Whether you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced writer, there’s something you can learn at Book Passage’s 2006 Travel Writers & Photographers Conference. I have personally never attended the conference — being an east coast girl and all — but after reading Jen’s old posts about it and learning about the all-star line up, I highly recommend it to anyone interested in travel writing or looking to enhance their career.
DATE: August 17-20, 2006
LOCATION: 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera, CA
COST: $635, with an additional $95 for consulations
The Book Passage Travel Writers & Photographers Conference has an extraordinary reputation among publishers, editors, and writers. Alumni have published books, articles, and photos — many as the direct result of lessons learned and contacts made at the conference. There is no finer travel writing conference anywhere in the world.
The conference will feature a variety of panels, workshops, consultations, and other activities. The website even promises interaction between students, writers, editors, photographers, and teachers. A few notable workshops and panels include:
Introduction to Travel Writing with Georgia Hesse
Travel Writing for Beginners: Newspapers and Magazines by Larry Bleiberg
Making a Living as a Freelance Writer by Jeff Greenwald, Amanda Jones, Georgia Hesse, Michael Shapiro, and Linda Watanabe McFerrin
Polishing the Travel Article for Submission by the entire faculty (can you imagine having your work critiqued by Don George, Larry Habegger, John Flinn, or a host of others?)
Now that I’ve told you about the benefits of the conference, allow me to drool over the travel writing rock stars who will be attending or holding workshops.
Don George – Lonely Planet Global Travel editor and conference chair
Tim Cahill – author of several books, including Jaguars Ripped My Flesh and founding editor of Outside magazine
Michael Shapiro – editor of A Sense of Place
Larry Bleiberg – travel editor of the Dallas Morning News
Larry Habegger – executive editor of Travelers’ Tales
Not only will you be able to eat chocolate and drink champagne with the best in the business and establish contacts for the future, but you could win a trip around the world, courtesy of AirTreks.com. To win, students enrolled in the conference can submit an essay on the topic ‘Insight into a Culture in Transition’. There are two other contests with prizes of a Photoshop C2 and a AlphaSmart NEO word processor.
For more information, contact conference coordinator, Karen West at kwest@bookpassage.com or 1-800-999-7909, ext. 238.