In light of the impact of COVID-19 on our community of writers across Canada, SF Canada and Canadian Authors have jointly decided to offer a series of webinars at no charge to all writers, whether or not they are members of either organization.
These six webinars are:
The End Is Just the Beginning
Lynn Duncan
Congratulations! After months (years?) of diligent effort, you have finally completed your manuscript. You celebrate briefly before it sinks in—you have no idea what to do next. Should you hire an editor? Should you approach an agent? How do you find a publisher? What is hybrid publishing anyway? And how much is all of this going to cost?
This workshop will provide an overview of the publishing process and a suggested process to follow to navigate it successfully. Participants will leave with information that will help them chart the path that is right for them.
Presenter: Lynn Duncan
Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm (ET)
Length: 90 minutes (including Q&A)
Level: Basic and Intermediate
Type: Informational
Cost: This series is free due to COVID-19’s impact on the writing community; space is limited.
About the Presenter
In 2010, Lynn founded Vivalogue Publishing with business partner Kilmeny Denny. Drawing upon Lynn’s many years of business and sales experience and Kilmeny’s background in journalism and editing, Vivalogue helps self-published authors achieve creative and financial success. As part of its commitment to the self-publishing community, Vivalogue founded and continues to administer The Whistler Independent Book Awards.
Vivalogue also partnered with Heritage House Publishing to develop and launch their young adult imprint, Wandering Fox Books. This experience inspired Lynn and Kilmeny to found their own trade-publishing company, Tidewater Press, in 2017. Now with five titles in print, and four more scheduled for release in 2020, Tidewater Press publishes real and imagined stories of identity and belonging.
Register Now for The End Is Just the Beginning
Can’t attend on that particular date? No problem — as long as you’re registered, we’ll send you a link to the recording within 48 hours of the live webinar.
Writing for Children and Young Adults
Simon Rose
Examine the art of writing for children and young adults. Explore research, planning, pacing your story, developing characters, connecting with the reader, choosing settings, the role of adults in children’s stories, and more.
After attending this session, participants will be able to understand the fundamentals of writing for children and young adults, how to turn your ideas into stories, understand the need for outlines, planning, editing, and revision, understand the importance of research, create great beginnings and pace your story, and be able to research ways in which to submit your work to publishers.
Presenter: SF Canada member Simon Rose
Date: Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm (ET)
Length: 90 minutes (including Q&A)
Level: Basic and Intermediate
Type: Informational
Cost: This series is free due to COVID-19’s impact on the writing community; space is limited.
About the Presenter
Simon Rose is a Calgary author of sixteen novels, eight guides for writers, and more than 100 nonfiction books for children and young adults. Simon served as the Writer-in Residence with the Canadian Authors Association and is a member of the Calgary Association of Freelance Editors. Simon also provides services for writers, including editing, coaching, and ghostwriting and offers programs for schools. He is an instructor for adults with the University of Calgary, Mount Royal University, and Chinook Learning Services and offers online workshops and courses for children and adults.
Register Now for Writing for Children and Young Adults
Can’t attend on that particular date? No problem — as long as you’re registered, we’ll send you a link to the recording within 48 hours of the live webinar.
Leveraging Your IP and Maximizing Income in a Digital World
Mark Leslie Lefebvre
Writers have never had more options than ever in the history of publishing. The digital marketplace has expanded opportunities for print books, eBooks, and audiobooks. But navigating the vast oceans of opportunity, determining what path is best for each particular writing project, and avoiding the treacherous seas, uncharted waters, and the industry sharks that swim these waters preying on the hopes and dreams of authors can be tricky.
This overview of the platforms, the players, and the alternatives available for writers to be able to maximize their readership and their opportunities for multiple streams of revenue will provide you with the background you need to keep from drowning and to chart your own unique course as an author.
As a result of attending this session, attendees will:
- Understand the plethora of choices available to them within traditional publishing and self-publishing/indie-publishing
- Be aware of a number of free services available to them for licensing/selling their work or taking a more DIY and indie publishing approach
- Realize that there is no single path for any writer, or any specific writing project, and the benefits of applying a hybrid approach
- Know where to get started publishing their work in print, eBook and audiobook, and how to make decisions on the choices that exist for listing their work on the major book platforms for retail and library markets
- Have an understanding of what to look out for in order to spot the scheming demons masquerading as “publishers” or “self-publishing support”
- Be inspired to look for new ways to maximize their opportunities for growing their readership and their streams of writing revenue
Presenter: SF Canada member Mark Leslie Lefebvre, Author, Editor, and Book Nerd; Stark Publishing
Date: Wednesday, May 27, 2020
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm (ET)
Length: 90 minutes (including Q&A)
Level: Basic and Intermediate
Type: Informational
Cost: This series is free due to COVID-19’s impact on the writing community; space is limited.
About the Presenter
Mark Leslie Lefebvre had his first story published in 1992, the same year he began in the book industry. A former President of the Canadian Booksellers Association, Mark is a current Professional Advisor to Sheridan College’s Degree program in Writing & Publishing, the founder of Kobo Writing Life, Kobo’s DIY platform for writers and a freelance publishing consultant.
Mark has more than twenty full length fiction and non-fiction books available via both traditional and self-publishing, his writing has been translated to Italian and Spanish, and his eBooks have sold in more than 82 countries.
Register Now For Leveraging Your IP
Can’t attend on that particular date? No problem — as long as you’re registered, we’ll send you a link to the recording within 48 hours of the live webinar.
Characterization and Character-driven Conflicts
Ron Friedman
Conflicts have stood at the heart of storytelling since the dawn of Humankind. Learn how the latest discoveries in brain science and human behaviour can help you grow three dimensional characters motivated by different world views in complex societies that confront each other a in a believable manner. Eliminate the BS factor. Make your conflicts shine.
During this webinar, you will learn a simple psychological model that can help you as a writer to understand human behaviour and utilize this model in your writing to create reliable characters that readers can relate to and understand their motives.
You will also learn a few philosophical worldviews and how to combine those views with the above model to spark believable character driven conflicts.
Then we will analyze several characters from known stories and see how this model applies.
Presenter: SF Canada member Ron S. Friedman
Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2020
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm (ET)
Length: 90 minutes (including Q&A)
Level: Basic and Intermediate
Type: Informational
Cost: This series is free due to COVID-19’s impact on the writing community; space is limited.
About the Presenter
Ron S. Friedman is an award-winning science fiction author from Calgary. His novel, Typhoon Time, is an Amazon.ca #1 Best Seller in Time-Travel; his collection, Escape Velocity, is a Calgary Herald #1 Best Seller, and his story, Game Not Over, is a Best Short Fiction finalist in the 2016 Aurora Awards, Canada’s premier Science-Fiction and Fantasy awards.
Ron’s short stories have appeared in Galaxy’s Edge, Daily Science Fiction, Neo-Opsis, Polar Borealis, Enigma Front and in other magazines and anthologies. Ron co-edited three anthologies and he received ten Honorable Mentions in Writers of the Future Contest.
Originally from Israel, Ron is living with his loving wife and two children in Calgary, Alberta. Ron is currently working on his second novel.
Register now for Characterization and Character-driven Conflicts
Can’t attend on that particular date? No problem — as long as you’re registered, we’ll send you a link to the recording within 48 hours of the live webinar.
Keep checking https://canadianauthors.org/national/programs-and-services/webinars/ for more webinars coming your way. Two more webinars are being finalized now as part of this series:
- How to Build Worlds without Boring Your Reader, with SF Canada member Melissa Yuan-Innes
- Going Solo: Self-Publishing Tips and Tricks for Those First Starting Out, with SF Canada member Krista Ball
What Is a Webinar?
Short for web-based seminar, a webinar is a presentation or seminar that is transmitted over the internet using video conferencing software. All you need is a good internet connection and a computer or your phone (tablets are also doable, but computers offer the best experience). Your device should have audio capability, either through built-in speakers or a headset. Your device should have audio capability, either through built-in speakers or a headset. Don’t worry about the video part – participants are not visible during the webinar.
A key feature of a live webinar is its interactive elements: the ability to give, receive and discuss information and/or ask questions in real time. Linking to a previously recorded webinar allows you to watch and listen to the session at your leisure — you can even pause the recording whenever you like.
During our webinars, all participants are muted to avoid sound interference, but you can answer polls as well as ask questions using the chat feature. After the webinar, you will receive a link to the recording and any handouts the presenter may have prepared for the session.
Please keep in mind that all presentation slides and handouts, if applicable, are the property of the guest presenters, and they may not be used for any purpose beyond personal education.
SF Canada member 
Nina Munteanu, author of the Darwin duology, will be in Nova Scotia March 2011, teaching several writing workshops in Halifax and the South Shore.