NOVEMBER 2011
Workshop: "Deep POV (or, I've Got You Under My Skin)"
Saturday, November 12
Heart of Carolina Romance Writers
Cameron Village Library
Raleigh, NC

Deep point of view (POV) is the quickest, cheapest tool in the writer's toolbox for shoe-horning your reader into your character's skin. It is driven by your characters' experience and emotions. This workshop explains how close third person POV combines the advantages of first person POV with the versatility and wider camera lens of third person POV. Elements to consider in writing deep POV include the character's gender, education level, environment, age, career, and needs and conflicts. Using first and final drafts from Virginia Kantra's own work and examples from bestselling and RITA-nominated books, this workshop will explore when and why deep POV is effective and discuss how to write it in description, narrative, and dialogue/subtext. Special attention will be paid to formatting; techniques for switching POV within a scene; and to writing in male POV, including "Virginia's Guide to Guy-Speak."

MARCH 17, 2012
Workshop TBA
Liberty States Fiction Writers Create Something Magical Conference
Saturday, March 17
Booksigning - Open to the Public! - 5:30-7:00 pm
Woodbridge Hotel & Conference Center
515 Route 1 South & Gill Lane
Iselin, NJ 08830

APRIL 2012
Month-long On-line Workshop: " Casting Your Characters"
Lessons posted April 2-27
Offered through WriterUniv.com
The casting director's responsibility is to find actors who are right for the roles of a particular production. What characters does your story need? How do you create chemistry between them? Award-winning author Virginia Kantra discusses how to use the requirements of different roles--heroes, heroines, antagonists, and secondary characters--to build a strong, appealing cast and focus your story.

Also Available: Deadlines permitting, I enjoy speaking to writers' and readers' groups. Some of my workshops are also available as RWA conference recordings.

"Developing the Romance in Your Romance Novel"
RWA National defines a romance novel as "a central love story" with "an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." To be emotionally satisfying, the romance must be true both to what the reader knows and to what the writer has to say. Good love stories are universal (tap into the readers' shared emotions and experiences) and unique (use specific, significant details that belong to the story). Using examples from bestselling authors and Virginia Kantra's own work, this workshop explores how combining universal emotion and unique detail in seven essential romance components results in love stories that are believable, memorable…and satisfying!

"Characters Inside and Out"
"It may be possible in novel-writing to present characters successfully without telling a story: but it is not possible to tell a story successfully without presenting characters." - Wilkie Collins
Using examples from Virginia Kantra's own work, popular movies, and bestselling books, this workshop will explore the elements of characters' "inside life" and "outside life,"
the story requirements for various character roles,
the layers of character from dominant impression to dominant mood,
and how to reveal character through description, action, dialogue and point of view.

"Adding Emotion, Making a Sale"
Solid writing skills don't guarantee sales. An emotionally compelling story does. Using common phrases from rejection letters (such as "I didn't care about the characters," "I just didn't love this story enough," and "The plot overshadows the romance") Virginia Kantra translates what those phrases really mean and shares practical strategies to hook readers' and editors' emotions. Lessons will discuss how to use authenticity, voice, characters, conflict, structure, deep point of view, dominant mood, dialogue, and "pay off moments" to create emotionally engaging stories.

"Voice: What Are They Talking About?"
Voice is a function of both what you have to say (story, genre, theme) and your experience (vocabulary, cadence, and world view). Because no two writers have exactly the same things to say and the same experience, each author's voice is unique. This workshop examines all of the above by looking at examples from bestselling authors with strong voices across and within subgenres. Virginia will also discuss the difference between author point of view and character point of view and share tips for developing your own voice.

"Sex, Style, and Substance: the Role of Gender in Romance"
(Last offered at Romance Writers of America National Conference 2009)
Gender roles are changing in society and romance, yet the differences between men and women still impact our genre. Using examples from her own work and best-selling authors, Virginia Kantra demonstrates how an understanding of gender can add credibility to our characterizations
and spark to our romance. This workshop will discuss gender roles from the standpoint of biology and genre fiction; meeting reader expectations and subverting stereotypes; and how male and female communication styles affect dialogue, point-of-view, conflict, and intimacy.

"Who's on Top? Intimacy, Control and Conflict"
(Last offered through Kiss of Death as a month-long on-line workshop, October 2007)
Every satisfying love story charts both character growth and the growth of a relationship. Using examples from bestselling authors, this workshop explores the tension between the character arc and the romance arc; how men and women use dialogue to seek status or establish connection; and the different ways the two sexes negotiate the struggle for the right balance of intimacy and control.

"Developing an Author/Editor Relationship" with Mary-Theresa Hussey (Luna, Silhouette Books)
RWA National Conference 2003

"Writing Ongoing Series" with Suz Brockmann and Josie Litton
RWA National Conference 2003

"Pillow Talk: Using Dialogue To Enhance Romance" with Sabrina Jeffries and Judith Stanton
RWA National Conference 2002