How to Attend a LARA RWA Meeting as a Visitor or Guest

Updated

Your first LARA RWA meeting is free, and you can attend from anywhere — meetings are currently held via Zoom until the State of California clears group gatherings. To attend, pick a date from the published meeting schedule, note the pre-meeting and speaker topic for that date, and join the Zoom session. LARA (Los Angeles Romance Authors) is a chapter of Romance Writers of America, and its stated purpose is to promote excellence in romantic fiction, help writers build their knowledge and career goals, and support members at every career stage.

What LARA Is and Who It's For

LARA is a romance-writing community. Its mission statement focuses on three things: promoting excellence in romantic fiction, helping writers enhance their knowledge and establish career goals, and providing continuing support and encouragement through all levels of a writing career. That means the meetings are aimed at romance writers — published, unpublished, or still figuring out where they fit.

If you write in another genre, nothing on the site says you're excluded, but the programming is built around romantic fiction.

Step-by-Step: Attending Your First Meeting

  1. Check the meeting schedule. LARA publishes upcoming dates on its site. The listed schedule runs monthly, with dates including February 15, 2026; March 15, 2026; April 12, 2026; May 17, 2026; June 14, 2026; July 12, 2026; August 16, 2026; September 20, 2026; October 18, 2026; November 15, 2026; December 13, 2026; and January 18, 2026.
  2. Read the details for your chosen date. Each meeting listing includes a pre-meeting note, a speaker, and a topic. For example, the February 15, 2026 meeting features speaker Alexis Roark on "Pulling Back the Curtain on Direct Selling," covering what selling direct actually costs in money, time, and mental bandwidth, with a worksheet participants fill out during the session. The March 16, 2026 listing features Laurie Schnebly on "The Double D's: Dynamic Description & Delicious Dialogue."
  3. Join via Zoom. Meetings are held via Zoom for now. The site directs visitors to the meeting information for access details.
  4. Attend as a guest — your first meeting is free. You don't need to be a member to try one meeting.

Expected result: You sit in on a workshop-style session, hear a speaker on a craft or business topic, and get a feel for the group before deciding whether to join.

What to Expect at a Meeting

Meetings follow a recurring structure:

  • Pre-meeting: Listed as "TBD" on the published dates, so check the individual listing closer to the date.
  • Speaker session: A guest speaker presents on a craft or publishing-business topic.
  • Q&A: At least some sessions reserve time at the end for audience questions — the February 2026 direct-selling workshop explicitly does.

The topics mix craft and business. The direct-selling session is candid about the unglamorous side of selling direct — ad spend, credit card bills, packing orders — and asks attendees to assess whether direct sales makes sense for where they are right now. The description/dialogue workshop assumes most writers are stronger at one of the two and offers new tools for both.

Common Questions and Practical Notes

Do I have to live in Los Angeles? No indication of a geographic requirement, and Zoom meetings remove the barrier entirely.

Is it free forever? Only the first meeting is free for visitors and guests. Membership details aren't spelled out in the site content, so check with LARA directly about dues and member benefits.

How do I know who's speaking? Speaker and topic are listed per date. Some listings are more detailed than others — the February and March 2026 entries include full workshop descriptions, while pre-meeting times are marked TBD.

What if I'm not ready to share my work? Nothing in the meeting format requires you to read or share pages. The sessions described are presentation-and-worksheet style, not critique circles.

Deciding Whether to Go

Attend if you write romance and want low-commitment exposure to craft and publishing-business topics from working authors — your first session costs nothing. Skip it if you're looking for a local in-person group right now, since meetings remain on Zoom until California clears group gatherings. If the speaker topic for a given month doesn't fit where you are in your career, wait for the next date; the schedule is monthly and topics rotate.