Thoughts on the Surrey International Writers' Conference

This weekend, I attended the 18th annual Surrey International Writers’ Conference. This conference for writers has been gaining a lot of attention as one of the friendliest, most informative, and fun conferences in North America, and it is. I mean, where else would you see well known crime writer Anne Perry mingling with attendees. She even sat in on a workshop offered by agent Ken Sherman that I attended, and later thanked me for helping out at the volunteer desk during agent/editor appointments. And I saw this friendliness everywhere. With about eighty enthusiastic volunteers, it’s no wonder things ran pretty smoothly.

For those of you who’ve never heard of SIWC, this is a three-day event (four for those taking masters classes) that offers oodles of workshops and panel discussions on nearly every topic imaginable. While the most of the workshops focus on some aspect of fiction, there are workshops for poets, nonfiction writers, and film script writers. Three, ninety-minute workshops happen simultaneously in nine different meeting rooms, so picking and choosing a workshop of choice can be a tough decision. But you’re free to come and go discreetly, and many attendees have to because their agent/editor appointments are also scheduled throughout the day.

One of the beauties of this conference is the opportunity for authors to have short, one-on-one sessions with editors and agents to pitch their work. There is also a blue pencil café, where you can have a few pages of your work evaluated. Pitch practice sessions are also offered to go over your approach before you do the real thing.

This was my sixth conference over a thirteen year period. Three years ago, I had the good fortune to win an honourable mention in the short fiction category and receive an award from Jack Whyte and Diana Gabaldon. This time, I made the shortlist, but alas, no prize. Still, it was worth it to write short stories again, and actually finish a piece.

For the first time, I attended a masters class, and this one was conducted by thriller writer James Scott Bell, who provided a really informative look at taking fiction to the next level. Even though I already knew many of the writing tips given in workshops, there were still a handful of intriguing ideas that have made me rethink how I approach things like setting and story structure. For anyone who’d like more information about next year’s conference here’s the link to give you more information: www.siwc.ca Enjoy!

My Vancouver-based, Alex Bellamy mysteries can be purchased at
FATAL ENCRYPTION, http://tinyurl.com/ddzsxl
TAXED TO DEATH, http://tinyurl.com/czsy5n

Aloha and Mahalo, Hawaii

Yesterday, I was eating breakfast on a sundeck, barefoot and in my sundress, watching swaying palm trees and a rainbow arcing up into the clouds. Today, I was walking with my umbrella, winter gloves, boots, and two layers of clothing under a heavy coat after arriving home from Hawaii at about one a.m. this morning. Don’t you hate it when that happens? On the other hand, maybe I wouldn’t have appreciated the heat and sun as much if it had been the same weather here in the pacific northwest. I mean, there’s a good reason people go to tropical climates in winter.

My good reason was the Left Coast Crime conference at the Waikoloa Marriott Beach Resort. This was my first trip back to Hawaii since 1981 and my first time ever on the Big Island. What a place! The variety of vegetation and geography alone could fill a couple of blogs, but I want to talk about the wonderful LCC conference organized by Toby and Bill Gottffried and a team of friendly committee members who helped make the conference memorable, fun, and relaxed.

As always, the best part of going was meeting new people; some aspiring writers and others fans of mystery novels. I’ve come back recharged, raring to work on various writing projects. The third draft of my current work in progress had been going painfully slow, but I’ve edited four chapters this week alone, thanks to my husband’s laptop and my trusty flash drive. I wasn’t sure I would work in Hawaii at all, but the desire to write was revving up, so I spent an hour a day on the book, and the rest of my time was devoted to conference fun, site seeing, and shopping.

If you’ve never been to a conference before, save up and treat yourself, and make the most of the panels and discussions and social events. Writers especially need to network and these events present great opportunities. There are all types of conferences for different genres or just general writers’ conferences. If you Google key words in your area of interest, you’ll find a huge source of information. And if you know of a great one to recommend, feel free to contact me and I’ll share the info with others.

To read excerpts of Fatal Encryption and Taxed to Death—now both on Kindle—visit http://www.debrapurdykong.com/

Hawaii in March Anyone?

Conventions and conferences for mystery writers are popular in the U.S. In fact, there’s one almost every month of the year. All of them have panel discussions on a large variety of topics, but it seems there are always more authors vying for panel spots than there are spots available. So I guess it’s no surprise that a couple of years ago, some conference organizers decided that rules needed to be set up regarding who’s actually qualified to sit on a panel. And thus the trouble started.

You see, some organizers decided to only accept authors whose books were published by recognized publishers on the Mystery Writers of America’s “approved” list. The thing is, most of the publishers on that list are well established. Needless to say, this decision’s infuriated a number of authors and smaller, newer publishers whose books are selling, generating fans, and even winning awards.

I make no secret of the fact that I’m a self-published author with my own company. After all, this is how Intrigue Press and several other established houses started. Someone has to start somewhere, right? So when I sign up to attend conferences, I’m completely honest about my publishing status on the forms and, to my delight, I’m frequently invited on panels. Clearly, there are conference organizers who are open to new voices with humble beginnings.

And on that happy note, I’d like to announce that I’ll be appearing on two panels at this year’s LEFT COAST CRIME Conference on the big Island of Hawaii from March 6 to 12th: The panels are:

Mon., March 9 – Cool Canadian Settings
Thurs., March 12 – Going It Alone: Small or Independent presses Instead of Traditional

They should be fun, and my hat’s off to anyone interested in writers who work as hard at their craft as the big names do. We might be small and unknown and on some levels stigmatized, but we are only too happy to meet people and discuss books and writing. We sell one book at a time and are grateful for every opportunity and every reader who takes a chance on us. Bravo to those of you who do!!

To read excerpts from TAXED TO DEATH or FATAL ENCRYPTION, visit www.debrapurdykong.com

Attention writers! Sign up for CanWrite!

I'll be speaking at the Canadian Authors Association Annual National Conference - CanWrite! in Edmonton July 3-6. The conference has a great line up of sessions, panels, keynotes and special events and I encourage you to attend. This is great opportunity to meet authors, editors, publishers and agents from across Canada.

If you're a writer and can make it to Edmonton during the above dates, be sure to register.

Learn more about CanWrite! Conference 2008 at www.canauthorsalberta.ca/CanWrite

I hope to see you there!

~Cheryl Kaye Tardif, a proud Canadian suspense author

How I Spent My Weekend

This weekend, I did something I'd never done before. I attended a romance writer's conference. The Vancouver chapter of the RWA put on an event at a gorgeous hotel overlooking the Fraser River in New Westminster, not far from where I live.

Now, I've been to my share of mystery conferences. After all, it's what I write, but a colleague invited me (she's working on a romance) to this one, and since a local law enforcement officer would be giving a workshop, not to mention the talented Lisa Jackson and Vancouver's own Michael Slade, the opportunity sounded too good to miss.

The conference, in fact, was terrific. Speakers were entertaining, funny, informative, the attendees incredibly friendly, and the food terrific. This was the shorest conference I've ever been to--just Friday evening and Saturday until five--so I was surprised to receive a large complimentary bag containing books and other goodies. Breakfast, lunch, and a cookie break were part of the deal too.

I made copious notes, exchanged business cards with some terrific people, got an idea for a new series (I couldn't stop writing notes for a half hour), and learned about a fantastic website for crime writers. Mostly, I discovered that romance writing has evolved into an incredibly diverse genre since I last picked up a romance paperback. I guess I've spent too much time reading only mysteries because I had no idea there was such a thing as erotic suspense. Yahoo! I also learned more about urban fantasy, paranormal romantic suspense, historical suspense, and on and on.

So, I've started a brand new TBR pile, and if anyone out there can recommend some great reads, let me know and onto the pile it'll go.

Debra Purdy Kong
FATAL ENCRYPTION available at amazon.com
For excerpts, visit me at www.debrapurdykong.com

Surrey International Writers' Conference

Held every October in Surrey, BC, the three-day Surrey International Writers' Conference is a terrific opportunity for all types of writers - poets, novelists, travel writers, screen writers, childrens' writers, editors, etc. to improve their craft and meet other writers. On Thursday, master classes are offered to those who apply. This year, there were 70 workshops, panels, and discussions and 1,500 blue pencil/agent/edit interviews, and a few of those resulted in contracts for lucky (and probably well prepared) attendees. Also, as I mentioned in an earlier blog, there was also a writing contest, and another one will be offered next year.

Aside from the fact that SIWC is close to home for me, the other great thing about this conference is that I'm always learning something. This was my fifth visit in the past decade, and although my main goal was to obtain an interview with an agent, which I did, I learned a great deal about plotting a mystery from presenter, Anne Perry. Hallie Ephron offered a fantastic workshop on POV, complete with worksheets, exercises and examples. I thought I knew this stuff, but she made me rethink things. Other presenters included Donald Maass, Diana Gabaldon, Jack Whyte and a long list of well known writers. The food was good, the conference well organized, and the opportunities to learn, network, and meet an agent/editor one-on-one, immense. If you need to jumpstart your writing, or just need a change of scene, give it a try.

Next year's conference will be from Oct. 24 - 26th. For more info. visit www.siwc.ca.