This off-site meeting will be for members only.

Members should check their email for more information.

Karlee Etter presents:

The Best or Worst Dressed Heroine, an Authentic Historical Wardrobe

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CTRWA meets on the second Saturday of every month.

Our meetings are held at The Four Points Sheraton in Meriden, CT. Membership meeting begins at 10:30 AM. Our speaker begins at 11:00 AM and is followed by a pay your own lunch.

Published and non-published writers from all genres are welcome. Non-members can attend two times for free to check our fabulous group!

For more information regarding membership in CTRWA, please see our Membership page.

General Directions to the Hotel

The Four Points Sheraton

275 Research Parkway

Meriden, CT 06450

(203) 238-2380.

From East
Take Interstate 84 West into Hartford, then take Exit 56 to Interstate 91 South. From I-91 South, take Exit 17, to East Main Street and turn left. Take a right at the second light onto Pomeroy Avenue. The hotel is ahead 0.5 mile on the right.

From West
Take Interstate 84 East to Exit 27, then take Interstate 691 East. Take Exit 10 and stay in the right-hand lane until you reach the first Exit 67 West, East Main Street. Turn right onto Pomeroy Avenue at the second light and the hotel will be 0.5 miles down on the right.

From Bradley International Airport (North)
Take Interstate 91 South to Exit 17. Veer right to East Main Street. Turn left at the light. From there, turn right onto Pomeroy Avenue at the second light. The hotel will be 0.5 miles down on the right.

From South
Take Interstate 91 North to Exit 16. Take a right at the end on to East Main Street. Take a right at the first light onto Pomeroy Avenue. The hotel is approximately 0.5 mile ahead on the right.

Putting Your Baby On the Bus: Preparing Your Manuscript for Submission

You’ve finished your manuscript, polished it till it shines…and now you’ve got to send it out. Published authors Kristan Higgins and Lori Avocato will cover the basics of submission: writing a query letter, summarizing your book for a synopsis and cleaning up the manuscript so it’s ready for the eyes of an agent or editor.

*** There will be no critique group this week.

Emily Bryan

WHAT A NOVEL IDEA! (Story Structure)

How can a writer be sure  her story isn’t full of holes or missed opportunities? Listen to the voices of the ancient bards. For centuries, story-tellers have been perfecting the craft of weaving tales. We can stand on their shoulders.

Based of Christopher Vogler’s The Writers Journey, Emily explains the mythic structures that form plot points your readers are already pre-programmed to respond to. WHAT A NOVEL IDEA will help writers be certain their plots will hit all the readers’ (and editor’s!) hot-buttons

John Flynn and Friends:

Expert Panel of Connecticut Law Enforcement Officials

Our speakers for this meeting will be:

Nikoo & Jim Goldrick (AKA Jan Coffey)

Collaborative Writing as a Couple

For our first meeting of 2009, Marie Force and Kristan Higgins will present:

Plotters vs. Pantsers: Can’t We All Just Get Along?

Published authors Marie Force (Line of Scrimmage) and Kristan Higgins (Just One of the Guys) will discuss the pros and cons of their writing methods and what can be learned from the other side in what promises to be a lively and entertaining discussion.

Holiday Party

At our December meeting, we will have our Silent Raffle.

All members are asked to contribute something to raffle off. Anything. Baskets with chocolate, wine, books, things to use to write, gift cards etc.

Bring your item to the December meeting. The chapter sells raffle tickets and you place your ticket in the bag/cup that is in front of the item you want to win.

Tomorrow:

We have our workshop for tomorrow!  Our very own Lindsay Downs will discuss being a male in a primarily female dominated field and writing from the female POV(point of view).  Also you can ask questions about a female writing a male POV!

“Why Manuscripts Get Rejected” — a bare bones nitty gritty look at why proposals don’t sell.

Thea Devine was a freelance manuscript reader over the course of 25 years for four major mass market publishers and an agent.  She’ll discuss what works, what doesn’t, where you get ideas, building a story, things to try when you don’t know what to do, tips and trends, and some hard-won wisdom she’s gained along the way.

Thea Devine is the author whose books defined erotic romance.  She currently writes erotic contemporary romance, for Pocket Books (Sex, Lies and Secret Lives, coming October 09), and Harelquin Blaze. (What I Did on My Summer Vacation - “The Guy Diet” — July 08).