by Nate Hoffelder | Dec 5, 2023 | Events
Topic: Creating Characters that Resonate with Emotional Truth
Wednesday, Jan 17th
6:30 – 8:00 pm PT
Online (Zoom) Only
$5 for CWC Members, $10 for Non-Members
If agents or readers can’t connect with your characters, your book will not sell. You need to know how your characters should dress, decode the nuance of body language, determine what they should say (and avoid saying), and have a clear understanding of how they should act so they connect with readers (and agents) on a deep, meaningful, emotional basis. We’ll explore these crucial concepts while providing tips and tricks to create relatable characters every time.
About the Speaker
Jane K. Cleland writes both fiction and nonfiction, including the award-winning and long-running Josie Prescott Antiques Mysteries [St. Martin’s & Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine] and the Agatha-award winning bestsellers, Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot and Mastering Plot Twists [Writer’s Digest Books]. She is a member of the faculty at Lehman College, part of the City University of New York, a contributing editor for Writer’s Digest Magazine, and the chair of the Wolfe Pack’s Black Orchid Novella Award (BONA) in partnership with Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. She is a frequent workshop leader and guest author at writing conferences, association meetings, and MFA Residencies. Jane offers free monthly virtual workshops on the craft and business of writing, and Mystery Masterminds, a series of small group virtual workshops. See her website for details: www.janecleland.com
by Nate Hoffelder | Nov 8, 2023 | Events
Topic: Sharpen Your Writing with a Poetry Game
Saturday Dec 9, 2023
12:30 – 2 pm
Free
In-Person at Mill Valley Public Library
Anyone who aspires to be a better writer knows the importance of thoughtful word choice and editing. The best writers exercise these muscles every day—but sometimes we forget how much fun writing can be, especially when we do it with friends.
The game is a riff on the Japanese linked verse game known as renga, played by Japanese aristocrats a thousand years ago. In it, each person composes a haiku then passes it to a neighbor, who completes it with a 14-syllable couplet. This simple, limited poetry form encourages participants to choose words and metaphors with care. Don’t worry, you don’t have to be a poet, you just have to be ready to play with words.
Back by popular demand! If you missed the first running of this workshop, here’s your chance.
About the facilitator: Jean has been a student of the Japanese language since she first went to Japan as an exchange student in the 1980s. After a career in the US intelligence community and in Silicon Valley as a strategic geopolitical analyst, Jean retired to focus on writing a book about Japanese feminist poet Yosano Akiko (1878-1942). She has translated hundreds of Akiko’s poems and posted them online. She also writes her own haiku, two of which were recently selected for publication by the Japan Foundation of the UK. Jean is a Board member of the California Writers Club of Marin and a member of the Marin Poetry Center, the Tanka Society of America, Left Coast Writers, and the Japan Foundation. www.accidentalfeminist.net
This program is brought to you in partnership with the Mill Valley Public Library.
Reserve your seat at https://millvalleylibrary.libcal.com/event/11416176?hs=a
by Nate Hoffelder | Nov 3, 2023 | Classes and Workshops
Mark your calendars! The annual CWC Members-Only Holiday Party is coming soon.
Sunday, December 17th 4 – 6 pm
Larkspur (exact address to be announced a few days before the event only to registered guests)
Please plan to bring a drink or hors d’oeuvres to share.
The party will be indoors.
Please:
a) confirm that you are a current CWC member
b) tell us whether you will bring a guest
by Nate Hoffelder | Oct 17, 2023 | Classes and Workshops
Writing Workshop: The Imitation Method
Saturday, November 4, 2023
12:00 – 1:30 pm
In-Person at Mill Valley Public Library
Kick off National Novel Writer’s Month with fresh literary tools and rhetorical strategies for your writing. This workshop will delve into the imitation writing method, drawing inspiration from stylistic choices and techniques of author Brian Doyle, recipient of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature and three Pushcart Prizes. Whether you’re a writer of creative nonfiction or fiction, this workshop will give you new ways to think about the craft of writing.
CWC Marin member Diane Waite’s experience as an English teacher spans over 30 years. She has taught writing to a wide range of students, from those new to the English language to advanced writers who have gone on to prestigious institutions like M.I.T and Columbia. With an M.A. in Linguistics, Diane brings a unique perspective to exploring writing and language learning through a linguistic lens.
Free, In-Person Only
Reserve your seat at https://millvalleylibrary.libcal.com/event/11107101
by Nate Hoffelder | Aug 15, 2023 | Events
Topic: Ask Book Agent Andy Ross
Sunday, October 29, 2023
3:30 – 5:30 pm (talk begins at 4 pm)
In-Person at Book Passage, Corte Madera
“I can learn a lot about a writer’s style and voice by reading the first paragraph of the manuscript. But I’m looking for the book, the one that has me up at 3 in the morning, reading the last 6 letters: T-H-EE-N-D, and crying like a baby.”
Andy Ross is a literary agent representing authors in a wide range of fiction and non-fiction categories. His clients’ books have won international awards. Among the authors he represents are Susan Griffin, Fritjof Capra, Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, Daniel Ellsberg, and Linda Watanabe McFerrin. Before becoming a literary agent in 2008, Andy was the owner of the legendary Cody’s Books in Berkeley. He is the author of The Literary Agent’s Guide to Writing a Non-Fiction Book Proposal.
Andy welcomes your questions about the changing publishing landscape and what agents are really looking for.
Meetings: $5 for CWC Members (any branch), $10 Non-Members
