OTHER PATHS TO PUBLICATION:
INDEPENDENT PRESSES & SELF-PUBLISHING
Date: Saturday, October 6, 2018
Time: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Rate: $42 for members, $62 for non-members (no door rate - pre-registration is required)
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 5171 Shelburne Rd, Shelburne, VT 05482
Note that when registering, you should select a genre (Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children's/YA) for the genre breakout sessions.
Registration will close at end-of-day on Friday, September 21, 2018
AGENDA
8:30 - 9:30 - Registration & Morning Refreshments
9:30 - 10:30 - Sonja Hakala, What Would William Shakespeare Do in Today’s Publishing Landscape?
10:30 - 10:45 - Break
10:45 - 11:45 - Ed Vincent, Details, Details, Details: The Crash Course in Going the Independent Publishing Route
11:45-1:00 - Lunch
1:00 - 2:00 - Genre Breakout Session
2:00 - 2:15 - Break
2:15 - 3:15 - Bill Schubart, The Publishing Journey Requires Perseverance, Courage, and Humility: Tips and Life Lessons from a Pro
3:15 - 3:30 - Break
3:30 - 4:15 - Genre Breakout Session
4:15 - 4:45 - Genre Panel
SESSION DETAILS
WHAT WOULD WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE DO IN TODAY’S PUBLISHING LANDSCAPE?
When William Shakespeare wrote his first full play, Richard III, in 1593, the publishing industry as we know it did not exist. After all, it had only been 125 years (give or take) since William Caxton had printed the first book in the English language on English soil. So Mr. Shakespeare's publishing options were few. Either he paid scribes to make handwritten copies of his work or he paid a printer to set the type necessary to put his plays on paper.
So what would William Shakespeare do if he had access to all the publishing choices we have today? Would he look for an agent who could guide him through the traditional publishing process? Would he opt to use a vanity publisher like iUniverse? Would he take control of the life of his work and publish them independently? Would he create his own ebooks?
Nowadays, all of these paths to publishing are valid avenues to explore. They each have their virtues and their weaknesses. Some are legitimate business models while others are little more than scams waiting to tempt authors into their webs.
Given all these choices, what should you do? Author and publishing professional Sonja Hakala is going to take you on a whirlwind tour of contemporary publishing so that you can make wise choices for your wallet, your books, and your career as an author.
Sonja Hakala
Sonja Hakala has been a professional writer since 1982 when her first story appeared in the Mother Earth News magazine. Since then, her work has appeared in publications as varied as the Boston Globe, Yankee, and Vermont Magazine. She is the author of eleven books, some of them with traditional publishers such as St. Martin's Press and Wiley Publishing, and others that she has independently published through her own company, Full Circle Press LLC.
Until she retired at the end of 2017, Sonja also worked as a publishing professional, editing and designing books for authors from all corners of the globe.
DETAILS, DETAILS, DETAILS: THE CRASH-COURSE IN GOING THE INDEPENDENT PUBLISHING ROUTE
Drawing from his experience with Encircle Publications and years of publishing and graphic design, Ed Vincent discusses the details of independent publishing—including discussions on book production and cover design. Wedged between Sonja, who will provide a broad overview of the other forms of publication, and Bill, who will provide an author perspective working with all publishing avenues, Ed will be our resident expert on the nitty-gritty details and business decisions that are a part of a writer’s path when they choose the Independent Publishing route.
Ed Vincent
Eddie is the co-owner of Encircle Publications LLC and has been in the publishing and graphic design field for over 30 years. His expertise is in complete book production. Eddie serves on the board of Independent Publishers of New England (IPNE). Along with the duties of Encircle Publication’s book publishing arm, Eddie is also available to consult with publishers and independent authors, helping them with all their design needs and all facets of bringing a book to life.
THE PUBLISHING JOURNEY REQUIRES PERSEVERANCE, COURAGE, AND HUMILITY: TIPS AND LIFE LESSONS FROM A PRO
Bill will divide his time between comments and Q&A. He will open with his thoughts on and experience with traditional publishing, indie publishing, and self-publishing, having done all three. He will also address how important the writer's attitude to their work is in achieving success and will share in detail the specific costs he incurs in self-publishing, answering any and all questions.
Bill Schubart
Bill Schubart has lived with his family in Vermont since 1947. Educated locally and at Exeter, Kenyon, and the University of Vermont. He is fluent in French language and culture, which he taught before entering communications as an entrepreneur.
He co-founded Philo Records and is the author of the highly successful Lamoille Stories (2008), a collection of Vermont tales. His bibliography includes three short-story collections and four novels. His latest novel is Lila & Theron distributed by Simon and Schuster. He has served on many boards and currently chairs the Vermont College of Fine Arts, known for its writing programs.
He speaks extensively on the media and the arts, and writes about Vermont in fiction, humor, and opinion pieces. He is also a regular public radio commentator and blogger. He is the great-great-nephew of the renowned photographer Alfred Stieglitz and lives in Vermont with his wife Katherine, also a writer.
GENRE BREAKOUT SESSIONS / PANEL
Genre Breakout 1
During this midday breakout session, writers will gather with others who write in their genre to collaborate on an original piece prompted by the day’s emcee. Back in the large group, a representative from each group will share their final piece.
Genre Breakout 2
In this afternoon breakout session, writers will gather in their genre groups once more. This is a time for networking, business-card swapping, and dialogue about current projects, recent publications, writing challenges, or whatever strikes the group as valuable discussion.
Genre Panel
To end the day, one representative from each genre group will be a part of an informal panel and report back to all in attendance what they learned about their genre and its writers.
FALL INTO WORDS:
A Reading & Gathering for Lovers of the Written Word
Date: Friday, October 5, 2018
Time: 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Rate: No Charge
Location: Meeting Room 2, Shelburne Town Offices
5420 Shelburne Rd, Shelburne, VT 05482
Join other League members on Friday night, October 5, for an informal open mic and social. We’ll start at 7:00 PM and end at 8:30 PM. Beverages will be provided by LVW. This event will be emceed by the League’s Immediate Past President, Alyssa Berthiaume.
Please bring no more than five minutes of reading from your own works. Everything is welcome and appreciated—from poems to short stories, articles, parts of essays, blog posts, or chapters of books of any genre (well, maybe not erotica).
If you plan to attend, please email alyssa.berthiaume@gmail.com by Friday, September 28th. Include your contact information and whether you’d be willing to bring a baked good with you to the gathering. This event is free of charge.