Hello, Area 4 Pennwriters!
Thank you for understanding my need for time away from email. I needed time to upgrade my laptop's operating system and update my word processing programs. So far, it looks like a success, only now my Chrome and Gmail are working slowly. I'll be investigating why the slow down has happened and working through solutions. It's probably an advanced settings issue, so I'll be trouble-shooting more than I'll be writing. I'm not complaining, but I KNOW you all know the frustrations of technical difficulties. We've all gone through it at one time or another. Thank you for listening and providing your unwavering support!
--
Our May Inkwell meeting is next week on Tuesday, May 7th, 2024!
Please RSVP using this form:
https://forms.gle/4fWZjXoRWLSGQjDY8
or you may RSVP via email:
jennifer.d.diamond.writer@gmail.com
*Your RSVP helps the restaurant prepare our room for us.
*Regrets need not reply.
*Note that the RSVP form has two options to indicate your plans. Please choose one: under the question, Will you attend? 1. Yes, I'll be there in person for dinner beginning at 6:00 pm AND the meeting following. 2. Yes, I'll be there in person for the meeting only, beginning around 7:15 pm.
We hope you'll be able to join us in-person at Marzoni’s restaurant, 165 Patchway Road, Duncansville, PA 16635 for our May 7th, 2024, Inkwell beginning with dinner (paid for on your own) at 6:00 pm and our meeting and workshop beginning around 7:15 pm.
Kimberly McElhatten will present her workshop, The Book Proposal Blueprint: The Must-Have Business & Marketing Plan Every Book Needs (Even Self-Published Ones).
A book proposal is a business plan and marketing roadmap for your book. Learn the critical, must-have elements of a great book proposal that guarantee your book will stand out in a crowded marketplace and find readers.
In this workshop, you will
- Learn why writing a book proposal is critical for every book, even self-published ones.
- Explore the key contents of a book proposal, including best practices and mistakes to avoid.
- Understand how to leverage the book proposal for your promotion and marketing efforts.
- Get a book proposal template to guide you through writing your own.
Leave this workshop with a clear, easy-to-use blueprint to plan and write your next book proposal.
McElhatten is a writer, a writers' coach, an editor, and a copywriter with a passion for personal growth, entrepreneurship, and all things SEO. As founder of Open Roads, McElhatten provides coaching for writers, manuscript services, and copywriting services. Please go to her website, https://openroads.life/about/, scroll to the bottom of the page and subscribe to her newsletter, The Writer's Roundup. I've been receiving The Writer's Roundup for nearly a year and find every installment chock-full of valuable tools and insights! Please follow Kimberly on social media as well, at @kimberly.mcelhatten and @openroadscoaching.
We hope to see you there!
--
Area 4 Raffle Basket:
Thank you for ALL of your donations to the Area 4 Pennwriters basket raffle. The basket raffle happens at the conference next month, so there's still time to donate. If you can't make it to the May meeting to give me your donation, and you're going to the Pennwriters Conference, then I can add your items to the basket when you arrive in Lancaster. If you can't get your donations to me in person, then please email me and we'll work out another way for you to get those items to me. Here are some examples of the types of items we're looking for as donations: donations of books written by authors in our area, any genre, donations of special items made locally in our area (perhaps local wine or spirits, local hand-made decor, locally made chocolates, etc.), or other appropriate donations from our members. Thank you to Gretchen Martens for coming up with our basket theme, "A Weekend in the Country."
Here are the items currently in our basket:
-books by Area 4 authors
-white wine
-local maple syrup
-local honey
-local chocolates
-a journal and travel-sized office supplies
-two handmade spring-themed dolls/spring decor items
-an overnight writing retreat stay
If you have other donation ideas, please let me know. Thank you for making our basket highly sought after!
--
Pennwriters Conference: May 17th-19th, with Intensive Workshops on the 16th
I'll be attending the conference, so please ask me if you have any questions. Please come and find me once you arrive in Lancaster. I'm not staying in the conference hotel, but I'll be there throughout the day and night for all of the workshops and events. Please send me an email if you need any conference help, and come find me for our Saturday morning breakfast meeting because I'll have a table for Area 4 Pennwriters to sit together. Thank you!
*registration for the conference is still open:
https://pennwriters.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=522048&module_id=378066
*If you are an author selling books at the conference, you must go to the following links and fill out the forms:
https://pennwriters.org/docs.ashx?id=1275970
https://pennwriters.org/docs.ashx?id=1275972
https://pennwriters.org/docs.ashx?id=1275971
secondchapterbks@gmail.com
--
Inkwell Meetings:
June 4, 2024 in-person meeting at Marzoni’s restaurant, 165 Patchway Road, Duncansville, PA 16635, beginning with dinner (paid for on your own) at 6:00 pm, with the meeting to begin around 7:15 pm. Topic: self-publishing discussion.
No meeting in July
August 6, 2024 in-person meeting with our summer picnic. More details coming later!
September 3, 2024 in-person meeting at Marzoni’s restaurant, 165 Patchway Road, Duncansville, PA 16635, beginning with dinner (paid for on your own) at 6:00 pm, with the meeting to begin around 7:15 pm with a special guest presenting a writers' workshop. Details to be announced at our next meeting.
October 1, 2024 in-person meeting at Marzoni’s restaurant, 165 Patchway Road, Duncansville, PA 16635, beginning with dinner (paid for on your own) at 6:00 pm, with the meeting to begin around 7:15 pm. Topic TBD.
November 5, 2024 in-person meeting at Marzoni’s restaurant, 165 Patchway Road, Duncansville, PA 16635, beginning with dinner (paid for on your own) at 6:00 pm, with the meeting to begin around 7:15 pm. Topic TBD.
December 3, 2024 in-person meeting at Marzoni’s restaurant, 165 Patchway Road, Duncansville, PA 16635, beginning with dinner (paid for on your own) at 6:00 pm, with the meeting to begin around 7:15 pm where we will hold our annual holiday party with book giveaways.
--
Pennwriters Online Classes: https://www.pennwriters.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=522048&module_id=378067
June - Writing Diversity: A Character Workshop - Fritze Roberts -Wednesdays 7-9pm Zoom
July - Christmas In July: Creating a Holiday Reader Magnet That Works With What You Write! - Kathleen Shoop - Mondays 7-8pm Zoom
July/August - Developing the Television Pilot - Diana Botsford - Tuesdays 7-9pm Zoom - two month course
August - I Think I have a Book: Successful Strategies for Preparing Your Poetry Manuscript - Keith Kopka - Wednesdays 7-8pm Zoom
September - Marketing, Promoting, and Selling During the Holiday Season - Kathleen Shoop - Tuesdays 7- 8pm Zoom
September - Weaving History Into the Historical Novel - Kathy Otten - Sundays 1-2pm Zoom
October - Writing Meaningfully in an Election Year: The Poetry of Politics and Witness - Keith Kopka - Wednesdays 7-8pm Zoom
November - Mastering the Mystery of Crime Fiction - Annette Dashofy - Saturdays 1-2pm Zoom
Please reach out to me via email with your ideas, questions, or concerns. I'll have my Gmail app on my iPhone while we're at the conference, so that is the best way to reach me there.
Thank you so much for reading! Hope to see you soon!
Sincerely,
Jenn Diamond
*************************************************************
Jennifer D. Diamond, MS/CCC-SLP
Speech Therapist, Reading Specialist, Award-Winning Author
Pennwriters Area 4 Representative
The Inkwell Coordinator