Welcome to our series of blog posts spotlighting faculty at our 2023 Spring Mingle Conference.
As faculty, Ramona Pina will be leading breakout sessions and also offering paid critiques.
Ramona joined BookEnds Literary Agency as an associate agent after completing a fellowship with agent Emily Forney. She is interested in carving a space for and elevating underrepresented voices. Fantasy, magical realism, sci-fi, paranormal romance, horror, and a spin-off of villain retellings are her favorite genres. In YA and Adult fantasy, give her a fast-paced adventure that emphasizes the hero’s journey! But she’s also hoping to see more SciFi that focuses more on Fiction and less on technology while still showcasing how to build a better world. If you have a SFF story that is slightly different from this, she’s open to being pleasantly surprised.
Ramona is bilingual, being fluent in English and Spanish. She’s a second-generation Jamaican, and third-gen. Cape Verdean, born and raised in Boston. A lover of fall and all things cozy, she is true to her New England roots. She is obsessed with teas, seafood, and Afro- Indo- Caribbean food. Growing up, she was the odd kid who wished she could write like Langston Hughes and read encyclopedias all day. Yes, pre-internets!
As a writer herself, Ramona brings valuable insights from both the creative and business sides of publishing. At Spring Mingle, her breakout sessions are relevant to writers at any stage of the process. She’ll present two different topics:
Let Your MC Take the Wheel in Your Story: Help readers identify and empathize with the main character by focusing on why they interact with the world the way that they do.
Your GPS to finding the Right Writer’s Group: Understanding the general steps towards manuscript preparation to improve your writing and chances at publishing success. Learn to navigate your writing/critique group network to make the most of your author experience.
Registration for Spring Mingle is open until March 15th. We hope to see you there!