Following are the official workshop descriptions for the sessions on the 2009 BWRC CD-ROM. Get yours today for only $65.99 plus FREE shipping & handling. Sale ends June 17, 2010.

Getting the Creative Juices Flowing

Dr. Anita Heiss

Skill level: Beginner. This “Getting Started” workshop for emerging writers is designed to get the creative juices flowing and show you how to deal with writers’ block and delve into memory for story ideas, characters, settings, and scenes. Participants will be WRITING in this workshop and learning to uses the senses to transport readers through words on the page. This workshop will also help emerging writers learn the principles of time management and prioritizing to reach their writing goals. “Tips on writing” generally will be provided as will recommendations for writing resources. Time permitting, participants will share orally samples of work written during the workshop. Participants should bring all relevant writing materials and/or laptops.

Fundamentals of Writing Fiction

N. Kali Mincy

Skill level: Beginner to advanced With “Fundamentals of Writing Fiction” you can enjoy life as an author the way you’ve always wanted to. Designed for new and seasoned writers, this two-day interactive workshop will give you insight that will help you think analytically about writing and publishing fiction that readers will love. You will even discuss short stories written by fellow BWRC attendees to explore the effective uses of important fiction elements. So come prepared to transform your writing. Be ready to successfully implement the following keys to great fiction in your own work:

Writing Christian Fiction

Donna Deloney

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate This course will cover the basic elements of writing fiction that is uniquely Christian. We will discuss Christian vs. inspirational fiction, how to incorporate Scripture and prayers within a manuscript, as well as whether questionable elements (the use of profanity and sexuality) can or should be incorporated into Christian fiction. We will also address this question: Are you a Christian who writes or are you a writer who is a Christian – and is there a difference?

Romance Writing: The Rules, Recipes and Rewards!

Lutishia Lovely

Skill level: Beginner to Experienced Romance writing is a uniquely crafted genre within the world of literary fiction. In this past-paced workshop, Lutishia Lovely covers topics that will teach novices and remind seasoned veterans of what makes a book “romance” instead of “women’s fiction” and specific guidelines on how to turn their storyline idea into a manuscript. Topics include:

• History and types of romance novels
• The romance novel “formula”
• Storyline structure or framework (hero/heroine relationship, personality dynamics and necessary traits, character taboos, conflict/resolution, chapter headings, story advancement, beginnings/endings, POV, # of characters, main/secondary), hook line beginnings, plot development, dialogue, introspection, etc.)
• Selecting and researching storyline
• Writing process: Options to story outlay including: outlines, note cards, character bios, synopses
• Successful novel structure: Prologues, Page One, Chapter One, creating emotional attachment for the reader, creating sympathy for the hero/heroine.
• Story showing vs. story telling
• Sexual tension and love scenes
• Happily ever after: the formulaic must for romance

Powerful Plots: Story and Structure in Novel Writing

Venise Berry

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate This workshop will focus on helping participants construct a viable plot and effective storyline for their novel idea. Specifically looking at the catalyst, transformations, character goals, subplots, climax and resolution. This workshop can help writers at all stages whether they have only an idea in their head or if their manuscript is complete and they want to strengthen their current plot or storyline.

Maximize your Writing Through Enhanced Spirituality

Dr. Jacqualyn F. Green

Skill level: Beginner to Experienced Our spiritual side is a powerful tool that can guide us along the writing path. Often, in the midst of daily demands and deadlines, we forget that this treasure that exists within us. The purpose of this session is to assist authors and potential authors in reclaiming their spiritual side by identifying strategies for growth and development, in an effort to maximize creative skills. This workshop is appropriate for writers at any stage along the continuum – from those contemplating writing to seasoned authors. Anyone experiencing difficulty juggling numerous responsibilities and desirous of becoming more centered and spiritually focused could benefit from this session.

Writing for Young Readers

Antonio L. Crawford

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate Have you dreamed of writing and publishing your own children’s book? The children’s book market is saturated with would-be writers who have the desire to write for children. The problem is that writing for children is not as easy at it sounds. It takes a lot of hard work, research, planning and skilled writing. The goal of this course is to share valuable information to help you write, publish and market your manuscript to reach young readers. In this course you will learn how to write, publish and market your children’s book. This course will teach you to:

• Understand why you want to write for children (to educate, inform, share information, demonstrate, enlighten, or entertain. . .)
• Identify your target audience (Research age group, level of reading, learning curve, attention span, standards of learning; parents and grandparents)
• Determine your message (what type of message do you want to communicate, what should the child gain from reading your book) and what type of book you want to write (picture book, pop-out book, chapter book. . .)
• Get your children’s book published by self-publishing or traditional publishing
• Develop a marketing and PR plan…and much more

Writing Your Memoirs

Dr. Anita Heiss

Skill level: Beginner to Experienced How many times have you told people your personal testimony only for them to say to you, “You should write a book?” How many people in your own world would benefit from you documenting your memoirs? Many of us have inspirational and encouraging stories to share, and our stories also encompass important family history. Dr. Anita Heiss wants to give you a leg up to get started and develop a foundation for your own memoirs. This session is for any level of writer, particularly those who have never written before or have not written adult non-fiction. Everything from conception to creation will be shared. This session is not about how to sell your book, but how to RESEARCH and WRITE it! Some of the topics that will be discussed are:

• Determining the type of memoir you want to write—who is it for? Why must it be written?
• Brainstorming techniques—What questions you should answer to get those ideas flowing!
• Researching techniques
• How to make your story conversational
• Practical exercises to get your story onto the page
• Notions of ‘truth’ in memory
• Know what to include in the story and what may be too much
• How to get it into the hands of the right publisher for your specific genre

This session will walk you through the steps to writing your personal memoir, giving you useful techniques from determining the type of memoir you want to write and your intended audience, finding your voice, the use of questioning to create “memoir writing”, and the special touches that will make your memoir come alive from those hidden pages from within.

Writing a Book Proposal

Venise Berry

Skill level: Beginner to Experienced. This workshop will focus on helping participants begin the process of writing a non-fiction book proposal for various genres such as; memoir, historical, essays, autobiography, anthology, resource, self-help, how to, humor and others. Specific areas of the proposal will be discussed and developed including: title, hook, market, promotion, bio and outline. This workshop can assist writers at all stages.

Making the First Sale: Pitching to Editors and Agents

Gwynne Forster

Skill level: Beginner. The purpose of this workshop is to give writers advice on pitching their work to editors and agents in persons at major conferences and by mail. If you have a good presence, it is easier to make your case in person. Most don’t have that presence. The first thing you have to do is sell yourself. In this work shop you will learn the do’s and don’ts of approaching editors and agents and of telling them about your project in the proper setting. If you are making the first contact by mail, you will learn how to do this. In addition, you will learn how to prepare the basic materials needed for a submission by writing and for an in-person presentation. To the extent that time permits, there will be opportunities to practice in-person submissions.

From Self-Published to Mainstream Bestseller

ReShonda Tate Billingsley

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. You’ve written your book, sent it to print and gone about the business of self publishing. How can you take your book to the next level? In this workshop, you’ll learn how to garner mainstream attention, get bookstores to take notice and stock your book, capture media attention and land your book on the bestseller’s list. Presenter ReShonda Tate Billingsley self-published her debut novel, sold 15,000 copies and caught the attention of a top literary agent and publisher. She has since appeared on numerous bestseller’s lists, including Essence, Ebony, The Washington Post, Dallas Morning News, USA Today, Romantic Times and many more. She’ll share some tricks to help you take your book from self-published to mainstream bestseller.

How to Self-Publish Your Book

Mack Smith & Sara Freeman Smith

Skill level: Beginner. Want to write a book? OR do you have book that needs to be re-energized? Well, this workshop is designed just for you! If you want to be informed, inspired and even entertained, plan on attending this session on self-publishing. Bring your notepad and get ready to be encouraged to stop talking and start doing! You can write and self-publish your own book! Mack and Sara, co-authors of “How to Self-Publish & Market Your Own Book – Third Edition,” have helped thousands publish their books and you can be one of them too! They are veteran speakers and will share with you a wealth of their publishing knowledge and resources.

What You Need to Know About Literary Law

Tonya Marie Evans, Esq.

Skill level: Beginner. Writers and other creative people often focus on the creative aspects of their creativity, with little attention to the business and legal pitfalls awaiting the uninformed. And let’s face it; sometimes we just don’t know what we don’t know! But the answers to the most common and important questions are found in this workshop. In a lively and engaging format, noted lawyer, professor and author Tonya Evans delivers must-have information and hot topics, myths and industry secrets about copyright, fair use, trademark, contracts to inform and empower writers at every level of their writing career.

Editing Essentials for the Self-Published Writer

Michelle Chester & Teowonna Clifton

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. The purpose of this workshop is assist self-published authors in recognizing the importance and role of an editor. This workshop will not only define the editing process and what to expect from an editor, it will also provide helpful tips on editor/writer relationship, how much you should expect to pay for editing, reasons to reject an editor and common editing mistakes. Participants will leave this workshop with a better understanding of the role an editor plays in the writer’s journey to publication.

Media, Book Club and Public Relations for Authors

Vincent Alexandria

Skill level: Beginner to Experienced. The workshop offers techniques for building confidence and self-esteem in dealing with the public. You will learn the art of dealing with people, book clubs, and making appearances at events to promote your book(s). You’ll learn to make better choices and be better business people. This workshop will show you ways to increase sales and prepare you to cooperate with other authors, media, the public, and booksellers.

Get Published through e-Publishing or Print on Demand

Antonio L. Crawford

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. The traditional publishing process was designed to publish trade books, not satisfy the consumer’s need for immediate supply. It’s regrettable because readers want to read your story now. E-publishing and POD provide a low-cost solution to placing your books in the hands or your readers. In this course participants will learn an easy to follow process for publishing and distributing manuscripts in multiple forms. In this course you will discover:

• Various companies that use e-publishing and POD technology
• Review guidelines to submit your manuscript
• Why e-publishing and POD are better business solutions
• Different ways to transform your manuscript into info-products
• How to create eBooks and eWork books (step-by-step)
• How to write and distribute eArticles and eNewsletters
• How to create audio files . . . and more

S.P.E.A.K – Sensational, Powerful,
Engaging, Authoritative Keys to Public Presentation

Patricia Haley

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. Often times, writers are internal creatures. Poring over reading material, battling over email with editors, and burning the midnight oil looking for the conclusion to a novel years in the making, is fodder for isolation, the launching paid for internalizing feelings. As such, many authors, when that little or big break comes, are often at a loss of words when the curtains go up, and the stage is set to talk about your work.

This session provides up-and-coming writers (as well as published authors) with verbal speaking tools to wow not only their listening audience, but potential new readers as well. This workshop will introduce you to the catalyst to fuel a secondary (and supplemental) career as a public speaking agent, which allows you to maximize your gift as a writer on a different platform (which is all public speaking is—good writing).

This workshop will focus on verbalizing your internal vision and focus, developing a mainstream public persona while still maintaining your individualism. S.P.E.A.K. relates to interviews, college forums, or any platform where you can equally showcase your talents as a public speaker and an author.

The Play’s the Thing

Bryan-Keyth Wilson

Skill level: Beginner. Do you have a book that you want to see on stage? Or better yet, do you have a story in your head that you want to see come alive? This playwriting workshop, taught by renowned writer, director & playwright Bryan-Keyth Wilson, is designed for those who are interested in playwriting and would like additional knowledge on the process.

In this workshop you will receive the essential tools needed to turn your book, idea, or storyline into a play. You will be given essential tools on how to build strong characters and write a strong story arc that will have all theatre-goers on the edge of their seats. This is not your average sit down and absorb type of class; you will be writing scenes and acting them out.

Getting Started in Screenwriting

Bryan-Keyth Wilson

Skill level: Beginner. In this workshop the attendee will understand and analyze the story ARC—forming the idea into a dramatic entity with beginning, middle and end. By the end of this session the attendee will be given the essential start-up tools needed for writing for the screen.

• Finding the idea
• Centralizing the subject
• Character & action breakdown
• Screenplay structure
• Storyline structure
• Writing the treatment

Blogging the Write Way

Diane Dorce

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. This seminar is a step-by-step guide to creating, design, and building a blog, with emphasis on generating traffic and making it profitable. We’ll cover ideas and ways to build your readership and perhaps earn money through blogging. Topics to be discussed:

• Setting up your blog
• Designing your blog (free designs, and blog stylists)
• Building your audience (rules of the game or are there no rules?)
• Traffic generators (who’s reading you, neat little gadgets to determine that)
• Keeping your audience
• Earning pay while blogging (writing articles, advertisements, sponsorship and more)
• Selling your books or ideas
• Sharpening your writing skills
• Networking (bartering, and trading skill sets)
• Making your blog a commodity (building a community, new readership)

Technical Writing

Marguerite Benjamin Parker

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. There is a writer with no concern for character and plot development. There is a writer who never thinks along the lines of chapter and verse. There is a writer who has no aspiration for a bestsellers list or to be the choice for a book club selection. Yet you have seen this writer’s work everywhere, on any given day, and in any given environment. This writer’s skill is in ever-increasing demand, and she will never be out of work. Meet today’s most prolific and sought-after wordsmith—the technical writer.

This 60-minute workshop will reveal some little known facts about the current trends (and surprising security) in technical writing as a career.

Grant Writing as a Career

Rekaya Gibson

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. This workshop will cover grant writing as a career option; the truth about grants; the different types of grants; where to find them; tips on writing a common grant proposal; and creating grant-writing e-products. As an added bonus, participants will receive a list of grant opportunities for writers and organizations; and practice writing their own grant.

How to Make and Market Greeting Cards

Janice Cassel

Skill level: Beginner. This workshop will teach attendees how to use poetry/prose to create greeting cards. Attendees will also receive resource information and learn techniques needed to design, print, and to market their products.

Website Makeover Workshop

C.J. Jackson

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. Website Makeover Workshop is a seven step process to guide any author or writer to get set up properly with a website. The workshop will take you outside the box to obtain true understanding of the key elements to why you’re on the internet. You’ll learn powerful, simplistic, applicable techniques and strategies to better utilize their book excerpts, subscription forms, book reviews, and videos to capture more subscribers, readers, and sales. This workshop will also cover as an added bonus the powerful aid and ailment to many authors, writers, and entrepreneurs: MySpace.com, i.e. how to get off Myspace onto your space. This workshop will cover:

• Domain Name – How to select one properly (includes exercise)
• Creating Your Space / Website – Simple and free ways get started in 10 minutes
• Online Book Purchasing Process – Profit vs. Book Ranking
• Auto Responders – Systematize your online process
• Implement Magnetic Customer Getting Methods – Proper use of excerpts, reviews, subscription forms, and more…
• Connect With Your Website Visitor – Building a rapport with YOU the author
• MySpace.com: How and Why to get off Myspace onto your space – Branding

Careers in the Written World

Renee Daniel Flagler

Skill level: Beginner to Intermediate. For most students, choosing to pursue a career in writing is simple, but with a multitude of opportunities, industries and disciplines to choose from, finding the right fit in the vast world of professional writing can be extremely overwhelming. Each area of interest comes outfitted with its own set of rules, regulations and writing styles. Within each discipline there’s a need to understand techniques and dynamics that are very specific to that distinct area of writing. This workshop offers an interactive and informative discussion that explores and examines the various disciplines of professional writing, including careers in:

• Journalism
• Editing/editorial
• Freelance writing
• Copywriting
• Theatre
• Lyric writing
• Book publishing
• Writing for film and television

This session also offers tactics for preparing for a successful career in a chosen area of interest.

Essence of Spoken Word

Marc Lacy

Skill level: Beginner to Experienced. Just what is spoken word? How does it differ from poetry? Are there tools and procedures available to assist in enhancing spoken word performance? When should it be performed? Can a career be made out of being a spoken word artist? How does one market themselves should they choose to pursue this endeavor? Learn answers to the aforementioned questions and acquire knowledge on key ingredients to the recipe of becoming a spoken word artist.