Eleventh Annual Navigating Your Writing Life Symposium:
Your Writing Journey: Shooting for the Stars!
August 6, 7, & 8, 2021
This year's Navigating Your Life Symposium will be online again. This year, we're stepping it up, offering twice as many workshops as last year.
We are excited to have Jane Friedman back as our keynote speaker.
Jane has 20 years of experience in the publishing industry, with expertise in business strategy for authors and publishers. She’s the editor of The Hot Sheet, the essential industry newsletter for authors, and has previously worked for F+W Media and the Virginia Quarterly Review. In 2019, Jane was awarded Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World; her newsletter was awarded Media Outlet of the Year in 2020.
Jane’s newest book is The Business of Being a Writer (University of Chicago Press); Publishers Weekly said that it is “destined to become a staple reference book for writers and those interested in publishing careers.” Also, in collaboration with The Authors Guild, she wrote The Authors Guild Guide to Self-Publishing.
In addition to being a professor with The Great Courses, Jane maintains an award-winning blog for writers at JaneFriedman.com; her expertise has been featured by The New York Times, The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, NPR, PBS, NBC, CBS, the National Press Club and many other outlets.
2021 SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULE
FRIDAY, AUGUST 6:
7PM Jane Friedman - Keynote Address
SATURDAY:
Virtual Event Opens: 9:30 for Welcome and Opening Comments from the President
10AM - SESSION 1
Jack Trammell – Non-Fiction Editing Techniques
Elizabeth Spragins – Teaching Your Words to Dance (Poetry)
11AM - SESSION 2
Cass Morris – Choose, Don’t Presume: Level up your SFF Worldbuilding
Rick Hodges – “Write Dialogue Like an Expert” he said.
12Noon - SESSION 3
James Cole – Literary Slapfighting
Katherine Gotthardt, John Dutton, Rebecca Sosa, & Zach Tamer, with Jan Rayl as Facilitator – Writing & Marketing Your Children’s Book
1PM - SESSION 4
Pamela K Kinney – How You Engage and How Your Signing Table Looks Drives Sales for You
Susan Williamson – Writing Side Gigs: How to Finance Ink, Paper, and Submission Fees
(Door prize drawing at end of day)
SUNDAY:
10AM - SESSION 1
David Kudler – The Power of Where: Place, Settings, and the Hero’s Adventure
April Michelle Davis – Critiquing Your First Pages
11AM - SESSION 2
Solveig Eggerz – Storytelling: Gateway into your Writing
Betsy Ashton – Creating and Executing a Book Launch Plan
12Noon - SESSION 3
David Godwin – An Introduction to IngramSpark
Jenna Harte – From Draft to Fab: 6 Fool-Proof Ways to Revise Your Manuscript
1PM - SESSION 4
Chris Register – Concise Syntax & Clear Prose
David M Simms – Writing Thrillers – How to Twist High Concept Plots, Memorable Characters, and Settings into Page-Turners.
(Door prize drawing at end of day)
Early Bird Registration is from June 1 to June 30th.
Early Bird price is $50 for members and $60 for non-members.
After July 1, prices will be $60 for members and $70 for non-members.
How to Register:
Please read the following instructions carefully to insure your spot is saved and that you have the proper set up to attend the symposium:
1) Register for symposium through this page. You should receive a confirmation email or you can log into your VWC account to check on your registration.
2) The event will be held online which will require you to have a computer with Internet access. You will have the option to phone in to listen, as well. More details on what you'll need and how to navigate the webinar platform will be sent prior to the event.
3) You'll receive an email the last week of July with full instructions on how to attend the event online.
4) On the days of the event, you'll access the event through a link sent to you (see#3) at the allotted time.
