Summer Teaching, Santa Barbara Writers Conference, Esalen, etc.

Yes, tis summer and I have just returned from my annual gig at Santa Barbara Writers Conference (June every year). One of the better organized writers conferences which cover not only craft but the business of writing as well. Agents & editors from New York are flown in to give hope, inspiration, and caution to over 250 hopeful writers for the week -long conference. I offered The Way of Story workshop and also Finding Your Voice in Memoir. 

One of the most popular panels was the social media panel in how to market your book. I was reminded of my graduate students at U.S.C. Film Department where the young are sometimes more focused on getting ahead, finding an agent than writing a marketable screenplay or book. Of course, it is true, in today’s world of a professional writer whether you self-publish or have the good fortune to have a publisher, the author is expected not to only to find a good editor but also take on the time-consuming role of promoting the work. And social media has taken the place of bookstore signings and print reviews. The best promotion is social media. I wonder how much time is spent online today compared with how much time is spent re-writing one’s book or screenplay?

I suggest finding a young person with reasonable rates and Social Media fluency and giving most of your time to the writing. Never forget that unless you have a solid piece of writing, no amount of social media can launch your product.

Tonite I am invited to present a talk on Writing Memoir as a Family Legacy. There are many today who though not writers wish to leave a family history behind for children or grandchildren.

There are tips to assist this pursuit which I will share in my next blog.

Next month (Aug 17-21), I go to another annual gig at:

Aug 17-21 Big Sur, CA, The Way of Story, http://www.esalen.org/workshop/week-august-17-22/way-story-craft-and-soul-writing

For those who have never been to the Esalen Institute (see photo above),  I suggest putting it high on your bucket list. It’s unlike anywhere else on earth. Pioneers in their fields have taught workshops there for over fifty years. Joseph Campbell, Fritz Perls, Gabriel Roth, Ida Rolfe, etc. Excellent organic food grown on the grounds over looking the mighty Pacific Ocean where humpback whales, dolphins, and otters feed and play. Though I have recently cut down a bit on my teaching gigs abroad, you will always find me every August at Esalen – well, maybe not always as one day I imagine I, too, will dissolve into the vapors and await the next life!