SiWC Blog
 Welcome to the first installment of our BRAND NEW blog feature.
From time to time, we'll be bringing you writing tidbits, suggestions, advice, and ideas from past and present presenters and other friends of the conference.
We'd love to hear your thoughts as we go along. Add your comments, and feel free to start writing-related conversations with other commenters right here in the blog comments.
Our first tip comes from Michael Slade:
SLADE'S RULE: LIVE YOUR FICTION. With a handheld recorder and a notebook, get out in the real world and act out your story. You'll gather many more details than your imagination will conceive, and your story will "suspend disbelief" because it's grounded in reality. For RED SNOW, Slade acted out the plot at Whistler. For EVIL EYE, he chased himself across Zimbabwe and Botswana. For BED OF NAILS, he hacked his way into the jungle and crawled through overgrown cannibal caves littered with hundreds of orange skeletons in the Cook Islands. Plot in a room and you might as we'll be serving life in prison.
Thanks, Slade! Sounds like a great excuse to set our books in places we'd really like to see, though there is that pesky matter of budget to consider. But as someone who's spent way too much time locked in my house in front of the computer this week, I say getting out in the world is great advice, not only to grond our stories in reality, but also to let us see and be inspired by what's out there, whether it's in Botswana or just down the street from where we live.
We can't help but wonder, though, whether there's a youtube video of you acting out RED SNOW in Whistler....
 Today's presenter is brand new to our SiWC family, and we're very pleased to have him with us.
Say hello to Jay Lake.
 Jay lives in Portland, Oregon, where he works on numerous writing and editing projects. His 2010 books are Pinion from Tor Books, The Baby Killers from PS Publishing, and The Sky That Wraps from Subterranean Press. His short fiction appears regularly in literary and genre markets worldwide. Jay is a winner of the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, and a multiple nominee for the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.
Jay maintains a regular blog on his website at www.jlake.com.
Welcome, Jay!
Emerald City Comicon just wrapped up in Seattle today. Sounds like a
good time was had by all! If you are in the region and looking for
something to do, make sure to check out Belva's List. Belva Lane,
partner of long-time SiWC presenter Wally Lane has been compiling a
pretty darned comprehensive guide of all things fun to do in and around
the Puget Sound...with or without a Wookie costume.
Check it out HERE.
~kc
also blogging as leftwriter
sweetly tweeting @kcdyer
About time I told you about another presenter, don't you think?
This time, let me introduce you to one of our wonderful returning presenters, this one an agent. Meet Sorche Fairbank of Fairbank Literary:
Since establishing Fairbank Literary Representation in 2002, Sorche Elizabeth Fairbank has had the pleasure of working with a dynamic and varied list, representing best-selling authors, Edgar recipients, award-winning journalists, and of course one of her favorite kinds of client – the first-time author. Her tastes in novels tend toward literary fiction, international voices and women’s voices, and the mystery/suspense genre. On the nonfiction side, she is most likely to take on books that tackle current events and societal issues with a narrative treatment. She has a strong interest in women’s voices and class and race issues, quality lifestyle books (food, wine, and home design), sports, and pop culture.
Subjects and genres not of interest to Sorche and Fairbank Literary include: sci-fi and fantasy, children’s and YA, self-help, romance, sports fiction, or anything that opens with a dream scene and/or exhaustive descriptions of weather.
The time has come! I can finally tell you about some of our 2010 presenters. Watch this space. I'll be introducing them in blog posts periodically over the coming days and weeks.
I am thrilled with our line-up for this year. Come October, we'll roll out the red carpet for old friends and new from all over North America and the UK.
Let's get started! First up, a man who probably always came last - or close to it - in the attendance roll call at school, so we'll switch things up and put him first on our presenter roll call.
Lots of writing events coming up for those who might be interested. Check these out to see if there is something in YOUR area!
March:
If you are in Florida, [or just WANT to be!] long-time presenter and friend of the conference Hallie Ephron will be presenting at the Key West Studios March 19 and 20th, 2010. Details HERE.
May:
If you are in or about north-central Washington state in May, Write On The River presents an event with SiWC presenter and friend Terry Brooks as the keynote speaker. Details HERE.
June:
CanWrite 2010 is the Canadian Author Association's yearly event -- this year in Victoria, BC at the end of June.
Find out all details HERE.
[full disclosure -- I'll be one of the speakers there...]
I'm sure there will be more events soon -- lots to keep you busy until SiWC 2010 rolls around!
And finally, a bit of good news for one of our long-time poetry judges. Susan McCaslin's latest book of poetry DEMETER GOES SKYDIVING has been accepted for publication in 2010 by th University of Alberta Press. Congratulations, Susan! I can't wait to read this contemporary poetic of the Demeter and Persephone myth.
~kc
Oh boy. Exciting stuff going on here at SiWC Central. Can you see me dancing in my chair as I write this? (Hmmm... that's actually kind of a disturbing thought... *looking around for cameras*)
We have an amazing presenter line-up shaping up for 2010, and I can't wait to tell you about it. And very, very soon, I get to do just that. Watch this space in the next days and weeks, and you'll be among the first to know just whose workshops you'll be enjoying in October.
Stay tuned!
Next Monday, March 8th, there will be a great panel on the subject at the Vancouver Public Library.
Details HERE on my blog.
Enjoy!
~kc
also blogging as leftwriter
sweetly tweeting @kcdyer
Check out long-time conference attendee and writer Ev Bishop's blog post HERE. A great idea of how to keep that SiWC feeling alive all year 'round!
[Also, if you are in the Vancouver area, check out the grand finale of the W2 Real Writers series details on my blog HERE. Quite a few SiWC presenters on stage. Love to see you there!]
~kc
blogging at leftwriter
tweeting sweetingly @kcdyer
Wondering how to enter the SiWC writing contest? The guidelines for 2010 are up at http://www.siwc.ca/contest/2010 Check them out!
Our deadline this year is Friday, September 10, 2010, but no need to wait until the very last minute. With $1000 prizes in every category, why not use the time to explore a new genre as well as your favourite? Categories are poetry, storytellers, non-fiction, and writing for young people. September will be here before we know it, and we're already looking forward to reading your efforts. Happy writing!
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