Remember that news I said I hoped to share soon? Here it is.
September 27, 2008
Pitch-fever
Posted by crcook under Uncategorized | Tags: friends, writers conferences |[12] Comments
September 26, 2008
Friday post
Posted by crcook under Uncategorized | Tags: heartland writers, publishing trends, writers conferences |[10] Comments
Last weeked we welcomed three kicking literary agents – Tina Wexler of ICM, Linda Pratt of Sheldon Fogelman, and Jennifer DeChiara of Jennifer DeChiara Literary – to Agents Day in Kansas City. What a weekend!
Linda started off the morning with an excellent talk on how writing is a lot like hopscotch. One tip I found helpful was how to figure out if your pacing is too slow or tension too subtle. She suggested you write up a summary of what happens in each chapter, breaking it down by action.
Jennifer DeChiara stressed the importance of pitching and appearing like a pro when you meet an editor or agent, whether in person or on paper, because you literally have seconds to wow them. (I hope to soon share some exciting news about a fellow writer who did just that!)
Tina Wexler reiterated much of what Jennifer and Linda said, but also reminded me of what I think is the most important thing a writer can bring to this process: the journey you take should be as fun as it is difficult.
They offered so much more, and I will skim my notes and post them in the days to come. These ladies would serve any writer well. On a personal note, the best part of the weekend was hanging out and chatting as women, not writers and agents.
And the food rocked, too. Thanks, Carla and Helen for pulling an all-nighter to make sure the sandwiches were as fresh as possible. And thanks, too, to Jeff, Dave, Daniel and Xander for hauling all the goods.
Now, swing by www.heartlandwriters.com and check out what’s up in KC.
Happy weekends, everyone!
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May 29, 2008
Agents Galore! Join JWKC for another great event!
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Agents Day
September 20, 2008
9 am to 4:30 pm
Join us for Agents Day! We’ll welcome three agents to speak about the children’s book market, answer questions, and take individual appointments.
Tina Dubois Wexler, from International Creative Management, will speak on “All About Agents.” In today’s marketplace, it has become increasingly difficult to find publishing houses that accept unsolicited material; most editors will ask that you secure representation first and then submit through your agent. But is an agent right for you? And how do you get one? Or, now that you have one, what happens next?
Linda Pratt, from the Sheldon Fogelman Agency, will teach the basics of “Hopscotch: Making it Through the Course as a Children’s Book Author One Square at a Time.” You’ve landed on the first square by deciding to write for children. How do you keep your balance, avoid the lines, and keep moving forward to the next squares in your writing career? This session will address key questions that one agent asks in helping her authors create a career plan. It will touch upon writing in various genres, industry conditions, assessing one’s own goals and needs, among other things.
Jennifer DeChiara of the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency, speaks regularly to writers about writing query letters, book proposals, and picture books, and will be on hand to share her expertise.
The afternoon features two sessions: In the panel discussion “Building an Identity,” agents will discuss how writers can create a professional identity and use it as a marketing tool. And, back by popular demand, our “First Pages” critique session will let attendees have the first page of a manuscript read aloud and critiqued by the panel of agents.
Find out more about our guest agents here
Schedule:
8:30 Registration opens
9:00 Welcome
9:15 Tina Dubois Wexler
10:00 Linda Pratt
10:45 Break
11:00 Jennifer DeChiara
11:45 Follow-up questions
12:00 Lunch
1:00 “First pages” critique session
2:15 “Building an Identity” panel discussion
3:00 Meet-n-greet
4:00 Agents Day ends. Thank you for joining us!
Earlybird registration (by June 30): JWKC Member: $90. Non-member: $100.
After June 30, member cost is $100; non-member $110.
Get a registration form here. Questions? Email DianeFrook@gmail.com
February 6, 2008
A couple of things this snowy Wednesday
Posted by crcook under Uncategorized | Tags: writers conferences |Leave a Comment
A Curse Dark as Gold has been spotted on the shelves! Visit
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for first-hand details and great pics!
Three great events coming up these next two months –
Story Week Festival of Writers, March 16 to March 21, Chicago
Presented by the Fiction Writing Department of Columbia College Chicago at venues throughout Chicago. Those scheduled to appear include writers Joyce Carol Oates, Junot Diaz, Cristina Garcia, Aimee Bender, Colin Channer, ZZ Packer, and other distinguished guests. Visit http://www.colum.edu/SpecialEvents/Story_Week/index.php or contact Sheryl Johnston at 773-472-2254, sheryljohnston@aol.com.
Missouri Writers Guild Conference, April 11 to April 13, Columbia, Missouri
Featuring Walker and Company editor Mary Kate Catellani, Cricket editor Lonnie Plecha, keynote speaker and poetess extraordinaire Naomi Shihab Nye, plus tons more. Visit the MWG Conference Web site for more information.
Another excellent workshop with F1rst Pages, April 26, Norwalk, Connecticut:
Author Tracey West, HarperCollins editor Adriana Dominguez, Henry Holt & Co. editor Christy Ottaviano (whose imprint Christy Ottaviano Books will launch this fall), Prospect Agency’s Rachel Orr, and editorial consultants Marcela Landres and Harold Underdown will join F1rst Pages’ founder Eileen Robinson at the gorgeous Lockwood Mathews Mansion for an intensive, day-long workshop. Critique opportunities available. For more information, visit www.f1rstpages.com/conference
And now I’m off to prepare hot chocolate for the munchkins, who are home from school today thanks for 3+inches of snow with an underbelly of ice. So far the wrestling matches have been subdued.
January 16, 2008
DNA Lit Fest
Posted by crcook under Uncategorized | Tags: angst, brushes with celebrity, writers conferences |[13] Comments
Damn. I just told my husband today that my hope to make it in this business slowly but surely dies a little more with each passing day, that I wish I could just kill it outright and move on with my life. Then something like this announcement appears in my mailbox, and I get all excited again.
The best independent bookstore on the planet will hold its annual DNA Lit Fest March 28 & 29.
Two years ago I took No. 1 Son to the first day, which is for children. We watched Chris Raschka recreate his Caldecott-winning drawings for The Hello Goodbye Window. After he spoke, No. 1 Son showed Mr. Raschka his own drawing he’d made during the talk, which was of Chris Raschka drawing the hello goodbye window.
Later, as we waited out in the hallway of the auditorium for Kate DiCamillo to finish her presentation, No. 1 son met a gentleman wearing a dull gray suit and holding a bulky case. His name? Daniel Handler. He and No. 1 Son talked for several minutes, until Mr. Handler’s handlers whisked him backstage. No. 1 Son enjoyed the day, but of course had no clue how cool it truly was. That year the lineup was Handler, Raschka, DiCamillo, Molly Bangs, Lisa Brown and Naomi Shihab Nye.
This year the line-up is also made of awesome. Jane Yolen. Linda Sue Park. Giselle Potter (who will illustrate my friend and fellow JWKCer Ann Ingalls’ book THE LITTLE PIANO GIRL), Jon Muth (Zen Shorts), Laurie Keller (The Scrambled States of America) and the father-daughter team of Kate and Jules Feiffer (she of Double Pink and he of Phantom Tollbooth fame).
(And if you followed the best independent bookstore on the planet link above, you saw who will speak January 28 at 7pm at the Plaza Library.)
Damn.
