If you’ve ever been inspired to write a blog or poetry, research non-fiction, get cracking at that next novel or increase your income with other forms of writing, next year’s Bay to Ocean Writers Conference has a wealth of new speakers and session topics to build your enthusiasm.
March 10, 2018 is the date for the 21st annual BTO conference at Chesapeake College, in Wye Mills, Maryland. With a new committee incorporating prior attendee input, this year’s roster adds diverse topics as well as six in-depth 90-minute workshops in the afternoon to insure hands-on, experiential learning. Some larger rooms will accommodate more attendees. This year’s keynote speaker Christopher Tilghman, author of The Right-Hand Shore and Mason’s Retreat, as well as 18 hour-long sessions start off the morning. A professor of English at the University of Virginia, Tilghman has used Maryland’s Eastern Shore for inspiration in much of his fiction. He will address the crowd and offer a Q&A session that morning.
Laura Reeth, the publicist for best-selling novelist Nora Roberts, returns for an advanced social media workshop, Sue Ellen Thompson for a poetry workshop, and Molly Winans, at the helm of SpinSheet and PropTalk presents innovative help for writers to think like an editor. Local authors Robert Bidinetto, Kenton Kilgore and Loriann Oberlin, will speak with topics ranging from building suspense, technical writing, hand-selling your books, targeting online sales and boosting your bank account through non-fiction. Jeanne Adams and Nancy Northcott are novelists new to Bay to Ocean as is magazine editor and columnist Janet Bodnar, who has spent her career at Kiplinger Personal Finance. A children’s writing panel presents the talent of Jacqueline Jules, Timothy Young, and Syl Sobel. Baltimore lawyer Cynthia Blake Sanders discusses legal concerns for writers; Leslie Walker from the University of Maryland teaches writers about blogging; and Stephanie Fowler along with Tony Russo share information regarding podcasting. Nancy Mitchell and Amber Greene offer two new poetry sessions.
At Bay to Ocean, attendees exchange ideas, hone the writing craft, and participate in specific networking discussions during lunch, if they choose. Author and poetry readings will finish the day in the Cadby Theatre where book sales and signings will occur nearby in the lobby.
Register by December 1, 2017 to obtain an early-bird $95 registration fee. Regular price will be $120 for those not members of the Eastern Shore Writers Association (ESWA), $95 for ESWA members, and $55 for students with valid ID. Registration includes continental breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks, attendance at the keynote speaker session and all workshops.
As one of the region’s premier educational seminars, the Bay To Ocean Writers Conference attracts participants from six states as well as the District of Columbia. To join the email list, visit https://www.easternshorewriter
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