Writing.wise

Here is the press release for Writing.wise, an event that is coming up November 13th. It sounds like great fun, and I am looking forward to meeting this eclectic group.

The event is being organized by Maryse de la Giroday of FrogHeart Communications. Come out and join us!

Writing.wise—a rip roaring, rip snorting, profane, world shaking, rabble rousing...event for writers in Vancouver is being presented by the Society for Technical Communication Canada West Coast Chapter, Masters of Digital Media at Great Northern Way Campus, Vancouver Comicon, The Shebeen Club, Simon Fraser University Writing & Publishing Program, and FrogHeart Communications.

Meet a diverse panel of writers and engage in a lively discussion about stories and narrative in games, comic books, new media, books (fiction and non fiction), and song.
· Kaare Andrews is a writer and artist who has worked on comic books such as the Incredible Hulk, Ultimate X-Men, Amazing Spider-Man, Gen13 and the Matrix. He won "Outstanding Comic Book Artist" at the Joe Shuster Awards in 2005. And, as a filmmaker, he's directed a number of award-winning short films.
· Mira Sundara Rajan, is a musician, author of "Copyright and Creative Freedom," and the Canada Research Chair in Intellectual Property Law at the University of British Columbia. She has consulted on copyright matters in the United States, United Kingdom, India, European Union, and Russia.
· Sue Thomas, a UK expert in new media, is the author of the book "Hello World travels in virtuality" and others. She is the program leader for the Online MA in Creative Writing and New Media (at De Montfort University). Her students collaborated with Penguin Books on 'A Million Penguins'. She'll explain how that blockbusting experimental wikinovel produced some surprising results.
· Shari Ulrich recently released her latest solo album. A member of the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame, a Juno award winner, and a fixture on the Vancouver music scene, Ulrich has performed with Pied Pumkin, Ulrich Henderson Forbes, and Valdy & the Hometown Band. When she's in town, Ulrich teaches songwriting locally.
· Ian Verchere is known as the developer of over 30 game titles including two million-selling titles for Electronic Arts, SSX Tricky and NBA Street V2. He's also a founder of Radical Entertainment; an author, "V0N 1B0; General Delivery, Whistler, BC; a creative consultant for Roald Dahl's literary estate, and a scriptwriter (with Douglas Coupland) who's sold his work to Disney.
Moderator
· kc dyer is the author of four contemporary and historical young adult novels which have been published in Canada, the US, the UK, and Thailand. The conference and the writing contest coordinator for the Surrey International Writers' Conference, dyer is a skilled, capable moderator with experience in and opinions on all aspects of the writing scene.

Logistics
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Radha Yoga and Eatery (728 Main St., yoga on the edge and above the Brickhouse Bar)…
Door opens at 6:30 pm, and the event starts at 7 pm.
Tickets are $15/$20 and available through http://www.stcwestcoast.ca/

~kc

A Quick Review...

The notebook show the best and worst of everyone, and make it fascinating reading. What I found really unusual is that the title character (Ms. Zephyr) is not in the story, she is only seen through the eyes of the 3 teens/tweens.

A brief clip from the latest internet-based review of Ms. Z. It can be found in its entirety by clicking: http://www.ourgaggleofgirls.com/books/

~kc

Reading on the Corner...

This is the press release for a series of gigs, one of which I am hieing over to participate in this afternoon:

The Cornerstone Cafe and the Canadian Authors Association are pleased to present:
Readings on the Corner
Wednesday, Oct. 10, at 2pm.
Bernice Lever, reading from her new book of poetry, Never a Straight Line
Margaret Anne Hume, reading from her recent biography, Just Mary: The Life of Mary Evelyn Grannan

Saturday, Oct. 13, at 3pm
Sandra Harper, reading from her new young adult novel, Breaking Out
Patrick Taylor, reading from his popular novel, An Irish Country Doctor

Wednesday, Oct. 24, at 3:30pm
Lois Peterson, reading from her new novel for young readers, Tansy Here and Now
kc dyer, reading from her new young adult novel, Ms. Zephyr's Notebook

Saturday, Oct. 27, at 3pm
Anthony Dalton, reading from his new adventure book, Alone Against the Arctic
Ben Nuttall-Smith, reading from his memoir, The Chameleon Sings -- Surviving and Healing from Childhood Sexual Abuse

All events will be held at the Cornerstone Cafe, 3003 Burlington Drive, Coquitlam (at the corner of Pinetree & Burlington). Free admission. Information: mahume@telus.net or 604-806-0471.

See you this afternoon in Coquitlam!

~kc

Ms. Z Gets Reviewed by Roundtable

Rebecca Wire of Roundtable Reviews has a few words to say about Ms. Zephyr and her notebook here:

http://www.roundtablereviews.com/dyerkc101907.htm

And, yes -- you might recognize the posterior on the front page of the SiWC site (www.siwc.ca ). The champagne bottle was empty at the time, I assure you, but as a parting gift from Don and Lisa Maass, it had been enjoyed by all.

The blogosphere is abuzz with comments about the conference. Let me know if you see a new one, and I'll post a link to it here.

~kc

A Conference to Remember

SiWC 2007 is now history.




An amazing, memorable event, with a roster of stellar presenters and nearly 800 attendees.

This shot shows an apparently delerious conference coordinator with her astounding group of co-chairs: Bonnie D., Tara H. and Carmen M.

It is the volunteers who make this thing happen.

The three ladies pictured make the big decisions.

Ursula M. (treasurer), Carrie H. (bookstore liaison), Sue G. (transportation), Estelle S. (Trade Show), Camille N.(Volunteers), Mary R. (Bookfair and so much more) and Dale McGladdery (of Digital Doodles, Webmaster extraordinaire) all lend an expert hand to make the event a success. And with 60+ volunteers this year, things generally went pretty well.

More than 70 workshops and panels. More than 1000 Blue Pencil and Editor/Agent/Publisher/Producer interviews. Six keynote speeches. Five Master Classes. Four Writing Awards. Three Day Trade Show. Two merit awards -- the SiWC Surrey Board of Trade Award and the Griffin Award. Book Fair/Author Signing. A Silent AND Deadly Auction.

Countless cups of coffee and more than a few martinis swilled.

We'll be putting up some of this year's conference info on the website shortly. It's at www.siwc.ca , in case you haven't been there before. If you do go -- make sure to add your name to our mailing list.

The next conference is a mere 367 days away.

Surrey International Writers' Conference -- October 24 - 26, 2008.

~kc

DONE!

That's it.

The travel is all booked -- the scheds are all duled. Many, many little jobs remain (including clearing off some 600 + emails from my poor, over-loaded server), but SiWC 2007 is clearing it's throat, ready to sing.

I'm feeling pretty good. Evilly good, actually.

James McCann and I wrapped up our Chocolate & Chat Travelling Teacher Appreciation Road Show with four bookstore appearances in two days.

Will try to post a few pictures when I get them -- my camera died at the pivotal moment, sadly, and refused to regain consciousness, even with the infusion of new batteries.

It was hectic -- it was crazy. But it was FUN!

You know what I will remember? Not the sales or even the chocolate (since I forgot to eat any of it...) Nope. I will remember the lady of the broken glass.

On Sunday, as we dashed out into the downpour in Surrey to head to the Langley location, I zigged when I should have zagged and I dropped and shattered a glass plate on the road right in front of Chapters. Shards of glass EVERYWHERE. James stood guard, protecting with his life the tires belonging to the miscreants who shook their fists at this interloper (how DARE he stand in the middle of the road?) and tried to drive over him anyway. I ran for a box to collect the glass. As I started to pick it up, a woman ran out from the shelter of the bookstore.

"My parents used to tell me when I was a little girl in India," she said, "that broken glass is good luck." She proceeded to help me pick up the glass, all the while getting soaking wet and risking life and limb in the middle of the road with us. "They said that broken glass meant that the bad thing had already happened, so the rest of the day would be filled with good luck," she said.

Then she took the box of broken glass and put it in the garbage bin for us, while we stared after her, rain dripping down our glasses.

She was right, of course. We had a marvellous day after that.

Two more featured presenters from the conference -- this time the married Speculative Fiction Super-team of Diane Duane and Peter Morwood.

Diane Duane is author of numerous books, both on her own and with her husband as co-author, but she is held in the highest esteem in my family for her Young Wizards series. The combined facts that a new book in the series is due out this fall AND the author is coming to town have my girl in a state of nervous frenzy that somehow still can't manage to render her speechless. We are both looking forward to meeting this remarkable author when she comes to speak at the conference.

Diane Duane will jet from the home she shares in Ireland with her husband, Peter Morwood, who will himself be discussing speculative fiction at the conference. He'll talk about creating realistic heroes and spectacular villains, as well as his take on speculative fiction on the screen and on the page.

You can find out much more by checking out www.petermorwood.com and www.dianeduane.com

~kc