The Game-changing Story Box

This workshop can run from 1-3 hours based on need and is aimed at memoir and fiction writers

We all want to write that book that readers won't put down, but how do we transform our ideas and characters into a riveting story? This workshop introduces you to the simple but revolutionary Story Box method of plotting your book. Participants will leave with a Story Box kit as well as a clear map for structuring their story, whether it is memoir or fiction. (The Plot Box kit costs $20 per participant. The kit includes color-coded plotting cards, colored pencils, a portable ideas notebook, and cue words.)

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Crack the Sea

This workshop can run from 1-3 hours, depending on time allowed, and is directed at writers in any genre and at any skill level.

Many of us carry family secrets and personal shame, believing either that we’re the only ones or that the cost of telling our story is too high. We become locked in this frozen sea, trapped by the truths we don’t speak. Fiction provides an out. It allows us to release our secrets without anyone knowing.

Not only is the process healing and the source of powerful fiction, it improves the world: once we break free of the frozen sea, cracks start feathering out, making it easier for others to do the same. Join bestselling author, teacher, and TEDx presenter Jess Lourey to learn how to turn your own experiences into healing fiction. This is a hands-on workshop, so come with something to write with and on.

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Write Cleaner, Better, Faster

This workshop is directed at writers in any genre and of any age and skill level and runs from 50 minutes-two hours, based on time available.

You've got that golden idea for a book, the one that won't let you go, that embellishes itself as you walk around your day, but you don't know what to do with it. Or, you find yourself in the saggy middle of your novel and want to throw in the towel. Or possibly you have a completed first draft but know something isn't quite right with it. How do you take control of your book? Join multi-genre author and college writing instructor Jess Lourey for the answers. Participants will be shown how to use the seven-step POP Method to write cleaner, better, and faster. This seminar has been taught by Jessica from New York City to San Francisco, and now it's coming to your neck of the woods! (AV equipment—screen, wireless projector or projector with USB adapter on other end of cord—required.)

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Revolutionary Editing Hacks

This workshop is directed at writers in any genre and of any age and skill level and runs from 50 minutes to three hours, based on time available.

Editing is supposed to improve your writing, but how do you know if you're doing it right? Join Jess Lourey to learn the must-haves of big-picture editing, how to apply the ARISE method to craft a story your reader won't be able to put down, and to get your hands on the ultimate line-editing checklist. Bring 5 pages of your manuscript for practice. Also, please let me know if you see any errors in this description because that would be super embarrassing.

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A Writer's Journey

This 50-minute presentation is directed primarily at readers curious about a writer's life and is a great fit for libraries.

Ever wonder where writers get their ideas, and how their books go from a dusty manuscript in their desk to a published book in stores and on library shelves? Join critically-acclaimed author and creative writing professor Jessica Lourey as she discusses the inspiration for her Mira James mysteries, her young adult series, her thriller, and her future projects. She'll also share her journey from unpublished writer to author of twenty books. Come with questions, and prepare to be entertained. (AV equipment—screen, wireless projector or projector with USB adapter on other end of cord—is not required but is preferred.)

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Rewrite Your Life (Full-day)

This one-day presentation is directed at writers in any genre and of any age and skill level.

According to common wisdom, we all have a book inside of us. But how do we select and then write our most significant story, the one that helps us to evolve and invites pure creativity into our lives, the one that people line up to read? In Rewrite Your Life, creative writing professor, sociologist, TEDx presenter, and popular fiction author Jessica Lourey (MA, MS) takes you step-by-step through the redemptive process of crafting and selling an experience-based novel.

Based on the approach Lourey developed and field-tested in the wake of her husband's 9/11 suicide, this workshop combines research, writing guidance, and interactive exercises. Tender, raw, funny, and instructional, Rewrite Your Life offers both a map and a model for those seeking to transform themselves through the simple, profound act of novel writing. Attendees will leave with a handout of publishing suggestions and resources. (This session runs from 6-9 hours based on need. AV equipment—screen, wireless projector or projector with USB adapter on other end of cord—required.)

Want to know more?

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Write & Publish Your Novel This Year (Full-day)

This all-day workshop is directed primarily at writers in any genre and of any age and skill level.

Author and professor Jessica Lourey will use a mixture of lecture, in-class activities, writing, and Q & A to guide you through her foolproof and exciting seven-step process for turning an idea into a novel, including:

• Writing memorable characters,
• Building a page-turning plot,
• Creating cinematic, multi-purpose settings,
• Editing effectively, and
• Finding an agent or self-publishing.

This workshop is ideal for every writer, regardless of genre or level of skill. Bring your ideas, 10 pages of your work in progress (if you have a WIP), and writing materials (paper and pen or laptop) and prepare to write that book!

(This session runs from 6-8 hours spread across one or more days based on host's need. AV equipment—screen, wireless projector or projector with USB adapter on other end of cord—required.)

Want to know more?

Get in touch with Jessica Lourey

Keynote Speeches/Creativity/Writing to Heal

Jessica is available to deliver keynote speeches and motivational presentations. Contact her at jessicalourey@gmail.com for more information.