March 28th: Pitch-O-Rama Prep Workshop & AMA

Thursday, March 28, 2024
Noon – 1:00 pm / PDT Online via Zoom
Pre-Pitch Coaching Session

By popular demand, WNBA-SF will hold a Pre Pitch-O-Rama Coaching AMA [Ask Me Anything].

Registration is free for anyone already signed up for 2024 Pitch-O-Rama. If you haven’t, prices are $10 for WNBA-SF members and $25 for non-members.

We are VERY excited to hold our fourth virtual Pitch-O-Rama which is looking to be a fabulous event with new agents and editors including those from the New York publishing world. And, since it is virtual, we have many new writers joining us, hailing from all over the country and even a couple of international guests. We have received many questions and suggestions which resulted in this Pre Pitch session.

WNBA-SF stalwarts who have run Pitch-O-Rama for many years will tell you what to expect, tips and strategies for inspired pitching, and how to get the most from this mini-writers conference.

Hosted by Madame President, Elise Marie Collins, this event will feature experts who can answer any question you have, so make your list now! Collins offers techniques on how to overcome nerves and make your best impression. 

Steeped in Pitch-O-Rama history, Kate Farrell will offer insight into effective pitches and the kind of good advice only an experienced author and pitch event coordinator can provide. 

Publisher Brenda Knight will share what editors and agents are looking for, and how to position your project so it will garner real interest from acquiring editors and literary agents.

Ellen McBarnette, an attendee from previous years’ virtual Pitch-O-Rama will tell you “what she wishes she knew last year and what you should know for this year.”

Goal setting expert Debra Eckerling will share tips for networking in the fast-moving, virtual space.

Every year, writers find agents, get publishing deals and get excellent feedback that advances their writing careers. This year, it can be you!

Registration is free for anyone already signed up for 2024 Pitch-O-Rama. If you haven’t, prices are $10 for WNBA-SF members and $25 for non-members.

REGISTER HERE!

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Distinguished Panelists

Brenda Knight, author of Women of the Beat Generation, began her publishing career at HarperCollins working with luminaries including Paolo Coehlo, Marianne Williamson, Mark Nepo, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Knight was awarded IndieFab’s Publisher of the Year at the American Library Association in 2014. She is the author of Random Acts of Kindness, Be a Good in the World, and Women of the Beat Generation which won the American Book Award. She is Editorial Director at Mango Publishing and is Past President of WNBA-SF Chapter.

Elise Marie Collins has consulted with small businesses, authors, and alumni associations on social media marketing and believes that a social media plan should be intuitive, fun, and seamless. Helping students and clients form healthy lifestyle patterns is Elise Collins’ passion and life purpose. She has taught yoga for the past 20 years and is the author of several books on healthy living, including her latest, Super Ager: You Can Look Younger, Have More Energy, a Better Memory, and Live a Long and Healthy Life. Elise enjoys sharing yoga wisdom and current scientific research.

Kate Farrell, author, storyteller, and educator 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. Her award-winning new book is a how-to guide on the art of storytelling for adults, Story Power: Secrets to Creating, Crafting, and Telling Memorable Stories. She offers workshops on storytelling and the heroine’s journey for libraries and writing groups here.

Ellen McBarnette is a life-long writer whose nonfiction work has been published as testimony, fact sheets and opinion pieces for organizations that include the Sierra Club and the American Bar Association. A professional storyteller, she is a recent transplant from Washington, DC where she ran the Arlington Creative Nonfiction Writers Group. She now runs the Beta Readers and Writers Group and is an active participant in critique groups in the Bay. She lives in Hayward with her partner Ben and their cat Java.

Debra Eckerling is the award-winning author of Your Goal Guide: A Roadmap for Setting, Planning, and Achieving Your Goals and creator of the D*E*B METHOD®, for Goal-Setting Simplified. A goals strategist, corporate consultant, and workshop leader, Debra offers personal and professional planning content development, event strategy, and team-building for executives, entrepreneurs, consultants, and companies. 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 #GoalChatLive show aka The DEB Show and the Taste Buds with Deb podcast.

Christina Vo is a writer based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her work reflects her commitment to understanding and sharing the complexities of the human experience. Christina’s debut memoir, The Veil Between Two Worlds: A Memoir of Silence, Loss, and Finding Home, demonstrates her ability to weave personal experiences into broader narratives about identity, home, and belonging. Her second book, My Vietnam, Your Vietnam, an intergenerational memoir co-written with her father, will be published in April 2024 and was recently selected for the Ms. Magazine Most Anticipated Feminist Books of 2024. She has worked internationally for UNICEF in Vietnam, the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, as well as served as a consultant for nonprofits.