Drill Sergeants
Since the publication of her first book, The Goose Girl, in 2003, Shannon has become a beloved author to young readers as well as booksellers and educators. Her third novel, Princess Academy, earned her a Newbery Honor and is a New York Times, Book Sense, and Publishers Weekly bestseller. Shannon has also written three books for adults, Austenland (now in production to be a major motion picture starring Keri Russell), Midnight in Austenland, and The Actor and the Housewife.
Shannon lives near Salt Lake City, Utah, with her husband, the author Dean Hale, and their four children.
You can learn more about her writing here
Check out her books here
Class: Rewriting The Crap Out Of It – A first draft is mostly crap. Learn to embrace the crap! And how to filter it out to find the best story nuggets and make your writing stronger.
Frank L. Cole has lived in such exotic places as the Philippines and Kentucky, and currently lives with his wife and three children out west. While he strived for years to earn his publishing credits, Frank considers sharing his message of “Exercising Your Imagination” to over 40,000 kids across the country as his greatest accomplishment. The Guardians of Elijah’s Fire is Frank’s 5th published book and he has two more in the pipeline for next year. Hashbrown Winters and the Whiz-tastrophe is due out in April, 2013 and the 3rd and final book in his Guardians trilogy will release in November, 2013.
You can learn more about his writing here
Watch his author video here
Check out his books here
Class: Finding Your Characters (for they could be lost) – Developing killer characters both you and your readers will love through: – Dialogue development – Fine-tuning your Descriptions – The Necessities (humor, sass, quirks) – Believable Reactions
Kiersten White is the New York Times bestselling author of the Paranormalcy trilogy. Although her next book was originally meant to be a story of a femme-fatale, Mind Games quickly turned into a story about two sisters and impossible choices. This may be because Kiersten has three sisters, none of whom she has killed for, but all of whom she has considered killing at one point or another. Kiersten is the recipient of the Utah Book Award and lives in San Diego with her family.
You can learn more about her writing here and follow her on Twitter @kierstenwhite
Watch her trailer for Endlessly here
Check out her books here
Class: Plot Like a Villain – Kiersten will instruct you in the nefarious arts of Doing Horrible Things to Good People. A killer plot requires much chopping, and we’ll learn the right tools for sharpening your editorial knives. From figuring out where your story really begins, to deciding which scenes must die painful deaths in order for the book to live, a step-by-step guide to streamlining your pacing. Your readers just might die from all the paper cuts your ultimate page-turner gives them, but it’ll be a happy death! View her Syllabus
Jeff Savage is the author of eleven published books including the Farworld fantasy series, the Shandra Covington mystery series, The Fourth Nephite, the Case File 13 series by Harper Collins. Dark Memories, being published by Covenant Communications is the first horror novel published by mainstream LDS publisher. He has visited over 400 schools and teaches many writing class and conferences.
You can learn more about his writing here
Watch his author video here
Check out his books here
Class: Finding Your Voice – Voice—agents ask for it, good authors are said to have it, you may even have been rejected for not having enough of it. But what really is voice? What makes one voice unique over another? And how to you find yours? This class will examine what voice is, the difference between YA, MG, and adult voice, and how to make yours stand out from the rest. View his syllabus
With her degree in History and Secondary Education, Jennifer had every intention of teaching teens to love George Washington and appreciate the finer points of ancient battle stratagem. (Seriously, she’s obsessed with ancient warfare. Weird? We know.) Life had different plans. After completing the first draft of her third novel, Jennifer teamed up with dream agent, Amy Jameson, and hopes to soon see her first novel in print. As a proud member of Writers Cubed, and a co-founder of the Teen Author Boot Camp, she feels blessed to be able to fulfill both her ambition to work with teens as well as seek publication and improve her own writing.
You can learn more about her writing here
Class: Wrestling Your First Chapter Into Submission – You have a killer story idea, great characters, a solid world-building foundation and you’re ready to start that book . . . but then the first chapter happens. All great first chapters have several key components. This class will teach you how to wrestle your first chapter into submission by uncovering the REAL beginning of your story, discovering the five things every first chapter MUST have, and give you the tools to grab that tough introduction by the wrist, wrench it’s arm back with force, and make it say “uncle!” Jennifer’s goal is to make the 2014 First Chapter Contest a nightmare to judge. 
Amy Jameson began her career in publishing working with renowned literary agent Lynn Nesbit at Janklow & Nesbit Associates in New York City, where her first client was Shannon Hale. In 2004, she and her husband Brandon formed A+B Works, an independent literary agency and design firm. Amy has always had a passion for young adult and middle grade fiction. Some of her favorite authors include Sharon Creech, Jerry Spinelli, Madeleine L’Engle, E.L. Konigsberg, Louisa May Alcott, Susan Juby, Cynthia Rylant and, of course, her own clients. Amy enjoys spending time with her three children, trying to grow things in her garden, cooking, singing, and reading really great books.
Learn more about her here
Class: Literary Agents and the Business of Publishing – Wondering what happens after you’ve written a book and you want to get it published? This class explains how the business of publishing works and the role that literary agents play in helping authors get published, including tips for finding the right agent for your particular book and appropriate querying of agents.
Clark Schaffer has spent the last 23 years contributing to the film industry as a production designer, art director, designer, visual effects artist. He has written screenplays that he is currently producing and directing. His credits include Ironman II, Daylight, Dantes Peak, Star Trek Generations, Sphere, Mystery Men and Batman Forever.
You can learn more about him here
Class: Screenplay, the first step in making a movie – This will be an initial introduction to the craft of script writing. We will explore the structure and language of a screenplay, and talk about character, plot and dialogue, all the tools you will need to make your story into a movie. See how a script differs from a novel and start making films today.
J.R. Johansson is a young adult thriller author whose debut, INSOMNIA will be released Jun8, 2013 U.S. (Flux), Germany (Heyne Fliegt), and Italy (Newton Compton). She has a B.S. degree in public relations and a background in marketing. She credits her abnormal psychology minor with inspiring many of her characters. When she’s not writing, she loves reading, playing board games, and sitting in her hot tub. Her dream is that someday she can do all three at the same time. She has two young sons and a wonderful husband. In fact, other than her cat, Cleo, she’s nearly drowning in testosterone.
You can learn more about her here
Class: Pacing & Tension ~From Page 1 to The End – how to keep your reader tearing through the pages. Pacing and Tension are tools that, when used correctly, can truly impact the reading experience. We’ll walk through how to use dialogue, narrative, setting & characters to correctly pace a novel. We can also address how to use all of the same areas to amp up the tension and keep the reader’s focus glued to the page.
Janette Rallison (who is also sometimes CJ Hill when the mood strikes her) writes books because writing is much more fun than cleaning bathrooms. Her avoidance of housework has led her to writing 12 young adult novels, which have sold over 1,000,000 copies and have been on the IRA Young Adults’ Choices lists, Popular Picks, and many state reading lists. Most of her books are urban fantasies or romantic comedies because hey, there is enough angst in real life, but there’s a drastic shortage of fantasy, humor and romance. She lives in Arizona with her husband, kids, and enough cats to classify her as eccentric.
Learn more about her here
Watch the trailer for ‘Erasing Time’ here
Check out her books here
Class: Writing Dialogue That Pops – Bad dialogue can kill a story. Learn the do’s and don’ts of writing dialogue, including what not to put in your taglines, and what not to put in your dialogue at all. You’ll learn what you need to know about your characters before you start writing their dialogue. Then you’ll do some exercises to practice what you’ve learned.
Critically acclaimed, #1 New York Times best-selling author Aprilynne Pike has been spinning tales since she was a child with a hyper-active imagination. At the age of twenty she received her BA in Creative Writing from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. When not writing, Aprilynne can usually be found out running; she also enjoys singing, acting, reading, and working with pregnant moms as a childbirth educator and doula. Aprilynne lives in Arizona with her husband and four kids; she is enjoying the sunshine.
Learn more about her here
Watch the trailer for ‘Destined’ here
Check out her books here
Class: Worldbuilding ~ The invisible Foundation – Not just for fantasy, world building is a key task of any fiction writer. From a wholly-imagined realm to the house next door, find out how to make the world in your story believable. What you need to know, what’s optional, and why almost none of it ends up in the book.
Tess loves writing for young readers. Her debut novel, With a Name Like Love, was named one of School Library Journal’s Best Books of 2011 and Booklist’s Top Ten Historical Novels for Youth 2012. It also garnered a James Patterson Kiddo Honor Award, an American Booksellers New Voices Award and two Whitney Awards. Her next novel, titled Skies Like These, will hit the shelves Spring 2014. In addition to being an author, Tess is a specialty writing teacher at an elementary school.
Learn more about her here
Watch her author video here
Check out her books here
Class: Insider Secrets ~ How to Craft a Sell-able Manuscript – So often we think of “story” as an elusive, ethereal mist that hovers over us. Not true! Come learn how to shape your manuscript into something publishers will be clamoring for. From plotting strategies to pacing tools, Tess will be sharing her very best insider tips with you!
Marion Jensen has a beard. This is a fact, albeit a completely random and worthless fact. Marion Jensen is a nut. This is an opinion. But probably a fair and spot-on opinion. Marion has written two books under the pen name Matthew Buckley. His latest book, Almost Super, will be published by HarperCollins in 2014. He is represented by the wonderful Sara Crowe. He also does not speak Spanish.
Learn more about him here
Check out his books here
Class: Humor ~ The very serious business of making people laugh – Humor is hard. Very hard. Only the brave of heart dare attempt it. Only the very witty can pull it off. Also, it helps to be crazy. Marion can help you with all of them, especially the last one. Come and learn how to make sure your writing gives people belly laughs, and not dandruff.
After working as a journalist and corporate freelancer for twenty years, Lois finally got a clue and starting REALLY writing. . . fiction that is. Her love of all things fantastical began at an early age when her five older brothers subjected her to television shows such as “Dr. Who” and “Lost in Space.” (And yes, we’re talking about the originals here.) By age thirteen, Lois had earned and wasted enough money to purchase a complete set of “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” collector cards. It took her nearly an entire summer of babysitting to accomplish the task. Before mocking her, however, know that the set happens to be worth a tidy little sum on e-bay these days. At the end of 2011, her first novel CYCLES was released. Less than a year later, it was named a top 5 finalist of The Kindle Book Review’s “Best Indie Books of 2012.” SPACES, the second book in the series, will be out February of 2013.
Learn more about her here
Watch her author video here
Check out her book trailers for Cycles & Spaces
Check out her books here
Class: Writing Romance without Choking on the Cheese – You don’t have to write romance novels to need to know the basics of a good “kiss scene.” From historical fiction to sci-fi, every book is better with a love interest—just ask that lady who wrote “The Hunger Games.” If you bring your notebook and pencil, I’ll bring the paper towels. (We’ll need them when the windows get a little steamy.)
Tahsha spent her childhood in Utah in the best backyard a child could ask for. It was there that she visited countless different worlds, and experienced grand adventures. Though she grew up, her imagination never went away, and she decided to put all that daydreaming to good use by writing her very first story. She quickly fell in love and writing became her passion. She loves to travel and learn, has a soft spot for ancient history and tries not to take life to seriously. Among the title writer, NaTahsha is also a wife, mother, avid T.V. watcher, graphic designer, reader, lover of the outdoors and all things sugary.
Learn more about her here
Class: Dazzling your readers with description! Now in 3D! – Learn how to make your readers really feel like they are living the scenes of your story. Make them smell the rotting river your characters are wading through, or see the magical world they just entered. Make them feel a tingle on their necks as the romantic tension builds. Come with Jo Schaffer and Tahsha Wilson, members of Writers Cubed, and learn the do’s and don’ts of good description. You’ll walk away knowing how to describe scenes so realistically your readers will need 3D glasses!
Tyler Whitesides is the author of Janitors, a middle grade fantasy series. Writing has been a passion of his from a very young age. When he’s not working on a novel, Tyler enjoys cooking, fishing, and drumming. During his 27 year lifespan, he has had several odd jobs, including; firework shooter, taste tester, janitor, music teacher, recycleman, and cat sitter. He believes that any life experience can be turned into an interesting story. Tyler lives in Logan with his wife, Connie, who teaches 3rd grade.
Learn more about him here
View his Author video and book trailer here
Check out his books here
Class: Imagine and Create! – The class will focus on ways to channel and build your imagination. Or, if your imagination is overactive (like mine), we’ll talk about ways to keep it under control. We will discuss how to use imagination to generate story ideas, and how to be creative with settings, plots, and characters. You should come to this class. Crazy things might happen…
Cindy C Bennett is the best-selling author of YA books including Geek Girl, Heart on a Chain, Immortal Mine, and the Enchanted Fairytales series. She’s been published both traditionally (Geek Girl and the upcoming Rapunzel Untangled), semi-traditionally (Reluctance), and self-published (all the rest). She’s learned the ins-and-outs of publishing and marketing to hit best-seller lists on Amazon. She also co-owns Prose by Design which helps new or struggling authors become successful.
Cindy lives in Salt Lake City with her husband, two daughters, and two dogs. She also has two sons and daughters-in-law. Her three “R’s” are writing, reading, and riding her Harley. She also wonders who decided that “writing” counts as an “R”.
Learn more about her here
Check out her books here
Class: Marketing ~ A Necessary Evil That You Start NOW – The word “Marketing” brings a shudder to even the hardiest of souls. However, it’s a necessary evil if you want to actually sell any of the books you write or have written. If you are under the mistaken impression that you’ll submit to a publisher who will then market for you, you’re in for a surprise. If you think your book is so good it doesn’t need to be marketed to sell a million copies in its first year, guess again.
In this course, I’ll teach you what you should be doing right now, before you’ve ever written your first word. Already finished? I’ll show you where to go from here. I’ll teach you the most effective ways I know to market your book both before and after publication. If you have a good basis in place before publication, it will make post-publication marketing that much easier. This class is designed to give you the tools you need to be successful and to learn to embrace – rather than fear – marketing your books. (I promise the topic is not as boring as it sounds.)
Jo was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, to a literary, intellectual mother and an artist, naturalist father. Her parents instilled in her a love of art, books, nature, people and philosophy. As a child, though steeped in an atmosphere of creativity and culture, she experienced just enough poverty to make her street smart too. She grew up with five sisters, two brothers and countless cousins and was soon known for her skills as a storyteller.
Jo wrote her first book when she was six and has written ever since. She left home early to travel the world, visiting other countries and exploring their history, writings and belief systems. Jo schooled in London, studying the arts and British literature and then in Utah, first focusing on archaeology and the humanities, and finally settling on English with a writing emphasis. She married and had three sons with her childhood friend who is an artist and filmmaker, living in LA, Oregon, the Bay Area and now Utah. Jo’s next planned adventure is publication. She is represented by Rubin Pfeffer of East West Literary Agency.
Learn more about her here
Class: Dazzling your readers with description! Now in 3D! – Learn how to make your readers really feel like they are living the scenes of your story. Make them smell the rotting river your characters are wading through, or see the magical world they just entered. Make them feel a tingle on their necks as the romantic tension builds. Come with Jo Schaffer and Tahsha Wilson, members of Writers Cubed, and learn the do’s and don’ts of good description. You’ll walk away knowing how to describe scenes so realistically your readers will need 3D glasses!
Chad Morris’s debut novel, CRAGBRIDGE HALL, BOOK #1: THE INVENTOR’S SECRET, will be released March 5, 2013. This middle-grade romp through a futuristic secondary school will be published by Shadow Mountain Press, the originating publishers of such middle grade contemporary favorites as Brandon Mull (FABLEHAVEN series and THE CANDY SHOP WARS), James Dashner (THE 13TH REALITY and THE MAZE RUNNER series), Obert Skye (LEVEN THUMPS series), and Tyler Whitesides (JANITORS series). Chad grew up wanting to become a professional basketball player or a rock star. (Inspired by Animal from The Muppets, he has been banging on drums since he was eight years old.) Neither of those plans quite panned out. After high school, he left the Rocky Mountains to live in Brazil for a few years then returned home to write and perform sketch comedy while going to college. He graduated from BYU with a couple of degrees and became a teacher and a curriculum writer.
Learn more about him here
Class: Taking your story to the next level, or finding the awesome and letting it drive your story – Every great story needs three different layers of awesome: setting/world, characters, conflict/plot. We’ll talk about brainstorming, fleshing out, and evaluating all three (Do they feel unique, real, intriguing . . . awesome?). Then we’ll discuss how to pull off the day to day writing, keeping those ideas strong and in the driver’s seat of your soon-to-be amazing published story. Seriously, you are practically destined for this success stuff. Let’s do it.