Best-selling author of A Star for Mrs. Blake (Random House), an acclaimed novel chronicling the pilgrimage of five Gold Star Mothers who travel to France in 1931 to visit the graves of their sons, fallen in World War I, April Smith joins us in February with her latest. Publishers Weekly declares Home Sweet Home (Knopf), her latest, [A] terrific new novel … [Smith] illuminates the force of McCarthyism-generated fear in the Midwest and effectively personalizes it through the persecution the Kusak family endures for their liberal beliefs.” April is also the scribe behind five wildly popular contemporary thrillers starring FBI Special Agent Ana Grey. She’ll be our Saturday evening Special Guest Speaker.
For writers who are genuinely serious about elevating the quality of their work and distinguishing themselves from the crowd, who are committed to breaking the cycle of rejection–from agents, from editors, from readers–we’re crafting another singular event specifically for you. With only a handful of slots yet to be announced, the bulk of SD31’s sessions are now posted. Check out the Workshops and Events page to see where we’re at currently. The working schedule for our Presidents’ Day Weekend event will start being updated shortly.
Good “Muse” Abounds
Congratulations are in order for author Janis Thomas, co-workshop leader of our 5-part Novel Intensive. Just in time for the holidays, she signed a 2-book deal with Lake Union, the women’s fiction imprint of Amazon Publishing. The first title, What Remains, will be out November, 2017. A stark departure from the more lighthearted novels Janis is generally known for, I’ve read it. Mark your calendar. It’ll be well worth the wait.
Other SCWCers with titles recently out or soon to be released: From Douglas Bornemann, the follow-up to his fanciful The Demon of Histlewick Downs, Practical Phrendonics (The Dreamweaver Chronicles Book 2), is now available … A new Levi Hart Thriller from Richard Craig Anderson, Follow Apollo, is out from Hellgate Press … And from Linda Thomas-Sundstrom, Harlequin Nocturne is releasing her novella Wolf Bait in January, followed by Moon Marked in February, then Vampire Lover in March. Another full novel, Angel Unleashed, will drop come April. Congrats to all and to all, cheers to a healthful, bountiful New Year!
Deadlines for discounted conference pre-registration and hotel lodging are fast approaching. Also, Advance Submission Readers will likely start filling up in the next week or so. Be the writer you aspire to be and join us at the SCWC.
–Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC
