April’s website: www.olearypublishing.com

November 2020

Speaker: April O’Leary
Topic: What Publishing Path is Perfect for You?

Decades ago aspiring authors had only two options secure a traditional publishing deal, or if you couldn’t get one, publish your work yourself for a small fortune. Fortunately, writers have many more publishing paths available to traverse today that include various levels of difficulty. In this presentation, April O’Leary, founder of O’Leary Publishing, will discuss the pros and cons of each path including the amount of time and technology skills required for the author, the upfront cost, the opportunities for distribution and ownership of your work. You’ll walk away with a clear trail guide to help you publish your book with success. See you at the top!

About April
April O’Leary is the founder of O’Leary Publishing, a hybrid book publishing company that serves independent authors who want a book to grow their brand, share a message or build a community. She is the author of six books and the host of the I’m Booked podcast. For more information you can visit www.olearypublishing.com and download The Influencer’s Path to Successful Publishing free today.

Meeting: November 21, 2020, 10:00 AM – 12:00 Noon

Jill’s blog:  www.jillswriterscafe.com

September 2020

Speaker: Jill Clark
Topic: How to Velcro Your Writing and Make It Stick

Jill will provide tips on how to find markets that fit your writing style and genre, how to use social media to your advantage, and creative ways to market your work once it is published.

Jill Clark freelances prose and poetry. Among others, her writing has appeared in Lerner Publications, Pocket Change Literary Magazine, Hedge Apple Literary Magazine, Ariel Chart Literary Review, The Nature Conservancy, and The Henry David Thoreau Institute. She hosts workshops, lesson plans, and activities for children in libraries and schools around Florida-based on characters, themes, or literary techniques generated from her recent publication Loose Balloons.

Please blog Jill at www.jillswriterscafe.com if you would like her to host an event or presentation, purchase her book at a reduced rate, or if you would like the author and illustrator to personalize the book.

To preview a portion of the book from Amazon select:

Loose Balloons Children’s Poetry Book Jill Clark

Meeting: September 19, 2020, 10:00 AM – 12:00 Noon
Location: [map] Southwest Florida Military Museum & Library
4820 Leonard Street
Cape Coral, Florida 33904

Bob McCarthy, Geneva Kelly, Christie Zarria

July 2020

NEW LOCATION

Speaker: Geneva Kelly
Workshop: Writing from prompts

The Military Museum was a great venue for us and the meeting was a success. We had some delightful stories written on the spot from prompts given by Geneva.

Meeting: July 18, 2020, 10:00 AM – 12:00 Noon
Location: [map] Southwest Florida Military Museum & Library
4820 Leonard Street
Cape Coral, Florida 33904

March, April, and May 2020 Meetings CANCELLED

Visit her website at: http://ronniewalter.com

February 2020

Speaker: Ronnie Walter
Topic: 5 Secrets to Make Your Self-Published Book Stand Out in a Sea of Professionals

The difference between a typical DIY self-published book cover and an eye-catching, genre appropriate sales-generator by a professional designer can be the difference between sleepy sales and exciting daily results.

That’s because people DO judge a book by it’s cover.

Author and designer Ronnie Walter will share with you how to identify the visual language of your genre, how your cover can help potential readers discover your book, and also will walk you through the “Crimes of Bad Covers.”

Whether you choose to design your own cover or hire a designer, the more you know about what works (and how to say it), the more your cover will represent the amazing writing on the inside!

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn how to position your book for success!

Ronnie Walter, artist, writer and business coach for creatives, knows her way around publishing. She is both a self-published author and also has books with several traditional publishers. She is the author of License to Draw—How to Monetize Your Art through Licensing and More, Gruesome Greetings—A Georgie Hardtman Mystery, several gift books, numerous journals and has illustrated and published over 20 coloring books for adults. Her newest book, Gratitude with Attitude—How Journaling Thankfulness for Five Minutes a Day can Change your Life was released in October 2019, and Start here, Start Now, Start Anywhere—A Fill-In Journal to Discover Your Best Year yet! is scheduled for release in April, 2020.

Ronnie lives in Cape Coral with her husband, writer Jim Marcotte and the best shelter dog ever, Larry. She can be reached through her website at www.ronniewalter.com

January 2020

Speakers: Bob McCarthy and Judy Loose
Topic: The 3 Ps of Self-Publishing — Preparation, Publishing, and Promotion

Bob and Judy will give a presentation on self-publishing covering subjects and suggestions on preparation, publishing, and promotion of your book.

Bob is a professional writer and editor with experience in both freelance and in-house writing. His articles have appeared in regional, national, and international magazines. He writes web content, video scripts, training manuals, social media content, and collateral material. More about Bob at gulfwriters.org.

Judy worked as an IT professional installing corporate computer systems and managing IT departments for thirty years. For the last twenty-plus years she has owned her own company, Loose Links. She designs and maintains websites, edits and formats books, and creates book covers. She has self-published two novels, The Janus Code and Mangrove Madness. More about Judy at judyloose.com and gulfwriters.org.

Handouts from Bob and Judy’s presentation on Self-Publishing