**

Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan says:

“What is the purpose of creating a writer’s platform?  Your writer’s platform hooks attention from readers who care about the issues, subjects, themes that you write about.  What does your name stand for? When you make your name synonymous with what you care to write about, you are helping your fans find you.”

Example – Here’s my platform statement:

“I, Teresa LeYung-Ryan, use my novel Love Made of Heart, essays, short plays/monologues to encourage adult children of mentally ill parents to speak openly about the stigmas and find resources for their loved ones.”

My friends, colleagues, and fans know this about me and my work.  These wonderful people think of my name when they see or hear the words “mental health,” “mental illness” and “stigmas.”

Recently, author and documentary movie producer Margie Yee Webb gave me a print edition of an article written by Julie Samrick because Margie saw some keywords in Ms. Samrick’s piece (“Community partners work to end mental health stigma”) that are also in my platform statement. Thank you, Margie dear.

Ms. Samrick hooked my attention with a subject matter that I deeply care about.  And, her first line included the name of a powerful advocate whose messages I wholeheartedly support — actress Glenn Close who uses her international fame to shed light on  “ending the stigma of mental illness.”

Here’s an excerpt from the online edition of Ms. Samrick’s article.   http://www.villagelife.com/news/community-partners-work-to-end-mental-health-stigma/

Community partners work to end mental health stigma

Posted by Julie Samrick on Jul 7, 2014 Village Life is a weekly publication covering the communities of El Dorado Hills and Folsom, CA
Filed under Featured Stories, News.

“One out of four families will experience mental health challenges. My family is one,” narrates actress Glenn Close at the start of the documentary A New State of Mind: Ending the Stigma of Mental Illness, which was shown to residents at the El Dorado Hills Community Services District pavilion earlier this year in an effort to get more people to seek help when they or their loved ones are suffering with mental illness. Fifteen such forums were held throughout El Dorado County so far this year.  “My sister Jessie wasn’t diagnosed with bipolar disorder until she was 51 and her son was diagnosed with schizophrenia at 19,” Close continued.

From Olympic diver Greg Louganis to retired congressman Patrick Kennedy, high-profile individuals spoke openly about their struggles with mental illness in the Mental Health Services Act sponsored film.

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan here with another example. 

Ms. Glenn Close’s platform statements for her organization BringChange2Mind  are:  “Change A Mind About Mental Illness” and “Start the conversation. End the stigma.”

You see how simple building one’s platform is? 

For me . . .

• I write about and I read about “speaking openly about mental illness and stigmas” because I have a personal connection with the subject. I broadcast what I write about and read about with this blog, in social media, my YouTube channel, and in interviews.

• My friends, colleagues, and fans connect my name (Teresa LeYung-Ryan) with the subject I deeply care about.

• With help from my friends, colleagues, and fans, I continue to connect with other advocates who also speak openly about mental illness and stigmas, thus, my platform grows bigger and bigger.

Links to Ms. Close’s http://bringchange2mind.org/ and many other helpful organizations are listed on my blog page http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/helpful-websites-resources-for-mental-health-mental-illness-depression/

Sincerely,

Teresa LeYung-Ryan

Author Teresa LeYung-Ryan’s platform statement connects with Ms. Glenn Close’s mission statement

Teresa’s book Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby is used in college courses and archived at the San Francisco History Center.  Please ask your public librarian to find a copy for you.

http://writingcoachTeresa.com

Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan helps writers transform email signature blocks, photos, website descriptions, and YouTube videos into platform statements . . . before and after publication.

Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. Click here for print edition. Click here for Kindle edition. “Reach out, not stress out.”

Subscribe to  “Coach Teresa’s blog” Click here to start.

I am Teresa LeYung-Ryan, author of the mother-daughter novel Love Made of Heart and the “Talking to My Dead Mom Monologues” series.  I use my literary works to encourage adult children of mentally ill parents to speak openly about the stigmas and find resources for their loved ones and for themselves.

Author & Playwright Teresa LeYung-Ryan Takes the BringChange2Mind Pledge to Stand Up Against the Stigma of Mental Illness

One in four families are affected by mental illness.

I pledge to follow the Bring Change 2 Mind principles.

http://bringchange2mind.org/get-involved/take-the-pledge/

If you or someone you know needs immediate help, please call the Crisis Hotline: 800.273.TALK (8255)

In San Mateo, California, Stamp Out Stigma Director Carmen Lee says:

“Welcome to Stamp Out Stigma, a community advocacy and educational outreach program dedicated to eradicating the stigma associated with mental illness. Stamp Out Stigma is unique in its anti-stigma approach, by creating a forum in which individuals with mental illness share their personal experiences with the community at large.”  http://www.stampoutstigma.net

I wish everyone a world of love made of heart.

Sincerely,

Teresa LeYung-Ryan

http://www.LoveMadeOfHeart.com

**

Greetings from Coach Teresa Jade LeYung (formerly Teresa LeYung-Ryan) . . .  I started writing my new memoir at the beginning of the year and by mid-year I have been avoiding crowds and parties. When I’m not presenting at writers’ conferences and writers’ organizations or helping clients build their fanbases, I meet up with colleagues to write and conduct research for my own books.

Coach Teresa Jade LeYung Encourages Hardworking Writers to Have Fun with Colleagues

author Teresa Jade LeYung believes in Libraries Open Doors Open Minds - photo by Sasa Southard

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author, traveler, tour director Sasa Southard inspires students to open doors open minds - photo by Coach Teresa Jade LeYung

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Margie Yee Webb happy with her new anthology on cats, complements her Cat Mulan book - photo by Coach Teresa Jade LeYung

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Vicki Weiland, Teresa Jade LeYung, Margie Yee Webb, Elisa Sasa Southard on Work Retreat

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authors Teresa Jade LeYung and Lynn Scott at Legend of Honor, SF - photo by Annie

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authors Teresa Jade LeYung and Lynn Scott - photo by Leanna at Melody Cafe (delicious food!), San Francisco

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Memoirist Lynn Scott visits neighborhood of her Oldham Street stories - photo by Coach Teresa Jade LeYung

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authors Margie Yee Webb and Teresa Jade LeYung working, writing, researching

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Plot Whisperer Martha Alderson, Memoirist Luisa Adams, Author and Coach Teresa Jade LeYung - work and eat

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Founder of  THE UNLEASHED HOMEMAKER(tm) and “Your Writing Mentor” Mary E. Knippel just called!  She and I calendared 2 work days at her home.  Yahoo!

Founder of THE UNLEASHED HOMEMAKER(tm) and"Your Writing Mentor" Mary E. Knippel and Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa Jade LeYung--photo by Anne Campagnet-Reed

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Teresa Jade LeYung looking forward to being with mentors Margaret Davis, Diane Warner, Winifred McCaffrey soon

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On Saturday, Sept. 13, 2014, 7:00pm

I shall be reunited with award-winning author Carol Sheldon when I interview her at her book launch for her third book A Sleuth in Sausalito. This will be the one time that I look forward to a packed house, because I am happy for Carol – she is a brilliant author and a delightful person. Cheers to Carol Sheldon and Left Coast Writers!

by popular demand, Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa Jade LeYung interviews award-winning author Carol Sheldon

at Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd, Corte Madera, CA  94925

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And, I’ll get to see artist, filmmaker, blogger Chandra Garsson soon! http://flyingpaintproductions.blogspot.com/

**

For fabulous organizations, check out Women’s National Book Association, California Writers Club, and San Francisco Writers Conference.

http://www.lovemadeofheart.com/Writers-Resources.html

Sincerely,

**

September 2014 Left Coast Writers Feature Betsy Graziani Fasbinder and Carol Sheldon

Left Coast Writers®: Betsy Graziani Fasbinder – Fire & Water

September 8, 2014, 7:00pm California time

Kate Murphy first encounters Jake Bloom as her patient in a hospital emergency room, but it is only later, when she experiences his sculptures on Ocean Beach that she is forever changed. Jake reveals beauty Kate has never noticed and exposes her to spontaneity, sensuality, and love deeper than she’d imagined it could be. Beneath Jake’s brilliance lies the menace of his profound and trecherous mental illness that Kate has yet to discover. Fire & Water is Kate’s story of navigating the treacherous territory of passionate love, friendship, and family devotion. It is the story of how love is always a matter of life and death.

In both her works of memoir and fiction, Betsy Graziani Fasbinder explores the unending complications of people living, working, and loving one another. She has been awarded the Floyd Salas Award, a Jack London award and two East of Eden awards for both fiction and memoir pieces.  Four of her pieces have been produced as Readers’ Theater works in the historic Nevada Theater in Nevada City, California.  She is the also co-producer of The Women’s Writing Salon in Nevada County.

Left Coast Writers provides literary connections, support, readings, writing tips, literary chat, unabashed networking, and great fun. LCW hosts a variety of activities to launch the books of members and explore publishing alternatives. See bookpassage.com/left-coast-writers

Location:

Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd, Corte Madera, CA  94925 

Fire & Water (Paperback)

By Betsy Graziani Fasbinder

$16.95

ISBN-13: 9781938314148
Published: She Writes Press, 2/2013

Other Editions of this Title

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By popular demand, Teresa LeYung-Ryan interviews award-winning author Carol Sheldon

Left Coast Writers®: Carol Sheldon – A Sleuth in Sausalito

September 13, 2014, 7:00pm California time

A Sleuth in Sausalito takes place in California during the wild and free-living days of Sausalito. Poets, painters and philosophers dotted this artsy town, as well as a community of people living on houseboats. The river rats vs. the hill people continue an ongoing battle.

After ten years of not knowing what happened to her mother when she disappeared, Gwen Harris is notified that recently discovered remains might be those of her mother. Leaving the University of Michigan to find out what she can in Sausalito, where her mother disappeared, Gwen begins a long and arduous journey of discovering what happened, and who is responsible. Her trust in several people is shattered by secrecy, betrayal and deception. She begins to feel she can trust no one. Ultimately, she must decide who her real friends are, and who she will be able to forgive.

Carol Sheldon is the author of Mother Lode and Driven to Rage. Sheldon studied at the University of Michigan, where she earned a BA and MA in creative writing and education.

Location:

Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd, Corte Madera, CA  94925

United States

A Sleuth in Sausalito: A Mystery (Paperback)

By Carol A. Sheldon

$17.24

ISBN-13: 9780990518501
Published: Houghton, 7/2014

**

Cheers to Carol Sheldon and Betsy Graziani Fasbinder !!

Sincerely,

Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan helps writers transform email signature blocks, photos, website descriptions, and YouTube videos into platform statements . . . before and after publication.
http://writingcoachTeresa.com

• author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. Click here for print edition. Click here for Kindle edition.

• author of Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby

• author of “Talking to My Dead Mom” monologue series

• proud member and past officer of Women’s National Book Association-SF Chapter

• proud member (SF Peninsula, Redwood, Sacramento branches) and past president (San Francisco Peninsula Branch) of California Writers Club

**

Women Authors – Marriage; Memoirs; Thrillers; Audiobooks; Stage Plays; Ask a Luminary

Marriage Maven Marcia Naomi Berger‘s News

author of Marriage Meetings for Lasting Love: 30 Minutes a Week to the Relationship You’ve Always Wanted

Sunday, September 14, 2014 

Matilda Butler says:

Dear Friends:

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Paula C. Chinick says:

“I wanted to share some exciting news. My first novel, RED ASSCHER~Living In Fear received a GOLD medal from Global Ebook Awards for best fiction thriller!   I had hoped for at least honorable mention, but to take first place in the thriller category is such an honor.”

P C Chinick
http://redasscher.com
http://redasscher.com/blog

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Betsy Graziani Fasbinder says:

“I’m thrilled to announce the launch of Fire & Water, The Audiobook.  I was blessed to find a talented voice artist in Monica McKey and a fantastic sound engineer in Adam Sullivan of Great Magnet Recording.  I served as producer/director to these talented experts (mine was the easy job) and I’m so proud of what we’ve created.  Monica’s gorgeous voice and great talent give the story another dimension and Adam’s wizardry brought it all seamlessly together.”

If you’ve read Fire & Water and enjoyed it, please pass this announcement on to your audio loving friends: Commuters, those with visual impairment, or just audio lovers. …And please consider posting a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads!

Betsy’s Blog: Art Finds a Way

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B. Lynn Goodwin, Writer Advice Managing Editor and author of YOU WANT ME TO DO WHAT? Journaling for Caregivers, says: “I am a featured expert in InspireMeToday’s Ask a Luminary series! InspireMeToday.com is an amazing and free website that shares inspiration from global thought leaders each and every day. You can start your day with the wisdom of Sir Richard Branson, Guy Laliberte, Seth Godin, Neale Donald Walsch, Marci Shimoff, or one of hundreds more!

Ask a Luminary offers you the chance to ask a question and get an answer from an expert like me. It’s the inspirational version of Dear Abby! From empowerment, love and relationships, to business and entrepreneurship, to health and spirituality, Ask a Luminary covers every topic. Check out my answer if you’ve been wondering, How Can I Find My Path? and write back. I’d love to hear from you.

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Mary Honey B. Morrison

keeps it real on

The Nic Nice Show

November 6 – 9, 2014

Single Husbands stage play – Southwest Arts Center,  Atlanta, GA

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Cheers to Marcia Naomi Berger, Matilda Butler, Paula C. Chinick, Betsy Graziani Fasbinder, B. Lynn Goodwin, and Mary Honey B. Morrison!!!!!!

Sincerely,

Women’s National Book Association-San Francisco Chapter presents:

New Ways to Read: eMaterials, Libraries, and the Digital Divide

 Saturday, August 2nd, 2014,  2:00–4:00 pm

at Rockridge Branch Library, 5366 College Avenue, Oakland
Speaker: Sharon McKellar, Librarian

Are you curious to know how libraries add eBooks to their collections? Have you heard of OVERDRIVE? Do you wonder which readers are digital and which aren’t? Come to our kick-off meeting of the program year and find out! Mix and mingle after the talk, snacks provided. FREE to members and guests. Please RSVP at http://wnba-sfchapter.org/new-ways-read-ematerials-libraries-digital-divide/

Sharon McKellar, Oakland Public Librarian will speak about new ways to read, including eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, and online reading and will give insight into what types of books (genre, age range etc.) get more use digitally. She will also address impacts these new “reading technologies” have on libraries, librarians, and a population with uneven access to digital resources and will shed light on how libraries are facing these impacts, both good and bad.  Following the talk there will be time for questions.

Sharon McKellar has been a librarian with the Oakland Public Library since 2003, serving as a children’s librarian, a branch manager, and currently as the Community Relations Librarian.  She is a reader, a writer, and an excited member of the 2015 Caldecott Selection Committee.

Rockridge Branch Library, 5366 College Avenue, Oakland, CA  94618 (510) 597-5017
(Close to BART, AC Transit, metered and free parking)

WNBA-SF Chapter Invites Librarian Sharon McKellar to speak about the Digital Divide -new ways to read, including eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, and online reading

Author and 22-Day Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan
http://writingcoachTeresa.com

Saturday, June 21, 2014

What’s happening at various branches of California Writers Club?

California Writers Club – Tri-Valley Branch in Pleasanton, California

http://trivalleywriters.org/

Saturday, June 21, 2014, 2:00-4:00 p.m. (registration at 1:30)

22-Day Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan presents “Build/Retrofit Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase”

The cost for CWC Members is $10, nonmembers, $15. Anyone interested in the program or the organization may attend with no obligation to join.

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan will show you how to thrive in the publishing arena whether you are the publisher or you’ve sold rights to a third-party publisher. She says: “Reach out, not stress out!  By making your name stand for something—to attract targeted consumers (your fans)—who are likely to buy what you have to sell. Learn how to help your fans find you, before and after publication!”

Teresa is the author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. 

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California Writers Club–San Francisco Peninsula Branch

http://www.cwc-peninsula.org/events.html

Memoir into Fiction
Setting Your Characters Free

Mary-Rose Hayes

Adventurer and author, Mary-Rose will show us how to access a character by mining personal experiences and emotions from your own past.

June 21st, 2014 10AM-12PM Belmont Library
Members $10 Non-Members $13, Students $10/ID
First Meeting Free!

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California Writers Club–Sacramento Branch

http://www.cwcsacramentowriters.org/

 June 21, 2014, 11:00 AM-1:00 PM

Gordon Warnock, founding partner at Foreword Literary: literary agent, marketing director and editor for independent publishers, freelance publishing consultant, and college-level writing tutor.

Monthly luncheon is open to the public.

Cost is $14 for members, $16 for nonmembers.

The meeting fee includes buffet lunch and beverage.

Cattlemen’s Restaurant, 12409 Folsom Blvd, Rancho Cordova, CA

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http://calwriters.org/ for list of all the branches

California Writers Club

“Educating writers of all abilities in the craft of writing
and in the marketing of their work”

Sincerely,

http://writingcoachTeresa.com
Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan is on the “My Writing Process” Blog Tour.

Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. Click here for print edition. Click here for Kindle edition. “Reach out, not stress out.”

Teresa’s novel Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby is used in college courses and archived at the San Francisco History Center.

Subscribe to  “Coach Teresa’s blog” Click here to start.

Thank you, California Writers Club colleagues, for quoting beloved Maya Angelou!

“You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead pursue the things you love doing and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off of you.”  –Maya Angelou, 1928-2014

Pursuing what we love doing is what is happening at the San Mateo County Fair June 7 to June 14, 2014, at monthly meetings, at open mic, and other events featuring or orchestrated by California Writers Club members.

San Francisco Peninsula Branch of California Writers Club

Dates to Remember

June 7-14th, 2014

https://sanmateocountyfair.com/contests/departments/literary-arts

“Carry the Light of Creativity”

Literary Arts Stage (created by Bardi Rosman Koodrin & Boris Koodrin), Fine Arts Galleria, San Mateo County Fair, San Mateo, CA

Tuesday June 10, 4:00-5:00  yours truly Teresa LeYung-Ryan will join Ollie Mae Trost Welch and David Hirzel – “3 playwrights, 3 short plays, plus interviews by Darlene Frank” – click here for more info.

• Teresa will be performing “What Am I Going to Do Now?” on the Literary Arts Stage at San Mateo County Fair; the 10-minute play is a new monologue (about a beyond-middle-age woman at a loss when her therapist is on vacation) from Teresa’s “Talking to My Dead Mom” series

Saturday, June 21st, 2014, 10:00am-12pm

Mary-Rose Hayes  “Memoir Into Fiction–Setting Your Characters Free”

at the Belmont Library, 1110 Alameda De Las Pulgas, Belmont, CA

Wednesday, June 25th, 2014, 7:30pm

Open Mic at Reach and Teach (aka Dove and Olive)

144 W. 25th Ave, San Mateo, CA

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San Francisco Peninsula Branch of California Writers Club

President: Christopher Wachlin

Vice-President: Max Tomlinson

Treasurer & State Board Rep: Carole Bumpus

Membership Chair: Elise Frances Miller

Reservations Chair: Ann Foster

Parliamentarian: Martin Shane Dowd

Publicity Chair: Maurine Killough

Open Mic: Jim Hanna

Fault Zone Anthology Editor: Audrey Kalman

Webmaster: Wendy Walter

Board member: Bardi Rosman-Koodrin

Newsletter Editor: LJ Anderson

VOLUNTEER TO HELP YOUR WRITERS’ CLUB!

Open positions:

-secretary

-blog administrator

Visit our website at http://www.cwc-peninsula.org for more information, articles and links to writers and great sites.
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CWC Annual Picnic for members http://calwriters.org/cwc-annual-picnic-2014/

Saturday, July 19th, 2014 from 1-4pm at Joaquin Miller Park, Oakland, CA

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For links to websites of all the branches of California Writers Club http://calwriters.org

Cheers to writers for practicing beloved Maya Angelou’s mantra: “You can only become truly accomplished at something you love.”

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan is the author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. Click here for print edition. Click here for Kindle edition. “Reach out, not stress out.”

Teresa’s novel Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby is used in college courses and archived at the San Francisco History Center.

Subscribe to  “Coach Teresa’s blog” Click here to start.

For other posts in my blog, please go to: https://lovemadeofheart.com/blog

If you’re looking for my blog posts pertaining to our Beautiful Brains and Neuroplasticity… https://lovemadeofheart.com/blog  look at right side of screen, you’ll see the category “Beautiful Brains Neuroplasticity”.  Please click on that category to get those posts.

Memorial Day. May everyone create peace inward and outward.

According to Merriam-Webster dictionary . . . Memorial Day : the last Monday in May that is a national holiday in the U.S. honoring members of the armed forces who died in wars. Originally held (1868) in commemoration of soldiers killed in the American Civil War, its observance later extended to all U.S. war dead.

Writing Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan applauds writers and readers for honoring peace and Memorial Day every day and every way. Thank you, everyone!

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Teresa LeYung-Ryan thanks immigrant and award-winning author and illustrator Yuyi Morales for honoring the immigrant experience through children’s stories AND Women’s National Book Association/San Francisco Chapter officers and board members for their vital role in this event.

Tuesday, June 3, 2014  
San Francisco Main Library, Civic Center
Reception, 5 – 6 pm in the Children’s Center, 2^nd Floor
Lecture, 6 – 8 pm in the Koret Auditorium, Lower Level
Free and open to the public! Guest Lecturer: Yuyi Morales

Join the Fisher Children’s Center, the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library, and the Women’s National Book Association/San Francisco Chapter, as they present special guest lecturer, award-winning author and illustrator Yuyi Morales, who will deliver the 18th annual Effie Lee Morris Lecture in Children’s Literature.  The theme of Yuyi Morales’s talk will be “Creating Children’s Books: An Immigrant’s Story”

As a Spanish-speaking immigrant and new mother who migrated to the U.S. from Mexico, Yuyi struggled with English and adapting to a new home. She found support in neighborhood libraries, where she and her son practiced English by reading children’s books. There she found her life passion writing and illustrating children’s stories, such as Just a Minute; A Trickster Tale and Counting Book; Little Night / Nochecita; Just in Case, and the 2013 Niño Wrestles the World. She is the first children’s book illustrator of Mexican descent to reach the New York Times Best Sellers List.

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What else is WNBA-SF Chapter doing? 

This year the Women’s National Book Association, San Francisco Chapter, sponsored a Book Drive to benefit the Living Room, Santa Rosa, CA  -  a daytime drop-in center that provides a safe haven to ease the adversity of homelessness for women. In January 2014, WNBA-SF launched an early literacy activity at the Living Room, using donated books for picture book storytelling—part of the Living Room’s Mother and Child program.  Cheers to WNBA fellow-members!

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June 7-14, 2014 Meet California Writers Club members and have fun at the San Mateo County Fair’s Literary Arts Stage (in Fine Arts Galleria) created by Bardi Rosman Koodrin and Boris Koodrin. Cheers to CWC fellow-members!  Events on Literary Arts Stage are free and open to the public; fees to enter the fair; June 10 Seniors n for free; parking fee is separate.

June 10, 2014, 4:00-5:00pm California – Teresa LeYung-Ryan will read her latest monologue from her “Talking to My Dead Mom” series at  “3 Short Plays and 3 Interviews hosted by Darlene Frank” at the San Mateo County Fair’s Literary Arts Stage.

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Saturday, June 21, 2014  22-Day Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan presents “Build/Fortify Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase” at California Writers Club – Tri-Valley Branch in Pleasanton, California.

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 Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan is on the “My Writing Process” Blog Tour.

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Project Read San Francisco

Through Project Read, the adult literacy program of the San Francisco Public Library, professionally trained volunteer tutors provide free one-on-one tutoring to English-speaking adults who want to improve their basic reading and writing skills. Activities for enrolled adult learners with young children are offered through the Project Read Families for Literacy Program.

Links for other programs http://sfpl.org/index.php?pg=2000027301

Look for Project Read/Public Library programs in your cities.

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Also at the main branch of the San Francisco Public Library – The Daniel E. Koshland San Francisco History Center

This tremendous resource contains a research collection of books, newspapers and magazines, photographs, maps, posters, archives and manuscript collections, and ephemera, documenting all aspects of San Francisco life and history. The Center is also the archives for the City and County of San Francisco.

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Honoring peace and Memorial Day every day and every way through literacy!

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan is the author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. Click here for print edition. Click here for Kindle edition. “Reach out, not stress out.”

Teresa’s novel Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby is used in college courses and archived at the San Francisco History Center.

Subscribe to  “Coach Teresa’s blog” Click here to start.

Author and 22-Day Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan on “My Writing Process” Blog Tour

Thank you, writer and poet Michelle Wing, for inviting me to the “My Writing Process” blog tour. Hearty congratulations to you and your collection of poetry, Body on the Wall, debuted just yesterday on May 15, 2014!  Everyone, please check out Michelle’s blog www.thepoemwhisperer.com  (about finding the words!), and http://michellewing.com/ . And, here’s her post http://thepoemwhisperer.com/my-writing-process-blog-tour/

Michelle Wing

Author & 22-Day Writing Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan says: "Work on your craft and build your name at the same time, with ease."--photo by author Lynn Scott

I am delighted to be on this blog tour. My turn to answer the 4 questions about my writing process.

1)      “What are you working on?” 

Teresa LeYung-Ryan:   I’m smiling as I answer this question.  I am working on two projects.  A prescriptive nonfiction project – Build Your Writing Life In 22 Days (the second workbook in my 22-Day series); and a narrative nonfiction project – I’m actually writing my first memoir.  No more hiding behind the protagonist in my first novel Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby.  By the way . . . the working title of my memoir is Moon Crone Driving Without a Steering Wheel: How this Writer Journeyed Through Early Menopause, Depression, and Love.

Looking at my own blog posts, I see that the muse for my memoir first appeared in October 2012:

http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/coach-teresa-says-please-do-not-give-up-on-yourself-and-your-writing/

http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/authorwriting-coach-teresa-leyung-ryan-says-talking-about-depression-and-mental-illness-does-not-scare-me-anymore/

http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/author-teresa-leyung-ryan-says-transforming-depression-into-my-writers-muse/

http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/helpful-websites-resources-for-mental-health-mental-illness-depression/

2)      How does your work differ from others of its genre? 

Teresa LeYung-Ryan:   There must be other authors who have written/are writing about being a writer, surviving menopause, and living with depression. Probably my work carries a distinctive voice because I am a female Chinese-American immigrant from Hong Kong with these experiences  – lived with a beautiful mother who suffered mental illness and the cruel stigmas; escaped from violence when I was a young woman; worked in a government agency, a public agency, as well as in the private sector; blessed with a caring community of extended family members, colleagues and friends; use all my literary works (fiction and nonfiction) to inspire adult-children of mentally-ill parents to speak openly about the stigmas and find resources for their loved ones AND to speak out against injustice and violent behavior.

3)      Why do you write the subject matters you write about? 

Teresa LeYung-Ryan:   How can I not write about mental illness, stigmas, rejection, joys and sorrows, the immigrant experience, poverty, and saying NO to everyday meanness, injustice, and violence?  The act of writing is the way I express my memories, observations and intentions.  An artist might employ paint, canvas, wood, and metal to do her/his work. I am a writer; therefore I employ words (choice and placement of words) to do mine.

4) What is your writing process? 

Teresa LeYung-Ryan:   As I tell my friends . . . I am pregnant with a memoir.  I write every day.  At bus stops, on public transportation, in waiting rooms (including jury assembly room). I journal to track authentic details, sometimes at the beginning of the day, sometimes at the end.  With the help of Martha Alderson and her Blockbuster Plots and Plot Whisperer books, I am replotting my story. I’ve begun writing scenes and rereading memoirs (including Woven of Water by Luisa Adams)  [ A note to self and all memoirists:  when writing nonfiction, we cannot change the sequence of events for dramatic effect; we cannot embellish or diminish the details; if we do not follow these rules, then we cannot label our work nonfiction. ]

Also, I write editorial memos for manuscript clients and coaching notes for my fanbase-building clients.  I blog as the 22-Day Writing and Platform and Fanbase-Building Coach Teresa. http://lovemadeofheart.com/blog/  I love the act of composing/rewriting/restructuring/more rewriting –  these practices help me to really “reach out, not stress out.”  http://writingcoachTeresa.com

And, I rewrite/update my presentations.  For example, on June 10, 2014, 4:00-5:00om I’ll be in California at the San Mateo County Fair’s Literary Arts Stage  as a feature guest on “3 Short Plays with 3 Playwrights hosted by Darlene Frank” with the other two feature guests Ollie Mae Trost Welch and David Hirzel. I’ll be performing “What Am I Going to Do Now?” which is a new monologue for my “Talking to My Dead Mom” series.

Then on Saturday, June 21, 2014  I morph into Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan when I present “Build/Fortify Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase” at California Writers Club – Tri-Valley Branch in Pleasanton, California.

Soon, I shall be working on presentations for the San Francisco Writers Conference!

Please click here for more info about my events. Please click here for resources for writers – including links to California Writers Club and Women’s National Book Association.

My darling friends/colleagues give me writing retreats – I get so much done when I’m with dear hearts, especially the past two years with Elisa Sasa Southard, Margie Yee Webb, Vicki Weiland, Mary E. Knippel, and Lynn Scott. Thank you writing-sisters!

Also, in June, I’ll be with California Writers’ Club colleagues/mentors including Winifred McCaffrey, Margaret Davis, Diane Warner, Darlene Frank, Bardi Rosman Koodrin, Laurel Anne Hill, Christopher Wachlin (president of SF Peninsula Branch), Mary E. Knippel, and thirty other talented writers. Click here for schedule of literary events with CWC members at the San Mateo County Fair.

Click here for a list of my appearances/workshops (including June 10, 2014 at San Mateo County Fair’s Literary Arts Stage;  June 21, 2014 at California Writers’ Club Tri-Valley Branch in Pleasanton, CA)

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Now I pass the torch to two fabulous colleagues – Mary E. Knippel and Yolande Barial – who will be on the “My Writing Process” blog tour, so, please visit them at their blogs on and after Friday, May 23, 2014.

Yolande Barial

Yolande Barial is the proud mother of three remarkable children. She is known as the sensually spiritual poet/writer/blogger and columnist, and, has performed spoken word in venues (including Starbucks) throughout the SF-Oakland Bay Area from 2003 to present. Yolande is a contributing author in 3 anthologies – If Women Ruled the World; Oakland’s Neighborhoods; More of Life’s Spices: Seasoned Sistahs Keepin’ It Real.  Also, she is playwright and director of “Images of the King: A Child’s Dream” (a children’s play), a Red Room author, and contributor to the “Stockton Motherhood” column for Examiner.com. Yolande’s column “Mothers Corner” appears monthly in the Tracy Press newspaper. Visit Yolande Barial’s blog http://just-a-mom.us/

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Mary E. Knippel

Mary E. Knippel, author, speaker and writing mentor, is fiercely committed to guiding aspiring authors and entrepreneurs to polish their words so that they sparkle and shine; her clients come to her to get help when they feel paralyzed about where to begin, what to say, and how to make sense of the life-changing messages. A journal writer since the age of eleven, Mary knows the enormous power of the written word. As a two-time breast cancer survivor, she herself relied on writing in her own recovery. Her upcoming book, The Secret Artist: Give Yourself Permission to Let Your Creativity Shine, chronicles the healing results. Check out her online writing classes, writing tips, workshops, upcoming book, and blog http://yourwritingmentor.com

Sincerely,

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan is the author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW. Click here for print edition. Click here for Kindle edition. “Reach out, not stress out.”

Teresa’s novel Love Made of Heart: a Mother’s Mental Illness Forges Forgiveness in Daughter Ruby is used in college courses and archived at the San Francisco History Center.

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