March 14 – TJ Bennett
Speaker TJ Bennett presents: “Finding the Dark Side of Your Knight in Shining Armor.” Using her professional training in the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), TJ will share techniques for finding and using the dark side of character that is the primary source of internal conflict between the hero and heroine. Even writers who are acquainted with personality type will learn a different way of examining character and conflict, and will discover techniques for quickly defining what they might have instinctively struggled with for years. If you’ve ever heard the expressions ENTJ, ISTP, ESFJ, etc., you’ll learn how each of these archetypal characters handles stress—and how the same stressors can provoke wildly different reactions in different types. If you have no idea what these letters mean, come and learn more. You’ll gain a deeper understanding of your hero’s emotional responses to the dark moments of life, and will take away a handout that describes the hero conflict types most frequently represented in romance literature—and ways to resolve storylines that stay true to your hero’s character type.
While employed with the Department of Defense and later as president of her own Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) consulting and training business for several years, TJ Bennett employed the MBTI instrument to help Fortune 500 CEOs and government executives develop successful work teams. Called an “author to watch” by Romantic Times Magazine, TJ is a former Romance Writers of America Golden Heart finalist. Her debut novel, The Legacy, a historical romance set in Early Reformation Germany, explores the destructive nature of secrets. Reviewers have called the novel an “emotional rollercoaster,” “an overpowering, extraordinary tale,” and a “fast-paced tale that grabs your heart from the beginning and keeps it to the very end.” All About Romance recently awarded The Legacy “Buried Treasure 2008” status and named it a Desert Isle Keeper, saying it “…features the best relationship between hero and heroine [the reviewer has] read in a long time…”. TJ’s follow-on novel, The Promise, will be a May 2009 release and has already earned a TOP PICK award from Night Owl Romance.
TJ’s work reflects her “Dark and Daring Romance” brand. She knows a lot about the black moments of life and uses that knowledge to enhance her writing. She believes that nothing is ever lost, and no painful experience is in vain: it’s all research. Visit her at www.tjbennett.com.
Schedule for March 14th:
8:30 - Open doors - sign in/coffee
9:00 to 10:30 - Business meeting, PAL reviews & introductions
10:00 to 10:30 - Break
10:45 to 11:45 - Speaker
12:00 to 12:30 - Booksigning with various authors
12:30 - Adjourn to lunch
