Keynote Speakers Announced for 805 Writers’ Conference,
October 31 & November 1

Two dynamic speakers kick off this year's 805 Writers' Conference will answer those questions and many more. Zhena Muzyka has her own imprint with Simon & Schuster. She will speak on what is happening in New York that writers need to know. John Wilder is a Hollywood insider, a classic hyphenate writer/director/producer who is now an author. John will walk through how a book is judged to become a movie or TV project.

Saturday morning kicks off with Zhena Muzyka a local publishing success story. Not only did she start a tea company with $6.00 that grew into a multi-million dollar business, she stepped out to write a book about the experience. Zhena received a book contract from Atria/ Simon & Schuster, and soon the publisher offered her own imprint, Enliven Books. Zhena is in New York every month working in "The Biz." Speaking on “How to Get Published in Today’s Market,” Zhena gives an insider’s view of today's publishing world. She offers guidance with a simple task list of what a writer needs to do to get an agent, a book deal, and then to sell books. She'll explain everything from the importance of the editing process prior to soliciting an agent, plus what agents and publishers want to learn about a writer when they Google their name. Zhena explains what happens with the deal, within the publishing house, and the all important process. Zhena also present a time-line of how long each step takes. Writers will walk away with in-depth, actionable knowledge.
Saturday afternoon’s keynote presents: “How I Adapt Fiction for the Tube and Screen.” Writer/Producer/Director and Author, John Wilder, whose years of experience working with blockbuster novels to create movies or television series. This vast experience will be explored through an in-depth interview with editor Shelly Lowenkopf.  Wilder wrote and produce numerous award-winning dramas for network and cable television, many with distinguished American authors, including Pulitzer Prize winner Larry McMurtry, James Michener, Anne Rice, John Jakes, and Robert B. Parker. John worked as a writer on 119 episodes of Peyton Place, created and developed Spenser: For Hire, developed and wrote for the mini-series Centennial, as well  producing Streets of San Francisco, to name a few of the successful shows he contributed to over the years. The interview delves into how a book is judged right for the screen and the creative process to turn print into movies, or a series. Wilder’s extensive experience on numerous award-winning television shows  for network and cable television now culminates in his debut thriller, Nobody Dies In Hollywood.
Four other keynote panels await final speakers and will include:
  • A literary agent panel with seven agents discussing today’s market and what New York is asking to see. (This will be the final panel on Saturday.)
  • A panel of regional publishers and editors discussing what they are looking for from local writers wishing to submit stories. (Sunday morning keynote panel.)
  • Authors covering nonfiction, memoir, humor, biography, and mind/body—each panelist recently released a book by a publisher. They’ll discuss what they had to do to get a publishing deal, the publishing process (and pains), and what they are doing to promote and market their books. (Sunday after lunch)
  • The final session on Sunday covers book editing, a step often overlooked or undervalued by first-time writers. Five book editors who are in the trenches daily covering content development to copy editing, discuss what writers need to know to find the right editor for their project, and most important, how to work with an editor.