The Writers’ League of Texas opens the book on a new year with “Building a Book,” a yearlong series of monthly programs in which authors and publishing professionals explore how a book evolves. The free series starts in January with inspiration and then will progress through the publishing process and beyond.
The series will launch at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 15, with “Inspiration: The First Glimmer of a Book Idea,” a panel discussion with fiction author and creative writing professor Greg Garrett, children’s book author Keith Graves, nonfiction author and journalist John Taliaferro, and poet/translator Liliana Valenzuela. All programs are free and open to the public and will be held at the Writers’ League of Texas Resource Center, 611 S. Congress Ave., Ste. 130, in Austin.
“In such an uncertain time for publishing, we hope to shed some light on the publishing process with this series of free programs,” said Executive Director Cyndi Hughes. “‘Building a Book’ is for anyone who has ever thought about writing a book or who wants an insider’s look at how a book comes together – or even just an avid reader who loves books.”
Upcoming topics in the series include:
February 19: “The First Draft: Let the Words Rip!” (with authors Cynthia Leitich Smith and Greg Leitich Smith; additional panelists will be announced in January)
March 12: “Just the Facts: How Research Can Build a Better Book”
April 16: “That Revision Thing: Tips for Editing Your Manuscript”
May 21: “The Big Windup: Prepping Your Pitch, Proposal, and Synopsis”
June 18: “The Mating Game: How to Land an Agent”
July 16: “Legal Mumbo-Jumbo: The Ins and Outs of Contracts”
August 20: “Meet Your Publisher and Editor and Marketing Reps and Publicist and …”
September 17: “Undercover: Book Sales Reps Tell All”
October 15: “An Author’s Guide to PR & Marketing”
November 19: “Blast Off: The Book Launch & Beyond”
Panelists will be announced throughout the year, so check back for updates. Or visit the Monthly Programs page at the WLT Web site. Hope to see you there!
