Beginner or advanced, fiction or nonfiction, you have three days to mingle with other writers and agents and to talk about what matters—your writing and the writing life.

April 23-25, 2010 - University of Wisconsin-Madison

John DeDakis is an editor and writer on CNN’s “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.” John began his journalism career by getting tear gassed while covering an anti-Vietnam War riot for a campus radio station while still a student at UW-Madison in 1970.  During his award-winning, 40-year career in journalism (21 years at CNN), John has been a White House Correspondent, interviewed such luminaries as Alfred Hitchcock, and taught journalism and writing at American University in Washington, D.C. and Regent University in Virginia.   His mystery-suspense novel Fast Track (set in Wisconsin) is the first book in the Lark Chadwick series. A native of La Crosse, Wisconsin, John now lives in Washington, D.C.

I'll be speaking and leading two workshops:

Friday, April 23 - 3-4pm:

From Journalist to Novelist with John DeDakis

Think you're too busy to write a novel?  Veteran CNN editor John DeDakis traces the arc of his 40-year career -- from getting tear gassed covering an anti-Vietnam War riot on the U.W. campus in 1970 to his current job as a Senior Copy Editor on CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer" and how it all led to a parallel career as a published novelist and manuscript editor. 

Saturday, April 24 - 2:15-3:45pm

How to Write a Novel
A practical 15-point plan that takes you from the mere germ of an idea all the way through the creative process, with an eye on getting a finished book into the hands of potential fans. We'll discuss how to transform the nub of an idea into a book-length project, populated with interesting characters, a twisty-turny plot, snappy dialogue, and an interesting setting.  We'll also look at strategies for finding an agent and marketing the finished product.

Saturday, April 24 - 4-5:30pm

Buffing and Polishing 
You've finally finished your manuscript and now you're ready to tell Oprah all about it.  Not so fast.  The best writing is REwriting.  In this session, you'll learn practical ways to put your writing on a flab-burning diet so that your copy is tight, trim and hot -- and all without even having to step onto a treadmill. 

Hope to see you there.  Click on the link below for more details and registration information: