Fall Conference Pre-Registration Deadline is October 28

Fall Conference happens November 4-6 at the Raleigh Marriott Crabtree Valley.  Registration is now open at www.ncwriters.org;  pre-registration ends Friday, October 28.

With some 200 writers in attendance, as well as dozens of faculty and publishing professionals, the North Carolina Writers’ Network 2016 Fall Conference is the largest writing conference in the state and one of the biggest and most inclusive in the country. It’s a great chance for writers to network, but more importantly, it’s a chance for beginners and bestselling authors alike to focus on writing for an entire weekend and quickly improve their craft.
2016 North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame inductee Margaret Maron, of

Willow Springs, will give the Keynote Address.

Maron is the five-time Agatha Award-winning mystery writer of the Deborah Knott series, which is set in Johnston County. In 2015, she was given a lifetime achievement award by Bouchercon, the world mystery convention.

Saturday’s luncheon will feature three authors from UNC Press’ Savor the South series: Debbie Moose, Bridgette A. Lacy, and John Shelton Reed. They’ll talk about how good food writing is about so much more than just food.

2014 North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame inductee and current NC poet laureate Shelby Stephenson will be the featured guest at Saturday night’s banquet. He’ll talk about writing, read some poetry, and most likely strum a little bit on his guitar.

Program offerings include the second annual All Stories Connect panel discussion. This year’s theme is “A Conversation about Culture” with Shervon Cassim, Sheila Smith McKoy, Donna Miscolta, and Elaine Neil Orr. Sunday morning will once again feature the popular Brilliant at Breakfast panel discussion “Agents and Editors,” featuring Michelle Brower of Zachary Shuster Harmsworth; Robin Miura, editor of Carolina Wren Press; Emma Patterson of Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents, Inc.; and Kathy Pories, Senior Editor at Algonquin Books.

Poetry classes include “Image and Narrative” with Guggenheim and NEA fellow Joseph Millar; “Writing Haiku” with Lenard D. Moore, recipient of the 2014 NC Award for Literature, the state’s highest civilian honor; and “The Furniture of the Poem: The Space of the Page and How We Fill It” with Chris Tonelli, poet and owner of Raleigh’s So & So Bookstore.

Fiction writers will choose from a full slate of class offerings including “Minute Particulars” with Raleigh’s Kim Church, whose debut novel Byrd won the Crook’s Corner Book Prize for best debut novel set in the South; “Ending Well: Short Story Endings and Their Lessons” with Clare Beams, author of the forthcoming short-story collection We Show What We Have Learned (Lookout Books, 2016). Poet, playwright, and arts educator Howard L. Craft will teach “Developing Authentic Dialog”; and Art Taylor, winner of the Agatha Award for Best First Novel, will teach “Sharp, Succinct & Suspenseful: Crafting the Mystery Story.”

Other classes focus on some aspect of the publishing industry. Poet, NCWN trustee, and NCWN regional rep for Wake County, Alice Osborn, will teach “How to be a Rock Star at PR”; the Triangle Association of Freelancers will lead the panel discussion on “Freelance Writing 101”; intellectual property attorney Mitch Tuchman will talk to writers about “Copyright Infringement”; Ross White, poet and founder/publisher of Bull City Press, will lead “Grammar Gone Wild”; and Kim Church and Emma Patterson will chat about “How to Work with an Agent.”

Additional offerings will appeal to authors who write across genres: award-winning Young Adult and New Adult author Jen McConnel will ask “YA/NA: What’s the Big Deal?”; Zelda Lockhart, founder of LaVenson Press Studios, will guide attendees through “The Relationship Museum”; award-winning writer and folklorist Eleanora E. Tate will lead a class on children’s writing; and sci-fi writer Ian J. Malone will teach a class called “Beyond Vanity: How Indie Publishing Builds Professional Writers.”

2016 Fall Conference sponsors include March Graham, author of Ashes and Dust; Chatham-Lee Counties NCWN regional rep Al Manning; the North Carolina Museum of History; Alice Osborn: Editor/Book Coach/Author; The 2017 Piedmont Laureate Program; the University of North Carolina Press; and the North Carolina Arts Council.

For more information, and to register, visit www.ncwriters.org.
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Contact: Charles Fiore, Communications Director, North Carolina Writers' Network, Charles@ncwriters.org

Fall Conference in Asheville NC - Put this date on your calendar now

North Carolina Writers' Network Fall Conference

November 20-22,  2015 in Asheville, NC - The Fall Conference attracts hundreds of writers from around the country and provides a weekend full of activities that include lunch and dinner banquets with readings, keynotes, tracks in several genres, open mic sessions, and the opportunity for one-on-one manuscript critiques with editors or agents. 

Conference faculty include professional writers from North Carolina and beyond. Held every year in a major hotel, the conference rotates annually.

Rates TBA

Why is it important to attend writers' conferences?

Quotes from Tony Abbott who will teach a poetry workshop at the NCWN Fall Conference:

Why do you feel it's important for writers to attend conferences such as the NCWN Fall Conference?
"When I first started writing, I had almost no contact with other writers, with people like me. Conferences give us a chance to be with one another and feel the support of others like ourselves. In North Carolina, especially, writers are a genuine community. You might meet someone at a conference who will become a true friend…."

What does it mean for writers to "Network?" Any tips? 
"When we founded the North Carolina Writers' Network we realized that many writers lived in communities where they felt isolated from many of the important things going on in writing centers like Raleigh, Durhm, Chapel Hill. To Network really means to be in touch with what is going on and to become a part of it. If Sharon Olds is coming to Duke, I want to know about it even if I live two or three hours away. A network can help keep me alive as a writer."

Can writing be taught? 
Yes. You can’t teach talent or genius. A gift is a gift, but we can always help people improve. We can teach people to be better writers than they are.

Registration for the fall conference is now open. To register, click here.

Excitement is building for the NCWN Fall Conference

The North Carolina Writers' Network 2013 Fall Conference will be held November 15-17 at the Holiday Inn Resort in Wrightsville Beach. The Resort has reserved rooms with special rates of $99 for a harbor front king, and $119 for an ocean front king. Call the Resort directly at 910-256-2231 for more information.

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Here are some highlights from recent Network posts about the conference. 

 For the second year in a row, the Network will offer two scholarship opportunities: the Blonnie Bunn Wyche Memorial Scholarship and the Mary Belle Campbell Scholarship. Complete information is available on the NCWN website.

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For writers of all stripes and experience levels, it's one of the most inspirational weekends of the year. And much of it is made possible by the generosity of sponsors, such as:

• Welcome reception on Friday, sponsored by the Arts Council of Wilmington and New Hanover County.
• Friday evening book-signing and reception, sponsored by Salt magazine.
• Saturday morning "Brilliant at Breakfast" panel discussion, sponsored by Ecotone/Lookout Books.
• Saturday luncheon Veterans Writing Collective reading, sponsored by Al Manning, a member of the NCWN Board of Trustees.
• Saturday faculty readings, sponsored by Bellamy Mansion.
• Sunday morning "Brilliant at Breakfast" panel discussion, sponsored by WHQR 91.3 FM Public Radio.8

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While the weekend will be full of workshops, panels, readings, and more, attendees have another reason to visit the coast this fall: to experience a bit of Hollywood history. Interested in touring some of the "Hollywood" locations in Wilmington? Book a location tour here. And for a complete list of television shows and movies shot in the Wilmington area, click here.

NCWN Fall Conference venue in Cary NC

The NCWN 2012 Fall Conference will be November 2 – 4 at the Embassy Suites on 201 Harrison Oaks Boulevard in Cary, NC

Members will soon receive the NCWN Newsletter with all the details about this annual conference. 

Charles Fiore checked for me and the Embassy Suites said we can request the room we reserve NOT be sprayed with "air freshener" if that bothers us.  If they have the chemical fragrance automatically spraying into the halls and elevators like the hotel in Asheville last year, people with multiple chemical sensitivities, and I am not the only writer with the problem, will still be in danger of becoming ill.

This conference lineup of speakers is certainly enticing, but Cary is a long way from south western NC. Many of the writers we hear about and read about will be on the schedule for this event. Once again I wish we had the technology to stream those sessions to some place near us. Wouldn't that be cool? 

Visit www.ncwriters.org for more information. 

NORTH CAROLINA WRITERS' FALL CONFERENCE

Nancy Sales Cash, Mary Jo Dyre, Lana Hendershott, Glenda Beall, Ken Kinnett, and Pat Davis at conference last year.

Did you attend the Fall Writers' Conference held by NCWN in Durham this month?

If you did, please leave a comment and tell us about it.

If you did not go, but you wanted to go (like me) tell us why you were longing to be there, but just couldn't make it this year.

My driver was out of commission. That's why I didn't make it.

Networking by Glenda Beall

How important is networking in the literary world of North Carolina? Some people attend the NCWN Fall Conference to network with other writers, agents, editors and publishers, as well as to take advantage of the opportunity to learn more about the craft of writing.
Networking happens at small and at large events, in workshops and at picnics, at readings and every other place where writers congregate. Any time writers communicate with each other, in person or online, an opportunity may arise for a beneficial outcome. This happened recently for a Netwest member who posted an essay on http://www.netwestwriters.blogspot.com/.
Joan L Cannon, author of two novels, lives in Morganton, NC. Shortly after the Netwest web log came online, Joan contacted us inquiring how she might promote her book, Settling. For many of us in rural areas, it is difficult to travel and find opportunities to read and sign books, especially if we are not youngsters. Joan has become a wonderful friend, but most of all, she is a terrific writer and her work deserves to be read.
Joan was encouraged to post her book on ncwriters.org at Book Buzz. She already had a website, but set up a blog as well, http://www.hilltopnotes.blogspot.com/. She leaves comments on posts by our members on http://www.netwestwriters.blogspot.com/. On our recommendation, Joan clicked on http://www.seniorwomen.com/ and read the work of the fabulous writers there. In a short time, Joan had become a regular contributor for Senior Women. Read her essays twice a month.
Our Haywood County Representative, John Malone, author of two historical novels based on his family from Ireland, posted on the Netwest web log, a well-written article about a medical incident he suffered last year. He received a number of comments complimenting his work. Joan has never met John. But she saw his work online and she liked it. Joan L. Cannon sent to Tam Gray, her editor at Senior Women, the link to John’s post. Tam Gray liked what she saw. Now John Malone is the “token male” on the Senior Women site. He will give readers a different perspective from the women writers.
All of us, wherever we are on the ladder of success, benefit by helping others. Most successful writers are generous writers. By networking we learn not only what might help us along the way, but how we may help others. Thank you Joan L Cannon and John Malone.



Read John's essay, "Retirement Odyssey," soon at www.seniorwomen.com

More Impressions on the Conference

I told you about Pat Davis, writer originally from Brevard, who lives in Pennsylvania now. Pat was nice enough to send me her views on the NCWN Fall Writers Conference in Winston-Salem. Pat writes fiction and was there to pitch her novel to an agent or publisher. She attended classes pertaining to her craft. So it is nice to hear her thoughts. This is what Pat Davis said:

I thought "Pitching" was good because it applied to writing queries (which I guess everybody has to do) as well as verbal pitches. I think the most helpful time was "Setting the Scene" since it dealt with the opening paragraphs/pages of writing a manuscript. "Children's..." was interesting (good info and presenters) as was Robert Morgan. I personally liked the ones that were taught like college-level classes.

...The woman who taught the"Setting the Scene" class was well-organized and prepared. She really taught like it was a college class. She had good examples and cited other examplesof good dialogue, POV, making the setting alive and real, etc.The three women who taught the "Children's.." covered the gamut of writing for children, illustrations, publications from the group. Robert Morgan went into depth about the process of research, etc. He's interesting so it was a pleasant hour and half. I like hearing what knowledgeable people have to say. As you know, I didn't like the speed writing class - I much prefer somebody teaching me something I can use.

Pat has been rewriting her first chapter since Bess Reed critiqued her work at the conference.