Published authors and inexperienced beginners alike are invited to delve into the craft and business of writing at the ninth annual La Jolla Writer’s Conference, scheduled for Nov. 6 through 8 at Paradise Point Resort & Spa, 1404 Vacation Road. “If you’re a new writer, immersing yourself with other writers gives you a sense of what you can accomplish,” said conference founder Antoinette Kuritz, a resident of La Jolla. “It can be intimidating at first. You may have a story in your head but may find it difficult to transfer that story from point A to point B.” Fourteen writers with backgrounds ranging from “chick lit” to screenwriting and memoir writing will teach workshops on topics that include memoir writing, revising, screenwriting, developing characters, avoiding pitfalls in writing children’s books and creating powerful dialogue. On the business end, 12 literary coaches, publicists and editors will discuss pitching a novel, writing the query letter, finding commercial success and developing a relationship with an agent. Three female, New York Times bestselling authors will deliver the keynote speeches. One of the authors is Eileen Goudge, once a single mom on welfare who struggled for years to break onto the literary scene. She finally found success in the 1980s with her phenomenally popular teenage series “Sweet Valley High.” Goudge later wrote the bestseller “Garden of Lies,” and her most recent novel is “Once in a Blue Moon.” Kuritz said she hosts the conference to “pay it forward” to aspiring writers, and handpicks successful professionals in the field who donate their time. “[The faculty members] have to be very successful at what they do,” Kuritz said. “They have to know how to share that knowledge, and they have to be very generous in sharing that knowledge.” The three-day conference costs $435 and includes two cocktail receptions, plus lunch and dinner. To register, call (858) 467-1978 or visit www.lajollawriterscon ference.com. Kuritz also hosts a writer’s roundtable on the radio where she interviews authors and publicists on topics similar to those discussed at the conference. Visit http://signonradio.com/programs/writer-roundtable.








