big purple guy; Hugs for Women; Hugs for Kids; Little Taps on the Shoulder from God; My Little Bible; The International Children’s Story Bible; and many others. She is currently writing a 365-day devotional for Tyndale House entitled The One Year Book of Laughter and Joy.

Mary served as a managing production editor for Worthy Books, Word Publishing, and Thomas Nelson, Inc., for more than fifteen years. She has also served as production editor for a number of major publishers, such as Guideposts Books, Integrity Publishers, WaterBrook Press, Howard Books/Simon & Schuster and others where she supervises the editorial production team for such well-known Christian authors as Billy Graham, Max Lucado, Charles Swindoll, Chuck Colson, Pat Robertson, Women of Faith, Patsy Clairmont, John MacArthur, and many others. She has also worked with Christian recording artists such as Sandi Patty, Amy Grant, Tammy Trent, Kathy Troccoli, and Michael W. Smith on various books and recordings.

She currently serves as the managing director of Creative Enterprises Studio—a writing and publishing association that assists publishers and individuals in the writing, editorial production, printing, and distribution of their books. You can see their work and services at CreativeEnterprisesLtd.com.

Mary’s background in publishing includes a wide variety of book genres and responsibilities: trade books, workbooks and study guides, gift books, devotionals, children’s picture books, Sunday school curriculum, adult and children’s Bibles and Bible story books, Bible reference books, cookbooks, and others. She has served as proofreader, copy editor, substantive editor, rewrite editor, co-author, general editor, managing editor, cover copywriter, and art director, among other assignments.

With a Bachelor of Science in Business Education from Abilene Christian University, Mary has minor equivalencies in journalism and Bible. Her master’s work is in journalism and communication.

Mary lives and works in Bedford, Texas, with her dog, Jazz, where she enjoys reading, collecting miniature and rare books, singing, and travel.

See http://www.maryhollingsworth.com/ for a more complete overview of Mary’s publishing career.

DFW Ready Writers January Meeting

DFW Ready Writers is excited to present a two-hour session for Saturday, January 9th with Mr. Bryan Clark.
Mr. Clark, born in Taylor County, Texas, a US Marine at the age of seventeen, served our country during World War II. He holds the honorable distinction of being a WWII veteran who also fought at the battle of Iwo Jima and later became a Texas Ranger.
If you write historicals or simply are a history buff, you won’t want to miss hearing Mr. Clark. Minor characters in your books, such as a grandpa or an eccentric elderly uncle with a WWII background, add depth to your writing by adding a touch of truth from the past. And what better way to learn about history than from one who has been there and can give you a first-hand account?
Mr. Clark is a fascinating man with an amazing history. He will be speaking about WWII and what it was like to be at a place in history that will live in infamy. Three of his close buddies were among the six men, five Marines and one Navy corpsman, raising the flag on that notable day as Mr. Clark made his way up the hill at Imo Jima. Before his battalion landed, they were told the battle would take 72-96 hours. Instead, the battle raged on for a total of 37 days with 6,825 American casualties and approximately 22,000 Japanese casualties.
After the war, when Mr. Clark came home to Texas, he attended Texas Tech where he received his degree in Business Administration. He played professional baseball for the Lubbock Hubbers, and from 1969 to 1987 he served as a Texas Ranger.
This man has lived a varied and exciting life, and he will be sharing his experiences of WWII and his life as a Texas Ranger.
You will not want to miss the DFW Ready Writers’ meeting on Saturday, January 9th.
We are opening up this meeting to writers and non-writers due to the nature of the topic. Since this will be a longer session than normal, we are charging a nominal fee of $15.00 per person for the two-hour session.
Hope you will be able to attend.
Date: Saturday – January 9, 2010
Time: 11:00 am – 2:00 pm or later
Meeting Place:
La Hacienda Ranch Restaurant
5250 Hwy 121,
Colleyville, Texas
(Restaurant sits alongside the southbound access road between Hall-Johnson
and Glade).

November Meeting - Lynne Gentry

Ever shower your characters, dress them in clothes, and then send them forth in your story with no further consideration? Or perhaps your characters merely toss glances back and forth?
He smiled.
She looked at him.
His deep blue eyes cause her heart to pitter-patter. . . .

DFW Ready Writers has a solution to your problem for the same old, worn-out drivel and flat, lifeless characters that so often appear in many manuscripts.

Saturday, November 14th, Lynne Gentry, an instructor of stage presence and body language, will be presenting: Paper Dolls - Utilizing the costuming and body language techniques of the stage to help flat characters leap from the page.

Come learn the character development tricks of the stage and costuming techniques that create and flesh out interesting and unforgettable characters. Lynne, with many years of teaching stage presence, will help you gain insider tips on how to dress your character to create interest and literary symbolism for your reader. She will also help you learn body language observation techniques that will hone your ability to decode the signs of both controlled and involuntary body movements. Lynne will also show you how to create word usage that communicates the corresponding emotions.

So, if you don't want to have flat, lifeless characters that continue to say meaningless and over used phrases, you won't want to miss this opportunity to hear Lynne Gentry on November 14th.

Date: Saturday - November 14, 2009
Time: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Meeting Place: La Hacienda Ranch Restaurant
5250 Hwy 121, Colleyville, Texas
(Restaurant sits alongside the southbound access road between Hall-Johnson and Glade).

October Meeting - Elizabeth Ludwig

What better timing!

You’ve been to conference and now you’re ready to send out those proposals the editors or agents have requested. Or maybe you couldn’t attend conference but you have your manuscript and five page proposal done and your finger is itching to click Send.

Wait! Don’t touch that button.

Is that manuscript or proposal the best you can do? Are you sure? Well, let me tell you, nothing kills a proposal faster than a poorly prepared submission. And I have a solution for you.
This Saturday October 10th DFW Ready Writers is offering a two-hour workshop with published author and speaker Elizabeth Ludwig. The first hour Elizabeth will speak on “Self-Editing for the Fiction Writer.” She will demonstrate the most common mistakes authors make when submitting their manuscripts and proposals, and she will give tips for improving the quality of the overall submission. Attendees will learn how to locate problem areas such as: repetitive words and phrases, show vs. tell, and much more!

And Elizabeth will talk about “The Ins and Outs of a Writing Partner.” She has partnered together with Janelle Mowery to write three mystery novels and knows the joys and woes of a long distance writing partner. She’ll explain what works and what doesn’t, how to avoid the pitfalls while partnering with another author, and how to end up with a saleable finished product—a novel.

So please join us for some fresh ideas on how to make your manuscript and proposal stand out in the crowd of hundreds.

There will be a charge of $15.00 at the door for the two-hour workshop.
Date: Saturday – October 10, 2009
Time: 11:00 am – 2:00 pm

Meeting Place:
La Hacienda Ranch Restaurant
5250 Hwy 121,
Colleyville, Texas
(Restaurant sits alongside the southbound access road between Hall-Johnson
and Glade).

Lunch is Dutch treat.

September Meeting - Speaker Harry Olson

Nothing Like Old Mother Nature

Would you like to add some tension and realism to your story? Weather related events can up the stakes of peril, relationships, loss, and even death to your work in progress (WIP).
Ahh. . . . You have never experienced a hurricane, tornado, earthquake, or even a flood that can wipe houses off their foundation? Allow me to tell you how you can obtain the knowledge of how people are affected and learn to survive these catastrophes.

On Saturday, September 12th, 2009, at 11:00 am—1:00 pm, DFW Ready Writers will be hosting speaker Harry Olson, a catastrophe insurance adjuster since 1994. He has experienced most storm related happenings as a first responder at national disasters and has seen firsthand how lives can be devastated and changed forever.

Dealing with individuals who have lost everything within a matter of hours, even minutes is heart-wrenching and life changing. Harry will be sharing first hand knowledge of weather related happenings that have taken place throughout the United States and will give you ideas how these actual events can come to play with weather related realism in your WIPs.
So don’t miss out on this month’s meeting. Making your novel the most that it can be by having weather as an antagonist in your WIP can bring relationships, death, and realism to the forefront, causing your book to come alive to your readers. Plan now to attend.

Date: Saturday – September 12, 2009
Time: 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Meeting Place:
La Hacienda Ranch Restaurant
5250 Hwy 121,
Colleyville, Texas
(Restaurant sits alongside the southbound access road between Hall-Johnson
and Glade).

Hope to see you there.