2010 Classes & Workshops

Fast Writing, Slow Writing: Keeping Your Reader Turning the Page with Mike Kearby

Location: Writers' League Office, 611 S. Congress Ave, Suite 130, Austin

"Fast Writing, Slow Writing" will guide writers through the architecture necessary for sound fiction writing. Not merely a lecture, the multimedia, interactive seminar will give participants hands-on exercises regarding structure and tempo. Author Mike Kearby will share his nine building blocks of writing superior fiction, from writing the perfect opening to understanding the rhythm of scenes throughout the novel. By the end of the workshop, participants will have a working knowledge of form, rhythm, and structure-the foundations for celebrated and credible writing.

"Fast Writing, Slow Writing" is a one-day workshop divided into two sessions. The first session focuses on narrative and theory. The second session centers on the application of the nine building blocks into "fast writing, slow writing" chapters.

Morning Session (8 to 11:45 AM): The Pattern of Structure
By the end of the morning session, each student will walk with the skills to:

*The instructor will make himself available during the lunch break to meet with students who would like to discuss writing topics.

Afternoon Session (1:15 to 4 PM): Application of Structure
This session will allow each student to apply their new skills by:

Who Should Attend?

Mike Kearby is the author of seven novels. The Road to a Hanging (2006), Ride the Desperate Trail (2007), and Ambush at Mustang Canyon (2007) completed his Young Adult trilogy published by Dorchester Publishing. Ambush at Mustang Canyon was honored as a 2008 Spur Award Finalist from the Western Writers of America. Dorchester will publish The Taken and Dead Man's Saddle in early 2010. Mike and his work have been featured in newspapers across Texas and reviewed by Midwest Book Review, True West Magazine, and the Sacramento Book Review. In 2007, he started The Collaborative Novella Project.

Copyediting and Revising with Style with “Style Meister” Lana Castle

Location: Writers' League Office, 611 S. Congress Ave, Suite 130, Austin

Safeguard your work against rejection by developing strong copyediting and revision skills! As writers, we’re responsible for polishing our work, but it’s difficult without the right knowledge and tools. Copyediting and Revising with Style will help you confidently meet this challenge. You’ll find this knowledge invaluable, not only in your writing life but also in day-to-day written communications with your colleagues, clients, or potential clients.

This class will familiarize participants with stylebooks and style sheets, and give them tips for revising manuscripts, using both manual and computerized tools. Not merely a lecture, this class will incorporate exercises and group discussion as well.

The class will cover:

Who should attend?

“Style Meister” Lana Castle is an internationally published writer, editor, and teacher. She has 28 years’ experience in communications, publishing, and training, and owns the Austin-based editorial company, Castle Communications. She also hosts Critique Café and is the author of three books: Style Meister, Bipolar Disorder Demystified, and Finding Your Bipolar Muse.

Choosing the Writing Life II: New Tools for Art and Practice with Kathy Allen-Weber and Ann McCutchan

Location: Writers' League Office, 611 S. Congress Ave, Suite 130, Austin

As a sequel to their sold-out workshop last fall, Ann McCutchan and Kathy Allen-Weber are presenting a second, all-new 6-hour intensive to help writers build awareness, commitment and practice in their writing lives. This inspiring medley of lectures, discussions, and exercises is designed for both beginning and established writers, and promises participants a thoughtful, invigorating boost, just in time for summer projects. Attendees from the fall are welcome; this workshop incorporates some of the ideas presented in Choosing the Writing Life I, but contains new concepts, materials, and activities. Bring writing tools, an inquiring mind, and a playful spirit.

Who Should Attend?

With more than four decades combined experience as professional writers and popular, results-oriented workshop leaders, McCutchan and Allen-Weber specialize in offering fresh, insightful, practical approaches to creating a “best life” as a writer.

Kathleen Allen-Weber, M.A., Ph.D., L.P.C., practiced psychotherapy at the Center for Relational Care in Austin before establishing a private practice. A published writer, editor, and translator, as well as a former professor of English and French, she has long been attuned to the psychological dynamics of the writing process.

Ann McCutchan is the author of three books, including The Muse That Sings: Composers Speak About the Creative Process and Circular Breathing: Meditations From a Musical Life. A former journalist and editor, she has taught creative writing at Cornell University and the University of Wyoming, where she was founding director of the MFA program. She currently teaches at the University of North Texas and is prose editor of the American Literary Review.

How to Get Freelance Work with Eric Butterman

Brainstorming Your Book and Your Career:
Creating a Path to Success with April Kihlstrom

Are you stuck, either on what to write or how to write or how to sell your work? Being a successful writer isn't just about coming up with a great idea for a book. These days, it's also about making sure the book gets written on time, and with so many responsibilities competing for our attention, that can be a challenge. Then, once the book is written, it has to be sold, and publishers increasingly expect writers to do a great deal of promotion as well. How do you sort it all out?

Stephanie Barko is a Literary Publicist specializing in nonfiction and historical fiction, and a 2010 Finalist for More Magazine's Reinvention Story Competition. Her award-winning clients include traditional publishers and their authors, small presses, and independently published authors. Visit with Stephanie at www.authorsassistant.com/Barko.htm.

$99 members / $169 nonmembers--Register online with credit card, Paypal or Google checkout. Deadline for registration is April 15, 2010.

The Misadventures of a Manuscript: How to Write a Viable Story with Literary Agent Scott Treimel of S©ott Treimel NY

Location: First Presbyterian Church, 5300 Main Street, Houston, TX

Top children's literary agent S©ott Treimel NY receives hundreds of queries and submissions each month, and he asks to see partial manuscripts of only 5 percent of those. In this workshop, you'll learn directly from him the answer the question: What's wrong with the other 95 percent? The class will cover:

The workshop will cover the various formats for children's books (from picture books and middle readers through young adult books and graphic novels for teens).

The class will be a combination of lecture, exercises, and Q&A. Scott also invites students to be prepared to pitch their projects to him so the group can hear "live evaluations" of the kind usually made behind closed doors.

Who Should Attend?

Scott Treimel has worked for a literary agency, a literary scout, two book publishers, a newspaper syndicate, a book club, and a movie studio, either buying, selling, packaging, editing or creating intellectual property—all for children. S©ott Treimel NY opened in 1995. His clients include teen thriller author Gail Giles, picture book author/illustrator Janie Bynum, Canadian Governor Award-winner and HarperCanada author Arthur Slade, picture book virtuoso Barbara Joosse with sales over 1.4 million, and legendary author/illustrator Cyndy Szekeres whose sales have topped 14 million.

Kid Lit: How to Break in to the Children's Market with Literary Agent Scott Treimel of S©ott Treimel NY

Location: First Baptist Church, 901 Trinity Street, Austin

The children's and YA markets are the only growth area of trade publishing, so if you're writing for children, you're in luck. The YA and children's markets also offer crossover opportunities for writers who previously wrote just for adults. In this workshop, renowned children's agent Scott Treimel will cover the ins and outs of the children's and young adult publishing world. He'll cover topics such as:

The class will be a combination of lecture, exercises, and Q&A. Scott also invites students to be prepared to pitch their projects to him so the group can hear "live evaluations" of the kind usually made behind closed doors.

Who Should Attend?