Here is a sampling of our previous speakers - see listings by date below and Gallery page for more images
Katie Mayberry
"Social Media Marketing for Writers"
D.P. Lyle, M.D.
author of Forensics for Dummies
Cricket Rumley
YA author of Never Sit Down in a Hoop Skirt
Amy Friedman
memoirist and
author of Desperado's Wife
Lisa Napoli
NPR correspondent and author of
Radio Shangri-La
2021 Programs
(via Zoom)
Zoom meetings for members and guests only:
January 9
Rachel Howzell
February 13
Jeri Westerson
March 13
Matt Coyle
April 10
Teresa Burrell
May 8
Martin Smith
June 12
Buddy Wakefield
July 10
Deborah A. Lott
August 14
Barbara DeMarco Barrett
September 11
P.J. Colando
October 9
Seth Wagerman
November 13
Dennis Crosby
December 11
Virtual Holiday Party and Open Mic
2022 Programs
(Zoom or Hybrid)
January 8
Joe Ide
"Writing the Killer Crime Novel"
February 12
Jasmin Iolani Hakes
"You Are What Happens To You"
March 12
Henry Neff
"Villains Stir the Plot"
April 9
Joy Lanzendorfer
"Writing the Historical Family Novel"
May 14
Jordan Rosenfeld
"Evoking Emotion Through Character"
June 11
Sheree Greer
"On Setting in Fiction"
July 9
Jonathan Maberry
"Crossing Genre Lines"
August 13
Jane Cleland
"Say What? Writing Dialogue That Sings"
September 10
Gayle Carline
"What's the Point? Story, Subtext,
and Plot"
October 8
Tessa Smith McGovern
“Your Outreach to Readers:
Tips for collecting an email list and landing reviews"
November 12
Veronica Rossi
"Your Mission Statement"
December 10
Annual Holiday Networking Party
and Open Mic
Please check back for program updates
Past Programs
2020
(Meetings from April forward were on Zoom for members only)
October 10, 2020 -Amy Wallen - "When We Were Ghouls"
September 12, 2020 - LeeAnne Krusemark - "Getting Paid to Write for Online Blogs, Magazines and Websites"
August 8, 2020 - Pam Sheppard - "What in the World is a Comp--
and Why is It So Important?"
July 11, 2020 - Flora Brown - "Top Tips for Self-Publishing Your Book"
June 13, 2020 - Laura Brennan - "Networking for Authors"
May 9, 2020 - Maddie Margarita - "How to Handle Author Interviews and Readings"
April 11, 2020 - Member Open Mic
No March meeting
February 8, 2020 - "First Page, Lasting Impression" - Greta Boris and Megan Haskell
January 11, 2020 - "How to Build a Brand and Market Your Work" with Jonathan Yanes, Kevin Cruz, Jennifer Hendricks, and Jynafer Yanez
2019
December 14, 2019 - Our Annual Holiday Networking and Open Mic
November 9, 2019 - Janis Thomas - "Lessons Learned on the Path to Publication"
October 12 - Nancy Lynée Woo "Surprise the Line: Poetry for all Writers"
September 14, 2019 - Gwendolyn Womack - Intuitive Writing: Strengthening Your Sixth Sense at the Keyboard"
August 10, 2019 - Kim Dwinell - "Creating the Graphic Novel"
July 13, 2019 - Reina Menasche "Character Types in Fiction"
June 8, 2019 - Judy Reeves - "Tell Me A Story: Using the Techniques of Fiction to Craft A Compelling Memoir or Narrative Nonfiction"
May 11, 2019 - Manny Pacheco - "Ways to Brand Yourself as an Author"
April 13, 2019 - Robert Yehling - "Embedding Your Experiences to Fuel All of Your Stories"
March 9 - Anne Cleeland - "Have You Found Nemo? How to turn your first draft into an engaging and cohesive page-turner."
February 9 - Christopher Lentz, "Location, Location, Location: Using Iconic HIstoric Places in Fiction"
January 12 - Martin J. Smith - "How Nonfiction Techniques Can Improve Your Fiction"
2018
December 8, 2018 - Our Annual Holiday Networking and Open Mic
November 10, 2018 - Nick Cole - "A Writers Journey: From Indie to Traditional and Back Again"
October 13, 2018 - Nancy Cole Silverman - "How to Expedite Your Writing Process: Your first draft from concept to completion in six months"
September 8, 2018 - Tom Jordan - “Writing Out Loud: Turning Your Work Into An Audiobook"
August 11, 2018 - Mary Vensel White - “Getting Out and Staying In: Making Writing Connections and Editing Tips and Tricks"
July 14, 2018 - Ara Grigorian - "Story Beats - Your Story's Heartbeat"
June 9, 2018 - Janet Simcic, "Turning My Travel Into Fiction"
May 12, 2018 - Glen Erik Hamilton "Writing the Mystery Thriller"
April 14 – Karen Gorback on “Writing Dazzling Dialogue”
March 10, 2018 - Open Mic
February 10, 2018 - Janet F. Williams, "How to Make Your Writing Deliciously Intimate"
January 20, 2018 - Cherie Kephart "Writing to Heal"
2017
December 9 Holiday Networking and Open Mic
November 11,
October 14,
September 9,
August 12, 2017 "Summer Open Mic"
July 8,
June 10,
May 13,
April 8,
March 11,
February 12,
January 7,
2016
December 10,
November 12,
October 8,
September 10,
August 13,
July 9,
June 11,
May 14,
April 9,
March 12,
February 6,
January 9,
2015
Saturday, November 14, 2015, Amy Friedman "Pain and Survival in Memoir"
Saturday, October 10, 2015, Chris Lynch "How to Succeed Today With Short Freelance Sales"
Saturday, August 8, 2015, Anne Cleeland "Writing the Classic Mystery"
August 8, 2015, Mariana Williams "Storytelling Workshop"
July 11, 2015, Larry and Lorna Collins "The Perfect Pitch"
June 13 - Jonathan Yanez rescheduled for another date: library closed.
May 9, 2015, Alison Singh Gee "Memoir Versus Family Members"
April 11, 2015, David Congalton "Chasing Your Creative Dream"
March 14, 2015, Claudia Suzanne "Formatting Your Manuscript in Microsoft Word"
February 7, 2015, Julie Rivett "Rediscovering Dashiell Hammett"
January 10, 2015, Nancy Spiller "Recipe for Sucess: Food As Creative Writing Fuel"
2014
December 13, 2014, Holiday gathering and networking
November 8, 2014, Alan Rifkin "Co-Writing Nonfiction (creating a folk-rock memoir)"
October 11, 2014, Suzanne Greenberg "Writing a Novel with Humor and Insight"
September 13, 2014, Julia Drake "The Basics of Creating A Book Publicity Plan"
August 9, 2014, James Brown "Writing the Challenging Memoir"
July 12, 2014, Michelle Meyering "Writing for Literary Journals"
June 14, 2014, Louella Nelson "Writing Sizzling Scenes"
May 10, 2014, Lian Dolan "Bridget Jones Meets William Shakespeare"
April 12, 2014, Open Mic
March 8, 2014, Flora M. Brown "Tips From A Publishing Coach"
February 8, 2014, Sue Ann Jaffarian "Juggling Different Fiction Series -- and Different Publishers"
January 11, 2014, Marcia Lee Harris "What I Wish I had Known Before My Book Was Published"
2013
December 14, 2013, Holiday Party and Networking
November 9, 2013, Dale Griffiths Stamos "What's Your Story? The 5 Essential Questions of Good Storytelling.
October 12, 2013, "Speed Networking for Writers"
September 14, 2013, Boak Ferris "Write Immortal Modern Fiction" Learn from Homer's Modern Fiction Techniques
August 10, 2013, "Working the Web for Writers A Round Table Discussion
July 13, 2013, Susan E. Davis Creative Writing Workshop
June 8, 2013, Hector Tobar "Writing Across Two Worlds: From newspaper journalist to literary novelist"
May 11, 2013, Tom Underhill “Pitfalls of Do-It-Yourself Publishing"
April 13, 2013, Wendy Hornsby author of Maggie McGowan mystery novels "Making Story: From Writing a Story to Creating A Series"
March 9, 2013, Open Mic tie-in with Long Beach Reads One Book, The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
Feb. 9, 2013, Pam Sheppard, a Bix Six publishing insider told us about "Secrets on the Shelves"
January 12, 2013, Diana Wagman, author of The Care and Feeding of Exotic
2012
December 8, 2012, Holiday mixer and potluck with program "Open mic: What Are You Working on?"
November 10, 2012, Sonia Marsh, author of Freeways to Flip-Flops: A Family's Year of Gutsy Living on a Tropical Island "Gutsy Blogging: How to Start and Manage a Successful Writer's Blog"
October 13, 2012, Lisa Napoli, author of Radio Shangri-La: What I learned in Bhutan, the Happiest Place on Earth "When Life Turns Upside Down, Write a Memoir"
September 8, 2012, Barbara Giammona "Getting Started in Technical Writing"
August 11, 2012, Manny Pacheco author of Forgotten Hollywood Forgotten History and Son of Forgotten Hollywood Forgotten History "Seven Things You Need to Know About Self-Publishing"
July 14, 2012, Crickett Rumley, author of Never Sit Down In A Hoop Skirt "Writing for the Young Adult Market"
June 9, 2012, Jeri Westerson, author of the Crispin Guest Medieval Noir historical mysteries "Crossing Genres from History to Mystery and Beyond"
May 12, 2012, Marla Miller "Quick Query Critiques: Does Your Query Letter Pass the Speedbump Test?"
April 14, 2012, Open Mic - Celebrate National Poetry Month
March 10, 2012, The Hero's Journey CSULB Professor Jose Sanchez-H and author/filmmaker Tina Datsko de Sanchez
February 11, 2012, Give Your Manuscript an Edge with Claudia Suzanne
January 14, 2012, Turn Your Down Moments into a Novel with Aura Imbarus
2011
December 17, 2011, Holiday Mixer
November 19, 2011, Alex Carroll "Being a Telephone Guest on Big Radio Shows"
October 15, 2011, Brennan Harvey "Creating A Useful Website for Writers"
September 17, 2011, Nancy Dodd "From Story Map to Finished Draft in Seven Stages"
August 20, 2011, Janice MacDonald “Storyboarding: The Key to Writing Genre Fiction"
July 16, 2011, “Shaping Your Memoir: Memoir Workshop and Open Mic (with panelists Barbara Ardinger and Allene Symons
June 18, 2011, Shirley Jordan "Writing for Children: From getting started to publishing a successful series"
May 21, 2011, Stephanie Hubbard "Making Sense of Your Story: Applying Cinematic Structure to Your Memoir or Novel"
April 16, 2011, "Three Minute Stories and Celebration of April is Poetry Month"
March 19, 2011, "The Present State and Future of Publishing" with CSULB creative writing instructor Tyler Dilts, author of A King of Infinite Space, and CSULB creating writing instructor Paul Tayyar, publisher of World Parade Books, an independent press in Huntington Beach.
Feb. 26, 2011 "Creating an Effective Book Business Plan" by Author Success Coach Deborah-Riley Magnus
Jan. 22, 2011, "Sit! Stay! Write! Good Author!" Bestselling author and radio show host Arden Moore shared her tips, tricks
2010
January 5, 2010, ghostwriting expert Claudia Suzanne discussed “Publishing Options and Realities 2010”
February 2, 2010, Manny Pacheco, author of Forgotten Hollywood, Forgotten History, offered a capsule course in book marketing
March 2, 2010, Barbara Ardinger, Ph.D. "Don't Embarrass Yourself in Print: Tips from a Professional Book Editor"
April 6, 2010, Open Mic
May 4, 2010, Denise Dumars of the Ashley Grayson Literary Agency discussed "Working with a Literary Agent"
June 1, 2010, Editorial Director Lynn Price of Behler Publications. "Why Did You Reject Me?"
July 6, 2010, Rebecca Camarena, tour coordinator "How to do A Virtual Book Tour"
August 3, 2010, Jose Sanchez-H, author of My Mother's Bolivian Kitchen: Recipes and Recollections
September 7, 2010, Stephanie Starr, managing editor of two magazines for Bow Tie, Inc., "How to work with a magazine editor"
October 16, 2010, novelist Doug Drummond, author of Cyclone Racer and What Goes Around Comes Around discussed "Plotting a mystery set in Long Beach"
November 20, 2010, Susan Peterson, author of Fun Places to Go With Kids and Adults in Southern California,
told us how she conceived, wrote, and marketed her books
December 18, 2010, Holiday Mixer
2009-2007
March 3, 2009, "New Publishing Opportunities Workshop" with Jeremy Aluma, project manager of Book By Authors: North Long Beach
April 7, 2009, Eric Stone,
May 5, 2009, Phil Doran, author of The Reluctant Tuscan: How I Discovered My Inner Italian(Penguin Books)
talked about adventures, food, and humor in travel writing
June 2, 2009, Sandra Harper, author of the novel High Tea (Pocket Books) told us how she got published by a major imprint--twice in one year--after several years of trying.
July 7, 2009, Catherine Kitcho "Book Marketing for Savvy Authors"
August 4, 2009, Laurie Powers talked about how she landed a university press to publish her grandfather's lost memoir, "Pulp Fiction"
September 1 four author panel "From Web Sites to Twitter: Exploring Tech Tools for Writers"
October 6, 2009, We celebrated California Writers Week with costumes and readings of our favorite authors.
November 3, 2009, Darlene Quinn, author of the novel Webs of Power told us "What I wish I had known before I became a published author."
December 1, 2009, for our festive Holiday Mixer and open mic we read 3-minute pieces, either original or by a favorite writer, and enjoyed sweet and savory dishes to celebrate the season.
Sampling of programs from 2007-2008
January 2008 Open Mic
February discussion "What Inspires Us To Write"
March writing teacher James Bonnet, author of "Stealing Fire from the Gods: The Complete Guide to Story for Writers and Filmmakers"
April literary novelist and short story writer Lisa Glatt, author of "A Girl Becomes a Comma Like That" and "The Apple's Bruise"
May Jean Hastings Ardell, author of "Breaking into Baseball: Women and the National Pastime" talked about "After the Writing is Done: Marketing Your Manuscript"
June panel "Foot in the Door: Finding and Keeping a Literary Agent"
January 2007: Featured speaker author David Fury, publisher of Artist's Press Publishers, which specializes in film history and sports biographies
March Wendy Hornsby, history instructor at Long Beach City College
May Historical novelist Diana Johnson spoke about "Turning Your Ancestors into Fiction"
August novelist Lisa Teasley discussed "Setting Goals to Finish Your Fiction"