Devoted to publishing, publishers and to those who craft the written word

Things will get wild and crazy next week.  

First up, we will be covering the National Book Awards along with The Litblog Army: Ed Champion and Marydell and Sarah Weinman and Levi Asher. Armed with a videocamera, laptop, and a notebook, I'll bring back as much writing wisdom as I can clutch in my skinny arms. 

The fiction nominees are pretty smart and adventurous this year: Mischa Berlinski, Fieldwork, Lydia Davis, Varieties of Disturbance, Joshua Ferris, Then We Came to the End, Denis Johnson, Tree of Smoke, and Jim Shepard, Like You’d Understand, Anyway.

Then, I'll be appearing in a panel discussion at the Hudson Valley Writers' Center on Saturday November 17th. I'll discuss "Technology: The world of writing on blogs and for e-zines" along with some big-time writers: Michelle Kung from Huffington Post and Justin Fox from Time.

The whole thing will be moderated by Jeff Gordinier, one of my favorite magazine writers. Non-fiction writer Robert Boynton (one of my writing mentors), will be moderating a panel about magazine writing.

The program is trapped in frames at the writing center website, so I've included the whole program after the jump. Come on out and meet some other writers. Continue reading...

 

Magazine Editors & Writers Symposium
at Lyndhurst Mansion, Tarrytown

Saturday, November 17th, 2007, 1 - 5 pm
The strange yet occasionally rewarding process of pitching to and writing for the mainstream glossies

Prominent American authors such as Joan Didion, Tom Wolfe, John McPhee, and Susan Orlean got their start in glossy magazines. This afternoon of panel discussions, to be held in the Carriage House at Lyndhurst (635 South Broadway in Tarrytown) will explore the link between popular magazines and the American literary tradition - and will offer practical advice about pitching ideas, reporting stories, and the pleasures and challenges of bringing your voice to a big national audience.

    I. Panel discussions
                o Can creative nonfiction save the world? Conventional wisdom tells us that magazines are little more than a lightweight escape, and yet many of them continue to publish work of social purpose and literary significance. An exploration of what happens when the glossies get serious
                o How to convert magazine articles into books
                o The Art of the Pitch
                o Technology: The world of writing on blogs and for e-zines

    II. Closing Networking Reception
The symposium is a unique opportunity for writers of all levels to hear from highly esteemed writers and editors in an intimate setting.

Moderated by:
    * Rob Boynton, Director, Magazine Writing, in the graduate program of NYU; author/editor of the book The New New Journalism.
    * Jeff Gordinier, Editor-at-Large for Details and writer for Esquire, GQ, Fortune, the Los Angeles Times and Entertainment Weekly. His first book, X Saves the World, will be published by Viking in March 2008.
    * Chris Raymond, editor of ESPN Books, former senior editor at GQ.
    * Lesley Jane Seymour, writer for The New York Times, former Editor-in-Chief of Marie Claire and Redbook and an instructor for the graduate program in journalism at NYU

The Editors, Writers & Agents:
Jason Boog, Rob Boynton, David Browne, Danielle Claro, Anthony DeCurtis, Susan Farewell, Karl Taro Greenfeld, Michelle Kung, Holly Millea, Troy Patterson, Jenny Rosenstrach, Kate Torgovnick, Scott Waxman, Katherine Wheelock and Greg Williams

Who they have written and edited for, or represent:

Arthur, Blender, Boston Globe, Breathe, Cookie, Condé Nast, Cooking Light, Details, Domino, Elle, Entertainment Weekly, Gourmet, Guardian of London, Huffington Post, Jane, Men's Vogue, Mojo, New Republic, New York Magazine, New York Post, New York Times, New York Times Book Review, NPR's All Things Considered, Outside, Paris Review, Poetry Foundation, Premiere, Publisher's Weekly, Publishing Spot, Rolling Stone, Slate, Spin, Sports Illustrated, Talk, TIME, TIME-Asia, Travel and Leisure, Vogue and the Waxman Literary Agency

Fee: $75 ($65 for HVWC members; $45 for students)
Call, e-mail, or use this form to register