Upcoming Workshops

I'm going to be teaching at two regional workshops coming up soon. The first is a workshop I'm teaching on my own on May 31st on writing for middle graders and young adults, sponsored by the Knoxville Writers' Guild. Today is the registration deadline for this event! The second is a workshop where I'm one of three instructors focusing on the nuts and bolts of building novels for young readers. (See ad above.) Here are the details on each:

Writing Novels for Children and Young Adults
Instructor: Alan Gratz

Saturday, May 31 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
in Lenoir City (just outside Knoxville)

Sponsored by the Knoxville Writers' Guild
Fee: $115 (including catered lunch); $135 for non-members

Join us for a one-day, nuts-and-bolts workshop on how to write novels for middle grade readers (ages 8-12) and young adults (ages 12 and up). Through a series of mini-lessons, writing exercises, and facilitated group critiques, you'll learn how to write stories that entertain the "young" half of young adults while still respecting the "adult" side of the equation. We'll talk about the unique challenges of MG and YA pacing, voice, perspective, plotting, audience, and more. Bring a work-in-progress to workshop, or come with an empty notebook and a burning desire to begin writing for kids--all levels are welcome.

Sponsored by the Knoxville Writers' Guild, this workshop will meet from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 31, at a scenic rural farmhouse near Lenoir City. Cost (which includes a catered lunch) is $115 for Guild members and $135 for nonmembers. Registration is limited to 12. The deadline for registering is May 15, but the workshop may fill earlier. Please register promptly to assure getting a seat. Guild membership is $25 and for students, just $10. For more information, visit: http://www.knoxvillewritersguild.org/alangratz.htm

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Under Construction: Building your Novel from Idea to Revision
Instructors: Alan Gratz, Kelly Bingham, and Bethany Dellinger

Saturday, June 14, 2008
at the University of North Carolina, Asheville

Sponsored by SCBWI-Carolinas
Fee: $60 for SCBWI members; $68 for non-members

Join us for a day of construction on your MG or YA novel (although you need not yet have begun), with practical, hands-on advice in both lecture and workshop formats. Our leaders include Alan Gratz (www.alangratz.com), author of Samurai Shortshop, Something Rotten, and several others books in production; Kelly Bingham (www.kellybingham.net), author of Shark Girl; and Bethany Dellinger, MFA, creative writing instructor.

To register or for more information, contact Art Grand, agrand@grandcreative.com

I hope you can join me!