News And Announcements

Her work has appeared in the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Al Jazeera, VIDA Review, the Offing, and elsewhere. Now a new memoir, First Comes Marriage: My Not-So-Typical American Love Story (Prometheus Books), dedicated to the themes of love and sexuality as experienced by an Muslim-American, is out. Faith Adiele, author of The Nigerian Nordic Girl’s Guide to Lady Problems, calls it, “An honest, often amusing, account of one young woman’s quest to balance the traditional Muslim values she acquired from her Iraqi immigrant parents with the romantic fantasies she acquired from American media. Her story is both unique in that the devout, overachieving narrator is not the rebellious first-generation daughter we’ve come to expect from immigrant narratives, and universal in its instructive journey from youthful hubris and naïveté to learning how to make a marriage work.” Jasmin Darznik (The Good Daughter) calls it simply, “A wonderful book.” Huda Al-Marashi joins us for the first time as a Special Guest Speaker, and we’re delighted to welcome her aboard!

Among the other additions to our SD33 staff already confirmed, Demetra Brodsky, Nikki Katz, and Gwendolyn Womack–all past Special Guest Speakers–will be returning with some nifty new workshops. Gwen has a new book out spring, 2019 called The Time Collector. The novel follows two psychometrists—“people who can sense the history of any object they touch.” Cool.

Recent Good “Muse”

Lots of SCWCers with new titles now out or dropping shortly. Before we get to that, let’s luxuriate for a moment in this particularly bright item: Deadline Hollywood reports that the “The Jim Henson Company has acquired the rights to Stacey O’Brien’s bestselling memoir Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl, with Dolphin Tale co-writer Karen Janszen attached to pen the adaptation.” Stacey’s story became a beloved, international sensation after being discovered at our LA5 or LA6 conference. It will likely play out as the major theme of SD33: quality storytelling, determination, perseverance, and tenacity matters.

A fine western by Michael Dukes, The Avenging Angels, is now out … Also, A.K. Patch’s Journey From Delphi, the third volume in his Apollo Series … Gene Desrochers’ Dark Paradise, a Caribbean noir murder mystery … And Greta Boris’ Sanctity of Sloth.

Also out, Grim, by workshop leader Laura Perkins (writing as Mercy Hollow), and Andrew Peterson’s Hired to Kill, the seventh book in his Nathan McBride series, discovered way back at one of our Palm Springs editions of the SCWC.

Coming up fast: Webs of Perception, international award-winning author Darlene Quinn’s thrilling conclusion to her epic family saga, drops November, as does Christa Yelich-Koth’s Coiled Vengeance: An Eomix Galaxy Novel … And Matt Coyle’s fifth Rick Cahill mystery, Wrong Light, is out December. Best of success to all!

Your Voice. Your Story. Tell It. Sell It.

Housekeeping

We’re going to open up Advance Submission Reader selection earlier than usual, November 1st. If you’ve already registered for our winter event and chose “To Be Determined,” be sure to email Chrissie or Michael with your reader choice(s). It’s exceedingly important that you get up to speed on what to do, what not to do, what to expect, and more by reviewing the following link:

• All About Advance Submissions

 
Most important thing to remember? Do NOT submit multiple drafts of your manuscript pages. Submit the draft that’s ready to go, and only that draft. You have until the January 12 deadline to submit pages. Makes no difference to us if you submit them earlier than the deadline. If you’ve already selected your reader(s), you’re good to go. However, if you submit pages, then at a later date submit an updated version of those pages, your re-submission will be rejected. Be professional. Be smart. Be patient, and take the time to get it right the very first time.

That’s about it for now. Discounted pre-registration is now open. Do so by November 1st and save, save, save. Be sure to subscribe to our mailing list for vital updates, because there’s plenty more to come. And in case you missed him at our recent Irvine event, here’s an excerpt from Henry Lien’s Saturday morning talk, where he dissects his approach to author appearances (the next Peasprout Chen book is out January).

–Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC/SWS

Legendary host Jim McKay called it, “The greatest show of courage in the history of Wide World of Sports.” In 1982, after becoming the unlikely leader of the Ironman triathlon, Julie Moss fell and lost all bodily function 50 feet from the finish. On hands and knees, she watched her rival pass her, then thirty seconds later crawled across the line, stunning the millions watching on TV. At age twenty-three, she became an instant global icon. Booklist calls her new memoir, Crawl of Fame–written with our own Robert Yehling– “A courageous account of dealing with disappointment as an athlete and an individual, and a powerful testament to the importance of not giving up on oneself.” Our first Special Guest Speaker to be announced, Julie will join us to share in inspiring journey to publication.

While advance submission readers will not be opened for a few more weeks, those already confirmed for SD33 include: Lake Union Publishing acquisition editor Alicia Clancy; agents Jennifer Chen Tran and Natalie Grazian of Martin Literary; David Black Agency’s Jenny Herrera (who found a couple of strong prospects at our Irvine event), and Kelli Martin of Wendy Sherman Associates. As usual, many more will be joining the roster.

More soon. Discounted pre-registration is now open. If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to our mailing list and not miss any important update.

–Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC/SWS

It sticks true today as in any time ever before, what author-philosopher Alan W. Watts had to say about writers and writing:

“Advice? I don’t have advice. Stop aspiring and start writing. If you’re writing, you’re a writer. Write like you’re a goddamn death row inmate and the governor is out of the country and there’s no chance for a pardon. Write like you’re clinging to the edge of a cliff, white knuckles, on your last breath, and you’ve got just one last thing to say, like you’re a bird flying over us and you can see everything, and please, for God’s sake, tell us something that will save us from ourselves. Take a deep breath and tell us your deepest, darkest secret, so we can wipe our brow and know that we’re not alone. Write like you have a message from the king. Or don’t. Who knows, maybe you’re one of the lucky ones who doesn’t have to.”

Fortunately, we are the luckiest ones that must. With that must comes responsibility. To yourself. To your reader. To the work. With only six months until our 33rd annual winter event, do not take time for granted. Focus. Fight. Write without rancor. Finish what you start–if even only a really crappy first draft–and we’ll address it come February.

Discounted Early “Bard” Pre-registration is now open. Do so by September 15, 2018 and save a whopping $150 on Full Conference attendance. Regular updates will begin following our Irvine event, September 21-23, 2018. (Check out all the latest on it here.) Our focus will again be on getting you where you want to be with your work, be it novels, personal narratives, practical nonfiction, short stories, essays or any other writing aimed at commercial publication.

SCWC*SD33 LOCATION: The conference will again be held at the Crowne Plaza Hanalei resort, located mere moments away from Lindbergh Field International Airport, Sea World, Balboa Park, the San Diego Zoo, historic Old Town, downtown and its famous Gaslamp District, along with beaches galore. Dates are Presidents’ Day Weekend, February 15-17, 2019. Lodging discounts are available to SCWC conferees. Phone 800-972-2802 to book your reservation, or click here to do so online (when it becomes available). Deadline for discounted hotel registration is January 15, 2019.

SCWC*SD33 SCHEDULE: Rest assured that plenty of craft- and business-centric sessions, read & critique workshops, one-on-one consultations and more will fill out the weekend. Though we’ll not start plugging things in until later, you can get an idea of the overall shape of the conference on the schedule page.

SCWC*SD33 STAFF: In addition to the many familiar workshop leaders, agents, editors and other publishing professionals returning in 2019, several new folks will join out fold. Check ’em out on the staff page as they’re announced, beginning in October.

Be sure to subscribe to our periodic .COMmunity updates to receive all the latest news. And to engage with out greater writing community between events, join the well-moderated conversation in our SCWC Facebook group.

Until next time, aim for excellence and settle only for exceptional.

–Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC/SWS

An unexpected murder of crows boded well for conference weekend, and our plot of writers seized the occasion to shine. From Wes, Chrissie and myself, Rick, Linda and Cricket, to all the workshop leaders, guest speakers, and agents–and most importantly to the conferees themselves, who placed their trust in us–THANK YOU. You made for a most memorable SCWC.

And, oh, if only we could share what stories will come from it. Have no doubt that there will be many.

Craft, of course, remained the emphasis in the bulk of sessions. By all accounts from workshop leaders, the effort to rise above writing “good enough,” to aim for excellence and settle only for exceptional, was evident in nearly everyone. (Except that one guy. But what do I know about poetry?) With so many stellar writers in the room, it’s tough to single out those whose work warranted special recognition, but single out we must.

This time around there were three strikingly notable honorees:

SCWC*SD32 Award Recipients

OUTSTANDING FICTION (Science Fiction)
Flight Recorder
By John Goshorn of Anaheim, CA

OUTSTANDING FICTION (Literary)
Echoes of St. Eloi
By Jason Hook of Bangor, ME

OUTSTANDING FICTION (Historical YA)
Nell: Marshal of Bodie
By John Mullen of Poway, CA

Congratulations to all.

We’ll return to our longtime San Diego home at Crowne Plaza Hanalei for our 33rd annual. Dates will be Presidents’ Day Weekend, February 16-18, 2019. Limited to 175 writers, discounted pre-registration opens July 1. Meanwhile, our exclusive Sunriver Writers’ Summit workshop intensive will be held near Bend, Oregon, May 26-27, 2018. As well, our 16th annual Fall conference will again be in Irvine. Dates are September 21-23, 2018. Discounted pre-registration opens March 1st. Limited to 150 writers, full details can be found here.

Remember to join our Facebook Group and contribute to the ongoing conversation between SCWCs. Until next time… Go forth. Fight. Write.

–Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC/SWS

Author of The Dining Car, his sumptuous telling of “a story of service, serendipity, and second chances,” Eric Peterson will round out our 32^nd annual San Diego conference schedule. As our Sunday afternoon Special Guest Speaker, Eric will share how he navigated the turbulent tides of landing what Publishers Weekly effuses, “Peterson’s second book is like a meal prepared by a top-tier chef, great individual ingredients coming together to form something even better,” such exquisite publication. It’s a yummy tale to be told, and we’re looking forward to hearing it.

Both the Schedule At-A-Glance and Interactive Schedule have been updated to reflect our “wintry” weekend of workshops and overall writerly whatnot. It’s only a couple of weeks away so if you haven’t already, start planning your personal journey today.

Recent Good “Muse”

Books recently out from SCWCers include Lois Joy Hoffmann’s sublime In Search of Adventure and Moments of Bliss: The Long Way Back, the third and “gripping conclusion to a grand adventure that took Lois and Günter Hofmann over 34,000 miles around the world on a 43-foot catamaran” … The Center Of The Universe Is Right Between Your Eyes But Home Is Where The Heart Is, an “in-depth analysis of human perception, shamanism, visionary states, cognitive neuroscience, plant and animal consciousness, and sacred geometry” from Matthew J. Pallamary … Mason’s Missing, the first in a new detective series from Teresa Burrell … and the introduction of another international thriller series from Dennis Bown, Stones. Good job, and best of success to all!

Still room to join us at SD32. We’re anticipating a sellout crowd, so do take advantage of discounted pre-registration to cement your well-deserved spot. And for those planning far ahead, remember that pre-registration for our 3-track workshop immersive in Central Oregon is now open. Dates for the exclusive Sunriver Writers’ Summit getaway are May 26-27, 2018.

–Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC

Plot is not story. Even the most skilled application of craft will conceal a weak story for only so long. Story is story. Craft is the toolbox an author turns to to tell a story. Surprisingly, many good writers—craft execution-wise—don’t understand the distinction between the two. In fact, over the past few SCWCs, time and again I’ve consulted with those who’ve completed a manuscript, who are seeking advice on which Advance Submission Reader they should select, and I’ll ask, “Yeah, I get what it’s about, but what’s the story?” And they don’t know. They can only recite a plot.

Thing is, a good story can overcome lackluster execution of craft and still, at least in its audience’s mind, endure long after that first read. A good plot, devoid of a great story, will not. (Maybe its unrealized potential will, but little else beyond the ache for what might have been.)

While craft has always been foremost the SCWC’s emphasis, it must be said that one can be too keen or clever with it as to lose sight of what the commercial market craves most: story. We’ll focus substantively on it in February.

The Big Question

“What’s the right path to publication for me?” A question so hard to answer in this supposed new “Golden Age” of publishing. But it ain’t really, a “Golden Age” I mean. For most, it’s a time of confusion, rife with too many avenues to turn down; too many grifters to sift through; too many ever-changing algorithms to work around; too many speed ramps to failure for a writer who doesn’t know what she doesn’t know until it’s far too late.

Acorn Publishing’s Holly Kammier, Jessica Therrien and Lacey Impellizeri.

Traditional. Boutique. Independent. Hybrid. Self. So many publishing options for today’s authors that, inevitably, the choices one makes today will shape the reception of their work in the future. The good gals of Acorn Publishing will return to address the popular select hybrid path. Over the past year they’ve signed five SCWCers, including Mikel J. Wilson. The first of his Mourning Dove Mysteries, Murder on the Lake of Fire, is out December. And from Mandy Urena, her delightful memoir Touchy, Feely Squeezy: Musings of a Masseuse will be released Valentine’s Day, 2018.

The bulk of sessions we’ll be conducting are posted on the Workshops and Events page, and Advance Submission Reader selection is now open. More of both will be added over the next few weeks, so be sure to subscribe to our .COMmunity newsletter to be alerted of important updates.

SD32 is limited to only 175 conferees. We anticipate a sellout crowd, so take advantage of discounted pre-registration sooner than later. For those planning way ahead, discounted pre-registration is also now open for our exclusive 3-track spring immersive in Central Oregon. Dates for the Sunriver Writers’ Summit are May 26-27, 2018.

—Michael Steven Gregory
Executive Director, SCWC