You are here: Home / Blog

Passion-Project Goals Mixer

By

Passion Project Mixer

Thursday, February 27th 
12 – 1pm PST 

A FREE Virtual Event

WNBA-SF Writers’ Passion-Projects Goals Mixer 

February is also known as Heart Month! It’s the perfect opportunity to share your love of reading and writing, while spending time on those passion projects that do not get nearly enough attention.
 
Join WNBA-San Francisco for a Passion-Project “Share & Tell” Networking Mixer on February 27th at 12pm PDT. Share what you are working on and Tell what support you need and can offer.
 
Also, Pitch-O-Rama is just over a month away – April 5 – so bring any POR questions for the AMA speed round.
 
“Goals are a team sport,” says our networking ambassador, Debra Eckerling, author of 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal-Getting.” “Let’s help each other reach the finish line.”

 
During this virtual mixer, everyone will have a few minutes to:
  • Share: Your passion project
  • Tell: What support you need to get it done, as well as ways you can help others in our community.
It’s a MIXER, so please share this event and bring a literary friend or two to join the virtual fun! There will be a virtual guest book so you can share your contact info too.
 

About Debra: Debra Eckerling is the award-winning author of Your Goal Guide: A Roadmap for Setting, Planning, and Achieving Your Goals and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting & Goal-Getting. A goal strategist and the creator of the D*E*B METHOD® for Goal-Setting Simplified, Debra  offers personal and professional planning, book proposal development, and team-building for executives, entrepreneurs, consultants, and companies. The networking ambassador for WNBA – San Francisco, Debra has spoken on stages for TEDx, Innovation Women, SCORE LA, and more. She is the founder of the Write On Online community, as well as host of the GoalChat and Taste Buds with Deb podcasts.

 

To register, please fill out the form below: 

Sorry. This form is no longer available.

Write Your Book Proposal Workshop with Randy Peyser

By

Thursday, February 13 
12 – 1pm / PST 

Write Your Book Proposal with Randy Peyser

Nonfiction writers: If you want to pitch your book to a literary agent or sell it to a publisher, then a book proposal is mandatory. A book proposal is a business plan in which you must prove the sale of your book in different categories. Randy Peyser has written book proposals that have garnered six-figure deals.
 
In this Book Proposal Workshop, she will explain what you need to include in each section, and she will share some of the ways she “tips the sale” in the favor of her authors. Come prepared to take a lot of notes because Randy is going to share how to win at the publishing game!
 

Randy Peyser sells non-fiction manuscripts in all genres and speaks nationally about how to earn book deals. She also serves as faculty for CEO Space International, where she teaches about writing book proposals. She is the author of The Write-a-Book Progra; Crappy to Happy as featured in the move Eat, Pray, Love; and The Power of Miracle Thinking.

Her clients’ books have appeared in Oprah, Time Magazine, the bestseller lists of the Wall Street Journal and USA Today, in airport bookstores, Office Max and FedEx stores, and on Hallmark TV. Her work is featured in: Healing the Heart of the World, The Marriage of Sex and Spirit, Secrets of Shameless Self-Promoters, and the national bestsellers, Networking Magic Guerilla Publicity and The Profit of Kindness.

To register, please fill out the form below: 

Sorry. This form is no longer available.

A Revision Roadmap: Navigating Editorial Feedback

By

Revision Roadmap WNBA-SF

Thursday, January 16th 
12 – 1pm / PST 

A FREE Virtual Event

A Revision Roadmap: Navigating Editorial Feedback 

An edited manuscript might have hundreds of deletions, insertions, and sidebar comments. Or an editor might write up a twenty-page editorial letter outlining specific story development questions, craft issues, and plot opportunities. This scale of feedback can get overwhelming fast!
 
Developmental Editor Eva Barrows and Copy Editor Lila LaBine will prepare authors to receive editorial feedback from professional editors and offer steps to translate it into polished manuscripts. This presentation will review the kinds of feedback and revision tools authors can expect from their editor for where their manuscript is in the process. Then, they’ll look at ways to receive, respond, and implement feedback to strengthen a manuscript—without the overwhelm. Lastly, Eva and Lila will talk about how to address the issues that surfaced during editing and how to tell when a manuscript is ready to publish.
 
Unable to attend? Register and receive the replay!
 
Learn more about Eva Barrows and Lila LaBine:
Eva BarrowsEva Barrows is a developmental editor and content manager in the San Francisco Bay Area. She edits a variety of non-fiction and fiction book projects spanning self-development, memoirs, and historical fiction novels. Eva is the 2023-2025 Vice President of the California Writers Club, San Francisco Peninsula chapter and member of the Historical Novel Society and Women’s National Book Association. Eva founded Imitation Fruit Literary Journal in 2007 and holds a BA in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University. She is currently writing a historical novel set in the heyday of silent film movie-making in Niles, California.
 
Lila LaBineLila LaBine is a line and copy editor of fiction manuscripts and screenplays. She started her business, LaBine Editorial, in 2020 and since then has worked with over 30 authors and screenwriters on their women’s fiction, contemporary romance, sci-fi, low fantasy, romantasy, and screenplay projects. She finds great enjoyment in checking the details of her clients’ manuscripts, and she’s dedicated to helping all writers feel confident in their work and providing a safe space for them to get feedback and encouragement.
 

To register, please fill out the form below: 

2025 Writing Goals: Set Yourself Up for Success without the Stress

By

Thursday, January 23rd 
4 – 5:15pm / PST 

2025 Writing Goals: Set Yourself Up for Success without the Stress

To kick off the new year, Women’s National Book Association invites you to an all-chapter Goal-Setting Palooza!  Debra Eckerling, author of 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal Getting and SF Chapter Networking Ambassador, will be leading a virtual goal-setting workshop. 
 

What are your goals for 2025? Are you seeking an agent or publisher for your novel, memoir, or non-fiction book? Looking to build your author platform? Seeing inspiration for your next writing project? You’ve come to the right place.

During this session, you will discover:

  • How to identify your personal, professional, and writing goals for the new year
  • Ways to find time to work toward your goals in your already busy life
  • How to use networking to help you achieve your goals

Be sure to tune in live, since we will be giving away prizes including:

  • A ticket to pitch-o-rama
  • A mini- goal-coaching session with Deb
  • An e-copy of 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal-Getting

For 52 Secrets, Debra interviewed achievers in Biz, Tech, Food, Entertainment, and Creative realms – including Brenda Knight, WNBA-SF Chapter President and Publisher at  Mango. The result: a menu of inspiration and advice designed to help busy professionals create the life they deserve and desire.

Choose yourself and your writing goals for the new year. Join us on Thursday, January 23 at 4pm PT/ 7pm ET.

Register here.

About Debra: Debra Eckerling is the award-winning author of Your Goal Guide and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal-Getting: How to Stay Focused, Grow Your Network and Get More Done in Less Time. A goal strategist, workshop leader, and the creator of the D*E*B METHOD® for Goal-Setting Simplified, Debra works with individuals and teams on personal and professional projects, networking strategy, and book/book proposal development. The networking ambassador for WNBA – San Francisco, Debra has spoken on stages for TEDx, Innovation Women, SCORE LA, and more. She is the founder of the Write On Online community, as well as host of the GoalChat and Taste Buds with Deb podcasts.

Register here.

Gratitude and Glitz Holiday Mixer

By

Spooky Mixer

Thursday, December 19th 
12 – 1pm PST 

A FREE Virtual Event

WNBA-SF Writers’ Gratitude & Glitz Holiday Mixer 

As we head toward 2025, it’s important to celebrate the wins and blessings of the previous year. 
 
Did you publish a book in 2024? Meet an agent or publisher at Pitch-O-Rama? Make good progress on a long-term project? Accomplish an important personal goal? Make new friends and connections?
 
Join WNBA-San Francisco for a Gratitude & Glitz “Share & Tell” Networking Mixer on December 19th at 12pm PDT.
 
Share what you are grateful for and Tell what you accomplished. Sparkle is encouraged, but not required!
 
“You can’t reach your goals on your own,” our networking ambassador, Debra Eckerling says. “You need your community of friends, resources, and champions.” Celebrate the new year – and its infinite possibilities – with the WNBA-SF community.
 
During this event, everyone will have a few minutes to:
  • Share: Express your gratitude
  • Tell: Highlight your 2024 achievements and what you plan to celebrate at the end of 2025  
It’s a HOLIDAY MIXER, so bring a festive drink or snack to enjoy! Also, please share this event and bring a literary friend or two to join the virtual fun! Be sure to sign the virtual guest book and share your contact info.
 

About Debra: Debra Eckerling is the award-winning author of Your Goal Guide: A Roadmap for Setting, Planning, and Achieving Your Goals and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting & Goal-Getting. A goal strategist and the creator of the D*E*B METHOD® for Goal-Setting Simplified, Debra  offers personal and professional planning, content development (such as books and book proposals), and team-building for executives, entrepreneurs, consultants, and companies. The networking ambassador for WNBA – San Francisco, Debra has spoken on stages for TEDx, Innovation Women, SCORE LA, and more. She is the founder of the Write On Online community, as well as host of the GoalChat live show/podcast and Taste Buds with Deb.

 

To register, please fill out the form below: 

Join Us for the Holiday Storytelling Fest & Early Bird Special for Pitch-O-Rama 2025

By

Virtual Pitch-O-Rama 2025
Saturday, April 5, 2025
8AM to 1 PM PDT
SIGN UP HERE
Zoom link provided upon registration

Are you developing a concept for a new book? Do you have a manuscript in progress? Have you always wanted to publish that book you’ve been working on for years? If this sounds like you, we would love to invite you to Pitch-O-Rama 2025!

We are happy to announce we will be hosting the next Pitch-O-Rama as a virtual event on April 5th, 2025, where writers will be given the opportunity to pitch their works to agents and editors for publication.

Everyone is welcome to participate!

Register below to pitch your book idea to agents and publishers!

New to Pitch-O-Rama? Pitch-O-Rama is an annual event where we bring in a set of publishing professionals to share their knowledge of the publishing industry. During the event, you will be able to practice your pitch with coaches and fellow writers, and then share that pitch with an expert who will provide advice on taking your writing project to the next level.

A chance like this is an invaluable learning experience that could put you on the path to publication. We hope to see you there!

To register, please visit the event page and fill out the form at the bottom of the page!

 

Holiday Storytelling Fest: True Stories of Grace and Gratitude
Thursday, November 21, 2024
5pm – 6pm PT
SIGN UP HERE
Zoom link provided upon registration

All are welcome to the WNBA-SF Chapter’s virtual storytelling fest to celebrate the holidays as only book women writers can! Five brilliant, talented writers will share their personal stories of grace and gratitude to bring us cheer during this wonderful season of thanksgiving and joy.

After our five presenters tell their true stories, we’ll open it up to our virtual audience—that’s you! We want to encourage the sharing of stories during the holidays with friends and family in the spirit of deep gratitude this year.

Celebrate with us in sharing joy and gratitude with stories for the holidays. Bring a glass of wine or cup of tea and gather ‘round our virtual fire. Bring a friend!

Featured storytellers include Karen Wang Diggs, Kate Farrell, Mary Mackey, Ellen McBarnette, and Sheila Smith McKoy!

To register, please visit the event page!


You’re Invited! Post-Election Call for Community with Poetry

By

Social Justice Poetry
Thursday, November 14, 2024
12pm – 1pm PT
SIGN UP HERE
Zoom link provided upon registration

Poetry gets at the truth more so than any other form of the written and spoken word. And, of course, it is those poetic truth-tellers who help us see and hear what is so often hidden from us and what we must know. This event is timed and designed to be on the other side of the election, after what is likely to be a brutal political season, when we will need social justice poets and their vital truths, more than ever. Hope you can join us for this special night of community!

Featuring poetry by Zoë Flowers, Christopher Marmolejo, Granddaughter Crow (Dr. Joy Gray), and Joan Gelfand!

To register, please visit the event page and fill out the form at the bottom of the page!


Join Us! Early Bird Special for Pitch-O-Rama 2025 & Upcoming November Events

By

Virtual Pitch-O-Rama 2025
Saturday, April 5, 2025
8AM to 1 PM PDT
SIGN UP HERE
Zoom link provided upon registration

Are you developing a concept for a new book? Do you have a manuscript in progress? Have you always wanted to publish that book you’ve been working on for years? If this sounds like you, we would love to invite you to Pitch-O-Rama 2025!

We are happy to announce we will be hosting the next Pitch-O-Rama as a virtual event on April 5th, 2025, where writers will be given the opportunity to pitch their works to agents and editors for publication.

Everyone is welcome to participate!

Register below to pitch your book idea to agents and publishers!

New to Pitch-O-Rama? Pitch-O-Rama is an annual event where we bring in a set of publishing professionals to share their knowledge of the publishing industry. During the event, you will be able to practice your pitch with coaches and fellow writers, and then share that pitch with an expert who will provide advice on taking your writing project to the next level.

A chance like this is an invaluable learning experience that could put you on the path to publication. We hope to see you there!

To register, please visit the event page and fill out the form at the bottom of the page!

Social Justice Poetry Event
Thursday, November 14, 2024
12pm – 1pm PT
Zoom link provided upon registration

Poetry gets at the truth more so than any other form of the written and spoken word. And, of course, it is those poetic truth-tellers who help us see and hear what is so often hidden from us and what we must know. This event is timed and designed to be on the other side of the election, after what is likely to be a brutal political season, when we will need social justice poets and their vital truths, more than ever. Hope you can join us for this special night of community!

Featuring poetry by Zoë Flowers, Christopher Marmalejo, Granddaughter Crow (Dr. Joy Gray), and Joan Gelfand!

To register, please visit the event page!

 

 

Holiday Storytelling Fest: True Stories of Grace and Gratitude
Thursday, November 21, 2024
5pm – 6pm PT
Zoom link provided upon registration

All are welcome to the WNBA-SF Chapter’s virtual storytelling fest to celebrate the holidays as only book women writers can! Five brilliant, talented writers will share their personal stories of grace and gratitude to bring us cheer during this wonderful season of thanksgiving and joy.

After our five presenters tell their true stories, we’ll open it up to our virtual audience—that’s you! We want to encourage the sharing of stories during the holidays with friends and family in the spirit of deep gratitude this year.

Celebrate with us in sharing joy and gratitude with stories for the holidays. Bring a glass of wine or cup of tea and gather ‘round our virtual fire. Bring a friend!

Featured storytellers include Karen Wang Diggs, Kate Farrell, Mary Mackey, Ellen McBarnette, and Sheila Smith McKoy!

To register, please visit the event page!


Spooky Share and Tell Mixer

By

Spooky Mixer

Wednesday, October 30th 
12 – 1pm PDT 

A FREE Virtual Event

WNBA-SF Writers’ Spooky Mixer 

The end of the year will be here before you know it.
But don’t be scared! There is still time to reach those 2024 goals!
 
Are you participating in NaNoWriMo this year?
Do you have a writing project you are determined to start … or finish?
 
Join WNBA-San Francisco for a “Share & Tell” Networking Mixer on October 30th, 12 / PDT.
 
Share what you do and Tell what support you need to reach your 2024 goals. Think of it as speed-networking with purpose!
 
As our networking ambassador, Debra Eckerling says: “You can’t reach your goals on your own. You need your community of friends, resources, and champions.” Let your WNBA-SF community help you and vice versa.
 
During this mixer, everyone will have a few minutes to:
  • Share: Introduce Who You Are & What You Are Working On and
  • Tell: Ask for What You Need – This can be a service you are seeking, reviews for your book, encouragement for your project, etc. 
It’s a MIXER, so share this post and bring a literary friend or two to join the virtual fun! Be sure to sign the virtual guest book and share your contact info.
 

Debra Eckerling is the award-winning author of Your Goal Guide: A Roadmap for Setting, Planning, and Achieving Your Goals and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting & Goal-Getting. A goal strategist and the creator of the D*E*B METHOD® for Goal-Setting Simplified, Debra  offers personal and professional planning, content development (such as books and book proposals), and team-building for executives, entrepreneurs, consultants, and companies. The networking ambassador for WNBA – San Francisco, Debra has spoken on stages for TEDx, Innovation Women, SCORE LA, and more. She is the founder of the Write On Online community, as well as host of the GoalChat live show/podcast and Taste Buds with Deb.

 

To register, please fill out the form below: 

Sorry. This form is no longer available.

Nov. 21st- Holiday Storytelling Fest: True Stories of Grace and Gratitude

By

Thursday, November 21, 2024, 5:00 – 6:00 pm/ PST

Holiday Storytelling Fest – FREE Virtual Event!

True Stories of Grace and Gratitude

All are welcome to the WNBA-SF Chapter’s virtual storytelling fest to celebrate the holidays as only book women writers can! Five brilliant, talented writers will share their personal stories of grace and gratitude to bring us cheer during this wonderful season of thanksgiving and joy.

After our five presenters tell their true stories, we’ll open it up to our virtual audience—that’s you! We want to encourage the sharing of stories during the holidays with friends and family in the spirit of deep gratitude this year.

Celebrate with us in sharing joy and gratitude with stories for the holidays. Bring a glass of wine or cup of tea and gather ‘round our virtual fire. Bring a friend!

Storytellers:

Karen Wang Diggs, Storyteller – “A Death, A Dream, A Continuance” An Autumn Day on Mount Koya
Kate Farrell, Emcee and Storyteller —“The Shoemaker’s Apprentice” A Holiday Miracle and Family Legend, Bavaria, Germany
Mary Mackey, Storyteller — “Brazil’s Best Taxi Driver” Burning palm trees? Machine gun fire? Riots? Relax. João will get you to the airport on time.
Ellen McBarnette, Storyteller — “Ghosts of Fifth Avenue” Holiday memories come when they come.
Sheila Smith McKoy, Storyteller — “That Last Christmas”

BIOS

Karen Wang Diggs is a chef and nutritionist by day and a history hound and writer by night. She is passionate about sharing the injustices faced by women throughout history, with the aim of empowering girls and women today to change the future by striving for absolute gender equality. Her work is dedicated to sharing those lesser-told stories to show the world that strong females always have been and always will be crucial to humanity’s progress.

Currently, Karen is finishing The Book of Awesome Asian Women, which will be released in March of 2025 (just in time for Women’s History Month) by Mango Publishing.

Kate Farrell, storyteller, author, librarian, founded the Word Weaving Storytelling Project and published numerous educational materials on storytelling. She has contributed to and edited award-winning anthologies of personal narrative. Farrell’s award-winning recent book is a how-to guide on the art of storytelling, Story Power: Secrets to Creating, Crafting, and Telling Memorable Stories; she offers workshops on storytelling for groups live and online. Kate is the founder of Woven: Telling the Heroine’s Journey based on her work with storytelling and as an educator-librarian; she shares her process in workshops and on Substack. http://katefarrell.net/ https://woventales.net/

Mary Mackey became a writer by running high fevers, tramping through tropical jungles, being swarmed by army ants, dodging machinegun fire, and reading. She is the New York Times bestselling author of 14 novels including The Year The Horses Came, which describes how the peaceful goddess-worshiping people of Prehistoric Europe fought off patriarchal invaders. She is also the author of three prize-winning screenplays and 8 poetry collections, including Sugar Zone, winner of a PEN Award, and The Jaguars That Prowl Our Dreams, winner of a 2019 Eric Hoffer Award for Best Book Published by a Small Press. Visit her website at https://marymackey.com

Ellen McBarnette is an award-winning writer/storyteller and had her earliest tales transcribed by her mother when she was a toddler. An active participant in the San Francisco literary community, Ellen has led the Afrosurreal Writers Workshop of Oakland for five years. Her novella, “Negrita” is in Midnight and Indigo Speculative Fiction Volume II.  She lives in Hayward with her partner Ben and their cat Java.

Sheila Smith McKoy, PHD is an award-winning poet, fiction writer, and filmmaker. She is the recipient of the 2020 Muriel Craft Bailey Memorial Prize in poetry. Her poetry collections include The Bones Beneath (Black Lawrence Press, 2024) One Window’s Light: A Haiku Collection, a collaboration of five Black poets; the collection won the 2017 Haiku Society of America’s Merit Book Award for best haiku anthology. In addition to her poetry and fiction, Smith McKoy has authored and edited numerous scholarly works. She focuses on vital conversations about equity, inclusion and the Black speculative. A native of Raleigh, NC, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

To register, please fill out the form below!

Sorry. This form is no longer available.