Fall Promising Practices Conference
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Marina Village Conference Center

8 – 8:30 Registration and Continental Breakfast
8:30 – 9:45 am Opening General Session: Laurel Corona, Feature Speaker: Writing Scared
“I tell my students that writing will never be easy—not for them or me.  The only thing that changes is that you gain confidence you can succeed at it.”  Even after nineteen published books and two more on the way, for Laurel Corona the first stages of contemplating a new book are still the scariest part of being an author.  In her keynote address, she discusses the fear that sets in long before writer’s block is even a possibility, and describes the triumphs and tribulations in the writing life.

9:55 - 11:05 am Concurrent Breakout Sessions, Round 1 (choose a session)
1. TBA

2. TBA

3. TBA

4. TBA

11:05 – 11:15 BREAK

11:15 - 12:30 pm Concurrent Breakout Sessions, Round 2 (choose one of four)
1. TBA

2. TBA

3. TBA

4. TBA

12:30 - 1:15 pm LUNCH and break: book browsing, autographing, sign-up for university credit for those who also attended the spring conference, raffle? [buffet luncheon will open 12:30 pm]

1:30 - 2:45 pm Closing General Session: Laurel Corona, Featured Speaker:  “Tell the Truth but Tell It Slant”: The Writer as Photoshopper
Recent falsified memoirs such as A Million Little Pieces and The Angel at the Fence have served to highlight the dilemmas faced by authors striving to serve both the truth and the need to write a compelling narrative. What are writers’ ethical obligations to the people and subjects they write about? Are there rules or guidelines applicable across the board, or is every case and every genre a little different? Laurel Corona discusses the difficult calls she has had to make in writing about real people and real history in both her novels and her narrative non-fiction, and guides the audience through some thought-provoking hypothetical scenarios.