News - Julie Artz | Author, Editor, Book Coach, Dragon

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Learn how to pitch your book with confidence!

TL;DR: WKND Pitch Perfection mini course will help you answer the essential questions that will make your pitch shine so you can send it out with confidence.

Getting your story into the hands of readers has been a life-long dream. And you want it now! But you’re struggling to answer the question “am I ready to pitch?” And maybe even panicking a wee bit. I get it. I’ve been there.

But there is a way you can slay those doubt demons so you can send your story out into the world with confidence. And you’re so close.

How do I know this?

Let me introduce myself officially:

I’m Julie Artz, and I help truth-tellers like you slay their doubt demons and get their stories reader-ready.

But I’m no stranger to those dreaded inbox crickets. The first time I queried, it was back when you had to use a self-addressed, stamped envelope. I know, right? Old. School. I’d pantsed my first novel, proofread it, gotten my mom’s stamp of approval (not even joking), so I was query-ready, right? WRONG! Needless to say, that novel is forever trunked, but I decided right then to devote myself to learning how to pitch with confidence. I did a little better next time. And knocked it out of the park after that. Now I help writers avoid the mistakes I made back then.

Now, I’m thrilled to announce that I’ve spent the past two months doing a massive brain dump of everything I know about pitching and have created an amazing course offerings for writers.

WKND Pitch Perfection is a six-module mini-course that teaches you, step by step, how to position your book in a competitive marketplace starting with a strong query.

April 18 through April 21, I’ll be offering this $89 course for a special launch-weekend-only price of $49. It is jam-packed with content, including:

💛 6 video lessons including slides, transcripts, and audio files
💛 A step-by-step workbook that goes along with the course
💛 Examples of successful queries in a downloadable knowledge base
💛 A query template
💛 Word count and genre references
💛 Detailed FAQs featuring real questions writers have asked over the years

Get lifetime access to WKND Pitch Perfection now and get ready to send your pitch out with confidence!

Featured

Introducing The Wyrd Words Workshop!

This summer, I asked for your feedback on the writing programs you’d been a part of and whether or not they met your needs. Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to reply–I appreciated all the feedback I got and it was wonderful to learn more about my wonderful Wyrd Words community.

For over a year now, I’ve been planning a program that would let me help more writers take their writing to the next level. I’ve been running a wait list for my 1:1 coaching for several years now and I also realize that the cost of individual coaching prices many dedicated writers out of the market.

So I’m thrilled to introduce you to my newest offering, one that I think will bring you the community, craft, and accountability you need at a price point more people can access:

The Wyrd Words Workshop.

This year-long workshop for novelists and memoirists provides expert guidance, education, and community-based support so that you can send your work out into the world with confidence.

To do that, we will work together to:

Establish a writing practice that will give you time, energy, and ease as you plan, draft, revise, and pitch your story.
Evaluate where your story is and what needs to happen to get it reader-ready.
Establish the big-picture “Why” of your writing life and your work in progress.
Determine gaps in your craft knowledge…and fill them!
Design story scaffolding appropriate for the genre, age category, and “why” of your story.
Learn to revise deeply so that you can get to “done.”
Understand the marketplace into which your book will launch.

The workshop combines a supportive, moderated community, live coaching sessions, monthly craft webinars and write-ins, and 52 weeks of course materials (video and written lectures, workbooks, and exercises) that meet you no matter where you are in the writing journey, from establishing your writing practice through planning, drafting, revising, and pitching/publishing your story.

What might your writing life look like if you had access to:

An online community of like-minded writers
Live and pre-recorded lessons, lectures, and exercises on all aspects of craft, mindset, and industry
Three group coaching calls per month for 1:1 feedback and collaborative learning
Weekly writing sessions

My process is all about self-assessment, planning, and iteration, so no matter where you enter the lifecycle, you’ll find the tools you need to progress and the support required to work with confidence.

If you’ve been struggling to gain the confidence, craft skills, and accountability you need to slay those doubt demons and send your story out into the world, this workshop may be just what you need.

Applications will be open for the month of November and I’ve only got ten slots available, so apply today: julieartz.com/wyrd_words_workshop/

Register now for the “Revision Revolution” webinar! | Mar. 18, 2024

What: Join me for a deep dive into how reverse outlining can revolutionize your revision process. In this 75-minute workshop, I’ll reveal the three tools that can help you reverse outline and assess your story at the big-picture level before you even touch your manuscript.

When: Mar. 18, 2024, 4-5:15 pm PT/ 7-8:15 pm ET

Where: Virtual (via Zoom)

Cost: $25

It’s difficult for writers to hold an entire 70,000+ word story in their head all at once when it’s time to sit down and revise.

So when someone suggests big-picture changes, panic ensues. 😰

During this 75 minute Craft Magic webinar on February 12, we will cover:

🌟 The four essential questions you need to be able to answer about your story
🌟 Why you should learn to write an effective pitch now
🌟 The important scenes you may be missing
🌟 And more!

I’m teaching at ProWritingAid’s Romance Writers’ Week! | Feb. 12-16, 2024

I’m so excited to join an amazing slate of presenters as part of ProWritingAid’s Romance Writers’ Week!

This free virtual summit is an amazing resource for romance writers to learn about writing, editing, and publishing a romance novel.

I’ll be leading a workshop on February 13 all about understanding scene.

Scene is the atom in Story’s periodic table, but many writers struggle to define what it is and how to use this essential building block in their work.

Join me for a deep dive into understanding what a scene is and how to use it to write compelling stories. We’ll dig into the six parts of scene, some common scene types, showing and telling in scene, how to use scene to create a cause-and-effect trajectory through your story, and how strong scenes help with pacing, tension, character motivation, and emotion, and more!

I hope you’ll join us! All sessions will be recorded if you can’t make it live, but you need to be registered to receive the playback.

Sign up for free here!

Register now for the “Creating Unforgettable Characters” webinar! | Feb. 12, 2024

What: Whether you’re writing a fast-paced thriller, an introspective literary fiction, or something in between, creating a compelling cast of characters will make your book unputdownable. Join Julie as she walks you through how to craft unforgettable characters.

When: Feb. 12, 2024, 4-5:15 pm PT/ 7-8:15 pm ET

Where: Virtual (via Zoom)

Cost: $25

Understanding motivation and backstory brings characters to life on the page

During this 75 minute Craft Magic webinar on February 12, we will cover:

🌟 Defining your main character’s goal and misbelief
🌟 Exploring your main character’s backstory
🌟 Choosing characteristics that will make your characters distinct on the page
🌟 And more!

Read: “Meet Julie Artz” on CanvasRebel

I had the pleasure of being interviewed by CanvasRebel all about my journey as a book coach and business owner, including my group coaching community, the Wyrd Words Workshop. Here’s a tidbit from our conversation:

“You might think there aren’t too many similarities between a scene from a memoir set in 1960s Peru and a middle grade fantasy set in modern-day Portland, but we’ve found so many beautiful synchronicities between the character journeys in these two very different stories.

It drives home the universal nature of story, and also the way that writers can learn from the experiences of others in this group setting.”

Thank you to CanvasRebel for the feature! You can read the entire article here.

Follow CanvasRebel for more stories from creatives and entrepreneurs at canvasrebel.com or @canvasrebel on Instagram.

Register now for the “Create a Blueprint for Your Book” webinar! | Jan. 8, 2024

What: Learn where your story fits into the ever-changing publishing landscape and how your “why” is at the center of everything about your story during hands-on workshop.

When: January 11, 2024, 4-5:15 pm PT/ 7-8:15 pm ET

Where: Virtual (via Zoom)

Cost: $25

If your goal is to publish the story of your heart, you need a blueprint.

This hands on workshop covers the first step in my Six-Step Story Planning Process and will help you see how your own personal “Why” for writing is the key to knowing where your book fits on the shelf and how to get it there.

During this 75 minute Craft Magic webinar on January 8, we will cover:

🌟 Discovering the “why” of your story
🌟 Finding comp titles and homing in on your genre
🌟 Crafting a high concept story idea
🌟 And more!

Register now for The Synopsis as a Planning Tool webinar! | Dec. 11, 2023

What: Consummate story geek and book coach Julie Artz will lead you through the process of crafting a long-form synopsis that will serve as the framework of your novel or memoir.

When: December 11, 2023, 4-5:30 pm PT/ 7-8:30 pm ET

Where: Virtual (via Zoom)

Cost: $25

Craft your story’s roadmap

The long-form synopsis can be an invaluable tool in your planning process and serve as an anchor as you move through the drafting, critique, and revision stages.

I’ve seen amazing results since I started using a synopsis as a starting point for my writing—this tool is now a permanent part of my toolbox and it can be part of yours too.

In this 90-minute webinar, I will provide you with the tools to create a synopsis that captures your character and story arc so you can start drafting with confidence!

Register for Revising Your Novel with Julie Artz

Join me on Friday, December 8, 2023, 7-8 pm PT for Revising Your Novel, a webinar hosted by Orange County Library System to discuss processes and tips for revising your novel.

If you’ve just finished a first draft or will soon, the next step is revision.

Whether you’re preparing your manuscript for a critique partner, an agent, editor, or readers, this webinar will help guide you!

Revision is hard, but it’s also where the best writerly magic happens. I’m offering this webinar to help demystify the process a bit by giving you tools for planning, character, emotion, voice, structure, and line editing.

Registration is free and open now!

CP Meet Cute Round 7!

Finding a critique partner is at the top of my list of things I wish every writer would do BEFORE reaching out to an agent, editor, or book coach for help with their story.

Getting those fresh eyes on your early drafts can help you fill the gap between your vision for the story and what you’ve actually got on the page. And the friendship/support a critique partner can provide is invaluable on what can be a long and lonely journey toward publication.

But how do you find critique partners? It can be tough, especially with words as tender and personal as our stories. Now you don’t have to go it alone—I can help you find other like-minded writers and have a speed-dating inspired format to help you quickly identify if you’re a match!

In January, I’m running the seventh round of this FREE critique partner matching service, CP Meet Cute. Sign up today at pages.julieartz.com/cp-meet-cute and let me help you find critique partners!

Here are the key dates for Round Seven:

January 1, 2024 – Round begins (but you can join the waitlist before-hand!)
February 7, 2024 – Deadline for completing Matchmaker Survey
February 14, 2024 – Cohorts announced

Have more questions? Check out this quick video I made about CP Meet Cute!

CP Meet Cute is a tribute to the romance novels that were my lifeblood at the start of the pandemic, but it’s not just for romance writers—it’s for writers of all genres and ages categories, including Picture Books, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Adult, and Creative Nonfiction!

Writers at any level who are looking for a critique partner can sign up here and I’ll be in touch with more details: pages.julieartz.com/cp-meet-cute.

How Does It Work?

Think of it like speed dating! After you sign up, you’ll get an email with some ground rules and a link to my Matchmaker Survey. This brief survey helps me learn a little bit about you so that I can match you with a group of like-minded writers. That group of 3-5 writers will be your CP Meet Cute Cohort.

I’ll send you an email introducing you to your cohort and providing some resources on how to give great feedback and how to structure critique groups. Then your cohort will have about six weeks to exchange the first chapters of your works in progress.

Once the six weeks have passed, you’ll get a follow-up email asking whether you’ve found someone you think you can trust with your pages going forward. If so, congratulations! You’ve taken the next step in your writing journey and now you’ve got a buddy to walk with you. If not, do not fear, you’ll go back into the pool for another round of CP Meet Cute, which I run three times per year.