BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//sebbo.net//ical-generator//EN NAME:Cuyahoga County Public Library X-WR-CALNAME:Cuyahoga County Public Library BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6eff90c8-590a-4ae5-b64c-5afb672b20ea SEQUENCE:0 DTSTAMP:20261109T025611Z DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20180428T090000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20180428T163000 SUMMARY:35th Annual Western Reserve Writers Conference LOCATION:South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch\nSouth Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=South Euclid-Lyndhurst Bra nch;X-APPLE-RADIUS=10;X-TITLE=South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch:geo:41.509031, -81.520355 GEO:41.509031;-81.520355 DESCRIPTION:The William N. Skirball Writers' Center proudly hosts the West ern Reserve Writers’ Conference for a third year\, making it free o f charge for writers. .\nhttps://cuyahoga.libnet.info/event/473490 X-ALT-DESC;FMTTYPE=text/html:

*PARKING also available at Notre Dame College\, directly across from the library. Uniformed personnel will be av ailable during library hours to help pedestrians cross South Green Road.*< /em>

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9:00-9:30 AM / REGISTRATION\, CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST\, COFFEE< /p>\n


9:30 AM / WELCOME &\; CONFERENCE OVERVIEW
Deanna R. Adams\, Conference Coordinator
Laurie Kincer\, William N. Skirball Wr iters' Center \;

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9:40-10:20 AM / KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Lite rary Agent Elizabeth Kaplan in Conversation \;

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Litera ry agent Elizabeth Kaplan will be interviewed by her client and current Cu yahoga County Public Library Writer in Residence Claire McMillan about Ms. Kaplan's job as an agent\, how she approaches representing authors\, how she chooses new clients\, her advice for writers seeking an agent\, and he r thoughts on trends in the publishing industry.  \;There will be time for audience Q&\;A. \;

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Elizabeth Kaplan h as represented numerous critically acclaimed and best-selling authors thro ughout her 20-year career as a literary agent\, including Greg Mortenson\, E. Lockhart\, and Michael Ruhlman. After graduating from the University o f Michigan\, Elizabeth moved to New York City and began her publishing car eer as the assistant to Jim Silberman\, the founder of Summit Books. Eliza beth worked as an editor at Summit for three years before moving on to ass ist another publishing legend\, the literary agent Sterling Lord. Before b eginning her own agency in 2002\, she worked as an agent at Sterling Lord Literistic and the Ellen Levine Agency. Elizabeth's main areas of focus in clude literary fiction\, young adult fiction\, narrative nonfiction (espec ially issue-based books)\, history\, biography\, food writing and cookbook s and memoir.

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Claire \;McMillan\, the current Writer in Residence at the William N. Skirball Writers' Center\, is the a uthor of The Necklace\, an intoxicating novel set in Cleveland th at BookPage calls "absorbing." Her debut novel\, \;Gilded Age\, also set in Cleveland\, transforms Edith Wharton's House of Mirth into a powerful modern story of one woman's struggle with independence and love. McMillan grew up in and around Pasadena\, CA. She practiced com plex corporate litigation in San Francisco until 2003 and then received an MFA in creative writing from Bennington College. She lives on a family fa rm near Cleveland with her husband and their two children.

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Note: S essions with an asterisk (*) include a writing exercise.

10:30- 11:30 \;AM / BREAKOUT SESSIONS\, choose one:

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1. The Seven Universal Plots / Claire McMillan. \;CCPL&rsquo\ ;s Writer in Residence and Simon &\; Schuster author\, Claire McMillan\ , will teach you how to deepen character by thinking about the seven unive rsal plots. \;  \;

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2. \; Taboo Writing / Laura Walter. \;Learn how to respectfully approach controversial s ubject matter in your writing and how to face common challenges and pitfal ls.

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3. *Powerful Words for Powerful Nonfiction Prose / Sun ny Morton. \;Powerful prose is lean and muscular. Learn to ad just your writing for a strong technical manual\, slim precise ad copy\, o r toned-and-smooth consumer prose.

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11:30-11:45 AM / BREAK &\; P REARRANGED EDITING SESSIONS. Individual editing sessions with editors Judy Allen and Laura Walter.

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11:45 A M-12:45 PM / BREAKOUT SESSIONS\, choose one:

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1. What's the Real Story and How to Get It / Mike Olszewski. \;With this v eteran writer&rsquo\;s help\, explore different research methods and learn how to get the real story you need for that nonfiction article or book.\n

2.  \;*The All-Important Query Letter / Deanna R. Adams . Writing a good query letter is an art\, and one you&rsquo\;ll n eed to perfect if sending your work to an agent or traditional publisher.< /p>\n

3. *Writing the Personal Essay / Jacqueline Marino. Develop your story senses\, from inspiration to completed personal essa y.

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12:45-1:45 PM / LUNCH BREAK PLUS BOOK SALE &\; AUTHOR SIGNIN GS
Brown bag or go out. Restaurant map available at registration tabl e.

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1:30-1:45 PM / PREARRANGED EDITING SESSIONS. \;Individual e diting sessions with editors Judy Allen and Laura Walter.

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1:45-2:45 PM / FIRST PAGE CRITIQUE. Panelists Elizabeth Kaplan\, Claire McMillan and&nbs p\;Renee Rosen. \;Submit the first page of your work in progress (prose only\, fiction or nonfiction) at check-in on conference morning. Submissions must be double-spaced\, Times New Roman-12\, with Ti tle/Genre. Do not include your name. Each panelist will raise a hand at th e point where they would stop reading and will comment on what stopped the m. Pages will be randomly selected.

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2:45-3:00 PM / BREAK &\; PR EARRANGED EDITING SESSIONS. \;Individual editing sessions with editors Judy Allen and Laura Walter.  \;

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3:00-4:00 PM / BREAKOUT SESSIONS\, choose one:

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1. *R evise &\; Edit Like a Pro / Renee Rosen. Explore the importanc e of editing and revision\, how to effectively polish your work and get it in shape for submitting to agents and editors.

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2. The Ben efits of Blogging / Jill Grunenwald. Learn how blogging can help you engage with your readers\, plus the best ways to create valuable and m emorable content.

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3. 15 Tips for Writing a Play / Kelly Bo yer Sagert. Kelly will share step-by-step how to write a \;sc ript.

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4:00-4:15 PM / PREARRANGED EDITING SESSIONS. \;Individua l editing sessions with editors Judy Allen and La ura Walter.

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4:00-4:30 PM / DOOR PRIZES\, BOOK SALE &\; AUTHOR SIGNINGS

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