Carolyn Loves to Teach,
Speak, and Act
Find information on her seminars, panels, workshops, radio, podcasts and
keynotes here. Use them to learn more. Hire her to come share he
enthusiasm for all things publishing and marketing with the audience you
are determined to please!
The multi award-winning author of fiction, poetry
and the
HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers
helps
others boost their writing or retailing careers.
Why Hire a Professional Speaker
For Your Conference,
Tradeshow or Convention?
When
you require
inspiration and information
based on practical experience. . .
you
hire a professional speaker
to bring something new to your audience!
Carolyn
Howard-Johnson will:
entertain.
energize.
inspire.
educate.
Carolyn
Howard-Johnson commands attention.
She
is
UCLA Instructor-trained.
She
is dynamic.
Carolyn
Howard-Johnson is credible.
She
has experienced what her audience needs to know.
She
has written books on pertinent topics.
She
has a history of speaking, sharing, and training.
Carolyn Howard-Johnson's professional and personal life exemplify the
American Dream.
Her passion for her subjects resonates with the
audience you want to reach.
Your audience will get more than
inspiration; they will get smart, hard how-tos on to put them on the
path to success.
Carolyn Howard-Johnson customizes a presentation or workshop for your
event or you can choose a proven one from a variety of subjects. Reach
her by
e-mail.
Program Directors'
Recommendations
"Carolyn Howard-Johnson was invited faculty for our recent writers'
conference. While it's small and intensive, the Las Vegas Writer's
Conference attracts authors, agents, publishers, and editors from all
over the country. While we
were confident that Carolyn's sessions would
be good, I'm delighted to report that they were really superb! As a
forty-year veteran of book and magazine editing (and myriad writer's
conferences), I wondered what I would take away from her "Writing
Sparkling Dialog" session. What a pleasure to hear the authors, both
published and aspiring, madly absorbing and responding to some truly
excellent advice. Her two-part session on frugal book promotion
was wonderfully informative on an instantly practical level, with very
useful handouts. Here in Southern Nevada I am editing a number of brave
self-publishing authors, and this information is invaluable to them.
Given the staffing and budget cuts of commercial publishers these days,
this knowledge is also essential for those with good book contracts and
advances.
Carolyn is also generous with her non-session time, willing to
participate on panels and speak at length with participants. She will
most certainly be invited back to our conference." ~
Trudy McMurrin,
editor and coplanner, Las Vegas Writer's
Conference
"You were a hit!"
~ Leslie Schwartz, director of PEN USA's Emerging Voices Program
"Carolyn Howard-Johnson is a wonderful addition to any writers'
workshop. Her knowledge and enthusiasm make her an attendee favorite!" ~ Tim Bete,
Director, University of Dayton's Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop,
(At
right, Author Donna Shepherd and Carolyn after Carolyn's presentation at
the
Dayton University's Erma Bombeck Conference, 2006)
"Carolyn Howard-Johnson is every seminar planner's dream speaker. A
long-time successful retailer and former owner of multiple stores,
Carolyn's no-nonsense information and easy-to-follow tips make her one
of the retail industry's most knowledgeable and helpful resources--on
subjects ranging from promotions to inventory control, how to hold a
successful sale to empowering in-store personnel. In front of an
audience, she is poised yet approachable, articulate yet down-to-earth;
she offers in-depth advice which may be immediately put to use in retail
stores large and small." ~ Debra Gold,
Founder/Director, Retail Training Program, AMC Trade Shows Media/Buyer
Education Director, California Market Center
Praise from Attendees
At
Carolyn's Seminars and Speaking
Engagements
"(I) was so glad I got to sit in on your session…It was simply the most
informative workshop I've ever been to. And your book is going to
be, as Gordon Kirkland promised, tattered in short order. " ~ Jennifer
Brown, attendee Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop at Dayton University,
2006
"Thank you for such a rich and fast-paced class."
~
Chris Meeks, author, UCLA instructor
and student UCLA Weekend Promotion Seminar
Carolyn and
Craig Wilson of USA Today at the Erma Bombeck Conference, 2008.
Celebrating Carolyn's birthday. Tim Bete, conference director,
at left.
"You were a big success - everyone loved you today! They were most
complimentary. You should be feeling terrific if the vibes are working…"
~ Margie
Whelker, Program Director, P.E.O.
"I
thought you might like to see a portion of an email I received this
morning from a writer I met at the Workshop. You were a hit with her,
too: 'I found the session with Carolyn Howard-Johnson to be the
single most useful seminar I've ever attended. The last time I went to a how
to publicize your writing seminar, it was an hour-and-a half of
name-dropping from some guy from LA. When someone finally asked
what they could do to promote their novel, he said unless it had a
tie-in to someone famous, nothing. It was good to hear there are
things you can do -- maybe not media blitzes, but at least something to
get a little press.'"
~
Anonymously from an
attendee at the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop at Dayton University,
2006
Tennessee Writers Alliance hosted
Carolyn as speaker at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville,
Spring 2007.
"I
came away with inspiration and knowledge I never expected to glean (not
to mention the extensive handout information)."
~ Michael J. Wallach,
student and author, UCLA Weekend Promotion Seminar
"Your
audio class awoke a spark in me that had simmered to a mere
sizzle. Your audio, listening to your voice, made me feel a part of your
own promotional gang and for this it is I who would like to thank you. ~
Lea
Schizas, reviewer for The Muse Book Reviews and editor of
Apollos
Lyre.com
"You provided step-by-step information that I can use right away to
advance my career. Your workshop was AWESOME! ~ Dorothea Helms, The
Writing Fairy and attendee Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop, 2006
"It was a delight to attend your workshop
at the Erma Bombeck Conference this past weekend. I'm just about to
launch my Web site and e-newsletter, so your branding information came
just in the nick of time. I'll be making some changes to my site with
the information you shared."
~ Karen Bryant, author
and workshop attendee, 2006
"…enjoyable and informative marketing workshop last Sunday! You packed a
lot of information and advice into six hours" ~ Laurie Dea Owyang,
PENUSA fellow
"Your chat (on writing dialogue) was terrific and your answers were
crystal clear and encouraging."
~ Priya Lyengar, author
and attendee The Muse Online Writers Workshop
Carolyn chatting with some attn on "Poetry: Don't Let It
Molder in a Drawer! Publish It!"
Seventy-two attendees at the Glendale
Main Library.
Tim Bete, Director University of Dayton's
Writer's Conference where I spoke in 2006 and 2008.
General
Experience
Speaking/Acting/Radio/TV
Carolyn Howard-Johnson
has
been interviewed on more than 300 radio and TV stations (see the
Publicity and Appearances
page).
has appeared in
national commercials for Time-Life Music
of
the Ages, Lenscrafters commercials, and Apple print advertising.
is a frequent
speaker at
§
Writers' conferences (see Publicity and Appearances in the link to
Carolyn's media kit)
§Trade
Shows including The California Gift Show, California Market Center, Expo
America (Pasadena), and
the LA Mart
§
Professional organizations like Small Publishers of North America
(SPAN), American Board of Hypnotherapy and Book Publicists of Southern
California (BPSC)
§Book
clubs, community clubs and libraries (see the link to Carolyn's media
kit (below) and go to to the Publicity and Appearances page.)
was a finalist
on Norwegian Cruise Lines Star Search for a poetry reading.
Note: These are just
a few of Carolyn's favorites from 2009
A few
samples of dozens of my guest spots on
streaming radio shows may be
accessed at:
http://ow.ly/hUNMSeveral
learning opportunities with Yvonne Perry, owner of
WritersintheSky Creative Services, including one on editing where we
discuss everything from em dashes to what works on the Web but
doesn't work for you book's manuscript.
Irene Watson,Victor R. Volkman's and I chat at Author Access and I chat on
several podcasts including a new one on writing book proposals
atauthorsaccess.com/archives/category/carolyn-howard-johnson.
Our podcasts were
among their most popular for several years running. Author's Access
Top
10 Podcasts
three years running.
http://www.justthefaqs.net/podcast.shtmlJust the FAQs
MaAnna Stephenson and I recorded a couple of different podcasts.
One on marketing fiction (Part II) and another pair on marketing for
the hard-to-market genres like fiction and poetry.
Endorsement ". . . a
powerful interview. It was fun and rewarding to the
audience."
~
Frank
Gasiorowski, "Mr90DayGoals," host of PowerTalk at
www.blogtalkradio.com
UCLA Teacher Training
Carolyn earned UCLA's Instructor Development Program Certificate
of Completion, 2005.
UCLA Extension and other
university programs -- both online and on campus -- are the
best way to find professional quality classes and avoid
internet scams.
Find at least one tip on writing, promotion or
tech on every page of this Web site.
Carolyn is often asked a guest speaker for other instructors:
Carolyn with UCLA Master InstructorPam Kelly
at her UCLA
Extension class on speaking, May, 2008.
She also served as a guest
for Eve LaSalle Caram
who teaches for UCLA, Cal State University
at Northridge,
and Los Angeles Community College.
Eve is the winner of
UCLA Writers' Program Best Instructor of the Year award.
Note:
The full range of subjects on these CDs or MP3s are available as
workshops, panels or one-hour seminars, either with Carolyn's fellow
instructors or alone. Subjects can also be combined for one-day
seminars.
Judging
Carolyn
Howard-Johnson judges newsletter and speech competitions.
and poetry, and literary
fiction contests.
[Participants and planners] lauded you…for the one who really gave deep attention to the task."
~Lynn White
Shelby, Pres., American Business Women's Association
Here Carolyn judges speakers for UCLA
master speech instructor Pam Kelly.
Carolyn has judged for
Tri-Studio's "Old
Mold, New Mileu" contest for writers of fiction
Nadine Laman's
fiction contest
Sponsored contests on her own in in partnership with
other entities
American
Business Women's Association's national newsletter
contest
Carolyn Howard-Johnson has nearly three decades’ experience planning and
implementing trade show seminars. She has appeared on more than 300
radio and TV programs. She speaks on subjects related to This Is the
Place, Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered, Tracings, and
the Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher Won't and
and her HowToDoItFrugally series of books for retailers. Recently she
has partnered with the National Stationery Show and Gift Shop Magazine
for tradeshow seminars and Webinars. More information on her retailing presentations are available.
E-mail her.
Sample
Retail Seminar: Reduce Stock,
Build Prestige, Publicity and Profitability More Retailing Seminar Titles Available on
Request
Writing, Publishing, and Other
Topics
Savvy Marketing for Authors: It’s Never Too Late—or
Early—to Hone Your Promotion Skills Because they don't face the
realities of today's publishing world well before their books are
released, even authors with superbly written books and prestigious
publishers may find themselves facing unpleasant marketing surprises.
This seminar will help writers brand themselves rather than "sell
books." Carolyn Howard-Johnson shares her experience as a former public
relations professional and as the primary promoter of her own four
books. You'll learn to constructing the marketing framework for your
book's success; this plan can help you land an agent and publisher and
may be used later by you--the author--your publisher or the PR
professional you hire. Even seasoned authors will learn practical
approaches to book promotion they never knew existed.
Bring the Dead Back to Life Using Your Genealogy and New
Publishing Technology Now you’ve done the research, what next?
Carolyn gives 10 quick and easy ways that anyone can turn family history
into bedtime reading for kids from one to 100.
Fighting Cultural Division with a Pen The most
recent census made “cultural division” the newest buzzword. Carolyn
talks about her life’s passion, fighting subtle prejudice before it
explodes into news-making destruction.
Danger Ahead: Losing Women’s Rights in the New
Millennium California voted to rescind their affirmative action
statutes. US foreign aid was withdrawn from countries that offer family
planning services to their under privileged. Recent studies showed that
the gap between salaries for men and women has improved little since the
50s. Carolyn reminisces about what it was like to nurture a career
against political and cultural odds, and shares her concern that women
under 30 may forget women’s history and let their new rights
disintegrate.
How You May Be Wrong About Mormons There is
widespread misunderstanding about the Mormons and the state of Utah
because people hesitate to ask. Carolyn lovingly shares questions she
has been asked about her home state and takes questions from the
audience. Since "Big Love" began to air this topic has been popular with
talk-show hosts.
Polishing A Novel Involves More than Removing the
Blemishes Carolyn shares nifty little tricks of the trade for
tweaking a novel that come from articles she has written like “How to
Make Leaden Adverbs into Metaphorical Gold” for Span's national
newsletter.
Use Your Writing Skills to get Free Publicity
Carolyn was a publicist for Eleanor Lambert Agency in New York and did
publicity for her own retail chain of stores. She is the author of THE
FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER: HOW TO DO WHAT YOUR PUBLISHER WON'T and has
written articles on publicity for Home Décor Buyer and others. She’ll
share secrets about how writers can use their own writing to garner
publicity.
Toward Writing Poetry that Editors Will Want to
Publish: 10 Tips that Work Many writers are intrigued by poetry
but never learn the secrets for making it work for them.
Jump-start Your Credibility: Publish a Book!
Entrepreneurs and professionals are finding it harder to get the
exposure they need to grow their businesses. Ta Da!! Enter the world of
publishing. It is easier and more important than ever before to use the
prestige that accompanies "Being an Author" as an entree to FREE print
space and air time. Carolyn Howard-Johnson will convince you that you
must publish, put you on the road to making intelligent choices for your
book and help you assure its success and that of your practice/business
with new approaches to FRUGAL promotion
Writing Dialogue that Sparkles and other workshops
on the elements of writing both fiction and nonfiction.
Workshops and dramatic readings are also available.
HERE'S CAROLYN'S
CALENDAR
CHECK APRIL, SEPTEMBER, AND OCTOBER FOR
CAROLYN'S MOST ACTIVE SPEAKING MONTHS
More
Information
for conference,
program, and tradeshow planners,
radio and TV hosts, and others who need expert speakers
Click here
to
access my interview with Frank Gasiorowski, radio host of Power Talk and
author of 90 Day Goals. Learn more about everything from nude
cover photos to tolerance to writing book proposals but mostly it's a
sample of a natural, down-to-earth interview.
Click here
for Carolyn's first
person essay, "Beating Time at Its Own Game."
Click here for ideas
suggestions for conference, tradeshow, and book fair presentations.
Promotion Tip:
In The Frugal Book Promoter: How to Do What Your Publisher
Won't, Carolyn Howard-Johnson advises those who want to
promote anything from a business to a book to hit the
speaker trail. It is worth it to make an effort to overcome
stage fright for the satisfaction teaching and sharing with
others brings you. Speaking is a more effective
promotion tool than book fairs, book signings, or paid
advertising (among others).
Find at least one tip on writing, promotion or
tech on every page of this Web site.
Great
Poetry
PurchaseTRACINGS
(Finishing LIne Press) at Amazon.
Give the
gift of poetry with a chapbook from Magdalena Ball's and
My Celebration Series CHERISHED PULSE:
Unconventional Love
Poetry IMAGINING THE FUTURE:
Ruminations on Fathers and Other Masculine Apparitions SHE WORE
EMERALD THEN: Reflections on Motherhood
BLOOMING RED: Christmas Poetry for the Rational (Coming
soon!)
Best Book Award for The Frugal Book Promoter (2004) and The Frugal Editor (2008).
Reader Views Literary Award for The Frugal Editor
New Generation Award for Marketing and Finalist for The Frugal Editor
Book Publicists of Southern California's Irwin Award
Military Writers Award of Excellence for Tracings, A Chapbook of Poetry.
A Retailer's Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotion wins author Military
Writers Society of America's Author of the Month award for March, 2010
Gold Medal
Award from Military Writers Society of America, 2010
And more than a dozen other awards for Carolyn's novel, short story collection and poetry.
See the awards page on this site.
"You've just impressed the hell out of
me. I was reading your email on the group, then saw your sig file. I
so rarely follow someone's sig file to their home page, to their
publisher's page, and I've never then gone ahead and bought the book,
but I just did it with you. I don't know what the difference is between
your book and the thousands of sig files I see each day..."
~ Tracy Cooper-Posey, author
of Heart of Vengeance
Publishers
& Writers of San Diego offers high quality programs for its
members, but one equal to Carolyn Howard-Johnson's dynamite talk
on promoting your book, is mighty hard to imagine!"
~
"[Carolyn] provides affordable
common-sense strategies for getting your work the attention it
deserves, and her energy is contagious."
~
Donna McCroohan Rosenthal, program director of the East Sierra
Branch, California Writers Club
"It was so nice sit in on your session. I learned as much in
the portion of your session that I attended as I did in all
the others combined! You're not only a wealth of
information, but you're just a delight to talk with..."
~
Mindy
Hoffbauer, Professional Explainer, and Attendee of the
Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop, 2008.
"Your 'Don't
tick off the gatekeepers: Great editing counts," was
the most useful session of the conference for me.
Thank you."
~
Natalie
Olsen, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop attendee,
2008.
"It was great
meeting you and putting a face with the book
that has been so helpful in helping me market my
work."
~ Leigh
Anne Jasheway-Bryant,
speaker and humor writer and The Accidental
Comic
Quote
"If you don’t feel that you are possibly on the edge of humiliating
yourself, of losing control of the whole thing, then probably what
you are doing isn’t very vital. If you don’t feel like you are
writing somewhat over your head, why do it? If you don’t have some
doubt of your authority to tell this story, then you are not trying
to tell enough."
~
John Irving, author
Find at least one tip on writing, promotion or
tech on every page of this Web site.
University of Dayton Erma Bombeck Writers' Conference, 2006,
2008
Sisters in Crime,
Pasadena, 2009
Tip
Tip
Learn more about promoting on radio,
TV and speaking engagements in theFrugal
Book Promoter.
Find at least one tip on writing, promotion or
tech on every page of this Web site.
Tip
Authors get mixed
messages about video skills. Actors must learn to look at
the actors they are interacting with, but TV personalities
must learn to look at the camera as if it were a person.
Pretend as if the camera's eye is the person you are talking
to. In a way it is. Talk to that glass eyes with passion.
Find at least one tip on writing, promotion or
tech on every page of this Web site.
