Writers, both professional and aspiring, who are looking for some guidance or just some inspiration can find a convenient way to connect with published writers, creative writing professors and publicists this month with the San Miguel Literary Sala’s online workshops.

The Guanajuato organization for authors and poets based in the small city of San Miguel de Allende is known for putting on the San Miguel Writers’ Conference for over a decade. Last year, it took the plunge into online events when the annual writers’ conference and its year-round schedule of workshops could not be held in person due to pandemic restrictions.

It has so far held several successful events this year via online conferencing platforms like Zoom, including interviews with high-profile celebrity authors like Tom Hanks and Matthew McConaughey — where participants got a chance to interact directly with the guests — and writing and poetry workshops led by published authors and other creative professionals.

This month, their calendar broadens a bit to offer online workshops not only on the craft of writing but also on publication and publicity and promotion.

The schedule for the workshops is as follows:

• June 21 and 23, 3-4:30 p.m. — David Corbett: “The Compass of Character: Creating Complex Character Motivation.” This workshop from the author of six novels and two books on writing, including The Art of Character, will guide participants in an examination of what he sees as the four key counteracting forces tugging at a character’s willfulness and motivation: lack, yearning, resistance and desire.
• June 21 and 23, 5:30-7 p.m. — Kathrin Lake: “Memories to Memoirs: How to Show the Past (Not Tell It)” The author of the novel The Happy Hammock and the nonfiction Writing with Cold Feet will lead a workshop focusing on making a memoir a compelling read using fiction techniques. Lake will also help students structure their own memoirs.
• June 22 and 24, 3-4:30 p.m. — Jamie Brickhouse: “I’ve Looked at Publicity from Both Sides Now: Publicity and Marketing from a Former Book Publicist and Current Author” The writer and comedian whose articles have been published in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Daily Beast and Huffington Post and who interviewed Matthew McConaughey for a Literary Sala event in May, will instruct participants on writing a pitch letter and press release, pitching to the media, creating successful author appearances and the nuts and bolts of going out on a book tour.
• June 22 and 24, 5:30-7 p.m. — Jessica Nelson: “The Science and Art of Imagery and Metaphor” Nelson, a professor of creative writing and the co-author of the forthcoming book Advanced Creative Nonfiction, will draw on lessons from art and poetry to engage participants in multisensory writing.

Workshop tickets are US $80, with discounted prices available via event packages, and can be purchased at the San Miguel Literary Sala website.

Mexico News Daily