Great writing workshops this month ~ How to Get Published, Building a Story, and Writing Great Characters

How to Get Published

An editor & an agent tell all

Saturday, March 7, 2015

10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Niagara on the Lake Public Library, 10 Anderson Lane, NOTL, Ontario (Map here.) 

If you've ever dreamed of becoming a published author, this workshop is for you. We’ll cover everything from getting started to getting an agent, from writing a query letter to getting your book published. Bring your questions. Come and get ready to be published!

Special Option: Participants are invited to bring a draft of a query letter you might use to interest an agent or publisher in your book. You don’t need to bring anything, but if you do, 3 copies could be helpful.

Guest speaker Olga Filina is a literary agent with The Rights Factory. Olga will read anything but especially gravitates towards commercial and historical fiction, great genre fiction in the area of romance and mystery, nonfiction in the field of business, wellness, lifestyle and memoir and young adult and middle grade novels with memorable characters.

Fee: 46 paid in advance or 49 if you wait to pay at the door.

To reserve a spot now, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Brian will also be leading “How to Get Published” workshops  with literary agent Martha Magor Webb on Sunday, May 31, in Windsor (see here) and  Saturday, June 20, in Mississauga (see here).

Getting Rid or Rosie by Lynda Simmons
was an international success. This is
the cover of the German edtion.

The Burlington Public Library presents…

How to Build Your Story       

An editor & an author give you the low down

Saturday, March 14, 2015

10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Burlington Public Library, Centennial Room, 2331 New Street, Burlington, Ontario (Map here.)

This workshop will show you how writers plot a novel and will give you the best tips on writing short stories. We’ll also look at where to get your stories published and how to win contests. Best yet, you’ll see how to apply the story-building techniques you’ve learned to your own writing.
Guest speaker Lynda Simmons lives in Burlington, but her novels have been published around the world. To date, she’s published eight novels and has built a reputation for herself as an outstanding comic novelist. When she’s not writing, Lynda teaches creative writing at Sheridan College in Oakville and at Ryerson University in Toronto. At the workshop, she'll share her insights into plotting novels and creating a character arc. 

Fee: 46 paid in advance or 49 if you wait to pay at the door.

To reserve a spot now, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Brian will also lead “How to Build Your Story” workshops Saturday, April 25, in Thessalon (details to come), Saturday, May 9, in London (see here), and Saturday, May 30 in Guelph (see here)

Copernicus Avenue
by Andrew Borkowski

How to Write Great Characters      
and “From Fact to Fiction: Writing What You Know”

With Brian Henry and Andrew Borkowski

Saturday, March 28, 2015
10:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Cyril Clark Branch, Brampton Library, 20 Loafer’s Lake Lane, Brampton, Ontario (Map here)

Whatever you're writing ~ fiction or nonfiction ~ readers will care about your story only if they care about your people. In this workshop, you'll learn techniques for creating fictional characters and depicting real people. You’ll learn how to breathe life into the page so that your characters start telling you how the story should go.

Guest speaker Andrew J. Borkowski is the author of the critically acclaimed debut short story collection, Copernicus Avenue. Published by Cormorant Books, Copernicus Avenue won the Toronto Book Award and was shortlisted for the Danuta Gleed Literary Award for short fiction. His work has been published in Grain, The New Quarterly, and in Storyteller magazine. His short story “Twelve Versions of Lech” was a selection for the Writer’s Trust/McClelland and Stewart Journey Prize.

For his segment of the workshop, Andrew will speak on “From Fact to Fiction: Writing What You Know” and will discuss how he worked his experiences growing up in Toronto’s Polish Community into award-winning short fiction.

Fee: 46 paid in advance or 49 if you wait to pay at the door.

To reserve a spot now, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Note: Five weekly writing courses for beginners to advanced will be starting in April. See details of all five here. Read reviews of Brian's workshops and courses here.

Workshop leader Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada’s most popular blog for writers, teaches creative writing at Ryerson University and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Charlottetown. But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get their first book published and launch their careers as authors.

See Brian’s full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Barrie, Brampton, Bolton, Burlington, Caledon, Cambridge, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Kingston, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Niagara on the Lake, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.