Meetings and Events

NorCalRW typically meets the 4th Saturday of each month, online via Zoom (unless otherwise noted). Those who register and pay for the scheduled meeting will receive an email with the meeting's Zoom link. Be sure to pay at least three days in advance to allow time for the Zoom invitation to be issued.

 

Once a quarter, we meet in person.

Check in begins at 9:30 a.m. A brief business meeting begins at 10:00 a.m., followed by that month's program and speaker. We typically conclude by 12:00 noon. All times are US Pacific.

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Charge for regular meetings:

Zoom meetings: NorCalRW members pay $15 to attend each meeting. The price for non-members is $25.

 

In-person "regular" meetings: NorCalRW members pay $25 to attend each meeting. The price for non-members is $35.

 

Fees are not refundable if you are unable to attend (although you will have access to any meeting handouts).

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Upcoming Meetings:​

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Saturday, January 24: Goal-Setting & Planning for Romance Writers — Tools, Systems, and Motivation for a Productive 2026, led by Madeline Olson (in-person meeting)

 

Let’s kick off the new year with clarity, confidence, and a fresh dose of writerly motivation!

 

Join us for a friendly, fast-paced 90-minute session created just for romance writers who want to set meaningful goals and actually reach them. We’ll start with a simple introduction to the HB90 method, a 90-day planning system many creatives (including me!) use to stay focused, organized, and excited about their work. 

 

We’ll also look at other helpful tools and resources you can mix and match to fit your personal style, including digital planners, goal-tracking apps, visual planning systems, and motivation boosters that make the writing life feel a little more joyful. Whether you're drafting, revising, publishing, or juggling multiple WIPs, you’ll find something that makes the process easier.

 

You’ll leave with a small personalized plan you can start using right away—and plenty of encouragement to carry you into your next chapter. Bring your laptop or a notebook and pens to record your plans!

 

Come for the planning tips, stay for the community and inspiration!

 

Madeline Olson is a multi-published author of contemporary romance with a 20-year career as a management consultant to Fortune 500 companies. An admitted Plotter, she’s never met a spreadsheet she didn’t like. (Unless it’s full of numbers, because yeah…) She publishes under her own name for small-town CR and a pen name, Murphy Chase, for her steamy biker romance series. She currently serves as president of NCRW, and has led in various capacities in romance writing groups in CA, NH and WA.

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Where: Rancho Cordova City Hall, large conference room. 2729 Prospect Park Drive, Rancho Cordova.

When: 9:30 Doors open for set-up and chit-chat,10:00-10:30 Business Meeting, 10:30-12:00 Presentation

Cost: $25 for members, $35 for non-members. (Those who pre-paid for the year should pay an additional $10 for the in-person meeting.) Pay to Northern California Romance Writers.

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Click here: PayPal

​ Note that the first two meetings are free for all prospective new members.

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February 28, 2026: Beyond the Background: Using Setting to Drive Emotion, Conflict and Chemistry with Anna Grace (Zoom meeting)

 

Want to create a setting as vivid, layered, and compelling as your main characters? Join Harlequin author Anna Grace for a one-hour, interactive workshop that delves into how to transform your setting into a dynamic force—one that shapes conflict, deepens character arcs, and heightens the romantic payoff.

 

In this session, you’ll learn how to:

• Build evocative, sensory-rich worlds

• Use place as a catalyst for connection and tension

• Craft settings that function as character

 

From small towns with big personalities to high-stakes international backdrops, you’ll discover how to make your setting work as hard as your characters—sometimes helping them, sometimes testing them, and always elevating the love story.

 

Perfect for authors who want to weave unforgettable worlds readers can truly fall in love with.

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​Award-winning author Anna Grace writes fun, heartfelt romance novels that have been described as “having the feel good vibes of a Hallmark film, with the emotional complexity of book club fiction.” Anna’s Oregon roots, love of family and community shine through in both her Harlequin Heartwarming series, Love, Oregon, and The Teacher Project. 

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March 28- Creativity Counselor, Author Coach and crowd favorite Jen Graybeal will be giving an all-day  session to get your writing life/business/words on flow mode. (In Person) RCCH American River Room North

 

April 25 Romance writer, indie publisher Emilia Rose will be speaking to the group "Beyond selling books, beyond Amazon - how to develop devoted readers" (Zoom)

 

May 23: Peggy Jaeger. Romance Writer and Contest GURU, on "Why you should be entering contests, how and which ones, to benefit your writing career." (Zoom)

 

June 27: Anna Stewart "how do I fix this? Live editing of those bits where you have written yourself into a corner" (In-person); tentative)

 

July 25: TBD (Zoom)

 

August 22: TBD (Zoom)

 

September 26: TBD (in-person)

 

October 24: TBD (Zoom)

 

November14: Holiday party at RCCH (In-person)

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Click here for a list of Past Meeting topics

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