2021 Writing Workshops

Do the Write Thing workshops

Welcome to Do the Write Thing, a series of writing workshops presented by Succeed2gether's Montclair Literary Festival.

All workshops cost $25 each and are conducted via Zoom. Registration links will be sent asap and again just before the workshop begins.

Proceeds from all workshops benefit Succeed2gether, a Montclair-based non-profit 501(c) organization that addresses unequal access to educational resources for low-income families and children from Montclair and Essex County, NJ. A portion of each workshop ticket is donated to Succeed2gether.

Please note that there are no refunds for this event. If you would prefer to pay by check, please contact Succeed2gether on 973-746-0553.

Any questions, please email montclairliteraryfestival@gmail.com.

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 27, 2:00 P.M. – 3:30 P.M.

Food writing workshop
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Food Writing Workshop
with Marissa Rothkopf Bates

This 90-minute interactive class will help you hone your food writing skills, whether you're working on fiction or non-fiction, want to write a blog or cookbook, or just create better Yelp reviews. We'll discuss what makes copy stand out, and look at how your voice, storytelling and reporting makes a good food story. We'll explore techniques for writing engaging, thoughtful copy through reading, speed-writing prompts, and yes, eating. We'll also review how to write a solid recipe.

Requirements: Please bring a slice of pizza to eat during the online session – anything from a slice of your favorite to something from your freezer.

Marissa Rothkopf Bates is a professional chef, journalist, and teaches journalism at Montclair State University. She is also the host of The Secret Life of Cookies, a new podcast that brings smart, interesting people (Kathy Griffin, Mary Trump, E. Jean Carroll, to name a few) into her kitchen, where they bake and talk about the important issues of today. 

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 27, 4:00 P.M. – 5:30 P.M.

Self-Publish Like a Pro Workshop
with Eva Lesko Natiello

Planning to self-publish? Don't get daunted by the process. Learn the critical steps you'll need to take before clicking 'publish' with confidence and authority. This workshop is for authors of all genres. Eva will review the steps an author should take before starting the publishing process, the different types of self-publishing routes there are – from complete DIY to working with self-publishing companies – and actionable strategies to self-publish like a pro. Everything a savvy indie author needs will be covered in this workshop.

Eva Lesko Natiello is a self-publishing and book marketing consultant to self-published and traditionally published authors. She is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Memory Box, a self-published psychological thriller which has sold hundreds of thousands of copies worldwide. Her newest suspense, Following You about a stalked celebrity who goes missing, causing the lives of three strangers to collide irreversibly is released in February 2021, on sale here.
Self Publishing
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SATURDAY MARCH 6, 2:00 P.M. – 3:30 P.M.

Memoir writing workshop
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Memoir Writing Workshop
with Benilde Little

Memoirs have consistently been one of the top-selling book genres for the last five years. Benilde Little will lead you on a hands-on exploration of how to structure and reveal pivotal moments in your life to create an impactful memoir that will resonate with your readers. Please bring to the workshop: three or four pages of your written work. It's a good idea to write about something you want to focus on – we will get to the guts of your work, good and difficult alike. You will read your work aloud and, as a group, we will discuss the various approaches you can take to recreate and illuminate your selected memories into a cohesive whole.

Benilde Little is the bestselling author of the novels Good Hair, The Itch, Acting Out, Who Does She Think She Is? and the memoir Welcome to My Breakdown. She is a former reporter for The Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Star Ledger, People magazine and a senior editor at Essence. She has been a creative writing professor at Ramapo College, The City College of New York, and currently runs and teaches memoir writing at The Memoir Clinic. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram, and can be reached at benildelittle@gmail.com.

SATURDAY MARCH 6, 4:00 P.M. – 5:30 P.M.

Picture Book Writing Workshop
with Lori Richmond

Are you one of the 9 out of 10 people who has a secret dream to write and/or illustrate a children’s picture book? If so, join Lori Richmond as she helps you jump start your project with a crash course on how to do it. You’ll learn about the creative side like character, conflict, and story arc, and the practical side like page counts, layouts, and formats. We’ll analyze modern picture books, study what makes a great “first line,” and do some in-class exercises to reconnect with our own childhoods which may serve as inspiration for your own work. Lori will draw from her personal experiences of writing and/or illustrating nine picture books.

Lori Richmond is a children's author-illustrator from Brooklyn, New York. She loves drawing, running, and finding inspiration around New York City... and she's just a little bit obsessed with her kitten. She is the author-illustrator of Pax and Blue, Scholastic’s Bunny's Staycation and Bunny Business, and the illustrator of several other picture books with major houses. Go to www.loridraws.com to see more of Lori's work and purchase her books. You can also find Lori on Instagram here where she holds weekly drawing classes for kids.
Picture Book Writing workshop
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SUNDAY MARCH 7, 2:00 P.M. – 3:30 P.M.

Murder mystery writing workshop
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Murder Mystery Writing Workshop
with Valerie Wilson Wesley

Always wanted to be a modern-day Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle? Have you ever read a mystery novel and knew you could come up with a better plot? Join Valerie Wilson Wesley as she shows you how it's done. With insight from her own experiences in writing mystery novels, Valerie will discuss the crafting of character, setting and pace that are essential to writing a stand-out mystery novel or cozy.

Valerie Wilson Wesley is the author of A Glimmer of Death, the first book in a new cozy series published in January, 2021. She is also the author of the popular Tamara Hayle Mystery series as well as three stand-alone novels, two paranormal romances written under the pen name Savanna Welles, and six books for children. You can find out more about Valerie Wilson Wesley and possible one-on-one consultations by visiting her website valeriewilsonwesley.com, and more about writing her new series from her blog The Comfort of Cozies on Goodreads here.

SUNDAY MARCH 7, 4:00 P.M. – 5:30 P.M.

Get Published Successfully...Today!
with The Book Doctors

It is the greatest time in history to be a writer. The barrier to publishing has been torn down and now anyone can get published. But to get published successfully is a whole other matter. The Book Doctors – Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry – take you through the entire publishing process. This step-by-step, soups-to-nuts workshop will remove the smoke and mirrors from the murky world of publishing and give writers a compass and map to a successfully published book. Topics covered include:

* Choosing the right idea
* Crafting an attention-getting pitch
* Finding the right agent/publisher
* Self-publishing effectively without getting ripped off
* Finding your audience and building a following through social media.

David Henry Sterry & Arielle Eckstut are co-founders of the Book Doctors. They are co-authors of The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published: How To Write It, Sell It, and Market It… Successfully (Workman, 2010). Arielle has been a literary agent for over 25 years at The Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary Agency. She is the author of 10 books and the co-founder of the iconic brand, LittleMissMatched. David is the best-selling author of 16 books. They’ve taught at Stanford University, Indiana University, Smith College, and other institutions. 
Get Published workshop
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