Choose from a variety of hour-long sessions and ninety-minute interactive workshops offered throughout the afternoon. Our industry experts will talk on subjects that focus on Craft, Genre, Publishing and Marketing.
Click on a name or topic, below, to read more.
CRAFT 3
LES BERNSTEIN
Les Bernstein's poems have appeared in journals, presses and anthologies in the U.S.A. and internationally. Her chapbooks Borderland, Naked Little Creatures and Amid the Din have been published by Finishing Line Press as well as her full- length poetry book Loose Magic which is currently available on Amazon. Les is a winner of the 6th annual Nazim Hikmet Festival award. She was also a Pushcart Prize Nominee for 2015. She has been the editor of Redwood Writer's anthologies for the last five years and was also the editor of the Marin High School Anthology 2018. She is an editor and an anthologist who lives in Mill Valley with her enormous family.
Books:
- Borderland
- Naked Little Creatures
- Amid the Din
- Loose Magic
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
SESSION - Playtime with Poets
This meeting will be an hour long interactive fun event that will foster creativity and community. We will explore wordplay, creative expression and poetic experimentation. Join fellow poets in playful exercises designed to spark imagination, break through writer's block and most of all... have fun. Whether you are a seasoned poet or just starting out, come and play.
Please bring something to write on and something to write with.
3:15 – 4:45 p.m.
WORKSHOP - Secrets, Lies, and Scandals—Writing a Memoir About Family
Memoir writers worry about exposing their family and writing their truths.
As a therapist, I have some coping methods to share with writing students who struggle with writing about others, and how to create “characters” from family members. And then there are secrets!
Memoir writers have their own version of the inner critic. It casts doubt not only on their ability to write, but also whether the writer has the right to claim their story. Their truth.
We’ll discuss how to get your memoir onto the page. Some say it’s healing. Many memoirists tell me that writing their memoir changed their lives.
LINDA JOY MYERS
Linda Joy Myers, founder of the National Association of Memoir Writers, is the author of award-winning memoirs Don't Call Me Mother and Song of the Plains, and two books on craft The Power of Memoir, and Journey of Memoir. She co-authored Breaking Ground on Your Memoir and Magic of Memoir and co-teaches Write Your Memoir in Six Months with Brooke Warner. A memoir coach for 30 years, she helps memoir writers find their voice and get their story into the world. Linda has just ventured into novel writing land, and her first novel, The Forger of Marseille, a WWII historical fiction novel won four awards in historical fiction and is published by She Writes Press.
Books:
- Song of the Plains
- The Power of Memoir
- The Forger of Marseille
- Journey of Memoir
- Breaking Ground on Your Memoir
- Magic of Memoir
CRAFT 4
KRISTEN TATE
Kristen Tate is the owner and lead editor at the Blue Garret, an editorial services firm that helps authors transform their work from rough draft to finished book. She is the author of Novel Study: Decoding the Structures and Secrets of Contemporary Fiction and writes a biweekly newsletter for word workers, full of craft advice, cheerleading, and personal reflections on how to balance life, work, and words.
- www.thebluegarret.com
- www.thebluegarret.com/sonoma
- www.facebook.com/thebluegarret
- www.linkedin.com/in/thebluegarret
Book:
- Novel Study: Decoding the Structures and Secrets of Contemporary Fiction
2:00 - 3:00 p.m.
SESSION - Secrets of a Successful First Chapter
A successful opening draws readers in, gives them an inside peek at some crucial element of your novel, and raises questions interesting enough to make them want to keep reading. How do you accomplish all of this in the space of just a few pages? Where should you start your story? Once you’ve decided where to start, how do you know what you should include and what you should leave out? We’ll analyze the openings of a range of recent novels in different genres and styles to find the answers. I’ll provide tips for memoir and nonfiction manuscripts as well.
3:15 – 4:45 p.m.
WORKSHOP - Understanding the Elements of a Great Short Story
In this hands-on workshop, participants will review the elements of any great story with a focus on the short story. Using examples and activities Roger will discuss, establishing a winning premise, themes and settings, writing a compelling opening, developing believable and alive characters, real dialogue, plot structure, crisis and conflict, resolution, and finishing with powerful, memorable ending. Participant will leave with a working draft for a new short story.
ROGER LUBECK
Roger C. Lubeck, PhD is president of the California Writers Club. He is a past president of Redwood Writers and membership chair for Redwood Writers. Roger is the author of 11 published novels, 2 business books, two dozen short stories and poems, and two preformed short plays. Roger is the publisher of It Is What It Is Press. His blog, www.rogerinblue.com includes examples of his writing, photography, and art.
PUBLISHING / MARKETING 2
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
SESSION - Indie Authors: Sell More Books AND Save More Time
In 2022, Sonoma County Writers Conference attendees were among the first to get the inside scoop of the Draft2Digital / Smashwords merger, which brought together two of the world’s largest self-publishing (aka: indie) platforms. This year, we’ll bring you up to speed on what’s transpired over the last two years. From our dedicated Promotions Team, to sparkling new retail partnerships, to our own bookstore and more, we’ll show you all the free, time-saving tools to bolster your books’ visibility. Plus, we’ll reveal the latest, eye-opening data on e-book preorder effectiveness and series pricing strategies.
JIM AZEVEDO
Jim Azevedo leads corporate communications and marketing at Draft2Digital (D2D), one of the world's largest publishing & distribution platforms for independent authors and publishers. Prior to D2D, Jim was the marketing director at Smashwords, the pioneering e-book self-publishing company. Jim served as marketing director at Smashwords from 2011 until it was acquired by D2D in March 2022.
CHRIS HENNESSY
Filmmaker, author, and speaker Chris Hennessy serves on the board of directors at Sacramento Writers.
Chris recently wrote, produced, and directed four national award-winning films. His Yolo YoYo’s cable TV show took Best New TV Series, Sacramento Access TV 2019. The twelve episodes reached 125,000 fans on Facebook. (TV stats not available.) Yolo YoYo’s also aired four segments on GoodDay Sacramento (CBS).
Chris's upcoming memoir, Touched by Hannah—A Man with Cancer (Hennessy), his one-pound newborn, Hannah, and their fight for life, has reached tens of thousands on social and news media. (completed in early 2025)
Hennessy’s monthly Substack newsletter, https://hennschtick.substack.com, receives commendations from his readers.
Yolo YoYo’s season 2 premiere episode, "Miracles on College Street," a 13-minute promotional/trailer film produced for Touched by Hannah, was a top-five documentary finalist and 'Film Heals' award winner (most inspirational) at the 2022 Manhattan Film Festival, New York City.
Yolo YoYo’s season 2 finale episode, "The Stage; Following our Wildest Dreams!" won, 'Best Narrative Episode West Coast,’ at the 2022 ACM Western Region WAVE Cable TV Awards.
"The Prostate Cancer was diagnosed in 2009 and invaded my lungs in 2020. I’m living life as usual with stage four cancer, achieving my best work.”
- www.henchris.com
- hennschtick.substack.com
- www.facebook.com/Chris.Hennessy.Uniondale
- www.linkedin.com/in/hennessychris
3:15 – 4:45 p.m.
WORKSHOP - Create Your Book Buzz with Story Telling Crossover!
Promote you and your book
- Produce quality visual media at little or no cost
- Types of videos to make and how and when to make them
- How your writing can help produce an award-winning short film
- Standout social media marketing tips
- How to build & use your email list on apps such as Substack
- Create a buzz with the mainstream media
- How to easily motivate yourself, your team, and your readers
PUBLISHING / MARKETING 3
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
SESSION: The Evolution of Publishing and What it Means to You
With 40 years in book publishing, as a book publisher, a bookseller, a consultant, and a writer, Vicki DeArmon has a unique perspective on the complex and ever evolving book industry. She'll discuss the rules and the workarounds that she employed over her career. From the 1980s as the founder and publisher of San Francisco's Foghorn Press to her work for eight years as the marketing and events director for Copperfield's Books where she established their nationally recognized events program featuring 300 events a year to her work for the California Independent Booksellers Alliance to her current role as publisher of Sibylline Press, authors will benefit from this insider's view.
VICKI DeARMON
Vicki DeArmon is a respected book industry leader known for her innovation and marketing. She formed Sibylline Press in 2022 with three other book industry women to publish the brilliant work of women authors over 50. She serves as publisher. They publish 10 to 12 titles annually in trade paper and 52 titles a year as e-books through their imprint Sibylline Digital First. She started her career in publishing at age 25 when she founded Foghorn Press. Known for its innovation in marketing and events, she sold that company after 14 years, and its titles are now published by one of the big five publishing companies, Hachette. Her forthcoming memoir, Foghorn: The Nearly True Story of a Small Publishing Empire will be published April 2025. She's also worked as a marketing consultant for California's independent booksellers. Locally and 15 years ago, she produced the World's Ugliest Dog Contest for eight years for the Sonoma-Marin Fair and later wrote the commemorative book published by Skyhorse.
RALPH SCOTT
Managing Partner / Producer
SQUEAKY CHEESE PRODUCTIONS LLC
An award-winning producer with a get-it-done (with a smile) attitude, Ralph Scott produces audiobooks, audio theatre, scripted entertainment, commercial spots, or pretty much anything within the live or recorded audio arena.
The characters Ralph creates on the spot (we lost count just north of 83) are only bested by the number of children’s verses he has written since he was handed a cocktail napkin on a dare back in 1993. (That would be just north of 1,700.) Give him three words and he’ll compose a witty poem for you in under five minutes.
Give him a studio and your manuscript and he’ll vibrantly breathe life into any character you craft.
Together with his roster of expert thespians, Ralph turns the studio into a theatre for the ear. Be sure to grab a chair the next time you download one of his audiobook productions. Dim the lights. And don’t forget the popcorn.
You’ll swear you’re in a movie.
JOHN ELEBY
Born in Huntsville, Alabama, John was raised in Germany in several cities and military bases along with two older brothers. He is fluent in German and can speak some Japanese.
His career in voiceover started when, having a favorite book series that he wanted to share with his mother, he recorded and edited the first 18 chapters (9 hours!) because there was no audiobook available at the time.
Over the last six years, John has honed his craft with narration classes at VoiceTrax in Sausalito, voiceover work for video games, narration, advertising and now, audiobooks!
Recently, John worked on several projects produced by Squeaky Cheese Productions, including The Fate of Hyder Keys and The Missing Peace and other soon-to-be-published projects. His mantra in voiceover is: "To treat every audition like it's a job... and treat every job like an audition." He currently lives in sunny Marin County, California and his mother is on her third relistening of the Wheel of Time.
3:15 – 4:45 p.m.
WORKSHOP: MULTICAST - Let Your Characters Speak for You
Squeaky Cheese Productions of Petaluma, California has pioneered the Multicast format for Indy Authors delivering Audible Originals level production value through multiple Voice Artists playing all the characters in the novel (and sometimes the nonfiction audiobook) but for a lot less than the Big Guys. Our Multicast or what we've dubbed 'Mini-Multicast' productions include upwards of 23 actors, playing more than 50 characters, and recording across more than six time zones. We'll discuss the herculean effort that factors into producing a Multicast audiobook (with or without sound design) and how the influence of Radio Theatre is shaking up the traditional Solo Narration audiobook industry.
Questions?
Comments?
Send Us a Message
If you didn't find answers to your questions on the FAQ page, please use this form, or send an email to:
[email protected]
We will respond as soon as possible.
Thank you!
Questions? Comments?
Send Us a Message
