Storysmith 2019 Spring Writing Conference
Enjoy Key Speakers During Our Morning, Lunch, and Afternoon Sessions!
Registration Options:
Full Day
WGT Member: $75
Non-member: $95
Student*: $85
Half Day
WGT Member: $55
Non-member: $70
Student*: $60
*Must be a current student of Collin College with valid ID.
Pre-register by April 30 to get a FREE lunch (full day registration required).
All prices increase $15 at the door.
Morning Session (9am–noon):
“Surf the Waves: Writing Compelling Character” with Amber Royer
Certain characters stick with you long after you’ve closed the book’s pages. Other works may be technically perfect and yet the characters themselves are forgettable. We will delve into the importance of the reader’s early emotional attachment and how to maintain that attachment throughout a novel. This interactive seminar will also offer answers to:
What is the difference between a static and adynamic character?
How do I create a transformative character arc?
Why is it important for a character to have agency?
Lunch Session (12:15–1:45pm):
(full day registration required)
“Rip The Moon: A Storyteller's Guide to Story Climax” with Daniel Wells
What would it take to Rip the Moon?
We can measure force, torque, and gravity; we can hypothesize the manner in which 7.35 x 10^22 kg is pulled apart. But how does something that catastrophic happen?
“Ripping the Moon” is a metaphor for the climax of every story that’s ever been told. As writers, we utilize the formulas, arcs, acts, and journeys to plan and execute our creative projects, and rewrite our work until, in our eyes, it’s perfect.
In this workshop, we will add an additional tool to the effective storytelling toolbelt for every storyteller, which can be revisited at every step of the development cycle from planning and execution, to writing queries and preparing the big pitch.
Afternoon Session (2–5pm):
“Formed in Fire: Storysmithing with Passion and Precision” with Tex Thompson
Should you write three acts or five? ‘Save the Cat’ or pants a zero-draft? And the $64 question: is there life outside the Hero’s Journey?
If you are long on plotting advice and short on certainty, have no fear: there is a process and a story structure that will suit you perfectly – and we are going to find it! Come take a tour of the most common story shapes, discover the logic they are built on, and learn how you can adapt or even abandon them in a way that still satisfies your voice, your vision, and your readers. Forget the formulas, and prepare to take your place at the forge!
click flyer to enlarge
DATE:
Saturday, May 4th, 9am–5pm
LOCATION:
Collin College Conference Center
2400 Community Ave
McKinney, TX 75071
(map)
SCHEDULE:
8:30am: Morning/Full Day Registration
9:00am–noon: Morning Session (Compelling Characters)
12:00–12:15pm: Break
12:15–1:45pm: Lunch Session (Story Climax)
1:45–2:00pm: Afternoon Registration/Break
2:00–5:00pm: Afternoon Session (Storysmithing)
5:00–5:30pm: WGT Author Meet & Greet
The Writers Guild of Texas presents two Writers' Workshops each year — one in the Spring and one in the Fall.