I’m pleased to be one of the keynote speakers for the upcoming conference “Manuscript to Marketplace,” Friday and Saturday, March 21 & 22, at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
Here’s the description of my talk:
Among Elmore Leonard’s “10 Rules for Good Writing,” you’ll find “Never open a book with weather,” “Avoid prologues,” “Avoid detailed descriptions of characters,” “Don’t go into great detail describing places and things,” and “Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.” Wunderkind literary agent Noah Lukeman wrote an entire book, The First Five Pages, on the importance of making a good first impression on editors and readers—and emphasized it should have been titled The First Five Sentences.
Beginnings maybe the hardest thing to write… except for endings… and then there’s the middle, of course. But building a strong opening can not only engage readers and editors quickly but also lay the foundation for richer plots and ultimately provide the key to more rewarding endings. With an emphasis on short stories but attention to novels as well, Art Taylor will offer insights and approaches, drawing on “The First Two Pages,” the blog series he curates, as well examples and advice from classic and contemporary writers.
You can find the full schedule and registration information here!