Writing Craft Workshops

*Unless otherwise noted, workshops run 45 minutes to 1 hour in length. Outlines available upon request.

*If you’d like a peek at my qualifications and endorsements, click here.

3 Rules You Must Never Break – No matter what conference you attend, there are often two conflicting statements: Writers must follow all the rules or rules are made to be broken. The truth is writing is actually a mix of both. However, there are three rules which absolutely must never be broken if you are to be a successful author. In this one-hour workshop, you will not only learn what those three rules are, but you will walk away with the tools needed to apply them to your stories and writing journey.

Publishing Paths – In today’s world, there are multiple paths to publishing your manuscript—from “big house” traditional publishing to independent publishing. In this workshop, you’ll learn about the various types of publishing, the path to each, and what is required of you. This workshop is targeted for beginning aspiring authors.

Genre Fiction – There are lots of writing options out there from non-fiction topics to literary fiction to genre fiction. In this workshop, 13 genres are presented along with defining characteristics, examples, and common word-count lengths. By the end of the workshop, writers will know where their story best fits and what elements they need to include. 

Picking the Write Fight – No matter what genre you write, a verbal or physical fight is likely to happen between characters. However, many readers skim over or skip through fight scenes when they come across them in stories. Why? Because they are boring and readers can skip over them without missing anything important to the story. In “Picking the Write Fight”, you’ll learn the two purposes of a fight scene, what to include and exclude, and technical writing tips. Physical and non-physical fights are addressed, and a plethora of resources are provided to attendees. By the end of the workshop, you will have the tools needed to write fight scenes which grab your reader by the collar and won’t let them go.

*While this workshop can be done in one hour, it is best done as a two- or three-hour workshop broken up into two or three sessions. The one hour session focuses on physical fights but does address non-physical fighting. The two hour session is split more evenly between the two types of fights. The three hour session includes interactive exercises during the session.

Plotting 101: How to Create a Story Readers Can’t Put Down – Understanding story structure is a crucial skill for every author. Even pansters must adhere to the age-old structure if they hope to be published. Yet, creating a story without a muddled middle or an anticlimactic ending takes diligent work and a thorough understanding of structure. Through the use of the movie Shrek, Crystal will walk participants through a breakdown of the a four-act story structure and how to apply it. The extended interactive workshop uses M&Ms to break down and apply the four-act structure to story creation. Participants will leave with a thorough understanding of story structure and a loosely plotted story.

*This topic can be done as a two-hour/two-part interactive workshop or as a one-hour informative workshop.