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Recap April 2019: Develop Your Unique Author Voice with Stefanie London
Event recap By Jennifer Carole Lewis Standing out in today’s market is one of the more challenging things for authors today but one of the most important thing for creating dedicated readers is an author’s unique voice. Stefanie London presented an informative workshop on how to best present your unique voice, concept and execution to…
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Recap March 2019: Full day writing workshop: Show, don’t tell and scene/sequel
Recap of March 2019 by Jennifer Carole Lewis Shirley Jump’s full day workshop on Show Not Tell and Scene and Sequel got ORWA and our guests buzzing and our keyboards clacking. Both were full of great practical tips on how to deepen our descriptions and create faster-paced scenes to hold a reader’s attention. She shared…
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Recap Feb 2019: Successful Author Mindset with Heather Elliott
Event recap by Jennifer Carole Lewis Heather Elliott of Mindful Change began her workshop on overcoming impostor syndrome with a powerful anecdote. She’d signed up for a program she was very excited about and when the feedback on her first assignment arrived and indicated she hadn’t fully grasped the material as yet, she was overcome…
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Recap Jan 2019: WIP into Shape
Event recap by Jennifer Carole Lewis We started the year getting WIPped into shape. Eve Langlais explained the many different online services and programs available for independent publishing today, such as Vellum, Draft 2 Digital, Findaway and Ingram. We didn’t get many takers on the first page critique with Jenn Burke, but if you’re interested,…
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Lusty Cat-women of the Catnip Jungle by Helga R Paxton, 18-December-2018
Lusty Cat-women of the Catnip Jungle by Helga R Paxton, 18-December-2018 Brad, Tom, and Vic, three college football players on their summer work study in the Catnip Jungle, search for remnants of the lost Catnippean civilization. Their discovery of a lost and overgrown temple reveals the existence of Cat-Women, the survivors of the lost catnippean…
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Recap: Prolific Authors Share Their Secrets (Dec 2018)
Event Recap By Jennifer Carole Lewis Anyone who has ever sat in front of a keyboard to share the story in their head knows that writing is hard. But there are some amazing prolific authors who are able to write tremendous amounts and ORWA was lucky enough to have four of them share their secrets…
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Recap Nov 2018: Private Investigator and Security Guard
Before our workshop, we asked ORWA members who their favorite fictional detectives were, and if they write detectives in any of their stories! Workshop Recap Contributed by Jennifer Carole Lewis ORWA’s November workshop on the reality of private investigating and security was hugely informative. Our special guest, a private investigator with over 20 years of…
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Recap: Five Secrets to Painless Revisions (October 2018)
Recap by Callie Amo: On October 14, 2018, local Ottawa historical/erotica romance bestselling author Sharon Page came to our group to discuss her five secrets to revising a work-in-progress (WIP). She has given her workshop before to ORWA, but it has become so popular that we had her give it again! Her workshop was very…
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Recap: September 2018 Writing Workshop with Tanya Huff
We might have taken the summer off, but with the start of the fall, it’s time for ORWA to gather once again. We were delighted to break our long summer fast with Tanya Huff, a talented author who has written in multiple genres for the last thirty years. Tanya spoke to us about the challenges…
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Recap: RTC August 2018
The 4th annual Romancing the Capital (RTC) event, organized by ORWA’s own Eve Langlais, happened August 2 to 4, 2019! The event had over 40 authors and 250 readers, making it a unique and intimate event that allows new and meaningful connections. Several ORWA members were sponsoring authors of the event, including Lucy Farago,…
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2018 June Social
Attend the ORWA spring social on June 11, 2017. It will be our last official event until we reconvene in the Fall. Awards ceremony We will be awarding members with our annual awards, including: Audrey Jessup Award Jo Beverley First Book Award Indie First Book Award Phoenix Award First Impression Award Make sure to let us…
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May 2018 Workshop: Page-Turning Fiction with Kelley Armstrong
Genre fiction is all about entertaining and engaging the reader. This workshop will focus on ways to keep readers up into the night, turning the pages. #1 New York Times Bestselling Author, Kelley Armstrong, will provide strategies for maximizing reader engagement starting with the planning stages and continuing through to tips and tricks for picking…
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April 2018 Workshop: Self-Publishing Tools Explained
Join Eve Langlais and discover what tools are out there to help you succeed in self-publishing! Event details Sunday April 15, 2018 (2:30-4:00 pm) Workshop presentation PDF. Recap coming soon!
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March 2018 Workshop: Writing Realistic Fight Scenes
Local blackbelt Rick Lutes gave a fantastic and comprehensive look at hand-to-hand combat, as well as practical demonstrations of the techniques with his student, Jim Johnston. Every culture has a system of unarmed combat. There are usually two forms: hard (eg. Karate or jiu-jitsu) where the martial artist attacks the target directly, and soft (eg.…
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January 2018: Back to the Plotting Board
After a well-enjoyed holiday break, ORWA hosted our January workshop, Back to the Plotting Board, as a way to encourage us all to get back to the keyboard. We broke into small groups and spent time helping one another with plot challenges, title ideas, and general inspiration. Some people will tell you that the value…
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February 2018 Workshop: Social Media for Authors
Social Media Recap ORWA’s own Jessica Ripley gave us a comprehensive tour through the constantly shifting landscape of social media, particularly the big three sites: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. With hundreds of different sites and apps to choose from, authors have a plethora of options for keeping in touch with readers and finding new ones. …
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December 2017: Writing Realistic Danger
In December 2018, ORWA had the privilege and pleasure of learning the ins and outs of making things go bang with a member of the Ottawa Tactical Response Team. The Tactical Response Team provides assistance in high risk situations and has a stringent selection progress. The sergeant’s stories about Hell Week and the psychological requirements…
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November 2017: Twin-Stranded Storylines with Susanna Kearsley
November 2017 Event Description: Whether you’re tackling a timeslip or time-travel novel, a book within a book, a dual storyline, or simply a series of flashbacks, the technical challenges of interweaving two sets of main characters, two plots, and two story arcs stay the same: how do you switch back and forth without losing the…
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October 2017: Beyond the Furrowed Brow
October 2017 Workshop Description: How to Help your Characters Speak Without Saying a Word 90% of communication is non-verbal, but what does it mean when someone lifts their chin, twirls their hair, or shakes with both hands? By understanding the fundamental emotions and how they are expressed and experienced, an author can create a richer…
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September 2017: Advanced Writing Workshop with Alicia Rasley
September 2017 Workshop Description Workshop 1: Emotion without Sentimentality In this interactive workshop, bestselling author Alicia Rasley will help you explore two “non-purple-prose” ways of creating a compelling emotional experience for your reader: Story Design and Scene Design. You will leave with some seriously useful (but easily applied) strategies to deepen your story and scenes,…
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Church Mouse on his Motorcycle by Alexandra Isobel, 19-August-2017
Church Mouse on his Motorcycle by Alexandra Isobel, 19-August-2017 VANESSA’S time is up. She has to return home and face her ex-deacon father, but before she does is determined to fulfill her graduation bucket list first. SPIKE, dispatched to escort the boss’s daughter home, is not used to this new crazy Vanessa but will…
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RTC 2017
This year was the third annual Romancing the Capital event, organized by Eve Langlais. It was held at a great time for us, since July and August are months our meetings and workshops are on summer hiatus, so it was nice to have an event where we got to see each other. RTC is more…
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ORWA’s 2017 Social
Recap by Jennifer Carole Lewis Every June, the Ottawa Romance Writers’ Association gets together and spends an afternoon laughing, celebrating one another’s achievements and enjoying each other’s company. This year was no exception. Hosted at Lucy Farago’s lovely home, ORWA members quickly settled in to trade suggestions, ideas and share anecdotes. We swapped opinions on various…
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May 2017: Writing Active Setting with Mary Buckham
ORWA officers gave us the great opportunity of participating in a webinar with Mary Buckham on writing active setting in May 2017. It was a two-part webinar, with an initial presentation followed by a Q&A session a week later. This gave us plenty of time to review the information she gave us, re-watch the presentation,…
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June Social 2017 Announcement
Attend the ORWA spring social on June 11, 2017. It will be our last event until we reconvene in the Fall. Professional Headshots We will be offering the opportunity at the June Social to have a professional headshot done for each interested member. Anna Jones, an Ottawa wedding photographer, will take a number of different poses,…
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Pitch Session with Pamela Harty
This month is our first ORWA member pitch session! This is your chance to skip past the slush pile and get quick feedback. On Sunday April 30, 2017 you can pitch to Pamela Harty from the Knight Agency. Pamela is looking for: contemporary and historical romance, romantic suspense, women’s fiction, young adult, business, motivational, diet and health,…
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April 2017: You’ve written a book… now what?
Our April 2017 workshop this week was “You’ve written a book… now what?” and was led by two bestselling and prolific ORWA authors, Eve Langlais and Mandy Rosko. They discussed the pros and cons of traditional and indie (self) publishing, and what to do if you want to submit to a small, medium or large…
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March 2017: Serialized Success with Linda Poitevin
March 5, 2017 Workshop: Wattpad with Linda Poitevin Serialized fiction goes back to the time of Charles Dickens and is currently undergoing a revival in today’s digital world. Savvy authors around the globe are exploring this “new” way of publishing and reaping significant dividends. Join author Linda Poitevin for a look at Wattpad and Radish, two of the models currently…
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February 2017: Bloody Believable With Sgt. Ugo Garneau
Workshop Description Bloody Believable: Using forensic science to add depth to villain motivation, create realistic scenes and ensure that readers experience the terrifying details that go into crafting bloody believable book. About the presenter Sgt. Garneau is a Forensic Identification Officer specializing in Bloodstain Pattern Analysis. He is actively involved in crime scene examinations/reconstructions and…
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January 2017: But What Comes Next?: ORWA’s Brainstorming Workshop
By Jennifer Carole Lewis All writers have had the horrible experience of staring at a blank page and wondering: what comes next? For our January 2017 workshop, ORWA authors got together to help answer that question for one another. Sitting close at a table, we brainstormed ideas for a suspense-filled escape through isolated woods and…
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December 2016: Holiday Social and Six Secrets to Create a Successful Bestselling Franchise
Our yearly annual social will be a potluck, beginning at noon, followed by a workshop. Six Secrets to Create a Successful Bestselling Franchise What do Star Wars, J. D. Robb’s Eve Dallas books, and Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series have in common? They are all highly successful franchises. Join NYT bestselling author Sharon Page to learn…
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November 2016: Building Your Readership
USA Today and New York Times Bestseller Eve Langlais answers all your questions about how to engage your readership to create a dedicated fan base to drive your books to the bestsellers list! Eve Langlais is a stay at home mom who writes full time in between juggling her three kids, hubby, and housework, creating…
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October 2014: Full Day Craft Workshop with Molly O’Keefe
The Plot and Sub-Plots Connection (10:00 – 12:00): No matter what your word count, subplots help create a rich, multi-dimensional world for your reader to escape to. In this workshop, using interactive exercises, RITA-winning and Bestselling Author Molly O’Keefe will help you figure out how to build subplots that will in turn create drama and conflict…
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October 2016: From Idea to Execution: Plotting Your Next Bestseller
Today’s publishing marketplace is more competitive than ever, demanding consistent—and accelerated—output from authors. Award-winning author Vanessa Kelly shows you how to plot and write your next book, novella, or short story with a minimum of angst and a maximum of efficiency. Bio: Vanessa Kelly is an award-winning author who was named by Booklist, the review journal of…
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September 2016: So you want to write a romance novel?
Have you always wanted to write a romance novel and don’t know where to start? Are you already working on becoming the next Nora Roberts? Or maybe you’ve already got a manuscript ready and now it’s time to learn more about the industry? This meeting, organized by members of the Ottawa Romance Writers Association,…
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June 2016: Prose in the Park and Social
Join ORWA members June 4 for Prose in the Park. Several of our published authors will be present so be sure to drop by Parkdale Park between 11 AM and 6 PM to say hello. June is also the month we hold our traditional social before breaking for the summer months. The June social is…
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May 2016: Facebook: A Self-Help Workshop for Writers
“It’s got ‘book’ in the title, so it must be for me!” Facebook: A Self-Help Workshop for Writers Did you know that five new people join Facebook every second? Worldwide, there are over 1.35 billion monthly active users on Facebook. With staggering numbers like these, there’s no doubt your potential readers are on Facebook.So,…
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April 2016: Edit Like a Pro with Laura Byrne Paquet
Edit Like a Pro with Laura Byrne Paquet In addition to writing eight Regency romances for Zebra and four non-fiction books, Laura Byrne Paquet worked as a freelance copy editor for Harlequin for several years. A member of the Editors’ Association of Canada, she also writes freelance articles and runs a local travel website called…
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March 2016: Slay Your Writing Dragons to Make your Personal Goals Happen!
Cynthia Boyko is a Co-Active Life Coach based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada who works with clients across North America. Coaching is something that comes very naturally to Cynthia. Her calm presence easily invites people into a process of clarity, balance and fulfillment. Cynthia is a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF). She completed her…
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February 2016: Legal Issues for Writers
Can you quote song lyrics in your book? What should you do if someone plagarizes you? Can you name a character after someone you don’t like? In today’s face-paced digital world, writers face a variety of legal issues, and it’s not always easy to get them right. This workshop can help. Please…
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The Jaguar Legacy by Maureen Fisher 2016
The Jaguar Legacy by Maureen Fisher 2016 A journalist on track for the scoop of the century tangles with an archaeologist determined to prevent a premature press-leak of his discovery—an ancient Olmec city buried in the lush and mysterious jungles of Mexico. Little do they realize the ruins contain secrets best left untouched.
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January 2016: Beyond the Furrowed Brow with Jennifer Carole Lewis
Tired of reusing the same expressions over and over for anger, love and surprise? There is a wide range of postures and subtle expressions which can convey your character’s emotions and reactions. How they stand, how they hold their hands, even the crinkling of an eyelid can show what they are thinking. Learn the subtle…
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December 2015: Bah Humbug! Character Arc, the Scrooge Way with Teresa Morgan
In December 1843, Charles Dickens published a little story that became a sensation. In it, a misanthropist misery turns into a philanthropic optimist… overnight. This beloved story has the widest and craziest character arc in all of Western literature (and the most flawless three-act structure). This workshop examines how Dickens pulled off making a character…
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November 2015: Intro to BDSM for Writers
This workshop will cover the basics of BDSM for writers, including discussion of the three basics of BDSM (bondage and discipline, D/s and S/M). The speakers will talk about things like why BDSM is popular in erotic romance fiction, a bit about the psychology, and how to incorporate BDSM into your writing through characters’ issues,…
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October 2015: Library Love: How Does Romance Stack Up?
Ann Archer, program manager of content services at the Ottawa Public Library will be presenting on placement within libraries, clarifying the selection process, the changing world of e-book sales and how authors, both traditionally published and self-published, can best position their books with library vendors for catalogue inclusion. Did you know the City of Ottawa…
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June 2015: ORWA 30th Anniversary
For ORWA’s 30th anniversary in 2015, we had author Kristan Higgins with us to present. The Jo Beverly First Book Award is presented to members upon signing their first publishing contract with a traditional publisher. Lucy Farago sold to Kensington. ORWA celebrates its members hitting that very important milestone in publishing their first book. Jennifer…
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Malena Able, former ORWA President
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT – A Personal Journey A few years ago, I got the notion into my head that I would like to write a book. I expect many of you at some point in your lives have had the same idea, or thought while reading, ‘this looks so easy even I could do…
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April 2015: How to Make Opportunities Happen: 6 Strategies to Success
Don’t wait for that great opportunity to present itself. Go find it! Be in charge of your own career and make opportunities happen for you. Keep ahead of the trends. Look around. Learn from your own experience and the experiences of others. Watch the bestsellers and what they’re doing. Build your network. Expand your reach…