San Diego Writers, Ink is excited to announce that their annual Fall for Writing Conference will be held October 26 to October 29, 2023! More information coming soon.
If you aren't already a member of San Diego Writers, Ink, consider joining in order to get discounted prices for their courses, read-and-critique groups, and other offerings. Single memberships are $45 per year. Other levels exist for students and households.
Additional information about the Fall For Writing Event:
Fall For Writing (FFW) is not only a fundraiser for San Diego Writers, Ink, but it is also a great way to familiarize yourself with SDWI and their programs or take a class from an instructor or in a subject you are curious about. Best perhaps is that you will be in community with other writers.
Traditionally, students have paid for the entire conference or per class or program. This year, to open up our event to as many people as possible, FFW will be pay-what-you-can. YOU will decide what you would like to pay for your participation this year! Note: The Zoom link will be the same for all classes and will be shared the day before the event.
Though there will be three in-person events Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings, all TEN classes will be online and offered in shorter formats. Additionally, all but a few will be recorded for others to access later if one cannot access the “live” Zoom session.
BONUS! SDWI has a NEW course offering on Saturday, October 28 at 2:30 PM: Memoir 101 with Marni Freedman! See below for details.
Learn more & register for Fall For Writing HERE!
FFW SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26:
Thursday Writers Write, Read, Eat! (In Person)
Once again this year, the Thursday Writers team was the largest contributor to Blazing Laptops, SDWI’s annual fundraising event! To say thank you, SDWI Executive Director Kristen Fogle is honoring Thursday Writers by hosting the group as the kickoff event for Fall For Writing.
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM — Thursday Writers Write
We’ll start by gathering at Liberty Station and doing what we always do—write to a prompt for however many minutes and see what emerges. Some or all will read their work as the rest of us bear witness.
7 PM – 8 PM — Thursday Writers Read
Bring along a piece you started at a Thursday Writers session. It’s okay if you’ve done some editing since then—it’s okay if it’s exactly the way you wrote it at TW. We’ll have an open mic reading for anyone who has ever written at Thursday Writers (did you know the group has been going since 1994?). Please time your piece so that it is no longer than three minutes.
8 PM – 9 PM — Thursday Writers Eat
Kristen is throwing us a fabulous dessert party! Enjoy decadent desserts and spend some time visiting with your fellow Thursday Writers!
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27:
Artists & Authors Event (In Person)
4 PM – 7:30 PM — Join us for a local authors and artists showcase! We will have local authors and artists with their work on display (and sale) for you. The event is a collaboration between Barracks 16 and Barracks 19 in the Liberty Station Arts District.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 28:
10 AM – 11:15 AM — Cut Paste Write with Kimberly Lee*
Step into a scene and let it drip through your fingertips.” — MJ Bush
Ekphrastic writing has been described as “taking the visual and transforming it to the verbal.” This form of writing, used for centuries, encourages writers to use visual art as a muse for putting words to paper. In this workshop, participants will explore the use of images as a source of inspiration for imaginative writing. The workshop will include a taste of SoulCollage®, an expressive arts method through which we’ll create and write from our own images. (A background or experience in art is not required.) Join us!
Please have the following on hand (or feel free to work with digital images):
- 3 pre-selected pages, torn from magazines, of primary images (people, animals, objects)
- 3 pre-selected pages, torn from magazines, of larger background scenes (nature, interiors, patterns)
- Glue stick
- Scissors
- 5×8 piece of paper, preferably cardstock or cardboard
- Pen and paper (or laptop!)
11:30 AM – 12:45 PM — A Crash Course in Plot with Wesley Fulkerson
Learn how to plot a story according to the tried and true fundamentals of the craft. Eliminate the guesswork, and learn how to plot the way pros do it.
1 PM – 2:15 PM — Crafting the Perfect Scene with Judy Reeves
The difference between a ho-hum story and a page-turner is the writer’s ability to create dramatic, believable scenes. Scenes are what allow the reader to experience the action at the same time as the characters and take the reader from outside the story to the interior of the conflict. In this workshop we’ll examine the elements that go into crafting successful scenes focusing on character, plot, purpose, and transitions from narrative summary to scene and back again.
2:30 PM – 3:45 PM — Memoir 101 with Marni Freedman NEW!!
Are you seeking a way to transform the stories of your life into a compelling, page turning memoir? Join Marni Freedman, licensed Marriage and Family therapist and professional writing coach, for a fun, interactive, memoir writing workshop that will inspire and ignite your memoir writing journey. Topics introduced:
- The difference between memoir, personal essay and autobiography
- Structure for memoir: the three key story points that will help you uncover the basic shape of your memoir
- Accessing memory and choosing stories
- Character arc for memoir
- Two voices In Memoir – Adult and Child
- Tackling your theme
- The secret to writer’s voice: vulnerability and risk
4:00 PM – 5:15 PM — Character 101 with Rich Farrell
Characters and characterization make or break a novel, and as a writer, you must know not only how to construct a person from the ground up, but also how to skillfully relate that character to your readers through action and thought. Join us for a quick but useful dive into crafting an effective character for your story.
6 PM – 7 PM — Writer Mixer
Come out for a casual meet up before our Saturday night reading. There will be treats and writerly conversation to be had!
7 PM – 8:30 PM — A Year In Ink Anthology Reading hosted by Jill G. Hall (In Person)
Writers from any volume of A Year In Ink are invited to read two minutes of their work. Volume 16 will be available, and all other volumes will be on sale at a discount! Sign up to read below!
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29:
10 AM – 11:15 AM — Jammin’ & Hope Ya Like Enjambment, too! A Poetry Workshop with Rebecca Jane
W.H. Auden mined writing material from Beatles songbooks. Major Jackson is moved every day by Fugees’ song “How Many Mics” from their impactful album The Score. Julie Carr praises the use of negative space in Cake’s “Short Skirt/Long Jacket.” Poetry and music are eternal companions. Both stir emotions, trigger impressions, and inspire ideas. What music nurtures your insightful expressions? This workshop will explore this: We will share song titles to create a unique playlist and then we will listen and write. Can you imagine the poetry you will produce listening to the favorite songs of fellow writers? Let’s get together and let the music move us! ** Plus, a secret bonus: The Enjambment Editing Method **
11:30 AM – 12:45 PM — Poetry of Today with Ron Salisbury
Are you a beginning poet or one experienced? Today’s presentation will introduce you to the poetry of today. And why it doesn’t sound or look like your mother’s poetry. Why does poetry today seldom rhyme? And why is it sometimes so hard to understand? Maybe it’s not the poet’s fault. Maybe it’s poetry’s fault. Maybe there is no fault. We will review these topics, as well as discuss the tools poet’s toolbox to write poems, which is covered in depth in SDWI’s Certificate in Poetry.
1 PM – 2:15 PM —The Poetry of Gratitude with Jim Moreno
If you not sure you have anything to be grateful for because you’ve been watching too many news programs, in this poem-making workshop, Jim will help you to be aware of great things, small things, ordinary things, and special things in your life that help you to suit up and show up for life on a daily basis.
2:30 PM – 3:45 PM — Essential Essay Elements with Joyce Hayden
Together we will focus on three to four important essentials of writing a personal essay. Topics will include setting; structure; voice; theme/conflict. Textual examples will be provided for discussion, writing prompts will be offered; and participants will also have time to write and share work written in response to the afternoon’s prompts. This will be an introductory class to a longer course offered next year.
4 PM – 5:15 PM — Query for Magazines with Rebecca Chamaa*
If you want to write for magazines (and get paid for it) this class is a good first step. Learn how to locate and pitch editors in this supportive, informative session.
*All starred will NOT be recorded.
