Great August meeting, a peek at September

For the August FWA St. Pete meeting, John Rehg revealed how a writer can self-publish at minimal or even no cost. He presented on a variety of different free programs that writers can utilize to create their story layout and book cover. He explained that the free cost of creating a book at CreateSpace and Kindle Direct Publishing really doesn't have a catch. It's up to the author how many books to buy from CreateSpace that they intend to sell themselves, but they don't have to spend a lot of money if they prefer to let customers find their book on Amazon's website. In the case of KDP, it's all digital so there is zero cost until a book is sold with a high royalty payout. He also pointed out the importance of goals. For writers who want a book in hand, but aren't trying to make a living as a writer, CreateSpace is a great tool. Not to mention gift ideas! The personalized touch of a book that you created can be the ideal gift for family and friends, whether it's a short family vacation compilation or a story you wrote for the family.

Visit www.soulattitudepress.com to visit John's publishing website where he has a free download of the handout that was given to participants at the meeting.

On September 10th, Ford Easton will be presenting. His topic is "Targeting Your Audience" and is the perfect follow-up to John Rehg's meeting. He'll specifically be talking about targeting your audience with a book title and correct mix of text, stories, and pictures while operating on a low/limited budget.

Next Meeting August 13th with John Rehg

August FWA St. Pete Meeting

For our Aug 13th meeting, John Rehg of Soul Attitude Press will be presenting. As usual, we'll meet at the Main Branch St. Pete Library at 6 PM. Networking/mingling begins at 5:30 PM. This meeting is open to the public.

Topic: Self-Publishing on a Budget (or free)

An author and publisher, John will be taking the group through the process of self-publishing, utilizing free and inexpensive software and tools.

BIO

JOHN REHG has been writing and rewriting since 2006, after taking 30 years off to pursue a career. He's still working, fitting in writing at odd times of day or night. After getting several short stories published in various anthologies, he started his own publishing business, to control the revenue on his stories as well as to help others realize their dream of holding their own book in their hands. He has published his own short fiction and non-fiction, and has helped others publish their stories. His novel is currently in its second revision, which he hopes to complete this year.

Wonderful meetings in June and July, a FREE webinar, and a peek at August

FWA St. Pete June flashback

In June, St. Pete Writers Group had the privilege of meeting Molli Nickell of Get Published Now. Her topic: Rules of the Query Road. Attendees were informed ahead of time that they could bring their query letters for Molli to workshop with the group. Five brave souls handed over their letters, and Molli gently (with plenty of humor) took the group through each letter: what worked and what didn't. She explained what agents and publishers were looking for now (an ever-changing model) in the query letter and emphasized the importance of the Subject line of the email containing our query--that line, too, must grab the agent's attention.

Molli's Free Webinar: "Write a Query that Lands an Agent!"
If you missed the June meeting, you won't want to miss this free webinar. If you attended that meeting, you're probably thinking the same thing as me: I could use more of what I learned from Molli.

FWA is planning for several future webinars, and this first one will be free so be sure to get in on the ground level and see what it's all about.

When

• Saturday, August 15, 2015
• Time: 11 AM - 12 PM Eastern

Location

• You will need a computer with internet access and speakers for audio
• Login information for the event will be sent to all registered participants two weeks before the webinar. For further information, contact us.

Fee

• FREE for FWA members because this is our pilot webinar. In return, we will ask for your feedback to help us improve future events.
• This event is capped at 100 attendees, so sign up TODAY! LINK TO SIGN-UP: https://floridawriters.net/conferences/webinars/write-a-query-that-lands-an-agent/

FWA St. Pete July flashback

In July, Author Lisa Ann O'Kane spoke at our monthly meeting. Her topic: Embracing Your Sometimes Fickle Muse. An excellent presenter, Lisa took us through her personal journey to publication which included securing an agent, but also a first book that never made it to a publisher and a second book that was published just before the company dissolved, leading to a much different writing journey than she'd imagined. She asked the group tough questions about writing goals and facing fear, encouraging everyone to find what works for them in the writing process and run with it.

FWA St. Pete August flash forward

For our August 13th meeting, John Rehg will be speaking about Self-Publishing on a Budget (or free). More details to come.