WC2 Executive Director Tony N Todaro has directed and/or programmed more than 1200 workshops, almost 200 special speaker events, and countless topics over the years. Tony looks forward to sharing a wealth of new and updated topics, plus a few popular favorites by request.

Plus, learn how you can thrive and benefit from this educational and inspiration event.

Howard V. Hendrix

(Keynote Presentation and Live Interactive Workshop)

Writers Digital Coffee Klatch

A very popular event at our conferences is the opportunity to gather with popular author / editor / educator / screenwriter Art Holcomb for a round-table discussion + Q&A on the craft of writing. Even though we are meeting virtually, attendees can still participate in this popular round-table event, updated into a coffee klatch. Just click the special link (to be provided to attendees) and have a leisurely coffee and networking discussion with Art.

We may even include coffee packs in the swag bags we send to attendees by mail.

Art Holcomb

Saturday Orientation and update

Yes, the world can change in a day. So can topics and speakers. Join us for the latest info to help make your event experience the most informative, educational, and enjoyable.

How To Pitch an Agent or Publisher
 You've spent a year or more working on a great novel and now you feel it's ready to be shared with the world. Naturally, the first step is to pitch literary agents and find one who shares your passion for the work and is willing to sign you. While many authors submit countless query letters and emails -- without result, a few wise souls know that agents often look to conferences as a source for new talented writers. It is a unique window to have your work considered firsthand. But what do you say? How do you present yourself and your manuscript in order to have them ask for more?

This panel of agents, editors, and publishers du jour will discuss what they expect and answer your questions. This is an opportunity to hear what each agent needs in order to make a decision. Listen well, then rehearse before scheduling a pitch session with any or all of them later any day at the conference.

Ken Sherman
Andy Ross
Paul S. Levine

Literary Agents,
Scouts & Publishers

Tony N Todaro^(M)

The Art and Craft of Story Openings

"Hook them from the first sentence." We've heard that time and time again, but what exactly does that mean? How do you do it? Join this panel of authors and editors as they gives examples of memorable story openings, examines why and how those openings work so well, and explores the ways writers can apply those techniques to their own work.

How the Hero’s Journey Revolutionized Genre Fiction

When writing genre fiction, it’s important to understand how the Hero’s Journey plays into the structure of your story.  By analyzing six popular films, (Harry Potter, Star Wars, The Matrix, Spider Man, The Lion King and Lord of the Rings), we will discuss how you can use Joseph Campbell’s infamous journey template and make it your own. This class will give you a fresh perspective on your story! 

7 Reasons Why Hollywood Could Lose Interest In Your Book - and 7 Ways You Can Increase Your Chances for Success!

The demand by Hollywood for interesting ideas and stories has never been greater, and they love to find that content in books. Yet many times authors don’t include (or incorporate) some basic things that make Hollywood want to option a book and develop it for the screen. There might be initial interest because of a compelling title or summary, but they don’t move forward to finalize a deal.

Working with authors and Hollywood over the past decade, ALC President Keith Ogorek has seen this happen too many times. In this webinar, he will share 7 things he has observed that cause interest to wane and 7 things you can do to avoid these mistakes and take advantage of the growing demand for content in Hollywood.

Keith will answer relevant questions live, in-person

Working With A Literary Agent, Questions & Answers

If you are seeking to get your book published, the first step is usually   finding an agent to represent you.  We will discuss how to decide when your book is ready for submission, how to do research on agents, writing effective query letters, preparing book proposals that are convincing to agents and  publishers, and describing the work of the agent in negotiating a contract.

In this class we will learn the essentials of composing an effective query letter for your book. We will discuss the proper length and format, what kinds of information agents want to know, what types of pitches are convincing and to avoid. Participants should bring draft query letters to the class. We will analyze and edit. We will also discuss how to go about researching and developing a list of agents for your submission.

Why A Synopsis Is Notoriously Hard to Write
(and Ways to Do It Right)

Seasoned editor Nic Nelson explains the three types of synopses, when you'll need each one, and how to write them. Once you understand what each one entails, you'll stop confusing them and start getting them right!

This workshop will include detailed outlines and writing prompts for each kind of synopsis, and real examples of at least the first two kinds... you'll discover why the third kind is so rarely shared!

Nic Nelson

(Solo Spotlight)

Social Networking with Attendees (YOU) and Faculty

Most virtual events don't provide the opportunity or time to network with other attendees or speakers. Well, this is your opportunity to "meet and greet" other members of the conference. So, mix up your favorite libation, pull up a comfortable chair in front of your computer, and feel free to spend the evening in a hospitable environment with your fellow writers, peers, and friends.

(The FREE Read and Critique session will be held Sunday night)

How To Pitch an Agent or Publisher

You've spent a year or more working on a great novel and now you feel it's ready to be shared with the world. Naturally, the first step is to pitch literary agents and find one who shares your passion for the work and is willing to sign you. agent and client While many authors submit countless query letters and emails -- without result, a few wise souls know that agents often look to conferences as a source for new talented writers. It is a unique window to have your work considered firsthand. But what do you say? How do you present yourself and your manuscript in order to have them ask for more?

Join this panel where the agents, editors, and publishers du jour will discuss what they expect and answer your questions. This is NOT a pitch session, rather an opportunity to hear what each agent needs to hear in order to make a decision. Listen well, then rehearse before scheduling a pitch session with them later that day at the conference.

Helga Schier
Steven Hutson
Toni Robino

Literary Agents,
Scouts & Publishers

Tony N Todaro^(M)

Things I Wish a Pro Had Told Me When I First Started Writing

Becoming a writer and then a published author is a steep, steep learning curve. Even for those with prior experience and previously published books, the rapidly changing landscape of the industry means you can easily make mistakes; in your writing, pitching, marketing and certainly when it comes to finding and signing a deal with a publisher or entering the shark-infested waters of the self-publishing pool. The aim of this session is to keep you safe, strong and smart as you progress in your work and career.

(We cover this topic regularly, each time with new authors and voices of professionals.)

Understanding the Different Kinds of Editors,
and How to Find the Right One for You

When most people think of editors, they imagine someone scrutinizing a paper, their pen dripping with red ink. Some editors like to edit the old-fashioned way, but for the most part, editors are simply people who tweak, fix and enhance the content you write. Their invaluable corrections and advice can make a boring piece of content flourish. Selecting the right editor for your project depends on your needs and, sometimes, your budget. You’ll want to familiarize yourself with the different roles editors can play in getting an article or a book published.

Writing for Healing: Coping with Pain, Grief, and Loss

This has been a rough couple of years. Many people have suffered in many ways—and yet, haven't we always? Writing can be a powerfully creative and restorative process, whether you come to it during a global crisis or a personal one. Learn how different approaches to writing have helped others cope with pain, grief, and loss; learn how you can embrace writing as a coping skill, as a therapeutic outlet for yourself, and possibly for your readers too, if you choose to share it.

How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal that Sells

Nonfiction authors have a special task of developing a Book Proposal that actually speaks for them -- even before the book is written. This panel will explain the elements of the proposal, and how to structure a successful one. Learn the essential steps to conceptualize and plan a nonfiction book that agents want to represent and publishers want to buy.

Learn to Write Better Dialog for Your Novel
by Drafting a Screenplay

Some writers complain that they can write a good novel, but their dialog between characters falls flat and can feel phony.  Perhaps one good exercise is to write these scenes like a screenplay and then adapt the work to your novel. Conversations must flow organically between characters, and never feel forced or stilted. Characters feel more real when they communicate more like real people, and not just for the sake of exposition. This panel will discuss the pros and alternative methods to achieve conversational success.

Read and Critique Workshop - Fiction & Non-Fiction

Would you like feedback on your work additional to the quick pitch meeting? What is it like to work with a critique group of good, focused writers?

This is an opportunity for registered attendees to participate in a live editing of their work-in-progress. Fuel up on caffeine, drink and words, and join us for Renegade Late Night Read & Critique.  It is an amazing creative experience — not to be missed.

Have a few pages of your manuscript to read and share, and enjoy the feedback exchange!

Subject to
individual
availability

Meet top industry professionals for a personal consultation to pitch, discuss and improve pre-submitted pages of your manuscript. Schedule In-Person meets and appointment at the Registration Desk. Schedule Virtual meets and appointments by calling our 1-on-1 studio. Some may take new submissions on site. A separate fee applies to ProCritque and Masters ProCritique consultations. Some agents do not read or edit material in advance. Consult the wcwriters.com website for details.

We recommend that you attend the "How to Pitch" sessions in order to help identify the best professionals for your individual genre and work.

Reserve an appointment
by calling the
"1-on-1 Desk"
at 310.379.2650

Meetings are held via Zoom or phone
in confidence.

Mystery, Thriller, and Crime Novels: What’s the Difference?

When it comes to twenty-first century Americans’ tastes in fiction, few genres sell better than crime, mystery, and thriller. The best books in these genres are gripping, suspenseful, and full of intrigue until the very end. They routinely top New York Times bestseller lists, and many spawn larger series, leaving enthralled readers eager for each new book. While closely related, crime novels, mystery novels, and thrillers are not synonymous genres. Each has its own idiomatic characteristics and attracts a specific audience.

This panel will discuss what works and when.

When One Villain is Not Enough

Without Voldemort, Harry Potter is just another young wizard. Without Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes is just a know-it-all in a weird hat. Without the Joker, Batman is just a rich dude with anger issues and too much time on his hands.

Villains are essential. Without them, our heroes can’t shine. That’s why it’s important to give our villains scenes where they can wow us with their quirks and scare us with their ferocity.

So what makes a great villain? And what happens when you have a jaded reader, who decides that one villain is not enough? There must be secrets to write villains who are topped by a greater protagonist to really make your protagonist a hero and your story memorable.

Morgan St. James
Wendy Kendall
Daniel C. Lorti
Helen Power

Tony N Todaro^(M)

Carissa Ann Lynch

Carissa Ann Lynch is the USA Today bestselling author of the Flocksdale Files trilogy, Horror High series, Searching for Sullivan, 13, 13: Deja Vu, Grayson’s Ridge, Shattered Time, Things Only the Darkness Knows, Shades and Shadows, and This Is Not About Love. She resides in Floyds Knobs, Indiana with her husband, children, and collection of books. Besides her family, her greatest love in life is books. Reading them, writing them, holding them, smelling them…well, you get the idea. She’s always loved to read and never considered herself a “writer” until a few years ago when she couldn’t find a book to read and decided to try writing her own story. With a background in psychology, she’s always been a little obsessed with the darker areas of the mind and social problems.

Read More from Carissa Ann Lynch Join Carissa’s mailing list: http://eepurl.com/chb46z Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarissaAnnLynchauthor Twitter: https://twitter.com/carissaannlynch Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Carissa-Lynch/e/B00REPXXW6/ Website: https://carissaannlynch.com

Previously recorded with no Q/A afterwards.

Building a Marvelous, Believable Magic System

Magic systems vary from colorful bears with tummy badges to ritual blood sacrifices. Magic isn’t real, so it can be anything we want. But that doesn’t mean all magic systems work equally well for stories. But it does need to be well-planned and consistent to avoid annoying plot holes. Learn to add realism and depth to your world while still leaving room for new and interesting changes.

C. R. Rowenson
Laurel Anne Hill
Brennan Harvey
Chrome Oxide

Brandie June^(M)

What if? The Appeal of Speculative Fiction

The impossible becomes possible and what doesn't exist becomes real -- that, in a nutshell, is speculative fiction. Speculative fiction embraces so many genres (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, paranormal/supernatural fiction, urban fiction…) that you might wonder whether there is any common ground at all.

Authors Jordan Bartlett (fantasy), Christian Klaver (YA fantasy), Elijah Menchaca (fantasy), Jason Offutt (horror, sci-fi), Bryan Prosek (YA sci-fi) discuss the different paths they took to create a speculative world. Join us to explore the obvious and subtle commonalities in the many answers to What if?

Cat Rambo

Cat is primarily a writer of fantasy and science fiction, although she did some editing work (the most recent example is The Reinvented Heart, co-edited with Jennifer Brozek, coming out from Arc Manor Books in February of 2022). She came through the Clarion West Writers Workshop in 2005, where she studied with Octavia Butler, Andy Duncan, L. Timmel DuChamp, Connie Willis, Gordon Van Gelder, and Michael Swanwick. She also has an MA in Writing from the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University, where she studied with John Barth and Stephen Dixon.

Cat won a Nebula Award in 2019 for her novelette, Carpe Glitter, and been nominated for a Nebula for her short story, “Five Ways to Fall in Love on Planet Porcelain” and a World Fantasy Award for her work with Fantasy Magazine. Her work has appeared as a finalist for the Million Writers Award and the Compton Crook Award for First Novel as well as on the Locus Recommended Reading List. She is a two-term President of SFWA (The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America) and has previously served as its Vice President, giving her five years on the board. She still volunteers with the organization. She has written two nonfiction books, Creating an Online Presence, which is aimed primarily at fellow writers looking to build their web presence, and Moving From Idea to Finished Draft as well as co-edited Ad Astra: The SFWA 50th Anniversary Cookbook with Fran Wilde.

She has over 250 original fiction publications under her belt so far, with stories appearing in places such as Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and Tor.com, and another hundred or so reprints in a variety of languages.

Previously recorded.

Basing Your Fiction On Historical Facts

Learn the different ways and the best places to find primary sources, and then how to use your material in a novel.  This is also an overview with lots of tips for researching a book or a story. We'll answer the questions: can you change historical facts for fiction? How to you spot anachronisms? And more.

How do you make the past feel real on your page? Learn how these pros use research bring realism to a science fiction or fantasy novel, as well.

Daniel C. Lorti
Joy Lanzendorfer

Nic Nelson^(M)

Lara Prescott

Lara Prescott is the author of The Secrets We Kept, an instant New York Times bestseller and a Hello Sunshine x Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick. The Secrets We Kept was an Edgar Award nominee for Best First Fiction, winner of the 2020 Macavity Award for Best Historical Mystery, and winner of 2019 Writers’ League of Texas Book Award in Fiction. The Secrets We Kept is Lara’s debut novel and will be translated into over 30 languages and adapted for television by The Ink Factory and Marc Platt Productions. Lara received her MFA from the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas. She studied political science at American University in Washington, D.C. and international development in Namibia and South Africa.

This was previously recorded and there will be no Q/A afterwards.

Avoiding Legal Entanglements with Biographies

Biographies are grouped into two categories: biographies written with the subject’s permission and cooperation, aka authorized biographies, and biographies written without the subject’s permission and cooperation, aka known as unauthorized biographies. The former tends to suggest a puffy publicity piece. The later tends to suggest a forbidden sense of controversy, like a “kiss and tell” book written by a former employee, paramour, or confidante of the biography’s subject. If you intend to write an unauthorized biography, learn about the legal challenges you might encounter and what you can do to lessen your level of risk.

How to Develop Your Memoir with Appeal to the Widest Possible Audience

What makes “Eat, Pray, Love,” “The Liar’s Club” or “Angela’s Ashes” garner dazzling reviews or make readers weep or howl with laughter? How do you impose order on a thousand memories? Why is it important to resist the temptation to summarize your life?

In this workshop, we’ll identify what makes great memoirs unforgettable, as well as identify moments from your own life: the lowest ebb, the most unusual, shattering, funny or triumphant incidents that reveal your character and move readers.

Marion Roach Smith

Marion Roach Smith is a non-fiction author and a former staff member of The New York Times who advocates "the power of the personal narrative". She has been teaching sold-out memoir classes for more than 20 years. She now teaches Online. The author of four mass-market books, she is a former staff member of The New York Times and has written for The New York Times Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, Prevention, New York Daily News, Vogue, Newsday, Good Housekeeping, Discover, and The Los Angeles Times, among others. Marion has been a commentator on National Public Radio's All Things Considered, and was a long-time daily show host on Sirius Satellite Radio.

Previously recorded with no Q/A afterwards.

Illustrating Children's Books

Children's books not only become beloved because of a fantastic story, the illustrations allow the book to become legend. This panel focuses on the process of illustrating children's books from beginning to end. Topics include, Choosing the right artist, Story Mapping the work together, Budget, Creative Control, and Rights to Artwork.

Finding Your Niche In the Market

"Know Thy Audience" is one of the first commandments of successful publishing, and learning about the average reader of your genre is a good start. But what if your story or your voice isn't typical of your genre? What if your work blends elements of different genres? What if you're tired of writing for "a demographic" and want to write for real people instead? Come learn the magic of finding your niche and the specific humans who define it. 

Explore the Coming-of-Age Genre

Whether you’re writing a screenplay, stage-play, novel, or short story, “Coming-of-Age” is a classic popular genre that can stand alone or blend with other genres. Award-winning screenwriter, script consultant and Now Write! author/editor leads an exploration into sociological, psychological, and thematic elements that will deepen your understanding and spark your imagination about utilizing the “Coming-of-Age” to add emotional depth and resonance to your project. 

This was previously recorded and there will be no live Q/A afterwards.

Laurie Lamson

Subject to
individual
availability

Meet top industry professionals for a personal consultation to pitch, discuss and improve pre-submitted pages of your manuscript. Schedule In-Person meets and appointment at the Registration Desk. Schedule Virtual meets and appointments by calling our 1-on-1 studio. Some may take new submissions on site. A separate fee applies to ProCritque and Masters ProCritique consultations. Some agents do not read or edit material in advance. Consult the wcwriters.com website for details.

We recommend you attend the "How to Pitch" sessions in order to help identify the best professionals for your individual genre and work.

Reserve an appointment
by calling the
"1-on-1 Desk"
at 310.379.2650

Meetings are held via Zoom or phone
in confidence.

Writers Digital Coffee Klatch

A very popular event at our conferences is the opportunity to gather with popular author / editor / educator / screenwriter Art Holcomb for a round-table discussion + Q&A on the craft of writing. Even though we are meeting virtually, attendees can still participate in this popular round-table event, updated into a coffee klatch. Just click the special link (to be provided to attendees) and have a leisurely coffee and networking discussion with Art.

We may even include coffee packs in the swag bags we send to attendees by mail.

Art Holcomb

Why You're Not Getting Published, and How to Bullet-Proof your Submissions.

Have you sent off your manuscript to dozens of agents and editors, only to be rejected again and again? Learn the things they won't tell you; discover the most common problems, and how to avoid them. Hint:  It may have nothing to do with the quality of your writing or your story.

Steve Hutson
Nic Nelson

You’ve Landed a Publisher! Now what?

You’ve landed a publisher! Now what? You’ve done the work, sweated out the queries, and signed that coveted publishing contract. What happens next? In this session, we hope to set expectations about what your publisher might do for you, how the publication process works, and how to best work with your publisher to produce a fantastic book.

Tony N Todaro