FF&P WORKSHOP UPDATE

The Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal Chapter of the RWA Presents the line up of great workshops for 2013! Click here to see the full line up! http://romance-ffp.com/page/workshops

SWOT Analysis for Writers by Dr Leslie Dow April 15-28, 2013

SWOT (Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats) Analysis is a tool used every day in business strategy to identify the critical internal factors that a company can use to take best advantage of any situation. Sound familiar? Writers can use this powerful tool to do the same thing. Using SWOT you’ll learn how to evaluate your characters strengths and weaknesses against the external opportunities and threats posed by your plot. Using this simple technique you will strengthen motivation by identifying those places where internal strengths and weaknesses collide with external opportunities and threats in ways that make stories great!

Flashbacks -- presented by MM Pollard April 22-May 12, 2013

Flashbacks present a problem with verb tenses. Since a flashback is past, but you’re writing in past tense, how do you show the flashback is more past than past? Confused? Trust me, you aren’t the only one. Editor Laurie Sanders, BVS, says that the poorly written flashback is one of the reasons she rejects manuscripts. Flashbacks are a device that a writer must use with care, or she might lose her reader in that distant past, never to see that reader again. We’ll consider kinds of flashbacks, uses for flashbacks, and reasons not to use flashbacks as well as the mechanics involved. Reward for doing your homework: MM’s personal feedback on every assignment. Consider homework as opportunities for mini-edits by MM.

Web Design --presented by Catherine Chant May 6-17, 2013

At the end of this workshop you will have a better understanding of what goes into making your author website more appealing and inviting to a visitor and thus more effective for promoting you and your work. This two-week workshop will cover the golden ratio of layout design, web fonts and web-safe colors, using white space, user interface considerations and website organization, web graphics for the artistically challenged, and the importance of testing websites with multiple operating systems and browser applications. This workshop is aimed at writers who have websites already and want to make them better, or writers who are planning to set up a website and want to know more about how the content should be arranged, either because they plan to do it themselves, or they want to be more informed when hiring a professional designer. This workshop is the perfect follow-up to any class you've taken on HTML or creating a web presence. When you know HTML or a piece of web software, you know how to make a basic web page. The "Principles of Good Website Design for Writers" workshop guides you through the NEXT STEP in the website development process by showing you how to take that basic page and make it a GOOD web page. One that invites visitors to stick around and read what you have to say. PRE-REQUISITE: Students should be familiar with the basics of setting up a website (domain name, software, etc.). This class focuses on design principles and how to make your website more user friendly, appealing and effective. It is NOT a coding class on how to program your website or how to use website design software. The workshop will include exercises designed to strengthen the concepts discussed. Students do not need to have an active website to participate, but may find the lessons more "hands-on" if they do. The instructor will offer feedback on any student's website during the workshop if the URL is offered during the class.

Beyond Google --presented by Ally Broadfield May 6-June 2, 2013

Workshop Description: There's nothing more frustrating than wasting your precious writing time on a futile web search. Whether you are looking for a specific piece of information or need to research an entire time period or subject, this class will help you conduct the best search for your information needs. You will learn how to utilize multiple online search resources, including search engines, web directories, and databases. You will also learn how to refine search terms, narrow or broaden your search, how to use Boolean logic, and many other tips and techniques to make your research more efficient and successful. A list of searchable web directories and websites covering multiple topics based on the needs of workshop attendees will also be provided.

Romantic Suspense seeks Paranormal -- presented by Leslie Wainger May 6-June 2, 2013

Writing romantic suspense should be easy, right? Take some romance, add some suspense, and voila! Except...not really. To stand out in this crowded genre you need to plot every step as carefully as your killer plots his next murder, and your couple's relationship has to be as romantic as Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton. This course will start with the basics and go deep, preparing you to write a romantic suspense novel that makes readers stay up nights reading.

PLEASE JOIN US!