Editor Robin Baskerville of Stratham, NH and Author Jeff Deck of South Berwick, ME are sharing their expertise and strategies with participants in the 2020 NHWP’s Writers’ Conference, which for the first time will be presented in a virtual setting — Covid Style. The video-conference is taking place on Saturday, October 17, 2020 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Baskerville is presenting two of the 14 various workshops. She will be sharing her expertise in Revisions: The First Cut is the Deepest and Working with an Editor. In both she shares information and about the editing side of the writing process.

“After spending months crafting a story, writers are faced with changing that story, often by cutting favorite scenes and thousands of words,” says Baskerville. Revisions: The First Cut Is the Deepest will help writers work as diligently at editing first drafts as writing them. “The First Cut” validates how difficult the first edit can be and provides tips and tricks to smooth the way to a final draft,” she says. “Participants will leave with solid ideas to get them through that daunting first cut.”

Working with an Editor is for writers who expect their work to be published someday either through traditional means or self-publishing. “The workshop covers everything from explaining what different editors do to understanding proofing marks and track changes in Word,” says Baskerville. “Writers planning on hiring a freelance editor or working with an in-house editor at their publisher will equally benefit from Working with an Editor. Participants will leave the workshop better prepared to collaborate with editors to turn polished drafts into published stories.’

Following the editing process and publication, authors’ work needs to be marketed to get onto book shelves and into readers’ hands. Marketing can be costly and ineffective without strategy. Jeff Deck is presenting Sell More Self-Published Books Through Amazon Ads. “I chose to address the topic of Amazon Ads because I know a lot of authors struggle with getting the word out about their book, particularly indie authors,” says Deck. “It’s hard for your book to stand out among so many other books in the Amazon storefront — effective ads are one of the only ways to do so,” he says. Deck wants participants in the workshop come away with “helpful knowledge about what type of Amazon ad to run, how to connect with their particular/specific audience, how to select the best keywords for their ad and where to find them, and how to test their ads to see if they’re effective.”

The conference is intended to offer writers of all experience levels and genres skills to help them along the path to publishing. NHPR host Peter Biello is moderating the conference and Brunonia Barry, author of the best-selling novel, The Lace Reader is presenting the keynote address and participating in two of the day’s panels. For more information about the conference visit https://nhwritersproject.org/603-writers-conference-2020-full-description/