Washington Romance Writers 2023 Retreat/Conference
2023-06-02 17:00 - 2023-06-04 12:00 UTC | Hilton Garden Inn, Shirlington, 4271 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA, 22206, United States
Welcome/ Networking Happy Hour …Workshops… Writing Activities… Luncheon with Speakers and Attendees… Book Signing… and MUCH MORE!

Occoquan Riverfest & Craft Show
2023-06-03 10:00 - 2023-06-04 17:00 UTC | Occoquan, VA, Occoquan, VA, United States
Check out some great crafts and show your support for local authors at this annual street festival.

StokerCon Annual Meeting
2023-06-15 08:00 - 2023-06-18 17:00 UTC | Sheraton Station Square Pittsburgh, 300 W Station Square Dr, Pittsburgh, PA, 15219, United States
The premiere horror literary convention presented by the Horror Writers Association.

Fredericksburg Independent Book Festival
2023-06-17 10:00 - 16:00 UTC | Riverfront Park, 713 Sophia Street, Fredericksburg, VA, 22401, United States
Fredericksburg book festival for independently published authors. Buy a table to exhibit, or just go and support local authors!

Barnes and Noble Book Signing Part 1
2023-06-24 12:00 - 16:00 UTC | Barnes and Noble Manassas, 8117 Sudley Rd, Manassas, VA, 20109, United States
Come support members John B. Wren, AJ George, Larry Buxton and Vee James, at this book signing event!

June Meeting: Reimagining Our Inherited Stories
2023-06-24 13:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York) | Faith Lutheran Church Undercroft Meeting Room, 3313 Arlington Blvd, Arlington, VA, 22201, United States

Barnes and Noble Book Signing Part 2
2023-06-25 12:00 - 16:00 UTC | Barnes and Noble Manassas, 8117 Sudley Rd, Manassas, VA, 20109, United States
Come support local authors Michelle McBeth, Mary Elisabeth Ames, Anita Nahal, and Irene Wittig at this book signing event!

Virginia Writer's Club Annual Symposium
2023-08-05 09:00 - 17:00 UTC | Randolph-Macon College, 114 College Ave., Ashland, VA, 23005, United States

Library of Congress National Book Festival
2023-08-12 09:00 - 20:00 UTC | Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington, DC, 20001, United States

Arlington County Fair
2023-08-18 16:00 - 22:00, 2023-08-19 10:00 - 21:00, 2023-08-20 11:00 - 19:00 UTC | Thomas Jefferson Community Center, 3501 Second Street South, Arlington, 22204, United States
The club will have a table with anthologies, membership information, and rotating authors signing books!

August Meeting: Art Taylor on Pro Prose
2023-08-26 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Faith Lutheran Church Undercroft Meeting Room, 3313 Arlington Blvd, Arlington, VA, 22201, United States
PRO PROSE: TIPS FOR TIGHTENING YOURSWith an eye toward economy, efficiency, and focus, we’ll explore various ways to keep your prose tight and taut. How can you use and balance the five elements of scene-building? How do you keep the emphasis on the right place in your sentences? How might you be misusing dialogue tags? What does the word “filtering” mean—and why should you avoid it?

CreaturesCrimesandCreativity (C3) Convention
2023-09-08 - 2023-09-10 | Doubletree Hilton Hotel Columbia, 5485 Twin Knolls Rd, Columbia, MD, United States

September Meeting
2023-09-16 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Faith Lutheran Church Undercroft Meeting Room, 3313 Arlington Blvd, Arlington, VA, 22201, United States
Tara Campbell will give a talk on craft.

Fairfax Library Local Author Book Festival
2023-09-30 12:00 - 15:00 UTC | Chantilly Regional Library, 4000 Stringfellow Rd, Chantilly, VA, 20151-2628, United States
David Baldacci headlines this festival featuring 50+ local authors including NVWC member Anita Nahal!

Art on the Avenue
2023-10-07 10:00 - 18:00 UTC | Art on the Avenue, 1800 Mt. Vernon Avenue, Alexandria, VA, 22301, United States
The NVWC will have a booth at this huge festival celebrating art diversity in vibrant Del Ray, Alexandria! Great art, food, crafts, and music.

Eat Local. Read Local.
2023-10-14 11:00 - 14:00 UTC | Cascades Library, 21030 Whitfield Pl, Potomac Falls, VA, 20165, United States
Come support members of our chapter, along with dozens of other local authors while you eat from some tasty local food vendors and listen to music.

The Write Women Book Fest
2023-10-14 12:00 - 17:00 UTC | Comfort Inn Conference Center, 4500 Crain Highway, Bowie, MD, 20716, United States
This event has 100+ authors tabling, selling and signing books, panel discussions, and live poetry readings all day with E.C. Poetry & Prose.

October Meeting
2023-10-21 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Reston Library, 11925 Bowman Towne Dr, Reston, 20190, United States

Baltimore Writers' Conference
2023-11-04 08:00 - 20:00 UTC | Townson University, Liberal Arts Building, 8000 York Road, Townson, MD, 21252, United States
Time TBD. Sessions, quick critiques, guest speakers, and networking over wine and cheese!

Arlington Library Local Author Festival
2023-11-04 08:00 - 2023-11-05 20:00 UTC | Arlington Libraries
Arlington’s first ever local author festival! Library locations and time TBD.

State Annual Meeting
2023-11-04 11:00 - 14:00 UTC | VA
The Virginia Writers Club’s annual meeting includes lunch, a keynote speaker, Golden Nib awards, and elections. Details coming soon. Watch the state/local newsletter for more information.

Hanover Book Expo
2023-11-11 10:00 - 15:00 UTC | VFW Post 9809, 7168 Flag Ln., Mechanicsville, VA, 23111, United States
Free entry! Lots of local authors and three sessions. Authors interested in exhibiting should see the website for more information.

November Meeting
2023-11-18 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Sherwood Regional Library, 2501 Sherwood Hall Ln, Alexandria, VA, 22306
VP Jason Maddux will be publishing his first book -an anthology of sci-fi stories- in this meeting. If you’re curious about how KDP and self-publishing works, you won’t want to miss this!

January Meeting
2024-01-20 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Tyson’s-Pimmit Regional Library, 7584 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA, 22043, United States
Elections and year planning are conducted at the January meeting. This is the most important meeting of the year to get your voice heard and consider volunteering for a position in the club.
We will be on Zoom and in meeting room 2 at Tyson’s-Pimmit Regional Library.

February Meeting on Book Design
2024-02-17 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | John Marshall Library, 6209 Rose Hill Dr, Alexandria, VA, 22310, United States
Book design encompasses the visual aspects of a book such as font, layout, and paper choice. Attention to design details is critical to produce a book that stands out and appeals to readers. This session will explore the design steps required to produce a visually appealing book that will lead to success in indie publishing.
Larry Issa is an award-winning book designer and author based in Vienna, Virginia, with a successful career spanning over 16 years. Collaborating with both local and international organizations, his impressive client list includes institutions such as The Louvre Abu Dhabi, Save the Children, and Northwestern University. Drawing inspiration from his global travels and his love for art and literature, Larry’s debut picture book, “Get Back in the Book!” marks the beginning of his journey into the world of children’s literature, with many more creative projects in store.

March Meeting- Author Panel
2024-03-16 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Shirlington Library, 4200 Campbell Ave, Arlington, VA, 22206, United States
Our March meeting will feature a panel of writers with military/government experience explaining how they’ve turned that experience into gripping prose. Our three guests—both successful novelists—have done just that! One in the “Thriller”, and one in the Science Fiction genre, and one in non-fiction.
They’ll share tips for how to turn your government service experience into unputdownable prose and answer questions from the audience after.
Join us March 16 at 1:00 p.m. at the Shirlington Library in Arlington, Virginia, for light snacks, refreshments, camaraderie and writing tips. See you then!
Author Tom DeWitt weaves technology and current events into adult-themed SCI-FI thrillers. His 40 years of experience supporting the Federal Government provides the backdrop for his recent novels, “The SOUP Trilogy.” Tomdewitt.com.

C.E. Albanese is a former U.S. Secret Service special agent with over twenty years of law enforcement experience. His manuscript Drone Kings was the Grandmaster winner of the 2021 Clive Cussler Adventure Writers Competition. His short stories have appeared in The Mystery Magazine and Beyond the Shadows Anthology. He has contributed to CareerAuthors.com and serves as a board member of the Virginia Writers Club. Additionally, C.E. Albanese is the co-creator and co-host of The Crew Reviews podcast, where he interviews renowned thriller and crime authors. A graduate of Rutgers University, he resides in Northern Virginia with his wife, who is also a special agent for the U.S. Secret Service, and their two children. https://cealbanese.com/
I am a patent practitioner and have been both an innovation consultant and a solution salesperson. I am also an inventor on 52 issued US patent applications. My inventions include unmanned ground and aerial systems, distribution center logistics, blockchain, and inventions for the store of the future. From that work, I wrote OUTPACING THE COMPETITION: PATENT-BASED BUSINESS STRATEGY, published by John Wiley & Sons.
Before my career with commercial enterprises, I served as an Airborne Infantry Officer in the 101st Airborne Division. At the time I joined, we still had a Soviet threat. In 2003, I published a book titled UNDERSTANDING SUN TZU ON THE ART OF WAR, which was adopted for several years by the National Defense University, Navy War College, and Air War College. In 2011-13, I produced and directed a shark documentary titled SHARKS OF WAR: TRUTH, TALES, AND TERROR, which was a finalist at BLUE Ocean Film Festival in 2016. From that experience, I wrote and am shopping a book titled THE SHARKS, THE DARK, AND THE DEEP, which features a survivor from the U.S.S. Indianapolis, a cruiser sunk at the end of World War II.

April Meeting -The Author-Editor Relationship: Everything You Need to Know to Find Your Fit
2024-04-13 13:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York) | Mary Riley Styles Public Library, 120 N Virginia Ave, Falls Church, VA, United States
Hiring an editor is one of the most important decisions you can make as a self-published author. In this workshop, presented from both an author and editor perspective, you’ll learn about things like determining when you’re ready, what types of editing you’ll need, where to find an editor, what questions you should be asking, and why you need to find the right match to be successful on your path to publication.
Member Jennifer Milder and editor Elizabeth Merck will provide a joint presentation and talk.
Elizabeth Merck is a Northern Virginia editor and writer. After working more than twenty years in the Washington, DC nonprofit sector, using storytelling to raise money for a variety of causes, she became a deputy editor at Write My Wrongs Co. In January 2022, she opened her own freelance editing business, where she currently does beta reading, comprehensive editing (copy, line, and developmental), proofreading, and ghostwriting. She has a BA in Psychology from Marymount University and an MBA from Walden University. She’s a member of the Editorial Freelancer’s Association (EFA) and the proud mom of two teenagers. She’s also putting the finishing touches on her debut novel Jameson Heights.
Jennifer Milder is an American novelist, entrepreneur, and mother of teenagers. She has authored The Epilogue of August. Between those careers, she’s worked as a software consultant, project manager, play producer, non-profit founder, and tutor. She now lives in Washington, DC, with two daughters, two cats, and a dog. Milder grew up in North Carolina, graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill, and hopes to never return to the 9 to 5 grind.

May Meeting - Comic Relief
2024-05-11 13:00 - 15:00 UTC | Westover Library, 1644 N McKinley Rd., Arlington, VA
The Importance of Comic Relief.
Comic relief is a plot device used to lighten the mood and keep the reader engaged. Commonly used in dialogue and description, comic relief is essential in diffusing tension before, during, or after a difficult scene. Executed properly, comic relief can underscore themes in all genres—including nonfiction! Join us for a rollicking discussion on how we can best use humor in helping our readers both think and feel more deeply when reading our texts. We will also examine comic relief in classical literature; investigate the elements of satire, irony, wit, and sarcasm; determine what makes a scene humorous or contrived; and learn how to avoid breaking a reader’s willingness to suspend disbelief.
Deidre Lovegren
Deidra’s novel The Medicine Girl debuted in July 2022. The sequel, The Medicine Woman, was released in August 2023. The final installment, The Medicine Crone, will be released in Winter 2024. She has published shorter works including 21 Conversations, a collection of dialogue-only stories. The Lady of the Match, a short story collection translated into Arabic, debuted at the Cairo International Book Fair in 2024.
Deidra has also written over one hundred short stories and regularly competes in various international writing contests.
Over her teaching career, Deidra has taught scores of English classes to students from preschool to college. Currently, she is the humanities instructor at a private school in Central Virginia.
Deidra co-hosts “Read Lots Write Lots,” an Australian podcast featuring writers worldwide. In addition, she is a contest judge for the London-based Reedsy Prompts.
Along with the Blue Marble Storytellers team, she organizes writers’ conferences in the United States and Europe. She is also an engaging conference speaker who loves to share her knowledge about the writer’s craft.
She currently lives in Virginia with her husband of 30 years, three sons, and her rescue cats, General Sherman and Cinna.
