Podcasts about digest conference

This week's show was recorded live in Brooklyn, NY! Merideth shares an idea picked up at this year's Writer's Digest Conference, a practical step in cultivating joy.  Picasso's "Girl in the Mirror" https://mo.ma/3zVTEtE Erin Ellis, cellist https://spoti.fi/3d0YT2d  Leave a comment or submit a question https://bit.ly/38bKMSF Transcript of this episode https://bit.ly/3PJ4bNR (auto-generated, may contain errors)  

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Kiffer Brown. Kathryn (Kiffer) Brown is the CEO and co-founder of Chanticleer Reviews and Chanticleer Int'l Book Awards (The CIBAs) that Discover Today's Best Books. The company differentiates itself with "under the hood" digital technology that increases the digital footprint of each book review and CIBA winner developed by her super-geek husband, Argus Brown.  Kiffer has presented at events such as: Writer's Digest Conference in NYC, IBPA University, Women in Publishing Summit, Pacific Northwest Writers Conference, RWA National Conference, Historical Novel Society, BEA UpubU, ALLi, Left Coast Crime Conference, and many more.  The annual Chanticleer Authors Conference held in Bellingham, WA features international best-selling authors such as Cathy Ace, Robert Dugoni, J.D. Barker, Ann Charles (and more!). The event focuses on marketing and book promotion, advanced writing craft, and Book-to-Film sessions.   In this episode Kiffer and I discuss: Why there has never been a better time to be an author than NOW. What makes something a review as opposed to a write-up and the four types of reviews. How advanced reviews help in promoting your book and when you should start getting them.   Plus, her #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/378

In this episode, I discuss: 1:00 Announcements: I'm being published in the May/June edition of Writer's Digest I'm speaking at this year's annual Writer's Digest Conference in NYC: https://writersdigestconference.com/the-ultimate-self-publishing-masterclass/ I'm also speaking at Inkerscon (virtually): http://www.inkerscon.com 5:48 Wins for the Week: Finished the last first week of my last law school class work. 7:15 Lesson Learned This Week: The History of Semi-Colons. Check out Cecilia Watson's book: https://geni.us/zsWlFc(PAID link) 9:20 Idea of the Week: 80/20'ing your 80/20 activities 13:52 Topic(s) of the Week: I talk about a recent period of lower productivity, and how that's not all bad. Check out The Conquest of Happiness by Bertrand Russell: https://geni.us/HNjbs (PAID link) You can listen to past episodes of the show at http://www.michaellaronn.com/podcast Listen to my other podcast, Writing Tip of the Day: http://www.authorlevelup.com Learn more about me and my books at http://www.michaellaronn.com My YouTube Channel for Writers: http://www.youtube.com/authorlevelup Also, join my (Fiction) Fan Club to get 3 free novels, early launch pricing, and notifications whenever I release a new book: http://www.michaellaronn.com/fanclub If you like the show, don't forget to rate and leave a review!

Mentioned: - OneStopForWriters.com Character Builder - Enneagrams: https://www.crystalknows.com/enneagram-test - Writer's Digest Conference: https://writersdigestconference.com/ - My Events: https://lpenelope.com/calendar/   The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a weekly, behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter - http://lpen.co/footnotes Support the show - http://frolic.media/podcasts! Stay in touch with me! Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarudCreative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Episode 128: Beast Mode Diaries, Week 3 In this episode, I discuss: 0:35 Announcements: - I'm appearing on The Creative Penn in the coming weeks!!! (2nd time) Stay tuned for me. - I will be speaking at this year's annual Writer's Digest Conference. Learn more at http://www.writersdigestconference.com - Audiobook for 150 Self-Publishing Questions is now LIVE: http://www.authorlevelup.com/150  4:17 Wins for the Week: - My first narrated book passed ACX QA with no technical issues. Huge win and sets the groundwork for me to start producing audiobook faster. - Finished my next book for writers! Still can't share any details, but my illustrator is working on it as we speak. 8:50 Lesson Learned This Week: An interesting terms of service issue that came up last week with Amazon and how I navigated the decision. Listen to my episode where I talk about my misadventure with a bad terms of service: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/michaellaronn/Episode_101.mp3  14:55 Idea of the Week: - An Author Efficiency Coach??? 17:39 Topic(s) of the Week: - How I wrote my latest book in less than 2 weeks and the setbacks I encountered along the way. - How I have started my NEXT book You can listen to past episodes of the show at http://www.michaellaronn.com/podcast  Listen to my other podcast, Writing Tip of the Day: http://www.authorlevelup.com  Learn more about me and my books at www.michaellaronn.com  My YouTube Channel for Writers: http://www.youtube.com/authorlevelup  Also, join my (Fiction) Fan Club to get 3 free novels, early launch pricing, and notifications whenever I release a new book: www.michaellaronn.com/fanclub  If you like the show, don't forget to rate and leave a review!

Prior to writing, you need to know your niche and your audience! Have you done your research? I didn't and it cost me years writing to a genre that was oversaturated. I did learn from this experience and, yes, I would have still written the book. Though, I would not have spent the money nor the time and effort to market it. My first novel was a true story about a little girl and her horse. I learned a great deal about my writing and about the publishing business, but I can never forget the discouragement when I realized the flat market trend. I'd gone to New York City's Writer's Digest Conference. Attended the welcoming presentation the first evening was when the keynote speaker told the audience, “With perseverance and dedication our book will find its success and recognition unless you've written a book about a house, of course.” I was crushed! Had I done the research and learned my niche learned what my audience wanted and needed, I would not have tried to market that book. Honestly, I was not attending the conference to pitch that particular book. Though, I had not done the work that I should have. I did not know then what the best niche I was to be writing for. Nor did I know the ideal market. I had no idea how to decipher the data and to select my ideal market. Knowing such insight can save you time, money, and unnecessary disappointment. The ideal place to do our market research is right here online. Research books that are selling. How are they like yours? How are they different? And most importantly... how can your book be better? Gather all the information and insight that you can. Don't hesitate to reach out for a helping hand. My link is in my bio

Thinking about writing your life story as a legacy for your family, friends, and/or community, but don't know where to start? Learn how from Richard Campbell, co-author with Cheryl Svensson of Writing Your Legacy – The Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting Your Life Story, carried in libraries in the U.S., Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and at Harvard and Princeton. Richard’s work has appeared in two annual issues of Writer’s Workbook as well as Writer’s Digest Magazine. A recent annual Writer’s Digest Conference in NY City featured Richard's session on memoir writing. www.guidedlifestories.com   Norm Laviolette, Co-Founder and CEO of Improv Asylum, IA Innovation and Asylum Gaming and Esports (A.G.E.), is the author of The Art of Making Sh!t Up: Using the Principles of Improv to Become an UNSTOPPABLE Powerhouse. His book combines lessons learned from Norm's personal journey with teachings derived from his years of honing valuable skills through performing and presenting to thousands of people. By focusing on topics that serve as pain points and detailing the tools and techniques of improv, Norm helps people and organizations utilize new skill sets to be more productive, accepting, and "all in" as stronger teammates and teams. www.theartofmakingshitup.com

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Jeff Somers on the show! I first met Jeff at BookExpo this past spring and had the opportunity to hear him speak at the Writer’s Digest Conference this past summer, and the moment we crossed paths I knew that we were going to be instant writing besties. First off, he’s hilarious. Second, he’s an iconoclast, so not really into following the rules, which is totally my jam. Plus, his wife is also super-awesome which means he has great taste. This is why I just knew I had to have him on the show so we could geek out about his book Writing Without Rules. But first, a little more about Jeff. Jeff began writing by court order as an attempt to steer his creative impulses away from engineering genetic grotesqueries. He has since published nine novels, including the noir-scifi novels in the Avery Cates Series, the darkly hilarious crime novel Chum, and most recently tales of blood magic and short cons in the Ustari Cycle, which includes the novel We Are Not Good People and four novellas. He has also published over thirty short stories, including “Ringing the Changes,” which was selected for inclusion in the Best American Mystery Stories 2006, writes about books for Barnes and Noble and about the craft of writing for Writer’s Digest, which also published his book on the craft of writing Writing Without Rules in 2018. He considers pants to always be optional. So listen in as Jeff and I geek out about this awesome book, debunk some of the greatest writing myths in history, and discover exactly why pants should always be optional. In this episode Jeff and I discuss: Why only writing what you know creates boring books. What “show don’t tell” really means. Write every day, the god-emperor of bad writing advice. Solving the mystery of “kill your darlings”. How to expand your vocabulary, without a thesaurus. Plus, Jeff’s #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/236

Mark interviews Kerrie Flanagan, author of the author of Guide to Magazine Article Writing by Writer's Digest. Kerrie is a freelance writer with over 20 years of experience. As a writing consultant, she works with writers, giving them the encouragement, support, resources and tools to find success on their writing journey. She is the author of 8 other books published under her label/publishing company Hot Chocolate Press. Prior to the interview, Mark shares a message from this episode's sponsor, the BOOKS GONE BAD BUNDLE from BundleRabbit, which features about 260,000 words from 11 authors in 2 books and 10 stories of "Speculative Visions of a Uniquely Portable Magic." You can learn more about the bundle via BundleRabbit or check it out at your favorite eBook retailer. http://books2read.com/booksgonebad Mark shares a few personal updates, which are: The new FREE email course he launched via Reedsy called Kobo Hacks for Optimizing Sales. It is a series of 10 emails that each take about 5 minutes to read that will be automatically delivered to those who sign up His story "Active Reader" appearing in the latest issue (#3) of Pulphouse Magazine and how that ties back to a goal/dream Mark had several decades ago when he first started writing   In their conversation, Mark and Kerrie discuss: How Kerrie hadn't been someone who had always dreamed about being a writer; and how it was her role as a teacher that ended up leading her down that particular path The submission process she originally went through to get her first book published, and how that led to her self-publishing that book back in 1997 when self-publishing was an almost taboo path for a writer to take The local writer critique group that first exposed Kerrie to the idea of magazine article writing Kerrie's first magazine article query, which was to Better Homes & Gardens magazine The genesis of a Colorado winery article that Kerrie wrote, based on her interest in wine The biggest mistakes that writers make when trying to pitch article ideas to a magazine, which include not doing one's homework or properly researching and understanding the readership/audience of the magazine One of the things that surprised Kerrie about the writing of this book after she had begun the process The many hats that Kerrie has worn as a writer and publisher The thrill of having a hugely respected publisher of books for writers behind her on this new book The importance of building connections with people (as an underlying factor that contributed to this book happening) The work Kerrie did as an event coordinator for Writer's Digest The very meta experience of using an article from Writer's Digest to help Kerrie with negotiating the contract she signed with Writer's Digest for this new book Hot Chocolate Press, the publishing company Kerrie heads up that has 18 books and 8 different authors The challenge of balancing the various hats that Kerrie wears as a writer, a ghost-writer and a publisher The three conferences that Kerrie will be speaking at in the next little while Mendocino Writer's Conference in CA (August), The Writer's Digest Conference in NYC (August), the new Indie Lab Writer's Digest Conference in Cincinnati (Sept) How Kerrie connected with Angela MacKintosh, Editor-in-Chief of WOW! Women on Writing magazine and landed her first assignment with that market The use of magazine article writing for building your author brand and expanding your reach in a way that isn't as likely via standard social media How libraries and the internet have made the process of researching magazines so much easier than it used to be The advice that Kerrie would give to a writer wanting to get started Her avoidance of the use of the term "rejection" when a magazine article isn't accepted by an editor The importance of not giving up, and how it took Kerrie 20 years of hard work to get where she is today After the interview, Mark shares his reflections on what the conversation with Kerrie and reading her new book made him think of, including his own rise through publishing selling short fiction to magazines (comparing that to non-fiction selling to magazines), and a few ideas he is planning on implementing related to niche article writing. He also talks about selling articles to magazines as an additional revenue source for a writer, helping to balance out dependencies and income streams. Mark then thanks listeners and Patreon supporters and closes off the show.   Links of Interest: Kerrie Flanagan's Website Hot Chocolate Press Writer's Digest Guide to Magazine Article Writing Writer's Digest BundleRabbit Findaway Voices  

Have you been struggling to find time for writing in your busy life? Are you sitting on a good idea, but can’t focus to get it done? Today on Financial Fluency, I’m pleased to have Gabriela Pereira with me. Gabriela is the author of DIY MFA: Write with Focus, Read with Purpose, Build Your Community and founder of DIY MFA, the do-it-yourself alternative to a Master's degree in writing. She created DIY MFA to help writers around the world get the "knowledge without the college." Gabriela’s mission is to empower creative individuals to take an entrepreneurial approach to writing. On the show, Gabriela mentions she’s had many prior lives, and jokingly considers herself to be part feline because of that. She worked as a psychology researcher for a while then went on to design toys before founding DIY MFA. Gabriela admits it was an accident; she didn’t found DIY MFA, it “found” her. On this episode, you’ll hear how that accident came to fruition and where she is today. Gabriela starts off by sharing where the idea for DIY MFA began. Gabriela admits she went to school to get her MFA for all the wrong reasons. She didn’t know how to get published, but she knew she was good at writing. It wasn’t until she was sitting in her commencement ceremony expecting to feel like a writer, and she didn’t feel it, that the DIY idea came to her. She talked to a lot of people, and she realized a fair amount of them could not go on to obtain their MFA as she did. Gabriela thought about how she could share what she learned in the MFA structure and how to help people construct their DIY MFA themselves. Gabriela did what everyone did with a blog in 2010—she wrote about it, and her question was simple:  "If there was a DIY MFA would you do it?”  Fast-forward to 2012, Gabriela is nine months pregnant and attending the Writer’s Digest Conference in New York City. At the conference, she finds herself talking to a guy who asked to hear her “pitch slam.” (It’s kind of like speed dating for writers - you pitch your book idea to an agent.) To Gabriela’s surprise, this man ended up being a Writer’s Digest agent. After hearing her pitch, he gave her his card and said to send him the book proposal. Gabriela notes before jumping the gun she contacted an old colleague, Jeff Kleinman. After talking to him, she ended up signing him as her agent. The first thing he told her was that her site and social numbers needed to improve, so Gabriela spent two and a half years building her platform. She grew her business, spoke at conferences, made connections, and got her name out there. At the end of December of 2014, she signed the book writing contract, and DIY MFA took off.  Gabriela believes people should write their book; it’s an accomplishment that gives the author three extra tools for their writing toolbox. Publishing a book is a credibility builder for your career. Writing your book gives you visibility as an author. The journey of writing the book makes you clarify your ideas.   Gabriela’s Writing Techniques Writing advice from Gabriela to help you power through writing a book. Pick one. Zero in and make a choice on what you want to do, what you want to write about, and figure out where your heart is. Stick with it until the end. Remember, if you say “no” to something, you’re saying yes to the thing you want. Revise. Take your revisions as far as you can. Start editing the important part of your book: voice, characters, plot. After you’ve reviewed those elements to make sense of your story, you can move to the scene-by-scene. Look at the dialogue and description. You don’t want to go through a manuscript line-by-line with a red pen if you’re going to end up deleting portions of the book. Keep writing. Avoid the “Shiny Object” syndrome, and focus on writing the one thing your heart tells you to do. Keep pushing through. Writing in the middle of the book is the most daunting task for a lot of writers. Keep thinking about the story and how to keep your readers along for the journey.   The great benefit of Gabriela’s advice is you can use this approach for any written project in your business.  To keep up with Gabriela and DIY MFA, visit the website here. Also, if you're a newbie to the writing industry, blogger, or established author, Gabriela has a writing podcast for you: DIYMFA.com/iTunes (iTunes), DIYMFA.com/StitcherRadio (Stitcher Radio), DIYMFA.com/GooglePlay (Google Play).  You can also follow her on social media: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Instagram   Resources DIY MFA Starter Kit DIY MFA: Write with Focus, Read with Purpose, Build Your Community   Bio Gabriela Pereira is a writer, speaker, and self-proclaimed word nerd who wants to challenge the status quo of higher education. As the founder and instigator of DIYMFA.com, her mission is to empower writers to take an entrepreneurial approach to their professional growth. Gabriela earned her MFA in creative writing from The New School and teaches at national conferences, regional workshops, and online. She is also the host of DIY MFA Radio, a popular podcast where she interviews bestselling authors. Her book DIY MFA: WRITE WITH FOCUS, READ WITH PURPOSE, BUILD YOUR COMMUNITY is out now from Writer’s Digest Books.

Hey there Word Nerds! Today I’m delighted to welcome back the founder and principal of Book Architecture, Stuart Horwitz, and his collaborator Dave Stebenne. You can listen to my previous interview with Stuart here. Stuart has spent over fifteen years helping writers become authors and his clients have reached wow-worthy levels of success. You can read the details in his bio below. More personally, though, Stuart is also a trusted colleague of mine and a good friend. When we first met over drinks at a Writer’s Digest Conference back in 2013, I knew right away that I had met a fellow writer and writing teacher whose perspective both aligns with and complemented my own. Stuart’s books are among my top go-to resources, both ones that I recommend to my students and that I use for my own writing. The newest installment of the Book Architecture trilogy–Finish Your Book in Three Drafts: How to Write a Book, Revise a Book, and Complete a Book While You Still Love It–just might be my favorite one yet. For this book, he teamed up with Dave Stebenne who created the stop-motion shorts to accompany the Book Architecture 5-year tour to create a cross between a non-fiction how-to guide and graphic novel. The result is nothing short of awesome.   In this episode Stuart, Dave, and I discuss: How the idea for this book came about The importance of both spontaneity and planning in writing Form, function, and continuity in the development of an idea Creating something that has a life beyond you Plus, Stuart’s and Dave’s #1 tips for writers. About Stuart Horwitz Stuart has spent over fifteen years helping writers become authors. His clients have signed with top literary agencies, sealed deals with coveted publishing houses, or forged a successful path as indie authors. Book Architecture’s clients have reached the New York Times best-seller list in both fiction and nonfiction, and have appeared on Oprah!, The Today Show, The Tonight Show, and in the most prestigious journals in their respective fields. Stuart’s approach is a synthesis of academic theories of narrative structure and his hands-on experience as an independent editor, book coach and ghostwriter. He has written three highly acclaimed books which together comprise the Book Architecture trilogy (affiliate links): Blueprint Your Bestseller: Organize and Revise any Manuscript with the Book Architecture Method Book Architecture: How to Plot and Outline Without Using a Formula Finish Your Book in Three Drafts: How to Write a Book, Revise a Book, and Complete a Book While You Still Love It Stuart is an award-winning essayist and poet, who has toured the Book Architecture Method through over seventy venues in North America and taught writing at Grub Street of Boston and Brown University. He holds two master's degrees—one in Literary Aesthetics from NYU, which helps him a lot with this work—and one in East Asian Studies from Harvard with a concentration in Medieval Japanese Buddhism, which helps him get out of bed in the morning. To learn more about Stuart and his work, visit his website, or follow him on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. About Dave Stebenne Dave is a 23-year veteran of the creative business, as an art director, editor and animator. Dave is responsible for the stop-motion shorts featuring action figures that are hands-down the best part of the Book Architecture 5-year tour. Having worked in broadcast media, the toy industry, advertising, publishing, and the corporate design world, he has a wide base of expertise to draw from in his work with Chick ’n Coop Pictures. He and his wife, the photographer Kristin Stebenne, live in Lincoln, RI with their two incredibly cool, sweet and adorable kids. Dave is responsible for the stop-motion shorts featuring action figures that are hands-down the best part of the Book Architecture 5-year tour. For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/102    

Elisabeth and Merianna talk about fighting the imposter monster, reader’s theaters about germs, and exciting upcoming conference. They debate how to know if you are truly doing what you should be doing. If you’re scared of it, it’s probably what you should do. The Giving Tree Screen Time for Kids Food Safety Music – Microbes Medley – Animation We Are the Microbes Muggie Maggie Beverly Clearly Elizabeth Gilbert on Ketut Liyer Taglines 5 Effective Ways to Master the Imposter Monster Research and Imposter Monster 5 Steps to Kill the Imposter Monster Fluent Self Utopia Writer’s Digest Conference What are Elisabeth and Merianna reading this week? The post Thinking Out Loud 115: Fighting the Imposter Monster appeared first on Thinking.FM.