Friday,
April 17, 2009
Bowling
Green Community College at WKU's South Campus
SESSION
1: 8:30AM TO 9:45AM
WRITING
IN ANOTHER VOICE
Room
214
Poetry
is a personal genre. Much is said about finding one's
voice, and we basically assume that most poems are autobiographical
(even if we have to, by custom, refer to the "speaker"
in the poem). However, poets are also very empathic.
What happens when we combine the two, and the "speaker"
of the poem actually is someone else, either a literary
character, someone the poet knows, or an imaginary self?
The emphasis will be on writing, with group and individual
exercises.
Elizabeth
Oakes'
The Luminescence of All Things Emily is a series
of poems about Emily Dickinson and her friends and family.
Oakes' volume of poems about growing up in Kentucky,
The Farmgirl Poems, won the 2004 Pearl Poetry
Prize. She is the co-founder and co-editor, along with
Jane Olmsted, of the Kentucky Feminist Writers Series,
which published three volumes between 1999 and 2005.
She holds the Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. Recently
retired from teaching Shakespeare and women's poetry
at Western Kentucky University, she now writes full
time and is completing a book of poems in the voice
of Anne Bradstreet's sister.
Moderator:
Jean Nehm
ON
ASSIGNMENT: THE ART AND CRAFT OF WRITING IN THE INFORMATION
AGE
Room
225
This
inside look at the realities of finding quotable sources,
tracking down facts, and conveying ideas in an engaging
style gives audiences and workshop participants fresh
insights into the world of journalism in the 21st
century. In this fascinating presentation, Grant describes
the unique mix of research tools and technologies she
uses to move from the first conversation with an editor
to the published piece.
Whether
the words will be published on the internet, in a magazine,
or as a full-length book, writing non-fiction means
sticking to the facts. Yet this work also requires a
creative mind. Grant says, "I've always enjoyed the
splendid possibilities the English language offers -
but words alone cannot do the job. A successful freelancer
must also be curious, tenacious, attentive to details,
dedicated to meeting deadlines, and supremely well-organized.
Nancy
Grant
writes about energy and technology as a freelance journalist.
She is best known to Kentuckians as a frequent contributor
and columnist for Kentucky Living magazine. Her
monthly "Future of Electricity" columns have won awards
and been reprinted in other media. Grant also talks
about today's energy issues, and is available as a public
speaker. Visit her website for more details - www.nancygrant.us
Moderator:
DJ Urquhart
THE
MAGICAL FORM OF THE PICTURE BOOK
Room
213
This
session will provide an introduction to what picture
books are and how they work. We will also do one or
more exercises to help writers discover their material.
George
Ella Lyon
is the author of forty books for children and adults,
including the Reading Rainbow favorite, Come a Tide.
She is well known as a visiting author and workshop
leader in schools around the country and her poem "Where
I'm From" has been used as a model for writers around
the world. Her most recent books are Sleepsong
and My Friend, the Starfinder (picture books),
Don't You Remember? A Memoir, and reprints of
With a Hammer for My Heart (novel) and Catalpa
(poems). Originally from Harlan County, she now lives
in Lexington, Kentucky.
Moderator:
Megan Thompson
SESSION
2: 10:00AM TO 11:15AM
THE
FIRST NOVEL: WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, AND HOW THE HECK
DO YOU GET IT OUT THERE!
Room
213
Jack
Riggs will talk about the highs and lows of that first
novel, how he made it, and how you might too! He'll
look at getting it written, the agent query, and finally,
what the author needs to be ready and willing to do
when the contract is signed and the book has been delivered.
Jack
Riggs
was raised in Lexington, North Carolina. Set in the
Deep South, Lexington was the inspiration for the fictional
town of Ellenton, the setting of Riggs' award-winning
novel When the Finch Rises. Published by Ballantine
Books in 2003, When the Finch Rises was quickly
coined as a classic, winning Georgia Author of the Year
- First Novel. The American Library Association recognized
it as a Top Ten First Novel, while The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
called it one of the top Southern novels of 2003. The
Fireman's Wife, Riggs' second novel, was released
in December of 2008. Riggs lives in Decatur with his
wife and two children, and spends much of his time between
Garden City Beach, SC, and the Blue Ridge Mountains
of North Carolina, where much of his fiction is set.
Moderator:
Dale Rigby
DYNAMIC
DIALOGUE
Room
214
Sure,
dialogue records conversation. But it can do so much
more - if you know how to wield it. Dialogue can provide
subtle backstory, vivid characterization, or shoot a
plot forward at high speed. Great dialogue is memorable
and effective. Bad dialogue is cumbersome and can turn
your reader (or potential editor) off quickly. Multipublished
author Allie Pleiter leads you through all the ways
you can use dialogue within your story to pack a far
bigger punch than "she said."
An
avid knitter, coffee junkie, and devoted chocoholic,
Allie Pleiter writes both fiction and non-fiction.
The enthusiastic but slightly untidy mother of two,
Allie spends her days writing books, doing laundry,
running carpools, and finding new ways to avoid housework.
She grew up in Connecticut, holds a BS in Speech from
Northwestern University, spent fifteen years in the
field of professional fundraising, and currently lives
in suburban Chicago, Illinois. The "dare from a friend"
to begin writing nine years ago has given rise to a
career spanning two parenting books, seven novels including
the Book of the Year and Rita nominated My So-Called
Love Life and The Perfect Blend, and various
national speaking engagements on faith, women's issues,
and writing. Visit her website at www.alliepleiter.com and her blog at
destiKNITtions.blogspot.com.
Moderator:
ACT
LIKE YOU'RE SOMEBODY: THE BASIS OF CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
Room
225
Did
your grandmother ever tell you to straighten up and
"act like you're somebody?" Grandma knew the basis of
character development is how we act and react in various
situations. Character development isn't about physical
descriptions like eye color and height. It's the decisions
characters make under stress, when they want something
badly, when a lot is at stake. This class examines protagonists
and how all other characters exist to aid the protagonist's
development. Based on screenwriting fundamentals that
work for novels and short stories.
Kentucky
native Janna McMahan's debut novel Calling
Home, received high praise for both style and substance
from critics and readers alike. It has been written
that Janna, "gracefully walks the tightrope of being
both literary and commercial." Her second novel, The
Ocean Inside, is due from Kensington in April, 2009.
Her award-winning short fiction has been selected for
numerous literary journals including Wind, StorySouth,
Limestone, Yamassee, Alimentum
and The Nantahala Review. Her non-fiction appears
frequently in magazines and online. To learn more about
this intriguing new author visit Janna's website at
www.JannaMcMahan.com
Moderator:
Lisa Miller
SESSION
3: 12:00 NOON TO 1:15PM
SERVING
TWO MASTERS: WRITING WITH A DAY JOB
Room
225
Writing
full-time is every writer's dream, but the reality is
that most writers also have a day job. In this session,
we will discuss the challenges of writing while working
a day job and present some strategies for excelling
at both.
Angela
Benson
is a graduate of Spelman College and the author of numerous
novels, including the Christy Award-nominated Awakening
Mercy and Essence bestseller The Amen
Sisters. She is currently an associate professor
at the University of Alabama and lives in Tuscaloosa.
Moderator:
Fábian Álvarez
WRITING
AND RESEARCHING HISTORICAL FICTION: GIVING AN AUTHENTIC,
RELEVANT VOICE TO TIMES PAST
Room
214
This
lecture will explore how personal experience, family
history passed down through 10 generations, and careful
research can enhance even a well known story, making
it unique. The author will read several short selections
from her novel and answer questions about her research
and writing process.
Kathleen
Kent
first learned about the Carrier family history from
her mother and maternal grandmother when she was a child
growing up in Texas. She attended the University of
Texas at Austin, with a major in history, before moving
to New York in 1978 where she worked first in commodities
and then for a US company doing defense conversion work
in the former Soviet Union. After moving with her husband
and son back to Dallas, she resigned as chief operating
officer of her company to write the story of Martha
Carrier's trial and execution. She spent five years
exhaustively researching the Salem witch trials and
Early Colonial history, traveling to Massachusetts and
visiting old family homesteads and historical buildings.
She was recently awarded the David J. Langum, Sr. Prize
in American Historical Fiction for 2008.
Moderator:
Sean Kinder
GRAPHIC
STORYTELLING AND CHALLENGES FOR THE PROSE WRITER
Room
213
Award
winning artist and writer Dennis Calero explores the
ins and outs of sequential storytelling. From the
specific challenges in writing a graphic novel script,
to demonstrating the process of turning a script into
a visual story, the presentation will be both informative
and entertaining.
Dennis
Calero
is a writer/illustrator whose work has appeared in Marvel,
including the new X-Men Noir series. It has also
appeared in DC Comics, as well as Playboy
and NASA publications.
Moderator:
David Jones
SESSION
4: 1:30PM TO 2:45PM
GRANT
OPPORTUNITIES AND MARKETING TIPS FOR WRITERS
Room
225
This
workshop will explore general writing techniques, specific
grant opportunities available to Kentucky writers, as
well as tips and resources for writers. Are you looking
for ways to market yourself and your writing? We will
look at publishing options, marketing ideas and internet
technologies that can help you promote yourself and
your work.
Arts
Consultant Joanna Hay is the former Outreach
Director for the Kentucky Arts Council, a published
author and grantwriter. She has worked with arts organizations
and individual artists throughout the state of Kentucky
in putting together arts projects and providing arts
resources. She has self-published, worked with a literary
agent and been published by a national publisher. As
a musician, she has produced and promoted two of her
own CDs and sold her work regionally and through online
marketing techniques.
Moderator:
Trish Lindsey Jaggers
SONGWRITING
ETC.
Room
213
Hear
about songwriting, making the move from music writer
to prose writer, performing, the music industry, and
living as an artist in the modern age from someone who's
done it all. With a catalogue of recorded songs numbering
well over 400, Janis Ian has had a tremendous amount
of success since she began writing poetry as a child.
Her life's experiences have found their way into her
music with songs like "At Seventeen" and "Society's
Child," into her nine published short stores, and her
work for Performing Songwriting Magazine and
The Advocate. In this presentation, Janis will
share some of what she knows about songwriting, performing,
the music industry, and survival for the artist in the
modern world.
Janis
Ian
wrote her first song at 12, published at 13, made a
record at 14, had a hit at 15, and was a has-been at
17. She came back at 24 with "At Seventeen." She has
had nine Grammy nominations, two wins, and over 10 million
records sold worldwide. J.A. Jance says, "Janis Ian
is a writer, nothing more and nothing less. For her,
writing and the need to write is both a blessing and
a curse. She needs to write as much as she needs air
to breathe."
Moderator:
Paul Bush
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