conferences

Catching Up: A Three-Part Series

In which I cover three book- and/or writing-related things that have been keeping me busy since I last posted. Part One: The American Library Association Midwinter Meeting.This fell at a busy time for me, and I almost didn’t go, but I am so glad I did. You might think this ALA event is just for librarians and a select number of published writers and illustrators (I used to think that, anyway), but it’s not. Anyone can purchase a day pass, which is good for the whole weekend, and browse the publisher’s stalls where they have what seemed like their entire current catalog of books on display.… Read the rest

Big Sur Writing Workshop Comes to Boulder, CO

Halloween weekend I attended the Big Sur in the Rockies writing workshop organized by Andrea Brown of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency and our local SCBWI. It was fantastic. Fantastic! And exactly what I needed for my writing at this moment in time. It was a weekend of total immersion in my work-in-progress. I got so lost in thinking about my story and characters that at one point, in casual conversation, someone referenced a big current event that was going on and I drew a complete blank about what they could be talking about (rhymes with “residential detection”). The weekend workshop was modeled after the annual one that Andrea Brown runs in Big Sur, California.… Read the rest

and we’re back

Well, it looks like I took a brief hiatus there. That wasn’t planned. I had a short streak of regular posting and then, hey look it’s August already. I don’t think they gave out awards for regular attendance when I was a kid in school like they do now, and if they did I doubt I was a recipient. And so it shouldn’t be a surprise now that I’m an unlikely candidate for any regular blogging awards, if such a thing exists. It’s always good to have something to aspire to though. If there is an organization out there for underachievers, that should be their slogan.… Read the rest

Pulling Up a Chair

Have you heard of The Grotto? No, not the one of Playboy Mansion fame. The writer’s grotto in San Francisco. It’s a collaborative workspace filled entirely with writers and filmmakers, started initially by Po Bronson, Ethan Watters, and Ethan Canin. I love this idea—an office of artists. Maybe not financially feasible for most, but I love the idea of having a place to go every day where I’d have my own work space and could get writing done, but also have regular, in-person access to a community of like-minded, creative individuals. This was one of my favorite things about the SCBWI summer conference: The sense of community.… Read the rest