Online Workshop Schedule

Mid-Willamette Valley RWA Online Workshops are held via a Yahoo Group.

To register for a workshop, send an email to mwvrwa@gmail.com with your name (specify if your PayPal name is different from your writing name), the workshop(s) you are registering for, and the e-mail address you would like to use for the Yahoo Group.

Then pay with the Paypal button provided by the course description.

Late enrollments may sometimes be possible. Email if you have questions.

Just before the workshop starts, you'll receive an invitation to join the Yahoo Group.

Are you an instructor with a workshop you'd like us to consider? Please send your proposal to our workshop coordinator, Barbara Cool Lee.

Upcoming Workshops:

Karen Lennox

Plot Fixer: the 15 Most Common Plot Problems and How to Fix Them
July 5-25, 2010 (3 weeks - $20 members/$25 non-members)
Instructor: Kara Lennox / Karen Leabo

Do you create wonderful, three-dimensional characters who then stumble around blindly in your book, trying to find a story? As a frequent critiquer, contest judge, and the recipient of many, many rejection and revision letters over the years, I've witnessed and personally experienced just about every way your plot can veer into a ditch. In this workshop I'll cover the fifteen most common problems, how to spot them and how to fix them them.

Instructor Bio:

Kara Lennox, who also writes as Karen Leabo, has written 50-plus contemporary romance novels for two major publishers: Harlequin Enterprises, the largest publisher of romance in the world, and Bantam Dell (Loveswept line). Since her first novel was released in 1989, her books frequently appear on romance bestseller lists. They have been translated into 17 languages and published in twenty-plus countries around the world, with over four million books in print. Kara's books have been nominated for major romance industry awards as well, including the National Readers' Choice Awards and the Holt Medallion. She won a Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice for best Harlequin American Romance in 2003. She has also been a finalist in the Romantic Suspense category of the RITA® competition, the Romance Writers of America's® prestigious peer award. You can learn more about Kara and her upcoming books at her website, www.KarenLeabo.com

Regular Enrollment ($25):

MWV-RWA Member Enrollment ($20):

The Everyday Life of a Disreputable Lady Throughout the Ages
August 23-29, 2010 (1 week - $10 members/$15 non-members)
Instructor: Delilah Marvelle

Throughout the ages, there were all sorts of women in the sex trade. But distinguishing the differences between Covent Garden Nuns (who did more on their knees than pray...) to Public Ledgers (who weren't into opening their books but rather their...) to the highly paid demi-mondaine is an art in and of itself. Peer into the everyday life of a disreputable woman and learn how many of these women both survived their trade and reveled in it.

Instructor Bio:

An RT Nominee for Best First Historical Romance and Bookseller's Best Award, Delilah Marvelle has a flare for researching all the beautifully naughty things in history. Her upcoming three book Scandal series with HQN in 2011 will be highlighting history in the hopes of making every reader blush. For more about Delilah's research, you can visit her blog www.DelilahMarvelle.blogspot.com or visit her website at www.DelilahMarvelle.com

Regular Enrollment ($15):

MWV-RWA Member Enrollment ($10):

GMC: Goals, Motivation, and Conflict
October 18-29, 2010 (2 weeks - $10 members/$15 non-members)
Instructor: Paty Jager

Using Debra Dixon's book on GMC, we'll discuss how to give your characters believable goals, motivation and conflict and how to keep the story moving forward.

Instructor Bio:

Wife, mother, grandmother, and the one who cleans pens and delivers the hay; award winning author Paty Jager has brought her husband of thirty-one years to maturity, along with four children. Currently the empty nesters farm 130 acres. She not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.

Paty has been a member of RWA® for twelve years and has taught workshops at chapter meetings, conferences, and online. She has four historical western romance novels available through The Wild Rose Press and one contemporary western, which won the 2008 Best Contemporary Romance EPPIE. She has two new releases this year, one a paranormal historical, Spirit of the Mountain, set among the Nez Perce and the fourth book in the Halsey brother's series, Doctor in Petticoats. She is also excited about her recently contracted contemporary western, Bridled Heart. To learn more about Paty drop by her website: www.PatyJager.net

Regular Enrollment ($15):

MWV-RWA Member Enrollment ($10):

Everything You NEVER Wanted to Know About Taxes
November 1-26, 2010 (4 weeks - $20 members/$25 non-members)
Instructor: Diane O'Brien Kelly

This informative workshop will cover federal income tax reporting and tax issues for both the beginning and experienced writer. The topics covered will include:

  1. How to determine if your writing constitutes a business or a hobby;
  2. The pros and cons of incorporating or forming a limited liability company;
  3. Federal income tax forms for your writing business and how to prepare the forms;
  4. Business expense deductions, including the options available and the pros and cons of each option;
  5. Self-employment (social security) tax;
  6. Estimated taxes;
  7. Setting up a retirement plan;
  8. Record-keeping for your writing business;
  9. An overview of state tax issues; and
  10. Tips for hiring a tax preparer and minimizing fees.

Instructor Bio:

Diane O'Brien Kelly's manuscript "Death, Taxes, and a French Manicure" won the 2009 Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® award in the Novel with Strong Romantic Elements Category. Diane's manuscripts have also won or placed in more than a dozen RWA chapter contests. Diane has been published in Writer's Digest Yearbook, Romance Writers Report, True Love, Byline Magazine, and many more publications. A tax advisor by day, Diane combines her tax and writing skills as a tax columnist for Novelists, Inc. Diane serves on the board of the Dallas Area Romance Authors. She is a member of RWA, DARA, Yellow Rose RWA, and The Golden Network.

Regular Enrollment ($25):

MWV-RWA Member Enrollment ($20):

Previous Workshops

2010:

January: Jenn Stark, "Personal Brand Express: An Action Plan for Authors"
February: Ann Schroeder, "Writing Evocative Fiction"
March: Kelly L. Stone, "No Matter How Busy You Are, You Can Find TIME TO WRITE!"

2009:

January: Ann Schroeder, "Writing Evocative Fiction"
February: workshop cancelled
March: Delilah Marvelle, "Building Hot Sex Scenes"
April: Patricia Tanner, "What An Editor Wants"
May: Jessie Verino, "Fundamentals of World Building"
June: CJ Lyons, "Break Free From the Slushpile"
July: Kelly L. Stone, "No Matter How Busy You Are, You Can Find TIME TO WRITE!" (offered again in 2010!)
August: Karen Wiesner, "Building Cohesiveness in Your Novel"
September: Marcia James, "A PR Primer: Promoting Yourself Before--and Just After--the 'Call'"
October: Jackie Ivie, "Making History Come Alive In Your Work"
November: Karen Docter, "The 'W' Plot...or The Other White Meat for Plotters"

last updated 05/17/10 dbw