WriterHouse Blogs » WriterHouse http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs Blogging by Members of WriterHouse, Charlottesville, Virginia Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:29:18 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Blogging by Members of WriterHouse, Charlottesville, Virginia WriterHouse Blogs no Blogging by Members of WriterHouse, Charlottesville, Virginia WriterHouse Blogs » WriterHouse http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/wp-content/plugins/powerpress/rss_default.jpg http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs Writing Conferences: What’s Out There and How Do They Work? http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2012/02/06/writing-conferences-whats-out-there-and-how-do-they-work/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2012/02/06/writing-conferences-whats-out-there-and-how-do-they-work/#comments Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:33:45 +0000 WriterHouse http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=315 Continue reading →]]>

On February 5, 2012, Rachel Unkefer, Jody Hesler, Susan Shafarzek and George Kamide discussed their writing conference experiences at a WriterHouse member event. Among the four panelists, eight conferences were represented. Rather than go over the information about those conferences that can be found on websites or other directories, the panelists focused on their subjective experiences. Some introductory comments about conferences in general:

Common Characteristics of Writing Conferences:

  • Famous or near-famous faculty from writing and publishing industry
  • Lectures/Craft Talks/Panel Discussions
  • Social events

Some offer:

  • Personalized manuscript feedback from a professional reader
  • Meetings with agents and/or editors

Things that vary a lot among the different conferences:

  • Duration
  • Cost
  • Lodging/Meals provided
  • Availability of scholarships
  • Daily schedules
  • Size
  • Personality/environment (friendliness, seriousness, etc.)
  • Selectivity/Application Process

Some more complete directories of Writing Conferences:

One question from the audience: “Was it worth taking the time off to go to a conference? Was there a lasting effect on your writing?”

The panelists were unanimous. A writing conference can give you that intense, concentrated dose of craft and community that you can carry back home to your everyday writing life. One panelist said she had her “head turned around” and others said they came home inspired to take their writing to the next level.

Panel/Craft Discussions Workshops Agent/Editor Meetings Scholarships Financial Aid Selective
Conferences the Panel Has Attended
Washington Writers’ Conference (AIW) X X No
AWP X  Yes No
F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference X X  Contest No
James River Writers Conference X X X  No No
Juniper Summer Writing Institute X X  Yes  Yes
Key West Literary Seminar and Workshops X X  Yes Yes
Palm Beach Poetry Festival X X  Yes  Yes
Sewanee Writers Conference X X X  Yes Yes
Other Well-Known Conferences
Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference X X X  Yes Yes
Community of Writers at Squaw Valley X X Yes
Tin House Summer Writers’ Workshop X X
Wesleyan Writers Conference X X  Yes  Yes
Places to Start for Beginners, Local and New Conferences
Tinker Mountain Writers’ Workshop (Hollins College) X X  No No
Boston Summer Writers’ Conference X X  No No
Nonfiction/Freelance Conferences
ASJA Annual Conference X No No
Biographers International Conference X X  X No No
The Bedell NonfictionNOW Conference (Univ of Iowa) X No
River Teeth Nonfiction Conference X X Yes
Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference X X  X Yes No
]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2012/02/06/writing-conferences-whats-out-there-and-how-do-they-work/feed/ 0 Mixing Journalism with Memoir: A Literary Salon with Fran Hawthorne http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2010/09/02/mixing-journalism-with-memoir-a-literary-salon-with-fran-hawthorne/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2010/09/02/mixing-journalism-with-memoir-a-literary-salon-with-fran-hawthorne/#comments Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:40:52 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=243 Continue reading →]]> Sunday, September 19, 7pm, Fran Hawthorne, award-winning author of The Overloaded Liberal: Shopping, Investing, Parenting and Other Daily Dilemmas in an Age of Political Activism (Beacon Press, 2010), will talk about making the political personal. How do you mix research and expert opinion with your own perceptions? How do you tackle a serious topic (like saving the earth) and make it intimate enough to be an enjoyable read? What happens when you insert yourself as a character in a nonfiction book?

Hawthorne is a freelance reporter for the New York Times, Newsday, and The Scientist, with 20 years of journalism experience and four books to her credit.

Check out the Event Page on Facebook, RSVP, and don’t forget to become a fan of WriterHouse.

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2010/09/02/mixing-journalism-with-memoir-a-literary-salon-with-fran-hawthorne/feed/ 0 Book Promotion 101 http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2009/02/21/book-promotion-101/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2009/02/21/book-promotion-101/#comments Sat, 21 Feb 2009 20:11:42 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=70 Continue reading →]]> Bella Stander’s popular seminar will be offered at WriterHouse in conjunction with the VA Festival of the Book on Friday morning, March 20th. This is for commercially-published authors or those who already have an agent or a book contract from a publisher. It is not for self-published authors. Register now, as the seminar is limited to 12 attendees. Full details on the WriterHouse website.

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2009/02/21/book-promotion-101/feed/ 0 New NaNoWriMo Blog for Charlottesville http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/09/new-nanowrimo-blog-for-charlottesville/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/09/new-nanowrimo-blog-for-charlottesville/#comments Thu, 09 Oct 2008 18:29:17 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=68 The Cville participants for National Novel Writing Month now have their own blog. If you’re a participant or just want to follow along with the fun, check it out!

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/09/new-nanowrimo-blog-for-charlottesville/feed/ 0 NaNoWriMo in Charlottesville? http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/02/nanowrimo-in-charlottesville/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/02/nanowrimo-in-charlottesville/#comments Thu, 02 Oct 2008 20:15:14 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/nanowrimo-in-charlottesville/ Continue reading →]]> November is National Novel Writing Month, (NaNoWriMo) during which thousands of people sign up to write a novel of at least 50,000 words. While most of these words are penned in the privacy of the novelists’ homes, there are usually organized events during the month. These might include a launch party, group writing times, and an ending celebration. WriterHouse has offered its facilities for all NaNoWriMo participants during the 2008 competition. Now we just need to figure out what the participants want. If you’ve done NaNoWriMo in the past, please get in touch. If you plan to do it this year, ditto. We’ve set up a mailing list for Charlottesville NaNoWriMo folks. Sign up to be in on the discussions of these weighty matters.

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/10/02/nanowrimo-in-charlottesville/feed/ 0 More Blogs Appearing Soon http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/20/more-blogs-appearing-soon/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/20/more-blogs-appearing-soon/#comments Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:36:00 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=21 Continue reading →]]> Rumor has it that the famous “Charlottesville Words” may soon be coming to the WriterHouse blog domain. Also, poet and monologuist-about-town Browning Porter is rumored to be working on a blog including podcasts. Stay tuned for more information.

Get your own blog under the prestigious WriterHouse imprint by becoming a member.

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/20/more-blogs-appearing-soon/feed/ 1 TV News Story Broadcast Friday Morning http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/20/tv-news-story-broadcast-friday-morning/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/20/tv-news-story-broadcast-friday-morning/#comments Sat, 20 Sep 2008 18:31:27 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=18 Finally they made room for the WriterHouse story. Here’s the video:

NBC29′s Claire O’Brien Features WriterHouse

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/20/tv-news-story-broadcast-friday-morning/feed/ 0 Local TV News Coverage of WriterHouse http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/18/local-tv-news-coverage-of-writerhouse/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/18/local-tv-news-coverage-of-writerhouse/#comments Thu, 18 Sep 2008 15:35:17 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=10 Continue reading →]]> On Monday a local reporter from NBC 29 came over and filmed an interview and a video tour of WriterHouse. It was supposed to be shown on the sunrise report at 5am and 6am the next day. Of course, Monday was the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy story, along with a school bus accident in Augusta County and a shooting in Staunton, and somehow our story wasn’t deemed as important. I TiVo’d the Wednesdsay morning news, thinking it would be pushed back a day. If only Michelle Obama hadn’t decided to show up in Charlottesville on Wednesday, we might have been on the news. Oh, yeah, and then Wednesday night there was a shooting on Ivy Road–the first murder of the year for Albemarle county, so nothing Thursday morning either. Such are the vagaries of local news. Anyway, they did post a brief story on their website, so in case you’re interested, here it is.

NBC 29 Story About WriterHouse

]]> http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/18/local-tv-news-coverage-of-writerhouse/feed/ 0 Last Chance to Sign Up for Fall Writing Classes http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/11/last-chance-to-sign-up-for-fall-writing-classes/ http://www.writerhouse.org/blogs/blog/2008/09/11/last-chance-to-sign-up-for-fall-writing-classes/#comments Thu, 11 Sep 2008 19:52:41 +0000 WriterHouse http://writerhouse.org/blogs/?p=7 Continue reading →]]> Classes start on Monday the 15th and there are still spaces. Download the registration form and drop it off over the weekend during open hours (Saturday & Sunday 2-5 pm) OR email writers (@) writerhouse.org to reserve a space and bring the registration and payment to the first class session.

See the programs page for more information and class descriptions.

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