The Harriette Austin Writers Conference is Back!

Harriette Austin

I'm delighted to tell you this fantastic news: the popular Harriette Austin Writers Conference is back! The 2011 HAC will be held July 22 - 23, 2011, at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education on the University of Georgia campus. This year's conference has a great line up of speakers and critiquers and the deadline for manuscript critiques is June 20.

I'll be presenting my "Finding Fiction in Your Own Backyard" writing workshop. Other presenters include: Terry Kay, Janell Walden Agyeman, Robert Alan Black, Doris Booth, Tony Burton, Evelyn Coleman, Dac Crossley, Paige Cummings, Susan Dansby, Wally Eberhart, John Fristoe, John Gilstrap, Judy Iakovou, Amanda Luedke, Rebecca McClanahan, Susan Mary Malone, Jackie Lee Miles, David Oates, Kevin O'Brien, Susan Olson, Chuck Sambuchino, and Beverly Varnado.

Authors Evelyn Coleman and Donny Bailey Seagraves at the 2009 HAC.

My association with the Harriette Austin conference goes way back to the beginning. A call went out to present and former students for writing contributions to a fund-raising calendar that helped finance the first HAC. I contributed a short story, "Dear Delores," to that calendar and also attended the first conference. "Dear Delores" has been published and republished many times in magazines, including Seek and The Roswell (NM) Literary Review.  I've attended many of the HACs, served on a nonfiction panel at an early conference and presented two workshops at the 2009 HAC, which took place about the same time as the publication of my debut novel, Gone From These Woods. I've learned much from HAC presenters and even acquired my literary agent at a Harriette Austin conference. I've also enjoyed seeing Harriette herself, a quiet, encouraging presence at the conference with her name.

All the pertinent conference info is here. Check it out. Sign up. Submit your manuscript. See you there.

First Ever Northwest Georgia Valley Writers Conference a Great Success in Calhoun, GA

This past weekend, I enjoyed being part of the very first Northwest Georgia Valley Writers Conference in the Harris Arts Center in downtown Calhoun, Georgia. This new conference, organized by Gray Bridges, Literary Director of the Arts Center, featured a 90-minute writing workshop with author Terry Kay, during which he explained "The DNA of Writing: Reducing the Must-Know Requirements to 2 Issues," and another with author Rosemary Daniell, who told us "What Geniuses Know."

Other workshop leaders included poet Anne Webster, who also is the sister of Rosemary Daniell, Geri Taran, founder and former executive director of Georgia Writers Association, Bobbie Christmas, who is known as "The Book Doctor," and Fran Stewart, a freelance editor by day and a mystery writer by night.

Two panel discussions rounded out this conference. The first included Terry Kay, Tony Burton, Fran Stewart, Anne Webster and Geri Taran talking about the advantgages and disadvantages of publishing your book with Large Press, Small Press, or Self-Publishing. This panel was moderated by Wayne Minshew.

I participated in the second panel, entitled "Living the Writer's Life," moderated by Tony Burton. Other authors included Rosemary Daniell, Jimmy Blackmon, Fran Stewart, Bobbie Christmas and Geri Taran.

The Harris Arts Center is an impressive facilty. Housed in a former hotel building in the heart of downtown Calhoun, the center provides space for art, music and other classes for children and adults. Local artwork is displayed throughout the building. But one of the most interesting and unique features of the center is the Roland Hayes Museum.

Roland Hayes was the first African-American classical singer to have an international career on the concert stage. He was also a son of former slaves and was born in Gordon County in 1887. Initially compelled to arrange and promote his own concerts, Hayes eventually became the highest-paid tenor in the world, despite the racial barriers that often excluded African Americans from careers in classical music. He was named to the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1991.

If you'd like to learn more about the Harris Arts Center, visit their website: www.harrisartscenter.com. For information about future Nortwest Georgia Valley Writers Conferences, contact Gray Bridges, graygray@bellsouth.net.

SpringMingle 2010: What a Weekend!

What happens when 200 children's writers and illustrators gather in one place for a whole weekend? If the group includes award-winning author Jane Yolen, editors Cheryl Klein (Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic) and Meredith Mundy (Sterling Publishing), plus agent Josh Adams (Adams Literary), the result is literary magic!

In a time when some writers' conferences are struggling, our SCBWI Southern Breeze continues to thrive with top-notch conferences such as SpringMingle at the Atlanta Marriott Century Center. In addition to the headliners mentioned above, the conference included from Peachtree Publishers: Jessica Alexander, Editorial Assistant, Loraine Joyner, Art Director, Kenya and Kenyette Kilpatrick, Marketing. Also Peggy Shaw, a former senior editor for Dalmation Press and Intervisual Books.

A moving tribute to the late Liz Conrad, a much-loved and admired Southern Breezer who passed away last year was presented by Illustrator Coordinator, author, artist and best friend, Elizabeth Dulemba. This year Southern Breeze awarded scholarships in Liz's honor to artists Kristen Applebee and Jeremy Evans.

A highlight of this year's conference for me was the Book Launch. There were eight of us with new books within the past two years. I talked about my middle grade novel, Gone From These Woods, published August 25, 2009 by Delacorte Press/Random House. Other book launchers included Hester Bass, Doraine Bennett, Donna Bowman, Elizabeth Dulemba, Jennifer Jabaley, Irene Latham and Heather Montgomery. I feel very honored to be in the company of this talented group.

Other authors I enjoyed meeting and chatting with included Brad Strickland, who has a new book, Wicked Will, out under a pen name, Bailey MacDonald, and Kristin O'Donnell Tubb, whose book, Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different was published in 2008 by Delacorte Press. Kristin lives in Tennessee and is very familiar with the Cleveland, Tennessee area where my mother and other family members live.

So what did the publishing experts tell us this weekend? As most of us already knew, the odds of getting published are daunting. Jane Yolen said that if you'd asked her 20 years ago if you needed an agent, she would have said maybe. Today she says yes. Agent Josh Adams said he receives 6,000 submissions a year and might take on six new authors.

On the other hand editor Cheryl Klein, who has edited Harry Potter books, said our job is to create stories and hers is to edit them and though things are changing rapidly in the world of publishing, she believes our jobs are still to create and edit. Editor Meredith Mundy, who has been laid off twice from publishing companies is now with Sterling Publishing, which is owned by Barnes and Noble, and still feels optimistic. They are all looking for "crunchy characters," "munchy" dialog, and high concept projects. They agree "quiet" is not being published these days. But Jane Yolen says quiet may be making a come back in children's literature. She also says "go armoured into the marketplace."

Overall, this was one of the best conferences I've ever attended. Here's a great big thank you to Jo Kittinger, Donna Bowman, Heather Montgomery, Heather Kolich and everyone who worked to make this SpringMingle a great success. My only problem was I didn't win the Joan Broerman book basket for my local library. But, hey, there's always next year.

From Spelling Bee to Josh and Tiffany or Writing is Rewriting

Now that my debut children's middle grade novel is published (Gone From These Woods, August 25, 2009, Random House/Delacorte Press), I'm often asked, "Are you writing another book?" I usually answer yes. And then they ask what it's about. And I usually say, "Two kids and a spelling bee." Next, they want to know when they can buy a copy. And if it's anything like GFTW and if the characters are like Daniel and, well, you get the picture, right?

For a very long time, this manuscript that I hope will be my next published book has been called Spelling Bee or some version of that name. These days the "spelling bee book" is called Josh and Tiffany, or Wild Josh and Tiffany Cool, depending on how I'm feeling that day. And oh my goodness, I'm still rewriting this middle grade novel . . . again and again. It's not that I'm such a perfectionist (ask my husband -- he'll quickly verify I'm not). My latest rewrite centers on making this book different from another Random House author's book that came out in 2008. Even though I had rewritten many drafts of my story long before she probably even thought of her idea, there were enough similarities to cause me to plunge into yet another rewrite. I'm also working on making this book equally Josh and Tiffany, rather than just mainly Josh. My first published book is considered a "boy's book." I like the idea of a book for boys and girls. So each kid in this book gets an equal part via alternating points of view. First you hear from Josh. Then you view the world through Tiffany's much different eyes. Hopefully this will make Tiffany a more interesting character.

So when will this latest rewrite be done? Don't know. But I hope it's soon. In my 20-plus years of writing fiction I've learned that most manuscripts (the ones written by me anyway) require a great deal of rewriting and they're simply done when they're done. I've set writing goals and at the moment I'm on track to reach the latest ones. So maybe Josh and Tiffany will walk out of my office, into the big, wide world soon and eventually hit the bookstores and libraries . . . and the Kindles and Nooks and iPads and such.

One of the things I look forward to after completing this latest Josh and Tiffany rewrite is starting a new book. I'm also excited about diving into my "to read" pile to catch up on some of my favorite authors' books. Look for my thoughts on recent novels, poetry and memoirs by Philip Lee Williams, Anne Webster, Linda Lee Harper, Lauretta Hannon, Amanda Gable, Edith Hemingway, Susan Rosson Spain, Ann Stamos (Judy Iakovou), Fran Slayton and many more in the coming weeks.

Oh, and one more thing: If you're a writer, how do you approach rewriting? I'd be interested to hear your rewriting comments and stories via the comment feature on this blog. How many rewrites do you go through? How do you feel about this process?

Now, it's back to the iMac for me. Josh and Tiffany are calling . . . again . . . in alternating but equal voices!

4th Annual AJC Decatur Book Festival

I spent a delightful weekend at the 4th Annual AJC Decatur Book Festival and I must say, IT WAS THE BEST ONE YET! Don't get me wrong, I've attended all four DBFs and they've all been outstanding. But there were three things -- no make that four things -- about this year's festival that made it great for me.

First, I got to attend the festival for the first time as a featured author, thanks to the publication of my debut novel, GONE FROM THESE WOODS, published August 25, 2009, by Random House under their Delacorte Press imprint. I had the pleasure of participating in a panel on Sunday afternoon with Katie Davis (check her out here) and Laurel Snyder (visit her website here), two authors I admire.

Second, it wasn't as hot this year. Okay, my hair did stick to my head and all my makeup sweated off before the Sunday panel and I couldn't stop myself from gulping down a lot of water while I was onstage, but considering the average heat-stroking inducing temperatures I've encountered at the other three DBFs, this weekend wasn't so bad.

Third, I got to peek at author Kate DiCamillo through the massive crowd that surrounded her on the Target Stage. If you don't know who she is, shame on you! Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux and her latest, The Magician's Elephant are just a few of my DiCamillo favorites. My neighbor down the street, Andy Plemmons, took the photo of this award-winning author. He also got to speak with her and get her autograph afterwards. Andy, I am SO jealous!

Okay, that was three things about this year's DBF. What's number four? I got to stay at the beautiful home of my friend, Lynn Whitten, who lives two blocks from the downtown area of Decatur, where most of the festival takes place. And I got to spend time with my other friends, all writers, as is Lynn, Kathleen, Ellen, Debbe, Deborah, Pam - - and my lovely daughter, Jenny. And Southern Breezers Connie, Robyn, Susan, Donna, Peter, Peggy and others.

That's more than four DBF things, isn't it? And I could count a lot higher. This festival is now the biggest in the country and it's only in its fourth year. I'm already counting down to DBF number five. If you haven't experienced this great literary celebration in Decatur, maybe you should go ahead and mark your calendar for Labor Day weekend, 2010.

Gone From These Woods is on the Way!

The projected date of arrival of actual hardcover Gone From These Woods books in Random House's warehouses is July 6! Hopefully, pre-ordered books will begin shipping soon after that.

Of course I'm excited about actually seeing my book in person. The advance reader's copy is not the actual book.

Here's some history on the creation of this novel. First, I spent about two years writing and rewriting the early drafts. During that time, I debuted the first chapter at my writers' group's annual joint meeting with the Augusta Writers in Washington, Georgia. There, Elise Weston, author of Coast Watchers, read the beginning of Daniel's story in her rich, southern accent, even pronouncing his last name correctly. (Sar-tain, rather than the quicker Sarten).

The last week of February, 2007, I attended the SCBWI Southern Breeze SpringMingle writers conference in Atlanta, Georgia. I listened to editors there read my first page and comment. It was Michelle Poploff's comments on that beginning, plus her presentations that weekend, that put the idea in my head to mail her the first few chapters.

After requesting the entire manuscript, Michelle bought Gone From These Woods on Friday the 13th, 2007.

Rewriting followed. And followed and followed. Yes, the saying "writing is rewriting" is so true.

Then production. Copyediting. First Pass. And more "passes."

The result is my debut novel, Gone From These Woods. Let's hope it's also gone from those bookshelves and in readers' hands soon.

Harriette Austin Writers Conference

On July 17 - 18, 2009, the Georgia Center for Continuing Education in Athens, Georgia will host the sixteenth annual Harriette Austin Writers Conference. I'm a bit biased towards this conference since I'll be presenting two sessions there, "Writing for Middle Grades," and "Selling Your First Novel."

I'll be in good company at the HA conference. My editor, Michelle Poploff, from Random House, will be there, too, critiquing manuscripts and speaking about recent book acquisitions in her talk, "The Write Place at the Write Time." Author Evelyn Coleman, one of my favorites, will conduct a session on "Writing for Children," and will also be the dinner speaker.

Other presenters include Philip Lee Williams, journalist, poet, novelist and film writer. Phil, who has 13 published books, was my first editor at The Athens Observer, way back when, and I'm proud to also call him a friend. Anne Webster, a gifted poet with a new book, A HISTORY OF NURSING, Poetry, published by Kennesaw State University Press will also be there. Anne is a retired retired nurse, a fifth generation native of Atlanta, and the younger sister of author and poet Rosemary Danielle. Also Carol O'Dell, who has a book out called, MOTHERING MOTHER, and will teach narrative nonfiction.

Other presenters: Suzanne Adair, author of PAPER WOMAN; Judy Iakovou, author of the Nick and Julia Lambros mystery series and recently, a new book called BITTER TIDE; Todd Sentell, the first native of Georgia to publish a sports-related novel, TOONAMINT OF CHAMPIONS. Plus Haywood Smith, Bobby Nash, Ralph McInery, David Oates, Kelly L. Stone, Charles "Mike" Swanson (I had the pleasure of meeting him and Dac Crossley at the May 16 Marigold Festival in Winterville), Beverly Varnado, Alan Black, Susan Dansby, Lynette Eason, Juditj Geary, Alex Graves, and Milton Kahn.

In addition to all of those wonderful authors and experts, this year's Harriette Austin Writers Conference boasts an outstanding group of agents. There's Brandi Bowles of the Howard Morhaim Literary Agency; Paul Fedorko of Trident Media Group; Jacqueline S. Hackett, founder of Literary Works; Chip MacGregor of the MacGregory Literary Agency, Maya Rock of Writers House, LLC; and Katie Sulkowski, the Literary Brand Manager for Creative Trust, Inc. If you're looking for an agent, you have an excellent choice at this year's conference.

Other editors include Patrick LoBrutto, a favorite presenter at this conference.

The Keynote Speaker this year will be noted author Robert Vaughan.

If you are a serious writer living in the Athens, Georgia area, or you're willing to travel here, take a good look at this year's Harriette Austin Writers Conference. They've got a complete listing of the workshops, background information on the presenters, and all the details, including an online registration link, on the website now: http://harrietteaustin.org/default.aspx

Check it out. Last year I found an agent at the Harriette Austin Writers Conference. Who knows? It could happen for you!

Backwards Manuscripts and Rewriting

I've discovered something during endless days of rewriting children's middle grade novels. Most of my stories start out backwards. Maybe the beginning is near the ending, sort of like that great movie I saw recently, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. In that memorable flick, Ben started out as an elderly man who aged backwards until he became a baby at the end of his life.

A story may start out old, then gradually during numerous rewrites, it becomes youthful and ready for the eyes and minds of young readers.

The saying, "Writing is rewriting," is one of the most true sentences you will hear. Sounds so simple, yet to follow this advice takes strength, perseverance, and numerous days and nights of "butt in the chair."

Is all that rewriting worth the time and effort? You bet. Imagine a library or a bookstore or an online selling venue full of books that tell stories that remind readers of wrinkled old men and women. (Not that there is anything wrong with such creatures. I have a few wrinkles myself!) Picture how stretched out and incontinent these tales would be. Now imagine these stories trimmed, tweaked, tightened, polished, lovingly edited, edited some more, and tailored for young readers.

Rewriting is a beautiful thing. Really. If you're an author or aspire to write and publish, embrace the concept and turn your manuscripts around.

Dycie Hancock Schneider, My Second Grade Teacher and One of my Inspirations

My forthcoming children's middle grade novel, GONE FROM THESE WOODS, is a fictional story set in a North Georgia rural community very much like Winterville, Georgia, the small town where I live.

My fictional tale of a young boy, Daniel Sartain, was inspired by a real story I heard growing up. What happens in my book is similar but not the same as what happened in the family of my second grade teacher, Dycie H. Schneider. She was one of my inspirations.

I took this picture of Mrs. Schneider on a May 2008 visit to Morningside, a retirement home where she lived. During our hour together that day, she retold the sad story of her first husband's accidential death. She also talked about how happy she had been in her second marriage many years later (she had been a widow for about a year when I visited her), and she talked about attending Tuckston School on Lexington Road in Athens as well as Gaines School the first year it opened.

Unfortunately, a couple of weeks after that visit, Dycie had an automobile accident and died several days later from her injuries. She was 90 years old.

Dycie knew before she died that I had included her name on my forthcoming book's dedication page and she was looking forward to reading my book. I am thankful I got to visit with her for about an hour on that day in May. It was a special time for me and she seemed to enjoy the visit, too.