Meeting Information

Community Building: The Heartbeat of Great Marketing Harry Potter. Doctor Who. Lord of the Rings. Star Wars. Think about the most prolific fan bases in our culture. Besides great story, what do they all have in common?  COMMUNITY. There are people out there who love your characters and your stories as much as you do (sometimes more, … Read more

Last-minute switch to a roundtable (our original speaker fell ill, so she’ll come in June instead). We will take this opportunity to get acquainted with our three new members and share our experiences of and challenges with our writing journeys in a safe and supportive space.

How to write twisty, shocking reads: Start with the action that immediately sets the tone of the story Keep the dialogue flowing, get the reader invested in the characters Deep POV: keep the reader tightly attached to the characters The threat of danger should be ever-present, even in the mundane activities. Push your own boundaries: … Read more

Workshop Description: The Pandemonium of a Pantser, Making the Manuscript out of the Madness is a workshop teaching about the writing style of a panster, someone who writes by the seat of their pants! With so many workshops exploring the craft of plotting, this workshop is designed to provide insight into how a writer who doesn’t … Read more

Thinking of indie-publishing? What do you need to know? What do you need to do? Who do you hire? What do you do yourself? There are many roads to travel when going the indie-publishing route and it can seem overwhelming. Author/owner of www.formatting4U.com, Judi Fennell, has been helping authors navigate the pathways to indie-publishing since 2012 … Read more

 Marriage of Genres:  Jane Austen and the “Romance Novel” All six of Jane Austen’s novels end with marriage.  It is thus no surprise that Austen is often considered a “romance writer.”  But what exactly does that mean?  Is it true?   This interactive talk will begin by asking the RI Romance Writers how each member defines … Read more

Writing deep point of view can be a challenge, especially when you know so much more about what’s happening than your characters. If you’ve ever been critiqued for “head hopping” or “perspective surfing,” this is a conversation you want to be part of. Find your voice and keep wandering gazes and ideas where they belong in this … Read more

Conflict Soup – What can we do to take a romance from good to amazing?There are three kinds of conflict in a romance novel: internal, external, and sexual. We will discuss methods for enhancing and defining all three of them. I will provide how-tos for keeping a “conflict journal” to help with your story work. … Read more

Find Your Inner Muse: Your internal critic feeds on your own self-doubt, anxieties, and fears. To quiet her, you must starve her out. Our internal editor is a different voice from the one that misdirects our energy by demeaning our efforts. The internal editor is smart and savvy and helps us improve our work. The … Read more