Rod Martinez, a native of Tampa, will be speaking on “Author Brand—It’s All About You” during the Friday afternoon sessions at FAPAcon 2022.
Author of middle grade & young adult, Rod Martinez grew up on Marvel Comics and Twilight Zone, the inspiration was inevitable. Challenged by his son to write a story about him and his friends “like the Goonies’ but in Tampa”, his first novel “The Juniors” was picked up by a publisher – and the rest– is history. Rod was recipient of the 2017 Jerry Spinelli Scholarship and the 2018 Professional Development for Artists Grant in Tampa and speaks at schools, conferences and libraries promoting the love of the written word.
FAPAcom2022, the annual conference of the Florida Authors and Publishers Association, is scheduled for July 29-30 at the Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace hotel in Orlando. A hotel group rate discount is available for FAPA members.
Attendees can choose from six 75-minute workshops on Friday afternoon—some for beginners to the publishing industry and some for those who are more experienced. Friday’s workshops will deal with podcasting, cover design and social media.
Saturday’s sessions will feature four topics: Getting into Bookstores, Writing Query Letters and Synopses, Print on Demand, and Illustrations. Sponsors and vendors will be available to answer questions about their products and services.
Craig Pittman, author and environmental journalist, will be the keynote speaker.
Friday evening will feature a networking session on The Veranda at the hotel.
Saturday evening will see the President’s Book Awards ceremony with gold, silver, and bronze medals going to more than 80 authors from across the country.
More information on speakers and topics will be showcased in upcoming issues of Hallard Press Gazette. To register, see the schedule, and make hotel reservations visit https://myfapa.org/fapacon
