The Pat Conroy Literary Center presents
Our Second Writers Retreat Weekend at the Anchorage 1770 Inn
September 14-16, 2018
Join us for our second Writers Retreat Weekend at the award-winning Anchorage 1770 Inn, September 14-16.
You’re invited to join us for an exclusive weekend writers retreat focusing on the Next Steps of Revision and Submission, held at an award-winning historic inn located in the heart of Southern Living’s 2017 Best Small Town in America—beautiful Beaufort by the sea. Participating writers will immerse themselves in a collaborative experience certain to inspire and enlighten. Our distinguished faculty of award-winning writers and publishing professionals will share their insights and experiences in the same generous mentoring spirit as the late Pat Conroy. In the retreat’s intimate setting, writers will get to know one another as well as our instructors over a span of three days and two nights of empowering workshops, discussions, writing prompts, readings, critiques, and social gatherings.
Retreat Faculty: New York Times and USA Today bestselling author CJ Lyons, Pulpwood Queens Book of the Year novelist Bren McClain, Columbia One Book One Community novelist Carla Damron, literary agent MacKenzie Fraser-Bub, editor Michael Signorelli, and USC Beaufort Writer in Residence Ellen Malphrus.
Proceeds benefit the year-round programming of the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center, an affiliate of the American Writers Museum and an American Library Association United for Libraries Literary Landmark.
Schedule of Events
Friday, September 14
Optional afternoon activities
Noon–4:00 p.m.: Visit the Pat Conroy Literary Center at 308 Charles Street (a short walk from the Anchorage 1770 Inn) for a guided exploration of the writing life of the author of The Water Is Wide, The Great Santini, The Lords of Discipline, and The Prince of Tides. Free and open to the public. www.patconroyliterarycenter.org
2:00–3:30 p.m.: Reserve your seat on Beaufort Tour’s guided bus tour of Pat Conroy’s Beaufort. Departs from the Beaufort Marina Store (across from the Anchorage 1770 Inn) promptly at 2:00 p.m. for a 90-minute tour. Advance registration required: www.beauforttoursllc.com/pat_conroys_beaufort.html
Early Dinner on your own: The Anchorage 1770 Inn will provide a list of recommended restaurants within walking distance of the Anchorage 1770 inn for dinner on your own along Beaufort’s iconic waterfront and downtown.
Retreat officially begins
5:30–7:00 p.m.: Welcome and Introductions
Meet the retreat faculty and come prepared to introduce yourself, explain the topic (or desired topic) of your work in 1–2 sentences.
Light hors d’oeuvres, wine, and non-alcoholic refreshments served.
7:00–8:15 p.m.: Story Hour #1 hosted by Ellen Malphrus**
During Story Hour retreat participants will have the opportunity to share a five-minute reading sample—preferably the opening—of their writing. The reading can come from a finished product, an idea, or a work in progress. The retreat faculty will offer constructive feedback.
Requirements: Readings not to exceed five minutes. Each individual reading in the group setting will be followed by supportive and constructive feedback from the retreat leaders. Samples are to be read out loud or circulated as a handout if the participant prefers. (Participants are to provide adequate number of handouts for participants and retreat leaders.)
**Participants should be prepared to share on either night, as half the participants will share on Friday and the remaining half on Saturday.
Saturday, September 15
8:00–9:00 a.m.: Breakfast with our faculty
9:30–10:30 a.m.: SESSION 1 — CJ Lyons, Why?/Why Not?
New York Times bestselling author CJ Lyons leads a frank discussion of traditional versus independent self-publishing including: the truth about the money and numbers, marketing and pricing strategies, time involved, as well as the perils and pitfalls to avoid.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking and writing exercises.
10:30–11:00 a.m.: Coffee break
11:00 a.m.–noon: SESSION 2 — Carla Damron & Bren McClain, Our Paths to Publication
Two of our distinguished faculty will discuss how their writing lives began, what led to their own first (or most recent) publications, and what they’ve done to foster their writing lives as engaged members of communities of readers and writers.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking.
Noon–1:30 p.m.: Lunch with our faculty
Retreat faculty will join participants for lunch and conversation on the writing craft.
1:30–2:45 p.m.: SESSION 3 — Carla Damron, Getting to the Heart of It: A Revision Workshop
“First drafts are for learning what one’s fiction wants him to say. Revision works with that knowledge to enlarge and enhance an idea, to reform it. Revision is one of the exquisite pleasures of writing.”—Bernard Malamud
The words are there. The story is complete. Now comes the next step: revision. How do we make our narrative resonate? Does the tension accelerate our reader’s pulse? Do our characters breathe with life? Have we found—and shared—the project’s soul? How will reading experience affect the reader? This session will offer techniques to sharpen and shape one’s work and explore revision as a process of discovery.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking and writing exercises.
2:45–3:00 p.m.: Break
3:00–4:00 p.m.: SESSION 4 — MacKenzie Fraser-Bub, The Publishing Biz from an Agent’s Perspective
Let’s talk publishing 101 from the standpoint of a literary agent—including best practices for query letters, finding and working with an agent, understanding your rights as authors, and the myriad paths to publication in the modern publishing landscape. Brave participants will have an opportunity to submit their query letters beforehand to be critiqued during the workshop.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking and writing exercises.
4:00–4:15 p.m.: Break
4:15–5:30 p.m.: SESSION 5 — Bren McClain, Deepen the River: The Key to Revision
Bren says: A very wise editor told me one time, “Get rid of the tributaries, and deepen the river.” The River is the heart of your novel. It’s what you’re really trying to say. It likely started with the first honest impulse that drew you to write your story or novel. I’ve heard it said that if you ever get lost, go back to that first impulse that drove you to put your butt in the chair in the first place. I think that’s key. And I also think that’s where the energy of your story is. It’s where your soul feels lifted, where you slow down to read vs. skimming through. What is the heart of your book? What drew you to the story in the first place? How can you deepen it? Bring pages. Let’s talk.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking and writing exercises.
5:30–6:00 p.m.: Break
6:00–7:15 p.m.: Story Hour #2 hosted by Ellen Malphrus**
During Story Hour retreat participants will have the opportunity to share a five-minute reading sample—preferably the opening—of their writing. The reading can come from a finished product, an idea, or a work in progress. The retreat faculty will offer constructive feedback.
Requirements: Readings not to exceed five minutes. Each individual reading in the group setting will be followed by supportive and constructive feedback from the retreat faculty. (Participants are to provide copies of their pieces for retreat faculty.)
**Participants should be prepared to share on either night, as half the participants will share on Friday and the remaining half on Saturday.
Cocktails and light hors d’oeuvres served.
7:30 p.m.: Dinner on your own
The Anchorage 1770 Inn will provide a list of recommended restaurants within walking distance of the Anchorage 1770 inn for dinner on your own along Beaufort’s iconic waterfront and downtown.
Sunday, September 16
8:00–9:00 a.m.: Breakfast with our faculty
9:15–10:15 a.m.: SESSION 6 —Breakfast – CJ Lyons – Build Your Brand
Join New York Times bestselling author CJ Lyons in an exploration of what “branding” is and is not, including an illustration of how she crafted her own “Thrillers with Heart” brand. Volunteer participants are invited to submit their own websites or visual branding efforts (logos, book covers) for review and feedback from CJ and fellow participants so that when they go to pitch, query, or publish they will be communicating their brand clearly.
Continental breakfast and coffee served.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking and writing exercises.
10:15–10:45 a.m.: Break & check-out time (bags can be held in the lobby until departure)
10:45–11:45 a.m.: SESSION 7 – Michael Signorelli – An Editor’s Guide to the Editorial Process
What happens to a manuscript after acceptance for publication (or representation) and before final publication? What role(s) should authors expect to play in this collaborative process? Let’s ask an accomplished editor for an insider’s guide to the path from your manuscript to published book.
Requirements: Pen and paper and/or laptop for note taking and writing exercises.
11:45 a.m.–12:45 p.m.: Closing Roundtable: Closing discussion with all your retreat faculty. This is your last chance to ask that all-important question!
1:00 p.m.– Lunch on Your Own
Optional afternoon activities
1:00–4:00 p.m.: Visit the Pat Conroy Literary Center at 308 Charles Street (a short walk from the Anchorage 1770 Inn) for a guided exploration of the writing life of the author of The Water Is Wide, The Great Santini, The Lords of Discipline, and The Prince of Tides. Free and open to the public. www.patconroyliterarycenter.org
2:00–3:30 p.m.: Reserve your seat on Beaufort Tour’s guided bus tour of Pat Conroy’s Beaufort. Departs from the Beaufort Marina Store (across from the Anchorage 1770 Inn) promptly at 2:00 p.m. for a 90-minute tour. Advance registration required: www.beauforttoursllc.com/pat_conroys_beaufort.html
Meet Your Faculty
