Authors Panel: Bill Lueders, Jason Stein, Ron McCrea, and Craig Schreiner.

There’s no single path to turning journalistic expertise into a book, and few easy ones.  But journalists are well-positioned to become book authors because of the vast knowledge they accumulate in their work.

That’s a key message from journalists-turned-authors and book publishers featured at “Turn Your Beat Into a Book,” a training session hosted Tuesday, Aug. 20, by the Madison chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and attended by about 40 people. The Wisconsin Newspaper Association Foundation sponsored the training, which was held at Barnes & Noble Booksellers in Madison.

The free training featured Bill Lueders, money and politics reporter, Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, and author, “Cry Rape,” “Watchdog” and “Enemy of the State;” Jason Stein, state Capitol reporter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, co-author, “More Than They Bargained For;” Ron McCrea, former Capital Times, Washington Star, and Newsday editor, and author, “Building Taliesin: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home of Love and Loss;” and Craig Schreiner, UW-Whitewater campus photographer and former Wisconsin State Journal photographer, and documentarian of “One Small Farm.”

Laurie Scheer, director, UW-Madison Writers’ Institute, former vice president for programming at WE: Women’s Entertainment, and author of “Creative Careers in Hollywood;” Kevin Reichard, owner of August Publications in Middleton; and Sheila Leary, director of the University of Wisconsin Press, also shared their expertise.

Publishers panel: Sheila Leary, director of the University of Wisconsin Press; Kevin Reichard, owner of August Publications in Middleton; and Laurie Scheer, director, UW-Madison Writers’ Institute.