Difference between revisions of "Philadelphia Writers' Conference"
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The '''Philadelphia Writers' Conference''' is an annual event and "a non-profit organization whose purpose is to bring writers together for instruction, counsel, fellowship, and the exchange of ideas." | The '''Philadelphia Writers' Conference''' is an annual event and "a non-profit organization whose purpose is to bring writers together for instruction, counsel, fellowship, and the exchange of ideas." | ||
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Recent PWCs have each been a three-day conference, traditionally held in early June, offering from 14 workshops, usually four seminars, several “manuscript rap” sessions, a Friday Roundtable Forum Buffet with speaker, and a Saturday Annual Awards Banquet with speaker. The 150 to 200 conferees may submit manuscripts in advance for criticism by the workshop leaders, and they are eligible to submit entries in about a dozen contest categories. Cash prizes and certificates are given to first and second place winners, plus full tuition for the following year's conference to first place winners. | Recent PWCs have each been a three-day conference, traditionally held in early June, offering from 14 workshops, usually four seminars, several “manuscript rap” sessions, a Friday Roundtable Forum Buffet with speaker, and a Saturday Annual Awards Banquet with speaker. The 150 to 200 conferees may submit manuscripts in advance for criticism by the workshop leaders, and they are eligible to submit entries in about a dozen contest categories. Cash prizes and certificates are given to first and second place winners, plus full tuition for the following year's conference to first place winners. | ||
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Revision as of 21:56, 3 October 2015
The Philadelphia Writers' Conference is an annual event and "a non-profit organization whose purpose is to bring writers together for instruction, counsel, fellowship, and the exchange of ideas."
History
The above words from the PWC bylaws are what inspired the conference's founding in 1949. The initial planners, Florence Kerigan, Suzanne Gill, Helen VanDusen, and Walter Breish, quickly added to their founder’s list Avis Branch, William DeGrouchy, Elizabeth Y. Gilcreest, Mildred Lissfelt, Olga Pardee MacFarland, Edith Osteyes, Patricia Price, and Aimee Jackson Short. The organization was called the Philadelphia Regional Writers' Conference at its inception.
Although they had no money, no publicity background, and no place to meet, they were spurred by the belief that writers gain from fellowship with other writers, that writers benefit from constructive professional help, and that there had to be a way to bring this together in Philadelphia.
On advice from the Chamber of Commerce, the first conference was held in free rooms at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel, which was then supporting cultural groups. The two-day conference offered four workshops, a banquet, and an evening speaker–all for $5–possible because the workshop leaders donated their services for that first meeting. One hundred people attended, primarily hearing about it through area writers' clubs, which proved to be a powerful network.
Today
Recent PWCs have each been a three-day conference, traditionally held in early June, offering from 14 workshops, usually four seminars, several “manuscript rap” sessions, a Friday Roundtable Forum Buffet with speaker, and a Saturday Annual Awards Banquet with speaker. The 150 to 200 conferees may submit manuscripts in advance for criticism by the workshop leaders, and they are eligible to submit entries in about a dozen contest categories. Cash prizes and certificates are given to first and second place winners, plus full tuition for the following year's conference to first place winners.
