Amanda LaPera
For many writers, creating a memoir (or any novel) is an emotional undertaking. Balancing events, relationships, and complications with reflection can make it a daunting task.
Get to the heart of the story you want to tell and your purpose for telling it. Explore a narrative approach where the basics still matter: story and character arcs, POV, show not tell, and varied plot pacing.
And once the manuscript is finished, then what?
Please join us on Saturday, August 22 as GLAWS welcomes award-winning author Amanda LaPera as she takes us through the challenges, pitfalls and triumphs of writing and the varied options for publication.
Amanda LaPera is a national award-winning author whose books have earned Readers’ Favorite 5-star reviews and BookLife Prize, IBPA Benjamin Franklin, Readers’ Favorite, and IAN Book of the Year Awards recognition. She teaches English and is a member of the California Writers Club and the Southern California Writers Association.
For thirteen years, she grew up in the small rural community of Lake Los Angeles, where, much like her characters, she was disappointed to learn there wasn’t a lake and everything she planted died. She and her friends survived, buoyed by resilience and determination.
Amanda is also a passionate advocate for individuals and families dealing with mental illness, because of her family’s experience. For ten years, she served on the Board of Directors for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Orange County, CA affiliate (NAMI-OC).
In addition to reading and writing, she finds joy in music, art, and nature, which she learned from her dad. She is currently working on the Desert of Dreams Series, coming-of-age stories set in the California High Desert during the 1980s and 1990s.
