Hello Beautiful!
Danielle LaPorte and I first started our Beautiful Writers Group six short months ago, and what an amazing ride it’s been! We’ve seen books published, proposals penned, articles released, and blogs started. We’ve had special guests talk about creating Beta Reader programs, List Building, overcoming writing fears, and more. We’ve seen writing groups form, and lifelong friendships launched.
Case in point: perhaps you’ve heard of our own Steph Jagger, who landed a large six-figure deal with HarperWave (an imprint of HarperCollins) after working diligently with her “Wolf Pack” writing group (formed here) and signing with our dear agent friend, Laura Yorke, who took her on days of editorial meetings at the largest publishers in NYC (here’s my Instagram excitement):
Here are a few of the in-person writing support groups forming all the time (how darling are they?!). By the way, these gals put in time and TLC into finding their “people,” but say it was worth every minute. Like in any group, you get out of the BWG what you put into it.
As exciting as these updates are (and there are many more we’re about to announce on our site), we’re just getting started!
Today Danielle and I are announcing some sweet enhancements we think you’re going to love.
1. New monthly coaching format + celebrity interviews! We’re THRILLED to say that we’re bringing some very special people from the writing and publishing worlds straight to you. From our bestselling pals (in fiction and non-fiction), publishing gurus, and industry insiders (agents, editors, and entertainment lawyers), we’ll be talking with people who will rock your literary world.
You may have seen this early teaser for our upcoming March chat with Dani Shapiro (our first celebrity guest), author of Still Writing, five novels, and the best-selling memoirs Slow Motion and Devotion. (Perhaps you saw her with Oprah last year on Super Soul Sunday.)
To regularly bring you these in-demand literary superstars, and more focused writing and publishing support, our monthly coaching format is shifting. We’re switching it up to pack more power into what you get each month. Here’s what we’ll be giving you, starting the first week of March 2015:
Monthly Q+A’s with us, Linda and Danielle, where all questions are submitted in the G+ group ahead of time. You can listen in as we answer your questions over the phone. We’ve simplified and streamlined the format of each call, and will deliver more teaching tips by devoting time to talk about things like our current favorite writing tools and trends, and recent personal publishing experiences. The calls will last from 45-60 minutes—just right for a lunch-break. Listen-in live if you can! As always, we’ll make sure you get the recording, too.
Monthly guest interviews (mentioned above)—these will cover the craft of writing and the art of getting your work into the world from people doing it in a big way. We can’t wait to share these fascinating interviews with you! Our incredible scheduled celebrity line-up is nearly full for this year already, and coming your way soon! We’re so happy about that.
2. Call highlights, delivered. We love creating beautiful things over here, so we’ll be taking notes on each call and posting them in a PDF download for you each month. We know you’re busy and we thought offering highlights of each call and interview would be super helpful, not to mention FUN! So, whether you want to refresh your memory, get an in-depth preview of what’s covered before you listen in, or keep track of a few valuable takeaways, we’ve got you covered.
3. One big, happy family. In our BWG groups, we’ve seen so many valuable things shared and connections made. But because there are two groups, each one has been missing half of the treasures. When Steph signed the above book deal with HarperWave, for example, only Group 1 got the play-by-play. We want you ALL in on the action. So to better experience the advantages of membership, we’re bringing you all under one fold. No more missing priceless connections, information, and news.
Group 2 members will move over to Group 1 shortly. Like all beginnings, it will be busier at the start then when things settle. But we’ll keep close tabs and as membership grows over time with the addition of celebrity guests, we’ll consider opening up added groups as needed. But you will all stay together as our first mothership, er tribe:)
4. Even more writerly love. Get ready to feel way more tapped in! We’ve hired even more writerly support for our G+ forum. Sandra O’Donnell, whom many of you already know from her uber-useful, insightful posts and resources offered in the first Beautiful Writers Group, will now be on tap in an official capacity in the forum. In graduate school, Sandra studied under Lee Gutkind, the “father of creative non-fiction.” She had a successful academic writing career, ghostwriting a number of academic books. Her co-authored book, Business and Professional Communication in the Global Workplace, now in its third edition, was based on her consulting work with Fortune 500 companies.
Over the past ten years, Sandra has been working on a chick lit series. She has completed three books in the series: The First Bad Thing, Falling Toward Home, and The Death of Love. She’s also Linda’s partner/advisor in The Boyfriend Log app, and is currently working on a memoir/travel book called 52 Sundays. Sandra says her writing experiences taught her that writing in isolation is isolating. “We need each other and groups like the BWG make us better writers and authors. Together, we can support one another, help where we can, and encourage each other to be our best.” With Sandra’s love of research and this vast industry, that’s what she is excited about bringing to the BWG with her contributions and posts. We LOVE her!
Liz Eastwood Lehman, our team member, will continue to moderate the G+ forum as well. Liz is a writing workshop veteran with experience self-publishing a 5-star Amazon bestseller (Soul Comfort for Cat Lovers, a pet loss recovery book), running blogs, and writing award-winning content for companies like Apple. The Beautiful Writers Group was actually formed as a result of many of Liz’s ideas and prompting. She is a passionate part of what we’re building here and we’re so thankful for her!
Oh, and one more thing: watch for an announcement about the Book Proposal Bootcamp Sandra will be running soon just for our Beautiful Writers.
5. Members: Watch for the Top Ten Tips for Beautiful Writers coming your way–something that will help you make the most of your membership. It’s almost finished and it’s a beauty.
Thank you for reading! We adore you and are so excited by what’s happening here in this group. Stay tuned. Continue to let us know how you’re doing in the G+ forum. And… we’ll “see” you very soon.
Much, much love,
Linda & Danielle
P.S.S. Want to share what you love about being a member with people who may be wondering if it’s right for them? Feel free to give us your thoughts below…
P.S.S.S. Worry that you won’t have time to join the calls or be an active member? No problem. You can quickly download the Beautiful Writers Group content (calls & bonus interviews) to your mobile device/ipod. Taking this extra 5 minutes a week to get your publishing lessons to-go will save you from needless guilt (paying for something you’re not maximizing) and give your writing career the supercharge energy it deserves. I (Linda) just recently got with the iPod program. I was always too busy to figure that “little thingie” out and had no idea how easy it could be to listen to other podcasts while cleaning, running errand, walking my pups. I’m now officially obsessed, and regretting not getting with the program sooner. Taking this simple step will allow you to keep your brain focused on your book(s), your brand, and your business–even when you don’t “have” the time. After all, Danielle and I are here to help you not only envision your writing life, but make it real. Nothing makes it real like staying in the game.
Ahhhhhh…. we love this stuff! xo
