Have you signed up for the See Jane Write Summit yet?
I’m posting a lot lately because so many good things are happening!
I had a short story published, then I had an essay published, then I did a reading from my forthcoming book, and now I’m going to be leading a workshop on how to write nonfiction book proposals!
If you’ve been reading OTBS for a while, you’ve probably heard me mention See Jane Write, a women’s writing group that I’ve been in for a decade. (The group is targeted toward women, though there are other nonbinary, genderqueer, and genderfluid folks like myself and all are welcome.)
At the time I joined, I didn’t know ANYTHING about how to freelance, how to market my writing, or even how to blog. Off the Beaten Shelf came out of what I learned in See Jane Write and has been going strong since 2014. Every freelance gig I’ve gotten since 2011 has been a result of the knowledge I’ve gained from the founder, Javacia Harris Bowser, and the guest speakers and fellow group members.
That’s why I’m so excited to tell you that the See Jane Write Summit is coming up! It’ll run from June 20-26 and the summit will feature virtual presentations including:
pop-up writing workshop
freelance writing seminar
motivational pep-talk
goal-setting seminar
virtual mixer
book proposal writing workshop (that’s me!)
I’m super excited to be teaching the nonfiction book proposal workshop because I did things a little differently in my own book proposal for Midwest Shreds and it paid off! There are tons of resources out there on crafting a traditional book proposal, so I combined that wisdom with years of publishing industry knowledge that gave me an edge. I wrote my book proposal specifically to get inside the heads of editors and show that I had publishing industry knowledge and it made my book proposal stand out in a good way.
My editor on Twitter saying that my book proposal “was one of the best book proposals [she has] ever seen.”
And she wasn’t just flattering me either… She told a writer she met, someone who is a creative writing professor and has two books published by Big 5 NYC publishing houses, that my book proposal was fantastic. So he reached out to me and asked if I’d share my wisdom. Imagine my surprise because he’s a more successful writer than me!
An email reading: “Hi, Mandy … II’m not sure if I mentioned it ever, but I ended up at a protest with Martha Bayne (my editor) a few months ago. I believe it was soon after Belt picked up your book, or at least soon enough anyway that we were discussing it. Martha made very clear that your proposal for the project was a kind of lesson in the form––in fact she said, “If you ever want to know what a great book proposal looks like, talk to Mandy.” …
I’ll be teaching y’all how to leverage this knowledge to your advantage as well.
And I’m not the only one! There’s a whole lineup of other excellent teachers and workshop leaders.
Diana Raab is the author of “Writing for Bliss” and will lead a workshop on how to use writing to tell your story and transform your life. Content creator Cherith Fluker will share her top tips for being a successful blogger without compromising self-care.
Plus, See Jane Write founder Javacia Harris Bowser, to whom I owe so much of my success, will be leading several workshops as well.
The See Jane Write Summit is free (register here!) but my session is only open to members of the See Jane Write Collective. Apply to become a member here. I cannot say enough what a worthwhile investment See Jane Write is, especially if your goal is to write full time.
I hope to see you there!