ASU DevCon and a Fabulous Opportunity for Indie Authors!

On March 21st I visited ASU WEST's DevCon, a cos-play SFF convention held on that weekend. Unlike most cons, entry was free, and if you'd like to know more, you can visit ASU's website here: http://devconarizona.com/

My son was involved with the club who set up the con, and although it's still small, it was a wonderful experience! They had an entire room set up with artists and authors and publishers, and fantasy/science fiction experiences galore! Outside, we sat and watched the cos-play competition, right next to a fountain in the seating area, along with a gentle breeze that made the weather wonderful! Here's some photos we took of some of the entrants and their fabulous costumes:

And for you Indie e-book authors, I ran across some information from one of the authors at the con. I copied the pamphlet to post for anyone who might be interested:

I don't have any other information than what is listed here, but it's pretty inclusive. Although this references Arizona, it sounds like this may be in other states, so you would have to visit your own state library for information. It sounds like a wonderful opportunity, so I just had to share!

My Magical Best,
Kathryne
http://www.kathrynekennedy.com

Angela James Speaking in Phoenix on Branding

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Don’t Miss This Month’s Valley of the Sun Romance Writer’s meeting on April 14^th!

Angela James, Editorial Director at Carina Press, will speak for two hours on Branding. Every writer needs this valuable information!

Angela James, Editorial Director of Carina Press, Harlequin's digital-first fiction imprint, is both an avid reader of digital books and a veteran of and advocate for the digital publishing industry. She has enjoyed over a decade of experience in her field, including successfully launching, building and serving as editorial lead for two digital-first presses, Samhain Publishing and, since 2009, Harlequin's Carina Press.

She has edited bestselling authors such as Shannon Stacey, Jaci Burton, Lauren Dane, Ilona Andrews, Lilith Saintcrow, Shelly Laurenston and more. She was profiled in Fast Company magazine as a digital pioneer in the romance publishing industry and is the creator of the popular self-editing online workshop for authors, Before You Hit Send. In 2013, Angela was named New York Romance Writers of America's Golden Apple Editor of the Year.

You can find Angela on Twitter at @angelajames.

VOS will keep the business portion of our meeting to a minimum to make time for the full two hours of Angela’s speeches.

5:30 – Dinner & Networking
6:30 – Business meeting
6:40 – Guest Speaker

Building Your Brand, Part I:  (The first hour.)

How many times has someone told you to build your brand, but not told you what that means? You think it might mean something about a tagline, or your website header, but in reality, building your brand is an important, and sometimes complex, endeavor. One that can start right before you ever publish a book and continue throughout your career. In this workshop, learn what constitutes author brand, how it can support your career plan, why it’s important, how you can get one, and some things you should avoid.

Building Your Brand, Part II:

As an author, you’re told you should have both a website and a brand. In this workshop, discuss how the two should work together, and how you can use your website to support your brand. Learn via actual visual examples things to avoid and things to consider when setting up and maintaining your website.

Valley of the Sun Meets the 2nd Tuesday of Every Month
December: holiday party, regular meeting date, different location

Location:

Ironworks Restaurant
17233 N. 45th Avenue – Phoenix, AZ 85308

Bellair Golf Course
Crossroads: Bell and 45th Ave, just North of Bell.

(A few miles south of the 101 and a few miles west of the I-17.)

Non-members may attend two meetings before joining

Upcoming Workshop:

October 13th

Linda Style and Connie Flynn from Bootcamp for Novelists will be presenting one of their workshops.