Master Class
Friday, September 6, 2024
8:30 a.m. Registration and light refreshments
9 a.m. Olivia Hawker: “Take Off Your Pants:
Outline Your Books for Faster, Better Writing”
Noon Lunch
1 p.m. Olivia Hawker: “How to Write a Bestseller”
Southwest Washington Writers Conference
Saturday, September 7, 2024
8:30 a.m. Registration and light refreshments
9 a.m. Introductory remarks and logistics
9:15 a.m. “Hook Them from the Start:
First Line to First Page to First Chapter”
by Christina Suzann Nelson
10 a.m. “The World According to Garth”
keynote by Garth Stein
11 a.m. Workshops
A) It’s All About the Rock—Garth Stein
B) The Writing Parent: Finding Time to Pursue Your Dream—Christina Suzann Nelson
C) The Author Acts—Give Stage-Worthy Readings of Your Fiction—Craig Allen Heath
D) The Path to Publication: Don’t Despise Small Beginnings—Linda L. Kruschke
E) Character Development—Mary Stone
F) Prolific Publishing in Magazines Midst a Busy Life—Jennifer Anne F. Messing
Noon Lunch (Rooms Set Aside by Genres)
1:15 p.m. Workshops
G) What Agents Really Want—Scott Eagan
H) Self-Publishing Success: What Worked, What Didn’t, What I’d Do Differently—Erick Mertz
I) Creating Authentic Native American Characters—Carmen Peone
J) The Joy of Flash: How Short Writing Can Jump Start Your Creative Practice—Miriam Gershow
K) Unlocking the Secrets of “Show, Don’t Tell” —Linda L. Kruschke
L) Sensible Senses—Mary Stone
2:30 p.m. Workshops
M) Query Letters That Work—Curtis C. Chen
N) Don’t Stay Stuck—Get Short! Using Haiku to Tease Apart our Sometimes-Tangled Webs—Shannon Blood
O) Big Press? Small Press? Agent? Agent-Free? Figuring Out the Questions—and Answers—to Your Publishing Path—Miriam Gershow
P) The One-Time Emotions Need to Take Control—Carmen Peone
Q) A Compelling Nonfiction Book Proposal Anyone Can Write—Tracy Cram Perkins
R) Writing Distinct Characters with Distinctive Voices—Christine Pinto
3:45 p.m. Workshops
S) How to Leverage Your Author Community on Social Media to Sell More Books—Kellyn Roth
T) Washington State Poet Laureate—Arianne True
U) Writing Novellas—Wendy Kendall
V) Make Every Sentence Work Harder—Christine Pinto
W) Look Who’s Talking: Dialogue & Action—Kate Ristau
X) How to Write a Book with Another Author and Survive—Jeff Cheney
5 p.m. Evaluation Drawing and Book Signing
