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| Schedule | Chats | Sessions | Consultations | Preconference Workshops |
Conference Program: Preconference Workshops
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Watch this site for more workshops. Descriptions will be posted as they become available.
Registration open to conference participants and general public
Preconference workshops offer conference attendees an extra full or half-day of writing instruction. For writers unable to attend the full conference, the workshops provide an opportunity to share in the writing experience and to learn more about the writers' conference.
Whether you're planning to attend the conference or enroll in a preconference workshop only, you may register online. If you have questions, contact WIWA at writers@whidbey.com or call the WIWA office at 360-331-6714.
Apprenticing the Masters -- Molly Dwyer
Funds for Writers - the Magic and the Myth -- C. Hope Clark
How To Write the Commercial Novel -- Bill Brooks
Mythic Structure: A Novel Idea -- Nancy McCurry
Submitting Queries and Synopses to Agents -- Chuck Sambuchino
What Writers Need to Know About Publishing -- Jerry Simmons
Full Day Workshops
9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Limited to 15 participants
Price (lunch included):
Apprenticing the Masters -- Molly Dwyer
What makes it work? What keeps us turning pages? Why has it lasted? Good writers are influenced by good writing—we learn from outstanding literature. In this workshop, we'll analyze a selection of audio excerpts with an eye to understanding what makes for remarkable storytelling. We'll explore the expertise and creative insights of the greats, and write variations and improvisations of our own: mimicking, imitating, deviating, discovering our capacity for creativity and daring through mindful apprenticeship. (for all levels)
Funds for Writers - the Magic and the Myth -- C. Hope Clark
C. Hope Clark, editor of FundsforWriters.com, elaborates in an all-day workshop about the variety of funds open to writers. The course provides resources, examples and success stories of writers in their use of income opportunities Hope classes as "funding streams." In the second half of the day, Hope takes the writer through the grant world from how to find grants to what is expected of a successful grant applicant.
How To Write the Commercial Novel -- Bill Brooks
The author of 21 novels, Bill Brooks has taught workshops all across the country, including at the famed Chautauqua Institute in New York, Writers of the Flathead in Montana and the Literary Mountain Fest in North Carolina. Bill says of his workshops, “I teach the aspiring novelist the nuts and bolts of constructing a commercially viable novel based upon my own experiences of writing and selling fiction to more than half a dozen major New York publishers including, Harper Collins, Dell, Tor/Forge, Kensington, Zebra and Pinnacle. There is a big difference between the 'literary' novel, which a lot of aspiring writers desire to write, and the genre, or category fiction novel, which most writers write for a living."
In this workshop, you will learn the critical elements required for the genre novel including: the need to establish an immediate emotional connection between the reader and your protagonist, how to develop the central conflict that is the engine that drives fiction, the importance and role of creating believable scenes, a swift and sure fix for dialogue problems and how to bring your characters to life through dialogue as well as action, the importance of beginning and endings, and conflict resolution.
You will have full opportunity and be encouraged to engage in Bill’s workshop by way of in-class writing assignments and readings, and on-going questions and answers. Don’t expect an 8-hour lecture, but do expect a fun, engaging and pro-active method of learning how to write your novel, or if you’ve already written one or are in the middle of writing one, learn how to fix any problems you’re having with it
“My workshops are equally about learning and being inspired to run home right afterward and start writing again or for the first time. I know that there are a lot of highly talented and yet-to-be published writers out there who with the right encouragement and insight can complete their debut novel. I read great first-time novels all the time and have had many former attendees go on to become published.
"I believe writing is first and foremost a craft that can be taught to anyone willing to learn it. No one can teach talent or self-discipline – that’s strictly up to the writer herself. But I can teach you what you need to know that gives you the very best chance of piquing an agent or editor’s interest.
"The one thing that makes my workshops somewhat unique to others is that the last part of the workshop deals with marketing – the selling of your novel once you’ve finished it. I cover everything from the physical preparation of your manuscript, the query and cover letter, to how to go about finding an agent or selling it direct to the editor. Most artists of any sort are not very good business people, but they should be and I’ll show you how. I fully believe no one should take a class or workshop of any kind from someone who has not themselves proven the ability to do what they try and teach others. A good workshop will give the aspiring writer more confidence, answer his questions, and cut her learning curve by at least half over self-study and trial and error. The bottom line is, a writer writes, but not all aspiring writers know how to construct a novel and that’s what my workshop aims to teach."
1 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Limited to 20 participants
Price:
Mythic Structure: A Novel Idea -- Nancy McCurry
Mythic structure supplies the basis of believability and underpins the greatest stories, from Gilgamesh to Pulp Fiction. Novels, screenplays and personal histories benefit from this elastic form. Manipulate story sequence, character function and milestones to let your story’s truth emerge. Better still, there’s a game board and sticky notes.
Submitting Queries and Synopses to Agents -- Chuck Sambuchino
If you've written a novel, your first communication with a potential representative will be through a query letter and novel synopsis. That's why both must be tip-top before hitting inboxes. This workshop will first examine what makes a pitch and query great, breaking down the dos and don'ts. After that, attendees are free to bring their queries forward for an evaluation from the instructor as well as thoughts from their peers in the class.What Writers Need to Know About Publishing -- Jerry Simmons
This program brings more than 25 years of experience to writers and gives them a glimpse of how the major publishers in this country compete for shelf space and sales. It provides a unique perspective on how any author can be competitive in the marketplace. Points I cover:
The industry, changes taking place, and how it impacts the writer,
Why it is important for writers to know their genre and the marketplace,
What writers need to know about marketing and competing for book sales,
The importance of understanding numbers and distribution,
How to become a participant in the process of publishing.