Blisscraft Life With Christina Katz

We live in a great country where even women and minorities and immigrants have the right to express ourselves. I try to remember that this has not always been the case and that it is often not the case elsewhere and to be grateful for all that we have, all that we can become, and how far we have come collectively.

We’re not done yet. Every day is a chance to make some progress. Every day is a chance to show our full colors. Happy Fourth!

~ Photo by Camera Slayer

I am thrilled to announce the official launch of Micro-publishing For Mom Writers. We’ve done a test-class and it went really well. I am so proud of the e-books these class pioneers have created, which will be available for purchase very soon.

And don’t worry, you will be the first to hear about it when they are available. 😉

Why micro-publishing, you may ask?

Well, you have probably noticed that publishing doesn’t just happen in all or nothing terms any longer. In the old days, you were either traditionally published or not. These days publishing happens on a wider spectrum from short to long and from digital to print.

This is good news because it’s clear that it’s harder and it takes longer to get a traditionally published book deal than it used to even five years ago. As a result of over-printing in the recent past too many books went into print and then right back out of print, which was a bad thing for those writers. Today writers don’t have to rush into traditional publication and can benefit from waiting longer and having more control and ownership in the meantime over their content and value by producing e-books as needed and appropriate.

Those two words, needed and appropriate are where I come in as your micro-publishing coach. The world does not need or want any unspecific books, even in e-book form. Just because a book is in e-book form, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t need to be as purposeful as any traditionally published book.

I help my students take the best of what they have already done, examine it, and determine how to best serve their readerships through e-books. It doesn’t matter what kind of book you are writing in what kind of format, in today’s crowded marketplace whatever you write, you have to nail it every time. And when you do, the results are awesome and empowering.

So, if you are a nonfiction writer and you are feeling discouraged about the distance between you and a traditionally published book, don’t despair. You can write your way to traditional starting today while enjoying (and profiting from) the process in a way that wasn’t possible in the past.

Micro-publishing for Mom Writers is a class that is available to my former students only. It has prerequisites, which include the completion of my classes Writing & Publishing the Short Stuff and Discover Your Specialty & Launch Your Platform. You can read the full course description for Micro-publishing for Mom Writers here.

I hope, if you are a former student, you will consider joining us on the Micro-publishing journey. Stay tuned for ongoing announcements over the course of the year as students complete and launch their e-books.

Pitching Practice is one of the most challenging classes that I offer. On the surface, the workload does not appear that much different from my other classes. However, querying is more challenging than it appears…which is why it needs its own class.

The whole point of query writing is to show that you know your stuff—to show that you have something to say and you know how to say it in a way that is relevant to the market you are targeting. Like most things in life, the first few times you try to write a query well, the process is slow and clunky and you think, “I don’t see how I am ever going to get the hang of this.”

But that’s because I’m not one of those teachers who hands you a template and says, “Here you go, copy this and you’ll be all set.”

No way, when I say I’m going to teach somebody something in six weeks, I mean I am going to put them through the paces, so that when they are done, they won’t be the same person, at least not with regards to the particular skill we are working on.

So, I invite you to come and face the challenge of writing queries easily and well. I can’t promise you will have the hang of it by week two or even three. But by week six, the skill will be yours to keep.

Here’s the course description for Pitching Practice: Write Six Queries in Six Weeks.

Okay, you’ve completed freelance writing classes, you’ve read writing and marketing books, qne you have published a few articles. Now all you need are assignments, deadlines, and more checks made out to yours truly. Or perhaps you’ve taken classes with Christina Katz and now you are ready to take your writing career to the next level.

But you’ve run into a few challenges:

• You have plenty of ideas, but you just can’t seem to get motivated enough to pitch them to editors
• Although you’ve written a few articles, the query writing process is still difficult because you feel like you have to reinvent the wheel each time
• You are isolated from other writers. Not that your family and friends aren’t great. They are, but you crave the company of like-minded others
• You feel stuck writing for lower-paying, regional markets and want to break into higher-paying, national markets

In this writing class, pitching is all you do. Over the course of six weeks, you crank out six queries, which is exactly the kind of practice you need if you want to get into the habit of landing better-paying assignments.

After you write and send six queries, you will never again ask, “What makes a strong query?” You will have developed your own style into muscle memory that you can exercise over and over to obtain future assignments. Finding your own rhythm, not someone else’s, is what effective query writing is about.

Each week, you will study a successful writer’s query and create your own list of steps to follow. You will also receive a three-page worksheet weekly, which will provide helpful ideas and checklists to help you systematize your query writing process and increase your productivity. You will be able to use these worksheets, along with your checklist to write a targeted query every six days for the rest of your career.

Emphasis will be placed on developing the query-writing habit, achieving the goal of six queries written in six weeks and sent to publications that advance your career.

Here’s what recent students have to say about the class:

There’s nothing like having a new concept click. That’s what happened for me in Christina’s Pitching Practice class. Query writing used to be a faraway hurdle. Now I have the confidence and know-how to take my story ideas to bigger markets. ~ J. Crain

Pitching Practice helped me to refine my focus and find my query-writing rhythm. It increased my confidence in my own ideas and taught me how to evaluate the salability of my queries before sending them out. Look out editors, here they come! ~ H. Luedtke

Christina offers quality instruction and critiques to her students. She expects the best from herself and upholds those same standards for her students. She asks no more of them that she asks of herself; this dedication is clear in her instruction, critiques and kind words of support. I learn so much about myself as a writer every time I take a class with Christina. ~ M. Lindberg

Christina has a talent for not giving you the answer you think you want. Instead, she guides you in finding your own process and answers, which is infinitely more valuable. ~ L. Davidson

I got exactly what I needed from Christina’s Pitching Practice class: several queries that are ready to go, and the confidence to send them out. ~ S. Foyt

I had gotten in a rut with my article submissions, pitching almost exclusively to lower-paying regional markets. Christina encouraged me to raise my sites and pitch to the nationals—by the time the class was over, I had received very positive feedback from the editors of two major national magazines, opening up the lines of communication for potential assignments. ~ J. Armstrong

This is the class for students who have been building article-writing skills steadily for some time and who are ready to tackle and master the challenge of the query letter. The difference between cover letter writing and query letter writing is the difference between making some money writing and making a whole lot more money writing.

When you are ready for the challenge, you can find more info and register here.

Me again, folks.

I swear I am going on vacation, but I want to make sure I get all the info up about upcoming classes first.

This class, which we affectionately call DYS-LYP around here, begins in October. But I thought I’d mention it now so folks can plan ahead. It starts October 12th. But please register by October 4th.

Here’s the course description:

In the first three weeks of this class you will brainstorm an all-important writing specialty, something that will become crucial when you launch your writer’s platform. You will find your best audiences, cultivate your expertise, manage your ideas, develop marketing skills, claim your path, learn how to serve editors, and become portfolio-minded. You’ll learn how to become the professional you’ve always wanted to be and, most importantly, how to take your writing career more seriously.

During the second three weeks, you will cultivate a clear vision of your platform and a plan for first and future steps. You will learn how to leverage the strengths, passions and the track record you already have as the basis for your platform. You will be ready to build that all-important online presence your future readers will want. You will identify the appropriate audiences for your platform and create a focused, yet flexible platform you can commit to developing over the next several years. You’ll finish the class with an action/investment plan to grow your online presence.

Here’s was past students had to say:

I highly recommend this class for writers struggling to define their niche or confused about how to communicate it compellingly. Christina is a wise guide who facilitates the kind of inner exploration it takes to find and flesh out an authentic, sustainable platform. This class helped me get clear on who I am and what I bring to my audience. That’s priceless. ~ H. Luedtke

Christina’s exceptional class focused my thoughts to build a specialty platform plan. Her assignments challenged and helped me look deeply into lifelong experiences to build an organized plan for getting published. ~ B. Hay

Building a platform isn’t for the faint-of-heart, but the clarity I found after digging into the possibilities was an invaluable learning experience. I now have a clearly defined roadmap to follow and a better understanding of how to continue building my writing platform grounded in practical techniques rather than just dreamy possibilities. ~ C. Hines

Discovering your platform is a journey. Christina is a patient guide who encourages you with every step. ~ L. Durante

This course not only taught me more about myself and what inspires me to write, but also showed me concrete actions to take in order to establish a strong platform for my writing career. With Christina’s practical advice and informed guidance, I learned exactly what steps I need to take to reach my writing goals. ~ S. Lindsey

Before I took this class, I was struggling to identify topics that would be of interest to editors and readers. Now, I have the beginnings of a platform that will help me generate as much work as I want or need just by developing and marketing my area of expertise. ~ B. Meleski

Like WPSS, which I posted about yesterday, this class will be completely updated and revised with the full benefit of the suggestions I’ve received from the last couple of classes. Yahoo!

You can find more info and register here.

This class is already quite popular. I suspect it will become even more so now that it is a prereq for my new and very exciting class, Micro-publishing for Mom Writers.

Forewarned is forearmed. 😉

Greetings from my summer vacation (which hasn’t really started yet)!

I just finished wrapping up my last round of classes, and I am stoked. I have been teaching Writing & Publishing The Short Stuff for almost five years straight and it never gets old!

My students always amaze me with their fresh ideas, their follow-through, and their willingness to grow their writing skills in just six short weeks!

Here’s the 411 on Writing & Publishing the Short Stuff. The next class is newly updated and better than ever. I kinda get a thrill just saying that because I feel like the class is already pretty darn good. So imagine it even better!

Finally, a writing workshop that fits into the busy lives of moms! This class focuses on getting you into print sooner, rather than later, and without pulling all-nighters or paying a fortune in babysitter fees. You will learn how to create short, easy-to-write articles—a skill that will make it easier to work your way up to longer, more time-consuming articles (like features and profiles) when you’re ready. You will try your pen at tips, fillers, short interviews, list articles, how-tos, and the short personal essays—all within six weeks. And you will learn to submit your work with a basic cover letter. Opportunities for self-assessment and self-reflection are woven into the class, and you’ll benefit from reading your classmates’ submissions.

By starting short, you will learn to identify multiple possibilities for your material that will strengthen your freelancer’s eye in the long run. You will receive two detailed reviews of your drafts-in-progress at weeks three and six (you choose one of your pieces for an instructor critique each time). The instructor offers questions answered for the entire class, just like a traditional “live” class. Because of the high volume of student productivity in this class, the instructor does not critique each and every student submission, but she does share all of your work with the entire class.

Here’s what folks say about the WPSS experience:

Christina is a gentle and encouraging instructor who really knows her material. In six weeks, she helps students develop multiple pieces that are ready for submission, and shares loads of professional insights on what it takes to get the positive attention of an editor and get published. ~ A. Kelly

This is my second go around with WPSS. I took the class a couple of years ago but the timing wasn’t right for me to begin writing. Taking it a second time has been a charm! Christina has updated the material and added great new information. I can’t wait to get started on my “writer mama” career. ~ L. Seplack

Ms. Katz knows her stuff.  If you love to write but are not sure how to go from being a dreamer to being a practitioner, this is the course for you. ~ J. Arlin

WPSS will make you look inside yourself and pull out your best! ~ B. St. Clair

The class pushed me to write these articles where in the past it was something ‘I planned to do.’  Now I feel as if writing these types of articles is something I really can do. ~ D. Bianchi

I enjoyed the challenge of having to produce work in a timely manner. Having definite deadlines forced me to create a plan of action. This is what real life writing is all about. ~ C. Stamps

Christina will inspire you to be the writer you’ve always wanted to be. Her class materials provide the nuts and bolts of craft and business smarts, while exercises encourage writers to flex their creative muscles. I always come away [from a class with Christina] surprised and heartened. ~ D. Klempner

Christina is the real thing. She’s your biggest fan and also the coach that likes pushing you beyond your comfort zone. Exactly what I needed. ~ C. Rubenstein

I am always thrilled to meet and work with new students. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the class at “katz christina at comcast dot net.”

You can find more info and register here. This class is already filling up, so don’t delay. Register and then go play! I’ll send out a note one week prior to the start date requesting each students’ intro materials.

Happy summer!

I’m wrapping up some projects and classes this week and next and then taking a bit of a break for the rest of the month of June.

I’ve kept up a heightened work pace all year long in an effort to write and edit The Writer’s Workout, teach classes, train my Dream Teams, run my author series, do a few gigs, write a few articles, host my month-long author mama giveaway, and more.

My husband, Jason, also worked really hard this year, teaching over-sized classes, producing and editing the WHS yearbook, running the theatre department and the drama club, and juggling all the other commitments that go along with being a full-time public school teacher.

Samantha was busy growing three and half inches this year, going to school, enjoying recesses with her two BFFs, not to mention playing Little Cosette in Jason’s production of Les Mis, taking three dance classes two days a week, reading Wimpy Kid books, and watching lots of her dad’s old favorite movies.

We are ready for a break and some family time. And then I’ll be back in July, energized and refreshed. 🙂

If you are interested in working with me this fall, please check out my Class and Training offerings. Both start up in August.

Classes and Dream Teams are already filling up, so you’d might want to register now. I’m happy to send you a confirmation within 24 hours after you register. I am happy to answer any questions you might have.

I’m offering three classes beginning in August: Writing & Publishing the Short Stuff, Pitching Practice, and Micro-publishing for Mom Writers. You will also find info on essay writing classes with Abigail Green on the Classes page.

If you feel that you miss me so much you can’t possible go on without hearing my nagging voice (at least in your head), please feel free to purchase my books or e-book (Writer Mama, Get Known, and Author Mama).

If you miss me already and you you want me to know it, you can pre-order The Writer’s Workout now and forward me your receipt for a chance to win a a one-hour phone coaching consult.

Three winners will be selected from the first first fifty purchasers. Forward your receipt to katz christina at comcast dot net to enter.

And if you really miss me and you want to say hello, you can probably find me on Facebook, even though I’ll be trying my best to stay mostly offline.

Happy June, everyone! See you in July…

~ Photo by dalechumbly

1. Tania Dakka wins Come and Find Me by Hallie Ephron

2. Mar Junge wins Book By Book, The Complete Guide to Mother-Daughter Book Clubs by Cindy Hudson

3. Anthology Day:

Rebekah Schneiter wins Chicken Soup for the Soul: Thanks Mom with an essay by Judy M. Miller

Cindy Hudson wins Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Dog’s Life with an essay by Samantha Ducloux Waltz

Maribeth Graham wins Just Moms: Conveying Justice In An Unjust World with an essay by Emily Chadwick Baker

4. Suzanne Kamata wins Gringa: A Contradictory Girlhood by Melissa Hart

5. Kathleen Plucker wins Bitsy’s Labyrinth by Mary Andonian

6. Judy M. Miller wins The Smart Girl’s Guide To Style by Sharon Cindrich

7. Judy M. Miller wins The Crying Tree by Naseem Rakha

8. Amy Simon, Carol J. Alexander & Mar Junge win Writer Mama by Christina Katz

9. Malia Jacobson wins Mothers & Daughters by Rae Meadows

10. Jill Haugen wins The Write Start by Jen Hallissy

11. Michelle Thornton wins Heart of Ice by Lisa Wiehl with April Henry

12. Renee Roberson wins For the Love of Music by Elizabeth Rusch

13. Laura Ackerman wins 101 Success Secrets For Gifted Kids by Christine Fonseca

14. Kimberly Ginn wins Blacklisted From The PTA by Lela Davidson

15. Katie Beltramo wins The Writer’s Digest Guide To Query Letters by Wendy Burt-Thomas

16. Renee Roberson wins Damaged Goods by Heather Sharfeddin

17. Literary Mama Day:

Angie Albright wins Mama PhD edited by Caroline Grant

Beth Vogt wins The Beautiful One Has Come by Suzanna Kamata

18. Dania Bianchi Get Known Before the Book Deal by Christina Katz

19. Rebecca Cherba wins The Fetch by Laura Whitcomb

20. Lara Krupicka wins A Double Life by Lisa Harper

21. Pam Maynard wins A Vampire Is Coming To Dinner by Pamela Jane

22. Laura Ackerman wins The Indie Author Guide by April L. Hamilton

23. Laura Ackerman wins The Last Will of Moira Leahy by Therese Walsh

24. Bet LaRue wins The Artist’s Guide to Grant Writing by Gigi Rosenberg

25. Kristine Elizabeth Moore wins An Extravagant Hunger: The Passionate Years of M.F.K. Fisher by Anne Zimmerman

26. Carol J. Alexander wins Hot (Sweaty) Mamas by Kara Douglass Thom & Laurie Lethert Kocanda

27. Lara Krupicka wins The Writer’s Workout by Christina Katz

28. Ann Goldberg wins Becky Levine The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide

29. Sarah Lindsey wins Fix, Freeze, Feast by Kati Neville

30. Three books from Adams Media:

JudyB wins Fixing Freddie: A True story about a Boy, a Single Mom, and the Very Bad Beagle Who Saved Them By Paula Munier

Pam Maynard wins When You Say Thank You, Mean It by Mary O’Donohue

Kristine Elizabeth Moore wins The Whole Family Cookbook by Michelle Stern

31. Bethany Dykman wins three books from Allison Winn Scotch: The One That I Want, Time Of My Life, and The Department of Lost & Found

Winners, please allow up to two weeks for delivery.

If any books don’t show up in a timely fashion, please contact me at christina katz at comcast dot net and let me know.

Thanks so much for participating! It was tons of fun. 🙂

To learn more about our fabulous contributing author mamas, go to yesterday’s post.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the resurrection of our giveaway for 2011! 🙂

I have listed all of our generous authors below. What a bunch of wonderfully hard-working and generous authors! Please help me thank them!

Thank you to everyone who came by and commented. Congratulations to our winners! (I think we had double winners this year, but no triple winners.) Even if you did not win, I hope you benefited from participating. I appreciate your support and hope you will return for my big book-launch party on December 6th. 🙂

Hosting the giveaway has really served as a great reminder for me of just how many talented, successful mom authors there are in the world. Let’s support them as much as we can. We don’t exactly live in a world that encourages professional strides in creative moms, so I hope that the giveaway has helped inspire you to find the inner strength and great determination it takes to champion your writing career in the long run.

Here is your complete list of giveaway authors from May 2011:

1. Hallie Ephron, Come and Find Me (Giveaway Link):

2. Cindy Hudson, Book By Book (Giveaway Link)

3. Anthology Contributor Round-up Day (Giveaway Link)

Judy M. Miller Chicken Soup for the Soul: Thanks, Mom!

Samantha Ducloux Waltz Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Dog’s Life

Emily Baker Chadwick Just Moms

4. Melissa Hart, Gringa (Giveaway Link)

5. Mary Andonian, Bitsy’s Labyrinth (Giveaway Link)

6. Sharon Cindrich, The Girls Guide to Style (Giveaway Link)

7. Naseem Rakha, The Crying Tree (Giveaway Link)

Day 8. Christina Katz, Writer Mama (Giveaway Link)

Day 9. Rae Meadows, Mothers and Daughters (Giveaway Link)

Day 10. Jen Hallissy, The Write Start (Giveaway Link)

Day 11. April Henry, Heart of Ice (Giveaway Link)

Day 12. Liz Rusch, For The Love Of Music (Giveaway Link)

Day 13. Christine Fonseca, 101 Success Secrets For Gifted Kids (Giveaway Link)

Day 14. Lela Davidson, Blacklisted From The PTA (Giveaway Link)

Day 15. Wendy Burt-Thomas, The Writer’s Digest Guide To Query Letters (Giveaway Link)

Day 16. Heather Sharfeddin, Damaged Goods (Giveaway Link)

Day 17. Literary Mama Day (featuring Caroline Grant‘s Mama Ph.D. and Suzanna Kamata‘s The Beautiful One Has Come) (Giveaway Link)

Day 18. Christina Katz: Get Known Before the Book Deal (Giveaway Link)

Day 19. Laura Whitcomb, The Fetch (Giveaway Link)

Day 20. Lisa Harper, A Double Life (Giveaway Link)

Day 21. Pamela Jane, A Vampire Is Coming To Dinner (Giveaway Link)

Day 22. April L. Hamilton, The Indie Author Guide (Giveaway Link)

23. Therese Walsh, The Last Will of Moira Leahy (Giveaway Link)

24. Gigi Rosenberg, The Artist’s Guide To Grant Writing (Giveaway Link)

25. Anne Zimmerman, An Extravagant Hunger (Giveaway Link)

26. Kara Douglass Thom & Laurie Lethert Kocanda, Hot (Sweaty) Mamas (Giveaway Link)

27. Christina Katz, The Writer’s Workout (first giveaway copy ever–will go out in December, 2011!) (Giveaway Link)

28. Becky Levine, The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide (Giveaway Link)

29. Kati Neville, Fix, Freeze, Feast (Giveaway Link)

30. Fixing Freddie by Paula Munier, When You Say Thank You, Mean It by Mary O’Donahue, and The Whole Family Cookbook by Michelle Stern (Giveaway Link)

31. Grand Prize to ONE lucky winner: Allison Winn Scotch, The Department of Lost & Found, Time of My Life & The One That I Want (Giveaway Link)

Hope to see you back next year! Stay tuned tomorrow for our list of book winners!