By Susan Page

 

The Writers’ Conference Executive Committee wishes all readers and writers a Happy and Productive New Year. We invite you to start the year off with inspiration from two distinguished authors who will be speaking to you right in your own living room!

 

Yuri Herrera and Souvankham Thammavongsa

 

“Signs Preceding the End of the World” by Yuri Herrera is one of the most arresting novels to be published in Spanish in the last ten years. Yuri Herrera writes about the border between Mexico and the United States and those who cross it. He will be in conversation with the director of our Spanish conference, Armida Zepeda, on Sun, Jan 17 at 6pm, in Spanish with English subtitles.

 

The Giller Prize is Canada’s most prestigious literary award, carrying a purse of CA$100,000. This past November, it was awarded to Souvankham Thammavongsa, a Laotian who grew up in Canada. Because we are a genuinely tri-cultural conference, we have a close connection with the Giller Foundation. We are proud to present this award-winning writer as part of our festival. Sat, Jan 23, at 6pm.

 

Literary Events

 

Short story fans will not want to miss our Late Night Live program, Let Me Tell You, featuring short stories by three Mexican writers. It will be presented in Spanish with English subtitles on Wed, Jan 20 at 9:30pm.

 

On Sat, Jan 23 at 2pm, we are presenting a panel for both readers and writers about speculative fiction, which includes science fiction, fantasy, magical realism, ghost stories, fairy tales, and more. Writers Coatl S, Kat Falls, and David Dykes will discuss the appeal and relevance of this type of writing, how to entice readers to suspend belief, and other fascinating details of the genre.

 

Workshops for Writers

 

Our January workshops for writers include these topics: Memoir As an Act of Discovery; Anchoring the Spaceship: Creating Speculative Fiction; Book Proposal Master Class; and How to Edit What You Write.

 

Special Offers

 

Eager to keep our world-class programs accessible to all, we offer our one-month pass, for only US$125, including both keynote events, the Speculative Fiction panel, the Late Night short stories, plus one of the workshops for writers. Our “Best Buy” for Readers is our Keynote Package, which includes all of our thirteen star-studded keynote events, including recordings of those that have already occurred, a US$325 value for only US$180.

 

Our Fun Networking Features

 

We encourage you to attend programs at the time they are presented so that you can join in the fun of “coming up onto the stage” with the speaker following the presentation for informal personal interactions with the author. Or, you are also welcome to socialize with other attendees in “the line for the bathroom.” Following our fabulous Book to Film Forum, one attendee, Jackie Donnelly, wrote: “I just left you on Zoom. Totally touched and blown away. Diana Gabaldon has been my hero-writer, and I actually just spoke to her. Bliss!”

 

Full Information and Tickets:

sanmiguelwritersconference.org