janicehardy.comJanice Hardy

Pages Home The Author The Books Events School Visits For Writers Extras Contact Newsletter Changes Are Coming! And Whew, Is it About Time. By , @Janice_Hardy My author website has always languished a bit in the shadow of my writers' website--Fiction University. I don't have a good excuse for that, aside from too much to do and not enough me to do it, and that's about to change (but sadly, this isn't an announcement that I've invented cheap, reliable cloning). I've been neglectful, and I apologize, but it's never too late to start over and do things right. One of my 2021 goals is to give both my sites some long-overdue overhauls to better serve my readers. It's time to fix the things that are broken, improve what's working, and toss out the stuff that isn't (is it weird that I'm excited about this?). I'm not doing enough yet to make all my readers feel appreciated, and that's going to change. You guys are why I write. You deserve better from me. I suspect a lot of my readers have no idea I write in multiple genres, markets, and under two names. I write both The Healing Wars teen fantasy series, and nonfiction books on writing under , but I also write the Grace Harper urban fantasy series as well as my upcoming science fiction detective series, as J.T. Hardy. (Now you see why some things fell to the wayside and why I really need that clone). Want a heads up on all this? Of course you do! Otherwise you would have stopped reading by now. If you'd like a little reminder nudge when the new and improved Janice "J.T." Hardy site launches, sign up for my mailing list. After launch (and probably some previews to give you the inside scoop), I'll show you around the new site, let you know what the newsletter will be like going forward, and give you an opportunity to say, "Yes, I want to be a part of this" or "Thanks, but I'll just follow you on Amazon so I know when you have new books out." PS. There's also a very good chance that those who sign up early will get a little thank you when that time comes. Subscribe * indicates required Email Address * First Name Email Format html text Marketing Permissions Please select all the ways you would like to hear from : Email Customized Online Advertising You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. For information about our privacy practices, please visit our website. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By clicking below to subscribe, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here. By 0 comments Email This BlogThis! Share to Twitter Share to Facebook Share to Pinterest Labels: author signup Upcoming Events for 2020 June 14: Citrus Crime Writers, Orlando chapter of Sisters in Crime. Winter Park Public Library, Orlando, FL (Moved to online) It’s Showtime! Show, Don’t Tell Show don’t tell. At some point, every writer hears it. It’s critical to crafting a story that works, but what exactly does it mean? And more importantly, how do you make sure you’re using it correctly in your own work. In this workshop, writers will learn how to spot the common telling signposts, from motivational, descriptive, and emotional tells, to those frequent mental signposts that explain, not dramatize, and the always pesky adverbs. They’ll also learn how to spot common red flag words that often indicate told, not shown prose, and what they can do to fix them once they’ve found them. ----- July 11: First Coast Romance Writers West Branch Library in Jacksonville, FL (Moved to online) Muddling Through the Middle The “boggy middle” has claimed many a writer, but with a little planning and forethought, writers can sail right through it. In this workshop, you'll discover why the middle is such a troublesome chunk of the novel, and how it’s really where all the fun happens in a story. You’ll also learn how to avoid getting sucked into the mire, what to do keep your pace moving, and some nifty plotting tricks to help you create stronger story arcs and conflicts. Finding the Plot in Your Premise What starts out as an exciting premise can sometimes leave us banging our heads against a wall by page fifty, wondering what went wrong. But a little effort before we start writing can mean the difference between stuck and soaring. In this workshop, you’ll learn techniques to test your premise or idea and see if it really does have what it takes to fill an entire novel. Learn basic plotting tips for both pantsers and outliners, and discover what you need to start that novel and keep yourself on track. No matter what your process is, you'll learn ways to determine if that premise has the legs to carry the novel in your head. With hands-on exercises, so bring your laptop or pages! ----- August 22: FWA Ponte Vedra Beach Revision Readiness: How to Revise Revision is part of writing, but sometimes knowing where to start can be overwhelming. It can be even harder if you need to trim down a large manuscript or change a major storyline. In this workshop, writers will learn how to approach their revisions with a plan, focusing on macro, medium, and micro issues to tighten their novel on a layer by layer basis. They’ll also learn how to mentally approach revisions, and how to strengthen their story from the top down. By 1 comments Email This BlogThis! Share to Twitter Share to Facebook Share to Pinterest My Upcoming Events for 2019 Interested in having Janice speak at your event? Just email her at janice @ janicehardy . com to discuss options (please remove spaces in the email address before hitting "send"). 2019 Events September Gainesville, FL: FL-SCBWI Boot Camp Workshop (full day) Saturday, September 21 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Members: $85, Non-Members: $115 Registration opens next week Saint Leo University 4650-B NW 39th Place Gainesville, FL 32606 My Workshop: Bringing Your Novel to Life Great novels blend skilled writing with compelling storytelling, using a multitude of techniques to draw readers in and make them love the book. These techniques work together to build immersive story worlds, creating characters readers love, settings they want to live in, and stories they can’t put down. In this workshop, writers will learn techniques to bring a novel to life for readers. Use point of view to show, not tell, and draw readers in without info-dumping; find the best ways to describe the setting and build a world; tap into the emotions of the characters and use those emotions to drive the plot and deepen the story; and how all these techniques work together to build a novel. What to bring: Bring your work-in-progress and your favorite note-taking tools. Target audience: MG and YA authors of all experience levels October (two events) Midland, TX: Permian Basin Writers' Workshops October 12-13 Midland, TX My Workshops: Planning Your Novel in Ten Easy Steps and Revision Readiness: How to Revise Planning Your Novel in Ten Easy Steps: Writing a novel can be a daunting process, but a little planning can go a long way to making that process easier. Even predetermining a few key turning points in the story can keep writers focused, whether they prefer to outline every scene or pick a story direction and write toward it. In this workshop, writers will learn how to create the critical elements of a novel’s plot, how to use goals, conflicts, and stakes to build a story and develop characters, and how to approach a novel in a way that will make it easier to write and be more marketable to agents, editors, and readers. Revision Readiness: How to Revise: Revision is part of writing, but sometimes knowing where to start can be overwhelming. It can be even harder if you need to trim down a large manuscript or change a major storyline. In this workshop, writers will learn how to approach their revisions with a plan, focusing on macro, medium, and micro issues to tighten their novel on a layer by layer basis. They’ll also learn how to mentally approach rev...