Workshops
Workshops for the 2011 Writers Conference
In addition to the one hour workshops on Saturday, there will be two-hour sessions for those interested on Friday afternoon that will consist of intense, personal and practical applications for those willing to get involved directly in the writing process. These two-hour workshops will require a modest fee ($30) beyond the general registration fee of $75.
"Writing for the Trades" - Becca Anderson
Trade magazines can provide a freelance writer with steady income and ongoing assignments. What are trade magazines? How do you find them? How doyou approach the editor, and where do you get ideas for articles? Explore the world of trade publications and your place in it.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Basics in Dealing with an Agent" - Terry Burns
An experienced agent shares essentials for working with an agent, avoiding pitfalls and learning how to deal with the primary issues. Workshop Level: Beginner and Intermediate Writers.
"IT'S NOT MY JOB TO SELL YOUR MANUSCRIPT" - Terry Burns
"WHAT? I thought that WAS the agent's job?" you exclaim. "Actually, it will be more successful if we consider it OUR job and not just MINE." Terry walks the writer through his 'team approach' to pitching and selling an author's work. Workshop Level: Beginner or Advanced.
"Reaching out to the nonbeliever with Christian Fiction" - Terry Burns
Jesus used fiction to make some of his most important points. They were called parables. Terry talks about using fiction in order to spread God's word and about the difference between writing for the Christian market and writing in hopes of reaching an unbeliever. If God calls a writer He prepares the writer and the writing before He uses them. Workshop Level: Beginner or Advanced.
"Song Writing Boot Camp - Don Burton
If you've always wanted to write a song about someone or something but you never have, this workshop is just for you. Writing a great song is easier than you think. The secret is that there is no secret. The only difference is that some people do it and others do not. This workshop is about changing the paradigm and making the mental shift to "doing it", so that you can really write the song you have wanted to write. This workshop is about how to begin writing songs, easily, effortlessly and courageously. in this workshop you will learn how to write good lyrics. You will learn about Western Musical Culture; what all songs have in common; the anatomy of a "hit" song; writing "killer" choruses; developing memorable verses, thought-provoking verses; examine the anatomy of pop songs; learn songwriting techniques; discuss the business of songwriting.
"Simple Steps to Improve Your Writing" - Ken Camp
Discover the seven deadly sins of writing, and learn how you can repent of these transgressions. Discover quick, easy and relatively painless ways to make everything you write better. Participate in hands-on exercises to tone and tighten flabby prose. Workshop Level: Beginner, Intermediate or Advanced.
"Writing for Newspapers" - Hannah DeClerk
Discover from an experienced journalist and news writer how to break into print through newspapers. Learn what you should do and how you can do it. Your questions will be welcomed and carefully answered in the workshop on dealing with newspaper opportunities.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Twelve Ways to Infuse Your Story with Character" - Pamela Dowd
Whether your're drafting your first novel or finishing your sixth, this two-hour workshop includes twelve tips and tricks to infuse your story with "character." Come and learn from Pamela Dowd how to layer your characters'' spiritual, emotional, and plot journeys into a soul-satisfying story.
"Unblock Writer's Block the Field Trip Way" - Pamela Dowd
Inspiration needs refueling? It's time to relax and pack your bags for a "field trip" destined to spark your imagination and stifle the internal critic barricading your creative flow. This workshop taught by Pamela Dowd will unlock the jump-start to your imagination.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Writing Cinematically" - Mike Farris
To make it as a novelist or screenwriter, it's not enough to just have a great story. You also have to be able to tell that story in a way that is cinematic, that not only jumps off the page, but (for you screenwriters) also jumps out at you from the big screen. That means learning techniques for writing visually, grabbing the reader in the first few pages, revealing character through action instead of dialogue, proper scene structure, engaging all of the reader's senses, and finishing up with a bang. Mike is here to help you with all of that.
"Legal Issues for Writers" - Mike Farris
Attorney Mike Farris works with Farris Literary Agency, Inc., representing fiction and non-fiction works and is also an experienced screenwriter. In this workshop Attorney Farris will deal with legal issues related to writing and publishing. You know you have to hone your creative side to write books and screenplays, and you know there is a business side, as well. But don't forget that third side: the legal side. how do you obtain life rights for true stories? What is a copyright and how do you protect it? Do you have to worry about defamation, even if you fictionalize a true story? And what does all that legalese mean in that contract an agent or publisher wants you to sign? This workshop will cover these and other legal issues you should know about as a writer.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Children's Characters in 3D" - Brenda Fickey
In order to grab the attention of child readers, regardless of age, the characters must be real to the reader, especially with fiction. This workshop will include hands-on activities to create a strong character model for any child, including description, action, and dialog. This two-hour worship will involve two items--Part 1: "Getting to Know Child Audiences" and Part 2: "Children's Writing with Character." In "Getting to Know Child Audiences" Ms. Fickey will discuss and work with concepts for adult writers to use to connect with children, with emphasis on target audiences and markets. The concepts of getting on the child's level (from a child's viewpoint) with vocabulary, description, dialog, and conflict presentation and resolution will be covered. After the materials ispresented, the rest of the time allotted will be spent applying the principles discussed. Participants will complete a "timed writing assignment" designed to model and practice one area of discussion. Small groups will then be formed to offer feedback. Samples from each small group will be shared with the large group, with more feedback offered. At the conclusionof the workshop, the participants should have a better understanding of and ability for reaching out to and connecting with the children in the target audience of the writers' choices. In "Children's Writing with Character" participants will learn about and gain experience in characterization concepts that will fit any kind of writing for children. The emphasis will be on character development with the help of description, action and dialog to make the character as real as possible int he reader's mind. A variety of activities will be employed to present this material with feedback from small group sessions and then the larger group. At the conclusion of this second hour, the participant should be able to create a believable child character for nay type of writing for the child reader. For both beginning and advanced children's writers.
"Conflict in Children's Writing: A Reality Check" - Brenda Fickey
This workshop is designed to help children's writers provide conflicts in their stories that are realistic to the child reader in their presentations, as well as their resolutions. The emphasis will be on providing ideas for creating conflicts in stories that grab attention and interest that also helps develop comprehension and critical thinking skills. Avoiding the pitfalls of shallow, canned conclusions to conflicts that tend to reflect an unrealistic approach to problem-solving will be discussed. The activity with this workshop will be a writing sessiont hat practices some of the ideas discussed with scenarios to draw on. At the conclusion of this session,t he participant should be able to identify a workable conflict for the child reader that is realistic, interesting, and entertaining to read, as well as use as a learning tool.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Building a Writing Investment: Keeping a Journal" - Jerry Hopkins
A workshop with an experienced writer who has kept a journal since 1960. The essentials for a person to use a journal in one's professional life, personal life or in the classroom will be discussed. Included in the presentation will be examples of journals from the past and present, bibliographical information, philosophical background and reasons, practical sugggestions, and a "hands-on" experiment in journaling. The presenter will share an array of handouts, bibliographical resources, work sheets and related materials to enhance the journaling experience. An interesting display of published journals will be included in this workshop. This will be a "hands-on" workshop for those who want to begin journaling or those who are experienced in keeping a journal. Workshop Level: Beginner, Intermediate or Advanced
"Biographies: Formula for Success" - Bill Keith
Everyone loves a good biography for it gives the reader a chance to probe deeply into the lives and experiences of others--their joys and sorrows, victories and defeats--and to watch their wonderful dreams unfold. The subjects for biographical writing may include such diverse individuals as the kings and patriarchs of the Old Testament to the once virtually unknown who become the well-known such as Mother Teresa, Eric Liddell or Sergeant York or any man or woman who has a human interest story that bears telling. During these sessions, we will raise pertinent questions such as the following: What criteria should be used to choose the subject for the biography? Will others be interested in that person's story? What makes a person's life interesting? What are the major events in that person's life? Will the story convey an important message to the reader? Does the story have historical importance? Is the story inspirational? We will also discuss ways to determine the biographical content and how to attract a publisher.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP- Cecil Murphey
Session 1 - Writer's Block and How to Win Over It
Whether temporary or chronic, most writers face this internal resistance. What causes it? How do you get over it? Five positive things you can do to cure writer's block.
Session 2 - Dancing With Dialog
Written dialog isn't real but it needs to sound real. Dialog has purpose--more than one--and professional writers make dialog accomplish as many as 8 things. Discover the significance and usefulness of these 8 things.
DINNER ADDRESS FRIDAY EVENING - "Transparency: Being the Real You on Paper" - Cecil Murphey
"Writing From Personal Experience" - Cecil Murphey
The three easiest articles to sell are personal experience (PE), devotions, and how-to pieces. People like to read about people and especially people who fail and learn from their failures. This workshop will help you write dynamic, first-person, personal experience articles.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Summarize Your Novel Idea in Two Sentences - James H. (Jim) Pence
All aspiring fiction writers need to know how to summarize a story in as few words as possible. Whether it's an "elevator pitch" for an already-finished novel or a road map for creating a new work of fiction, a properly-crafted, two-sentence summary is a valuable tool. In this workshop, you will learn a proven method for developing a complete novel idea and expressing it in two sentences. Part One will focus on the method. In Part Two you will have the opportunity to develop two-sentence summaries for your own ideas.
"E-Publishing and Print-on-Demand: Field of Dreams or Minefield? - James H. (Jim) Pence
E-books are hot! The popularity of the Kindle and Nook (and other e-book) platforms is opening up new possibilities for authors. But how doyou go about publishing your own e-book? What are the hazards to watch out for? What resources are available for writers who want to enter the growing world of electronic publishing? Jim Pence was e-published before e-publishing was "cool". His first YA novel, Friendly Revenge, was released as an e-book back in 1999. In this workshop, Jim will give a brief history of e-publishing, cover the pros and cons of this approach, and provide resources for those interested in exploring the topic more deeply.
"Introduction to Social Media for Writers" - Lexie Smith
Facebook and Twitter and blogs? Oh, my! What's a writer to do with these? Come meet them and find out what they can do for you. Learn how they can work together to help you create an online presence, network, publicize and enhance your writing skills. This session is for experienced wrtiers needing a platform, novice writers wanting to develop the craft and anyone in between.
"Sharing Your Faith: Writing Daily Devotionals" - Jim Stafford
The focus of this two-part workshop is to help you develop the essentials for good devotional writing. Discover where and how to start writing meditations. Learn the significance of being Bible-based (Part 1) and authentic (Part 2) as you share your faith through your writing. Sample and compare several leading daily devotionals to see how they differ and receive a market list. This workshop is designed for both beginning and intermediate writers. Even experienced and advanced writers can benefit from Jim Stafford's ideas and suggestions.
"DIY: Toolbox for Revision - Fredna Stuckey
Okay, you have your draft. Now what? Where doyou go from here? Obviously, you wrote what you thought was good, so what's the next step? This session explores an arsenal of reivsing strategies to assist writers in molding their draft.
TWO-HOUR WORKSHOP: "Getting Started Writing Poetry" I and II - Dr. Donn Taylor
Part I - This session provides fruitful methods for both beginners and more advanced writers, focusing on recognizing and using the basic elements that make poetry effective as well as methods of avoiding the most common problems.
Part II - This session focuses on shaping the basic elements of poetry into coherent poems and on using those elements to evaluate completed drafts. Time permitting, some attention will be given to approaches writers can use to make their poems different from most that editors will see.
"Writing Poetry Outside the Box" - Dr. Donn Taylor
Many poems written today have a sameness that makes one look much like another. What, then, can make a poem stand out in the flood of submissions each editor receives? This session describes and illustrates five techniques that will make your poems strikingly different from most that editors will see. These techniques will help novices and experienced poets alike.
"Broader Horizons in Poetic Technique" - Dr. Donn Taylor
Poetry is poetry because it communicates more intensely than ordinary language. As some have said, it "speaking in higher voltage." Designed for beginners and experienced poets alike, this session illustrates how the use of certain poetic structures and techniques can "raise the voltage" of your poetry while deepening its meaning.
"Making Money with your Writing" - Janice Thompson
This lesson is jam-packed with ideas, strategies, tips,techniques and secrets that will help you succeed as a freelance writer.
"The "Pandora's Box" Method of Characterization - Janice Thompson
Watch your characters spring to life by implementing Janice's multi-layered "out-of-the-box" method of characterization.
"From Magazine Articles to Books: Building Your Writing Platform" - Janice Thompson
Want to transition from magazine articles to non-fiction books? let's talk about building that platform! An array of ideas and strategies for moving from articles to books.