Need an engaging speaker for your writers group or conference, or a panelist or moderator to contribute 25 years of publishing and editing experience? Marla’s hour-long presentations on self-publishing, nonfiction proposals, and editing topics are lively and informative, and leave plenty of room for questions. No snoozing in the stands when she’s in the house!
Marla has shared her insights at national and regional conferences, including the American Copy Editors Society and Digital Author & Self-Publishing Conference, as well as with local groups such as the Greater Los Angeles Writers Society. She recently added webinars to her roster, her first being for the Independent Book Publishers Association, the largest independent publishing association in the country.
Following is a list of Marla’s current presentations. She would also be happy to create a custom presentation, workshop, or webinar for your group or conference.
Suggested Topics
The Buddy System: Benefits of Working with a Self-Publishing Project Manager
You’ve decided to publish a book—now what? The sheer amount of information out there is enough to make you feel like you’re drowning in advice, and not all of it is valid. But instead of treading out on your own, you can enlist the help of a project manager to guide you through every step from pre-launch marketing and design to editing, indexing, and e-book conversions. In this energetic and informative workshop, you’ll learn about the benefits of working with a project manager, what to expect when you hire one, how to find a reputable one, and how to make sure they’re a good fit. What your parents taught you is still true: Always travel with a buddy, or in this case, a project manager!
Which Way Do I Go? Traditional vs. Self-Publishing
Authors today face a dizzying array of publishing options, making it difficult to determine which path to market is best. There is no one route that’s right for everyone; you must make a decision based on your career goals as well as the unique qualities of your work—not to mention your strengths and weaknesses. We’ll explore the main pathways to publishing success and discuss how you can determine the road that’s right for you.
Make Your Case: How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal
A book proposal makes a case for why your book idea is a saleable, marketable product. Instead of writing the entire book, you first pen the proposal, which then convinces the editor or agent to give you a contract to write the book. Since these folks are deluged with submissions, however, they are highly selective about who makes the cut. In this enlightening and empowering presentation, you’ll learn how to improve your chances by making your proposal compelling from start to finish, and including all the elements an editor needs to convince colleagues that they can’t afford not to make you an offer.
Match Game: How to Team Up with the Perfect Editor for You
A great editor plays a vital role in whether readers will sing your book’s praises or give it one-star reviews. But searching for the perfect editor can be a daunting prospect—especially if you’re not sure what kind of editor you need. How do you find someone who will help make your writing shine but not polish you out of your own book? In this information-packed session, Marla teams with fellow editing veteran Tammy Ditmore to provide simple solutions for finding your perfect editor and creating an author-editor dynamic duo.
Our mission is to make writers’ dreams of being published authors come true and to keep previously published authors at the top of their game. Our clients come to us with a wide range of experience, from first-timers to best-selling, self-published to traditionally published.
No matter where you are in the spectrum, we are available to help. We offer consultations on everything from self-publishing vs. traditional publishing to organizing your material for publication to writing a nonfiction proposal—and more.
Not ones to demand a limit on communication, we pride ourselves on being accessible. Free consulting and guidance are included with all our editing packages as well as with our Project Management for the Self-Publisher package.
And if you are stalwartly handling most of your own project management but want an expert’s second opinion or a pro to oversee individual parts of your project, such as book cover or interior design, we can consult on these on an a la carte basis.
Speaking
Need an engaging speaker for your writers group or conference, or a panelist or moderator to contribute 25 years of publishing and editing experience? Marla’s hour-long presentations on self-publishing, nonfiction proposals, and editing topics are lively and informative, and leave plenty of room for questions. No snoozing in the stands when she’s in the house!
Marla has shared her insights at national and regional conferences, including the American Copy Editors Society and Digital Author & Self-Publishing Conference, as well as with local groups such as the Greater Los Angeles Writers Society. She recently added webinars to her roster, her first being for the Independent Book Publishers Association, the largest independent publishing association in the country.
Following is a list of Marla’s current presentations. She would also be happy to create a custom presentation, workshop, or webinar for your group or conference.
Suggested Topics
The Buddy System: Benefits of Working with a Self-Publishing Project Manager
You’ve decided to publish a book—now what? The sheer amount of information out there is enough to make you feel like you’re drowning in advice, and not all of it is valid. But instead of treading out on your own, you can enlist the help of a project manager to guide you through every step from pre-launch marketing and design to editing, indexing, and e-book conversions. In this energetic and informative workshop, you’ll learn about the benefits of working with a project manager, what to expect when you hire one, how to find a reputable one, and how to make sure they’re a good fit. What your parents taught you is still true: Always travel with a buddy, or in this case, a project manager!
Which Way Do I Go? Traditional vs. Self-Publishing
Authors today face a dizzying array of publishing options, making it difficult to determine which path to market is best. There is no one route that’s right for everyone; you must make a decision based on your career goals as well as the unique qualities of your work—not to mention your strengths and weaknesses. We’ll explore the main pathways to publishing success and discuss how you can determine the road that’s right for you.
Make Your Case: How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal
A book proposal makes a case for why your book idea is a saleable, marketable product. Instead of writing the entire book, you first pen the proposal, which then convinces the editor or agent to give you a contract to write the book. Since these folks are deluged with submissions, however, they are highly selective about who makes the cut. In this enlightening and empowering presentation, you’ll learn how to improve your chances by making your proposal compelling from start to finish, and including all the elements an editor needs to convince colleagues that they can’t afford not to make you an offer.
Match Game: How to Team Up with the Perfect Editor for You
A great editor plays a vital role in whether readers will sing your book’s praises or give it one-star reviews. But searching for the perfect editor can be a daunting prospect—especially if you’re not sure what kind of editor you need. How do you find someone who will help make your writing shine but not polish you out of your own book? In this information-packed session, Marla teams with fellow editing veteran Tammy Ditmore to provide simple solutions for finding your perfect editor and creating an author-editor dynamic duo.
Consulting
Our mission is to make writers’ dreams of being published authors come true and to keep previously published authors at the top of their game. Our clients come to us with a wide range of experience, from first-timers to best-selling, self-published to traditionally published.
No matter where you are in the spectrum, we are available to help. We offer consultations on everything from self-publishing vs. traditional publishing to organizing your material for publication to writing a nonfiction proposal—and more.
Not ones to demand a limit on communication, we pride ourselves on being accessible. Free consulting and guidance are included with all our editing packages as well as with our Project Management for the Self-Publisher package.
And if you are stalwartly handling most of your own project management but want an expert’s second opinion or a pro to oversee individual parts of your project, such as book cover or interior design, we can consult on these on an a la carte basis.