Do you love to write? Not sure how to get started with your book? Or maybe you have a book you want to polish or maybe you're even at the point you want to dive into indie publishing but you aren't sure how.
We have a conference for you! And it's going to be AWESOME!! Really! You don't want to miss it!
Here are the Class Descriptions, sorted by Track
Craft Track
The Psychology of Romance by Janette Rallison
The romance genre is going strong. Come learn the do's and don'ts to make your romance sellable. Avoid pitfalls like insta-love and the ever dreaded sagging middle. Learn how to make sparks fly and keep the tension going.
The Smart Outline by Christina Dymock
We’ll cover the science behind writing your best novel. How to use a mathematical formula to make sure your story stays on track and doesn’t drag. It's easy to do and once you understand the process, you'll put all your manuscripts to the test. Plottersand Pantsers can use this method to improve their writing and editing process.
Creating Suspense by Michaelbrent Collings
Michaelbrent Collings talks about why creating suspense is the most important part of any creative writing, and will also tell you the secret to all happiness, which is [FINAL WORD DELETED FOR PURPOSES OF CREATING SUSPENSE – COME TO THE PRESENTATION TO FIND OUT MORE].
Writing Your Novel from Start to Finish—The Top 10 Secrets to Writing a Brilliant Novel by Rachelle J. Christensen
Discover the best ways to create your novel from first draft to polished submission and learn secrets from several best-selling authors. These tips and tricks will help you in every stage of writing your novel, from start to finish.
Mining Ideas—What to Write Next by Karey White
What do you do when you just finished your novel and you're not sure what to write next? There are story ideas all around us, we just have to find the one that speaks to us. In this class, we'll talk about how to find new ideas and how to dust off old ideas so they're fresh and inspiring.
Dialog: How to get your characters talking—the right way by Janette Rallison
Dialog isn't real speech but must sound that way to your reader. In this workshop, you'll learn ten techniques that will help you create the artful deception. You'll learn which deadly tagline mistakes to avoid, how to do away with unnecessary taglines, and the right way to convey needed information to your readers through dialog (and when you shouldn't.)
Comedy & Fear: Two Sides of the Same Coin by Michaelbrent Collings
Two Sides of the Same Coin – Michaelbrent Collings will explain why killing people is funny, how making jokes can be terrifying, and how both comedy and horror work together to enrich your work.
Putting Pen to Paper: Overcome 5 Obstacles to Make Your “Word Count” by Connie Sokol
Got a great book idea—or a half-finished one—but find yourself stuck? Make it a reality! Learn how how to deal with self-doubt, better manage your time and resources, pursue the best path for your writing vision, and more efficiently and enjoyably produce marketable books. As a bestselling part-time author who has written 13 books while a mother of seven, I’ll share tips and techniques that get pen to paper and meaningful results!
Romance in Urban Fantasy by Teyla Branton
Women differ from men in many ways, and bringing out those differences in your speculative novel can enhance reader experience. Even as your heroine blasts away the bad guy or makes life-and-death choices, she can retain her femininity and fall in love. Author Teyla Branton will share the secrets she’s learned studying heroines in speculative novels and writing Unbounded, her popular urban fantasy series.
Chapter Structure—How to Make Every Chapter as Good as the First One by Rachelle J. Christensen
We place a lot of emphasis on the first chapter and getting everything just right to hook the reader. Why should chapter 12 or 26 be any different? Rachelle will teach you how to break down each chapter using suspense cycles, character arcs, and plot points to create a page-turning novel.
Seriously Funny by Janette Rallison
Can humor be taught? We sure hope so or this class might become an awkward exercise in silence. At any rate, Janette Rallison will share what she's learned from writing over a dozen romantic comedies. We'll talk about different types of humor and how to use them in your novel. Everyone loves a character who can make them laugh.
Show, Don't Tell: Eight Ways to Show the Micro and Macro Way by Annette Lyon
Authors are constantly told to show rather than tell, but what does that mean specifically, and how do you DO it? We'll break the concept down into eight easy-to-understand but powerful techniques to make your characters, setting, and story come alive.
Marketing/Business Track
Enjoy Your Anonymity by Andrea Pearson
Common mistakes authors make that ruin their potential and how to get them out of your system before you're "discovered." We'll also discuss the average time it takes for authors to become successful, and things you'll want to have set in place before your writing career takes off.
Out with the old and in with the new: marketing that works in today’s saturated market by Cindy Hogan
With the flood of books on sale today, how do you become visible? Come to this class to explore marketing techniques authors are using today to rise to the top and sell tons of books.
Attracting Newsletter Subscribers/Creating Newsletters in Mailchimp by Christine Kersey
Everyone knows about Bookbub and how effective it is. Why not build your own Bookbub by building your mailing list? In this class we'll discuss ideas on how to get and keep people on your mailling list, as well as have a demonstration on builing a professional-looking newsletter using MailChimp.
How to Self-Publish on a Budget by Andrea Pearson
Self-publishing can be incredibly expensive! But it can also be very affordable. Come learn how to get a quality product on the market without selling your furniture and children.
Self-pub Ups and Downs by Michaelbrent Collings
Learn about the goods and bads of self-publishing from that rarest of all creatures: the full-time self-published author who thinks both self- and traditional-publishing have their place, and their ups and downs.
Business, Taxes, and Deductions—Oh, My! by Gwen Haggen
To deduct or not to deduct, that is the question. Learn from the savvy accountant, Gwen Haggen, all about the ins and outs of smart accounting and how to go about starting your own company. Illustrations provided by the IRS.
How to Effectively Market Your Books by Abel Keogh
Marketing is more than posting on social media or do what other authors are doing. Real marketing is knowing how to find your audience and the most effective way to engage them—and it’s different for every author. Learn the best ways to identify your audience, spread the word about your books, and build an audience no matter what genre you write.
Increasing Your Online Presence by Karlene Browning
The pool of authors and books is getting more and more confusing and chaotic every day, but the number of actual readers is staying constant. In an overcrowded marketplace, can your target readers find your books? Can they find you? We’ll discuss pros, cons, tips and how-tos on creating a solid online presence that will help readers find YOU when they’re looking for a good book!
Making Time to Write: Finding Balance Between Motherhood and Authorship by Stacy Lynn Carroll
How do you have time to write when you have small children? The answer lies within finding balance in your life, prioritizing, and time management. Author Stacy Lynn Carroll is a fulltime Mommy to three extremely rambunctious children, ages 5, 3, and 1. She spent a lot of time asking herself these very questions. Now, five years later, she has four published works and does not, in fact, neglect her kids. Learn how to prioritize and how to let things go. You don’t need to be perfect to find balance and experience success. And for many, waiting until they're grown isn't an option.
Marketing: The Total Lack of a Silver Bullet or Magic Want by Michaelbrent Collings
There are no secrets to marketing, and Michaelbrent will let you in on the secret why. And he’ll also talk about marketing YOUR work, both some nuts-and-bolts “how to” and some reasons why you MUST.
Collaborating & Co-Authoring by Heather Moore
Increase your author presence and readership by collaborating with other authors in anthologies, box sets, serials, and collections. Benefits? Time to market is faster. Gain new readers with cross-promotion and readership-sharing. Outside the box creativity.
Copyright and Contracts by Nicholas Wells
Learn about copyright and contract from attorney Nicholas Wells. Pre-submitted questions will also be address. Submit those to admit@indieauthorhub.com with Question for Attorney in subject line.
Book Creation/Technical Track
The Creation (of a Book) by Maria Hoagland
Creating a book can be confusing—unless you have a template. Journey with us as we follow the pattern of the Creation as outlined in the book of Genesis to create your own world (or book, in this case). The process will be broken down into manageable chunks (creative periods or days), complete with a checklist to get you from beginning to end—conception through publication. Learn about each stage including organization, writing, rewriting, editing and beta readers, getting the word out, and print and ebook creation.
Getting It Covered: Understanding Excellent Cover Design by Nichole Van
Designing a killer book cover can be nearly as difficult as writing the book itself. Which is a problem, as a book cover is a marketing piece, a hook to draw readers to take a closer look. What design components make for a compelling cover? What can you do to draw potential readers to click on your book when browsing online? This class will explore the finer points of graphic design, enabling you to understand what your cover needs to be in order to effectively market your next novel.
How Scrivener Totally Rocks & Will Make Your Writing Easier & Faster by Annette Lyon
What exactly is Scrivener, and why do so many writers love it? Learn how to use the program to maximize writing time, organize your work and research, map out characters, keep track of progress, export your files, and more. Whether you’re working on flash fiction, an epic novel with several POVs, a project with a ton of research, or a giant thesis with so many parts that it’s an organizational headache, this software is for you. After this Scrivener crash course, you’ll understand what everyone’s talking about.
Off the Rack vs. Custom Tailored: The Pros & Cons of eBook Options by Karlene Browning
Ebooks are more than a passing fad, and successful indie authors must provide their works in as many ebook formats as possible. But how do you do it? We’ll cover the various e-Readers, their formats and distribution channels; grinders (like Smashwords) vs. hand-coding; the pros and cons of doing it yourself vs. hiring it out; the hidden costs behind the “free” options; things that can go wrong and how to avoid them; plus a quick look at the various software tools for the do-it-yourselfers.
Jutoh: The Path of Least Resistance for E-books by Rachael Anderson
Learn how to turn your Word document into a professional e-book. This class will walk you each step of the conversion process using the awesome, user-friendly program of Jutoh.
Paperback Typesetting for the Frugally Minded by Rachael Anderson
Can't afford to pay a small fortune for InDesign? No problem. Join this step-by-step, hands-on class that will teach you how to make a plain-Jane Word document look like a professionally published book.
Creating a Website Using WordPress by Christine Kersey
One aspect of being a successful Indie author is having a professional looking website. Come see a demonstration on building a simple, yet attractive website, using WordPress.
InDesign: Typesetting Your Book by Catia Shattuck
In this class you’ll learn the basics of typesetting a book for print from start to finish, including how large to make your margins and how to make sure your document will be accepted by CreateSpace. Together, we’ll go through designing the front pages of a book, as well as the first chapter. You’ll not only learn the basics of InDesign but also the anatomy of a book and some design elements that can make your book look more professional. Finally, we’ll address some common issues people face with InDesign when they go through this process (there are many!).
Become an HTML Pro ASAP: Ebook Creation Through Word, HTML, and Calibre (hands-on class) by Stephanie Fowers
Students learn to convert a sample manuscript in Microsoft Word to epub and mobi by using HTML editing and Calibre. In order to attend this class, please email stephaniefowers (at) gmail (dot) com by June 1st with the subject HTML IAH Publishing Conference to receive class materials. You must bring a laptop with Microsoft Word (a version that can save to html), and download the following free software: Calibre, Kindle previewer, Adobe epub previewer, notepad ++ and 7-Zip.
Why Pay a Middleman? (How to Upload Directly to all Vendors) by Christine Kersey
This class will walk you through the steps to upload your epub file to all of the major vendors (Amazon, B&N, Apple, GooglePlay, Kobo, D2D, Smashwords)
Photoshop 101 by James Curwen
Come learn the basics of Photoshop, along with hints, tips, and tricks! We'll discuss mostly CS6 but can instruct on lower (and higher) versions as well.
So You Think You Want to Create an Audiobook by Cheri Schmidt and Berin Stephens
How does one go about turning their novel into an audiobook? In this class, you will learn how to use ACX and how to find the right narrator for your story. But what if you want to record it yourself? You will also learn what equipment and software is necessary to create a quality recording as well as what basic techniques to use when recording and editing. Once you have your audiobook, then what? Then it's time to learn the tricks to marketing it and to get paid.
Jack Templar and the Lord of the Demons (The Templar Chronicles #5).
With two of the Jerusalem Stones in hand, Jack and his friends must race the clock to find the remaining Stones as Ren Lucre's Creach forces gather strength. With two of their group now with Creach blood flowing in their veins, the team will be tested as never before. They must unite together if they have any hope of surviving their journey to the Underworld and their battle with the vicious Lord of the Demons. The fate of the entire world hangs in the balance.
Author Jeff Gunhus
Jeff Gunhus is the author of the Amazon bestselling supernatural thriller, Night Chill, and the Middle Grade/YA series, The Templar Chronicles. The first book of the series, Jack Templar Monster Hunter, was written in an effort to get his reluctant reader eleven-year old son excited about reading. It worked and a new series was born. His book Reaching Your Reluctant Reader has helped hundreds of parents create avid readers. Killer Within is his second novel for adults. As a father of five, he and his wife Nicole spend most of their time chasing kids and taking advantage of living in the great state of Maryland. In rare moments of quiet, he can be found in the back of the City Dock Cafe in Annapolis working on his next novel. If you see him there, sit down and have a cup of coffee with him. You just might end up in his next novel.
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