Friday, October 19, 2012

Follow Friday: The South Carolina Writers Workshop Conference 2012

I love this conference, and this is my first year as a volunteer. A few things made today exciting, all of them centered around people worth following!

I had dinner with the lovely Kim Boykin and her agent Kevan Lyon of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. We discussed the intense impact of the Fifty Shades phenomenon; the industry now looks at erotica and self-published books with a more open mind. I forgot to ask Kevan about her client Katie McGarry and the story behind her book Pushing the Limits. I couldn't put that one down. I truly need to blog about it.

Denise Roy's Class An Insider's Guide on How to Get Published hit all of the highest and lowest notes of the industry. Getting a book published is all about finding other people who will get excited about it - agent, editors, readers. She emphatically recommended The Merchants of Culture by John B. Thompson.

The Petigru Review literary journal was revealed, and I found out that my professor James Barilla and two MFA students I know were judges. Congratulations to Alexis Stratton and Brandi Ballard! Not to mention all of the journal's writers and award winners!

This is the view from my room. U jelly?




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8 comments:

  1. AnonymousOctober 23, 2012 at 3:46 AM

    You volunteers made the conference a true pleasure - thanks so much! Hey, I think your room was just down from mine because I could see that pool from a slightly different angle LOL

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    1. UnknownOctober 23, 2012 at 5:21 AM

      Excellent! Were you also on the 11th floor? Such a beautiful view... and such noisy kids down at those pools on Saturday night! Durn hooligans.

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  2. womenswritesOctober 23, 2012 at 3:58 AM

    The conference was amazing and seeing you and everyone was the best part!

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    1. UnknownOctober 23, 2012 at 5:25 AM

      Thank you! It's such a warm community, isn't it? I didn't notice anyone being standoffish or creepy at ALL this year.

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  3. Valerie Keiser NorrisOctober 23, 2012 at 4:15 AM

    Courtney, thank you again for offering to cover for me on Sunday! Even though it turned out no one was needed for that shift, I appreciate your willingness to do it.

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    1. UnknownOctober 23, 2012 at 5:27 AM

      Hi Valerie! I appreciate your superior information & ability to get up before 7am. Thank you!

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  4. Author JM KelleyOctober 23, 2012 at 6:42 AM

    The dinners are fantastic. I love having the opportunity to have casual, pressure-free experience with a random faculty member and just listen to what they have to say, be it about the industry, or what they enjoy reading in their free time.

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    1. UnknownOctober 23, 2012 at 11:56 AM

      Yess. In the past, I've been at tables where everyone was too nervous to speak. Not this year! We were all talking over each other.

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