THE BUSINESS OF WRITING PANEL

Monica Harris spent her first three years at Dell Publishing working with mass-market women’s fiction and trade non-fiction. She then joined Kensington Publishing where she initiated and edited Arabesque, the first African American romance series by a major publisher. There she also edited historical romances, mysteries, women’s mainstream novels and non-fiction. Later, Harris edited non-fiction and children’s books at Carol Publishing Group before she responded to a request from Doubleday to inaugurate the first African American book club, Black Expressions, now one of the most popular direct mail book clubs in the country. By using her editorial experience, the book club successfully marketed a variety of genres, allowing publishers to expand their own publishing lists.

Monica Harris’ career has focused on improving the talents of writers and providing publishing opportunities for authors. She is proud of the many authors she has assisted in becoming bestsellers and her participation in creating profound changes in the publishing industry and the media.



LaShaunda C. Hoffman is the publisher of Shades Of Romance Magazine. http://www.sormag.com An award winning online magazine for readers and writers of multi-cultural literature. She is a contributor for the anthology, How I Met My Sweetheart.

Born and raised in St. Louis Missouri, LaShaunda started her adventure in life by joining the United States Navy. She served her country for six years and returned to her home town to work for the U.S. government. At her 10 year class reunion she reconnected with the man who would become her husband. They are blessed with three children.

She is currently on the path to publication, working on a Christian romance and hunting for a literary agent. Her mission in life is to help promote writers by introducing them to readers.

You can visit her online at:
SORMAG - http://sormag.blogspot.com/
See Ya On The Net, her personal blog - http://lashaunda.blogspot.com/

Joylynn M. Jossel, now writing as E. N. Joy, a native of Columbus , Ohio , after thirteen years of being a paralegal in the insurance industry, finally divorced her career and married her mistress and her passion; writing. In 2000, Joy formed her own publishing company, END OF THE RAINBOW projects, where she published her own books until landing a book deal with a major publisher.

In 2004, Joy branched off into the business of literary consulting in which she provided one-on-one consulting and literary services such as ghost writing, editing, professional read-throughs, write behinds, etc… Her clients consist of first time authors, Essence Magazine bestselling authors, New York Times bestselling authors, and entertainers. The end result of a couple of her clients’ projects resulted in Joy being able to present their manuscripts to publishers and land book deals for them, adding the title of literary agent to her repertoire.

Currently, Joy is the executive editor for Urban Christian, an imprint of Kensington Publishing Corp. When she’s not adding her two cents to other authors’ works, she’s diligently working on her own.

http://www.enjoywrites.com/

Tyora Moody has assisted authors with establishing their "brand" online for over ten years through Tywebbin Creations, her marketing and design company. Her services include web and graphic design, online marketing seminars and virtual book tour events. Visit her online at http://www.tywebbin.com/.

Deborah Johnson Schumaker is the Executive Editor of Genesis Press, Inc. and the author of The Air Between Us, which was published by HarperCollins as a hardcover in January 2008 and a trade paperback in March 2009. Among other honors, The Air Between Us was chosen as an Indie Spring Pick, a Spring Pick both at Target and Costco and as the Books A Million Chain’s national June literary book club selection. Before coming to Genesis Press, Ms. Johnson Schumaker lived for 18 years in Italy where she worked for Vatican Radio and as a translator.


Diana Ventimiglia – Associate Editor was born and raised in Long Island, New York. She’s always had a passion for the creative and can remember from a very young age reading, writing, and drawing as much as possible. Diana’s ambitious nature carried over into college where she majored in English and minored in Art History and Philosophy. It didn’t take long (a year and a half) for her to realize that this was a ridiculous work load. She decided that literature and writing were where her heart truly was, and what her wallet could accommodate. Soon after graduating, Diana landed her dream job working for a renowned publishing house (Harlequin). And the love affair has continued ever since. Diana enjoys anything chocolate, cupcake, and Tom Jones.