Free writers' conference Aug. 29 for kids & adults

If you’ve never been to a writers’ conference, St. Louis Writers Guild’s sixth annual writers’ festival in Kirkwood Park is the perfect way to start. The free mini-conference will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 29, on the second floor of the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 S. Geyer Rd.

“This year the event is indoors, so no more writers melting in the park!” said David Lucas, SLWG president.

Writers in the Park features multiple writer tracks for adults, a workshop for young writers, a puzzle-making workshop for kids of all ages, and a book room filled with local authors. Best of all it remains free and open to all writers; no pre-registration needed.

This year, the Guild is proud to present:

• 10 a.m. - Writing Young Adult and New Adult with Marie Meyer, author of Across the Distance, and more

• 11 a.m. - Writing for Causes (like Denise’s fight for Alzheimer’s Research) with Denise Elam Dauw, author of If Music Be The Food of Love
• 11 a.m. - Building Your Brand: Developing Your Visual, Verbal and Virtual Author/Book Platform with Cathy Davis, Davis Creative LLC
• 11 a.m. - Young Adult Writing Workshop with Kathleen Kayembe, author and Write Pack Radio co-host

• 12 p.m. - How to Host a Successful Critique Group with LS Murphy, author of Pixilated
• 12 p.m. - Researching Your Novel, Your Life, and Everything In Between with Brad R. Cook, author of Iron Horsemen
• 12 p.m. - Puzzle Making with Debbie Manber Kupfer, author the P.A.W.S. series

• 1 p.m. - Genre Talk – genre-specific discussion groups
• 1 p.m. - Write Pack Radio Live -- Recording Topic: Writing Communities

The popular “Buy a book, get a sandwich” promotion will return, featuring sandwiches from 6 North Café.

These amazing authors, organizations, and companies are directly responsible for keeping this event free and open to all writers: Book Eval (Catherine Rankovic), Inspirations by Char (Charlotte R Beard), Amphorae Publishing Group, Write Pack Radio, St. Louis Publisher’s Association, the Kirkwood Arts Commission, and Roseanne and Glenn Satori. www.stlwritersguild.org