Online Presentation:
“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

The stories that keep readers up all night share three key characters: they’re suspenseful, well-structured, and cleverly plotted. In this comprehensive overview, you’ll discover how to write tighter, more polished first drafts by focusing on the underpinnings of effective storytelling. Specifically, we’ll discuss how to create spine-tingling suspense by escalating conflict and raising the stakes. We’ll assess how to optimize the story-driving potential of four kinds of conflict: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual (and how best to combine them). We’ll also discuss how to choose the structure that’s best for your story and how best to integrate plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) using Jane’s Plotting Roadmap to help build suspense while controlling your story’s pace. Making thoughtful, reader-focused decisions about suspense, structure, and plot helps ensure your story will resonate with readers—and those are the stories publishers want and readers crave.

Contact Pam Bodziock for more details.

Online Webinar:
“Create Edge-Of-Your-Seat Suspense:
Increase Tension by Getting into Your Readers’ Heads”

Suspense is the heart and soul of storytelling. Without it, the only readers who keep turning pages are the ones already keenly interested in your subject. But suspense doesn’t have to involve high-speed car chases, eerily-shaped shadows flitting outside the window, or a child running into the road. It’s inherent in the kinds of real incidents that happen to real people—finding a wallet in the street, chatting with a stranger in the grocery store, or hiking through the woods when everything suddenly goes still. In this FREE one-hour webinar, I’ll show you how to build that tension where it really lives: inside your reader’s head.

The secret isn’t action—it’s anticipation. Learn how to control what your reader knows and when, so an ordinary moment turns almost unbearable. Discover how dramatic irony, unanswered questions, and a character’s private fears keep readers leaning in, holding their breath, and refusing to put your book down. You’ll leave knowing how to find genuine, edge-of-your-seat tension in the quietest scene—in any genre.

In-Person Discussion:

“A Reading and Discussion of
Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving
in the Age of AI“

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though, and with bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll soon become irrelevant.

The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t: be creative.

Reservation is required by October 5, 2026.

Contact Brian Winterman for more details.

In-Person Presentation:
“Using Point of View to Maximize Reader Engagement”

Choosing your POV is crucial to storytelling success. Select the right POV, and you’ll increase reader relatability, a core element of publishing success. Pick the wrong one, and readers may not connect with your story. Worse, if you use too many POVs, readers end up confused, not intrigued.

To decide, you need to understand the strengths of each POV option. What’s your reader engagement goal? An intimate connection? Keeping an unreliable narrator undiscovered until the big reveal? Sharing a wide-lens view?

In this workshop, we’ll explore POV options, discuss whether and how to combine them, and review a three-step decision-making model to help you determine which POV is best for your project. I’ll provide plenty of examples so that you leave the workshop confident in your decisions and with actionable ideas you can put to work right away.

Contact Jay Siegel for more details.

Online Webinar:
“The Cameo That Steals the Show:
Writing Minor Characters That Leave Major Impressions”

Ask a reader about a book they love, and they’ll often skip past the hero to talk about someone else—the tart-tongued neighbor, the loyal sidekick, the witness who turned up for a single scene and never left their memory. Those characters do quiet, powerful work, and they’re some of the hardest to write well. This FREE one-hour webinar is all about them.

Learn how to give a supporting character a life of their own, how to make a single-scene appearance land, and how to build a recurring cast that keeps readers coming back to a series. We’ll look at what separates a character who simply delivers a clue from one who delivers a jolt of personality readers never forget, and how to keep your supporting players vivid without pulling focus from your lead. Whether you write cozy mysteries, thrillers, romance, or literary fiction, the principles hold. A live Q&A will follow.

Online Workshop Series:
“Revising Your Own Work”

You’ve finished your manuscript—now what? It’s time to polish the story, add complexity to the characters, and burnish the prose. In other words, it’s time to revise!

In this four-part, Guppies-exclusive workshop series, we’ll discuss my four-step approach to the revision process. The four steps are:

1. Plot: confirm causation, while avoiding coincidences and contrivances
2. Character: ensure differentiation and motivation
3. Milieu: create immersive settings using Jane’s “world in a word (or phrase)” technique
4. Prose: sentence-by-sentence checklists to keep your prose active and engaging

You’ll learn professional tricks, techniques, and tips to ensure your work is ready for submission. We’ll discuss numerous examples so you’ll know how to implement these proven techniques in your own work. Self-assessed exercises show you how to make the tactics your own.

Workshop Dates:

November 3, 2026
November 10, 2026
November 17, 2026
November 24, 2026

Online Event:
Discussing Consigned to Death

Join me and the Houston Women’s Book Club for an online conversation about Consigned to Death, the book where Josie Prescott and I first met.

Josie has left New York and a job she was good at, and she’s trying to build an antiques business from scratch in a small town on the New Hampshire coast. Then a man she’s been doing business with is murdered, and the police chief decides she looks like a suspect. We’ll talk about where Josie came from, how the antiques world became a setting for mystery, and what I learned writing the first book in a series that’s now fourteen books long.

Whether you’ve read Josie for years or are just meeting her, I’d love to see you there.

For more information, reach out to Lee Edwards.

Online Webinar:
“The One-Page Secret to Writing Success:
Know Your Story’s Unique Selling Proposition”

Someone asks what your book is about, and you start at the beginning—the setup, the inciting incident, the twist you’re proud of—and somewhere in there you feel the conversation slip away from you. It isn’t that your story is dull. It’s that plot rarely sells a book to a person who hasn’t read it. This FREE one-hour webinar is about the page that does: a unique selling proposition, a single page that says what your story is and why it stands apart from every other book in its category.

Learn how to find the thing that makes your book distinct, how to build the page around premise, theme, setting, and feel without letting plot take over, and how to adapt that one page into a query letter, a conference pitch, back-cover copy, and a 30-second answer to the question you’ll be asked for the rest of your career. We’ll also look at a quieter use for it: kept beside you during revision, that page tells you when the manuscript has drifted from the book you set out to write. Whether you write genre fiction, literary fiction, or nonfiction, the one-page document is your most important writing and marketing tool. A live Q&A will follow.

Online Workshop Series:
“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

Join me for four exclusive Guppies-only sessions designed to help you write tighter, more polished first drafts, and improve your story’s pace, while ratcheting up suspense.

Tactics we’ll discuss include selecting the proper structure, adding complexity to the plot, enhancing character motivation, choosing words for sensual specificity, and writing lyrical prose.

Workshop Dates:

April 6, 2027
April 13, 2027
April 20, 2027
April 28, 2027

Malice Domestic Pre-Convention Workshop:
“How to Pitch:
Crafting the Logline, Query, and Synopsis
that Will Sell Your Book”

Ready to nail the pitch that sells your story? You’re going to be talking about your book for the rest of your career—to agents and editors, to booksellers and reviewers, and to readers who ask, “What’s it about?” This half-day, hands-on workshop shows you how to answer with clarity, confidence, and impact. Working alongside a supportive cohort of writers, you’ll build the four tools every author needs: a logline, a synopsis, a query, and an in-person pitch that hooks your listener fast.

Whether your manuscript is finished or you’ve just begun your first draft, it’s never too early to master this essential skill. Through targeted lecturettes from Jane, before-and-after examples, and guided exercises, you’ll see what works, what doesn’t, and why, then put those strategies to work on your own pitch. You’ll leave with a solid draft of a polished, compelling pitch—and the confidence to deliver it when it matters most.

In-Person Event:
“2027 Mystery Mastermind Writers Retreat”

Picture five writers, a private villa in Sarasota, and nothing on your agenda but your book. For the first time, I’m bringing the Mystery Mastermind experience in person—an all-inclusive retreat limited to just five writers. You’ll have a private en-suite room, every meal taken care of, and two rounds of blind editorial review from an editor with real-world experience acquiring crime fiction for a Big Five publisher. Around the table, you’ll get direct, constructive feedback on your pages from me and from the group, including ninety minutes dedicated to your work alone.

This is deep, focused work in a beautiful, lux location—no commute, no distractions, just your story and the people who can help you move it forward. You’ll leave with a specific revision plan, a second editorial read waiting for you after you revise, and a follow-up group Zoom to map your next steps. There are only five seats. Reserve yours today!

Online Webinar:
“Story Arcs: A Big Picture View of Storytelling”

Every novel has a shape, and so does every series. Readers feel both, whether they can name them or not. This FREE one-hour webinar takes a big-picture view of story arcs—classic structures within a single book, longer arcs across a series, and what it takes for a story to be both unique and universal.

You’ll see how the arc you design at the outline level reaches all the way down to the page. Learn how to meet genre expectations without writing something readers have already seen, how to use the midpoint to pivot a story with real weight, and how emotional reactions and word-level choices either reinforce your arc or quietly work against it. We’ll also look at the question many series writers wrestle with: how to give each book a satisfying ending while still building toward something larger, and how to keep plot lines varied from book to book.

Bring your work-in-progress, whether it’s a standalone or book seven of a series. You’ll leave with a clearer picture of what your story is doing at every level—and what to fix when something feels off.

Online Webinar:
“The Perfect Enemy:
Crafting Antagonists Your Readers Will Love to Hate”

Your main character needs an opponent worthy of the challenge. This FREE one-hour webinar focuses on the craft of building fully realized opponents—characters with their own goals, logic, and methods, whose choices put your main character’s hopes and dreams at genuine risk.

Learn how to develop credible motivations for this character—whether they’re working against your lead directly, evading discovery, or protecting a secret at any cost. Discover how to align their choices with your story’s stakes so that every scene they influence carries real weight, regardless of your genre.

Online Webinar:
“The Anatomy of a Bestseller:
Discussing Suspense, Structure & Plot with Edgar Winner and Bestselling Author Chris Pavone”

Join me for a FREE one-hour discussion with Edgar and Anthony Award winner Chris Pavone about the craft behind internationally bestselling thrillers. I sat down with Chris in advance—and at the June webinar, we’ll watch the interview together, pausing periodically to discuss how his tips and tactics might apply to your work, followed by a live Q&A with me. Chris spent nearly two decades as a publishing editor before his family moved to Luxembourg, and that experience of dislocation, secrets, and reinvention became the raw material for The Expats, his debut novel and instant New York Times bestseller.

Discover how Chris draws on real life to build complex, twisty plots; how he manages the tension between what readers know and what characters conceal; and what nearly 20 years on the other side of the publishing desk taught him about writing fiction that sells.

Whether you write thrillers or any other genre, you’ll come away with concrete ideas for making your own stories richer and more gripping.

Online Webinar:
“Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

 You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though. We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements. With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t. Based on Jane’s book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, this webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long. 

Online Webinar:
“Tropes, Clichés, and Conventions, Oh, My! A Writer’s Guide to Genre Expectations and Fresh Storytelling”

Do you know the difference between a trope and a cliché—and why it matters on the page? This FREE one-hour webinar cuts through the confusion to give you a practical framework for understanding genre conventions and reader expectations, and how to use that knowledge deliberately in your own writing.

Learn what tropes really are (and what they aren’t), how they differ from clichés, and why readers in different genres don’t just accept conventions—they expect them. Discover how to layer multiple tropes in a single novel and how to recognize when a beloved convention has crossed the line into tired, predictable writing.

Online Webinar:
“Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

 You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though. We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements. With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t. Based on Jane’s book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, this webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long. 

Online Webinar:
“Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

I am so excited to be featured in the Writer Igniter FLOW Summit from DIY MFA! During this online event you’ll hear from twenty other authors and book industry experts as we each share our knowledge of the writing process and discuss how to find your creative flow. We’ll give practical tips to help you hone your creative process, write that book once and for all, and get it in the hands of your readers. You’ll leave this summit energized, inspired, and ready to find your creative flow!

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though. We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements. With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t. Based on Jane’s book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, this webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long. 

Moderator:
“I AM NOT A ROBOT: AI in Writing and Publishing”

Moderator:
Jane Cleland

Panelists:
Neil Plakcy
Donna Andrews
Kathryn O’Sullivan
Lori Roberts Herbst

More details coming soon!

Malice Domestic Pre-Convention Workshop:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI”

Ready to future-proof your writing career? This full-day in-person workshop helps you harness your uniquely human creativity to create stories AI simply cannot replicate. Based on Jane’s latest book, you’ll learn twelve science-based creativity tactics through hands-on exercises and discover how to unlock your imagination, develop your distinctive voice, and craft compelling stories that resonate with emotional truth.

Perfect for both seasoned writers concerned about AI’s impact on publishing and new writers eager to build an unshakeable foundation in craft. You’ll master techniques for character development, plotting, voice development, and professional-level revision—all designed to leverage what makes you uniquely human as your greatest writing asset.

Online Webinar:
“You’ve Finished Your Novel—Now What? Everything You Need to Know to Get Published”

You’ve typed “The End” on your manuscript—but is your novel truly finished? And what comes next? This FREE one-hour webinar guides you through the critical decisions and essential skills needed to move from finished draft to published book.

Learn how to assess whether your manuscript is ready for readers, understand your publishing options from self-publishing to traditional paths, and discover what agents look for in queries and pitches. You’ll explore the editing process, learn to write compelling synopses and query letters, and gain clarity on which publication path aligns with your goals and strengths as a writer.

Whether you’re considering self-publishing or seeking traditional representation, this session provides the roadmap you need to take confident next steps toward seeing your novel in print.

Online Webinar:
“Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

 You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though. We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements. With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t. Based on Jane’s book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, this webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long. 

Online Webinar:
“Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

 You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though. We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements. With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t. Based on Jane’s book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, this webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long. 

Online Webinar:
“Nurture Your Creative Spirit: Feel Better, Write Better—Listen to the Pros”

Ready to rediscover the joy in your writing practice? This FREE webinar offers pro-tips for stress-free creativity that will help you reconnect with your creative spirit and develop sustainable practices that support both your well-being and your craft. When you feel better, you write better!

Learn proven strategies from successful authors who’ve mastered the art of sustainable creativity. Discover how to create a writing routine that energizes and inspires you, nurture your creative spirit through practical daily habits, and build a writing practice that brings you joy and consistency—even during busy times.

Facilitated book club discussion of
Some Buried Caesar

Mastering Suspense—in All Genres: How To Create Spine-Tingling Suspense by Escalating Conflict and Raising the Stakes

In this webinar, we’ll assess how to optimize the story-driving potential of four kinds of conflict: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual (and how best to combine them). On the face of it, it would seem that conflicts are either external and internal. However, it is only when an external situation is perceived as a conflict that the story moves forward. It is people’s reactions to an incident, not the incident itself, that generates a conflict. In other words, all conflicts are internal.

Writing a killer opening that lays out the conflict and stakes in a way that immediately engages your readers’ interest fuels suspense. This “narrative question” serves as an implied promise to your readers. If they read to the end, they’ll discover how the conflict is resolved—or not. We’ll also consider three additional suspense-boosting tactics:

• isolating your characters
• shortening sentences
• showing your characters’ emotions through sensory references, while avoiding labelling words such as saw, heard, know, understand, and the like

There will be time for questions at the end.

Online Presentation:
“The World in a Word:
Writing Descriptions that Bring Your Stories to Life”

Elevate your story’s environment beyond mere backdrop to a compelling, sensory-rich universe that grips readers. Learn to deploy telling details and craft fresh spins on familiar scenes, transforming your prose into a portal through which your narratives are not just read, but experienced. Discover the process of illuminating your worlds and crafting immersive experiences that stick with your audience long after they close the book.

Secure your spot today to breathe life into your descriptions, ensuring your writing captures the essence of every scene with tangible precision and imagination!

Online Discussion:
“From Investigative Reporter to Bestselling Novelist: Discussing the Art of Story with Multi-award Winner Hank Phillippi Ryan”

Join me and award-winning author Hank Phillippi Ryan for an insider’s guide to crafting authentic suspense. With 37 Emmy wins for investigative reporting and five Agatha Awards for her bestselling novels, Hank’s dual career offers unique insights into the craft of storytelling.

Discover how Hank crafts novels without outlining or plotting in advance, her secrets for building characters with emotional truth, managing dual careers, and using journalistic techniques to create thrillers that feel both gripping and believable. Whether you write thrillers or any genre, you’ll gain powerful tools to elevate your storytelling craft.

“The Art of Being Irreplaceable: Creativity in the Age of AI”

Jane K. Cleland (Author of Beat the Bots) in conversation with Jane Friedman

Are you afraid that AI is going to take your job? Yes – we all are! Yet one truth remains: Artificial intelligence can mimic style, but it can’t replicate soul.

Join Women’s Media Group for a thought-provoking session with award-winning author Jane K. Cleland, whose new book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, offers a roadmap for writers determined to stay both relevant and inspired.

Guided by acclaimed publishing expert Jane Friedman, Cleland will share practical exercises to nurture imagination, spark original thinking, and resist creative conformity. Expect practical creativity boosters, encouragement to take creative risks, and a renewed sense of purpose in your storytelling journey.

It’s not about resisting technology—it’s about harnessing what only humans can do.

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though, and with bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll soon become irrelevant. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t—be creative. In this webinar, you’ll learn how to harness your innate creativity using science-based creativity-boosting techniques, including the Sensory Connective, to come up with fresh ideas.

Online Webinar:
“Mastering Plot Twists”

The stories that keep people on the edge of their seats and up all night, from family sagas to thrillers and from romances to sci fi, are filled with unexpected twists and turns.

By integrating plot twists, plot reversals, and moments of heightened danger (TRDs) at tactically sound moments, your stories will captivate readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability. When your plot twists come at the right moments, your pace will be quicker and the action more focused, and these are the nuanced, multifaceted stories that sell, and that find a devoted reader- or viewership.

A live Q&A follows to answer any questions you might have and help you put the tips and techniques discussed to work in your own writing.

Podcast Interview:
“Avoid the AI Business Trap with Creativity”

I’m joining the Leap into Business podcast at Lehman College to discuss Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI.

We’ll explore why writing remains essential in business, how AI is reshaping publishing, and concrete strategies writers need to compete and succeed in this shifting landscape.

The core insight: AI is derivative, not generative. It can’t replicate human creativity, judgment, or the authentic connection that great writing builds.

Whether you’re a writer, business leader, or someone navigating how to work alongside AI, this episode will cut through the hype and offer real perspective on what writers actually need to know right now.

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

Join me for four exclusive Guppies-only sessions to explore how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

Dates:

October 28, 2025
November 4, 2025
November 11, 2025
November 18, 2025

Online Webinar:
“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

Join me for a FREE one-hour presentation designed to help you write tighter, more polished first drafts, and improve your story’s pace, while ratcheting up suspense.

Tactics we’ll discuss include selecting the proper structure, adding complexity to the plot, enhancing character motivation, choosing words for sensual specificity, and writing lyrical prose.

A live Q&A follows to answer any questions you might have and help you put the tips and techniques discussed to work in your own writing. 

Online Presentation:
“Mastering Plot Twists”

The stories that keep people on the edge of their seats and up all night, from family sagas to thrillers and from romances to sci fi, are filled with unexpected twists and turns. By integrating plot twists, plot reversals, and moments of heightened danger (TRDs) at tactically sound moments, your stories will captivate readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability. When your plot twists come at the right moments, your pace will be quicker and the action more focused, and these are the nuanced, multifaceted stories that sell, and that find a devoted reader- or viewership.

Virtual Presentation for the
2025 Celebration of Romance:

“Mastering Plot Twists”

The stories that keep people on the edge of their seats and up all night, from memoirs to thrillers and from stage plays to screenplays, are filled with unexpected twists and turns. By integrating plot twists, plot reversals, and moments of heightened danger (TRDs) at tactically sound moments, your stories will captivate readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability. When your plot twists come at the right moments, your pace will be quicker and the action more focused, and these are the nuanced, multifaceted books that sell, and that find a devoted readership.

Virtual Presentation for the
2025 Celebration of Romance:

“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though, and with bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll soon become irrelevant. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t—be creative. In this webinar, you’ll learn how to harness your innate creativity using science-based creativity-boosting techniques, including the Sensory Connective, to come up with fresh ideas.

Write on the Sound Online Webinar:

The Art of Distraction:
Using Red Herrings

A red herring is a “false clue,” used by writers the way magicians use sleight of hand—the goal is to distract readers from what’s really going on. When done well, red herrings add complexity to plots and intrigue to stories. Red herrings fall into three broad categories:

Human Nature (including the halo and devil effects)
Details (including the ones readers miss)
Expertise (including our inclination to trust characters with specialized knowledge)

In this webinar, you’ll learn how to weave red herrings into your narratives, allowing you to increase suspense as you create engaging and ingenious puzzles.

The webinar is one of five presentations included in the pre-conference online event line up. The fee for the day is $125 with on-demand replay viewing through December 31, 2025.

Online Webinar:
“Finding Your Voice:
Developing Your Unique Writing Style to Hook Readers and Wow Agents”

Your voice isn’t just what you say—it’s how you say it. But how do you pinpoint that elusive quality agents crave and readers adore? Many writers struggle to balance authenticity with market appeal, flattening their prose into something safe (and forgettable).

This session cracks the code. Discover techniques to amplify your innate voice, industry-tested strategies to polish your style, and a high-level approach that ensures your manuscript stands out in the the slush pile.

Whether you’re writing crime fiction, romantasy, or horror, you’ll leave with actionable steps to craft prose that’s unmistakably you—and irresistibly compelling to decision-makers.

Join me for a FREE hour-long deep dive into voice development, complete with live Q&A. Perfect for writers ready to stop blending in and start standing out.

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

This webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

Bouchercon 2025:
Blood on the Bayou: Case Closed

Panel Moderator for
“This is How We Do It:
Getting Inside an Author’s Brain”

Date: Thursday, September 4, 2025

Time: 3:30 p.m. to 4:25 p.m.

Panel Members: Jane K. Cleland (M), Tim Bischoff, Stephen L. Brayton, Sara Gran, John M McMahon, and Courtney Psak

Panelist for
“Hooking the Reader:
Is It Really the First Three Pages?”

Date: Thursday, September 4, 2025

Time: 3:30 p.m. to 4:25 p.m.

Panel Members: Luisa Cruz Smith(M), Yasmin Angoe, Jane K. Cleland, Tom Ryan, Amie Schaumberg, Alex Segura

Adult Mystery Book Club
September Read:
Jane Austen’s Lost Letters

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

This webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

Non-members welcome. Contact FAW Webmaster Scott Davidson for details.

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

This webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

Guest Blog Post
“To Learn what a Character Thinks about a Place, Ask the Character, not a Chat Bot”

Guest Blog Post
“To Beat the Bots, Talk to a Tree”

In-Person Workshop:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story.

Getting that story down on paper is hard, though, and with bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll soon become irrelevant. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions.

On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t—to be creative. AI is, by definition, derivative, so the trick is to come up with new ideas, new structures, new approaches.

This workshop shows you how to harness your innate creativity using science-based creativity-boosting techniques to help you come up with fresh ideas. Highly interactive, with hands-on writing exercises and illuminating debriefings, you’ll discover how to bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work. And that’s how you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

In-Person Workshop:
“Deconstruct Your Favorite Books:
Apply the Lessons to Your Own Work”

This workshop shows how to deconstruct those books you wish you’d written.

We’ll look at ways and means of assessing structure, plot, character transformation, setting, and other key variables, seeking out patterns you can apply to your own work. You’ll be able create stories that shine with originality using the tactics you’ve identified as relevant and meaningful in your genre. A three-point checklist helps you translate theory (your deconstruction) into practice (your original writing).

Online Presentation:
“Deconstruct Your Favorite Books:
Apply the Lessons to Your Own Work”

This webinar shows how to deconstruct those books you wish you’d written.

We’ll look at ways and means of assessing structure, plot, character transformation, setting, and other key variables, seeking out patterns you can apply to your own work. You’ll be able to create stories that shine with originality using the tactics you’ve identified as relevant and meaningful in your genre. A three-point checklist helps you translate theory (your deconstruction) into practice (your original writing).

Online Discussion:
“Breaking Through Barriers to Writing Success with Publishing Guru, and Acclaimed Author of The Business of Being a Writer, Jane Friedman”

Discover how to navigate the often confusing world of publishing and elevate your writing career. In my discussion with Jane Friedman, you’ll learn practical tips and strategies to help you succeed, thrive, and break down the barriers that keep writers like you from reaching publishing success.

Seize this chance to hear from an industry expert and acclaimed author who knows the ins and outs of the publishing business!

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story.

Getting that story down on paper is hard, though, and with bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll soon become irrelevant. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions.

On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t—to be creative. AI is, by definition, derivative, so the trick is to come up with new ideas, new structures, new approaches.

This workshop shows you how to harness your innate creativity using science-based creativity-boosting techniques to help you come up with fresh ideas.

Join me for an hour and discover how to bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work. And that’s how you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

Online Webinar:
“Beat the Bots with Jane Cleland”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

Writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions.

On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

Based on my book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, I’ll show you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long

Online Webinar:
“Tell Your Story to Beat the Bots:
A Writer’s Guide to Thriving and Surviving
in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story.

Getting that story down on paper is hard, though, and with bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll soon become irrelevant. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions.

On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t—to be creative. AI is, by definition, derivative, so the trick is to come up with new ideas, new structures, new approaches.

This workshop shows you how to harness your innate creativity using science-based creativity-boosting techniques to help you come up with fresh ideas.

Join me at Writer’s Digest University to discover how to bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work. And that’s how you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long..

Online Presentation:
“Demystifying the Editorial Process:
Illuminating the Path to Creative Clarity”

Discover how to refine your writing and navigate the world of editing in this FREE one-hour webinar. Learn practical self-editing tips and explore the key differences between developmental editing, line editing, copy editing, and proofreading—and how to know what types of editing your manuscript needs to truly shine.

Whether you’re preparing your manuscript for submission or self-publishing, this session will provide the information you need to make clear decisions about your editorial journey. Perfect for writers of all experience levels, this webinar includes a live Q&A to address your specific questions!

Sleuthfest 2025:

“Finding Your Voice”
Moderated by Thomas B. Cavanagh

Defining voice is the author’s style, the quality that makes their writing unique. Panelists include Jane K. Cleland, M. E. Hilliard, Sharon Marchisello, and Ruth Setton.

Sleuthfest 2025:

“The Perception Gap: Create Compelling and Twisty Plots Using Your Characters’ Views of the World”

Do your characters feel flat and one-dimensional? Are your plots meandering without clear conflict to propel the story forward? Leverage perception gaps to breathe life into your characters and ratchet up the tension in your stories!

Whether you write cozy mysteries, pulse-pounding thrillers, or sweeping sagas, this free one-hour webinar will revolutionize the way you develop characters and plot. Join me and learn how to leverage perception gaps to craft authentic, multifaceted characters that leap off the page.

Malice Domestic 37:
Moderator for
“Keeping things Cozy in the Modern World”

Including Sarah Burr, Jennifer Sadara, Kathleen Marple Kalb/Nikki Knight, and Paula Munier

In-Person Pre-Conference Workshop:

“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

Ready to transform your storytelling? Join me for an intensive, full-day pre-conference workshop that will revolutionize your approach to suspense, structure, and plot.

Based on my Agatha Award-winning book, Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot, this hands-on session will teach you how to weave spine-tingling suspense, choose the perfect structure, and customize my exclusive Plotting Roadmap to help you create unputdownable stories.

You’ll leave with actionable techniques for crafting the kinds of page-turners that keep readers up past bedtime—the stories publishers want and readers crave.

Special discounts are available for members of MWA and Sisters in Crime, as well as Malice Domestic attendees!

Online Presentation:
“Fact-Based Storytelling:
How to Use the Truth to Create I-Can’t-Put-It-Down Urgency in Any Genre”

Discover how the truth can be your ally in crafting stories that resonate deeply with readers. This webinar will help you unlock the power of fact-based storytelling to establish urgency and build narratives bursting with escalating conflict and emotional depth.

Join us for an engaging session and learn to create stories that readers just can’t put down, regardless of your genre.

Online Book Discussion Moderator for 
Rex Stout’s Might as Well Be Dead

Open only to Wolfe Pack members.

Online Discussion:
“A Literary Agent Tells All:
Navigating the Creative Process with Industry Insider, Agent, and Author Jessica Berg”

Discover essential strategies for transforming your writing dreams into author success with tips from an industry insider. Join me in a discussion with Jessica Berg to explore the creative process, high-concept stories, and the publishing hurdles that every writer faces.

This is the perfect opportunity to learn about polishing that big idea, crafting compelling queries, and setting yourself on the path to writer success.

Cozy Mystery Book Club
February Read:
Lethal Treasure

Online Presentation:
“The Art of Revealing Backstory”

The people who populate your stories have a past, and that past dictates, or at the very least informs, their actions. Sharing backstory is tricky, though. Share too much information, or share it before readers care about your characters, and your readers will likely lose interest. To write a page-turner, every sentence must propel the story forward via incident or character interactions, and backstory takes us out of the action, slowing the pace. To reveal backstory effectively, you need to first assess which aspects should be revealed. Then you need to determine how best to share that information.

You’ll hear plenty of examples so that you will leave the webinar with actionable ideas your can put to work immediately in your own writing.

Online Presentation:
“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot:
A Comprehensive Overview”

Based on Jane’s Agatha Award-winning book of the same title, this detailed overview invites authors to apply proven tactics to increase suspense, streamline structure, and create twisty plots. Recommended by luminaries such as David Baldacci and Dan Brown, among scores of others. Louise Penny called the book, “A gold mine of information.” The tips discussed in this free webinar serve both as a checklist and a mandate. The tips relate to tightening a story’s structure, adding complexity to the plot, integrating backstory seamlessly, enhancing character motivation, choosing words for sensory specificity, balancing narrative with action and dialogue, adapting Jane’s Plotting Roadmap to your storytelling style, and improving both productivity and professionalism.

Online Presentation:
“Mastering Plot Twists”

The stories that keep people on the edge of their seats and up all night, from family sagas to thrillers and from romances to sci fi, are filled with unexpected twists and turns. By integrating plot twists, plot reversals, and moments of heightened danger (TRDs) at tactically sound moments, your stories will captivate readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability. When your plot twists come at the right moments, your pace will be quicker and the action more focused, and these are the nuanced, multifaceted stories that sell, and that find a devoted reader- or viewership.

For more information on joining the event, contact Karen Phillips at Capitol Crimes

Online Presentation:
“Writing with a Through-Line Plot
(or Storyline)”

Do you struggle to keep your stories focused and engaging? You’re not alone! Join my FREE one-hour webinar to uncover techniques for crafting through-line plots that hook readers from the start and guide them through unputdownable stories filled with gripping structure and rhythm.

Whether you’re writing crime fiction or any other genre, don’t miss this chance to elevate your storytelling skills!

Writing Craft Workshop:
“Q&A with Jane K. Cleland”

For more information on joining the event, contact Kate at Good Story Company.

Online Discussion:
“Your Path to Publication:
Bestselling Author Connie Berry Tells All”

Join me for a FREE online discussion with Connie Berry, award-winning mystery author and President of Sisters in Crime’s online chapter, The Guppies.

She’ll share her journey from aspiring archaeologist to bestselling novelist and lessons she’s learned along the way.

Online Presentation:
“The Metaphor Machine:
On Adding Richness and Texture to Your Work”

Metaphors are, according to Aristotle, a sign of genius. Certainly, they are more efficient and economical than ordinary language; they give maximum meaning with a minimum of words. In addition, metaphors are generous to readers by encouraging interpretation.

In this workshop, we’ll put four approaches to creating metaphors to work—whether you write fiction, non-fiction, memoir, or poetry, you’ll develop rhetorically sound images that communicate emotion on a multi-layered level with the help of my Metaphor Machine process.

Online Presentation:

“Thematic Writing:
How to Use Symbols and Allegory to Add Richness and Depth to Your Writing”

When you feel as if your prose is flat or banal, try upping your writing game by focusing on themes. Converting abstract concepts into concrete examples resonates with readers by getting them thinking and reflecting on their lives and beliefs.

This webinar analyzes strategies to add thematic heft by integrating symbolic imagery, atmospheric descriptions, and visual and word allegories.

Online Presentation:

“The Art of Distraction: Using Red Herrings”

One of the secrets of writing success is creating complex and surprising plots is a deliciously sneaky technique writers use to befuddle readers—red herrings. By using red herrings the same way that a magician uses sleight of hand, you’ll be able to divert your readers’ attention from the actual to the illusionary; if done well, your readers will believe what they see on the printed page—an irresistible way to draw them in and keep them turning pages.

Non-members welcome. Contact FAW Webmaster Scott Davidson for details.

Online Presentation:

“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

The stories that keep readers up all night share three key characters: they’re suspenseful, well-structured, and cleverly plotted. In this comprehensive overview, you’ll discover how to write tighter, more polished first drafts by focusing on the underpinnings of effective storytelling. Specifically, we’ll discuss how to create spine-tingling suspense by escalating conflict and raising the stakes, choose the structure that’s best for your story, and integrate plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) using Jane’s Plotting Roadmap to help build suspense while controlling your story’s pace.

Online Presentation:
“Maintain Your Momentum:
Three Proven Techniques to Keep the Writing Fire Burning Bright”

We start writing projects with great excitement, energy, and enthusiasm. Then our vim and vigor peter out. Maybe you’ve got yourself tangled in an overly complex plot. Perhaps you’re stuck sorting through a morass of detail. Are you stumbling trying to get the story in your head onto the page? In this FREE one-hour webinar, you’ll discover three techniques to maintain your story’s forward momentum, focus your energy on the task at hand, and keep yourself fired up. Your pleasure in writing will increase along with your productivity.

Online Presentation:

“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

The stories that keep readers up all night share three key characters: they’re suspenseful, well-structured, and cleverly plotted. In this comprehensive overview, you’ll discover how to write tighter, more polished first drafts by focusing on the underpinnings of effective storytelling. Specifically, we’ll discuss how to create spine-tingling suspense by escalating conflict and raising the stakes, choose the structure that’s best for your story, and integrate plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) using Jane’s Plotting Roadmap to help build suspense while controlling your story’s pace.

“You Can Write It All”

When you are first starting out, you might think you only want to write in one category or genre. But the more you write, perhaps you find yourself wanting to branch out to something totally different. Is it possible to write for multiple age groups or for entirely different genres, and if so, how? Will you need a pen name? How can you prevent yourself from being pigeonholed as X-type of writer with your debut? Join three successful writers for a lively discussion about they found their way to writing the variety of work they’re known for.

Panelists:
Jane K. Cleland
Vanessa Riley
Jane Roper

Moderated by Amy Jones

“How to Write Characters that Resonate with Emotional Truth”

In this workshop, we’ll discuss how to create relatable characters by analyzing the anatomy of emotional truth. After examining three kinds of truth: personal or experiential, community or social, and scientific or objective, we’ll assess pertinent facts about people (demographics) and their values (psychographics). We’ll also discuss integrating non-verbal cues such as body language, appearance, and communication style. You’ll be able to use a two-step approach to creating characters based on emotional truth, and those are the people that connect with readers on a deep, meaningful basis.

“Thematic Writing:
How to Use Symbols and Allegory to
Add Richness and Depth to Your Writing”

When you feel as if your prose is flat or banal, try upping your writing game by focusing on themes. Converting abstract concepts into concrete examples resonates with readers by getting them thinking and reflecting on their lives and beliefs. This workshop analyzes strategies to add thematic heft by integrating symbolic imagery, atmospheric descriptions, and visual and word allegories.

Online Presentation:
“Lessons Learned:
Four Things I Wish I’d Known at the Start of My Writing Career”

From knowing specific craft techniques to implementing efficient promotional strategies (and skipping the rest) and from building meaningful relationships to understanding the complexities of business, this webinar will help you navigate the complex publishing landscape. During this FREE one-hour webinar, we’ll discuss four crucial lessons all authors need to know, and that most only learn the hard way.

“Lessons Learned:
Four Things I Know Now that I Wish I’d Known at the Start of My Writing Career”

From knowing specific craft techniques to implementing efficient promotional strategies (and skipping the rest) and from building meaningful relationships to understanding the complexities of business, this speech helps authors navigate the complex publishing landscape. I will discuss four crucial lessons all authors need to know, and that most only learn the hard way.

PNWA Annual Conference Workshop

“The Art of Revealing Backstory”

The people who populate your stories have a past, and that past dictates, or at the very least, informs, their actions. Sharing that backstory is tricky, though, because if you share too much information, or if you share it before readers care about your characters, they’re likely to lose interest. To write a page-turner, every sentence must propel the story forward via incident or character interactions, and backstory takes us out of the action, slowing the pace. To reveal backstory effectively, you need to first assess which aspects should be revealed. Then you need to determine how best to share that information.

In this workshop, we’ll discuss whether to reveal backstory, and if so, how and when. We’ll also review a three-step decision-making model to help guide your decisions.

PNWA Annual Conference Master Class

“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

The stories that keep readers up all night share three key characters: they’re suspenseful, well-structured, and cleverly plotted. In this comprehensive overview, you’ll discover how to write tighter, more polished first drafts by focusing on the underpinnings of effective storytelling. Specifically, we’ll discuss how to:

1. Create spine-tingling suspense by escalating conflict and raising the stakes.

We’ll assess how to optimize the story-driving potential of four kinds of conflict: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual (and how best to combine them). On the face of it, it would seem that conflicts are either external and internal. However, it is only when an external situation is perceived as a conflict that the story moves forward. It is people’s reactions to an incident, not the incident itself, that generates a conflict. In other words, all conflicts are internal.

2. Choose the structure that’s best for your story.

Structure is an organizing principle that once set helps you develop your through-line plot or storyline and keeps you on track as you write. Different stories lend themselves to different structures and there is no right or wrong decision. The only mistake you can make is having no structure at all. The two broad options are linear (also called chronological) and non-linear. We’ll also review three questions designed to help you decide which structure is best for your story, considering the timeline, scope, and theme.

3. Integrate plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) using

Jane’s Plotting Roadmap to help you build suspense while controlling your story’s pace.

“Plot twists” is an umbrella term, referring to three specific plotting strategies guaranteed to captivate your readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability.

• Plot Twists: something unexpected, but not the opposite
• Plot Reversals: something unexpected, and the opposite

·        Moments of Heightened Danger: something that adds urgency and dread to the story.

When your plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) come at tactically sound moments, your story’s pace quickens and your action becomes more focused.

Whether you like outlining or prefer a more organic approach to writing, Jane’s Plotting Roadmap can help you create a powerful framework for your story by ensuring you integrate captivating twists and turns (TRDs) at appropriate points in your story.

Making thoughtful, reader-focused decisions about suspense, structure, and plot helps ensure your story will resonate with readers—and those are the stories publishers want and readers crave.

PNWA Annual Conference
Featured Speaker Dinner Panel

A panel of best-selling authors and industry experts will discuss a predetermined topic, moderated by bestselling author, Robert Dugoni. Autograph party after this event.

Online Presentation for the
WriteNOW! Annual Writers’ Conference:

“Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

This presentation will show you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

PNWA Annual Conference Master Class

“Memoirs: Writing About Your Life”

A memoir is a themed slice of life (unlike an autobiography, which is a chronological accounting of your life).  Using lecturettes and hands-on writing exercises, this Master Class helps you home in on:

• Your mission, theme, and narrative question (an implied promise to the reader)
• Which overarching structure will best facilitate your story: linear, a chronological narrative, or nonlinear, using categories organized by theme
• Which examples and anecdotes support your points and help maintain an engaging pace

We will also consider the nature of truth and perception as it relates to the stories you want to tell. We’ll review three examples that showcase how other authors have handled this challenge as it relates to controversial topics (racism and civil rights: Dr. Martin Luther King’s “Letter from the Birmingham Jail”; sex and promiscuity: Elizabeth Gilbert’s “The Muse of the Coyote Ugly Saloon”; and mainstreaming children with disabilities: Siobhan Dowd’s The London Eye Mystery). Applying these tactics to your own work will enable you to write with passion and clarity. You’ll be able to persuade people that the truth you see as evident is correct, without coming across as pedantic, patronizing, or mawkish.

Online Presentation:
“Thematic Writing:
How to Use Symbols and Allegory to
Add Richness and Depth to Your Writing”

When you feel as if your prose is flat or banal, try upping your writing game by focusing on themes. Converting abstract concepts into concrete examples resonates with readers by getting them thinking and reflecting on their lives and beliefs. This workshop analyzes strategies to add thematic heft by integrating symbolic imagery, atmospheric descriptions, and visual and word allegories.

Online Presentation:
“The World in a Word:
Writing Descriptions that Bring Your Stories to Life”

Elevate your story’s environment beyond mere backdrop to a compelling, sensory-rich universe that grips readers. Learn to deploy telling details and craft fresh spins on familiar scenes, transforming your prose into a portal through which your narratives are not just read, but experienced. Discover the process of illuminating your worlds and crafting immersive experiences that stick with your audience long after they close the book.

Secure your spot today to breathe life into your descriptions, ensuring your writing captures the essence of every scene with tangible precision and imagination!

Online Presentation

“Narrative Threads:
Mastering the Art of Transitions”

In this one-hour FREE webinar, we’ll explore how chapter breaks, white space, typography, and more can help you seamlessly weave transitions into the fabric of your story.

You’ll learn to effortlessly guide readers through your narrative’s ebb and flow by taking control of temporal shifts, locations, and perspectives to maintain pulse-pounding tension and clarity in your storytelling.

Reserve your seat today and get ready to master the art of transitions.

Online Interview:

“Ask Jane”

I’ll be meeting online with The Retro Writers, part of The Atlanta Writers Club, to discuss the answers to their questions for me. If you’d like to join us, contact Patricia Ann Bowen for more information!

Online Presentation:

“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

The stories that keep readers up all night share three key characters: they’re suspenseful, well-structured, and cleverly plotted. In this comprehensive overview, you’ll discover how to write tighter, more polished first drafts by focusing on the underpinnings of effective storytelling. Specifically, we’ll discuss how to:

1. Create spine-tingling suspense by escalating conflict and raising the stakes.

We’ll assess how to optimize the story-driving potential of four kinds of conflict: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual (and how best to combine them). On the face of it, conflicts would seem to be either external or internal. However, it is only when an external situation is perceived as a conflict that the story moves forward. People’s reactions to an incident, not the incident itself, generate a conflict. In other words, all conflicts are internal.

2. Choose the structure that’s best for your story.

Structure is an organizing principle that, once set, helps you develop your through-line plot or storyline and keeps you on track as you write. Different stories lend themselves to different structures, and there is no right or wrong decision. The only mistake you can make is having no structure at all. The two broad options are linear (also called chronological) and non-linear. We’ll also review three questions designed to help you decide which structure is best for your story, considering the timeline, scope, and theme

3. Integrate plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) using Jane’s Plotting Roadmap to help build suspense while controlling your story’s pace.

“Plot twists” is an umbrella term, referring to three specific plotting strategies guaranteed to captivate your readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability.

• Plot Twists: something unexpected but not the opposite
• Plot Reversals: something unexpected and the opposite
• Moments of Heightened Danger: something that adds urgency and dread to the story.

When your plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) come at tactically sound moments, your story’s pace quickens, and your action becomes more focused.

Whether you like outlining or prefer a more organic approach to writing, Jane’s Plotting Roadmap can help you create a powerful framework for your story by ensuring you integrate captivating twists and turns (TRDs) at appropriate points in your story.

Making thoughtful, reader-focused decisions about suspense, structure, and plot helps ensure your story will resonate with readers—and those are the stories publishers want, and readers crave.

Online Discussion

“An Author’s Guide to TikTok with Special Guest, the BookTok & AuthorTok Queen and Author, Jess Zafarris”

During this FREE one-hour discussion, Jess Zafarris will share her expertise and show how you can leverage TikTok to reach a wider audience, explore new storytelling approaches, and build buzz around your works.

Discover innovative ways that you can harness the platform’s vast potential not just for entertainment but as a springboard to take your storytelling—and visibility as an author—to new heights.

Jess will help us look beyond the common misconceptions that TikTok is solely for dancers or the Gen Z demographic, illustrating its power to connect with a diverse, global audience across all ages using approachable examples and actionable strategies that you can put to work to immediately start sharing your stories and building your community of readers.

Online Presentation

“The Grand Finale:
Crafting Captivating Endings Readers Won’t Forget”

The most gratifying endings leave readers more than satisfied—they leave them awed. Which is to say, you need to plan your ending as carefully as every other part of your story. In fact, Joyce Carol Oats says, “The first sentence can’t be written until the final sentence is written.”

Whether that process works for you or you write more organically, by the end of your story, your primary and secondary plotlines (or storylines if you’re writing, say, a memoir) have to reach their proper conclusions with no loose ends dangling. All character and thematic questions must be addressed, all conflicts resolved, and any moral quandaries settled. That’s the minimum.

To leave your readers enthralled and breathless and clamoring for more, your ending has to be, as Margaret Atwood put it, “… completely unexpected and inevitable.” The strategies discussed in this webinar can help you achieve this lofty goal.

Online Presentation:

“Plotting Perfection:
Overcoming Saggy Middles with Ever-escalating Conflict”

Join my next webinar to learn the secrets to mastering the middle of your story and crafting narratives that never lose steam. You’ll come away equipped with strategies to analyze, understand, and tighten your plot and pace, helping you craft page-turners that are not only engaging but structurally sound.

Don’t miss this invaluable opportunity to learn how to give your stories a consistent pulse of excitement and drama, turning even the most meandering plots into captivating tales readers love.

“Lessons Learned:
Four Things I Know Now that I Wish I’d Known at the Start of My Writing Career”

From knowing specific craft techniques to implementing efficient promotional strategies (and skipping the rest) and from building meaningful relationships to understanding the complexities of business, this speech helps authors navigate the complex publishing landscape. I will discuss four crucial lessons all authors need to know, and that most only learn the hard way.

Contact Lisa Malice for more information on joining!

Online Book Discussion and Author Interview
with the Wareham Free Library Mystery Book Club:
Consigned To Death

Online Presentation:

“Crafting Evocative Prose:
The Essence of Captivating Storytelling”

Having a brilliant plot, relatable characters, or an exciting idea is not enough. You must know how to pick the perfect words to create sensory experiences and emotional connections with your readers.

From memoir to horror, romance, and thrillers, and from literary nonfiction to fantasy, sci-fi/spec, and mysteries, crafting evocative prose is essential to writing stories readers can’t put down—and recommend to their friends.

Join my FREE webinar to learn how to craft prose that not only tells a story but also evokes a palpable response in your readers, keeping them coming back story after story.

Southwest Florida Reading Festival

Presentation:
“Murder She Wrote with Jane K. Cleland and Cara Black”

Multiple Book Signing Sessions

In-Person Presentation:
“Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI”

You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though.

We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements.

With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions. On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.

This webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.

Online Presentation:

“Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot”

In this comprehensive overview, you’ll discover 13 thinking, writing, and revising tactics to help you write tighter, more polished first drafts. You’ll improve your story’s pace, while ratcheting up suspense. The tactics include selecting the proper structure, adding complexity to the plot, enhancing character motivation, choosing words for sensual specificity, and writing lyrical prose.

Online Presentation:

“The Anatomy of Charm:
Secrets to Crafting Characters Readers Can’t Resist”

Charming people put people at ease, which means people feel comfortable confiding in them. They’re able to talk their way into places they have no business being and out of trouble.

What great attributes for a detective! Or an unreliable narrator.

Charm can be a positive attribute—or a conman’s stock in trade. In this webinar, we’ll consider how to create charming characters, delineating the elements that lead to charm, from how they dress to how they act. You’ll learn the secrets to creating believable charmers who propel your stories forward.

Online Presentation:

“The Art of Revealing Backstory”

The past informs the future. The people who populate your stories have a past, and that past dictates, or at the very least informs, their actions.

Sharing that backstory is tricky, though. Share too much information, or share it before readers care about your characters, and they’re likely to lose interest.

To write a page-turner, every sentence must propel the story forward via incident or character interactions, and backstory takes us out of the action, slowing the pace. To reveal backstory effectively, you need to first assess which aspects should be revealed. Then you need to determine how best to share that information.

Learn how to integrate backstory into your narrative while keeping your readers turning pages during my guest presentation for the Golden State Romance Writers. Non-members welcome!

Online Presentation:

“The Art of Distraction: Using Red Herrings”

One of the secrets of writing success is creating complex and surprising plots is a deliciously sneaky technique writers use to befuddle readers—red herrings. By using red herrings the same way that a magician uses sleight of hand, you’ll be able to divert your readers’ attention from the actual to the illusionary; if done well, your readers will believe what they see on the printed page—an irresistible way to draw them in and keep them turning pages.

Online Discussion:

Reinvent Your Writing—and Yourself:
Discussing the Writing Process with
Bestselling Author Jonathan Santlofer

Acclaimed author Jonathan Santlofer shares his unique process for crafting page-turning novels during this FREE online discussion. We’ll discuss his techniques for mining life experiences to create emotionally powerful scenes and compelling characters, visual storytelling techniques to breathe life into your scenes, and reinventing your own creative process.

Register now for this not-to-be-missed opportunity to elevate your craft!

Online Presentation:

“Creating Characters that Resonate
with Emotional Truth”

Join me for a discussion about how to create relatable characters. We’ll look at how they should dress, the nuance of body language, what they should say (and avoid saying), and how they should act so they connect with readers on a deep, meaningful, emotional basis.

Non-members welcome. Contact CWC Marin County for details.

Online Presentation:

“Beyond the Surface: The Role of Inner Reflections in Writing Captivating Fiction”

Struggling to portray authentic reactions? Unsure how to reveal those emotions that live below the surface? Wish your characters felt more relatable and multidimensional?

This FREE webinar will explore how to harness the power of inner reflections to pull back the curtain, revealing your characters’ hidden emotional depths and leaving a lasting impression that brings readers back story after story.

Online Presentation:

“Set the Stage: Using Setting to Add Intrigue and Suspense”

When you convert setting into atmosphere, you’ll add delicious intrigue and suspense. Don’t be thinking of setting as an afterthought—it’s a crucial element in storytelling. By integrating sensory descriptions and meaningful cultural associations, your settings will come to life and add depth and richness to your stories.

Online Presentation:

“The Perception Gap: Create Compelling and Twisty Plots Using Your Characters’ Views of the World”

Do your characters feel flat and one-dimensional? Are your plots meandering without clear conflict to propel the story forward? Leverage perception gaps to breathe life into your characters and ratchet up the tension in your stories!

Whether you write cozy mysteries, pulse-pounding thrillers, or sweeping sagas, this free one-hour webinar will revolutionize the way you develop characters and plot. Join me and learn how to leverage perception gaps to craft authentic, multifaceted characters that leap off the page.

Online Presentation:

“Providing Constructive Feedback for Writers”

To succeed, we writers have to be good at so many things from coming up with worthy ideas to writing evocative prose and from determining the best structure to self-editing—and everything in between.

And the process is personal. Often, we feel scared and vulnerable. As Ernest Hemingway once said, “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” When we join a critique group, we come with optimism and hope. We want feedback—usually, we crave it. Or do we? Sometimes, we think we want feedback, but really, what we want is affirmation.

In this workshop, we’ll discuss how to provide meaningful, constructive feedback—and how to receive it. The specific communication and logistical tactics discussed in this workshop will help writers and critique group facilitators provide relevant, forward-thinking feedback, boost everyone’s spirits, and inspire us to thrive. In the end, we’ll all become better writers—together.

(This is a members-only presentation. Membership details are available at https://greenwichpenwomen.org/membership/)

Online Presentation:

“Isolation: A Tool for Suspense”

Want to discover how to effectively use isolation in your stories to intensify emotions, escalate tension, and engage readers?

During my upcoming webinar, we’ll delve into the multifaceted strengths of isolation as a narrative tool, exploring the two types of isolation and how they interact to amplify suspense.

You’ll leave the session armed with actionable insights and techniques that you can immediately apply to your own writing, crafting stories that resonate deeply with your readers and leave them eagerly turning the pages.

Online Presentation:

“Creating Characters that Resonate
with Emotional Truth”

Join me for a discussion about how to create relatable characters. We’ll look at how they should dress, the nuance of body language, what they should say (and avoid saying), and how they should act so they connect with readers on a deep, meaningful, emotional basis.

Online Presentation:

“Writing Dialogue that Sings”

Dialogue is one of three narrative tools to move the plot along and reveal character (in addition to exposition and action). Each character must speak with a unique voice—an amalgam of style, tone, intonation, and word choices. (And it must be formatted and punctuated properly.) In this webinar, you’ll learn what you need to write dialogue that rings with truth.

Hostess for The Wolfe Pack Banquet

Join fellow members of the Wolfe Pack, the literary society that celebrates all things Nero Wolfe, and Wolfean fans for a sumptuous meal in a gorgeous venue. Over the course of the evening, we celebrate Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe stories  by singing pastiches; completing hilarious quizzes about the opus; and toasting our favorite characters—Mr. Stout, Mr. Wolfe, Archie, Fritz, and “Other.”  The format of this banquet is similar to the annual Black Orchid Banquet held by the Wolfe Pack every December in New York City—for those of you not near New York, this is your chance to share this special experience! 

Moderator for In-Person Panel:
“Openings that Kill It”

A good story needs to grab you from the start. These authors will examine opening lines and what works (and doesn’t).

Panelists include Eric Beetner, John Billheimer, Anne Cleeland, David Corbett, and Josh Pacter.

Panelist for In-Person Panel:
“Discovered Treasures: Antiquities and Art that Lead to Adventure and Death”

There is nothing better than discovered treasure. Whether a painting or antique discovered in someone’s attic or gold coins buried in the ground. The value of the items drives people to do desperate things and brings interesting plots to these books.

Moderated by Linda A. Moore. Other panelists include Con Lehane, Lane Stone, M.A. Monnin, and Mark Pryor.

In-Person Presentation:

“Set the Stage: Using Setting to
Add Intrigue and Suspense”

Time and place should reflect the culture, language, habits, standards, values, shared beliefs, customs, food, mores, pace of life, and so on. From cozy mysteries (typically a small town with a sweet and decent feel) to noir literary novels (dark and gritty, with a veneer of danger), each genre (and sub-genre) comes with a set of reader expectations. In this workshop, we’ll discuss how to identify the correct setting or settings, how to convert setting into atmosphere, and how to use setting as a subplot, metaphor, or theme to add even more richness and complexity to your stories. 

In-Person Presentation:

“Writing Dialogue That Sings”

Dialogue is one of three narrative tools to move the plot along and reveal character (in addition to description and action). Each character must speak with a unique voice—an amalgam of style, tone, intonation, and word choices.

During this presentation, you’ll learn how to write dialogue that rings with truth; how to integrate subtext, revealing emotional truths through what the characters say—and by what they leave out; how to properly format and punctuate the dialogue in your manuscript; and how to write dialogue that resonates with readers and makes them want to read on.

Online Presentation:

“Mastering Plot Twists”

The stories that keep people on the edge of their seats and up all night, from family sagas to thrillers and romances to sci-fi, are filled with unexpected twists and turns. By integrating plot twists, plot reversals, and moments of heightened danger (TRDs) at tactically sound moments, your stories will captivate readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability. When your plot twists come at the right moments, your pace will be quicker and the action more focused, and these are the nuanced, multifaceted stories that sell and find a devoted reader- or viewership.

Online Presentation:

“Boost Your Creativity to Beat the Bots”

Online Presentation:

“The Art of Revealing Backstory”

The past informs the future. The people who populate your stories have a past, and that past dictates, or at the very least informs, their actions.

Sharing that backstory is tricky, though. Share too much information, or share it before readers care about your characters, and they’re likely to lose interest.

To write a page-turner, every sentence must propel the story forward via incident or character interactions, and backstory takes us out of the action, slowing the pace. To reveal backstory effectively, you need to first assess which aspects should be revealed. Then you need to determine how best to share that information.

Learn how to integrate backstory into your narrative while keeping your readers turning pages during my FREE one-hour online presentation!

Online Presentation:

“Revising Your Own Work”

Non-members welcome, contact FAW Webmaster Scott Davidson for details.

Online Discussion:

“Mastering the Agent Hunt: Learn What Agents Want with Special Guest, Adam Chromy”

Adam Chromy is a published author, screenwriter, film/tv producer, and literary agent, operating his boutique New York City agency, Movable Type Management for more than 20 years.

Join us as we explore how the best agents don’t simply bring attention to your books, but partner with you to help build momentum, hone your approach, and, ultimately, achieve greater levels of success.

Online Presentation:

“Mastering Plot Twists“

The stories that keep people on the edge of their seats and up all night are filled with unexpected twists and turns. By integrating plot Twists, plot Reversals, and moments of heightened Danger (TRDs) at tactically sound moments, your stories will captivate readers with their I-can’t-wait-to-see-what-happens-next unpredictability. When your plot twists come at the right moments, your pace will be quicker and the action more focused, and these are the nuanced, multifaceted books that sell, and that find a devoted readership.

Online Presentation:

“Forks in the Road:
Jane’s Character Transformation Roadmap”

Immersive stories readers can’t put down require characters they can connect with. By aligning character motivations with incidents that result in transformation over the course of the story, you create realistic, believable characters and ensure that they act in ways that feel natural and draw in readers.

Just as Jane’s Plotting Roadmap helps you delineate your plot and control the pace of your story from the inciting incident to the final twist, Jane’s Character Transformation Roadmap will help you to track how your character develops throughout your story, streamlining the process of creating compelling characters your readers won’t soon forget.

Online Presentation:

“Revising Your Own Work”

You’ve finished your manuscript—now what? It’s time to polish the story, add complexity to the characters, and burnish the prose. In other words, it’s time to revise!

In this workshop, we’ll discuss my three-step approach to the revision process. You’ll learn professional tricks, techniques, and tips to ensure your work is ready for submission. I’ll provide numerous examples so you’ll know how to implement these proven techniques in your own work.

Online Presentation:

“Using Point of View to Maximize Reader Engagement”

How do you know the best point of view (POV) for your story?

From big-picture revelations to tightly held secrets, POV is a critical part of deciding what your readers (and characters) know and experience throughout your story.

Choose the wrong POV and readers won’t connect with your story. Worse still, if you use too many POVs, readers end up confused, not intrigued. Use my POV decision-making model to discover how to determine what’s best for your story!