Judith was building her platform while she was writing her novel; Coach Teresa took this photo of Judith at a critique group meeting; this photo has become one of Judith's favorite publicity shots.

Here’s news from Judie!

“I’ve been asked to speak about my writing process and my screen option for Husbands May Come and Go but Friends are Forever at The Chateaus in Pleasant Hill, CA, on Monday, March 11th, 2013 at 1:30 p.m. If you’re in the neighborhood, please come by and say hello.

“Just wanted to let you know that starting tomorrow, March 3rd, 2013, for one week only my novel will be available as an eBook on Smashwords at a 50% discount.  If you know someone who might enjoy the book and who has an eReader other than a Kindle, please pass the information on.  Here’s a link. https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/60976  Although not discounted, you can access the Kindle and print versions on Amazon by clicking on the title below my signature.  I’m thrilled that the book has now received more than fifty 5-star reviews on Amazon.

“In other news, I’m expecting the first draft of the script from a new screenwriter next week.  Hope this one is a keeper!

“Thanks for your ongoing support.”

Best,

Judith Marshall

Author of Husbands May Come and Go but Friends are Forever optioned for the big screen.

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan cheering for you!

Writing Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan cares about helping fiction and nonfiction writers build their platforms and work on their craft simultaneously with ease.  She says: “Wear the dual hats as promoter and writer and be happily published. Reach out, not stress out, to materialize your dearest dreams.”

http://writingcoachTeresa.com

Please introduce yourselves by clicking on the title bar of this post and submitting a comment. Invite my blog visitors to your events. Thank you!

Some Events for Writers & Readers in September & October 2011 in these two counties:

*********************************************

California Writers Club–Redwood Branch meets at the Flamingo Conference Resort & Spa in Santa Rosa, CA

Redwood Writers Meeting 2:30-5 PM at the Flamingo Conference Resort & Spa, 2777 Fourth Street, Santa Rosa, CA 95405 • Phone: (707) 545-8530

September 11, 2011 Speaker will be Joan Price, “What I Learned about Book Publicity after Wasting
$1000 of My Publisher’s Money.”

October 9, 2011 Speaker  will be Joan Frank “Ideas and Discovery: Protecting and Celebrating the Fictional Dream.”

*********************************************

Writers Forum of Petaluma (founder: Marlene Cullen) These literary workshops take place on the third Thursday of each month, March through November (no workshops in January, February and December).

7:00 pm to 9:00 pm (we start promptly at 7:00 pm); $15 at the door
Location: Petaluma Community Center at Lucchesi Park, 320 No. McDowell Blvd., Petaluma, California

September 15, 2011 Christine Walker  “Image & The Senses”

October 20, 2011 Barbara Spicer   “Telling Tales”

*********************************************

Saturday, September 24, 2011, 10:00am–4:00pm

Women’s National Book Association-San Francisco Chapter members and California Writers Club-Redwood Branch members at Sonoma County Book Festival

Look for Teresa LeYung-Ryan, Margie Yee Webb, Kate Farrell, Ana Manwaring at their booths and on the Redwood Village/Readers Circle Stage.  Leigh Anne Lindsey, Linda Joy Myers, Zoe FitzGerald Carter, Laurel Anne Hill. Who else?     Ana Manwaring orchestrates Redwood Writers Village Stage! Stage times: 1:00pm Redwood Writers Vintage Voices; 1:45-2:00pm Margie Yee Webb & Teresa LeYung-Ryan; 2:00-2:45pm Kate Farrell and anthology contributing authors

*********************************************

Sunday, September 25, 2011,   2 to 4 pm

California Writers Club–Marin Branch meets at Book Passage in Corte Madera, CA

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

Traditional Publishing or Self-Publishing:
Which One’s For You?

Our panel of authors and publishing professionals includes April Eberhardt, literary agent; Judith Marshall, author of Husbands May Come and Go But Friends Are Forever; Holly Payne, author of Kingdom of Simplicity, The Sound of Blue and The Virgin’s Knot, and founder of Skywriter Books; and Wendy Nelson Tokunaga, author of Love in Translation, Midori by Moonlight, and Marriage in Translation: Foreign Wife, Japanese Husband.

*********************************************

Sincerely,

Coach Teresa

Teresa LeYung-Ryan says: “Reach out, not stress out, when pursuing your dreams!”

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

$9.81 for ebook; $22 for print edition

Teresa is the author of Love Made of Heart

Coach Teresa’s YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/teresaleyung

Teresa on facebook!

Thanks to Teresa’s book I learned to contact a star. The famous Carol Channing wrote a review for my latest book YOU and THE ARTS–Why Art Matters. Teresa’s book is a wonderful help in learing how to get good publicity.

* * * * * * * * * *

This book taught me a lot. It’s packed with information, and the presentations and exercises build upon what came before. It’s direct and clear and has plenty of instructive examples that plainly show the way, and how to get there. It’s like having your very own writing career coach with you at every step. This extremely helpful workbook has given me great preparation for building a platform. I enthusiastically recommend it.

* * * * * * * * * *

This book is written as a set of specific tasks. And I think that is what is so great about it. The author doesn’t spend 200 pages waffling and trying to convince you of something you’re already dying to do, but just don’t know how to execute. All you have to do is follow the directions. No analyzing too many options, no trying to out-think the huge behemoth that is publishing industry. It’s like having a friend take you by the hand, set you down on the right path, and then walk right along side you. The added benefit is that on the way, you’ll find out some pretty interesting things about yourself and what your platform (so essential these days for getting published) is really all about.

For me, having clear cut steps and directions is invaluable when it comes figuring out what I really want to communicate to potential readers and how to get my platform established.

I know. I’m a writer, newly finished my first work (okay, here I’m going to plug it) “Over the Edge,” a fictionalized memoir, told in nine episodes, which tells what it’s really like to live, run, and be a part of the street life.

Kudos and Thanks, Teresa

* * * * * * * * * *

Much has been written in the past year or two about the importance to writers of having a “platform.” Writers without a platform, we are told, find it difficult if not impossible to be taken seriously by agents and publishers. This ambitious book takes a new approach to building a platform. Instead of the usual pep talks, it consists of a series of exercises–22 minutes for 22 days– to build the reader’s self-knowledge and skill. The exercises are often thought-provoking, and always fun. For all writers who find themselves “stuck” when it comes to building a platform, this is a most worthwhile tool.
Margaret Davis, author of Straight Down the Middle

* * * * * * * * * *

Although I had already published my novel, “Husbands May Come and Go but Friends are Forever,” and set up my website when I purchased this playbook, I found lots of information and tips I hadn’t known. I especially liked the exercises which helped me identify where to spend my time and energy. A great road map to building your writer platform.

* * * * * * * * * *

Ms. Ryan gives us a huge building block toward getting our gems into print. I tried her original draft of this book, doing the exercises, and being amazed how much i could put into a platform. Now she has expanded this workbook richly. She is a whiz in the ways a writer can get noticed.
in all the confusing technology around these days, this book takes a novice carefully through the process to this end.

It is quite a bargain at $22.

Lynn Scott, Memorist,  A Joyous Encounter: My Mother, My Alzheimer Clients, and Me

* * * * * * * * * *

Is There a Book to Help Writers Build Platform and Fanbase?

Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW available through Amazon

Sincerely,

22-Day Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan
http://writingcoachteresa.com

Thursday, Feb. 17th, 2011, 6 to 9 pm- $149
Presented by Literary Agent Katharine Sands, author of Making the Perfect Pitch. Learn how to effectively pitch your project to the agents and editors at the SFWC…or anywhere!  http://www.sfwriters.org/pages.cfm?ID=206

Friday February 18, 2011 While Talking Tagline Mentor Elisa Southard author of  Break Through the Noise, 9 Tools to Propel Your Marketing Message & I (Writing Career Coach Teresa LeYung Ryan author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW) will be presenting “Get a Grip: Be Your Own Best Promoter” at the exciting San Francisco Writers Conference . . .

February 18, 2011, 11:00am PST / noon Mountain Time Author Judith Marshall (Judith & I were in a critique group with Lynn Scott and Marcia Naomi Berger!)  will be interviewed on BlogTalkRadio show Page Readers.  If you miss the live broadcast on Feb. 18th, you can listen to Judith Marshall (she’s delightful!) when the show is archived.  Go, Girlfriend Judith!!!

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/show.aspx?userurl=page-readers&year=2011&month=02&day=18&url=judith-marshall-on-page-readers

Judith Marshall is a third generation native Californian, born in St. Helena and raised in Concord. After leaving a successful career as a human resources executive, her lifelong dream of writing fiction was realized with the completion of Husbands May Come and Go But Friends Are Forever, winner of the Jack London Prize awarded by the California Writers Club and recently optioned for the big screen. She is an active member of the California Writers Club and a regular participant in writing classes and workshops. She continues to hone her craft and is currently working on her second novel, Staying Afloat, the story of a devoted stay-at-home wife and mother who morphs into a sex-starved adulteress. She lives in Northern California with her husband. For more information, go to www.judithmarshall.net

MONDAY, February 21, 2011  FULL-DAY AND HALF-DAY WRITING INTENSIVES

Sponsored by San Francisco Writers University and the San Francisco Writers Conference  http://www.sfwriters.org/pages.cfm?ID=206

These classes will be held at the Mark Hopkins InterContinental Hotel on Nob Hill in San Francisco.

Each of these intensive workshops takes one subject and breaks it down
into parts to give attendees a deep understanding of the topic. Each
workshop is taught by an expert on the subject who is also a good
teacher.

Full Day Classes (9 am to noon, break for no-host lunch, 2 -5 pm) — $297 for either class

1. Social Media for Authors with social media gurus Tee Morris and Linda Lee
By the end of this nuts and bolts workshop, authors will know how to effectively use Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Linked-In, how to create a website and blog and how to podcast your writing. And you’ll also know how to select which of these tools is right for you. A must have for writers in today’s online world.

2. Self-Publishing Boot Camp with Carla King, Alan Rinzler, Joel Friedlander, Mark Coker, Tammy Nam, Alexis Masters, Karen Leland and many more
Listen up, soldiers! Today is the best time ever to be a writer. With eBooks and self-publishing options never before available to get your book in front of a reading audience, you need to understand the whys, whats and hows of self-publishing. Taught by the creator of the Self-Publishing Bootcamp and a whole host of experts in every aspect of self-publishing. Go to Carla King’s Self-Publishing Boot Camp web site.

Morning Half-Day Classes (9 am to noon) –$149 for each class

1. Micro-Tension: The Secret of the Best Sellers with Superstar Literary Agent Donald Maass
This workshop has been given to rave reviews throughout North America by the man who wrote the book (and workbook) on writing the novel that will break you out of the pack. In the course of two decades Mr. Maass has arrived at a number of definite and highly perceptive conclusions on just what the differences are between an ordinary, pedestrian but enjoyable novel and an ostensibly similar work that catapults the book and its author into an entirely new plane of literary success.

2. Writing Fantasy, Science Fiction and Horror
With best selling author Katharine Kerr, editor/assoc. publisher Gabrielle Harbowy and rising star fantasy author Philippa Ballantine

3. Writing Romance and Women’s Fiction
With literary agent Christine Witthohn and romance author Elizabeth Jennings

4. Writing Mysteries, Suspense and Thrillers
With NYT best-selling mystery and thriller authors Bob Dugoni and Sheldon Siegel

Afternoon Half-Day Classes (2 pm to 5 pm)–$149 each

1. How to Write a Book Proposal (non-fiction)
With the man who wrote How to Write a Book Proposal. literary agent Michael Larsen and Consulting Editor Alan Rinzler

2. Making Your Memoir Bigger Than The Story of Your Life
With writing teacher and memoirist Adair Lara, author of Naked, Drunk and Writing: Shed Your Inhibitions and Craft a Compelling Memoir or Personal Essay

3. How To Make Money in the Hot Young Adult Market
With author Doug Rees and Annette Pollert from Simon and Schuster

You have spent months, perhaps years, writing and rewriting your project/work.  And, you’ve decided to pursue either an agent (who earns his/her commission when he/she sells a client’s work to a publishing house) or an acquisition editor (whose job is to buy authors’ works for the publishing house he/she works for). Let’s say you’ve done your homework and have compiled a list of agents or acquisition editors who specialize in the kind of project (commodity) you wish to sell.

An agent or acquisition editor receives hundreds of pitches/query letters each week.  What can you do to catch these folks’ attention?  Use the right bait.  Make every word count.

Whether you’re pitching in person, over the telephone, through an E-Mail, or by old-fashion mail, keep this in mind—the pitch (bait) has three components:
•    who needs your project
•    the unique qualities about your commodity
•    why you are the perfect author for this work

Here are 4 examples:

Genre: Self Help / Relationship / Marriage

The 50% and 60% divorce rates, for first and second marriages respectively, are a wake-up call for the United States 55.2 million married couples.

Through my book, I empower couples to get the marriage they’ve always wanted.

The Marriage Meeting Program: 45 Minutes a Week to Guarantee the Long Term Relationship You’ve Always Wanted shows how to conduct a weekly meeting that increases intimacy, romance, teamwork, and smoother conflict resolution.

A proactive, preventive approach is crucial. Regardless of how good a relationship is, there is always a need to keep it on track and room for it to grow. The Marriage Meeting Program’s step-by-step approach makes it easy to conduct the meetings. Follow-up studies show a 20 to 80 percent increase in marital happiness for couples who implement the program.

I am Marcia Naomi Berger, a psychotherapist, writer, speaker, workshop leader, and instructor of a class for therapists and counselors at the University of California Berkeley Extension. http://www.marriagemaven.com

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Genre: Memoir

There are more than 38-million boom-generation women in this country.  Through my book, I show middle-aged women how to cope with family and social pressures while dealing with their own mortality issues.

My memoir, Oldham Street, is about my journey from east coast to west bearing the pain of a son in prison, the long slow death of my father, the end of my counseling career and a ten-year relationship.  I knocked on a lemon-colored door on a short block in San Francisco.  In the next twelve years, the woman who opened that door, along with the other quirky characters in the neighborhood, inadvertently joined me in a process that brought me home to myself and into a comfortable role as the matriarch of my tribe.

I am Lynn Scott:

• author of A Joyful Encounter: My Mother, My Alzheimer Clients, and Me (a memoir about the abundance of spirit that I found among my Alzheimer clients).

• contributor to eight anthologies of fiction, memoir, and poetry.

• a guest on OPRAH and other talk shows .

http://lynnscottbooks.com

http://lynnscott.wordpress.com

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Genre: Women’s Fiction

Recent survey data indicates that 22% of the 55,000,000+ married women admit to having an extramarital affair. STAYING AFLOAT is the story of one of these women –although she wouldn’t have admitted it if she hadn’t gotten caught.

Crystal Scott is a stable and stalwart, stay-at-home wife and mother, aiming only to run an efficient home, care for her children and avoid confrontation.  Whatever her private thoughts are, she keeps them to herself.  But when her husband loses his job and shows no signs of looking for another, fault lines in their marriage are exposed.  She’s forced to re-enter the workforce, and when her dazzling, dynamic boss takes a personal interest in her, she slips into territory that most women have fantasized about, even if they don’t want to admit it — she morphs into a sex-starved adulteress.

I am Judith Marshall, author of the award-winning novel, HUSBANDS MAY COME AND GO BUT FRIENDS ARE FOREVER. I’ve been writing for thirteen years and am a member of the California Writers Club and the Women’s National Book Association. In addition, I am the President of Human Resources Consulting Services and a member of the faculty of the Council on Education in Management, for whom I teach a number of public seminars on a variety of HR-relates topics. I’m currently working on my third novel, BITTER ACRES.
http://judithmarshall.net/

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Genre: Women’s Fiction / Humor

39%  of the 68 million women employed in the U.S. work in management, professional, and related occupations. Through my book Katie Carlisle, I show women how to hold onto their integrity, humor, and vision . . . in spite of having to fight sexism in the corporate world.

Katie Carlisle has been lucky enough to have a mentor (her boss) who has taken her to a point where her promotion is pretty well guaranteed.  Only then everything goes wrong.  Her beloved mentor leaves the company under a cloud; his successor is a man whom Katie hates and fears; and a downward spiral in her fortunes starts.  This is the story of a smart woman’s struggle to hold onto her integrity, humor and vision in spite of the tumult around her—and her eventual triumph.

I am Margaret Davis.  I have a doctorate from Stanford University in Sociology, with a specialization in the structure and behavior of formal organizations.  I have had two non-fiction books published in my field.  Katie Carlisle, a humorous spoof on everyday life in a large corporation, is a work of fiction.  Yet, as many of my readers have commented, “Everyone who has ever worked in a big company will relate to and love this book.”

I am also the author of Straight Down the Middle, a family drama involving a young mother’s efforts to do what is best for her child while trying to come to terms with her own sexuality.
http://margaretdavisbooks.com/

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Writing Career Coach Teresa will help you practice your pitch
at WNBA’s  “Meet the Agents, Editors, & Publishers”
on March 27, 2010   http://wnba-sfchapter.org

Teresa LeYung Ryan is:
*   Board member at WNBA-SF Chapter since 2004
*    Author with agent and NY publisher
*   Writing career coach
*    Past president of California Writers Club-SF Peninsula Branch
*    Library advocate

Writing Career Coach Teresa is the author of  Build Your Name, Beat the Game: Be Happily Published (a 22-day workbook for writers to build their names and attract attention and fans before and after publication).   http://WritingCoachTeresa.com

As a community spirit, Teresa LeYung Ryan uses her novel Love Made of Heart to:
• shed light on stigmas suffered by immigrant women, men, and children
• advocate understanding of mental illness/traumas to the mind
• help survivors of violence find their own voices through writing
www.LoveMadeOfHeart.com

Sociologist Margaret Davis (author of Straight Down the Middle) offers a fresh take on the battle of the sexes.  

“The battle of the sexes is over,” according to Maria Shriver in a Forbes Woman article (by Heidi Brown, October 16, 2009).  But does anyone really believe that?

Davis tackles the subject in a different way. Straight Down the Middle tells the tale of Diane who finds herself unwillingly pitched into such a battle.  Diane wants to have a baby, her long-time lover Cindy agrees, and they ask a neighbor Sam to father the child.  But after the baby boy is born, Diane finds herself in the middle of a heated tug-of-war between a strong-willed Sam who wants to maintain contact with his son, and an equally strong-willed  Cindy, who wants him gone.  Diane’s attempts to keep the peace lead to lies, intrigues and cover-ups galore—until finally, she is forced by circumstances to “get out of the middle” and search out her own needs and desires.

The book is “A fresh take on the battle of the sexes.  A smart, modern comedy with a deep heart,” says Author and Screenwriter Frank Baldwin.

http://margaretdavisbooks.com

Glamour Gal Judith Marshall (author of Husbands May Come and Go but Friends are Forever) celebrates fresh hopes, second chances, and the anything-but-simple art of relationships.

Husbands May Come and Go but Friends are Forever is set in a small town in Northern California, in the spring of 2000 when the dot-com boom was at its peak. The story centers around Elizabeth Reilly-Hayden, a successful executive in her late fifties and a divorced mother of two. Emotionally armored and living alone, she wants only to maintain the status quo: her long-term significant other, her job and her trusted friends— five feisty women who first met in high school. Yet in a matter of days, the three anchors that have kept her moored are ripped away. The group of lifelong pals gathers at Lake Tahoe to attend to the funeral arrangements of their beloved friend, and tries to unravel the mystery of her death. Through their shared tragedy, Liz learns how disappointment and grief can bloom into healing and hope.

“Judith Marshall has written a book that, once you start it, you will not want to put down, and once you finish it, you will want to read again. It makes you remember that there is nothing quite so important as good friends.”—D.W. Buffa, author of Breach of Trust and many other legal thrillers.

http://judithmarshall.net/

Margaret & Judith,

I’m thrilled for the two of you. When your novels become Hollywood movies, I won’t wait for the release of DVDs; I will go to the cineplexes.

Teresa LeYung Ryan