Conference Program: Author Fireside Chats

Friday, February 27, 2009

12:30 – 5:00 p.m.

	Screenwriting	Poetry
	Fiction	Children's / Young Adult
	Nonfiction	Publishing

Screenwriting

Bill Kerby --- Screenwriting for Hollywood
A polished screenwriter for Hollywood, film and television, leads the conversation about the ups and downs of writing for the stars, and offers a look at the venue most writers see as a fantasy world of expectation.

Fiction1

Nancy Horan --Shaping Fact into Fiction (Karen Fisher Cancelled)
Nancy Horan will share her thoughts on writing her historical novel, Loving Frank.  She will share ideas on why and how she uses historical characters and events as the basis for her fiction: the common challenges and pitfalls, the techniques and processes, and the rewards. She will also cover the joys and challenges of the process: research, story framing, plotting, pacing, character development, and point of view.

Lisa Hendrix -- A Sense of Place: Story and Setting
A historical novelist explores setting as more than geography or props. Examine with her the interaction of story and setting and learn how to use setting to add depth and texture to your story. (Emerging/Experienced)

Marian Blue -- Is there work after writing?
You bet! How do you find the right market, submit in the most professional way possible, and decide on whether to say “yes” to an offered contract? Or is it a good idea to consider the market before you do the writing? Marian will present information about marketing based on her own years as both writer and editor.

Fiction 2

Phillip Margolin -- More on Ideas into Books
Continue the discussion with our keynote speaker, criminal lawyer and best selling author, Phil Margolin as he explores the many ways ideas grow into great novels and movie plots. A lively discussion is expected.

Molly Dwyer -- Bone by Bone: Writing Fact into Fiction
Stories emerge out the land, the architecture, and the artifacts of the past. Writing good historical fiction is a lot like working an archeological dig — time, place and people must be drawn "bone by bone" from the sediment of their history. Award-winning author, Molly Dwyer will share her strategies for research and travel, and offer tips on evoking historical accuracy in voice, manner and setting.

Wayne Ude -- How do you get from the beginning to the end? Why, Muddle the Middle
Novels—and even short stories—tend to start out strongly, with a nice idea, good characters, a workable plot. Then somehow they bog down in the middle. Some never get to the end; they remain unfinished, left in the drawer. We’ll discuss how to revive the story in those middles with new complications and developments—muddling the middle.

Nonfiction

Wendy Call -- Writing Beyond Borders
One of the best things about books is that they open up whole worlds, even if readers never leave their living rooms.  We'll talk about the joys and challenges of literary border crossings -- ranging from literary translation to travel writing -- and the artistic and ethical implications of those crossings.

Larry Cheek -- Bending reality until it breaks: The ethics of truth in nonfiction
Every year or two we are treated to a spectacle of humiliation and an imploding career as another author or journalist is exposed for fabricating characters or blending fiction into fact. Where, exactly, lies the line we must not cross? Can we rearrange a sequence of events for the sake of good storytelling? Are we allowed to reconstruct a conversation only dimly remembered or one we didn't witness? Can we edit a direct quote? Do the standards differ in creative nonfiction and journalism? In a 40-year career I've wrestled with all of these issues, and I have both provocative ideas and practical solutions.

Warren Read -- Airing the Dirty Laundry: Finding the Line Between Honesty and Exploitation in Memoir
When developing memoir, a writer can often be torn between "kicking up the dust" in one's memory and reticence about how that dust will impact others around him or her. This discussion will focus on navigating that minefield of making choices in honest writing. How do you decide what stories to keep, how to soften them without glossing over them and which ones to keep to yourself? It's about purpose, direction and being true to oneself.

Poetry

Oliver de la Paz  -- Ecstatic Orders: From Poems to Book Manuscripts
Together we'll explore how poets put whole books of poetry together.  Many collections of poetry are constructed around a theme. I'll talk about ways to find thematic connections in a collection of poems and ways to bring them into a cohesive (or not so cohesive) order.

Rick Robbins & Gary Thompson  -- Developing Personal Poetic Forms
While it's important to work outside our comfort zones in order to grow as writers, we've found it important over the years to also have a small handful of poetic structures to come home to during periods of transition or disruption in our writing lives. Where do these personal forms come from? How does a personal form develop, if at all, from a received, established structure? How do forms of any sort help us write, even as our ideas dry up or as the outer trappings of our writing life squeak and bend under stress?

Carolyne Wright  -- "There’s No Biz Like Po-Biz"—Surviving and Thriving in the Writer's Career
"Po-Biz"—the catch-all term for literary career-building, has become synonymous with everything we deplore about social aspects of the writer’s life:  opportunistic networking, favor-trading and favoritism, mutual back-scratching (or back-stabbing), snobbery and sycophantism, and the secret wheels and deals that seem to rig the game.  It’s a source of anxiety and cynicism for poets and writers at every stage of their careers, and we all have our favorite horror stories.  But does po-biz (pro-biz for prose writers?) have to be as evil as it is necessary or unavoidable?  From the basic mechanics of submission to magazines and contests; to the etiquette (and ethics) of interactions between teachers and students, Big Names and Smaller Names, and poet / writer peers, we’ll grapple with questions of career and creativity.  (Do we work the room or work on our rhyme?  Do we polish our prose or our book proposals?)  We’ll explore how to network successfully, how to be neighborly even long-distance, and how to avoid the “Fear of Foetry.com.”  How can we balance the golden mean in our writing, with the golden rule in our lives as writers among other writers?  This talk and discussion should be candid and constructive, frank and funny, deep and deep-dish!  (For both emerging and experienced writers.)

Children’s / Young Adults

Carmen T. Bernier-Grand -- Why I Read YA Novels
The most important things about creating YA novels you learn from reading other authors. Come join the conversation with this vivacious young adult novelist.

Suzanne Selfors -- Let me Introduce you to the Middle Grade Novel.
What, exactly, is a middle grade novel? What are its unique qualities? How does it differ from Young Adult? And how do you get yours published? I'll answer these questions and leave room for you to ask more. Please join me by the fire.

George Shannon -- Folktales: INSIDE Children's Fiction
No matter who we are or where we live, folktales are part of our cultural language. And, just as they are for us, tales are a vital part of characters' lives in fiction. We will explore the many ways folktales can be used to enrich plot, theme, setting, and characterization. Till then, keep an eye peeled for folktales within novels by Lois Lowry, Laurence Yep, Robert McCloskey and Katherine Paterson to name but a few.

Publishing

Andrea Hurst, --- Publishing in Tough Times

Gary Luke -- Publish Close to Home
For certain topics and authors, publishing closer to home has advantages. Be it the story of place or an historic account or a biography, the most interested readers may be concentrated in a specific geographic market. What are examples of books that have been successfully published regionally? Is it possible to start out locally, then go on to conquer the world (or at least the rest of the country)? Gary Luke, publisher of Seattle's Sasquatch Books will talk about regional and national publishing, and describe some book projects that have enjoyed wide readership here in the Pacific Northwest. 

Elizabeth Wales -- How Can You Tell If You're Ready?

Kelli Agodon -- Inside the Editorial Process
How work is selected for a literary journal and how you can increase your chances of being published.

Tricia Brown -- The Perfect Pair: Good Writing and a Marketable Author
How does a children’s book writer set herself apart? A unique story, well told, will rise to the top of the slush pile. Freelance children’s book editor and author Tricia Brown will discuss how to study the form, write to it, and prove that you will partner with the publisher to make your book stand out.

Presenters and program content subject to change without notice.

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