Budding writers head for York Writing Fest

 YORK FESTIVAL OF WRITING

Are you a budding writer? Do you want to meet your future literary agent? Then make it your business to head over to the University of York in September for a weekend of writing workshops - over 30 in total - at this year's 5th annual Festival of Writing. So if you've written a book, get your ticket now, polish up your manuscript and prepare to be interviewed and workshopped till you drop.

Professional course leaders will take you through all the aspects of writing you need to know, including publishing and finding agents. Learning as much as you can about how publishers work and what they're looking for is one of the best moves you can make. 

Mini courses and workshops

Allie Spencer's mini course tells you how to Workshop a Novel in a Day if you're in a hurry, or if you're aiming to self-publish your work, David Gaughran's Self-Publishing Masterclass might be for you. Among the longer workshops Madeleine Milburn's Stunning Cover Letters is always a worthwhile topic and Harry Bingham's 'The Accidental Funny' sounds like it might be a good laugh; Jeremy Sheldon workshops on plot problems, Andrew Wille shows and tells, Alan Durant tells you how to know your reader when writing for children and young adults, Debi Alper gets inside characters' heads and Julie Cohen will tell you how to find your novel's theme.

Workshops include just about every topic you can think of and many different genres of writing, all held over a weekend. You can meet literary agents here and even get Book Doctor feedback from professional authors and former commissioning editors. Not only that but just meeting other writers and networking may not only spark off new writing buddies but it's amazing how much good info you can pick up from other writers. Writers have been  signed up by agents and publishers many times at previous festivals here, so maybe this year is your time...and agents and publishers are always looking for the next big thing.

How to book

The Festival is residential so accommodation and meals are included in the price, which runs from £535, which includes a mini-course, gala dinner and two nights' accommodation, to £175 for a Sunday day ticket if you prefer. And for an extra £45, weekenders can get an extra one-to-one session from an expert. The Festival runs from 12-14 September and you can log on to the website for more information and bookings: http://www.writersworkshop.co.uk/getting-published-event.html

Creative Writing Festival for aspiring writers planned for York

If you're an aspiring novelist hoping to get your book published commercially, the best place to be in September will be the University of York.

For three days, from 13 to 15 September, the campus will be brimming with book doctors, top agents, publishing legends, best-selling authors and other hopeful writers. This is all serious stuff and everyone will be doing their best to help you. It's the 2013 Festival of Writing, run by the Writers' Workshop team.

Previous festivals have resulted in publishing contracts and agent sign-ups, so it's worth giving it a go. What do you have to lose? You can have a one-to-one session with an agent or a book doctor if you send a copy of your novel in advance - they'll give you loads of tips and answer any questions you have. They all descend on York each year in the hopes of finding the next big author - that may be you.

You can book on to one of the mini courses or workshops on writing or publishing, led by industry pros, listen to keynote speeches by authors who have made it and listen to panel discussions by the experts. And the friendly atmosphere and positive support you will receive will make it worthwhile. Making contacts is all-important in this business and just chatting and exchanging contact details with other emerging writers will help you to keep in touch with writing buddies - writing is a lonely business and it's good to compare notes with people in the same position who can empathise.

Keynote address will be made by author Adele Parks, whose debut novel 'Playing Away' was published in 2000. She's had 11 novels published since then, all of them Times Top 10 Bestsellers. Her books have sold over two million copies and been translated into 25 languages.

Best-selling author Adele Parks

You can learn more about the Festival on http://vimeo.com/54084473 and http://www.writersworkshop.co.uk/events.html