Sunday Details
(Oct 21, 2007)

Interviews & Blue Pencil Cafe

You are entitled to an editor-agent-publisher appointment and a Blue Pencil appointment with your registration. Additional appointments may be made at the conference, subject to availability. Not sure what it's all about? Check out the FAQ entries for Blue Pencil and Editor/Agent/Publisher Interviews.

Editor/Agent/Publisher Interviews

The following presenters are available for Sunday interviews. Please note that this availability is a guideline only, and slots are filled on a first-come first-served basis as registrations are received.

Blue Pencil Cafe

The following presenters are available for Sunday appointments. Please note that this availability is a guideline only, and slots are filled on a first-come first-served basis as registrations are received.

Workshops

While the SiWC will make every effort to offer the conference program as presented, it reserves the right to make changes to the program if circumstances warrant.

1. Research - Write What You WANT To Know
   Presenter: Jan Burke
   Learn research basics for crime fiction, find out how to discover more about the world of your characters, and hear more about the good things that may come your way when you write what you WANT to know.
2. Fiction Queries That Work
   Presenters: Elizabeth Lyon, Sorche Fairbank, Nephele Tempest, Michael Bourret, Cricket Pechstein Freeman
   Thousands of query letters cross the desks of acquisitions editors and agents every year. How do you make your query letter shine? Hear what works from the folks who read and work with these queries every day.
3. The Creative Carpenter: How Writing for Kids is like building a house
   Presenter: Lee Edward Fodi
   Writing a story is like building a house, in that it will fall down if all the essentials are not in place. Attendees will emerge with a complete tool kit for story construction.
4. Laughing all the Way to the Morgue
   Presenter: Wendy Roberts
   Whether you're writing a mystery, thriller or romance, a sprinkle of humour and a moment of levity can lighten the load for the reader while adding emotional depth and realism to your story.
5. How To Write Legal Thrillers in Your Spare Time for Fun and Profit
   Presenter: Phillip Margolin
   From 1972 to 1996, Phillip Margolin maintained a full-time law practice in the State of Oregon, specializing in criminal defence at the trial and appellate levels. At the same time he was appearing before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals, the Oregon Supreme Court and the Oregon Court of Appeals, he was also writing best-selling novels. He will share some of the tips and secrets for making the best use of your time as a writer.
6. Capturing the Spirit: The Keys to Writing Biography and Memoir
   Presenters: Anthony Dalton, Maggie de Vries
   How is biography different from other non-fiction material? How important is accurate research? How much information is too much? Learn the secrets to this important genre from two masters of the craft.
7. Holistic Historicals -- What is the value of historical fiction?
   Presenter: Cecelia Holland
   Where does historical fiction fit on today's bookshelves? And what is the difference between historical fiction and historical fantasy?
8. Creating Characters - Realistic Heroes and Spectacular Villains
   Presenter: Peter Morwood
   What makes a good hero great or a villain truly venomous? Join a foremost speculative fiction writer to discuss the ins and outs of making your characters as real or as fantastic as your story calls for.
9. Increase Your Freelance Income with Photography
   Presenter: Michael DeFreitas
   Do you own a camera? Are you using it to illustrate your stories? If not, learn how much income you're passing up and how you can change those figures for the better.

1. Taboo - The Challenge of Writing for Teens
   Presenters: Eric Walters, Dennis Foon, Diane Duane, Meg Tilly, kc dyer
   A panel of best-selling writers talk about the biggest challenges they face when writing for contemporary children and young adults. Sex, drugs and Rock & Roll are only the beginning!
2. Editor vs Agent: Who You Gonna Call?
   Presenters: Kaylan Adair, Donald Maass, Lisa Rector-Maass
   Your manuscript is done. Now what? This group of experienced editors and agents can tell you what you need to know about taking your manuscript from finished – to sold.
3. Setting: More than Just a Place
   Presenter: Steven Galloway
   Setting is more than the physical location that a story takes place in. It can be a character, affect plot and influence language. Learn how to understand the place you're writing about.
4. The Business of Being a Writer
   Presenter: Timothy Taylor
   Before Timothy Taylor was writing Canadian bestsellers, he worked in business. Now as a full time writer, he retains some practices from his old business life. Learn about Taylor’s approach to making a living as a writer.
5. Writing For Life
   Presenter:
   Karen Robards has written more than thirty novels filled with romance, suspense and intrigue over a career that took off when she was just twenty-four. Learn how to establish a career in writing that will last from someone who has made her family and her writing her life.
6. Breathe Life into Fiction through Character
   Presenter: Jack Whyte
   Best selling author and raconteur Jack Whyte knows how to tell a story. Join Jack as he highlights the different ways to allow your characters to spring off the page and into legend.
7. Crime in Fiction
   Presenter: Patricia Smiley
   When she’s not busy writing best-selling mystery novels, Patricia Smiley spends part of her time working with the LAPD. Join Patty as she shows you how to keep it real when police and their procedures enter into your crime novel.
8. All About Platform: If You Build It They Will Come
   Presenter: Jeffery McGraw
   Join an experienced agent as he discusses what it takes for emerging authors to build and maintain dynamic platforms that will convince editors to take on and publish your non-fiction work.
9. Inspiration and Collaboration: The Sum is Greater Than the Parts
   Presenter: Michael Slade
   Join Michael Slade and Pink Slade, Father and Daughter, as they discuss the ups and downs of collaborative writing.
10. SEPIA Speaks -- Writing & Making Movies -- When Worlds Collide
    Presenters: Tina Pehme, Vic Sarin

    Join filmmaker Vic Sarin and Producer Tina Pehme in a discussion of the intersection between writing and movie making and what happens when these two most creative of mediums come together. This will be a Q & A format -- so bring your questions and prepare to learn!