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SUMMARY:WEBINAR | Writing the Synopsis: Solve Your Plot and Sell Your Book
DESCRIPTION:You need a synopsis to sell your book to agents and publishers. Writing it now can solve plot and structure problems\, determine which characters belong\, and create a map to finish your book.\n\n\n\nfor Creative Nonfiction\, Nonfiction and Fiction \n\n\n\nWriters often dread distilling their beautiful story into a dry synopsis—and they’re right! It’s not creative and fun. But the synopsis is not only a requirement for querying and publishing\, it’s also a valuable tool to shape your story and get closer to “The End.” A good synopsis gives an overview of your whole book\, in an easy-to-process form. By examining turning-point scenes\, character objectives\, and the underlying dramatic question that propels your book\, you’ll know where you’re going and how to get there.  \n\n\n\nYou’ll be able to send a draft of your working synopsis in advance. Allison will use volunteer examples to show what makes a synopsis work (and what doesn’t!). Then she’ll live-edit participant synopses to show how to reverse-engineer your manuscript from your synopsis to create more tension\, power\, and literary might. (Please note\, she won’t get to everyone: examples will be chosen to benefit the whole group!) \n\n\n\nSuitable for writers with a manuscript in any stage from messy early draft to ready-to-query. \n\n\n\nThis is a TWO HOUR class\, with 20 minutes of writing time in the middle. \n\n\n\n\n40 minutes – Learn how to write a synopsis\, using images\, turning points\, and character objectives. Allison will use submitted examples and synopses of already-published books to show what works and what doesn’t.\n\n\n\n10 minutes – Q&A to fully understand and apply the information.\n\n\n\n20 minutes – Revise your synopsis with new tools and knowledge. Allison will continue taking questions in the chat. OPTIONAL: volunteer for live-editing and upload your scene as a Word doc or docx.\n\n\n\n40 minutes – Allison will live-edit some of the shared synopses\, showing where the writer is succeeding\, and what revisions she suggests. During live edits\, she’ll call out specific techniques and tips for everyone to apply to their own work\, right away. \n\n\n\n10 minutes – more Q&A and planning your writing from here.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nUNDERSTAND why agents and publishers need a synopsis—and how they use it to assess your manuscript\n\n\n\nLEARN how opening and closing images anchor your synopsis and your book\n\n\n\nDISCOVER how “Chekhov’s Gun” makes your synopsis actually interesting!\n\n\n\nUSE “but\, because\, therefore” to write a rough synopsis\n\n\n\nDEVELOP a working synopsis to guide your writing process\n\n\n\nREFINE your synopsis for querying your book\n\n\n\n\nThis workshop suits …\n\n\n\n\nWriters of fiction and nonfiction who intend to traditionally publish\n\n\n\nNovelists stuck in the “messy middle”\n\n\n\nMemoirists whose draft has “gotten away from them” and needs shape and focus\n\n\n\nWriters working on a second book… who’d like the process to move faster this time!\n\n\n\nWriters hearing feedback that their book lacks tension\, needs a stronger hook\, or the story is “hard to follow” or “didn’t grab the reader”\n\n\n\nDevelopmental editors who want to understand synopses and better communicate that knowledge to their author clients.\n\n\n\n\nYou’ll receive the slides and prompts to take this work into your manuscript \n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAllison K Williams is the author of Seven Drafts: Self-Edit Like a Pro From Blank Page to Book. She’s helped writers sell to Big Five and literary publishers\, hit the NYT Bestseller list\, and sign multi-book deals. She’s guided essayists and humorists to publication in media including the New Yorker\, Time\, the Guardian\, the New York Times\, McSweeney’s\, Refinery29\, Hippocampus\, the Belladonna and TED Talks. As Social Media Editor for Brevity\, she inspires thousands of writers with weekly blogs on craft and the writing life. \n\n\n\nAllison works with literary and commercial fiction and nonfiction\, and is familiar with the conventions of most genres. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Western Michigan University and spent 20 years as a circus aerialist and acrobat before writing and editing full-time. \n\n\n\nQuestions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\nFULL REFUNDS ARE AVAILABLE before the replay is sent out. For a refund\, EMAIL us at info@WritingCraft.com. Canceling your Zoom invite will not initiate this process. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Organizer\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/writing-the-synopsis/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250813T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250813T160000
DTSTAMP:20260507T160909
CREATED:20250709T141538Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250807T133440Z
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SUMMARY:WEBINAR | Everyone's on Substack: Should you be?
DESCRIPTION:Thousands of writers are jumping on the Substack bandwagon every month. Learn how to break in with your newsletter.\n\n\n\nRegular email newsletters allow writers to build an organic audience based on direct connection with readers\, and this kind of platform can be attractive to literary agents. Substack has more than 20 million active subscribers\, and over 17\,000 writers are being paid for their writing on the platform. But with thousands of writers joining every month—many of them famous—how can a new writer break in? \n\n\n\nAfter nearly four years writing her Substack Between Two Things\, Lindsey DeLoach Jones has learned lots of lessons the hard way. In this presentation\, she’ll give tips for writing essays that will succeed in the email format\, building an audience (using Notes and other features)\, and connecting with other like-minded writers. She’ll also help you think through your newsletter goals (from earning money to practicing your skills to building an email list that supports your writing and publishing). \n\n\n\nCan’t make it live? No worries—a replay will be available to all registrants. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nEXPLORE various ways to interact on Substack\n\n\n\nLEARN how to write a newsletter people want to read \n\n\n\nSET goals for your newsletter.\n\n\n\n\nYou should take this webinar if you\n\n\n\n\nAre new to building a platform\n\n\n\nHave considered moving to Substack\n\n\n\nWant to better reach your audience\n\n\n\nAre unsure how to tackle the Substack essay format\n\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLindsey DeLoach Jones is a writer living in Greenville\, South Carolina. She often finds herself inside the tension between seemingly opposed forces—the spiritual and the practical\, the mysterious and the mundane\, the Mother and the Artist. In this spirit\, she has been writing a Substack called Between Two Things since 2021. \n\n\n\nLindsey holds a BA and MA in English and an MFA in Creative Nonfiction. She has served as the Writer-in-Residence at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and has taught literature and writing at Clemson University. Lindsey currently teaches writing online and in person at Writeshare\, the writers’ network she co-founded in Upstate SC\, and for organizations such as CRAFT TALKS. She previously served as Editor of Emrys Journal and Edible Upcountry. \n\n\n\nLindsey’s essays have appeared in HuffPost\, HuffPost Parenting\, Split Lip\, Under the Gum Tree\, and Motherwell. She is a recipient of the Vandermey Nonfiction Prize\, and an essay nominated by Pigeon Pages was recently a finalist for Best of the Web. \n\n\n\nQuestions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\nFULL REFUNDS ARE AVAILABLE before the replay is sent out. For a refund\, EMAIL us at info@WritingCraft.com. Canceling your Zoom invite will not initiate this process. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Organizer\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/everyones-on-substack/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250820T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250820T163000
DTSTAMP:20260507T160909
CREATED:20250710T163323Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250819T233015Z
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SUMMARY:WEBINAR | Memoir-Plus: The Key to Writing a Memoir That Sells
DESCRIPTION:You have a story to tell. But how do you convince the publishing industry that people want to read it?\n\n\n\nIn a world where an estimated two to three million books are published every year\, your memoir needs to stand out\, not just with compelling storytelling\, but with a marketable hook that expands its audience. Enter memoir-plus\, a powerful approach that blends memoir with something more\, making it bigger\, bolder\, and more irresistible to readers and publishers alike. \n\n\n\nThis idea-packed webinar will help you explore new ways to frame your memoir\, whether you’re still brainstorming or deep into drafting. You’ll leave with fresh inspiration\, actionable insights\, and a clearer path toward a memoir that stands out in a very crowded field. \n\n\n\nCan’t make it live? No worries—a replay will be available to all registrants. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nLEARN the distinction between traditional memoir and memoir-plus\, and why it matters\n\n\n\nENCOUNTER standout memoirs\, discovering how their marketing copy positions them as “pluses”\n\n\n\nGET INSPIRED with over 20 different “pluses” you can add to your memoir\n\n\n\nFIND OUT where to highlight your memoir-plus elements in a book proposal\, to attract agents and publishers\n\n\n\n\nThis webinar is ideal for you if You’re …\n\n\n\n\nJust getting started and want to build a memoir concept with marketability in mind from the beginning\n\n\n\nIn the muddy middle and feel called to reframe or reimagine your project to make it bigger\, bolder\, and more marketable\n\n\n\nReady to pitch your memoir-plus and need strategies to make it stand out\n\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJennifer Leigh Selig is an LBGTQ+ teacher\, international speaker\, book publisher\, and author whose writing and teaching career spans four decades. She’s the author of dozens of newspaper articles\, book reviews\, essays\, journal articles\, short stories\, screenplays\, and books\, including the Nautilus Gold award-winning book\, Deep Creativity: Seven Ways to Spark Your Creative Spirit\, The Writer’s Block Workbook: A Psychologist’s Guide to Working With and Through Writer’s Block\, and Deep Memoir: An Archetypal Approach to Deepen Your Story and Broaden Its Appeal. \n\n\n\nQuestions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\nFULL REFUNDS ARE AVAILABLE before the replay is sent out. For a refund\, EMAIL us at info@WritingCraft.com. Canceling your Zoom invite will not initiate this process. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Organizer\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/memoir-plus/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250827T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250827T161500
DTSTAMP:20260507T160909
CREATED:20250728T145347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250821T141707Z
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SUMMARY:WEBINAR | The Dreaded 'So What?’: How to Build Stakes That Make Readers Care
DESCRIPTION:When nothing feels at risk\, readers stop caring. Learn how to build compelling stakes that keep readers turning pages.\n\n\n\nfor Personal Essay and Memoir \n\n\n\nLow stakes are the #1 reason personal narratives get rejected. As writers\, we’re faced with a dreaded question: So what? How do we get a stranger to care about our lives—and why should they? How do we encourage readers with short attention spans to keep turning pages? \n\n\n\nLearn 5 key tools for building tension and emotional stakes in personal narratives. Using works by writers like Natasha Trethewey\, Kristen Iversen\, and Alex Marzano-Lesnevich\, we’ll crack the code on how nonfiction writers build high stakes and sustain them throughout their narratives. Then we’ll apply these techniques to your own manuscript through hands-on exercises: defining internal and external stakes\, creating obstacles that keep readers engaged\, using strategic time shifts to build suspense\, and more. \n\n\n\nYou’ll leave with a complete toolkit for building and sustaining stakes that keep readers engaged from start to finish. \n\n\n\nCan’t make it live? No worries—a replay will be available to all registrants. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nLEARN 5 tools for ramping up the stakes in your memoir or personal essay\, making readers feel instantly invested \n\n\n\nEXPLORE how nonfiction writers use stakes & suspense to keep readers turning pages \n\n\n\nAPPLY new stakes-building techniques to your own narratives\n\n\n\nBUILD a toolkit of strategies for defining stakes\, seeding conflicts\, and building suspense\, to make your pages stand out to agents\, editors\, and readers\n\n\n\n\nThis webinar is ideal for writers at any level who:\n\n\n\n\nWant to ramp up the emotional stakes & tension in their story \n\n\n\nAre getting rejections and need tools for making their work more compelling and high-stakes\n\n\n\nAre struggling to identify the larger “so what?” of their personal story\n\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nKATIE BANNON is a writer\, editor\, and educator whose work has appeared in The Washington Post\, The Rumpus\, ELLE Magazine\, Narratively\, and more. Her memoir manuscript\, which charts her journey as a compulsive hair puller\, was a finalist for the Permafrost Nonfiction Book Prize. A graduate of GrubStreet’s Memoir Incubator\, she holds an MFA in creative nonfiction from Emerson College. She loves helping memoirists and essayists tell their most vulnerable\, taboo stories. She lives in Central Massachusetts with her partner and two cats. \n\n\n\nQuestions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\nFULL REFUNDS ARE AVAILABLE before the replay is sent out. For a refund\, EMAIL us at info@WritingCraft.com. Canceling your Zoom invite will not initiate this process. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Organizer\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/the-dreaded-so-what/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250828T110000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250918T120000
DTSTAMP:20260507T160909
CREATED:20250805T203513Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250819T232947Z
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SUMMARY:FREE WEBINAR | Weekly Meetup: Working Through The Artist's Way 
DESCRIPTION:Creativity calls for intention and connection. Let’s show up together.\n\n\n\nfor All Writers and Creative Types \n\n\n\nYou’ve probably heard of The Artist’s Way—maybe it’s on your shelf\, maybe you’ve cracked it open once or twice\, maybe you’ve promised yourself you’ll return to it “someday.” Well\, here’s your chance! We’re gathering for a chill\, no-cost\, weekly meetup to work through the first four chapters. That’s it. No grand declarations. Just four weeks of showing up for one hour on Zoom to be writers in community. \n\n\n\nWe’ll talk about morning pages (whether you’re doing them or just dodging them)\, artist dates (how to make them happen and where you might take yourself)\, and the strange\, wonderful ways creativity starts to wake up when we give it a little room. \n\n\n\nWe’ll ask questions. Share ideas. Probably write a little.  \n\n\n\nIt’s not a class\, not a critique group\, not therapy—just people committing (again or for the first time) to bringing writing and creativity back into their routine. You don’t even need to consider yourself “a writer.” If you’re drawn to the creative practice\, you’re welcome to join. \n\n\n\nWe recommend borrowing The Artist’s Way from your local library and reading the first chapter\, “Recovering a Sense of Safety\,” before our first meetup. If you’d prefer your own copy\, we suggest this edition: The Artist’s Way: 25th Anniversary Edition by Julia Cameron. There’s also a companion workbook—but it’s completely optional. One note: Julia Cameron talks a lot about spirituality and the idea of a creative force greater than ourselves. You don’t have to subscribe to that\, but if it’s a turnoff\, this might not be your jam. That said\, it’s free and friendly\, and you’re welcome to pop in and see how it feels. \n\n\n\nCan’t make every session? No worries—join us the following week. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nEXPLORE the first four chapters of The Artist’s Way\n\n\n\nBUILD momentum with weekly creative check-ins\n\n\n\nFIND support and CONNECTION with other writers and creative types\n\n\n\nDISCOVER practical ideas for tackling resistance\n\n\n\nWRITE together in a low-stakes space\n\n\n\nREFLECT on the link between creativity and habit\n\n\n\nBE INSPIRED to keep going—even after the four weeks are up\n\n\n\n\nThis webinar is ideal for those who:\n\n\n\n\nAre feeling stuck\, stalled\, or disconnected from their work\n\n\n\nWant to rebuild (or build) a sustainable creative habit\n\n\n\nAre curious about the practices of The Artist’s Way\n\n\n\nNeed a gentle nudge to reengage with morning pages or artist dates\n\n\n\nCrave creative conversation\n\n\n\nAre seeking inspiration\, not necessarily instruction\n\n\n\nWant to explore their ideas without the pressure or need for perfection\n\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSHARLA YATES is the program director of CRAFT TALKS\, a webinar series for writers on writing\, and the former director of education at the Creative Nonfiction Foundation\, where she led a robust weekly webinar series and online writing program. She currently teaches creative writing at the University of Pittsburgh and is a multi-genre writer and experienced instructor. \n\n\n\nSharla is the author of the poetry chapbook What I Would Say if We Were to Drown Tonight (Stranded Oak Press\, 2017). Her nonfiction essay “Address” was a finalist for the 2015 Columbia Journal Writing Contest and the 2016 Penelope Niven Creative Nonfiction Award and was published by Short Reads. She also co-hosts The Writers Bridge\, a free monthly platform-building series for writers\, alongside Allison K Williams. \n\n\n\nQuestions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Organizer\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/free-weekly-meetup/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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