IN THE FOLLOWING SECTION, CLICK
ON PRESENTER FOR
INFORMATION ON BOTH THE PRESENTER AND RELATED TOPICS.

                          TOPICS    

  FRIDAY, August 24, 2007

   8:00 a.m.

             REGISTRATION/CHECK-IN and CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST     
             FOLLOWED BY WELCOME   (Angela Palazzolo)
                                                                                 (see Features/Schedule page)   

  9:00 - 10:00 a.m.

  THE AUTHOR/EDITOR/AGENT RELATIONSHIP: CONNECTING
  THE DOTS                                                                                          (Helen Atsma)

  WEARING THE EDITOR'S HAT                                                   (Jack Heffron)

  ELEMENTS OF A CAREER NOVELIST                                   (Paige Wheeler) 
                                                                                                   
  HOW TO WRITE A REALISTIC CRIME SCENE                         (Lee Lofland)

  WRITING AND MARKETING POETRY                                       (David Baker)

  SO YOU WANT TO BE A FREELANCE MAGAZINE   WRITER:
  HERE'S HOW TO GET STARTED                                                 (Lori Murray)

   10:15 - 11:15 a.m.

  HE SAID, SHE SAID: AN AUTHOR AND EDITOR TALK ABOUT
  WRITING AND REVISING A NOVEL                           (Sally Kim, Lee Martin)

  DEALING WITH "PLATFORM": WHEN YOU NEED ONE, WHEN
  YOU DON'T, AND BUILDING YOUR NONFICTION CAREER                                                                                                                       (Peter Lynch)
 
  HOW TO PRESENT YOUR PROJECT (PICTURE BOOK, MIDDLE
  GRADE, YOUNG ADULT) TO A PUBLISHER                          (Stacey Barney)
  
  PANEL: HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE BOOKSELLERS                                 (Antoinette Cross, Karen Harper, Alexa Reck, Diane Spink)

  BEGINNINGS & STUFF: A TWO-PART SHORT STORY WORKSHOP
  PART 1, BEGINNINGS                                                                (Lee K. Abbott)

  PANEL: WRITING FOR TELEVISION  
                                                                  (Paul S. Levine, Tom Sawyer, Andy Rose)

  WRITER'S LOUNGE (FACILITATED WRITING EXERCISES)
                       (schedule is on Features/Schedule page)            (Michael Wilson)

  11:30 - 1:30 p.m.

   LUNCH followed by PANEL OF EDITORS
                                                                                      (see Features/Schedule page)

   1:45 - 2:45 p.m.

  ATTRACTING AN AGENT'S ATTENTION THROUGH THE
  QUERY LETTER                                                                             (Regina Brooks)
                                                                                           
  HOW A LITERARY AGENCY WORKS                                       (Paul Fedorko)

  PITCH LAB                                                                                  (Sheree Bykofsky)

  TAMING THE SHAGGY BEAST: LET YOUR NOVEL
  WRITE ITSELF                                                                                       (Lee Martin) 

  BEGINNINGS & STUFF: A TWO-PART SHORT STORY WORKSHOP
  PART 2, STUFF                                                                                 (Lee K. Abbott)

 WRITING THE SCREENPLAY                                                           (Andy Rose)

  2:45 - 3:00 p.m.          REFRESHMENTS

  
  3:00 - 4:00 p.m.

  FROM PRADA TO POIGNANT: TRENDS AND MOVEMENTS IN
  WOMEN'S FICTION                                                                      (Katie Gilligan)                                                                                                  
  HOW TO WRITE AN IRRESISTIBLE NONFICTION   BOOK   PROPOSAL                                                                                 (Rita Rosenkranz)
                                                                             
  PITCH LAB                                                                                 (Sheree Bykofsky)
                                                                                                  
  USING CINEMATIC LANGUAGE TO WRITE BETTER NOVELS,
  PART 1                                                                                                  (Tom Sawyer)
                                                                                         
  STORY AND SONG: EXERCISES FOR WRITING
  BETTER POEMS                                                                                (David Baker)

  LEGAL AND BUSINESS ASPECTS OF WRITING FOR FILM
  AND TELEVISION                                                                         (Paul S. Levine)

   4:00 - 4:20 p.m.     REFRESHMENTS

   4:00 - 5:00 p.m.      WRITER'S LOUNGE
                                          (FACILITATED WRITING  EXERCISES) 
     (Stop by for five minutes, or stay awhile. Friday schedule also includes
     10:00 - 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.)                               (Michael Wilson)
   
   4:15 - 5:00 p.m.    

  BOOK DOCTOR! BOOK DOCTOR! HELP SAVE MY MANUSCRIPT:
   HOW TO FIND, CHOOSE, AND WORK WITH AN EXPERT, ETHICAL,
   BOOK DOCTOR                                             (Jerry Gross, Patrick LoBrutto)
                                                                      
   
   HOW TO THINK LIKE A DETECTIVE                                         (Lee Lofland)

   TAMING THE GIANT IDEA: MATCHING IDEAS WITH
   MAGAZINE MARKETS                                                                   (Lori Murray)

    
   5:10 p.m.    PART TWO, FRIDAY Begins and Includes

                  ~  AGENT/EDITOR INFORMAL CHAT SESSIONS
                  ~  DINNER
                  ~  DINNER PROGRAM
                  ~  EVENING PROGRAM
                (Part 2, Friday is open to Full-Conference registrants
                       and also to Friday-Only and Saturday-Only registrants
                       who have pre-registered for Part 2, Friday.)

                             (see Features/Schedule page for Part Two, Friday schedule)
                  
          
   SATURDAY, August 25, 2007

   8:00 a.m.
                 REGISTRATION/CHECK-IN FOR SATURDAY-ONLY                       ATTENDEES (except for those Saturday-Only registrants
                      who pre-registered for Part Two, Friday  and checked in
                      on Friday afternoon.)
             
                     CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST     
                     FOLLOWED BY WELCOME   
                                                                                       (see Features/Schedule page)    
  9:00 - 10:00 a.m.

  FINDING AND WORKING WITH A LITERARY AGENT/
  FICTION FOCUS                                                                           (Paige Wheeler)                                                                                                   
  ACQUISITIONS 2.0: UNDERSTANDING HOW INTERNET
  TOOLS AND DATA RESEARCH AFFECT ACQUISITIONS   DECISIONS                                                                                         (Peter Lynch)

          
   THE PLOT DEVICE                                                                           (Tom Sawyer)

  THE SCIENCE OF WRITING CHILDREN'S AND YOUNG
  ADULT BOOKS                                                                             (Regina Brooks)
   
  TROUBLESHOOTING YOUR MANUSCRIPT
                                                                                                                 (Jack Heffron)
  
  HOW TO WRITE A REALISTIC CRIME SCENE                        (Lee Lofland)                                                                                            
   
 10:15 - 11:15 a.m.

  HOW TO GET AN EDITOR TO READ PAST PAGE 2 OF A NOVEL                                                                                                                        (Sally Kim)

   PITCH LAB                                                                                 (Sheree Bykofsky)

   BEGINNINGS & STUFF: A TWO-PART SHORT STORY WORKSHOP
   PART 1, BEGINNINGS                                                                    (Lee K. Abbott)
                                                                                                  
   LEGAL ASPECTS OF WRITING FICTION AND
   NONFICTION BOOKS                                                                  (Paul S. Levine)

  GOING FROM PUBLISHER TO LITERARY AGENT                (Paul Fedorko)  

  WRITING AND MARKETING POETRY                                       (David Baker)

 
  11:30 - 1:30 p.m.
  
  LUNCH followed by PANEL OF AGENTS
                                                                                      (see Features/Schedule page)

  1:45 - 2:45 p.m.

  TAMING THE SHAGGY BEAST: LETTING YOUR NOVEL
  WRITE ITSELF                                                                                       (Lee Martin)

  FINDING AND WORKING WITH A LITERARY AGENT
  NONFICTION FOCUS                                                                (Rita Rosenkranz)
                                                                                            
  BEGINNINGS & STUFF: A TWO-PART SHORT STORY WORKSHOP
  PART 2, STUFF                                                                                  (Lee K. Abbott)

  WRITING QUERY LETTERS: JUST DO IT!                                 (Lori Murray)

  UNDERSTANDING THE EDITORIAL MIND: HOW TO HAVE A HAPPY,   CREATIVE RELATIONSHIP WITH AN EDITOR   
                                                                                  (Jerry Gross, Patrick LoBrutto)
  
 PANEL:  HOW IMPORTANT IS RESEARCH? WHEN AND HOW TO
 USE FORENSIC FACTS                                               (Lee Lofland, Tom Sawyer)
 
  3:00 - 4:00 p.m.

 TEN TIPS FOR CREATING A STAND-OUT NOVEL SYNOPSIS
                                                                                                                (Katie Gilligan)

  WRITING MEMOIR: THE ART OF SHARING MEMORIES WITH OTHERS                                                                                                                     (Lee Martin)
           
  AGENT/AUTHOR CONNECTION: MAKING THE RIGHT APPROACH
                                                                         (Sheree Bykofsky, Gretchen Hirsch)

  HOW TO PRESENT YOUR PROJECT (PICTURE BOOK, MIDDLE
  GRADE, YOUNG ADULT) TO A PUBLISHER                          (Stacey Barney)
 
  SELF-EDITING YOUR NOVEL                                                       (Helen Atsma)
                                                                                                      

  MAKING A LIVING AS A SCREENWRITER
                                                                                                                     (Andy Rose)
   
  4:00 - 5:30 p.m.    REFRESHMENTS AND INFORMAL NETWORKING

  4:00 - 5:00 p.m.      WRITER'S LOUNGE
                                       (FACILITATED WRITING  EXERCISES) 
     (Stop by for five minutes, or stay awhile. Saturday schedule also includes
     10:00 - 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.)                               (Michael Wilson)

  4:10 - 5:10 p.m.

  BROKEN POV: WHY IT MATTERS AND HOW TO FIX IT
                                                                                                 (Paul Raymond Martin)

  USING CINEMATIC LANGUAGE TO WRITE BETTER NOVELS,
  PART 2                                                                                                (Tom Sawyer)

  THE BUSINESS OF WRITING FOR SOCIAL CONNECTION
                                                                                        (Sam Asher, Lynne Powers) 
     

Beginnings and Stuff, a Two-Part Workshop (Lee K. Abbott) In part one, we will discuss and try our hands at effective beginnings, ever mindful of what Henry James called "the stout stake of emotion,"against which the action swirls. In part two, we will work on the stuff that deepens, adds texture and heft to, and broadens our understanding of, character, especially in scene (know the tools in your toolbox: exposition, description, narration, indirect dialogue, dialogue, and interior monologue).

     LEE K. ABBOTT is the author of seven collections of stories, most recently All Things, All at Once: New & Selected Stories (2006, W.W. Norton). In addition, his work has been reprinted in The Best American Short Stories, Prize Stories: The O. Henry Awards, and the Pushcart Prize series. His stories have appeared in The Georgia Review, The Southern Review, The Kenyon Review, The Atlantic Monthly, and Harper's Magazine.

The Business of Writing for Social Connection (Sam Asher and Lynne Powers) Business of Writing For Social Connection explains the work of the writers and editors of social expression —paper greetings, online and wireless greetings, character development and entertainment—the writers of everyday moments that tell a universal story that connects us all. Lynne Powers and Sam Asher will discuss the skills and talent necessary for a successful editorial career at American Greetings.

     SAM ASHER AND LYNNE POWERS are editorial representatives from American Greetings. Web site corporate.americangreetings.com

 
 Self-Editing (Helen Atsma) Your Novel Though nothing can replace having another person read and respond to your novel, it is also important for you to go through your draft one more time before sending it out into the wider world. This session will cover how you can best fine-tune your novel. Learn tips for making sure your characters are consistent and believable, yet also evolving; keeping the plot page-turning and interesting throughout; improving the organization of your book; and line editing for small but important mistakes.

The Author/Editor/Agent Relationship: Connecting the Dots (Helen Atsma) How can you best communicate with your editor–and when should your agent step in? How will your agent pick the right editor at the right house to consider your book for publication? And what can you do to best help your editor promote your book within the publishing house? This session covers the three-sided relationship that, when everything clicks, will help your book reach the widest possible audience.

     HELEN ATSMA (previously with Little, Brown and Company) joined Henry Holt and Company as an editor in July of 2007. She is looking for literary and popular fiction, narrative nonfiction, and memoir. Previously, she was at Little, Brown, where her recent and forthcoming publications include Transparency, a collection of stories by Frances Hwang, and four novels: David Bledin's Bank, Rose MacMurray's Afternoons with Emily, Yannick Murphy's Signed, Mata Hari, and Lin Enger's debut, Undiscovered Country.


 Writing and Marketing Poetry (David Baker) This session will focus on the preparation of original poems for submission to national literary journals and magazines. As poetry editor of The Kenyon Review and a widely publishing poet, David brings years of experience to discuss the dos and don'ts of submission. Some questions that will be addressed: What do editors want? How do we find the right magazine for the right poem? How do we best put a manuscript together? What happens to our work when it arrives in the editorial offices of a magazine?

Story and Song: Exercises for Writing Better Poems (David Baker) This seminar is a practical and hands-on crash course in poetry writing. David will bring specific exercises and assignments to help you in several ways: to make your images sharper and more coherent, to make your narratives more rich and poetic, to deepen the metaphoric content of your poems, and to find the best form for the poem at hand.

     DAVID BAKER holds the Thomas B. Fordham Chair of Creative Writing at Denison University (Ohio), where he is a professor of English. He is also poetry editor of The Kenyon Review and teaches regularly in the MFA program for writers at Warren Wilson College (North Carolina). Among his 11 books are Radiant Lyre: Essays on Lyric Poetry (2007, Graywolf Press) and Midwest Eclogue: Poems (2005, WW Norton). For his work, Baker has been awarded fellowships and grants from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Society of America, Ohio Arts Council, The Society of Midland Authors, and others.

How to Present Your Project (Picture Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult) to a Publisher (Stacey Barney) Stacey will discuss the 30-second pitch, whether to illustrate, the query, the best manuscript possible, the waiting game, and whether agents help garner a quicker response or if it's better to go it alone.

     STACEY BARNEY, an editor at Putnam Books for Young Readers, has held posts in both adult and children's book publishing. She began her career at Lee & Low Books, a multicultural children's book publisher, and later worked at Farrar, Straus and Giroux with such talented new writers as Chris Abani and Lisa Dierbeck. At Amistad, an imprint of Harper Collins, she published Los Angeles Times best-selling author Tamara T. Gregory's Passport Diaries, as well as acclaimed author Ronin Ro's Raising Hell: The Reign, Ruin, and Redemption of Run-D.M.C. and Jam Master Jay and Gilbert Tuhabonye's This Voice in My Heart. Before joining Putnam, she worked at Dafina/Kensington where she launched a Young Adult list with such titles as Drama High, So Not the Drama, Boy Shopping, and Perry Skky Jr., the spin-off to bestseller Christian teen series Payton Skky. At Putnam, Stacey is looking for multicultural voices in everything from picture books to young adult, with a particular interest in middle grade and chapter books. Web site: penguingroup.com

 Attracting an Agent's Attention Through the Query Letter (Regina Brooks) Regina frankly discusses the dos and don'ts of querying an agent as well as all of the necessary steps for both fiction and nonfiction. She'll help you make sure that everything is in its place before you take that crucial step of sending your query.  

The Science of Writing Children's and Young Adult Books (Regina Brooks) Literary agent and author of How to Write for Young Adults, Regina breaks down all of the important tips, tricks, and pitfalls in the tricky business of writing children's and young adult fiction. Getting an Agent's Attention Through the Query Letter Regina frankly discusses the DOS and don'ts of querying an agent as well as all of the necessary steps for both fiction and nonfiction. She'll help you make sure that everything is in its place before you take that crucial step of sending your query.

     REGINA BROOKS is the founder and president of Serendipity Literary Agency LLC, based in Brooklyn. Her agency has represented and established a diverse base of award-winning clients in adult and young adult fiction, nonfiction, and children's literature, including Marilyn Nelson, who is a 2005 Coretta Scott King Honor Books recipient, a 2006 Michael L. Printz Honor Books recipient, and a three-time National Book Award finalist, and Marjorie Greenfield, author of The Working Woman's Pregnancy Book. Brooks has identified new voices and potential authors like Derrick Barnes, whose first novel, The Making of Dr. Truelove, was nominated for an American Library Association Award. Prior to opening her own agency, Regina held senior editorial positions at John Wiley and Sons and McGraw-Hill. She is the author of the children's book Never Finished! Never Done! (Scholastic) and the soon-to-be-published How to Write for Young Adults (Sourcebooks). Brooks is also on the faculty of the Harvard University publishing program. Her recent sales include In the Black: Retirement Planning Guide for African Americans (Harper Collins), Handle Your Entertainment Business (Hachette); Sealed with a Wish: The Manual of Wishcrafting (Atria Books/Beyond Words), Girligami (Watson-Guptil), Ruby and the Booker Boys (Scholastic), and First Semester (Harlequin). She is a regular speaker at writers' conferences and is interested in areas of nonfiction and fiction for adults, young adults, and children, and such subjects as politics, psychology and self-help, pop culture, health, science, women's issues, parenting, cooking, design crafts, alternative spirituality, business, and science/technology. She is always interested in new and emerging writers. Web site: serendipitylit.com

Author/Agent Connection (Making the Right Approach) (Sheree Bykofsky and Gretchen Hirsch) Literary agent Sheree Bykofsky and author Gretchen Hirsch, will role play how to approach an agent at a writers' conference; that is, what your pitch should sound like. They will also be happy to talk about how they work together.

Pitch Lab (Fiction and Nonfiction) (Sheree Bykofsky) Learn how to pitch more effectively. Or, if you have a pitch in mind, refine it and try it out. Learn the important differences between a query letter and a verbal pitch. Five students may sign up for each one-hour lab. Come to the session with paper and pencil. The Pitch Lab is also opened to silent observers. A lot can be learned from listening to others.

     SHEREE BYKOFSKY of Sheree Bykofsky Associates, Inc., is a literary agent and author. As a literary agent, her nonfiction specialties include popular reference, business, health, psychology, poker, spirituality, self-help, humor, cookbooks, pop culture, biography, women's issues, decorating & crafts, music, and much more. Among Sheree's nonfiction clients are Taro Gold, Jane Eldershaw, Bill Walsh, Margo Perin, Albert Ellis, John Carpenter (first millionaire on Who Wants to Be aMillionaire), William Baker (chief executive officer of Educational Broadcasting Corporation (EBC), licensee of Thirteen/WNET and WLIW New York), supermodel Roshumba, and Richard Roeper (of Ebert and Roeper). In the area of fiction, Sheree's clients include Donna Anders and Leslie Rule. Sheree is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Publishing at New York University and teaches at SEAK's conferences for doctors and lawyers. Sheree is also the author of more than 20 books, including coauthor of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Published, 4th Edition. Web site: Shereebee.com

Going from Publisher to Literary Agent (Paul Fedorko) What it's like being on opposite sides of the table—and how it's the same.

How a Literary Agency Works (Paul Fedorko) From queries to contracts and everything in between, Paul shares a typical day at the office.

     PAUL FEDORKO, a literary agent with Trident Media Group, built his career on the publishing side of the business, working in both marketing and publishing positions at such houses as Simon & Schuster, New American Library, Bantam Books, and Dell/Delacorte, and as a publisher at William Morrow. He has been agenting for close to five years, representing both fiction and nonfiction authors. Web site: tridentmediagroup.com


Troubleshooting Your Manuscript (Fiction and Nonfiction) (Jack Heffron) Rescue your manuscript from the bottom drawer and jump-start your stalled project by mastering the practical strategies presented in this session.

Wearing the Editor's Hat (Nonfiction Books) (Jack Heffron) Develop your idea for your nonfiction book—and increase your chances of selling it—by learning to think like the editor who will consider your project. Learn the key elements that shape an editor's decision and how to position your book with a keen eye on the marketplace.

     JACK HEFFRON is editorial director at Clerisy Press in Cincinnati. He is the former editorial director for Emmis Books, Writer's Digest Books, Betterway Books, and Story Press. He has worked as a contractor for a number of other publishers, including McGraw-Hill Trade, Lyons Press, and Globe-Pequot Press. He was a founding editor of Story magazine.

Author/Agent Connection (Making the Right Approach) (Gretchen Hirsch and Sheree Bykofsky) Author Gretchen Hirsch and literary agent Sheree Bykofsky will role play how to approach an agent at a writers conference; that is, what your pitch should sound like. They will also be happy to talk about how they work together.

Moderator, Editor Panel and Literary Agent Panel (Gretchen Hirsch)

     GRETCHEN HIRSCH will have published, in the months between November 2006 and September 2007, three books: Talking Your Way to the Top (Prometheus Books), A Love for Learning: Motivation and the Gifted Child with coauthor, Carol Strip Whitney, Ph.D. (Great Potential Press), and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Difficult Conversations (Alpha Books). She is president of Midwest Book Doctors and also is employed in the Office of University Communications at Ohio Wesleyan University. All three of her most recent books were agented by Sheree Bykofsky Associates. Web Site: midwestbookdocs.com

From Prada to Poignant: Trends and Movements in Women's Fiction (Katie Gilligan) This session presents a comprehensive look at the growing trends in women's fiction and how the genre and its writers are choosing to reinvent and retitle an evolving canon. From commercial successes such as Lauren Weisberger, author of The Devil Wears Prada, to more poignant authors such as Jodi Picoult and Maeve Binchy, this session will cover where women's fiction is headed and how you can best craft a proposal.

Ten Tips for Creating a Stand-Out Novel Synopsis (Katie Gilligan) From the slush pile or from an agent, the key to winning over a potential editor can often be a witty, profound, or simply well-crafted synopsis. When it comes to submitting your novel, or your proposal, how do you speak volumes in only a matter of paragraphs? This will be a discussion of 10 key ways to hook the reader and make your fiction proposal memorable and inviting.

     KATIE GILLIGAN is an associate editor at Thomas Dunne Books, a division of St. Martin's Press, where she has acquired a wide range of material, particularly women's fiction, both literary and commercial, and nonfiction. She is particularly drawn to curious, genuine narrators who write with a profound and well-crafted voice. The diversity of her imprint enables Katie to also edit within a wide range of genres, including mysteries and thrillers, historical fiction, and political science. Web site: thomasdunnebooks.com

 Book Doctor! Book Doctor! Help Save My Manuscript: How to find, choose and work with an expert, ethical book doctor (Jerry Gross and Patrick LoBrutto) This workshop will help you decide what kind of book doctor is right for you. Discussion will include essential questions to ask before signing on with a book doctor, what authors and book doctors can and should expect from each other, the promise no ethical book doctor will ever make, and the dos and don'ts of author/book doctor etiquette. Those attending will receive a one-page guide, Ten Signs of a Scam Book Doctor.

Understanding the Editorial Mind: How to Have a Happy, Creative Relationship with an Editor (Jerry Gross and Patrick LoBrutto) Understanding the Editorial Mind will focus on the professional and personal psychology and etiquette that exists between an author and editor: What does the author owe the editor in the relationship? What does the editor owe the author? You'll learn what an editor brings to a manuscript that the author cannot. You'll also learn what makes a good author-editor relationship. It should be collegial, not adversarial; symbiotic, not parasitic.

    JERRY GROSS has been a fiction and nonfiction trade book and paperback editor for well over 40 years—the past 20 as a freelance editor/book doctor working with agented and unagented authors. He is the editor of the standard work on trade book editing, Editors on Editing: What Writers Need to Know About What Editors Do. This book is used in creative writing courses and publishing programs and at writers conferences. Other career highlights include positions as vice president and editorial director of Warner Books, vice president and associate editor-in-chief at New American Library, and editor-in-chief of Dodd, Mead. Jerry lectures on writing, editing, and publishing at writers conferences and universities. Web site: www.bookdocs.com

 Friday After-Dinner Program

The Possible Dream: Veteran Advice from the Trenches (Karen Harper) Since she was first published in 1982, Karen Harper has written more than 50 novels in four genres. She has worked with three literary agents, eight publishers, and many editors. Both inspirational and informational, her topic will touch on the realities of publishing, practical tips, and the possible dream of becoming and surviving as a published author.

Panel: How to Win Friends and Influence Booksellers (Antoinette Cross, Karen Harper, Alexa Reck, Diane Spink) Learn how to navigate the ins and outs of promoting and selling your book to booksellers with the help of this panel featuring representatives from Barnes & Noble, Borders, independent bookseller Foul Play, plus multi-published author Karen Harper.

    KAREN HARPER, a former Ohio State University and high school English instructor, is the The New York Times and USA TODAY best-selling author of contemporary suspense, historical mystery and historical novels. Published since 1982, she currently has books listed by MIRA Books, Random House, and St. Martin's Press. Her books have appeared in many foreign, large print, audio, and e-book versions, and two of her novels have appeared in Good Housekeeping magazine. She won The Mary Higgins Clark Award in 2006 for Dark Angel, her suspense novel set in Ohio Amish country. "Harper has a fantastic flair for creating and sustaining suspense," says Publisher's Weekly. Her most recent suspense novels are Hurricane and Inferno. Her historical novels The Last Boleyn and The First Princess of Wales have been included in the Borders summer reading program. Since presenting at the Columbus Writers Conference three years ago, Karen has sold a book to an editor she heard speak at that same conference. Web site: karenharperauthor.com
Karen Harper interview: click here.

http://wordwenches.typepad.com/word_wenches/

How to Get an Editor to Read Past Page 2 of a Novel (Sally Kim) A writer can spend years writing and polishing his/her manuscript, doing all the right things, but that first step toward publication—a yes from an agent or an editor—is often decided within the first few pages. In this workshop, you will discuss the factors that compel this fiction editor to keep reading—or to stop.

He said, She Said: An Author and Editor Talk About Writing and Revising a Novel (Sally Kim and Lee Martin) Lee Martin, a finalist for the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for his novel The Bright Forever, and Sally Kim, senior editor at Shaye Areheart Books, talk about their cooperative process in shaping Lee's forthcoming novel, River of Heaven.

     SALLY KIM is a senior editor at Shaye Areheart Books, the literary fiction imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., where her authors include Lee Martin (The Bright Forever, Pulitzer Prize finalist), Lisa Unger (Beautiful Lies, The New York Times Best Seller), Gillian Flynn (Sharp Objects, Edgar® nominee), Justin Evans (A Good and Happy Child), and Leah Stewart (The Myth of You and Me). Previously an editor at St. Martin's Press and HarperCollins, she has worked in book publishing for 12 years. Web site: crownpublishing.com

Legal and Business Aspects of Writing Fiction and Nonfiction Books (Paul S. Levine) The nuts and bolts of the business of writing are as essential to a writer's success as the writer's work itself. How does a writer acquire an agent and an attorney? How does the writer's work get sold, and how is the writer compensated? What do the agent and the lawyer do for the writer? How are they compensated? How do writers work together? This comprehensive session will cover the principles of copyright law as the underpinnings of all writing: what agents and lawyers do, how their functions overlap, and how they differ; the process of obtaining an agent and a lawyer; when and why an agent may or may not be necessary; how agents and lawyers are compensated by their clients; the content of a typical collaboration agreement and three reasons they are an absolute necessity; royalties, advances, rights granted and withheld, and other details of a typical publishing agreement; and the editing process, from acceptance or rejection of the manuscript to publication to promotion and publicity.

Legal and Business Aspects of Writing for Film and Television (Paul S. Levine) The nuts and bolts of the business of writing are as essential to a writer's success as the writer's work itself. How does a writer acquire an agent and an attorney? How does the writer's work get sold, and how is the writer compensated? What do the agent and the lawyer do for the writer? How are they compensated? How do writers work together? This comprehensive session will cover the principles of copyright law as the underpinnings of all writing: what agents and lawyers do, how their functions sometimes overlap, and how they differ; the process of obtaining an agent and a lawyer; when and why an agent may or may not be necessary; how agents and lawyers are compensated by their clients; the content of a collaboration agreement and three reasons these agreements are an absolute necessity; ways the WGA Basic Agreement affects film and television writing, including minimum compensation (scale), residuals, royalties, other payments, and credit; a typical option/purchase agreement for a screenplay, including option monies and term, purchase price, rights granted and withheld; series television employment agreements, including episode compensation, script guarantees, and credit; and the process of pitching a project to a producer, what happens if the project is rejected, and what happens if it is accepted.

Panel: Writing for Television (Paul S. Levine, Andy Rose, Tom Sawyer)

     PAUL S. LEVINE is a lawyer and a literary agent. He has practiced entertainment law for over 26 years, specializing in the representation of writers, producers, actors, directors, composers, musicians, artists, authors, photographers, galleries, publishers, developers, production companies, and theater companies in the fields of motion pictures, television, interactive multimedia, live stage, recorded music concerts, the visual arts, publishing, and advertising. In 1998, Paul opened the Paul S. Levine Literary Agency, specializing in the representation of book authors and the sale of motion picture and television rights in and to books. Since starting his literary agency, Paul has sold more than 80 fiction and nonfiction books to at least 30 different publishers and has had many books developed as feature films or movies for television. Paul tends to represents commercial fiction—thrillers, mysteries, women's fiction, soap opera in the vein of Danielle Steele or Jackie Collins—and literary fiction. The nonfiction he represents also tends to be commercial—self-help, how-to, relationships, memoirs, health, women's issues, pop culture, new age, and business. For both fiction and nonfiction books, his biggest successes have been with authors who originally self-published their books and then wished to have their books republished by a major publishing house. For the film screen, Paul represents a wide range of scripts, from romantic comedies to thrillers to historical epics. In television, he mainly represents writers, producers, and subjects of docudramas, but he also represents writers and writer-producers of network and non-network drama and comedy series, reality shows, game shows, talk shows, and the like. Web site: paulslevine.com

Book Doctor! Book Doctor! Help Save My Manuscript: How to find, choose and work with an expert, ethical book doctor (Jerry Gross and Patrick LoBrutto) This workshop will help you decide what kind of book doctor is right for you. Discussion will include essential questions to ask before signing on with a book doctor, what authors and book doctors can and should expect from each other, the promise no ethical book doctor will ever make, and the dos and don'ts of author/book doctor etiquette. Those attending will receive a one-page guide, Ten Signs of a Scam Book Doctor.

Understanding the Editorial Mind: How to Have a Happy, Creative Relationship with an Editor (Jerry Gross and Patrick LoBrutto) Understanding the Editorial Mind will focus on the professional and personal psychology and etiquette that exists between an author and editor: What does the author owe the editor in the relationship? What does the editor owe the author? You'll learn what an editor brings to a manuscript that the author cannot. You'll also learn what makes a good author-editor relationship. It should be collegial, not adversarial; symbiotic, not parasitic.

     PATRICK LOBRUTTO has been an editor at Doubleday, Ace, Bantam, Random House, and Kensington. He has worked on thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, historical novels, romance, horror, and nonfiction. Authors he has worked with include Isaac Asimov, Stephen King, and Walter Tevis. In 1986, Patrick received the World Fantasy Award for editing. He currently works as a book doctor and a consultant to publishers and agents. Web site: patrickjlobrutto.com

How to Write a Realistic Crime Scene (Lee Lofland) Too often, writers make the mistake of relying on television and film as sources of research for their books. To effectively write crime fiction, an author must go to real-life experts. This workshop is a one-hour tour through crime scene investigations featuring actual crime scene photographs and investigative techniques. It's a workshop about real whodunits taught by the author of the latest book in the Writer's Digest Books Howdunit series.

How to Think Like a Detective (Lee Lofland) Have you ever wondered what goes through the mind of a detective while she's examining evidence, or what she's thinking during the interrogation of a murder suspect? Why does she do what she does? What determines her first course of action? What leads her to a suspect? To write effectively about detectives, you must be able to answer those questions. This workshop allows writers a one-hour peek into an investigator's thought process and focuses on how the investigator uses puzzle-solving skills to zero in on suspects.

Panel: How Important is Research? When and How to Use Forensic Facts (Lee Lofland, Tom Sawyer)

     LEE LOFLAND is the author of Police Procedure and Investigation: A Guide for Writers, scheduled for release in August 2007 from Writer's Digest Books. Lee is a former police detective with nearly two decades of law-enforcement and crime-solving experience. He was in charge of major felony cases, including homicide, narcotics, rape, kidnapping, ritualistic and occult crimes, fraud, and robbery. Lee is a nationally acclaimed expert on police procedure and crime-scene investigation and has spoken at numerous conferences and workshops. He writes freelance articles for magazines and newspapers across the country and is a consultant for many best-selling authors as well as television and film writers. This year, he appeared on the BBC television show How to Commit the Perfect Murder where he discussed crime investigations and how writers use forensic facts to create fiction. His current works-in-progress are a mystery novel and a children's career book about becoming a police officer. Lee is a member of Sisters in Crime and serves on the board of directors for the New England Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. Web site: leelofland.com

Acquisitions 2.0: Understanding How Internet Tools and Data Research Affect Acquisitions Decisions (Nonfiction Books) (Peter Lynch) Acquisitions editors don't rely just on personal taste and instinct anymore. New online sales-tracking and other tools are changing the way nonfiction proposals are evaluated and acquisitions decisions are made. Learn how acquisitions editors can assess author sales history, evaluate the strength of topics and categories, and find opportunities, and how you can use this knowledge when preparing a proposal.

Dealing with "Platform": When You Need One, When You Don't, and Building Your Nonfiction Career (Peter Lynch) Much confusion surrounds the new publishing buzzword "platform"–namely the author's background, credentials, and ability to market his or her own books. This session will discuss the reasons for the emergence of platform, when you actually need one and when you don't, and how to build a nonfiction career in different categories.

     PETER LYNCH, editorial manager of the trade division at Sourcebooks, graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.A. in rhetoric. Along with overseeing the Sourcebooks and Landmark imprints, he acquires high-quality, commercial books across a variety of categories, including business, history, reference, self-help, college guides and study aids, relationships, humor, commercial fiction, and literary fiction with commercial appeal. Web site: sourcebooks.com

The Novel: Taming the Shaggy Beast: Letting Your Novel Write Itself (Lee Martin) Henry James called the novel "a shaggy beast," but it doesn't have to be. This presentation will focus on what you can do from the outset to get that beast under control. We'll start with the premise that the novel first exists in a prevocabulary form. Then we'll talk about how intuition blends with an understanding of craft to allow the writer to find form and articulation for the heart of the novel that exists in the subconscious mind before it finds expression on the page. We'll look at samples from published novels, and we'll try a writing activity designed to illustrate how characters, setting, and details can suggest plot if the writer is paying close attention.

Writing Memoir: The Art of Sharing Memories with Others (Lee Martin) Writing the memoir presents a series of problems and challenges when it comes to shaping and expressing memories. How do we know, for example, which memories deserve to be part of our narratives? What if we find that our memories of certain important events are dim? What artistic strategies can we employ to turn real people into characters? How can we be completely honest in our representation of these characters? This presentation will use samples from published memoirs as well as writing activities to offer possible solutions to these challenges and to help writers be better equipped for writing their memoirs.

He said, She Said: An Author and Editor Talk About Writing and Revising a Novel (Sally Kim and Lee Martin) Lee Martin, a finalist for the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for his novel The Bright Forever, and Sally Kim, senior editor at Shaye Areheart Books, talk about their cooperative process in shaping Lee's forthcoming novel, River of Heaven.

     LEE MARTIN is the author of the novels, The Bright Forever, a finalist for the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction; two memoirs, From Our House and Turning Bones; another novel, Quakertown; and a short story collection, The Least You Need to Know. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in such places as Harper's Magazine, Ms. Magazine, Creative Nonfiction, The Georgia Review, Story Magazine, DoubleTake Magazine, The Kenyon Review, Fourth Genre, River Teeth, The Southern Review, and Glimmer Train. He is the winner of The Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Ohio Arts Council, as well as the 2006 Ohio State University Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching. Since 2001, he has taught in the MFA Program at The Ohio State University, where he is now a professor of English and director of creative writing.

 Seven Secrets of Highly Effective Writers (Paul Raymond Martin) (See Features and Schedule Page.) Write every day, read in your genre, stay the course, blah, blah, blah. You've heard all the standard advice. Now learn in anecdotal style the things writers really do to write well and publish widely. A set of the presenter's books will be given away, as will some nifty handouts.

Broken POV: Why It Matters and How to Fix It (Paul Raymond Martin) This highly interactive workshop will provide an introduction to the three most commonly used points-of-view, the problems created by broken POV, and ways to use POV effectively. For fun and enlightenment, all the samples, including broken POV, will be drawn from published work. More nifty handouts, too.

    PAUL RAYMOND MARTIN has published more than 300 stories, poems, and articles. His stories have been nominated for The Best American Short Stories and The Best American Mystery Stories. He is the author of Writer's Little Instruction Book: Inspiration & Motivation, Writer's Little Instruction Book: Craft & Technique, and Writer's Little Instruction Book: Getting Published, all from Writer's Digest Books. Paul lives on a farm, and when he's not writing, he likes to play in the dirt and raise wormy apples.

 So You Want to be a Freelance Magazine Writer: Here's How to Get Started (Lori Murray) Freelance writer Lori Murray will share her tips for getting started in the business of writing for magazines. She will talk about the fact that writing is a business, and that is why professionalism and business savvy are necessary to be successful. After that, Lori will cover the proper way to approach editors, how to cultivate ideas, what office tools to use, and how to market yourself as a writer.

Writing Query Letters: Just Do It! (Lori Murray) You can't win the lottery if you don't buy a lottery ticket! Likewise, it's impossible to sell an idea to an editor if you don't send out well-crafted query letters. Rather than talking about your writing ideas, get them in front of magazine editors. This session will discuss everything you need to know to write a fantastic query letter, and you will be provided with a sample or two for future reference.

Taming the Idea Giant: Matching Ideas with Magazine Markets (Lori Murray) Article ideas can be found just about everywhere! The challenge is matching those ideas with the proper publication and then presenting them in a marketable way. This hands-on session will take a close-up look at actual magazines so that freelance writers know what each magazine is looking for and how to best approach its editors. We'll study the masthead, the advertising, the bylines, and the types of articles that are being published. Finally, we'll put what we've learned to use by matching some first-class ideas with the magazines.

    LORI MURRAY wrote her first magazine feature in 1995. After seeing her name in print, she was hooked, and from that day forward she has worked as a freelance writer. Over the years, Lori has written predominantly magazine and newspaper features; however, she has also written for corporations, such as Wendy's International, and nonprofits, such as the Columbus Coalition Against Family Violence. The topics of Lori's articles are varied and cover subjects relating to travel, lifestyle, business, parenting, home living, and food. Her features have appeared in numerous custom, trade, and consumer publications, including Woman's Day, Family Fun, Ohio Magazine, American Profile, American Way, Parenting, Parents, and The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. Lori regularly emerges from her home office to teach writing at Columbus (Ohio) State Community College, where she emphasizes to her students that even professional writers compose several drafts before completing a writing assignment.

  Writing the Screenplay (Andy Rose) Everyone loves the movies...but do you think you could write a script for one? This presentation shows you how to create a marketable premise and develop it into a three-act screenplay with suspenseful plot points, engaging characters, and clever dialogue. Lights, camera, action–it all begins with the screenplay.

Making a Living as a Screenwriter (Andy Rose) How does a screenwriter make a living? The business side of writing movies is as fascinating as the creative side. What are development deals and assignments? How do you pitch stories? Do spec scripts really sell for a million dollars? What does a first-time writer have to do to get noticed? Find out all the answers in this informative session.

Panel: Writing for Television (Paul S. Levine, Andy Rose, Tom Sawyer)

     ANDY ROSE, a screenwriter, has written and/or produced more than two dozen projects for almost every major Hollywood studio and network, including the feature films McHale's Navy, Splash Two, and Playing for Keeps; the TV movie The Richest Cat in the World; and the television shows Life with Louie and UC: Undercover. He is a contributing writer to MovieMaker Magazine and a screenwriting instructor at The Ohio State University.

 How to Write an Irresistible Nonfiction Book Proposal (Rita Rosenkranz) A veteran agent breaks down the process of writing a salable nonfiction proposal, which will help shorten the distance between writing a proposal, finding an agent, and publishing successfully.

Finding and Working with a Literary Agent/Nonfiction Focus (Rita Rosenkranz) What are the tried-and-true ways to find an agent and sustain a productive relationship? Rita will discuss the many aspects that make the author-agent relationship work.

     RITA ROSENKRANZ , a former editor with major New York publishers, founded Rita Rosenkranz Literary Agency in 1990. She represents health, history, parenting, music, how-to, popular science, business, biography, popular reference, cooking, spirituality, and general-interest titles. Rita works with major publishing houses, as well as regional publishers that handle niche markets. She looks for projects that present familiar subjects freshly or lesser-known subjects commercially.

Using Cinematic Language to Write Better Novels, Part 1 and Part 2 (Tom Sawyer) Showing clips from movies and TV, Tom illustrates the less-is-more approach to effective storytelling—how cinematic language and technique, and their economies and use of the visual, can improve your writing. You'll learn what to include—and more importantly, what to leave out.

The Plot Device (Tom Sawyer) From Meet Cute to Clocks to McGuffins and more—story tools that can help you tell your story more effectively, with more zip, pop, emotion, tension, and motivation. This session will present mechanisms that will strengthen and add urgency and tension to your short story, novel, stage play, or film script.

Panel: How Important is Research? When and How to Use Forensic Facts (Lee Lofland, Tom Sawyer)

Panel: Writing for Television (Paul S. Levine, Andy Rose, Tom Sawyer)

     TOM SAWYER, novelist, screenwriter, and playwright, was head writer/producer-showrunner of the hit CBS series Murder, She Wrote, for which he wrote 24 episodes. Tom has written nine network TV pilots and 100 episodes and has been writer, producer, or showrunner on the staff of 15 network series. He is co-librettist/lyricist of Jack, an opera about John F. Kennedy that has been performed to acclaim in the United States and Europe. He wrote, directed, and produced the cult film comedy Alice Goodbody. The best-selling mystery-thriller The Sixteenth Man is his first novel. His next, No Place to Run, will be published in 2008. Tom has been nominated for Edgar® and Emmy® awards. He has taught writing at colleges and universities including UCLA, at numerous major writers' conferences, and online at Writers University. He is co-creator of Storybase software and author of the book Fiction Writing Demystified, both Writer's Digest Book Club Selections. Web site: ThomasBSawyer.com

 Elements of a Career Novelist (Paige Wheeler) This presentation will focus on what every novelist should consider when trying to forge a career as a working novelist. It will highlight 10 items to consider when planning a career as a novelist.

Finding and Working with a Literary Agent/Fiction Focus (Paige Wheeler) This presentation will show how to find the right agent for your career and what to expect from the relationship.

     PAIGE WHEELER is a founding partner of Folio Literary Management, LLC. Prior to forming Folio Literary Management, Paige founded Creative Media Agency (CMA) in 1997 and served as its president for nine years until she merged the company into her new venture, FOLIO, in 2006. Web site: foliolit.com

 Writers Lounge (Facilitated Writing Exercises) (Michael Wilson) Need some time just to get some ink on the page? Bring your pen and notebook or laptop and join Michael Wilson in the Writers' Lounge for ongoing facilitated writing exercises. Use the exercises as inspiration or, if you'd prefer, work on your own project. Every exercise will feature five to 10 minutes of writing followed by participants' sharing, if they wish, their just-completed work. Featured exercises will include random word poetry, given first lines (Michael gives you a first line and you write a story from it), and mind-mapping on oversized butcher block paper. These scheduled writing sessions will run at various times during the conference, some concurrently with other sessions. Feel free to drop in any time and stay for five minutes or as long as you like.

     MICHAEL WILSON has been teaching creative writing classes and facilitating writers' groups for more than a decade and has been a featured presenter at many writing conferences. He publishes Grist for the Muse, a monthly writing e-newsletter. His first book, Flash Writing: How to Write, Revise and Publish Stories Less than 1000 Words Long, was published in 2004. Web sites: flashwriting.com and jumpstartjar.com

Panel: How to Win Friends and Influence Booksellers (Antoinette Cross, Karen Harper, Alexa Reck, Diane Spink) Learn how to navigate the ins and outs of promoting and selling your book to booksellers with the help of this panel featuring representatives from Barnes & Noble, Borders, independent bookseller Foul Play, plus multi-published author Karen Harper.

     ANTOINETTE CROSS and her husband, John, co-own Foul Play Mystery Bookshop, Ohio's only bookstore devoted to the celebration of crime fiction. This is their 18th year in business. During that time, they have hosted more than a hundred author events. Antoinette holds both a B.S. in Education and an M.A. in Early and Middle Childhood Education, both from The Ohio State University. She taught primary education for over 35 years. Web site: foulplaybooks.com

    KAREN HARPER

     ALEXA RECK, a Barnes & Noble community relations manager in Columbus, Ohio, has a B.A. in English from Marietta College (Ohio) and an M.A. in English from Boston University. Since graduating from college, she has worked in independent and chain bookstore management for more than 13 years. In her current position, she schedules events in her store and helps other stores make similar event decisions.

     DIANE SPINK, who has a B.S. from North Dakota State University, has worked in a Columbus, Ohio, Borders bookstore for almost eight years. Her responsibilities are shelver, bookseller, and merchandiser. She assists both local and national authors with placing and promoting their books in her store and interfaces with the area marketing manager who handles a multistate area. As a writer, she has participated in numerous writing groups and writing conferences.

ANGELA PALAZZOLO, conference producer/director, is a writer, actress, and special events consultant. She produces and directs the annual Columbus Writers Conference, now in its 15th year. In addition, for more than six years, she produced and hosted the award-winning cable TV program Not for Writers Only! Angela has written articles for local, regional, and national publications. Her other writing activities have ranged from producing corporate copy to creating character dialogue and games for a children's recipe-activity book. She also writes short stories and is working on a novel and screenplay. As an actress, she is active in theatre, film, and commercial work.  At writers' conferences, she has spoken on a variety of topics, including Enhancing Your Creativity, Using Acting Techniques in Fiction Writing, and Marketing Your Writing.