Join us for our monthly programs.
In-person meetings are normally held on the first Saturday of every month from 10:00 am to noon and the third Tuesday from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at the Albuquerque Center for Spiritual Living located on the northwest corner of Louisiana and Claremont — two blocks north of Menaul — at 2801 Louisiana Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110. Go to the map on the bottom of this page for directions. If you’d like to check out one of our in-person meetings but you’re not a member yet, please read our visitor policy.
Until it’s safe to meet in person again, we’ll schedule meetings using the Zoom platform. See a schedule of all our events, and visit our YouTube Videos page for a listing of the recorded speakers from 2016 to the present.
New ZOOM MEETING Procedure
Read about SWW’s new Zoom Meeting procedure on this page.
2021 Zoom Meetings
♦ January – June meetings took place via Zoom.
♦ Saturday, July 3, 10:00 am: Paige Wheeler: Agents and Authors
♦ Tuesday, July 20, 6:30 pm: Fauzia Burke: Author Platforms
♦ Saturday, August 7, 10:00 am: Robin Cutler: The Power of Self-Publishing
♦ Tuesday, August 17, 6:30 pm: James McGrath Morris: Researching Your Book
♦ Saturday, September 4, 10:00 am: Loretta Hall: Elements of Nonfiction
♦ Tuesday, September 21, 6:30 pm: Benjamin Percy: The Ninth Metal, Reading & Craft Discussion
ATTEND a ZOOM MEETING in 2021!
Tuesday, June 15
6:30 – 8:30 pm
Speaker: Jeffrey Candelaria
ARTISTS, WRITERS, and a BUSINESS MENTALITY
In sales and business, “YOU” represent the products and services you sell and promote. Your personal brand or Your Brand Triad: Ethos (ethics, values, trust), Pathos (emotions, vision, people commitment), and Logos (credibility, skills) is tied to all aspects of the sales process. “YOU are YOUR Brand.” How do you sell your books? Is it based strictly on content or does it reflect YOU, your Character and your Personal Culture? Jeffrey Candelaria will discuss ways writers should focus on Behavioral Economics and “You as a Living Brand.”
As well as being a historical fiction author, Jeffrey Candelaria has worked across multiple disciplines including, Sales and Marketing, Corporate Relations, Media Relations, Behavioral Economic Sales & Training and has hosted various Television Programs. He is the former V.P. of Membership/Marketing/Corporate Relations for the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce.
Zoom Meeting Information:
Topic: SWW Tuesday Meeting – June 2021
Time: June 15, 2021, at 6:30 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Join the Zoom Meeting
Our Zoom log-in policy has changed due to recent disruptions to our free meetings. Non-members are now required to contact our office (505-830-6034 or info@swwriters.com) to receive a link. Signing up for Elerts is another way to receive a link to our upcoming meetings.
SWW Members sign into the Members Only portion of the website. Once in the Members Portal, follow the Zoom log-in directions posted prior to the meeting.
Saturday, July 3
10:00 am – noon
Speaker: Paige Wheeler
President & Agent, Creative Media Agency, Inc.
AGENTS and AUTHORS
As the founder of Creative Media Agency, Inc., Paige Wheeler has artfully merged her creativity and business savvy to create an agency that is dedicated to maximizing author potential. Her company represents authors on the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and international bestseller lists, as well as authors who have received major awards such as the Edgar Award, Agatha Award, Amazon Book of the Year, Holt Medallion, and Emmy Award. After Paige’s talk, two of her acquiring Agents will be conducting the workshop—open to all members for free—and will be doing COLD READS of YOUR submission letters, so here’s your chance to take advantage of an amazing opportunity. Turn in your submission letter as soon as possible to the office (info@swwriters.com). A few of the letters will be chosen for the cold reads where Shannon Snow and Haley Casey will offer feedback and suggestions for getting the attention of an agent or editor. We suggest you remove your name from your letter, or use a pseudonym. Don’t miss out! (Visit Creative Media Agency, Inc. at CMAlit.com.)
Zoom Meeting Information:
Topic: SWW Saturday Meeting – July 2021
Time: July 3, 2021, at 10:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Join the Zoom Meeting
Our Zoom log-in policy has changed due to recent disruptions to our free meetings. Non-members are now required to contact our office (505-830-6034 or info@swwriters.com) to receive a link. Signing up for Elerts is another way to receive a link to our upcoming meetings.
SWW Members sign into the Members Only portion of the website. Once in the Members Portal, follow the Zoom log-in directions posted prior to the meeting.
Tuesday, July 20
6:30 – 8:30 pm
Speaker: Fauzia Burke
AUTHOR PLATFORMS
Fauzia Burke, author of Online Marketing for Busy Authors, is the founder and president of FSB Associates (an online book publicity firm), co-founder of Pub Site (a platform for building author websites), and a consultant and coach for authors who need help navigating the book marketing and publicity landscape. Before starting FSB, she worked for book publishers Henry Holt and John Wiley. Fauzia has promoted books by authors such as Alan Alda, Arianna Huffington, Deepak Chopra, Melissa Francis, S. C. Gwynne, Mika Brzezinski, Charles Spencer and many more. She is based in San Diego, California. Visit FSB Associates at FSBassociates.com. For more information on Pub Site, go to Pub-Site.com.
Zoom Meeting Information:
Topic: SWW Tuesday Meeting – July 2021
Time: July 20, 2021, at 6:30 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Join the Zoom Meeting
Our Zoom log-in policy has changed due to recent disruptions to our free meetings. Non-members are now required to contact our office (505-830-6034 or info@swwriters.com) to receive a link. Signing up for Elerts is another way to receive a link to our upcoming meetings.
SWW Members sign into the Members Only portion of the website. Once in the Members Portal, follow the Zoom log-in directions posted prior to the meeting.
Saturday, August 7
10:00 am – noon
Speaker: Robin Cutler
THE POWER of SELF-PUBLISHING
The last few years has seen a seismic shift of writers choosing to self-publish rather than navigate a traditional publishing path. Authors now have the tools available to make publishing both affordable and profitable. But more importantly authors are choosing indie publishing as a way to better realize their creative vision. In this session, learn why this shift is happening and how you can harness this power for your own work. Robin will discuss: The best thing about self-publishing; trends in what is selling now after a year of Covid; perspectives on traditional publishing; and things important to get right before you publish.
Robin Cutler serves as President of LMBPN Worldwide Publishing and led the development of IngramSpark from 2013-2020. She has published over 1000 books at both USC Press and her trade imprint Summerhouse Press, and is an expert in the publishing industry. She is launching How To Publish Books.com, a consulting service for indie authors and publishers in Fall 2021. Follow Robin on Twitter @rcutlerbookpub or contact her at robin.cutler@lmbpn.com.
Zoom Meeting Information:
Topic: SWW Saturday Meeting – August 2021
Time: August 7, 2021, at 10:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Join the Zoom Meeting
Our Zoom log-in policy has changed due to recent disruptions to our free meetings. Non-members are now required to contact our office (505-830-6034 or info@swwriters.com) to receive a link. Signing up for Elerts is another way to receive a link to our upcoming meetings.
SWW Members sign into the Members Only portion of the website. Once in the Members Portal, follow the Zoom log-in directions posted prior to the meeting.
Tuesday, August 17
6:30 – 8:30 pm
Speaker: James McGrath Morris
RESEARCHING YOUR BOOK
This presentation will cover researching your next book and how to use your discoveries to your best advantage in fiction and nonfiction.
James McGrath Morris is an award-winning and New York Times best-selling author. His books include The Ambulance Drivers: Hemingway, Dos Passos, and a Friendship Made and Lost in War as well as Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne, the First Lady of the Black Press. His newest book, Tony Hillerman: A Life, will be published in October. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Visit his website at JamesMcGrathMorris.com.
Zoom Meeting Information:
Topic: SWW Tuesday Meeting – August 2021
Time: August 17, 2021, at 6:30 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Join the Zoom Meeting
Our Zoom log-in policy has changed due to recent disruptions to our free meetings. Non-members are now required to contact our office (505-830-6034 or info@swwriters.com) to receive a link. Signing up for Elerts is another way to receive a link to our upcoming meetings.
SWW Members sign into the Members Only portion of the website. Once in the Members Portal, follow the Zoom log-in directions posted prior to the meeting.
Saturday, September 4
10:00 am – noon
Speaker: Loretta Hall
ELEMENTS of NONFICTION
Information and online registration is forthcoming.
Previous Speakers and Topics for 2021:
♦ Jonathan Miller, A Novel for the New Year
♦ Marcia Rosen, Podcast Marketing for Authors
♦ David Morrell, Thoughts and lessons from 48 years as a published novelist
♦ Natalie Goldberg, The Way of Haiku
♦ Susan Elizabeth Phillips, The Writing Life: Craft, Characters, Creativity, and Career
♦ Darynda Jones, Humor & Heat: How to Write Funny Without Sacrificing Sexual Tension
♦ David L. Robbins, The Art and Craft of the Narrative
♦ Gerard Hanberry, Geraldine Mills, Luke Morgan, Pete Mullineaux, Moya Roddy, Readings by Irish Poets
♦ Raffi Andonian, Controversial Historical Sites
♦ Debra W. Englander, Why You Need a Book Coach
♦ Dean Wesley Smith, Writing into the Dark: Writing Clean, One-draft Stories Without an Outline
♦ Sheryl Brown, Screenplay from Stakeholder Perspectives
Previous Speakers and Topics for 2020:
♦ Melody Groves, 10 Dialogue Tricks to Make Your Characters “Talk Good”
♦ Jacqueline Murray Loring, International Publication Opportunities (or My Magical Tour of Ireland)
♦ Sherri Burr, Synchronicity and Perseverance: Two Elements to Finishing a Project
♦ Chris Allen, Brenda Cole, Charlene Dietz, Mary Therese Ellingwood, Evelyn Neil, Jim Tritten, Readings from the 2019 SWW Winners Anthology
♦ David Morrell, Getting Through It: How To Create A Storyline
♦ Chris Eboch, Myths about Writing for Children (watch on Youtube)
♦ Rose Marie Kern, Niche Markets: A Pathway to Multiple Streams of Income
♦ Bennett R. Coles, Inside the Mind of a Publisher
♦ Sarah Baker, Jacqueline Loring, Kathy Schuit, Writing Through Lock Down: Importance of Literature in the Face of Fear and Uncertainty
♦ Kathy Louise Schuit, Illustrative Ideas For Standout Memoir, Poetry, and Prose
♦ Dan Wetmore, The Skinny on the Short-line Stuff
♦ Hakim Bellamy, “Flash” Fiction: Pictures and Poems
♦ John Rember, Writing, Teaching Writing, and Worrying about Happy Endings at Three in the Morning
♦ Corrales Writing Group, Building and Sustaining an Effective Writing Group
♦ Steve Brewer, Using Humor to Hook Readers
♦ Kathy Kitts, NaNoWriMo: How and Why You Might Want to Participate
♦ Geoff Habiger, What Do Publishers Really Want?
♦ Elizabeth S. Layton & Jacqueline Murray Loring, Screenplay Writing as Creative Magic
♦ Panel: Loretta Hall, Carolyn Carlson, Robert Kidera, Writing Contests from the Judges’ Perspective
Speakers and Topics for 2019:
♦ Steve Brewer, I’ve Looked at Books from Both Sides Now
♦ Kirt Hickman, Write Realistic Dialogue
♦ Jacqueline M. Loring, Creating the KiMo Book
♦ Sarah H. Baker, Critique Groups: How and Why
♦ Dan Wetmore, The Pros and Cons of Non-Prose
♦ Jeanne Shannon & Rob Spiegel, Great Poets of New Mexico
♦ Don Bullis, Adventures in Research
♦ Rose Marie Kern, How to Copyright Your Book
♦ Johnny D. Boggs, The Modern World of Publishing
♦ Judith Avila & Patricia Conoway, Memoir Panel
♦ Brian Stinar, WordPress for Writers
♦ Betsy James, Evoking and Organizing the Fiction Draft
♦ Jonathan Miller, Planning Your Own Epic Series
♦ Robert Vardeman & Melody Groves, Writing Authentic Historical Fiction
♦ Jeffe Kennedy & Robin Perini, Romantic Elements and Tropes
♦ Bob Kidera, Margaret Tessler, & Patricia Smith Wood, What Makes a Mystery Writer?
♦ Gail Rubin, How to Market Your Expertise
♦ Loretta Hall & Susan C. Cooper, Writing Nonfiction
♦ Elise McHugh & Bryce Emley, UNM Press Panel
