Calling all published Alaskan authors! Don’t miss the chance to sell your book and meet new readers at the first annual Great Alaska Book Fair, a collaboration between the Alaska Writers Guild
and Alaska Pacific University. 49 Writers launched Alaska Book Week in 2011 as a week-long statewide
celebration of Alaska’s authors and their books. This year, the event will
culminate in this two-day book fair in Anchorage, Friday, October 11, 10am to Saturday, October 12, 5pm, in the atrium of Carr-Gottstein Hall on the APU
campus. The event will be free to the public. Highlights will include guest speaker Don Rearden (The Raven’s Gift) in APU’s
Grant Hall Theatre on Friday night, and author readings and workshops
throughout the day on Saturday in the lecture hall and classrooms adjacent to
the Carr-Gottstein atrium.
All published Alaskan authors in the realm of creative writing are invited to
participate. Registration deadline is September 1. Click here to register. The fee is $20 for a half-table and $35 for a full table. Authors must be residents of Alaska but your books do not need to be about or take place in Alaska. You will be responsible for selling your own books either the
author or your representative must be present at all times. Please contact Dave Onofrychuk at donofrychuk@alaskapacific.edu for further
information and check the Alaska Book Week website for updates.
As part of the Great Alaska Book Fair celebration, the Alaska Writers Guild is offering a workshop with Ali McCart of Indigo Editing on Thursday, October 10, 6-9pm at APU, entitled The New World of Publishing: Navigating the Options. The publishing industry is changing, and authors are taking note. Traditional publishing seems easy and promises fame and fortune. But is all that true? Meanwhile, print-on-demand technology, ebooks, and the rise of online bookstores have made self-publishing an alluring process to many. But is it right for you? This class offers authors insight into the risks and rewards of each publishing path. It is specifically designed to give authors a clear picture of what each process involves and tips for determining which path is best for you and your book. Registration for members of Alaska Writers Guild and 49 Writers is $35. Non-member registration fee is $50. If you’d like to sign up, please click here to provide your details (scroll down form for workshop option) and the Alaska Writers Guild with contact you with registration details.
Kennicott/McCarthy.
Loussac Library, the Alaska Writers Guild monthly program features Evan
Swenson of Publication Consultants talking about “How to Host a Book
Launch Party.”
16-18, Kachemak Bay: Line by Line, a weekend
workshop retreat for writers and artists at the Center for Alaska Coastal
Studies (CACS) Peterson Bay Field Station across Kachemak Bay from Homer, led
by Marilyn Sigman and Marilyn Kirkham. $200, including water taxi (depart
Homer 4:00pm Friday, return 4:00pm Sunday). To
sign up or for more information contact info@akcoastalstudies.org or call
(907) 235-666.
deadlines for applications for the Connie Boochever
Fellowship.
The Alaska Writers Guild, Cook Inlet Literacy Council and the Alaska Writing Project are working with the Anchorage School District on a conference for young writers, October 26 at Clark Middle School. They seek writers who might enjoy spending time with young, eager students to present workshops. You can expect to have 10-25 students in each 60-minute session and can choose to teach 1, 2 or 3 sessions. Last year’s writing experts reported they enjoyed the enthusiastic and respectful participation of the attendees! If you are interested and want more information, please contact Lisa Weight at weight_lisa@asdk12.org.