Autumn 2002 Workshops at Writers & Books

Special Topics

A Talk with a Literary Agent

• #F3147
• Guest Speaker: Patti Steele Perkins of Patti Steele Perkins Literary Agency
• Saturday, October 5, 10 am–1 pm
• $34 W&B Members/$43 General Public

Patti will discuss and answer questions on the current state of the publishing industry and why a writer needs an agent to sail through today’s turbulent publishing waters. She will also discuss the “market versus the muse,” making the transition from writer to author, what’s hot and what’s not, and answer the question, “My mother loves this book, why won’t they buy it?” In conclusion, Patti will take you through her typical day and explain why “Working With Crazy People Does Not Make Me Insane.”

The Dreaded Query Letter

• #F3176
• Instructor: Sarah Freligh [ bio ]
• Tuesday, October 15, 6:30–8:30 pm
• $23 W&B Members/$30 General Public

A query letter is a letter of introduction. It is a first impression that you cannot take back once it hits the mailbox. If it’s not dressed properly, if its hair isn’t combed or its suit isn’t dry cleaned, you won’t get that second look.

This short yet invaluable workshop will dress up that dreaded query letter and almost insure that your material will get that second look. What follows is up to you.

The Equally Dreaded Synopsis

• #F3178
• Instructor: Darby Knox [ bio ]
• Tuesday, November 5, 6:30–8:30 pm
• $23 W&B Members/$30 General Public
• Limit: 15

You’ve heard it before, the synopsis is harder to write than the book itself. Why is that? And what can you do to make your synopsis as exciting and as succinct as possible? These are just a few of the questions aspiring writers ask about the dreaded synopsis.

Bring your questions to this special two-hour workshop and leave with the ability to make the synopsis work for you and not against you.

The Whole Enchilada — Putting Your Publishing Package Together

• #F3150
• Instructor: Camy Sorbello [ bio ]
• Thursday, November 14, 6:30–8:30 pm
• $23 W&B Members/$30 General Public
• Limit 15

So now you’ve got a great query letter and an even greater synopsis of your plot—but what about that cover letter? And what about how your manuscript is presented to the editor or agent, and what kind of mailer to use? Inquiring minds should know these things.

This informative workshop will take out all the guesswork and supply you with plenty of confidence as you wave goodbye to your publishing package, secure in the knowledge that it is exactly how the publishing world wants to receive it.

Hobbits for Readers and Writers: Exploring Tolkien’s Middle-Earth

• #F3102
• Instructor: Dana Paxson [ bio ]
• 5 Tuesdays, 7–9 pm
  • September 17, 2002
  • October 15, 2002
  • November 19, 2002
  • January 7, 2003
  • February 11, 2003
• $69 W&B Members/$83 General Public
• Limit: 15

This course takes the participants through Tolkien’s four best-loved books: The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King. We will read all four and attempt to answer the following questions:

• Why are these works so widely loved?
• What is Middle-Earth?
• What is the story’s background?
• Why does the author’s writing attract such a vast readership, if it breaks so many writing rules?
• How has Tolkien inspired so many imitators and spin-offs with these stories of Middle-Earth?

To help in answering these questions, the course also introduces the Silmarillion, Tolkien’s distillation of the great mythic history of the world of the innocent hobbits. This course is intended for those who want an introduction to Middle-Earth, for those who have read the books and would like to reacquaint themselves with the story, and for those who are in the midst of seeing Peter Jackson’s films and want a deeper grasp of all the goings-on.

Writing for Online Communities

• #F3152
• Instructors: Marcos and Vicki Donnelly [ bio ]
• Saturday, November 9, 10 am–1 pm
• $44 W&B Members/$53 General Public
• Limit: 12

The Internet’s e-Communities have opened a new world of opportunity for both amateur and professional writers. The art of letter and essay writing; the crafts of rhetoric and head-to-head debate; the power of the written e-word for information sharing; personal relations; making new friends and taking on enemies with logical flair and philosophical panache. Writing well on the Net demands a combination of traditional literary skills and new e-awareness and techniques.

Participants will learn:

• where to go on the Internet for the kinds of e-Communities they’re looking for
• the differences between live chats, threaded chats, and other communities
• how to be safe, anonymous, and well behaved (if you want) in your Net interactions
• how to argue effectively in your favorite topical chats
• all about lurkers, trolls, and other e-citizens.

Every participant will receive a PC-compatible CD-ROM with clickable links to some of the Web’s most interesting and active e-Communities.

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