April 17th, 2012

Grub Street News

Welcome to the latest installment of the Grub Street Rag, a newsletter of the Boston literary scene brought to you every Monday (except when we send it on Tuesdays) by the staff who didn't run the marathon yesterday because of the heat, yeah, that's right, the heat, at Grub Street's World Headquarters. As always, if you are receiving this email in horror, please advance to the bottom of the page to unsubscribe yourself.

Non-Fiction Career Lab Deadine: April 25th

More than forty of you attended our Non-Fiction Career Lab info session last week, and now we're eagerly awaiting your applications. Even if you weren't able to attend the info session, you're more than welome to apply to be a part of the program. The deadline is April 25th and all details are on our website. Also, check out this great interview with one of the founding instructors, Pagan Kennedy. If you have specific questions, email Chris Castellani at chris@grubstreet.org or call the office anytime at 617.695.0075.

Hear Ye, Hear Ye: The Muse is nearly sold out!

You heard it here first. High enrollment is forcing us to close registration early for the Muse and the Marketplace, so Thursday, April 26th will be your last chance to register for the conference. With over one hundred sessions, the conference has something for every kind of writer, and is the year's not-to-be-missed literary event. But don't take it from us. As former attendee Anjali Mitter Duva says, "The weekend of the Muse and the Marketplace is one I hold sacred each year now, no matter what else is competing for that slot. It's an oasis for me, two full days during which I can be a writer in a writer's world, during which I can let fall away my other roles as an administrator, a freelance consultant, a dance teacher, a mother, and be reminded every second that my writing is important and that I should continue to nurture it, and the writing process. And then, on top of all that, I get to interact with writers, agents and editors of fantastic caliber, and I get to reconnect with friends met through Grub Street. What could be better for a writing conference?" Visit museandthemarketplace.com to reserve your spot before they're all gone.

Tweet Tweet: Online, It's All Muse All The Time

If you're already signed up for the conference, we have a variety of ways for you to stay connected before, during and after the event. Check out Grub's Muse and the Marketplace Facebook event page, where you can see posts from many of the presenters and add your own comments (and be sure to "like" Grub Street's main Facebook page while you're there). Search for Twitter hashtag #muse2012 and add Grub Street to your Twitter stream for up-to-the-minute updates and news, photos of conference prep, and more. We'll also be using the #muse2012 hashtag during the event and holding a TweetUp on Saturday afternoon where you can meet your digital friends face-to-face. And be sure to check out the Micro-Interview series we've got on the Grub Daily--each day leading up to the conference, an author, agent or editor presenter will provide advice and insight in a flash format.

Pre-Muse Volunteers Needed  

Grub Street is preparing for the Muse and we need your help! We have volunteer opportunities starting next week on Tuesday, April 24th through Friday, April 27th and then the following week on Monday, April 30th through Friday, May 4th. We'll be doing lots of printing, stuffing, and organizing, and we can't do it without you. There will be music, snacks, and great company. If you’re available to volunteer anytime from 11:00am to 6:00pm on any of the above dates, please contact Sean at sean@grubstreet.org.

Cheers,
Whitney, Sonya, Eve, Chris, Rowan, Sean and Lauren

Muse Spotlights

For the next two months, The Rag will be spotlighting sessions from our annual conference, The Muse and the Marketplace. For all details, including registration info, go to www.museandthemarketplace.com. This year, Grub Street opened up 16 of our “Hour of Power” sessions to applications from the larger community of writers and teachers. We received hundreds of applications and are very pleased with the range of topics we are now able to offer.  Below are some samples:  three craft-based “Muse” sessions and two publishing-focused “Marketplace” sessions that will be led on Saturday, May 5th from 3:45 – 4:45. Participants choose their “Hour of Power” sessions on the day of the conference.
 
MUSE
Option #6: Telling True Stories
Building narrative arcs in nonfiction is not an easy task. You have to work within the timelines of your true-life characters to create suspense and keep the narrative engine of your story moving forward. You must work around gaps in recollection and back up your primary sources with extensive interviews and documentation. At the same time, you can rely on fictional techniques to creative narrative. Learn how two published authors developed strong narrative arcs from the raw materials of a compelling subject, focused research, and vivid writing.
Leaders: Alison Bass (Side Effects) and Bruce Watson (Freedom Summer)
 
Option #8: The Psychology of Character
The most memorable characters are driven by powerful forces of motivation, forces that simply won’t let them rest and that keep readers turning the pages. Learn to apply basic psychology to the development of your characters. Create more compelling characters by revealing their fears, desires, and dreams with authentic detail. A writer does not have to become a psychologist, but a writer can learn to make use of psychological foundations to understand their characters. Examples will be offered by the presenter and a discussion will follow the presentation. A writing prompt will be offered.
Leader: Jacqueline Sheehan (Lost and Found)
 
MARKETPLACE
 
Option #7: A Cooperative Model of Self-Publishing: The Real Deal and How We Did It
Bowker Company reported as far back as 2008 that, for the first time in history, more ISBN numbers were sold to self-publishing, independent authors than all the publishing companies put together. While it is more affordable and possible than ever before to self-publish, it’s like the “Wild West” out there. Authors are forced to either go it alone or, in some cases, fall victim to false promises from “hybrid” shark “publishers” internet scams. We would like to share our model of success, how it could work other places and share the real truth about the challenges, failures, and successes for self-publishing authors that we have seen.
Leader: Jane Karker (Maine Authors Publishing & Cooperative)
 
Option #10: The Perils of Fictionalizing Your Family
What are the consequences we inflict on our families with a no-holds-barred exposure of them through our writing? Where does our truth end and another’s privacy begin? Our panel will discuss these complex and weighty questions of conscience that have plagued writers since the beginning of literature. Based on the first-hand experience of writing, publishing, and going on book tour with stories that delve into family secrets, our panel of authors will lead the audience in a discussion of that inner battle.
Leaders: Jessica Anya Blau (Drinking Closer to Home), Jessica Keener (Night Swim), Leora Skolkin-Smith (Edges)
 
Option #11: Out of the Slush Pile and Into Print in YA/MG Publishing
So you’ve gotten an offer from an agent? Now what? Is it time to start celebrating and preparing for a life of fame and fortune? Or is it time to get ready for a whole new set of expectations, pitfalls, joys, and heartbreaks? In a panel discussion with Q&A, three first-time authors (whose YA/MG novels are debuting in 2012) will discuss how they got out of the slush pile, sold their first book, and what happened next. Topics will include what querying strategies caught the attention of agents, surviving the submission process, how to work with an editor, and how to handle the release of your book.
Leaders: Lizzie K. Foley (Remarkable), Gina Damico (Croak), Diana Renn (Tokyo Heist)

Grub Events

In addition to our ongoing workshops, Grub Street offers numerous writing-related events around town. See our website for a long-term view of all we do.

LUNCHTIME WRITING SERIES: Wednesday, April 18th, 12:30pm-1:15pm, Brown Bag Lunch Series-April
Do you work downtown and want to fit some writing into your day? Or do you have a schedule that gives you free afternoons instead of evenings? Bring your lunch and come on over to Grub Street for a Brown Bag Writing Workshop – a series recently profiled in the Boston Globe. For 45 minutes, you’ll meet fellow writers and get your creative juices flowing with some cool writing exercises. Led by one of our award-winning instructors or ambassadors. Best of all, you’ll leave lunch with some new ideas to ponder for the rest of your day, and beyond. No need to RSVP-- just come!
Instructor: Drew Jameson
FREE, Grub Street HQ.

READING SERIES: Friday, April 20th, 6:30pm-8pm, Grub Street Reading Series
Do you want a chance to read your work out loud? Join the new Grub Street Reading Series for a fun open mic event where you can practice the art of reading to an audience. This event is open to the public, and limited to 10 readers. Sign-up begins at 6:30pm. Readings will run from 7:00pm to 8:00pm. This is a great opportunity for any members interested in sharing their work and connecting with other writers. For more information or to join the reading series mailing list, please email sean@grubstreet.org.
FREE, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Saturday, April 21st, 10:00am-5:00pm, Characters in Conflict
Do your readers complain that nothing happens in your fiction? Do they complain that too much does? As Henry James wrote: character determines incident; incident reveals character. This course will help you complicate your understanding of your major characters in an attempt to discover obstacles that mirror your characters' innermost fears and flaws. As a result, not only will your fiction contain the all necessary conflict (both internal and external), but this conflict will feel integral to your characters and achieve a true emotional response from your readers. The course will be a combination of lecture, examples, and writing exercises. Bring a copy of a scene you're having trouble with, 2000 words maximum.
Instructor: Michelle Hoover
$115/$95 members, Grub Street HQ.

LECTURE: Saturday, May 5th, 5:30-7pm, "Don't Get Left Behind: New Opportunities for Writers" with Richard Nash
Part of Grub Street's Publish It Forward lecture series, funded by the NEA. What does it mean to be a writer in a world where seemingly everyone is a writer? Richard Nash, serial entrepreneur, maverick, and student of books and media, draws on legal, economic and intellectual history, on his experience running iconic indie Soft Skull Press, and on his start-ups Small Demons, Red Lemonade and Cursor to offer writers a new framework for understanding the business of writing and the culture of reading. You will leave with a new perspective on the incredible range of opportunities now available to writers which will enable you to make the best possible choices in your own life and career. Registered Muse and the Marketplace attendees do not need to register for this session; they may simply come. The event is also open to the public.
Instructor: Richard Nash
FREE, Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 50 Park Plaza at Arlington Street, Boston

READING: Saturday, May 5th, 8:15-9:30pm, National Book Prize Reading & Reception with Wendy Call and Eileen Pollack
Join us for a festive reading and reception to honor Wendy Call and Eileen Pollack, the most recent winners of the Grub Street National Book Prize. Non-Fiction winner Wendy Call of Seattle will read from No Word for Welcome: The Mexican Village Faces the Global Economy, and Fiction winner Eileen Pollack of Ann Arbor will read from her novel, Breaking and Entering. Margot Livesey and Michelle Seaton will introduce the authors.
The Grub Street Book Prize is awarded once annually to an American writer outside New England publishing his or her second, third, fourth (or beyond) book. First books are not eligible. Writers whose primary residence is Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut or Rhode Island are also not eligible. Click here for more information.
FREE, Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 50 Park Plaza at Arlington Street, Boston.

Be sure to check out our website for a comprehensive view of upcoming events.

Spreading the Love

Grub Street wants to promote YOU! Please send events for consideration to whitney@grubstreet.org. Bonus points and undying gratitude for submitting your event info in the same format as the events below. Our apologies in advance if we cannot fit you in. Please note that we do the best we can to evaluate requests, and do privilege requests from members, but cannot be held responsible for the quality of these events and programs or the legitimacy of contests. We expect that readers will do their own due diligence before sending their work or their money to any individual or organization.

--READING: Wednesday, April 18, 5:30 pm, Colm Tóibín
Colm Tóibín—novelist, playwright, journalist, and scholar—is one of the most important and critically acclaimed writers in contemporary literature. He is the author of eight books of fiction, all of which have won or been shortlisted for multiple international awards. The Master, his breakthrough novel about the life of Henry James, received the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 2006, as well as France’s Prix de Meilleur Livre and the Los Angeles Times Book of the Year. His following novel, Brooklyn, was a New York Times bestseller and winner of Costa Novel of the Year. Tóibín has been called “a great and humanizing writer who describes complex relationships in supple, beautifully modulated prose” by The Washington Post Book World and The Times of London described him as “a supreme writer.” Following his reading, Tóibín will be interviewed by Professor Kathy Lawrence.
FREE, Brandeis University Rapaporte Treasure Hall (Goldfarb Library)

--PARTY: Wednesday, April 18th, 7pm, World Book Night Party
World Book Night is a celebration of reading and books which will see tens of thousands of people share books with others in their communities across America to spread the joy and love of reading on April 23.
Pre-registered "givers" will be giving out free World Book Night paperbacks all around the country, and Harvard Bookstore wants to give Cambridge a particularly fabulous, book-filled night! More information can be found here: http://www.us.worldbooknight.org/.
FREE, Harvard Book Store, 1256 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02138

--FESTIVAL: April 20th - 22nd, 2012 Massachusetts Poetry Festival
The fourth Massachusetts Poetry Festival will be held Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, April 20–22, in historic Salem. The three-day event, which will bring 1,500 poets and poetry lovers to the city, will showcase a variety of extraordinary local and regional poets, and engage the public through poetry readings, interactive workshops, panel discussions, music, film and visual arts, and performances geared toward a diverse statewide audience.
Headline poets this year include Robert Pinsky, Maggie Dietz, Major Jackson, Nikky Finney, Joy Harjo, Wesley McNair, Stephen Dunn, Martha Collins, and Frank Bidart. All info at http://masspoetry.org/fourth-massachusetts-poetry-festival/.

--READING: Tuesday, April 24th, 7:30pm, Kate Flora and Gary Braver
Grub instructor Kate Flora's twelve book include seven Thea Kozak mysteries, three gritty police procedurals including The Angel of Knowlton Park, a suspense thriller, Steal Away, written as Katharine Clark, and a true crime, Finding Amy, which was a 2007 Edgar nominee and has been optioned for a movie. Muse 2010 presenter Gary Braver is the author of eight critically acclaimed suspense novels. Gary is an award-winning professor of English at Northeastern University where he teaches fiction writing and courses in popular culture.
FREE, Melrose Public Library.

--EXHIBIT: March 28th- July 30th, Boston Literary History
Created by Boston College faculty, students, and staff, and drawing on the collections of the Boston Public Library, the Massachusetts Historical Society, and the American Antiquarian Society, this exhibition explores stories about Boston’s literary history that have faded from memory. The exhibition follows the rise and fall of reputations, recovers out-of-print materials, and walks the streets of Boston in the heyday of its literary achievement. More info at http://www.bostonliteraryhistory.com.
FREE, Boston Public Library main branch