Author: Babs Mountjoy on
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Meadville Market House, Second Floor
A Workshop Presented by the Meadville Council on the Arts No matter what genre you write in, good fiction comes from the basics.
Multi-published and award-winning authors Babs Mountjoy and Kathy Otten,
will lead this workshop, full of discussion, models, exercises and fun,
too! Sessions will include— INTRO TO CREATIVE FICTION-WRITING - Bring a short piece to share, and we'll learn each other's writing inspirations.
DIALOGUE- We'll look not only at how to write believable conversations, but how they enhance your story.
INCREASING CONFLICT AND TENSION IN YOUR STORY- Do you want to write a
story your reader can't put down? We'll examine what conflict is and how
it drives the story.
DIVERSITY IN YOUR FICTION – We’ll use
exercises like those in Nisi Shawl and Cynthia Ward's, Writing the
Other, and other sources to expand your thinking about using characters
of other race/class/ethnicity in your stories.
PACKING AN
EMOTIONAL PUNCH - We'll talk about ways to show how a character feels
through visceral reaction and fresh description that will ramp up your
reader's investment in the story.
WEAVING AN ALTERNATIVE
SETTING INTO YOUR STORY- Learn how transport your readers to another era
or alternate world without sounding like a text book.
Classes will be held on Tuesdays, At the Meadville Market House March 26th through April 30th 2013 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Members-$60.00 Non-members $65.00 For more information contact
Meadville Council on the Arts Phone & Fax (814)336-5051
Or to reserve and mail in your payment before the limited seats are gone, send to:
Meadville Council on the Arts P.O.Box 337 Meadville PA 16335
Author: Babs Mountjoy on
Saturday, August 25, 2012
It's almost time for Context 25! This is a wonderful science fiction and fantasy con in Columbus, Ohio where in additional to panels on a variety of subjects, gaming sessions and filk concerts, attendees can (for a minimal fee) take writing workshops provided by a number of multi-published writers and professors from great writing schools like Seton Hill.
This year. I'll be teaching a workshop on Saturday morning about writing diverse characters:
(Saturday, September 29th, 10am-noon)
The world is full of different ethnicities and cultural groups; unfortunately,
most writers tend to only write about people like themselves. Others who want
to include
This workshop will use exercises like those in Nisi Shawl
and Cynthia Ward's Writing the Other and other sources to expand your
thinking about using characters of other race/class/ethnicity in your stories. We’ll
look at the power of first impression—what you glean from your first sight of
someone—which may or may not truly give you their essence. Participants should
bring pen and paper to work through some simple but eye-opening "What
If?" questions that will show you how to expand your story's diversity. Finally,
we’ll conduct an exercise designed to teach you how to convey the diverse
uniqueness of your characters in subtle ways—i.e., without having Fred say,
“Hi, John, this is my black friend Mike.”
The two-hour workshop costs only $20 and leaves you plenty of time the rest of the day for classes with Maria Snyder, Tim Esaias and Linnea Sinclair, as well as a multitude of panels.
The workshops are filling up, so get on over to the site and sign up!
You'll also be able to be one of the first to get a print edition hot off the press of my new book LOVE ME, KISS ME, KILL ME from Hydra Publications, which will be released at the con!
For those who are reluctant to attend conferences because you feel overwhelmed, I thoroughly recommend this one. The people are nice, the workshops intimate, and there's a very welcoming vibe. Definitely something for everyone here--you could attend the con to get your fill of gaming play and talk, or just take writing workshops the whole time, at an extremely reasonable cost. Tim Esaias of Seton Hill recently pointed out that his workshops are essential the same module he teaches at the University--but much less expensive. Don't miss it!
I just got the word that my class is coming up from Pennwriters-- if you're a beginning/indie author looking for tips and tricks on self-promoting, with lots of links to more reading, check this out!
Promotional Basics with Babs Mountjoy Date August 3 – August 30, 2012
Limited class size. Early bird prices end soon.
Course Description Congratulations! Your work has just been published. Now comes the hard part. Getting your audience to find your work, buy it, and share it. Most publishers now want to know your “platform.” What website, blog, or other publicity do you use to sell and promote you work? Such tools are part of the package you are often expected to present as a showcase for your laboriously forged words. Online and social media are now your best means of broadcasting your efforts and reaching your target audience. Pennwriters upcoming online course, Promotional Basics, will teach you the arts of publicity and marketing, showing you standard techniques and modern tricks to make your release a success. Learn the four most important things to include in your website. Discover how to get your work noticed on and offline. Tour successful blogs, learn to make your own, and understand why they are a great way to spread your name. Find out what freebies and giveaways attract your readers and followers. Plan ahead for compelling personal appearances and book signings that feature more than just a chair behind a table. Plus, as a free bonus, receive a list of 50 sites where you can submit you books for review. Boost your sales and traffic by learning proven promotional methods! About the Instructor Barbara “Babs” Mountjoy has written since she was a little girl, unable to restrain the stories that percolated through her fingers onto her keyboard – or, back then, onto the old Royal typewriter. Babs has been a published author for more than thirty-five years, with a number of publications under her belt.
Her non-fiction book, 101 LITTLE INSTRUCTIONS FOR SURVIVING YOUR DIVORCE, was published by Impact Publishers in 1999. Her first novel, THE ELF QUEEN, was released under the pen name Lyndi Alexander in 2010. THE ELF QUEEN launched her Clan Elves of the Bitterroot series, under which the second and third titles, THE ELF CHILD and THE ELF MAGE, released in 2011 and 2012.
Wild Rose Press released her romantic suspense novels, SECRETS IN THE SAND, in 2011, and, CONVICTION OF THE HEART, in June 2012. Will Rose Press will also release Babs’ THAT GIRL’S THE ONE I LOVE in September 2012. Zumaya Publications published her women’s fiction title, SECOND CHANCES, in July 2012.
Also in September 2012, Hydra Publications will publish LOVE ME, KISS ME, KILL ME, Babs’ upcoming vampire story.
Babs is a contributor to two CUP OF COMFORT anthologies. She blogs about autism, writing and life at awalkabout.wordpress.com, and spent seven years of her career as a news reporter and editor in South Florida. Her romances/womens fiction books are published under the pen name Alana Lorens, and her fantasy/sci-fi under the pen name Lyndi Alexander. For more information on Babs Mountjoy or this course, email her at
bmountjoy@zoominternet.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
.
Author: Babs Mountjoy on
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Although my books with Zumaya Publications aren't yet available, I'm excited to report that Zumaya has scheduled a Kindle Sale on titles with Thriller elements.
The sale starts this SUNDAY 2/5/12 and runs through March 3. The first week they're featuring the science fiction thrillers, second week general thrillers, third week fantasy thrillers, and the last week a mixed batch! So many books, so little time! Catch all the details at Zumaya Tales - http://zumayatales.wordpress.com/2012/02/01/february-thriller-special/
Come see which book will suit your last-six-weeks-of-winter reading list!
Author: Babs Mountjoy on
Friday, November 11, 2011
This has been a busy week for me--in addition to real life intrusions, I've been working steadily on NaNo, with 22,000 words in 11 days, and I've had a blog on Savvy Authors and Lyndi's books are featured on Jerri Hine's Facebook Novel Works today!
Then I have competing blog posts today: On the irony of being a divorce lawyer writing love stories, at IcySnowBlackstone (click through to the blog page) and on how being a fantasy writer has helped me deal with our youngest, who's diagnosed with autism, sensory integration disorder and other language delays at A Splash of Scarlet. That's her proud face with her fair ribbon above!
If any or all of these interest you, I invite you to stop by!
The Clan Elves of the Bitterroot, that is. Available for the enjoyment of the reading public.
Come by their new home on the Web at http://www.clanelvesofthebitterroot.com/ and find out where all the latest book signings, etc. are going to take place. Suggest a place for a book signing, if you'd like to meet Lyndi Alexander in person. :)
Book two is well into existence, and the political intrigue and schemes just don't stop. Clearly elves have associated with humans for much too long, if they've picked up all our bad habits. Or is it the other way around?
One thing that impresses me about any celebrity is when they use their fame for good causes. Paul Newman sold salad dressing, George Clooney and Bono speak out against poor conditions in third world countries, and Bill and Melinda Gates pledge their money to help kids in Africa. This month, best-selling author Brenda Novak sponsors an online auction to help find a cure for juvenile diabetes.
Okay, so the gesture isn't entirely unselfish, because Brenda's youngest son has diabetes. But who better to be aware of what families go through when their children are ill with this disease? Brenda has enlisted other writers, artists, jewelry makers and web designers to present a virtual cornucopia of offerings, some sincerely one-of-a-kind, to entice writers, readers and anyone you know.
You don't have to be a famous author to bid on these items, which include gift baskets, book collections by many of your favorite authors, some autographed, vintage jewelry and collectible dolls. Writers can choose from a whole list of reviews of their material by editors and agents from across the country as well as promotional packets for their works. (You can bet I'm bidding on a video for the new Elf Queen site!)
You can win a prize--just for entering a bid! Here's Brenda's award scheme for this year:
Week 1: An iPad, an autographed advanced reading copy of my new novel, WHITE HEAT, which won’t be available at stores until July 27th, and a VIP invitation to me and MaryJanice Davidson’s cyber launch party on Thursday, August 5 at 8:00 p.m. Week 2: A Nook and $50 Barnes & Noble Gift Certificate Week 3: $100 Gift Certificate to Borders, $200 Gift Certificate to Macy's and $100 Gift Certificate to Olive Garden Week 4: A FAN 2011 Convention Package. This includes the price of the convention, $200 in travel money and a two-night stay aboard the Delta King. What is FAN 2011? It's the annual reader celebration convention I throw with #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Christine Feehan. For more details about the one we just held, visit www.fanconvnetion.net.
There will also be DAILY DRAWING PRIZES. I’ll draw a name each day from those who have placed bids that particular day and send that person something wonderful. :)
How can you pass that up? The auction is simple. Go to BrendaNovak.com and click on the auction link. Be prepared to register and to register a credit/debit card, and then start browsing!
We all need to look out for one another as we pass through this world. All people are our sisters and our brothers, and we should pitch in to help those who need help. Join the world village and help children in need of a cure.
I've gotten quite a bit of curious questionry about my new publisher. Who is it? What do they pay? How do you get books? people ask. Good questions, but as Jane Friedman of Writer's Digest points out on a recent blog, perhaps irrelevant.
When I started working in publishing (1998), the epic dream of writers was to get their book published, have it win awards or hit the bestseller list, then allow that success (to) sustain a lifetime of writing more great books.
That is still the Big Dream.
Yet this feels more and more like an archaic dream—not because people will stop reading, or because the book form will disappear, but that this path:
(1) may close off entirely for new writers, depending on the future of traditional publishing
(2) may not present sufficient earnings (if it ever did!)
(3) envisions the book as the end result and ultimate achievement of a writer's effort.
What does this mean for me?
If I were Stephen King, my books would be available online at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, at the publisher's website, and all the other ordering sites.
I'm not Stephen King. But when The Elf Queen comes out this fall, you, the reader, will be able to order it online at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, at the publisher's website, and all the other ordering sites.
You will be able to order it in hardback, paperback or for your favorite e-reader like the Kindle, Sony, Ipad and more.
So what's the difference to the average reader?
Sure, I won't get the end cap at the local big book store, and no one will take out an ad in the New York Times. But the book will be featured on my blog and probably a dozen others, hit the fantasy blog tours, be Tweeted around the 'Net, get a Facebook page and might reach the same number of people looking to read a fantasy book this weekend. At royalties between 10 and 25%, depending on the sale format.
After people read The Elf Queen, we've already got The Elf King in the planning stages to follow, the publisher and I. The third book in the series is more nebulous but on the table for discussion.
My book will be as available to anyone who wants to read it as any other author. I'll be as responsible for the success and sales as most authors today, as it takes someone of the cachet of Stephen King to have the publishers do the publicity for him. Most authors arrange their own tours, signings and promotional events, even when they're traditionally published.
I'm prepared for the work. And you bet I'm ready for the success.
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