Online Lecture Series

Dean and I have started an online lecture series. Here’s the information from Dean’s blog:

For some time now I have been mentioning that we will be starting up a lecture series at WMG Publishing. Well, we have the first three lectures done and will be adding in new lectures almost every week from now on out.

You can get full information at any time on the Lecture Series on the tab above.  I will announce new lectures as they come live and put them under the tab above and also on the sidebar list.

Right now there is a long lecture by me on Heinlein’s Rules and two regular lectures by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, one on how to Read Like a Writer and another on How to Write a Short Story: The Basics.

Some Basics About the Lectures

— Each lecture is on a topic that might interest writers in one fashion or another.

— These are video lectures. And each lecture is made up of a number of videos each about seven to ten minutes long. (A couple of the videos get much longer, however. But we tried to keep them in the ten minute range so that you could go and come from the lecture as you wanted and had time. Similar to what we are doing in the online workshops.)

— You can come and go and watch a lecture at your own pace. And come back as often as you would like for as long as you like.

— The passwords for each lecture will change on the first of each month, but if you have paid for a lecture, simply write for the new month’s password if you would like to come back and watch part or all of the lecture again in the future. (If you sign up during the last week or so of a month, we will give you two month’s passwords.)

The Available Lectures

More lectures will be added onto the list every week or so by a varied number of professionals on a varied number of topics. Check back regularly.

Lecture #1

Heinlein’s Rules.

15 videos by Dean Wesley Smith (who follows Heinlein’s Rules)

Price: $75.00 

Robert A. Heinlein, in 1947, in an effort to help new writers coming in, gave what he termed as his “business habits.” He basically said that if followed, his rules will make a want-to-be writer into a professional writer.

But Heinlein acknowledged that the simple five rules seemed almost impossible to follow. Heinlein said,“…they are amazingly hard to follow–which is why there are so few professional writers and so many aspirants…”

USA Today bestselling writer Dean Wesley Smith talks about each of the five rules, why they seem so difficult, why they work for writers when followed, and how to follow them even in this new world of indie publishing. Dean started following all five of Heinlein’s Rules in 1982 and since 1987 worked as a full-time professional fiction writer. He still follows the rules to this day.

You may not end up following Heinlein’s Rules, but you will learn a vast amount about writing from these 15 videos.

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Lecture #2

Read Like A Writer.

8 videos by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, award-winning writer and editor.

Price: $50.00 

Award-winning and bestselling writer, Kristine Kathryn Rusch talks about how aspiring writers read in the wrong fashion and for the wrong things. Then she goes on to explain how professional writers read to enjoy books and keep learning from other writers. And she tells you how to make that switch from reading poorly to reading to help your writing.

For a writer hungry to keep learning, reading becomes critical. But reading in the wrong fashion can set back your progress. A critical topic for all writers.

These eight videos may change how you look at books as a writer, and they certainly might help you bring back the fun of reading again.

———–

Lecture #3

How to Write a Short Story: The Basics.

7 long videos by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, award-winning writer and editor.

Price: $50.00 

Kristine Kathryn Rusch won a Hugo Award for both her editing and her short fiction, the only person in history to do so. She is the only writer in history to be in all four Dell Magazines (Asimov’s, Ellery Queen, Analog, and Hitchcock’s) in the same year. And she accomplished feat that in numbers of years now. Nominated for every major award in short fiction in varied genres for both editing and writing, she won a number of them.

In these videos, Kris lays out the basics of how to write a short story.

If you have questions about something in a lecture…

— If you have a question about something in the lecture, there are two ways to get an answer. First, at the bottom of each page is a comments section. Everyone listening to the lecture will be able to see the question and the answer, so that will turn into a FAQ area for each lecture.

— If your question is more private in nature, simply e-mail us and we will do our best to respond.

How to Sign Up

— The prices are on each lecture in the list below as well as the number of videos included in the lecture. Again each video is about eight to ten minutes long, with some being longer.

Step one…

Write Dean at dean@deanwesleysmith.com and give him the following information.

1… Name

2… E-mail address

3… Name of lecture(s) you are signing up for.

Please put “Lecture Series” in the subject line to help the spam filter bypass. 

Step two…

Pay for the lecture by either…

— PayPal to dean@deanwesleysmith.com

— Send a check made out to WMG Publishing to WMG Publishing, PO Box 479, Lincoln City, OR 97367.

Step three…

Once payment has been made, we will send you the password for the lecture(s) and from that point forward you are free to come and go with that lecture and watch each video as many times as you would like for as long as you would like.

The Lectures:

#1… Heinlein’s Rules… Dean Wesley Smith 15 videos… $75.00

#2… Read Like a Writer… Kristine Kathryn Rusch… 8 videos… $50.00

#3… How to Write a Short Story: The Basics… Kristine Kathryn Rusch…. 7 videos… $50.00

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Watch for more lectures coming each week.

And if you have a request for a lecture topic or any questions at all, please e-mail Dean and put Lecture Series in the subject line.

We’re pretty proud of these. I hope you enjoy them.