DATE: March 13, 2012
CONTACT: Kimberly Baker
LOCATION/TIME: Seattle Pacific University, Demaray Hall, Room 150, 7-9 p.m.
Mini-Session: WHAT’S SO FUNNY? with
Kim Baker. From the light or absurd to the darkest of stories, writers use humor to ease tension, convey character, and move the story along. Join Kim in examining the different approaches beloved authors and illustrators use to inject wit into their work, from picture books to young-adult novels. Learn what makes humans think something is funny, the different techniques you can use, and the essential ingredients your story needs to make your readers laugh (in a good way). In addition to her leadership of SCBWI Western Washington, Kim anticipates the publication of her first funny middle-grade novel, PICKLE, this year.
Main Program: WITH A HEAVY HEART: WRITING GRIEF IN FICTION. YA author Denise Jaden will expound on the different stages of grief—which stages can be most effective to play out in fiction as well as which ones can drag a story down. How do you implement heavy emotional scenes authentically, without crossing over into melodrama? Which authors have done this well, and how did they do it? Denise’s first two YA novels are infused with grieving and loss, and she’ll explain the revision process of getting to the depth of her stories.