STAR 2011 Online Workshops
The Southern Tier Authors of Romance (STAR) a chapter of RWA® is thrilled to be able to offer the following series of Online Workshops from highly-respected, successful authors willing to share their time and skills with other writers. Workshops last four (4) weeks, consist of a mix of lectures, exercises and discussions, and are conducted via a private Yahoo Groups listserv. The cost of participating in a STAR Online Workshop is $20 for RWA members and $25 for non-members.
All writers are welcome. If you know how to send e-mail, then you’ve mastered all of the technical skills you need to participate in our workshops. You will be automatically enrolled in the workshop’s listserv prior to the start of the class. All of the messages posted by the instructor and other students will be delivered directly to your inbox, although you may also view them from the Yahoo website.
To register for any of the classes listed below, please complete the form that follows and include a check or Money Order in US Dollars, made out to STAR Online Workshop, and mail the check and form to: STAR Online Workshop Coordinator, PO Box 6, Willseyville, NY 13864. If you have a PayPal account and would like to pay via PayPal, go to http://www.PayPal.com. Select the “send money” button, then enter the amount due, and STAR’s email address for payment: starpay@gmail.com. Then send your registration information to: carolhenry@frontiernet.net.
2012 Online Registration Form (.doc format)
2012 Online Registration Form (.pdf format)
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JANUARY 3 – 27:To the West . . . and Beyond
Women in the American West 1865 to 1900
Bella Steele
Course Content:
If your heroine lives in the Old West you will need to know about life amidst the horses, cows and cowboys, whether she be a pioneer woman, a frontier woman, or born and raised in the West. Find out why and how your heroine got to scene of the action (meeting the heroine and winning his heart) and what she did each day. Life as pioneer was different from a frontier woman living on a farm or ranch. In the later part of the period towns were flourishing and women were leading the way. In eight lessons I will introduce you to methods of transportation, daily life, fashion, economics, and social life in the context of the Victorian period. Those stuffy old rules didn’t apply to women in the west, who were some of the first to obtain the right to vote and run their own businesses. Each lesson will be accompanied by file (in the file section or sent to your mailbox) containing maps, pictures, and charts.
About the Instructor:
Bella Steele has a Master’s Degree in History from the University of Louisville, concentration in American history. She has written seven short stories and novellas for Highland Press under the name of Billie Warren Chai.
FEBRUARY 2-29: Dirty Little Secrets of Character Development
Keena Lykin
Course Content:
The Dirty Little Secrets of Character Development is an interactive workshop that leads participants through fun, inventive exercises that will help them root out their characters’ deep, dark secrets and desires, as well as show how to use these secrets to further plot, conflict, and of course the romance. During the workshop, the following topics will be discussed: Why characters keep secrets, types of secrets they keep, how secrets affect and change characters, how secrets are exposed, repercussions of keeping secrets, and the 3 C’s of character development –character, conscience, and choices. The objective of the class is to give participants insight into how secrets affect character at the deepest level, an understanding of how these secrets reveal themselves through words and actions–even if the character never confesses, and ways to apply this knowledge to propel the plot forward in a logical, engaging manner.
About the Instructor:
Keena is the author of four historical paranormal romances with The Wild Rose Press and two short stories. Visit Keena’s website at: keenankincaid.com.
APRIL 2 – 27: Let Conflict Tell Your Story
Susan Meier—back by popular demand!
Course Content:
Good books are about people. Great books are about people in trouble. Not just external trouble, but real, gut wrenching, soul hurting trouble. Most of us can give our characters believable external struggles and even get them beyond those struggles, but what about that internal struggle? Can a leopard really change his or her spots? And if so how? What do editors and agents mean when they say your character has to grow? Learn the basis for every internal struggle and how to achieve believable character growth that can carry your whole story and give your characters a real happy ending.
About the Instructor:
Susan Meier is the author of 45 books for Harlequin and Silhouette and one of Guideposts’ Grace Chapel Inn series books, The Kindness of Strangers. Her books have been finalists for Reviewers Choice Awards, National Reader’s Choice Awards and Cataromance.com. Reviewer’s Choice Awards and nominated for Romantic Times awards. Her book Her Baby’s First Christmas won the traditional category in the 2009 More Than Magic contest. The Magic of a Family Christmas was a finalist in the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence. Susan has given talks at RWA chapter conference, on-line workshops, and has regularly appeared in RWA chapter newsletters.
A one-time legal secretary and director of a charitable foundation, Susan Meier found her bliss when she became a full-time novelist for Harlequin. She’s visited ski lodges and candy factories for “research” and works in her pajamas. But the real joy of her job is creating stories about women for women. In her 47 published novels, she’s tackled issues like infertility, losing a child and becoming widowed, and worked through them with her characters.
This year she had a series out in April, May and June, The Babies in the Boardroom series. THE BABY PROJECT, SECOND CHANCE BABY AND BABY ON THE RANCH. Her Christmas book, KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST, is a nominee for a REVIEWER’S CHOICE AWARD and an RT 4-1/2 star top pick for December 2011. Her popular website www.susanmeier.com has recipes, workshops for writers and short stories featuring the characters in previous books. Every Monday morning she devotes her Dear Readers blog to the craft of writing.
MAY 3 – 31: Deep Story Techniques II class (The Critical Element to Success)
Carol Hughes, back by popular demand, following the October 2011 class on Deep Story Techniques I!
Course Content:
Carol Hughes will help you with the mechanics behind developing the writer/reader link and bond that is the key to a writer’s success. Go beneath the surface to explain the mechanical underpinnings of the emotional bond and sense of loyalty readers develop for their favorite authors. Learn some of the tricks and techniques that are used in advertising and film/TV marketing to build a brand and user loyalty. As more and more writers become familiar with the simple to use Deep Story Techniques to actually craft their stories – what they also need is a rock solid understanding of how to actually draw readers to them and how to forge a strong emotional bond that will actually translate into reader loyalty to them and their stories.
About the Instructor:
From Oscar’s Annual Bash to Cannes’ glitzy Red Carpet. From fabled palaces to rat-infested tunnels. From the floor of the Coral Sea to the vacuum of space. From the rain slicked streets of midnight Paris to the bombed out streets of Beirut at high noon. Writer Carol Hughes has lived and written about sights, adventures and characters that have dazzled audiences, and raised more than a few eyebrows, around the world. Dashing Alpha males, deadly killers, fictional red-haired mermaids, and celluloid heroes – she’s known them all. She’s navigated the killer-infested back alley’s of Europe’s grandest cities and the shark-infested corridors of Hollywood’s studios as a writer/producer – and has picked up enough secrets and tips to make a living – and writing – an adventure in itself.
JUNE 4 – 29: Creating Sexy Sex Scenes
Randi Alexander
Course Content:
Published author Randi Alexander will guide you through the steps of writing romantic, sensual love scenes, starting with building sexual tension, ending with afterglow snuggling, and covering all the special moments in between. The class will focus on building sexual tension throughout your book, which keeps your readers turning pages, producing physical love scenes and how to make it emotional, unique, and unforgettable. And then focus on the climax and afterglow, and the ways you can give your readers the impact they crave during the quiet moments. This is an interactive class where participants can post their entire scenes to obtain feedback.
About the Instructor:
Randi writes erotic romance, and is published with The Wild Rose Press. Her sex scenes have been reviewed as a little bit wicked, receiving 5-heart reviews from Sizzling Hot Book Reviews, Romance Writers Reviews, Whipped Cream and Sensual Reads. Visit Randi’s Website: www.randialexander.com.
2012 Online Registration Form (.doc format)
2012 Online Registration Form (.pdf format)
Special One-Day Hands-on Workshop:
Beyond the Basics of Novel Writing — Marshall Plan Meets GMC!
Instructor:Carol A. Henry
Sponsor:Southern Tier Authors of Romance (STAR)
Location:Owego Tread way Inn (1100 State Route #17C, Owego, NY 13827)
Date: Saturday, April 16, 2011; 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Registration Fee: $45.00, includes morning coffee, buffet luncheon, and handouts.
Registration Deadline:April 11, 2011
Delve into the creative writing world with local Romantic Suspense Adventure author Carol A. Henry and go Beyond The Basics of Novel Writing. This hands-on workshop is for any genre novel writer – from the novice just thinking about writing a novel, to the skilled writer looking to improve their writing techniques. The workshop will include goal, motivation, conflict, action/reaction, pacing, back-story, juggling story lines, the dark moment/crisis, and where to plant those surprises that keep the readers reading. Henry will show you how to get it all organized, keep track of changes as you figure out what needs to happen next, and help you get those creative juices flowing. There will be plenty of time for delving into your own work with roundtable discussions and analyzing. Participants can either bring their plotting thoughts and ideas for a new novel, or bring their work already in progress. Registrants will have a chance to read their own work, critique and be critiqued, and participate in several round-table discussions.
Carol A. Henry is a PRO Member of Romance Writers of America®, President of Southern Tier Authors of Romance (STAR), Founder and Member of South Central New York Shoptalk, and co-founder and President of the local writing group, the Write Now Club. Henry is the author ofAmazon Connection, a romantic suspense adventured published with The Wild Rose Press, which has garnered several 4 ½ Star Reviews. She has published several history books, and as an international traveler, has published numerous travel features in publications such asDiscovery,the deluxe edition of Princess Cruises in-cabin books,Compass, the deluxe edition of Holland America, as well as inRadisson Seven Seas Style, andWindstar Sophisticate and Porthole Cruise Magazine. She has given several creative writing workshops for both youth and adults, and has been a guest speaker at various venues Barnes and Noble Booksellers. Henry invites you to visit her website:www.carolhenry.org.
To Register:
This event is being offered through the Southern Tier Authors or Romance (STAR), a New York Chapter of Romance Writer’s of America® (www.starrwa.org). To register for this Special One-Day Workshop, send a check or Money Order for $45 (USD), made out to STAR April Workshop, and mail to: STAR April Workshop, PO Box 6, Willseyville, NY 13864. Or, you can pay via PayPal by going tohttp://www.PayPal.com, select the ‘send money’ button, then enter the amount due, and STAR’s email address (starpay@gmail.com) for payment. Then send an email (subject line: April One-Day Workshop) with your registration information: name, address, telephone number, and email address tocarolhenry@frontiernet.net.