2008 Backspace Writers Conference - Last Call for Registrations

The 2008 Backspace Writers Conference promises to be our best ever, and considering the folks at BiblioBuffet believe our conference is already one of the best, that's saying something:

"Unquestionably the best of all writers' conferences, this two-day annual conference has leaped to the top with its emphasis on quality, not quantity. No more than 150 novelists can attend, and there are no formal pitch sessions. Instead, you'll have the opportunity to mingle with some of the best writers and agents in the industry in a comfortable, non-aggressive atmosphere."

But here's the great news for last-minute registrants: Maybe it's the economy, maybe it's due to conflicts with other writers conferences, but no matter the reason, this year, our registrations are down.

This means folks who come will have plenty of time to interact with top publishing professionals including 16 literary agents, 4 editors from major publishers, and NYTimes best-selling authors.

Check it out, and if you can make it, do come! This just might be the conference that changes your career.

Registrations accepted up to and including the day of the conference.

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John Robison to join memoir panel at Backspace conference

NYTimes bestselling author John Robison will join Gail Konop Baker and Trish Ryan for a panel discussion on writing and selling your memoir at the 2008 Backspace Writers Conference (August 7 & 8, Radisson Martinique, NYC).

John's touching and often humorous memoir, LOOK ME IN THE EYE is the moving, darkly funny story of growing up with Asperger's at a time when the diagnosis simply didn't exist.

"Of course this book is brilliant; my big brother wrote it. But even if it hadn't been created by my big, lumbering, swearing, unshaven 'early man' sibling, this is as sweet and funny and sad and true and heartfelt a memoir as one could find, utterly unspoiled, uninfluenced, and original." -- from the foreword by Augusten Burroughs, author of RUNNING WITH SCISSORS and A WOLF AT THE TABLE.

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"Don't let the "C" word scare you," says Sara Gruen, author of WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, about Gail's book, CANCER IS A BITCH, or I'D RATHER BE HAVING A MIDLIFE CRISIS coming from Da Capo Press, October 2008. "CANCER IS A BITCH is smart, funny, hopeful, and as much about life, families and self-discovery as the cancer that prompts it. I loved this book: Read it!"

Lolly Winston, author of GOOD GRIEF, agrees: "Gail Konop Baker is a knock-out writer who cracks me up one minute then brings me to tears the next. Her beautiful, funny, feisty, poignant memoir isn't just an inspiration for cancer patients and their families -- but for all of us. There is so much wisdom between these pages, yet the story is told without an ounce of self pity or a trace of triteness. In the end, this tale is a testament to how precarious and priceless life is, and how each of us needs to live it to the fullest, starting right now."

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Trish Ryan is the author of HE LOVE ME, HE LOVES ME NOT: A MEMOIR OF FINDING FAITH, HOPE, AND HAPPILY EVER AFTER, a hilarious, honest and thoughtful memoir released by Hachette Book Group/Center Street in April 2008. Trish Ryan was the quintessential successful thirtysomething woman -- she had a career as an attorney, a nice car, and a succession of men clamoring for her affection.

But despite all her accomplishments, the things by which she defined her life continually left her disappointed, especially when it came to dating. Like the heroines of chick-lit novels and Sex and the City, she couldn't escape her bad luck with men: men who cheated, who left her, who made her a lesser version of herself. After years of trying everything out there to make love work -- new age philosophy, feminist empowerment, myriads of self-help programs -- she finally, hesitantly, decided to give God a try.

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The 2008 Backspace Writers Conference brings together literary agents, acquisitions editors, best-selling authors, and publishing professionals for a two-day, two-track program of workshops, panels, and networking in the heart of the publishing world.

Come meet the people who can make a difference in your career!

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The Backspace Book Promotion Network

A few months before the release of my debut thriller, FREEZING POINT, I decided I was going to use the Internet to promote my novel as much as possible.

From talking to other writers, I knew there were plenty of promotional opportunities available - blog tours, online book clubs, book review sites, video sharing, and social network sites where people who might be interested in the topic of my book gathered.

I heard words like "Authorbuzz" and "LibraryThing" and "Shelfari," but didn't know what they meant, or how these sites and services could help promote my book.

And while I had an author page at MySpace, I wasn't sure how to make the most of it.

I looked for a resource that would explain it all; that had all of the Internet promotional opportunities listed in one place - a central database where everything could be accessed without wasting precious writing and promotional hours googling.

And when I couldn't find one, my Backspace partner, Christopher Graham, and I decided to make our own.

What is The Backspace Book Promotion Network?

The Backspace Book Promotion Network is a searchable database of thousands of listings of Internet book promotion opportunities. Current, comprehensive information - an extensive collection of everything related to Internet book promotion that we could find on the Web. Most of the listings are free, while some, such as newsletter advertising and press release services, are available to authors for a small cost.

But The Backspace Book Promotion Network is more than a vast collection of links. Our Articles section tells you how to USE these promotional opportunities to best advantage. The articles are written by the people who know: website designers, publicists, best-selling authors.

Publishers have a finite amount to spend on marketing, and the bulk of their promotional dollars go to best-selling authors. Literary agencies hire full-time publicists to take up the slack. Authors with small presses and self-published authors are at an even bigger disadvantage.

Smart authors are figuring out new and innovative ways to promote their books using the Internet. The Backspace Book Promotion Network can help. $30 for six months; $50 for one year.

Not much more than the price of a good book.

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John Searles To Keynote at the Backspace Writers Conference

Author and editor John Searles will present one of two keynote addresses at the 2008 Backspace Writers Conference in New York City this August. John is the Deputy Editor of Cosmopolitan where he oversees all book coverage for the magazine. His essays, articles and reviews have appeared in the Washington Post, the New York Times and other national magazines and newspapers. He is the author of two bestselling novels, BOY STILL MISSING and STRANGE BUT TRUE.

Upon the publication of his first novel in 2001, Time named him a "Person to Watch" and the New York Daily News dubbed him a "New Yorker to Watch." Searles appears frequently on morning shows such as NBC's Today, CBS's The Early Show, Live! with Regis & Kelly and CNN, where he discusses his favorite seasonal book selections. He is at work on his third novel to be published by William Morrow/HarperCollins in 2008.

The 2008 Backspace Writers Conference will be held August 7 & 8 at the Radisson Martinique in NYC. Others on the program include Mark Tavani, senior editor at Random House, literary agents Simon Lipskar, Jenny Bent, Richard Curtis and Jeff Kleinman; authors Chris Grabenstein, Reed Farrell Coleman, William Powers, and Caroline Leavitt, and many more.

Attendance is limited to 200. Register now!

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Mystery Writers of America and the Backspace Writers Conference

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Mystery Writers of America is offering their members who wish to attend the Backspace conference a $50 discount. MWA members should register for the conference at the full price, and then email Margery Flax at: mwa (at) mysterywriters (dot) org for reimbursement.

The 2008 Backspace Writers Conference brings together literary agents, acquisitions editors, best-selling authors, and publishing professionals for a two-day, two-track program of workshops, panels, and networking in the heart of the publishing world.

Keynote speakers are Mark Tavani, Senior Editor, Random House, and New York Times best-selling thriller author Lee Child.

Others on the program include literary agents Richard Curtis, Simon Lipskar, Jeff Kleinman, Emmanuelle Alspaugh, Paige Wheeler, Laney Katz Becker, Jenny Bent, Maya Rock, Michael Bourret, Scott Hoffman, Ronnie Gramazio, Stephany Evans and Elisabeth Weed,

authors M.J. Rose, Harry Hunsicker, Jason Pinter, Jackie Kessler, Heather Brewer, Gail Konop Baker, Laurel Corona, Lisa McMann, Jenny Gardiner, Danielle Younge-Ullman, Claudia Gray, Marlys Pearson, Jessica Keener, Elizabeth Letts, A.S. King, Robin Slick, Susan Henderson, Pam Jenoff, Trish Ryan, Leora Skolkin-Smith, Caroline Leavitt, Reed Farrel Coleman and Chris Grabenstein,

editors Hilary Rubin Teeman (St. Martin's), Charis Conn (contributing editor, Harper's Magazine), Kristen Weber (New American Library) and independent editor Jerry Gross, and publicity consultant Bella Stander.

Attendance is limited to 200. Come meet the people who can make a difference in your career!

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Members' 2007 Releases - The Year in Review
originally posted: November 30, 2007

For anyone who's been stocking a Backspace bookshelf all year, these 73 titles by Backspace members released during 2007 might explain why you're constantly broke . . .

Congrats to all!

Karen Abbott - SIN IN THE SECOND CITY (Random House)
Tasha Alexander - ELIZABETH, THE GOLDEN AGE (Harper Collins)
Tasha Alexander - A POISONED SEASON (William Morrow)
Lauren Baratz-Logsted - ANGEL'S CHOICE (Simon&Schuster for Young Adults)
Brett Battles - THE CLEANER (Delacorte Press)
Allison Brennan SPEAK NO EVIL (Ballantine Books)
Allison Brennan - FEAR NO EVIL (Ballantine Books)
Allison Brennan - SEE NO EVIL (Ballantine Books)
Heather Brewer - EIGHTH GRADE BITES (Dutton/Penguin)
Robert Gregory Browne - KISS HER GOODBYE (St. Martin's Press)
Ally Carter - CROSS MY HEART AND HOPE TO SPY (Hyperion)
Jane K. Cleland - DEADLY APPRAISAL (St. Martin's Minotaur)
Jon Clinch - FINN (Random House)
Tish Cohen - TOWN HOUSE (HarperCollins)
Tish Cohen - THE INVISIBLE RULES OF THE ZOE LAMA (Dutton Childrens' Books)
Cat Conner - KILLERBYTE (Triskelon Publishing)
J.T. Ellison - ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS (Mira)
Barb Ferrer (writing as Caridad Ferrer) - IT'S NOT ABOUT THE ACCENT (MTV Books)
Loraine Fowlow, with Sean Stanwick - WINE BY DESIGN (hardcover, John Wiley & Sons)
Patry Francis - THE LIAR'S DIARY (Dutton)
Helen Gallagher - RELEASE YOUR WRITING: BOOK PUBLISHING YOUR WAY (Virtual Bookworm, Inc.)
Theo Gangi - BANG BANG (Kensington)
Linda C. Gerber - THE FINNISH LINE (Puffin/Speak)
John Getze - BIG NUMBERS (Hilliard & Harris)
Chris Grabenstein - WHACK A MOLE (Carol and Graf)
Chris Grabenstein - HELL FOR THE HOLIDAYS (Carol and Graf)
Elizabeth Graham - PLAYING WITH THE MOON (Macmillan New Writing)
Lynne Griffin - NEGOTIATION GENERATION: TAKE BACK YOUR PARENTAL AUTHORITY WITHOUT PUNISHMENT (Penguin)
Sara Gruen - WATER FOR ELEPHANTS (Algonquin Books - paperback)
Sara Gruen - RIDING LESSONS (Harper Paperbacks)
Sara Gruen - FLYING CHANGES (Harper Paperbacks)
Albyn Leah Hall - THE RHYTHM OF THE ROAD (Thomas Dunne Books)
Sara Hantz - THE SECOND VIRGINITY OF SUZY GREEN (Flux)
Melanie Lynn Hauser - SUPER MOM SAVES THE WORLD ( NAL)
Alesia Holliday (writing as Alyssa Day) - ATLANTIS RISING (Berkley Sensations)
Kay Hooper - BLOOD DREAMS (Bantam)
Kay Hooper - SLEEPING WITH FEAR (Bantam, paperback,)
Carolyn Hughey - CUPID'S WEB (Avalon Books)
Harry Hunsicker- CROSSHAIRS (St. Martin's Minotaur)
Pam Jenoff - THE KOMMANDANT'S GIRL (Mira)
Lesley Kagen - WHISTLING IN THE DARK (NAL/Penguin)
Jackie Kessler - THE ROAD TO HELL (Zebra Books/Kensington)
Jackie Kessler - HELL'S BELLES (Kensington)
Kristy Kiernan - CATCHING GENIUS (Berkley)
Gary C. King - STOLEN IN THE NIGHT: The True Story of a Family's Murder, a Kidnapping, and the Child Who Survived (St. Martin's Paperbacks )
Joe Konrath - DIRTY MARTINI (Hyperion)
Adrienne Kress - ALEX AND THE IRONIC GENTLEMAN (Scholastic UK; Weinstein Books US/Canada)
Gretchen Moran Laskas - THE MINER'S DAUGHTER (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Adults)
Richard Lewis - THE KILLING SEA (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing)
Jonathan Maberry - DEAD MAN'S SONG (Kensington)
Jonathan Mayberry - THE CRYPTOPEDIA: A Dictionary of the Weird, Strange, and Downright Bizarre (Kensington)
Toni McGee Causey - BOBBIE FAY'S VERY (very very very) BAD DAY (St. Martin's Press)
Joe Moore & Lynn Sholes - THE HADES PROJECT: A Cotten Stone Mystery (Midnight Ink)
C.J. Parker FUGUE MACABRE: GHOST DANCE (Light Sword Publishing LLC.)
Stephen Paul - THE LAST GUNFIGHTER (mobipocket.com)
Kate Perry - PROJECT DATE (Kensington Zebra)
Cornelia Read - FIELD OF DARKNESS (Grand Central Publishing - paperback)
Kim Reid - NO PLACE SAFE: A Memoir (Dafina/Kensington Books)
John Elder Robison - LOOK ME IN THE EYE (Random, U.S. and Canada)
Renee Rosen - EVERY CROOKED POT (St. Martin's Press)
Jordan Rosenfeld - MAKE A SCENE (Writer's Digest Books)
Michelle Rowan - FANGED AND FABULOUS (Grand Central Publishing)
Renee Russell - KATE'S PRIDE (wings ePress)
Marcus Sakey - THE BLADE ITSELF (St. Martin's)
Marcus Sakey - THE BLADE ITSELF (Mass Market Paperback)
Shari Sanford (editor) , Mark Macdonald - LOACHES: NATURAL HISTORY AND AQUARIUM CARE (TFH Publications)
Clea Simon - CRIES AND WHISKERS (Poisoned Pen, December)
Alexandra Sokofoff - THE HARROWING (paperback - St. Martin's Press)
Wendy Nelson Tokunaga - MIDORI BY MOONLIGHT (St. Martin's)
Rachel Weingarten - CAREER AND CORPORATE COOL (Wiley)
Allison Winn Scotch - DEPARTMENT OF LOST AND FOUND (William Morrow)
Patricia Wood - LOTTERY (Putnam)

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Patry Francis unfolds her story as effortlessly as nature unfurls the petals of a rose. When I read The Liar's Diary in hardcover last summer, I was totally spellbound by her skill with words. She is a gifted writer, but more than that, she is an exquisitely compassionate and loving person. I am proud to call her my friend. -- Natalie Neal Whitefield

The Backspace organization is predicated on the idea of writers helping writers, which we accomplish by means of discussion forums, a guest speaker program in which agents, acquisitions editors, and bestselling authors regularly conduct online question and answer sessions with the group, and articles and advice from agents and other publishing professionals on our homepages, along with useful links, conference and book reviews, and more.

Backspace has attracted the support and/or participation of Richard Curtis, Dan Lazar, Jenny Bent, Sara Nelson, Kristin Nelson, Ethan Ellenberg, Nick Ellison, Jeff Kleinman, Kristen Weber, Jeffery Deaver, Lee Child, Robert Crais, Neil Gaiman, Chris Bohjalian, Elizabeth George and many other publishing professionals.