Kentucky Writers Conference
Bestselling authors and educators participating in SOKY Book Fest will teach writing craft workshops about everything from plotting techniques to employing poetic language to getting published on Saturday, March 25. The Kentucky Writers Conference is made possible through the generous support of Dollar General.
Registration on a mobile device not recommended. The conference is free and open to the public. Walk-in seating for open workshops is first-come, first-served on the day of the event.
Registration
Registration is now open. Click HERE to pre-register.
The conference is free and open to the public. Walk-in seating for open workshops is first-come, first-served.
Session Information:
Updated March 23, 2023
Click session title to see description
Session 1: 9:00 am – 9:50 am
- Fiction Is People with Ann Gabhart
- Old Wolf, New Pajamas: A Master Class on Writing in the Present, Subverting Fairytales of the Past with Idra Novey
People read fiction for its characters more than any other element, and the stories they love best are the ones with characters who find a place in their hearts. Ann H. Gabhart will share what she’s learned in the process of bringing many characters to life in her thirty-seven published novels.
We’ll discuss how fairy tale elements may recede as a new piece of fiction develops, providing a way in, though not necessarily a way out.
Session 2: 10:00 am – 10:50 am
Session 3: 11:00 am – 11:50 am
- The Art of the Query Letter with Dana Carpenter
- The Voice of the Poem: A Generative Workshop with Marianne Worthington
This generative workshop will explore ways to focus on the voice of a poem—that unique presence that speaks a poem. We will work to claim and speak our memories and give ourselves permission to speak in our own voices. We’ll also study methods to claim the essence of other voices and practice writing poems in persona. This workshop can help us explore how we can use voice to change our perspectives, try out other voices, and discover empathy. At the end of the workshop, participants will have two or three drafts for new poems.
Session 4: 12:00 pm – 12:50 pm
- Writing the Riven Heart with Lee Martin
- More Than Landscape: Writing A Deeper Sense of Place with Jason Howard
William Faulkner, in his 1950 Nobel prize acceptance speech, called attention to the pressures of writing in the Atomic Age, claiming young writers were neglecting “the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself which alone can make good writing because only that is worth writing about, worth the agony and the sweat.” Lee will tell the story of his writer’s journey, paying special attention to his discovery of what he likes to call touchstone moments from memory, moments that come from his own riven heart. He’ll give you a writing exercise that will invite you to begin thinking about your own memories and how to use them to create memorable and resonant work.
In this session, noted essayist and creative nonfiction writer Jason Kyle Howard will explore the necessity of moving beyond setting and geography in capturing place. Through lecture, discussion and written exercises, he will offer insightful tips on how to expand our notion of place to create a more visceral, immersive narrative on the page.
Details
- Date:
- March 25, 2023
- Time:
- 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
- Event Categories:
- SOKY Book Fest, Kentucky Writers Conference
Organizer
- SOKY Book Fest
- Email:
- sokybookfest@warrenpl.org
Venue
- WKU South Campus
- 2355 Nashville Road
Bowling Green, KY 42101 United States+ Google Map
The Kentucky Writers Conference is made possible through the generous support of Dollar General.
