10:20 am: Welcome and opening poem
10:50 - 11:50 am: Morning Sessions (Free and open to the public)
12:00 pm: Lunch and Panel discussion (Paid registration required)
1:15 pm: First Afternoon Session (Paid registration required)
2:30 pm: Second Afternoon Session (Paid registration required)
3:45 pm: Wrap up
The morning sessions are free and open to the public. Click on RSVP link on the right to RSVP for these sessions.
Online Registration will be available by mid-March. Click on RSVP link to register at this time.
Registration for Lunch and Afternoon Sessions:
$35 with lunch
Faculty, staff, alumnae: $25
Students: $20
Lunch Panel
Banned & Recovered: Artists Intervention is a collective response by 37 artists to the conspicuous success of book challenges and bannings in U.S. schools and libraries and the real threats to the U.S. Constitution posed by the 2003 U.S. Patriot Act.
Artists created new works of art inspired by titles from the long list of banned and challenged books. The result is a spectacular collection of witty, whimsical, angry, and thought-provoking statements about the ramifications of censorship and the importance of free speech. Together, the works shed new light on problematic issues and engage visitors in a lively dialog about the power of art in the face of censorship.
Panel artists:
Adrienne McGraw, MA, MS Ed; Mary V. March, MFA; Hanna Regev, MA; Milton Bowen, and Jan Wurm
Morning Session (10:50 – 11:50 am)
What is Your BIG Idea? - Beth Barany
Many people have something to say, a big message they want to share with the world. But they don't know how to get it out of their head and onto the page. In this talk, by writing coach and novelist, Beth Barany, she'll take you through the simple, yet powerful steps to get your powerful message into a book.
Write Your Book Now - Catharine Bramkamp
You have a marvelous idea, you have the tools, but just how do you get started? In this hands on workshop you will discover how to tap into your inner novelist or even tap into material you have to create the book you want.
Build Your Audience On-Line - Stephanie Chandler
In this content-rich presentation, you will learn how to build your audience online. We will cover blogging, search engine optimization, content marketing tactics, and social media for authors. Discover proven methods for reaching a global audience to build your platform and sell more books.
Afternoon Sessions (1:15 to 2:15 & 2:30 – 3:30)
Women in the Air - Jeane Slone
Did you know women flew as spies and bomber pilots in WWII? Jeane will present the Women Airforce Service Pilots. She will discuss: training, qualifications, how they tried to receive military benefits, 38 WASPs died and never went into combat, the Soviet Night Witches, why black women pilots were not accepted in the program, the WASPs received the gold medal 60 years later.
GALACTIC EXODUS: A Science Fiction Documentary or History of the Future - Michael Somers
Focusing on the work: Galactic Exodus, we will explore the meaning of science fiction, how does science fiction express our own socio-political arrangements, intercultural relations, the interplay of freedom and equality.
Writing and Self-Publishing as Personal Expressions of Liberation and Autonomy - K. Tutashinda
The talk focuses on how the Black Arts, Black Power, and Environmental Movements have served as a foundation for the author to use writing and self-publishing as participatory outlets.
Inheriting Identity: Fiction as Emotional Autobiography - Elizabeth Rosner
Sometimes a novelist's subject matter isn't chosen so much as discovered from within. In this talk, Ms. Rosner will share her process of finding -- and fictionalizing -- the complicated and dramatic material inside her family's history.
Building a Vibrant Fictional World - Tanya Egan Gibson
How do you create a fictional world that is unique yet believable, exciting yet grounded? Learn the various ways you can get the details of places right (even without a travel budget), how to make your world exciting, and how to use your world to strengthen both plot and characterization.
The Art of Spiritual Writing - Charles Burack, Ph.D.
Burack will discuss some of the literary techniques that writers and poets use when portraying spiritual experiences. He will also lead some experiential exercises that will help participants reflect on and write about their own sacred experiences.
What's Your Story? The Heart and Craft of Memoir Writing – Linda Joy Meyers
You have a story you've been meaning to tell, and you want to find a way to get started. Where to start is the biggest question memoir writers ask.
Also presenting: John Billheimer, author of the The Lloyd Keaton mystery series, and T. Thorn Coyle, author of Make Magic of Your Life and Kissing the Limitless