Writing Workshop led by Jan Burke & Jerrilyn Farmer

Left Coast Crime 2014 is pleased to announce a Writing Workshop for writers, published or not, interested in perfecting their craft. The workshop will be held on Wednesday, March 19, 2014, from 9:30 AM – 4:45 PM, at the Portola Hotel & Spa, the location of LCC 2014.
     Cost: $75 for LCC registrants, $125 for non-LCC registrants.

Note: The Writing Workshop is full.

Creating the Essential Characters of the Crime Novel (9:30–11:30 AM)
This session will provide tips on creating a fully-developed central character whose personality and wit can carry the successful mystery novel, and in many cases, a long and involving series. Topics covered will include developing an original and believable sleuth by use of POV, tone, dialogue & diction, motivation, voice, internal conflict, pro vs. amateur status on the case, background and skill set, and also deal with creating family, loved ones, and co-workers who help define the protagonist. We’ll talk about the importance of the two Vs: the villain and the victim.
     Lunch on your own (11:30 AM – 12:30 PM)

Making Characters, Plot, and Setting Work Together (12:30–2:00 PM)
This session will help you to better understand how the tension between characters moves a story forward; action, suspense, and pacing; how to create clues; misdirection; information in the crime novel; creating a world for your characters.
     Break (2:00–2:15 PM)

Finding Answers to Problems in Your Manuscript and Your Writing Life (2:15 – 3:45 PM)
This session will help you to get started and keep going, will show you how to recognize what may be standing in your way, and will both motivate you and give you specific tools to overcome problems. We’ll also talk about the power of revision, various ways to approach revision, the questions you must ask as you revise any crime novel, and how to know when to stop revising.
     Stretch/Break (3:45–3:55 PM)

Q&A Session (3:55–4:45 PM)
This is the time to ask questions!

Jan Burke is a New York Times and USA Today Bestseller who has won the Edgar for Best Novel. She has also won the Agatha, the Macavity, and other awards for her short stories. Her books are published internationally and have been optioned for film and television. She has taught writing classes at venues ranging from the UCLA Extension’s Writers’ Program to the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, and has been a keynote speaker at the Book Passage Mystery Writers Conference, the La Jolla Writer’s Conference, and others. Her thirteen novels and a collection of short stories are published by Simon & Schuster. Her short stories have appeared in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, and numerous anthologies. She is an associate editor for Mystery Writers of America’s Mystery Writers Handbook.

Jerrilyn Farmer is the #1 Los Angeles Times Bestselling writer of the Madeline Bean mystery series (William Morrow) and a winner of the the mystery genre’s Macavity and Lefty Awards. Ms. Farmer’s latest book, co-written with Joan Rivers, is Murder at the Academy Awards (Pocket). Since 1998, Jerrilyn has been teaching mystery writing at UCLA Extension’s famed Writers Program. In the past two years alone, six of her writing students have received publishing contracts with Kensington, Berkeley Prime Crime, and Down & Out Books.

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