Wordworks 2008

Day #1 Friday, November 7, 2008

Treat yourself to a day designed to encourage, refresh, inspire, educate and inform. If you are an author of children's books or you would like to begin a career as a writer of children's books, please join us on Friday, November 7, 2008, at the Library at Clarkston Campus of Georgia Perimeter College. Anne Hoppe, Executive Editor at HarperCollins, will give the opening keynote, as well as an after lunch general session.

Each participant will be able to select a morning workshop and an after lunch presentation. At the end of the day, join the faculty for a marketing and publishing panel. Bring your questions to learn how to successfully target the right publisher for your work. No more than 130 registrants will be accepted. Each of the morning workshops is limited to 45 people, so sign-up early to get your first choice.

The first forty manuscripts received by September 5 will be critiqued by an author or editor for an additional fee of $45. Please send a double-spaced manuscript of no more than 10 pages. This can be a picture book, easy reader, or a chapter or two from a novel. Writers will receive a written response from the person who critiques your work. No manuscripts will be accepted after the September 5 deadline.

ONLY PRE-REGISTRATION FOR WORDWORKS. NO ON-SITE REGISTRATION AVAILABLE.

Click here to download the registration form for Friday only (Wordworks).

Click here to download the registration form for both days (Wordworks and Voices in Children’s Literature).

---

Schedule for Wordworks 2008

8:30-9:00am

Welcome, Introductions, and Announcements

9:00-10:00

Anne Hoppe: Children’s Literature in the 21st Century (And How We Got Here)
Forget trying to fathom “trends”. It’s just like your history teachers have always told you: The best way to understand what’s going on in Children’s Publishing today is to understand the field’s past.

10:15-11:45

Kathi Appelt: Novel Writing
What Does Your Character Believe?
We all know that it’s important to endow our character with traits, but those are superficial. When you can give your character a controlling belief or attitude, you can see what moves that character forward. (Bring pen and paper)

April Pulley Sayre: Writing Nonfiction
So You Want to Write Nonfiction?
From picture book to young adult nonfiction, we'll explore techniques that turn bland nonfiction into creative, compelling work. We will begin by examining concept and nonfiction picture book patterns, then move to narrative and expository nonfiction voice. Bring your questions about nonfiction methods. Our goal is to support you, wherever you are on your nonfiction journey.

Lola M. Schaefer and Rebecca Kai Dotlich: Picture Perfect
We all want our picture books to be our best work. Join the discussions, demonstrations, and practice on character-driven picture books. Re-examine character sketch, problem, conflict, and that resonating feature – theme. Create a personal checklist that will support you as you take your first draft through several revisions until it’s . . . practically perfect.

11:45-1:15

Lunch on Your Own
Visit one of the many nearby restaurants for lunch or pack your own and eat on campus.

1:15-2:00

Anne Hoppe
Half the Story (More or Less?): Text and Illustration in Picture Books
If you take the text of picture book out of the equation, there’s still a lot to talk about in these books. What can writers do make their texts “illustratable,” and how do editors work with two different contributors on one single book?

2:15-3:00

Kathi Appelt
Ten Ways A Novel Can Take Over Your Life, Or You Know You’re Writing A Novel When Your Shower Becomes a Brainstorming Session and Feeding the Cat Becomes Show - Don’t Tell.
Join me for the down and dirty of life while writing a novel.

Rebecca Kai Dotlich
THE HOUR IS WASTING, SAID THE CLOCK
Voice. Show-Don’t Tell. Dialogue.  What can these three elements do for your picture books? We'll take a careful look at specific text in picture books and see how these three can improve your work.

April Pulley Sayre
Dance For your Brain. Laugh Out Loud for Literature.
We'll share, learn about, and (if you like, try) techniques from other arts that help awaken your writing and expand your creativity. These techniques are particularly good for sparking more creative voice in your writing. They help writers develop and sustain creativity regardless of what else is happening in their lives.

3:15 – 4:30

Marketing and Publishing Panel
Bring your questions to learn how to navigate the tricky waters of children’s publishing

4:45

Doors Close

Manuscript Critique Available

Any registrant for Wordworks has the opportunity to submit a ten page, or less, double-spaced manuscript for critique by one of the presenters. The first 40 manuscripts received by September 5 will be eligible. Each writer will receive a typed response to his work with a list of celebrations and suggestions to improve the quality. The additional fee for a manuscript critique is $45. Please, make your check out to Voices in Children's Literature and mail it in with your manuscript before September 5, 2008.

Mail manuscripts separately to:
Manuscript Submissions
766 Amicalola Woods Road
Dawsonville, GA 30534

General Information

The Reading Tree from Alpharetta and Storyville Children’s Books from Duluth will be present all day offering a wide selection of books for purchase. Find a new book on writing, or have one of the authors sign some of her books just for you.

Morning coffee and tea and afternoon snacks will be provided.

Overnight accommodations are the responsibility of the attendee. For a list of nearby hotels, click here.

Registration Information

Registration fee is $135.00 (Early registration before September 5 is $105.00)

Registration for both conferences is $245.00

Early registration for both conferences is $190.00

To register for Wordworks (Friday only) Click here to download this form.

To register for Voices in Childrens’s Literature (Saturday only) Click here to download this form.

To register for both Wordworks and Voices in Children’s Literature (Friday and Saturday) Click here to download this form.