Meetings
All LRWA meetings are held on the fourth Saturday of every month at 11:30 AM at the Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room unless otherwise stated. Interested and aspiring writers are encouraged to join us at any of our regular meetings! Non-members are welcome to attend two meetings before joining LRWA.
Times:
General Meeting: 11:30am – 12:00pm
Lunch/Networking: 12:00 – 12:45
Program Workshop: 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Location:
4110 Club Course Dr
North Charleston, SC 29420
Phone: 843 767 – 9000
Map
2019 Meeting Dates:
January 26
February 16
March 23
April 27
May 18
June 22
July 20
August 24
September 28
October 19
November 9
December 7 – Annual Holiday Party
Program Schedule for 2019
Click a link to go directly to a specific month:
JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC |
January 26, 2019
Goals: Friends, Not Foes
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
Whether you are already published, or just starting on your writing journey, concrete goals can propel your career forward. Join us for a discussion about setting and attaining the goals that are important to you in 2019. We’ll discuss the particulars of using short and long term goals, including a round table discussion about what works…and what doesn’t.
February 16, 2019
Goals: Friends, Not Foes – Part II
Guest Speaker: Savannah J. Frierson
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Edisto Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
Come join us for the second part of our goal-making workshop! This is a follow-up to the January meeting where we talked about barriers to effective goal-making and how to set goals that work. During this meeting, we will discuss the ease (or difficulty) of setting effective goals and helping each other troubleshoot or refine our yearlong goals as it relates to our careers and how RWA/LRWA can help. Do not worry if you missed Januaray’s meeting. There will be extra handouts provided. If you came to January’s meeting, please bring your filled-in handouts for discussion.
March 23, 2019
Workshop in a Box: Markicity 101
Guest Speaker: Jessie Edwards, RWA Marketing and PR Manager
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
Congratulations, your book will soon be in the world for readers to enjoy! Now is not the time to sit back and relax, though–how will readers know your book is available to be enjoyed if you haven’t told anyone about it? In this workshop, we will discuss a basic overview of where to start in terms of marketing and publicity, or “markicity.” We’ll take a look at your most important marketing and publicity tools, community-building strategies, pitching–your book and you, how to determine what to spend your time on, as well as some tips for working with a traditional publisher to enhance their efforts.
What is Markicity?
Most Important Marketing Tools
Website
Email newsletter
Building Community
How important is social media?
Networking
Reader groups/street teams
Pitching you vs pitching your book
Reviews
Trend pieces
Blogs
Hiring a publicist
Events
Working with a traditional publisher on publicity + marketing
Timeline
Expectations
Helping your publisher help you
Actions Actions
Speaker Bio:
April 27, 2019
The Economy of Words: Writing Short Story Romances That Leave Lasting Impressions
Guest Speaker: Savannah J Frierson
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
One writing skill we should all have in our crafting arsenal is the ability to write a short story. Between ever-shortening attention spans of our readership and our ever-expanding list of demands upon our own time, being able to write a tight and satisfying romance could be the perfect way to build upon our craft, gain interest in our voice and stories to both new and known readers, and generate additional income between longer projects. In this current buyer’s market of entertainment, finding the right economy of words so each one lands with maximum impact can improve your storytelling not just for quick reads, but also the ones that invite the reader to pull up a chair and hang that “Do Not Disturb” sign on their proverbial doors. In this workshop, we’ll discuss tips and tricks on how to construct the perfect short story romance so we can have the tools to write our own.
Speaker Bio:
May 18, 2019
Build Your Brand—and Sell Books—with Social Media
Guest Speaker: Elaine Reed
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
In this presentation you’ll learn which social media channel genre readers are most tuned into and get tips on how to leverage it to earn more fans and readers. We’ll touch on the benefits of reader groups, how to develop content, and how to use hashtags. We’ll also do an introduction to ads for Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, and BookBub. Don’t worry, we’ll have handouts, share notes and leave time for questions too!
Speaker Bio:
June 22, 2019
Critiques
Guest Speaker: Savannah J Frierson
Location: TBD
Times: 11:00 am- 12:00 – Meeting / 12:00 – Until – Writing
Workshop Blurb:
We’re critiquing that opening chapter. Submissions to be sent ahead of time.
July 20, 2019
From Heart to Page to Print: A Primer Guide to Book Publishing
Guest Speaker: Savannah J Frierson
Location: TBD
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
This presentation will offer an introductory guide to how to get a story from idea to manuscript to published work, what the potential paths to market are, and what are some key investments that will be made as authors undertake this journey.
August 24, 2019
Moan, Whimper, Sob, Bargain, Threaten: 5 Stages of Blurb Grief
Guest Speaker: Elaine Reed
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
Moan, Whimper, Sob, Bargain, Threaten: The Five Stages of Blurb Writing Grief (and how we’re getting over it)
How do you make a roomful of romance writers moan?
Ask them to write a blurb.
In this hands-on workshop we will talk about the elements of a successful blurb and put that knowledge into action in real time. We will use examples from the Anthology Project (with author permission) or others brought in by members, to tighten and polish those pesky blurbs. Let’s work through the grief together.
September 28, 2019
Hands-On: Online Presence for Authors
Guest Speaker: Amy Quinton
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
In today’s market, authors need an online presence. Need help setting up that website, amazon page, newsletter, goodreads page, FB, Twitter, Insta? Established authors will be on hand to answer questions as we sit down with pre-published writers and check off those to do items for establishing your online presence.
October 19, 2019
TBD
Guest Speaker: N/A
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
Speaker Bio:
November 9, 2019
TBD
Guest Speaker: N/A
Location: Coosaw Creek Country Club, Ashley Room
Times: Luncheon at 11:30 a.m.; Speaker at 1:00 pm
Workshop Blurb:
Speaker Bio:
December 7, 2019
Annual Holiday Party!
Location: TBD
Time: 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 pm
Happy Holidays, everyone! There will be a gift exchange for those who wish to participate, ($10 limit, writing related), and some fun prizes. Can’t wait to see you all there!
