By Charity Brunson
Aspiring Latter-day Saint writers have a chance on Saturday, November 3 to get an inside look at the world of professional writing, thanks to the Mormon Writers Conference.
The fourth annual conference, hosted by the Association for Mormon Letters, will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Thanksgiving Point, and will feature workshops on all aspects of writing.
“The conference is oriented towards helping people who would like to publish either locally or nationally on Mormon topics – people with a passion for writing,” said BYU professor Gideon Burton.
This includes writers from every genre – poetry, novels, criticism, screenwriting and more.
Keynote speaker Richard Dutcher, known for “God”s Army” and “Brigham City,” is headlining the conference with a session on how to reach the Mormon audience.
Author Kenny Kemp, who wrote “I Hated Heaven,” will speak on the business aspect of going from self-publishing to national publication.
BYU professors Eric Samuelson and Gideon Burton and BYU graduate Eric Snider will also be presenting workshops, according to a news release.
Samuelson said he will be involved in a reading of his play “A Really Good Impression” as well as leading a workshop on how to produce one”s own theatrical work.
Additionally, for the second year the conference will be showcasing some BYU student films.
Samuelson said the conference not only offers practical advice for people who want to be writers, but it also presents the opportunity to develop relationships with other Latter-day Saint writers.
“It”s easy for students to feel not plugged into the larger LDS artistic community. AML is a wonderful chance for a kind of hobnobbing,” Samuelson said.
Editors and publishers will be among those available to associate with, which could prove advantageous for those seeking to create a network of business connections, Burton said.
“This is such a worthwhile conference for those who are interested in learning to write and publish,” said president of AML Cherry Silver in a news release. “Better than any class – you are hearing from the experts.”
Registration at the door is $50.
