Tuesday, March 19, 2013

April 2013: Make Your Good Manuscript Great



Join DFW Ready Writers on Saturday, April 13th as we welcome published author Anne Greene who will discuss "Taking a Manuscript from Good to Great."  

Here's what Anne says about this topic: 
God has called us writers to a heavy responsibility. As writers we need to make the story God gave us jump off the page and leap to life for the reader. We are life changing witnesses of what we know to be true. 


We bring encouragement and hope. We help readers discover themselves in our stories. We paint a picture of what God is like—His nature, His love, His faithfulness. We help readers see Jesus. The tools I’m offering you will help.


I advocate belonging to a critique group. BUT sometimes if you are working too fast, a weekly critique group is too slow. Sometimes you’re under a deadline and can’t wait for your work to be critiqued by your group. Sometimes you can’t find a good fit in a critique group.


So, I’m giving you tools to enable you to critique your own work as well as forge you into a sought-after critique partner. It’s a win-win learning opportunity.


Sounds boring, right? No. It’s absolutely exciting.


You can use these TOOLS whether a seat of the pantser or a storyboard/plotter. Then you can submit those manuscripts to agents and editors with confidence.



ANNE GREENE delights in writing about wounded heroes and gutsy heroines. Her second novel, a Scottish historical, Masquerade Marriage, won the New England Reader Choice award, the Laurel Wreath Award, and the Heart of Excellence Award. The sequel Marriage By Arrangement releases in April.  A Texas Christmas Mystery also won awards. In 2014, her World War II novel, Angel With Steel Wings, about WASPs, women test pilots will release. She makes her home in McKinney, Texas. Tim LaHaye led her to the Lord when she was twenty-one and Chuck Swindoll is her Pastor. In 1990, Anne graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor’s degree in Literary Studies from the University of Texas.

View Anne’s other books, her blog, travel pictures, and art work at http://www.AnneGreeneAuthor.com. Anne loves to speak to book clubs, libraries, and conferences. Her  love of sailing, horseback riding, history, and art, as well as her Citizens Plano Policy Academy training, and military life sometime figure in her books. She judges the Rita, Golden Heart, Book of the Year, and many other contests. A Critique and Writing Craft group meets at her home on Monday nights.

Her highest hope is that her stories transport the reader to an awesome new world and touch hearts to seek a deeper spiritual relationship with the Lord Jesus. 

Upcoming Speakers: 
May: Dr. Richard Mabry joins us to share what he learned from conferences.

June: Becky Wade will discuss Advanced Writing.


Don't miss a meeting of DFW Ready Writers, the second Saturday of every month at 10:30am at the Bedford Library. Visitors welcome! 

 

DFW Ready Writers is the local chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW).  For details, go to www.acfw.com.


Monday, February 18, 2013

March 2013: Hootsuite

Join us on Saturday, March 9th as we continue our discussion on Social Media.  Lena Nelson Dooley will be our speaker and will discuss "How to Save Time Online with Hootsuite." Lena will also touch on Pinterest and Goodreads. 

Award-winning author, Lena Nelson Dooley, has more than 700,000 books in print.
Helping other authors become published really floats her boat, with over 20 signing their first book contract after her mentoring. Three of her books have been awarded the Carol Award silver pins, and she has received the ACFW Mentor of the Year award. The high point of her day is receiving feedback from her readers, especially people whose lives have been changed by her books.

Her 2010 release Love Finds You in Golden, New Mexico, won the 2011 Will Rogers Medallion Award for excellence in publishing Western Fiction. Maggie’s Journey appeared on a reviewers Top Ten Books of 2011 list. It also won the 2012 Selah award for Historical Novel. Mary’s Blessing released in May 2012. It recently appeared on a review site’s Top Five Reads in 2012 list. Catherine’s Pursuit is coming in February 2013.

In addition to her writing, Lena is a frequent speaker at women’s groups, writers groups, and at both regional and national conferences. She has spoken in six states and internationally. She is also one of the co-hosts of the Gate Beautiful blog radio show.

Lena has an active web presence on Shoutlife, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Linkedin and with her internationally connected blog where she interviews other authors and promotes their books.

Find her online here:
 

Upcoming Speakers:
April: Anne Green talks about "How to take your manuscript from good to great."
May: Dr. Richard Mabry joins us to share what he learned from conferences.
June: Becky Wade will discuss Advanced Writing.

Don't miss a meeting of DFW Ready Writers, the second Saturday of every month at 10:30am at the Bedford Library. Visitors welcome! 
 
DFW Ready Writers is the local chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW).  For details, go to www.acfw.com.

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Our February Meeting

Oh what a blast! More than twenty-five of us monopolized the Bedford Library's Wifi.


We learned the ins and outs of Facebook profiles and pages.

We also enjoyed tips about setting up Twitter and encouraging Followers, and using Hootsuite.


Hard at work, we detailed our own pages and connections with others.

Monday, January 14, 2013

February 2013: Social Media



Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads.....oh my!  Does book marketing leave you feeling overwhelmed?

As novelists, we've been told we HAVE TO, and this workshop will teach us HOW TO!  Join Kellie Coates Gilbert and the rest of the DFW Ready Writer bunch for a hands-on lab where we'll be working together to set up and update our social media pages. 


Free WiFi is available and we encourage you to bring your laptops for this hands-on workshop and be ready to implement the many techniques Kellie will be presenting. If you don’t have a laptop, please bring pen and paper to write down this invaluable information.
 

If you have specific questions about social media, please email them to Keisha Bass at 
KeishaBass@att.net before the meeting.
 
This will be a special 2-hour workshop for a cost of $10 per person. 


You may bring a lunch or for the nominal fee of $5.00 lunch will be provided: ham or turkey sandwich, chips, cookie, and water or soft drink. HOWEVER, for lunch to be included you must preregister, designate the type sandwich you’d prefer, and then pay $15.00 at the door when you arrive.

We will take a short break during the presentation to eat, and then continue with the program.

For more information or preregistration contact Keisha at KeishaBass@att.net or

DFW Ready Writers will meet on Saturday, February 9 at 10:30am at the Bedford Library.



A former legal investigator and trial paralegal, Kellie Coates Gilbert writes with a sympathetic, intimate knowledge of how people react under pressure.  Her stories are about messy lives, and eternal hope.


Kellie’s novel, MOTHER OF PEARL tells the emotionally compelling story of a high school counselor who discovers her own teenage daughter had an inappropriate relationship with the football coach . . . and how she risks everything to bring him to justice.



For more information, go to www.kelliecoatesgilbert.com



Upcoming Speakers:
March: Anne Green talks about "How to take your manuscript from good to great."
April: Becky Yauger discusses ACFW, reminding us "There's more to ACFW than the conference and main loop."
May: Dr. Richard Mabry joins us to share what he learned from conferences.
June: Becky Wade will discuss advanced writing.

Don't miss a meeting of DFW Ready Writers, the second Saturday of every month at 10:30am at the Bedford Library.  Visitors welcome!
DFW Ready Writers is the local chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW).  For details, go to www.acfw.com.