Registration Open for Bay to Ocean Writers Conference

Registration Open for Bay to Ocean writers Conference

Registration for the 15th Annual Bay to Ocean Writers Conference, February 25, 2012 is now open. Check the website www.baytoocean.com for details. Featured speakers include TWC workshop leaders Kathryn Johnson, Laura Oliver, Lynn Schwartz, Khris Baxter, Angela Render, and Sue Ellen Thompson. Registration must be received by February 15, 2012.

On the website you will find session descriptions and brief bios of the instructors. You can print out a schedule for the day to help you plan your day; however, it is not necessary to sign up for individual sessions.

At this conference we’ll have 28 excellent session leaders giving presentations on many topics relating to the art and business of writing. Whether you’re interested in learning the craft of writing, utilizing digital tools for writers, getting your work published and marketed, or any of the other writing related topics offered, the Bay to Ocean Writers Conference definitely has something for everyone.

Fees have stayed the same as we are aware of the impact of the economy on everyone: $89 for adults and $55 for students with ID. Your registration fee includes a deluxe continental breakfast, a networking lunch and five sessions chosen from 25 offerings.

Early registration is strongly encouraged as the conference has sold out in advance the last six years.

Marketing at the Speed of the Web with Angela Render

It always amazes me how much I have to change my classes from quarter to quarter. Granted, much of the information I impart is “evergreen”—wisdom that remains valid through the ages—but then much of it can change on a moment’s notice.

For example, my last class on Social Networking for Writers, happened scarcely a week after a major change in Facebook. Not content with merely updating the screenshots, I used live images in the class instead. It was a case of the instructor being a half-step ahead of the student, as nobody in the marketing community had yet to see a clear path through all the changes, and the ramifications had yet to be even touched upon.

Nonetheless, evergreen wisdom should prevail no matter what technological changes rock the boat. When marketing anything to anyone, two things remain constant:
1) The consumer is a human being.
2) You want to sell them something.

In my upcoming classes on November 12th--Blogging Tips and Tricks and Advanced Marketing—I’m going to impart to you both the foundations of promoting yourself online as well as the latest tools available to you. More importantly, I’m going to teach you how to select the best tools to use for yourself.

We’re constantly bombarded with experts claiming that if you’re going to be successful, you’ve got to do X or you’ve got to do Y, as if jumping on the latest bandwagon was the key to success. There is no magic bullet to get where you want to be. There are thousands of paths to success and constantly chasing after the latest thing will do nothing other than exhaust you.

What I plan to teach is not only how to find your own path to success, but how to pace yourself so that you can win the marathon that is self-promotion. Be sure to bring your questions with you.

I hope to see you there.

Angela

Testimonials:

“Confident, well-organized, substantive presentations—and patient to boot! She fielded every question and led to think about approaches to marketing we had never considered before.”

“This was a very helpful introduction to an overwhelming topic—it does not seem as daunting now, to establish a platform and presence, as it did before I took the class.”

“The information shared has inspired me to go home and take action!!”

Angela Render is the workshop leader for Blogging Tips and Tricks from 12-2 P.M. and Advanced Marketing from 3-5 P.M. on 11/12 at TWC. Sign up for her workshops here and here.

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Angela Render designed and maintained Web sites since 1994 and is the founder and owner of Thunderpaw Internet Presence Management. Her published work includes: Forged By Lightning: A Novel of Hannibal and Scipio, Marketing for Writers: A Practical Workbook, a Writers' Journal column, and ghost blogging. In addition to her classes through The Writer's Center, she teaches at-risk middle-school girls and has been a guest speaker at numerous local conferences.

The Writer's Toolbox: Your Questions Answered

Here's a timely post (with the AWP Conference is happening right now just down the road). Workshop leader Angela Render answers this week's question: How do I gain a following if I'm limited in my travel?

If you need to build a following and can't travel, the Internet offers any number of opportunities. With the exception of a handshake, you can use media to cover nearly every other aspect. To reach people with words, you can blog, participate in forums, newsgroups, social
networking, and e-mail. The Internet allows you to present yourself in
pictures through those same avenues as well as through Flickr photo
galleries. Podcasting gets your voice out to your potential following.
Through digital video cameras, you can present yourself talking and
moving. Youtube is only one (and perhaps the most popular) way to
distribute pre-recorded video.

If you want to reach people real-time and establish a dialogue, free conference call services allow you to set up teleconferences with your readership: Q&A, readings, book talks. Video conferencing software allows you to appear before your readership. If they have a camera set
up on their end, you can have a real-time face-to-face interaction with
either a remote group gathering, or with people scattered across the
globe--all in the comfort of their own homes.

For those people with limited mobility, shake off your technophobia and
build your following.