The 6th Annual Japan Writers Conference
This year the Japan Writers Conference will return to Kyoto and the beautiful Imadegawa campus of Doshisha Women’s College. It will take place on November 10th and 11th, 2012. Please mark your calendar and plan to join us. This will be the sixth conference and while each has had its own special flavor, all have been successes in the eyes of the attendees.
This is also a call for presentation proposals. All published writers, translators, editors, agents and publishers who would like to lead a session are invited to submit proposals. Those who have presented at past conferences are (of course) welcome to submit new proposals. But we especially encourage proposals from new submitters. One of the strengths of the past Conferences has been variety, and the best way to foster variety is to feature new presenters each year.
Please forward this to any friend or colleague who might be interested. If you know someone the conference organizers might approach—either living in Japan or planning to visit Japan next autumn—please send us your suggestion. If you have contact information, that would be a great help.
Detailed information follows, but briefly, a proposal needs to include a brief bio, including some publication credits, the type of presentation you wish to make, a title, a summery of 50 words, a longer abstract (150 words) and any special requests you might have. Standard sessions are fifty minutes long, but if you have something special in mind, please let us know and we will accommodate if possible.
Presentations on all genres and all aspects of writing and publishing are welcome. The deadline for presentation proposals is June 1, 2012.
It would also be good to have one more face/voice/body involved with the organization and operation of the Conference on an on-going basis. If you’re interested, please drop John and Bern an email. Our addresses are below.
As in the past, the Conference will be free and open to all who wish to attend. This is possible because all the presenters and organizing staff volunteer their time and talent, and the use of the site is donated by the hosting institution. As a result, the Conference cannot offer any payment, reimbursement, lodging, or help in securing visas or travel permits. So please don’t ask.
You can follow the Conference on Twitter: http://twitter.com/
Some photos from the 2009 Conference are at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/
For a Japan Times article about the conference written by Eric Johnston in 2008, click here.
Those interested in offering suggestions, being a sponsor, or volunteering for 2010 Japan Writers Conference staff positions are invited to join the following elist: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/