So, guess who’s giving the keynote at the Fed AGM on Thursday? That’s right, it’s my fine self, and if you’re a BC writer who is not yet part of the Fed, you might want to attend, not just for the chance to hear my mellifluous tones and terrific tips on social media for writerly self-promotion, but also because they are giving a discount on membership to new members who sign up that night.

Here are the deets:

Social Media: you’ve heard about it, you’ve probably used it without even knowing, now learn how to make it work for you. Social Media is the most effective, most affordable way for a professional writer to promote her self and her works, develop a following, and gain experience in the public eye if she knows what she’s doing. Lorraine Murphy, a professional blogger and social media instructor for the past five years, will give us the benefit of her experience on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs, Digg, reddit, Stumbleupon, and other social media platforms. Canada was the birthplace of that truly revolutionary social media device, the telephone, and as the heirs of Bell and Watson, Canadian writers have every reason to put themselves at the forefront of this increasingly-critical, literary communications platform.

6:30pm-10pm, Thursday, May 13

Alliance for Arts & Culture Board Room

938 Howe St.

Downtown Vancouver

Speaker: Lorraine Murphy, Social Media Maven ~ “Social Media Marketing for Writing”
Board elections, new constitution, state of the union
Door prizes, networking, refreshments, member book sales, connecting with the writing community

AGM MEMBER BOOK SALES
Federation members attending the AGM are invited to bring their books for display and sales.
•       all sales are at the discretion and responsibility of the authors
•       only one copy of any given book may be on the display table at a time
•       tables must be cleared and room emptied by 10pm
•       extra books must be kept under the display table in a labeled bag or small box
•       book display tables will be set up following the AGM meeting in the social time
•       Fed Regional Reps Ben Nuttall-Smith and Daniela Elza are in charge of the book tables
•       Purchasers and authors will connect during the social time

And in June I’m doing a fundraising workshop for the Fed:

FED OF BC WRITERS WORKSHOP FUNDRAISER
SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING FOR WRITERS
Date:           Saturday June 19, 2010
Time:           10am to 2pm
Location:      Alliance for Arts & Culture Board Room 938 Howe St. downtown Vancouver
Fee:             $40 for Fed members, $50 for non-members (no refreshments included)
Payment:      PayPal (if up and running) or cheques to:
The Federation of BC Writers, PO Box 3887 Stn Terminal, Vancouver, V6B 3Z3
Payment must be received before the date of workshop
Receipts will be mailed
Register:      register with The Fed office by phone: 604-683-2057 or by email:
fedbcwriters AT gmail.com

This workshop is a hands-on, intensive introduction to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other popular social media platforms, all taught from a writer’s perspective. We will cover the etiquette unique to each platform and how it can work to a writer’s advantage, how to set up your profile with a professional tone, privacy concerns, how to promote your work and your persona via social media and how to separate the work and the personal in the intertwined world of social media. This course will make you aware of all your different social media options and give you some perspective to make an informed choice about your participation in the social media space. You’ll leave the class with an active Facebook Fan Page, a professional Twitter account, and a LinkedIn profile, and a good grounding on how to use each to promote yourself and your works in a powerful, professional and authentic way.

And, in related news, next Tuesday my intensive, ten week Blogging for Writers workshop starts. Here are the deets on that one, and YES, we can use the word “deets” now:

My ten-week Blogging for Writers course begins online 7-8:30pm Wednesday, April 21st 6:30pm-8 Tuesday, May 18th, then on Wednesdays from May 19th onward for ten weeks. You don’t need any blogging experience; we’ll build the blog right in the first class. You do need a computer with a mic, so you can join the Skype conversation, or you need an ability to type almost as fast as you think so you can textSkype and keep up. And, obviously, an internet connection of better than dialup speeds.

Here are the full details:

Blogging for Writers

Learn how to get the most out of blogs for promotion, sales, networking and (unexpectedly) to improve your writing.

In this hands-on workshop we’ll  cover setting up a blog, connecting with and managing an audience, using the blog for promotion and sales, and how a blog can make you a better writer, working our way through writers’ exercises and gathering feedback from the class. Be prepared to participate!

The discipline of a daily blogger is a prerequisite to developing a body of work that functions as your online portfolio. Use your blogging as a tool to develop a powerful, confident voice and tackle writing challenges in a supportive, low-pressure environment. Includes exercises and benchmarks to help you analyze your progress and keep your work growing even after the class ends.

I’ve offered this in abbreviated form before; this will be the first complete course, as opposed to an afternoon or a day’s work. There WILL be homework, and it WILL be checked (in fact, it’s due 24 hours before the next class, so I have time to check all the work).

Cost is $250 via Paypal in advance, email bloggingclasses at gmail dot com to register.