Local writers association offering free seminars on Sept. 29

London Community News

The Professional Writers Association of Canada (PWAC) London & Southwestern Ontario Chapter puts local residents in the writers’ seat for Culture Days with a series of free interactive seminars, Sept. 29, at the Stevenson & Hunt Room, Central London Public Library. The six, one-hour presentations, which run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will cover everything from finding a story idea to finding a book publisher. Writing memoirs, the importance of good writing, different ways to begin a story and the financial realities of the freelance life will also be covered. “London has one of the largest PWAC chapters in the country, with members involved in all aspects of the writing profession,” said PWAC London & Southwestern Ontario Chapter president Catherine Tovell in a news release. “We wanted to showcase our local diversity, and cover writing-related topics that would appeal to a broad audience.” Nicole Laidler kicks things off at 10 a.m. with tips on Finding And Pitching Story Ideas. She is the editor of The Beat magazine, an award-winning freelance writer and business communicator, and the owner of Spilled Ink Writing & Wordsmithing. Mary Ann Colihan is currently putting the finishing touches on a history of Kingsmill’s department store. She offers practical advice on Writing Memoirs at 11 a.m. A freelance journalist since 2001, Colihan has reported for CBC Radio and CBC News, the Globe and Mail, More Magazine and other national and regional publications. Suzanne Boles is an award-winning freelance writer specializing in profiles and corporate case studies and client stories and the owner of Suzanne Boles, Write Connection. She presents a noon-hour seminar on The Importance Of Good Writing, with humorous examples of what can happen when businesses don’t pay enough attention to the words they use. Mark Kearney is an award-winning journalist who has co-authored 10 books. He shares his experience in the publishing world with So You Want To Be An Author: Getting Your Book Published at 1 p.m. A lecturer in the undergraduate writing and graduate journalism programs at Western University, Kearney has won six University Students Council Awards of Excellence for his teaching. Three of his journalistic essays were included in a new book, Prose To Go: Tales from a Private List, published in April 2011 by Bridgeross Communications.