This coming Friday and Saturday, June 27 and 28, I'll be moderating two panels at the Greater Los Angeles Writers Conference. According to its program materials: West Coast Writers Conferences presents a full weekend of panels, workshops and presentations by educators, noted speakers, and industry professionals focused on the craft and business of writing. This conference differentiates itself by presenting individual program streams for (what we call the 3-A's) Aspiring,Active, and Accomplished writers. Topics are offered in progressive streams, so you are immersed all weekend in an exciting and educational environment. You chose your level of participation and areas of interest, and may crossover to other levels at any time. Speakers and panelists are selected based on who is best suited to the curriculum, so you get the most informed workshops and presentations. Along with some perennial favorites, we are pleased to include important new voices and industry experts. If … [Read more...]
The Greater Los Angeles Writers Conference is this weekend
Using memoir writing to deal with grief
On Sunday I'll co-lead a workshop called Telling Healing Stories at the Story Circle Network's writers conference in Austin TX. One of our goals for this workshop is provide the tools for our participants to address ways to transform a loss or crisis into readable and inspiring prose. It has been proven that writing is healing, and I happen to think that any creative outlet is beneficial to recovering from a traumatic event in our lives. My son Paul killed himself in September 1999 after a seven-year struggle with bipolar disorder, and I signed up for a writing class three months after his death. We sat in the instructor's living room on couches and big easy chairs in a comfortable and forgiving atmosphere. Each week the instructor told us to write a journal entry. He didn't specify a subject. This was a beginner's class. All he wanted us to do was learn to write like you talk, and to write in a voice that came from deep within our bellies. And then we'd come back the next week … [Read more...]
