February 2017 Newsletter

WRITE ON!

How’s everyone doing? January sure flew by, didn’t it? Check out the February 2017 Newsletter for news, events, contests, and more. #WriteOn

LA writers/creatives/entrepreneurs, stop by our February Write On/Guided Goals Hangout on Wednesday, February 1, from 1 – 3pm at Peet’s, 1854 Westwood Blvd., Los Angeles. RSVP on Facebook. 

Post your February Goals on Write On Online or Facebook and be entered in a drawing to win a book from Michael Wiese Productions. Congratulations to this month’s goal-posting winner Lois Paige Simenson, who won a copy of Romantic Comedies by Panela Jaye Smith. (Check out my Q&A with Pamela Jaye.) Also share your 2016 Accomplishments and 2017 Goals.

Write On Online has regular, ongoing content, including Q&As (there’s also one this month with Susan Van Allen, 100 Places in Italy Every Woman Should Go); Write On! Wednesdays; Roundups (take a look at Networking Tips), Meeting Recaps, and more. Also posted is the live video of my goal-setting workshop at LAX coworking.

Do you have a new book or an upcoming book release? Want to be featured in a Write On Online Author Q&A? For consideration email deckerling@gmail.com or submit your info here.

NEWS

My first ebook, Purple Pencil Adventures: Writing Prompts for Kids of All Ages, will be FREE on Amazon February 1 through February 3, 2017. Although it’s geared towards kids, there are plenty of prompts adults can use to exercise those writing muscles! To learn more listen to my interview on the She Wrote a Book Podcast with Lena Anani. Grab a copy!

Need some blogging inspiration? I was just interviewed by Carrie Dils on the OfficeHours.fm podcast. We talk about blogging, social media, and more. So much fun! Also, check out my book: Write On Blogging: 51 Tips to Create, Write & Promote Your Blog.

Monthly Contest: Did you take part in Win With Write On: Jump Into January? Report back on Write On Online or the Facebook page by February 1. Details here. Watch for information on my next contest: Focus in February!

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The Winter We Said Go Travel Writing Contest is accepting entries. Theme is “How travel has changed your life.” Deadline is February 14. Details here.

Sandra De Helen, author of Till Darkness Comes, will join six other lesbian authors in Portland, Oregon, on February 11, for a night of readings, signings, and chocolate. Also, her essay on life before legal abortion was published in ROAR.

POPS the Club, a nonprofit that creates, trains and supports clubs in high schools for students whose lives have been impacted by incarceration — the children and other loved ones of the incarcerated and deported — has been growing fast and now serves nine schools in the L.A. area, as well as schools in Pennsylvania, Northern California, and Minnesota. POPS the Club’s fourth anthology will be published in May. We are always looking volunteers, and because we are an arts based organization (publishing our students’ writing and artwork in annual anthologies, on our website and in partner publications, like The Good Men Project) writers are especially welcome. If you’re interested, sign up here.

Ghostwriting Your Way to a Profitable Writing Business: Karen Cioffi-Ventrice’s new 5-week interactive eclass through WOW! Women on Writing will teach you how to get started, how to deal with clients, how to create agreements, how to charge, and more.

Listen to GetPublished! Radio. “Your host Gerald Everett Jones has the answers – because he’s already made all the mistakes himself,” radio announcer Bill Navarro quips. The podcast, which has been available on iTunes and other channels since last April, moved to a half-hour weekly broadcast, Sundays at Noon Pacific, on KNNN 87.7 FM in Redding, California. Out of the area, you can Listen Live at  or stream/download from podcast channels.

Announcing, “Talking With Authors,” a new weekly podcast that features interviews with independent and small press authors. Please tell them about your books here.

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Mineral School, a newer artists residency in a former elementary school in Mineral, WA, a fishing lake town near Mt. Rainier, has begun taking applications for 2017 writing residencies. Summer residencies are two weeks long, nominally priced ($425) and include room, board (allergies accommodated), visiting author presentations, and opportunities for writing residents to read publicly. During the fall, we’re also offering 8 free one-week residencies to parent authors via support from The Sustainable Arts Foundation. These free residencies have a reduced ($10) application fee and feature visiting author Claire Dederer (Poser) and Neal Thompson (A Curious Man). Final deadline is 2/15/17. Application and more info via Submittable.

The Todos Santos Writers Workshop is coming up February 5 – 11 in Baja. Classes in Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, with craft seminars and special guest speakers. Join us in our Pueblo Magico by the sea for the story of your life.

The Tahoma Literary Review is accepting narrative nonfiction submissions on any subject. Full guidelines are here. Also accepting fiction and poetry submissions. They currently pay between $30 and $100.

Female Authors wanted for interviews on the #SheWroteABook podcast with Lena Anani. If interested, please inquire here and please allow up to 24 hours for a response.

Writers, pen won’t budge? Read The Morning Nudge! Get your free subscription.

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EVENTS

February 1: February LA Hangout from 1 – 3pm at Peet’s, 1854 Westwood Blvd. Los Angeles. RSVP on Facebook.

February 2: Book’d “The Ultimate Bibliophiles’ Night Out” lit event kicks off season five at The Group Rep/Lonny Chapman Theatre in NoHo featuring readings by and a discussion with mystery, romance & YA authors, bookish giveaways, and a catered mingling reception. Get event details.

February 4: Create a Production Company free workshop with Monika Skerbelis and Rona Edwards at 11am at The Writers Store in Burbank. Get details and reserve your spot.

February 4: Romatic Comedies event with Pamela Jaye Smith at 1pm at The Writers Store in Burbank. Get details and reserve your spot.

February 9: Beyond Words Panel of Writers Guild-Nominated Screenwriters, presented by the WGA, West and the Writers Guild Foundation (WGF) in partnership with Variety, at the WGA Theater in Beverly Hills. Confirmed screenwriters scheduled to appear include Damien Chazelle (La La Land), Tom Ford (Nocturnal Animals),Eric Heisserer (Arrival), Barry Jenkins (Moonlight), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), Jeff Nichols (Loving), Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick (Deadpool), Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures), and Taylor Sheridan (Hell or High Water). Moderated by Writers Guild Award and Oscar-nominated screenwriter Andrea Berloff.

February 15: PALA (the Publishers Association of Los Angeles) presents How to Blog Better, Monetize Your Blog, and Sell More Books in Culver City at the Veterans Memorial Building, Culver & Overland. See the website for more info. Members free; others $15.

February 16: Mar Vista Chamber of Commerce Coffee Time: February Fresh Start: Tips to Set & Achieve Goals in 2017 at 8am at Coffee Connection. Details and RSVP on Meetup.

February 16: How to Break into the Screenwriting Business: a four week course by Michele Wallerstein via Screenwriters University begins.

February 21: Social Media Club LA Panel “You Made this? I Made This. Copyright and Social Media” at General Assembly in Santa Monica.

February 25: 2017 Pre-Oscar Panel with Michael Wiese Productions starting at 2pm at The Writers Store in Burbank. The panel will be moderated by Matt Lohr (author of Dan O’Bannon’s Guide to Screenplay Structure), and panelists include authors Kim Adelman (Making it Big in Shorts), Pamela Jaye Smith (Romantic Comedies), Simone Bartesaghi (The Director’s Six Senses), and John Bucher (Master of the Cinematic Universe). Get details and reserve your spot.

March 1: March LA Hangout at Peet’s in Westwood. RSVP on Facebook.

March 22 – 24: Social Media Marketing World in San Diego. Learn more and get tickets.

Plus, lots of upcoming Writing Workshops from Los Angeles Writers Group.

Ongoing: On the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month, writers are welcome to come to the Santa Monica Bay Woman’s Club to write from 6:30 to 10pm. The club, at 1210 4th St, asks for a $3 donation. RSVP to MAnnapav@aol.com.

Write On! Members: Let me know if you have a book being released or some awesome news, so we can include it in the next newsletter. Also, check out the Write On Online Facebook Page for regular opportunities to share your books and blogs.

FRIENDS OF WRITE ON!

Write On Online’s Facebook page has again been included in The Write Life’s Top Facebook Groups for Writers. Thanks, The Write Life! Check out the entire list.

For even more writing support, check out BookPod, an online social platform for authors and aspiring authors centered around the world of books and publishing. Interested in joining BookPod? Email Jennifer Brody.

Subscribe to Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s How to Do it Frugally Newsletter for great tips, how-to articles, bonuses and more! Also check out the resources for writers on her website.

Trying to get media attention for your upcoming project? Learn how to connect with reporters and get great press. Learn more about Cheryl Tan’s online PR Pro community. Also, get Cheryl’s free press release template.

Need a transcriber? CLK Transcription can help! CLK employs more than 30 highly trained transcriptionists … and has great rates. Email carollee@clktranscription.com for more information.

Does your website or blog need a new look?  Does it work the way it’s supposed to on desktops, smartphones, and tablets? Our friend Dennis Wilen can help. Email dwilen@yahoo.com and tell him Deb sent you!

iScript.com has added a new audiobook component to their offerings. Now, you can get high-quality audiobooks made of your writing!

Orange County Writers, check out Lit Central OC, an online magazine for news, reviews, craft articles and more for writers in the Orange County area.

Like Michael Wiese Productions on Facebook to learn about contests, workshops, special events, and new releases from the number one publisher of film books in the world.

Need book covers, illustrations, or other book design elements? Contact michele@micheledesigns.com, graphic designer and illustrator.

For quality printing at affordable prices, check out PRINT-Xpress. From banners and posters to brochures and business cards and everything in between, they’ve got you covered. Contact Sam or Carolyn for more information.

She Takes on the World is a top blog for women entrepreneurs, career women, and young women professionals.

Are you a startup, nonprofit or personality in need of digital strategy like social, email, content? Email Tara of Poodle Mafia – Elegantly Aggressive Digital Marketing & Branding.

Guided Goals: Define, Plan & Achieve Your Goals. Guided Goals offers coaching and project management services, as well as tools and advice to put you on the path to success. Sign up for the newsletter, and receive “5 Ways to Improve Your Productivity. Like Guided Goals on Facebook and follow on Twitter. Email Deckerling@gmail.com or call 310.908.8980 for more information!

Write On Online’s Guided Goals Podcast is a series of expert interviews, designed to help people pursue their passion projects. Each episode wraps with action items, so listeners can take what they heard, and move forward right away. We are taking a break, but you can listen to previous podcasts on GuidedGoals.com. Also, watch on YouTube, listen, and subscribe on iTunes, listen on Stitcher, or listen on Google Play.