HE GREAT WHITE ART is what John Gardner called it, what it is that we, the writer, do. While art it may be, the realities of today's expanding transmedia marketplace — from books and magazines to movies, interactive narrative and graphic novels — dictate that it is the faceless reader, be it an agent, an editor, a bookseller, Hollywood bigwig or grocery store bagger who we, the commercial writer, are ultimately writing for. Communicating successfully to that reader is what the Southern California Writers' Conference is about.

Founded and run by professional writers the SCWC provides veteran and emerging talent authoritative guidance to help distinguish material that is ready for market consideration, having facilitated some $3 million worth of first-time authors' book and screen deals. With extended one-on-one evaluation of advance submissions and dozens of read & critique and Q&A workshops available, the SCWC is uniquely tailored to empower the writer with the vital tools, networking and industry experience needed to sell their work.

So whether you're a writer unable to determine why your work's not working, a writer simply in search of some answers, a writer wanting feedback on what you've written, a writer just starting out, or just a writer who wants to hang with other writers, join us for the Sixth Annual Southern California Writers' Conference *Los Angeles (in Irvine).

Your words are worth it!

LATEST NEWS AS OF 5/8/08
>> Print 4-Page Online Brochure  I  SCWC .COMmunity Blog
>> View Proper Manuscript Format Sample  I  MSG on Writing a Synopsis
>> JJ on "Pitch" Conferences  I  MSG on Choosing the Write Conference

[ Note: Agents wanting to participate contact Michael Steven Gregory only if you're accepting clients. There are plenty of other conferences that provide reps who have no sincere intent of acquiring new clients with free weekends at nice hotels in desireable locales. The SCWC is not one of them. ]

MORE ADDITIONS: With The Four Seasons: A Novel of Vivaldi's Venice (Hyperion) coming out November and Until Our Last Breath, which PW calls, "[A] powerful tale of the triumph of love under extremely difficult conditions," out from St. Martin's next week, we're delighted to have author Laurel Corona aboard to conduct two essential sessions. The first, "Fact and Storytelling in Nonfiction," has been requested by many conferees. The second, "Ethics in Nonfiction Writing," couldn't be more topical given the many recent publishing scandals impacting the memoir/nonfiction market (check the SCWC blog post "A Million Little Insights" for more on that) . . . From esteemed independent publishing house Behler Publications, which handles an impressive array of genres, editorial director and 2007 Gold Medal IPPY award-wining author Lynn Price will be accepting advance submissions and conducting two crucial sessions: "I’ve Written ‘The End’ — Now What?" and "How to Avoid the Maalox Moment with a Publisher" . . . Best-selling author Drusilla Campbell is now confirmed to return with her wildly popular total immersion track, The Novel Cram: Building the Better Book. As we run The Novel Cram only at our L.A. or Palm Springs events, it tends to sell out as class size is strictly limited. Get the details here . . . We still have more staff to announce and scheduling to iron out, so check back soon for updates. One correction from the last update is that agent Alexandria Machinist is schedule for a later SCWC, not the September one, so has been removed from the list. Also . . .

. . . There's only three weeks left to knock $75 off full conference registration, so sign up now and cover at least a half-gallon of gas cost in the doing so . . . That's about it for today. Have got some good "muse" to report about the recent series of successes a SD21 and SD22 conferee has enjoyed, but we're going to make you wait just a little bit longer to find out what. (What we can mention is they're tasty!)

AND WE'RE OFF! (4/14/08): Staff is being finalized for our Irvine event and the roster will be posted over the next few weeks. As some anxious writers out there are wanting to secure their place now, the registration page has been unlocked for you to do so. Given that we're nearly six months out and there's still plenty much to attend to, a special Early "Bard" Discount of $75 off full conference registration is available thru May 31, 2008. Additionally, as we knead the LA6 schedule in effort to address what most interests you, please feel free to email Michael with session ideas. It's your conference after all, so you should get what you need out of it . . . Now onto the recent round of good "muse" to report: Two of LA5's guest speakers are spitting in tall cotton today as both's debut title success grows. First, Raul Ramos y Sanchez's America Libre just got nominated for the prestigious International Latino Book Awards, established in 1999 to honor the contributions made to literary excellence by Latino authors in the English and Spanish-speaking world (full story here). Second, author Andrea Portes' 2007 BookSense Pick and LA Times best-selling coming-of-age novel, Hick, recently named among the best adult books for high school students by the School Library Journal, just snagged a movie deal with producers Steven Siebert and Christian Taylor (full story here). Know who was the agent behind these deals? None other than our own Sally van Haitsma, from Castiglia Literary . . .

Good friend and longtime SCWC staffer Gary Phillips has a new one out. The anthology he edited, Politics Noir: Dark Tales from the Corridors of Power (Verso), launched this past weekend with contributions by such authors as John Shannon and Darrell James. Dick Adler wrote on the Rap Sheet blog, “[Phillips has] put together...a sharp collection of new stories about the link between crime and politics. He might not have invented Eliot Spitzer or the mayor of Detroit, but he could have." He also calls Gary's own included story, "A thing of beauty." Be sure to support your author(s) by picking up a copy. And speaking of sordid political scandals, don't forget to checkout this little riff we shot at last year's event . . . Finally, beloved read & critique workshop leader Matthew J. Pallamary's new book, a memoir called Spirit Matters, is now out. He offers an interesting insight into it via this author-byte called "Individuation" . . . That's it for now, more soon!

SCWC*LA 5 Award Recipients:

• OUTSTANDING FICTION >> Natalie Scott

  from Marina Del Rey, CA for Rules for Riders

• TOPIC >> Richard Meese

  from Long Beach, CA for The I (read here) WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE

SCWC*LA 6 LOCATION: The conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, located near commuter-friendly John Wayne Airport in Irvine. Address: 17941 Von Karman, Irvine, CA 92614. Phone: (949) 863-1999. Discounted lodging rates are available to SCWC*LA conferees. Conference dates are September 26—28, 2008. Be sure to book your room by no later than Sept. 1st to ensure the super-discounted SCWC rate. Just mention the writers' conference.

SCWC*LA 6 SCHEDULE: As always, there'll be plenty going on throughout the days and nights. Check here to find out exactly what.

SCWC*LA 6 STAFF: In addition to having many familiar Workshop Leaders, we'll also bring new friends into the fold. Here's where you can find out who they are and what they'll be doing.

SCWC*LA 6 GUEST SPEAKERS: To be announced soon.

HERE'S WHERE you can check out all the information:

• Workshop Leader Bios & Staff - SCWC*LA 6
• Conference Schedule - SCWC*LA 6
• Registration - SCWC*LA 6
• Frequently Asked Questions - SCWC*LA 6

THAT'S ALL for now.  Do check the website for updates and be sure to remit your postal address to receive our free brochure. For more specific information, e-mail us or phone directly (619) 303-8185.