From-Home Writing Retreat

Join us Saturday, November 14th for a day dedicated to writing

The Overview

What will the day look like?

• A morning mingle will proceed the first session. 
• Session #1: Tim will teach a session based on student requests gathered in the weeks before the retreat. (So far, leaning toward depicting emotion in scenes.)
• Session #2: A panel of editors and agents  will help guide us on how to talk about your story. 
• Session #3: Bestselling author Alessandra Torre will talk to us about writing attraction between two characters. 
• I’ll hold an optional follow-up mingling and Q&A session on Sunday to allow us to process some of what we heard and connect with other writers who may be able to give feedback on how you’ve applied the lessons from the weekend.

When will this happen?

We’ll meet on Saturday, Nov. 14th, and Sunday, Nov. 15th. 

Morning session: 9:00am to 11:00am (All times Central Time)Panel on talking about your story: 12:00pm to 1:30pmAlessandra Torre on writing attraction: 2:30pm to 4:00pm

Sunday decompression and Q&A: 1:00pm to 2:30pm 

How will it happen?

We’ll convene on video chat via Zoom. My hope is for this to be a little more intimate than a typical webinar or conference.

You may register for individual sessions or for the entire weekend. $35 per session; $95 for the weekend. Once I have the details in place, I’ll post registration links below. In the meantime, make sure you’re subscribed to my email list to stay updated on the latest information.

The Details

Session #1

• 9:00 am to 11:00 am Central Time.
• We’ll begin with some time to mingle with other writers. What’s missing from the online format that so many in-person writing events have is this opportunity to talk to others.
• I will teach a session based on student demand. I send out a survey to prospective students asking for pressing issues and I put together a program based on those needs. So far, the requests are trending toward how to convey (show/tell/other?) character emotion and how to make scenes emotional. 
• Register for this session only. Or register for the entire retreat. 

Session #2

• 12:00pm to 1:30pm Central Time. 
• We’ll be speaking with a panel of agents and editors on how to talk about your story. I believe every story is worth telling, but sometimes, finding the kernel of the story can be a challenge. The ability to talk about your story (and sometimes even to pitch it) can go a long way toward helping you find your story’s core or essence. Our panelists will discuss where people go wrong in talking about their stories and what indicators there are for successful stories.
• The panelists include Ryan Campbell, Michelle Rascon, and Mike Salisbury.
• Ryan Campbell is an International Book Awards finalist, a writing coach, and an instructor for the University of Wisconsin Continuing Studies department. He’s the founder of the Writecast Network, a podcast collective by writers for writers, and he’s worked as a Revise and Resubmit editor.
• Michelle Rascon is an award-winning fiction editor and proofreader who has worked with both traditionally published and self-published authors and has worked as a #RevPit editor.
• Mike Salisbury has worked in publishing for the past 15 years, as a marketing director and now as a literary agent with Yates and Yates. His “goal is to build relationships that help authors navigate the publishing journey . . . from creating an idea to publishing a book and everything in between.”  
• Register for this session only. Or register for the entire retreat. 

Session #3

• 2:30pm to 4:00pm Central Time
• Alessandra Torre will talk with us about how to write attraction between characters. That may certainly include physical attraction, but some of the most compelling attraction comes from other sources. Not just for romance writers, this session will get you thinking through some methods for portraying real chemistry.
• Alessandra is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author. She has written twenty-two novels, both in traditional publishing and in self-publishing. She’s also is the creator of Alessandra Torre Ink—an authors community and online school with over 10,000 members.
• Register for this session only. Or register for the entire retreat. 

Session #4

• Sunday, 1:00pm to 2:30pm Central Time. 
• Online courses and seminars leave no options for students to chat with other students, and even if they allow some Q&A, it’s never quite like in-person sessions. So I’m going to try an experiment. For those who sign up for the whole weekend, you can show up on Sunday to mingle with other students and then partake in a discussion of the previous day’s sessions.
• I’ll arrange some time to pair students with others if you’re looking to get some feedback on how you’ve applied any of the previous day’s concepts.
• So come to decompress, to ask questions, and to find one or more people to keep in touch with.
• This session only open to those who register for the entire retreat. 

Register

Morning Session 

Tim’s morning session only. $35

How to Talk about Your Story

The panel of editors and agents only. $35

Writing Attraction

Alessandra’s attraction session only. $35

The Entire Weekend

Register for all four sessions. $95

If you have any questions, email me at td@stormwritingschool.com