December 7, 2013 – Guest speaker - Melanie Green, screenwriter.

Melanie Green will be our guest speaker at the December 7 meeting.  The topic will be "Movie Adaptations: How to Get Your Novel Ready for the Screen."

Have you wanted to see your novel on the big screen? Come learn about basic screenwriting techniques and how understanding them can improve your chances of having your novel adapted.

Melanie Green is the owner of Melanie Green Editorial Services, a small Tampa-based editorial firm that provides editing and writing services for writers, businesses, academics and individuals. (www.melaniegreen.info) She's also a recent graduate of National University's Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program with a concentration on screenwriting. She's written four screenplays and worked as a character writer on a television pilot.

Intellectual Property Attorneys - Guest Speakers - November 2 meeting

Rochelle Walk and Matthew Welker of Walk Law Group will be the guest speakers at our November 2 meeting.  They will discuss intellectual property.

Walk Law Firm, P.A. is located at 102 W. Whiting Street, Suite 301, Tampa, FL 33602.  They can be reached at 813-999-0199.  Visit their website at www.thewalkfirm.com.

For more information about the copyright office, visit www.copyright.gov, publications www.copyright.gov/circs and  forms www.copyright.gov/forms.

Alex Hinojosa - Guest Speaker - October 5 meeting

Alex Hinojosa will be the guest speaker at our next meeting on Saturday, October 5, 2013.  Our meetings are held at the New Tampa Library, 10001 Cross Creek Boulevard, Tampa, from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm with lunch at a nearby restaurant afterwards for those interested.

Alex Hinojosa is the Vice President of Media Operations& Strategy at EMSI Public Relations where he oversees the creative process and execution of print, radio, TV and social media campaigns.  He’s been integral in securing media placements and building social media connections for clients ranging from the creator of the E-Myth Series to executive producers of The Dark Knight, I, Robot and Halloween to an owner of an NBA franchise.  His PR expertise has been featured in numerous publications including the NY Post, Chicago Tribune, Kiplinger’s and InStore Magazine.  Alex also media coaches EMSI’s clients.  He has 16 years experience as a radio personality heard nationally and locally for CBS Radio, Clear Channel Media & Entertainment and ESPN in major markets like Atlanta, Washington, DC and New York and currently hosts a daily talk show on News/Talk 1470am WMGG in Tampa, Florida.  Follow him on Twitter: @AlexSaidThat. 

We hope to see you there!

Guest Speaker - Dave Lapham - September 7 meeting

Please join Florida Writers Association, Wesley Chapel, on September 7, from 10:00 – 12:00.

Our guest speaker will be Dave Lapham. Dave is the popular author of best-selling Ghosts of St. Augustine and Ancient City Hauntings, Ghosthunting Florida, 12-21-12 (by Parker Lee-a pen name) and award-winning Crossing the Elde Bridge. He has also published numerous magazine articles and appeared on radio and television; and he is currently working on 3 novels, and a nonfiction book about paranormal investigators. He is a member of The Authors Guild, the Florida Writers Association, and the International Ghost Hunters Society. For more information, go to http://davelapham.wordpress.com/.

Our meetings are held at the New Tampa Library, 10001 Cross Creek Boulevard, Tampa. For more information about our group, go to http://fwa-wesley-chapel.blogspot.com/ or find us on Facebook (FWA Wesley Chapel).

Upcoming Guest Speakers

Please join us for our upcoming FWA meetings. All meetings are held at the New Tampa Library, 10001 Cross Creek Boulevard, Tampa.

*September 7, 2013 - Dave Lapham, paranormal writer.

* October 5, 2013 Alex Hinojosa - VP of Media Operations, EMS Incorporated. The topic is The Power of Publicity, and will cover getting print and radio interviews, TV appearances, and social networking. http://newsandexpertsshow.com/alex-hinojosa/

* November 2, 2013 – Rochelle Walk, intellectual property attorney, http://www.walklawfirm.com/Attorneys/Rochelle-F-Walk.shtml

* December 7, 2013 – Melanie Green, screenwriter. http://www.melaniegreen.info/

August 3 - Guest Speaker - Royce Wilson, Forensics Expert

Royce Wilson will be our guest speaker. Royce was our guest speaker in June and had such an intriguing presentation that he graciously accepted our invitation to come back to teach us more about forensics. Royce is a retired law enforcement forensics expert with 35 years experience. His presentation will continue where he left off and cover what the job of a CSI is really like, how forensics plays a key role in investigations, how cold cases are solved, and the job of a private investigator. Royce is a founding partner of SRI Investigations http://www.sriinvestigations.com/, an author, and a member of FWA.

Royce Wilson was the first Director of Forensic Services at the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, where he retired after 31 years with the agency, and a total of 36 years in the field. He has an expertise in all aspects of fingerprints and crime scene investigations. He has an unparalleled knowledge in the areas of evidence collection and interpretation, and continues to serve on the Sheriff’s Office’s Cold Case Team.

Royce has a Masters of Science degree in Management from the University of South Florida, with additional Graduate Level studies in Forensic Science with the University of Florida; he is a graduate and class president of the Senior Leadership program at the Executive Institute of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Saint Leo University.

July 6 - Writers' Workshop

Join us for a writers' workshop on Saturday, July 6, from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm, as we look at samples of raw manuscripts.  We will act as editors for the purpose of being able to better understand what the author-editor relationship can and should be. If you have a sample of pre- and post- edited work, please send it to Cindy Campbell at abic@msn.com.  Cindy will share her experiences as an editor to give us important tips to use, whether you have been published before or you are on the road to getting your work published.

Guest speakers for upcoming meetings:

August: Royce Wilson, forensics expert, our guest speaker from June, will be back for Q&A and more advice.
September: Melanie Green, screenwriter

June 1 - Guest Speaker - Royce Wilson

Attention, all those who read and write crime-related fiction and non-fiction! This month's guest speaker will be Royce Wilson, a retired law enforcement forensics expert with 35 years experience. His presentation will cover what the job of a CSI is really like, how forensics plays a key role in investigations, how cold cases are solved, and the job of a private investigator. Royce is a founding partner of SRI Investigations http://www.sriinvestigations.com/,  an author, and a member of FWA.

FWA Meeting Date: Saturday, June 1st, 10:00 to 12:30 (join us for lunch after the meeting at a local restaurant)

Location:  New Tampa Public Library - 10001 Cross Creek Blvd. Tampa, FL 33647-2581.  

813-273-3652

Upcoming Author Events

Poet John Foster will be giving a presentation entitled "From Limericks to Sonnets - Exploring the Depths of Poetry"

May 11, 2013, 2:00
New Tampa Public Library
10001 Cross Creek Boulevard, Tampa, FL

Please make another trip to the New Tampa library on Saturday, May 11th, to hear John's presentation. John has diplomas from Yale, Middlebury College, and the Sorbonne, and is the author of three collections of poetry: Discovery! A Wordcrafter’s Journey (2009: Outskirts Press), Chuckles—Verses to a-Muse (2010: XLibris), and Where There’s A Quill (2011: XLibris). His poetry has appeared in local newspapers and numerous professional journals. He has won awards at both the state and national levels. He is a member of the Florida State Poets Association and the Southshore Arts Council, and he has given dozens of readings, lectures and workshops throughout west central Florida. John is retired and living in Sun City Center.


Local Author Event. 

May 18, 2013, 2:00-4:00
Barnes & Noble, Wiregrass Mall
28211 Paseo Dr #100, Wesley Chapel, FL

Stop by to support fellow authors at the Local Author Event.  Over 20 local authors from the Tampa Bay area will be available at Barnes & Noble for a meet and greet book signing.  Many are members of our FWA group.

Authors include:
Ruby Agnir
Jenice Armstead     
Wayne Ayers
Guy Cote 
Ruth Ellinger     
Chonta T.A. Haynes
Evelyn Johnson-Taylor
Leigh Kenyon
George Mavro
Kelly Miller
Paul Murphy
Rebecca Nunez
Alison Oburia
Fran Orenstein    
Ria Prestia
Sara Rosett
Paul Wartenberg   
Madonna Wise

May 4 - Guest Speaker - Annette Mardis

This month's guest speaker will be Annette Mardis. Her presentation will focus on editing and writing tips. She's presented at various writers' groups in the area and has edited novels written by local authors.

Annette has 30 years in the newspaper and editing business. For now, she's doing freelance book editing and Internet writing and working on two books while also volunteering as an animal educator at Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Annette, a native of St. Pete, has a degree in mass communications from USF. She spent almost 10 years at the Clearwater Sun, then 19 at The Tampa Tribune. Annette has written about crime and punishment; education; religion; music; fashion; local, state and national news; human interest stories; personality profiles; and a number of other topics. She left the Sun as its city editor; designed regional news sections while at The Tribune, and was a front-line bureau editor there, too. In addition to her writing and editing, she also spent four years volunteering at a nearby elementary school. She’s also written book reviews for The Tribune and tbo.com and worked with Community Consolidated Editing Center in Tampa, where she edited stories, wrote headlines, head decks and cutlines, proofed pages and whatever else was needed for a number of small local newspapers.