NeoLeaf Press is proud to host our first Writers Conference on April 11th, 2020, at the Indianola Community Center.
We'll be bringing in several Midwest authors to present on various writing topics. This will be fun, educational, and full of prizes for our attending authors. Continue to follow for exact dates, location, and list of guest presenters.
We'll be bringing in several Midwest authors to present on various writing topics. This will be fun, educational, and full of prizes for our attending authors. Continue to follow for exact dates, location, and list of guest presenters.
For more up to date information please follow our Facebook Group or join us on our Facebook Event Page
Indianola Activity Center
2204 W 2nd Ave, Indianola, IA 50125
2204 W 2nd Ave, Indianola, IA 50125
Registration: 8:30AM
Lunch: 12:00PM Free to attendees and sponsored by the Indie Author Book Expo
Ends: 5:30PM
Lunch: 12:00PM Free to attendees and sponsored by the Indie Author Book Expo
Ends: 5:30PM
Registration
Attending Speakers Schedule
8:30 - Registration
9:00AM Speaker Coming Soon!
10:00AM Speaker
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Magnolia “Maggie” Rivers was born and raised in Alabama and started developing her writing career at a very early age. Before she learned to write her ABCs, she made squiggles on paper that only she understood but those were her stories.
First published in the early 1970s, Maggie has written over fifteen hot, sexy, sizzling contemporary romances. She teaches an adult education class through the Des Moines Public School system entitled “How to Write A Novel” and also teaches the same program throughout Iowa’s prison system – a position secured for her by Gov. Vilsack. She’s attended workshops by Jenny Crusie and Bob Mayer; Janet Evanovich; J.A. Jance; Laura Baker and Robin L. Perini; Lois Greiman; Cheryl St. John, Mary Winter; Michael J. Manno; Kali Van Baale; and Tamara Siler Jones; to name just a few. After spending a few years as a U.S. Air Force Medic, she has now spent over 40 years in the field of law as a Legal Secretary/Paralegal. In addition to writing, she is also an award-winning photographer, specializing in nature and wildlife photography. She has won numerous photography awards and was selected to participate in the "Faces of Iowa" project which was exhibited at the Des Moines Art Center before traveling around the State of Iowa. Check out her website at: http://www.maggierivers.com |
Topic - Tips and Tricks on How to Write A Novel
Come learn a few of the basic tips and tricks to not only getting your novel started but to getting it completed. Things like how to get those words written, what to watch for in your writing and the one secret every published writer knows that will guarantee you will get that novel written and out for publication! Come and listen as Maggie tells you how to “Git ‘er Dun!”
9:00AM Speaker
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Dr. Judith Wendel is a native Iowan who grew up in Chariton and finished high school in DesMoines. She earned three degrees from Drake University including a Doctor of Education.Dr.Judy retired from the DesMoines Schools after 35 years as a teacher and administrator,wearing many hats in the course of that career. Her last was as Director of Community and Adults Education. She worked as instructor and administrator for the next ten years at WilliamPenn University, while also teaching courses at Drake and DMACC in Adult Education,Composition and Business Communication until her “second” retirement after 10 years in 2010.
Life has repeatedly interfered with her ambition to be a creative writer. Grant writing and curriculum writing were her major accomplishments as an educator. Still she managed to do a little creative writing along with raising her family of four. The death of three husbands, a bout with cancer and being full time caretaker for Mr. C.H. Wendel after his second stroke, limited her ability to do much writing. However, under his tutelage she became a fairly accomplished Letter Press printer. Her current goal is to complete a narrative of her life with Mr. Wendel, who was a internationally known author of more than 30 books, and complete at least two books she has partially finished on file. “Life happens when you have other plans.”She is hoping she will now truly be able to fulfill her dream of finishing the writing for the many stories that are still very much alive in her imagination before “life” changed her plans. |
Topic - Life Happens
Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans - John Lennon
Does life get in your way? Learn what life can throw at you and how to overcome it while probing the wells of knowledge from Dr. Judith Wendel!
Does life get in your way? Learn what life can throw at you and how to overcome it while probing the wells of knowledge from Dr. Judith Wendel!
11:00AM Speaker
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Dr. Ryan Anderson
Dr. Anderson is the author of Get Hired: The 21st Century Job Search and owner of No Coast Consulting. Dr. Anderson founded No Coast Consulting with a vision of empowering individuals to align their passion and vocation, achieve their professional aspirations and attain fulfillment while maintaining a positive balance between work, life and community involvement. A passion for serving the community has led Dr. Anderson to serve on boards and organization within the Des Moines metro area:
Dr. Anderson started his professional career with a focus on Project Management and Financial Analytics primarily for Financial Services and Insurance Companies gaining a repertoire of experience among large Fortune 500 companies such as Standard and Poors (McGraw-Hill), Principal Financial Group and Hewlett Packard. |
Topic - How To Sell Yourself
Find people passing you up? Do you want to know how to better sell you books by selling yourself as an author? Learning to sell yourself is a key skill to improving you sales and building a network of followers who will buy your books.
12:00 PM Free Lunch
1:00PM Speaker
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Kyle McCord is the author of six books of poetry including National Poetry Series Finalist, Magpies in the Valley of Oleanders (Trio House Press 2016) and X-Rays and Other Landscapes (Trio House Press 2019). He has work featured in AGNI, Blackbird, Boston Review, The Gettysburg Review, The Harvard Review, The Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, TriQuarterly and elsewhere. He has received grants or awards from The Academy of American Poets, The Vermont Studio Center, and the Baltic Writing Residency. He serves as Co-Executive Editor of Gold Wake Press. He teaches at Drake University in Des Moines.
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Topic - Meet and Learn With Kyle McCord
Spend an hour to meet the author and professor. Learn how to grow and improve your writing, pursue your career writing poetry, and ask some of your dying questions.
2:00PM Speaker
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Laura Kinnard obtained her MBA with an Internet Marketing Specialty designation from the Florida Institute of Technology and has an Advertising Management degree with a Marketing Concentration from Drake University where she is now a Professor and Entrepreneurial Fellow.
Kinnard teaches Entrepreneurial Management and works as an adviser for Drake University’s student startup “Hatchery” and for the visiting Mandela Washington Young African Leaders. She was also awarded a reciprocal grant through the Young African Leadership Initiative (YALI) program in 2017 to do entrepreneurial management and marketing training in Nigeria, Africa. Drawing on the more than 20 years she has spent marketing and helping to develop and promote unique businesses, products and events, Kinnard recently founded Curated Growth. The company intentionally curates resources, including physical spaces, for the purpose of fostering innovation and growing new business ventures. |
Topic - Marketing for Authors
Struggling with marketing? Are your sales stagnant? Marketing Specialist Laura Kinnard will take you through the most current tricks and tools to improve your marketing. Improve your sales, gain followers, and build your network by improving your reach.
3:00PM Speaker
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Ben Clayton
Ben has a large variety of interests. He reads fiction mostly and generally science fiction, fantasy or horror themed. He designs t-shirts, one of which Neil Gaiman has. He is also an art photographer, photo manipulator, and occasionally a digital illustrator. Among his many talents is makeup, which he usually does for his models. He runs a networking website called Immortal Modeling that is for nontraditional models, photographers, and makeup artists. Once in a while he also does special effects makeup. For example, he created a mold of his wife’s arm and painted the positive from the mold before mailing it off to Neil Gaiman, where it currently resides in his yard. |
Topic - Horror Genera
Learn the ins and out of horror as a writing genera, what are trends in media, and trends in pulp fiction. Explore the ins and outs of improving your horror and building thrill that will capture your reader page after page.
4:00PM Speaker
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Author Donna Williams is a domestic abuse survivor. Almost losing her life inspired her beautiful writing featured on channel 13 news. Donna is very grateful to be alive today which has been a great inspiration. With her writing she hopes not only to share her story, but save others in her situation.
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Topic - Surviving Domestic Abuse and Writing from Inspiration
Bring tissues. Donna Williams will be speaking on her harrowing ordeal with domestic abuse where she almost died and how this helped inspire her book. Learn how to take your most emotional moments and put them to page.
5:00PM Farewell and Prizes.
Join us for a final farewell and take away a few great prizes as well.
We'll be giving away a $25 Barnes and Noble gift card, notebooks, Self Publishing 101, Coffee Cups, and MORE!
We'll be giving away a $25 Barnes and Noble gift card, notebooks, Self Publishing 101, Coffee Cups, and MORE!
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