Do you really want to sell your books?

That is the key question every indie writer must answer. If your answer is an emphatic "YES!" then this workshop is for you. Our focus will be 1) the face of your book; 2) the myriad details and necessary quality control during book production; 3) the protection of your brand via quality assurance. (If you aren't sure how to I.D. your brand, we'll help you with that, too!)

Moderated by Now Write! book series editor Laurie Lamson.

If you were an agent, would you take you on? What have you done? What are you doing? What to do and what not to do--the ABC's of preparation.

The world of publishing is rapidly changing. Obsolete, restrictive structures are falling away. You now have more choices than ever as you launch your writing career. Join veteran SCWC attendee and presenter Jeff Michaels as he welcomes and introduces you to the community of SCWC. In this foundational session, you will explore your ever-increasing options. As a result of this session, you will create your personal path by gaining the greatest benefits from the information and inspiration offered this weekend. Your attendance will assist you in maximizing the potential for your creative and publishing successes.

Welcome to the community of SCWC. Embrace the possibilities available to you now!

Have you ever wondered why some books and stories are adapted into movies, and others aren’t? Or wished you could sit down and pick the brains of the people whose stories have been adapted—or the screenwriters, producers, and directors who adapted them?

Author, screenwriter, and producer John Robert Marlow has done it for you. He spoke to book authors, playwrights, comic book creators and publishers, as well as Hollywood screenwriters, producers and directors responsible for adapting fictional and true stories into Emmy-winning TV shows, Oscar-winning films, billion-dollar megahits and smaller independents. Then he talked to the entertainment attorneys who made the deals.

He came away with a unique understanding of adaptations—an understanding he shares in this workshop: which stories make good source material (and why); what Hollywood wants (and doesn’t); what you can (and can’t) get in a movie deal; how to write and pitch your story to maximize the chances of a Hollywood adaptation, how much (and when) you can expect to be paid—and why adaptations now rule at both the box office (16 of the top 20 all-time highest-grossing films) and the Academy Awards (6 of this year’s 9 Best Picture nominees).

This workshop contains the distilled experience of creators, storytellers and others whose works have earned over $50 billion worldwide.

Whether you’re looking to sell film rights, adapt your own story (alone or with help), or option and adapt someone else’s property—this workshop is for you.

Sheri Fink, author of the #1 best-selling children’s books, The Little Rose and The Little Gnome, will share her inspirational journey to becoming a children's author, why she chose to self-publish, and how it’s transformed her life. She’ll impart what she’s learned along the way publishing her first two children’s books and becoming an entrepreneur. In addition, Sheri will provide a framework for success as an independent author (including mindset, marketing strategies, and support) and will share her (sometimes controversial) advice to save you time, money, and headaches along your author journey. Whether you’re traditionally published, independently published, or hoping to one day be published, you don’t want to miss this insightful, strategy-packed session

From a skillfully crafted and edited manuscript to success as an Indie writer, there are no shortcuts. Laura Taylor (450,000 digital downloads of her books during the previous year) and her co-presenter, Dennis Bowen, will share their insights and experience in establishing a presence among readers and generating book sales. Attendees will emerge from the workshop with a roadmap for the journey ahead and a checklist designed to guide them in their pursuit of success as Indie writers.

In this workshop author Bridget Hoida will discuss how she found a micropress to imprint her novel, So L.A., as a limited edition press run. Largely unknown, the micropress offers a unique alternative to authors seeking publication outside of big (and small) publishing houses. Very much a DIY endeavor, micropublishing demands constant participation from the author. Bridget will also share with you many of the strategies she learned to help catch the eye of prominent reviewers (The Clarion Review, Kirkus), the press (CBS, newspapers and radio), universities (USC, UC Berkeley) and social media outlets (renown bloggers, book clubs, Twitter & Facebook) without a "big name press" backing her book.

Ever wonder how to get those great ideas bubbling in your head into a great story? Russell Nohelty will show you the elements most writers miss in building a story, how they get stuck in a hole, and what to do before the first draft even begins to be sure you don't get lose steam in the middle.

Many of us became writers because of our love of language. But language is more than words. Language is sound, rhythm and music; it is texture and layers. Art and graffiti. Attitude and place, geography and history. Language is what you do with words and it is the space between words. This workshop is for writers who want to learn how to use language to craft powerful sentences, how to choose words that “show” emotions, and how writing from the senses seduces the reader into the world of the story.

Ever wonder about creating a comic? In this seminar, Russell Nohelty explains what makes comics special, why you should be involved in writing them and how to build one from the ground up.

The first thing most beginning writers learn is that their  work must fit into an established genre. People will ask,  “What do you write – thrillers, mysteries, literary fiction?”  Each genre has its own rules, which writers learn when they  attend writers’ workshops and conferences. For mysteries, the  main rule seems to be: plot first. But what if, like me, the  biggest mysteries in your life are the people who live with  and around you? What if, like me, one of your favorite books  in the world involves an old man sitting in a cabin by himself  where in terms of plot, nothing happens? Can the development  of character provide the same jolt that the unraveling of a  crime provides in a traditional mystery? This presentation  will address the notion of genre, why it’s important, and why,  most of the time, your concept for your story should be held  above all else.

Where does real life end and fiction begin? This workshop examines how creative use of the imagination can take the facts of real life and the “what if” of fiction and weave them into a compelling story. We’ll explore the shape-shifting of memory, truth vs. fact, creating composite characters, compression of time and place and the urge of the intuitive mind to recast the events of our lives into stories that reveal the truth of our experiences and the commonalties of humankind. We’ll also answer two important questions: 1) whose story is it anyhow? And, 2) can I get sued for writing this?

We've all been there - when the seemingly rutterless works just poured out of us and the book appeared to be steering itself. It is from that seemingly blissful, yet supposedly unusual and unnerving state that all of the great books and the most moving of passages have been written. Being able to dip into that state and, most of all staying there, is what makes good books great and the writing of them not only enjoyable, but fast. So fast, in fact, that people utilizing the proven methods suggested by best selling author Tom Bird, complete the writing of their beloved books in a weekend. Yes, you got that write (oops, we mean 'right), a weekend. In fact, only one of the persons to attend his Write Your Publishable Book in a Weekend Retreats from this year, over 200, didn't finish his book, and that was because he got a late start. Ninety percent of those in attendance at his retreats this year, completed their books in the first two days of the three day retreat. As Tom will show, doing your best writing doesn't have to be hard, difficult, painstaking or take a long time. To the contrary, it can be fast, enjoyable, thrilling, efficient and oh so very profitable. Using Tom's method, you won't have to quick your job, fire your spouse, orphan the kids or rearrange your life in any great way to be the author you have always wanted to be. For all you will need is a weekend.

We’ve all been there. We’ve all felt it. When the words just came pouring through us faster than we could possibly keep up with. It is from that exact state, commonly referred to as ‘The Author’s Zone State,’ that all great works of writing have come The key to writing a really great book?

Getting in that state and staying in that state as your book literally writes itself. How long does it take to complete the writing of one’s publishable book while in that state? Just over two days. And not only will you book finally be released, completed and near ready to be moved onto publication, but by employing Tom Bird’s unique inside/out approach to writing, not only will you be gifted with a potentially new career, but as the result of healing capacities of writing from this state, you could be given a whole new lease on life.

In this course, Bird, the author of 24 books and who has worked with over 80,000 aspiring authors, shares it all. Just from this lecture, you will leave a new/enhanced person, capable of first seeing and then harnessing the unique and special gifts you potentially possess as both a person and as an author.

As a result of this talk, not only will you be offered the keys to be the author you always wanted to be, and you will never, ever suffer from writer’s block ever again. Who you want to be as an author and as an individual is only a weekend away.

This workshop outlines the essential principles needed to help you craft highly successful stories from engaging concept all the way through relatable characters and enticing action and humor. Based upon the insightful new book, Creating Blockbusters, it includes new research that outlines what audiences expect from storytelling. It's as close as you'll get to the DNA of effective narrative to help you maximize broad audience appeal through marketable artistry.

This covers the difference between writing something that has a small audience and capturing an editor’s attention.

Topics covered:

1.      What makes for a big story?

2.      The “Who Cares” Factor/What’s the Point?

3.      Who are you, and what is your hook?

Three things people will learn:

1.      Authors will learn to study the marketplace and trends.

2.      Authors will learn to think about their hook and work on their platform.

Authors will understand the importance of having a message.

As a writer you are a highly creative individual. Successful creative writers rely on the ability to consistently access clear inspiration in their works. The word “inspiration” shares its origins with the words “spirit” and “breath.” Just as breathing is natural, the development of this creative spirit must become a natural component of your evolving skills as a writer.

In this session:

·Gain techniques to stimulate inspiration

·Become a conduit for your characters

·Achieve a constant creative flow

·iberate yourself from writer’s block

Write heartfelt prose and poetry!

Based on concepts that infuse "The Hero's Journey", the Transformative Narrative workshop explores the elements necessary to structure a dynamic narrative that takes your audience on a journey from start to finish with an opening that pulls them in, and an ending that leaves them satisfied.

This session deals with the three most important questions agents and editors ask when talking to authors.

Topics covered:

1. “Why is your book unique?”
2. “Why would anyone want to read it?”
3. “Who is your target audience?”

What conferees will learn by attending this session:

1. Authors will learn how to decipher and define the unique elements of their book.
2. Authors will learn how to pull out the universally appealing essentials of their book that will encourage demand.
3. Authors will learn how to define promote to their target audience.

Are you having a hard time writing compelling and believable sex scenes? Expose yourself on the page (but keep your clothes on). This workshop will help you layer your characters and conflict with authentic sensuality. Our craft talk and writing exercises will help you create scenes so vivid your book will stand out (or up). Class will also include samples of erotic literature sans pictorals. Open to a limited number of participants, by the end of this session you'll have teased out a short piece that channels your inner Anais Nin.

The SCWC*LA offers conferees optional Advance Submission Critique of manuscripts, followed by one-on-one consultation with our respective Reader(s), for an additional fee of $50. You will find each Reader's submission criterion under their individual bios on the Staff page, once available. If you are uncertain of who would be best for you, e-mail Michael Steven Gregory or phone him at (619) 303-8185 for guidance.

All Advance Submission Material must be received for the L.A. conference via regular post (USPS, UPS, FedEx, etc.) by no later than September 1, 2013. Advance Manuscript Critique is available only to registered Full Conference or NovelCram registrants. Appointment times for individual one-on-one consults will be made available at the Registration Desk upon check-in.

Address your manuscript to the appropriate Reader c/o SCWC*LA, 1010 University Ave., #54, San Diego, CA 92103. You may register first then submit your material later, so long as material is received no later than the deadline. You may also submit material to more than one Reader, accompanied by additional payment.

Read below for detailed information on formatting and what to expect from your one-on-one consultation.

All You Need to Know about Advance Submissions

1. What should I expect from my advance submission reader?
2. Who can submit manuscript pages prior to the conference?
3. How do I choose more than one reader?
4. What should be included in my submission?
5. Can I submit pages from the middle of my book?
6. What is the _proper format_ for manuscript pages?
7. Should I include a cover letter?
8. Should I include a synopsis?
9. Is my cover letter and/or synopsis considered part of my page count?
10. Where do I send my advance submission?
11. Can I place multiple submissions in one envelope?
12. Do you accept submissions via email?
13. What is the deadline for submitting?
14. What if I need help choosing a reader?

Q: What should I expect from my advance submission reader?

A: Everybody wants an agent. A tendency for many writers is to believe that their recently completed manuscript is polished enough to warrant professional consideration by an agent or house editor. Unfortunately, this is seldom the case.

Because so many writers work in isolation, devoid of empirically qualified, critical feedback of their material, too often the book submitted is far from ready. Many feel discouraged by the propensity of agents to simply reject their material without providing definitive solutions to making the book a title that they would otherwise agree to handle.

What's important is to understand the agent's job: selling books is the agent's livelihood. While there are exceptions, the bulk of agents merely react to material submitted for one-on-one. For them the only question is, "Can I sell this book or not?" Their job is not supposed to be troubleshooting lackluster or problematic aspects of execution. And the fact is, many simply are not qualified to do so so don't expect them to.

Keeping that in mind, take into account when choosing your reader(s) that the bulk of the nearly $4 million worth of first-time author book and screen success facilitated by the SCWC has come not from the agents on board, but from the authors. It is the working writers who are steeped in the realities of the publishing world from the writers' side of things. And it is far more often only the working writers that can troubleshoot material in a thoughtful, substantive and communicative manner, help find solutions and even shepherd manuscripts to industry contacts.

Submit to as many agents as you wish, but don't dismiss the staff authors accepting advance submissions simply because you think they'll have less value in getting you published. Reality is, it's usually the other way around.

Q: Who can submit manuscript pages prior to the conference?

A: Advance submission of manuscript pages for evaluation prior to the conference, followed by one-on-one consultation with the reader(s) of your choice during the event is available only to Full Conference or Saturday/Sunday registered conferees.

Q: How do I choose more than one reader?

A: Out online shopping cart is configured to easily select multiple readers.  If using hardcopy registration form, select all the readers that you wish to submit to under the "first choice" column. In the "second choice" column select any readers you wish your pages to go to in the event one of the readers in the first column becomes unavailable. Think of the second column as being only for emergency backup.

Multiply the number of readers selected in the "first choice" column by $50.00 and add the figure to your registration fee.

Q: What should be included in my submission?

A: Unless otherwise noted, you may submit up to the first 20 pages of your manuscript, in standard professional submission format. A cover letter and brief synopsis (for fiction and narrative nonfiction) may also be included, but does not count as part of your total number of manuscript pages (usually 15 or 20).

Q: Can I submit pages from the middle of my book?

A: No. Regardless of how exceptional material may be later in the manuscript, no readers will ever discover it because of their inability to get beyond lackluster, problematic or downright sucky opening pages.

Q: What is the "proper format" of manuscript pages?

A: As follows...

• Times New Roman, 12 pt. font

• Double-spaced print on one side of the paper

• No double spaces between paragraphs (unless it’s a page break)

• Single space only after periods

• Header (TITLE/Your Last Name on left margin; then the page number (against right margin) starting w/page 2)

Q: Should I include a cover letter?

A: While not mandatory for advance submission feedback, a cover letter is recommended if for no other reason than to apprise the reader of what genre the pages s/he will be reading is and provide a thumbnail understanding about what the story is about.

The last thing anybody wants is to submit a contemporary dark thriller, the execution of which leads the reader to believe is a comedic fantasy. (It's happened!)

Q: Should I include a synopsis?

A: The inclusion of a synopsis is up to you. If you've got a polished 1- or 2-page synopsis it never hurts to include it. However, writing a great synopsis is an art unto itself and the bane of many authors. Afterall, if you could've written your book in 1 or 2 pages, you wouldn't have wasted so much time with the other 300!

In our estimates, submitting a poorly executed synopsis is worse than submitting no synopsis at all as it may serve to undermine readers' confidence in the author's manuscript pages. Proceed with care. Here is an approach and example of a synopsis for reference.

Q: Is my cover letter and/or synopsis considered part of my page count?

A: No. Cover letters and synopses do not figure into the count of your total number of first pages (usually 15 or 20).

Q: Where do I send my advance submission?

Address your submission(s) package to the SCWC, 1010 University Avenue, #54, San Diego, CA 92103.

Q: Can I place multiple submissions in one envelope?

A: Yes. Including multiple submissions in one envelope is encouraged and will naturally reduce your cost of mailing submissions.

Q: Do you accept submissions via email?

A: No. The SCWC does not accept advance submissions via email.

Q: What is the deadline for submitting?

A: Deadline for the SCWC*Los Angeles (in Newport Beach) is September 1, 2013, excluding readers who have indicated otherwise. Advance submission material must be received by the deadline. No exceptions.

Q: What if I need help choosing a reader?

A: If you need guidance choosing a reader, feel free to contact SCWC Executive Director Michael Steven Gregory or SCWC Director Wes Albers via email or phone.

NovelCram is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a one-of-a-kind weekend intensive available only at the Southern California Writer’s Conference.  A stand-alone track that starts Friday at 2 PM and runs through Sunday, 12:10 PM, from concept through completion NovelCram covers everything you need to know about putting a novel together.  Beginning with a one-on-one opportunity to vet your idea with a seasoned author and editor, NovelCram teaches what it takes to create a popular novel in today’s publishing world: plot and scene structure, dramatic development, character development, dialog, pacing, narrative drive and much more.  Ideal for novelists who have finished a first or second draft or had their manuscript rejected one time too many, NovelCram is also a great way for even accomplished authors to get their new book off to a winning start.

While participating requires attending every NovelCram workshop, Crammers are free to attend all other SCWC functions, such as special guest speakers, agents panel, Rogue workshops, etc., when NovelCram is not in session.  Crammers may also leave the NovelCram to attend optional pre-scheduled one-on-one appointments with advance submission readers.

The NovelCram consists of the following sessions:

1. Goals, Orientation and Organization
2. Prewriting the Practice Novel
3. Plotting the Novel
4. Chapter One
5. Character Construction
6. Scene, Dialogue and Conflict
7. Read and Critique of Chapter One
8. Completing the Novel

If you're ready to Cram, bring pen and paper (laptop computer highly recommended), snacks, and plenty of water.  You're going to write!

Please note that this track requires a minimum number of participants and will be removed from the schedule if not met.

You may register in person at the conference, availability permitting. Space is limited, so the best option to ensure you have a spot is to register beforehand using the online form using the Registration link above.

Lunch is on your own. Dine at the hotel, or at a nearby eatery.

A non-casual / semi-formal dining experience with all the new friends you've made at the conference. Followed by an evening special guest speaker.

Come and join your fellow conferees to hear Michael Steven Gregory and Wes Albers pontificate on what makes this writing conference so special.

Rub elbows with publishing industry insiders and make new friends with fellow writers (you know, so you can blurb each others' books).

Agents - Editors - Publishers - Authors...and a cash bar! Where else would you want to be?

Evening Keynote / Special Guest Speakers to be announced as we near the date of the conference.

Morning Speakers and topics to be announced as we near the date of the conference.

Business And Alternative Workshops to be announced as we near the date of the conference.

Fiction Read-And-Critique Workshops to be announced as we near the date of the conference.

Workshops - Non-Fiction to be announced as we near the date of the conference.

Workshops - Fiction to be announced as we near the date of the conference.