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2016 LDSPPA Annual Conference

LDSPPA 2016 conference

Are you a Latter-day Saint writer, designer, editor, filmmaker, illustrator, marketer, publisher, or social media guru?

Join us at the second annual LDS Publishing Professionals Conference on September 23–24, 2016, at the BYU Conference Center! Learn from an all-star lineup, including . . .

  • Amazing sessions on freelancing, editing, marketing, illustrating, writing, and networking!
  • An inspirational opener by speaker and author Brad Wilcox
  • A keynote address by Brandon Mull, author of the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling Beyonders and Fablehaven series 
  • Practical writing tips by writers from Church magazines, BYU Magazine, and more!
  • A workshop by writer David Doering, a founder of the conference Life, the Universe, & Everything and the BYU student journal Leading Edge
  • A lunch to munch and mingle with publishers such as Deseret Book, Gibbs Smith, Berrett-Koehler, Covenant, Cedar Fort, and Jolly Fish
  • A presentation by the CEO of Berrett-Koehler, Steve Piersanti, on “The Ten Awful Truths about Book Publishing—and What to Do about Them”

Friday, September 23

Time Room # Speaker Focus Presentation 
9:00–9:45 a.m. 2254 Brad Wilcox,
BYU Associate Professor of Ancient Scripture
General Session Let the Lower Lights Be Burning
9:45–10:00 a.m. 2254 Steve Piersanti,
LDSPPA President,
President of Berrett-Koehler Publishers
LDSPPA Business
10:10–10:55 a.m. 2254 Robert Hatch,
Film Director, Writer, and Producer
Business Artistic Expression and Eternal Progression
10:10–10:55 a.m. 2258 Shawna J. C. Tenney,
Author and Illustrator
Illustration Casting, Staging, and Directing Your Own Picture Book
10:10–10:55 a.m. 2260 TJ da Roza,
Editorial Director at Jolly Fish Press
Writing Finding a Home for Your Manuscript: Where and How to Submit
11:05–11:50 a.m. 2254 Patrick Dunshee,
Director of Audience Needs at the Church History Department
Marketing Six-Step Marketing Plan for Publishers
11:05–11:50 a.m. 2258 Moderator: Steve Piersanti
TJ da Roza (Jolly Fish Press)
Zachary Strickland (Future House Publishing)
Chris Schoebinger (Deseret Book)
Business Behind the Curtain: What Publishers Actually Do
11:05–11:50 a.m. 2260 Peter Gardner,
Brittany Rogers,
Mike Walker,
BYU Magazine
Writing Helping Stories Sing
12:00–12:50 p.m. Pavilion Devan Jensen,
LDSPPA Director of Conferences and Programs,
Executive Editor at Religious Studies Center
Networking Munch & Mingle with Publishers (Lunch provided)
1:00–1:50 p.m. 2254 Steve Piersanti,
President of Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Writing and Marketing The Ten Awful Truths about Book Publishing—And What to Do about Them
1:00–1:50 p.m. 2258 Jeff McClellan,
Director of BYU Publications & Graphics
Peter Gardner,
Andrea Christensen,
BYU Magazine
People Harnessing the Greenie Spirit
1:00–1:50 p.m. 2260 Dave Doering,
Business and Technical Writer, Founder of Life, the Universe, and Everything Symposium
Writing How to Make a Real Living as a Writer
2:00–2:50 p.m. 2254 Val Johnson,
Former Managing Editor of the Ensign and Liahona
Business From Blank Page to Keeper Content: How the Church Magazines Come to Be
2:00–2:50 p.m. 2258 Brandon Doyle,
CEO and Founder of Wallaroo Media
Marketing Search Engine Optimization and Social Media
2:00–2:50 p.m. 2260 Suzy Bills,
Freelance Editor and Editor at The Joseph Smith Papers
Business Freelancing, Taxes, and the Law
3:00-3:50 p.m. 2254 Camille Fronk Olson,
BYU Professor and Chair of Department of Ancient Scripture
General Session Taking Our Message to the World

Saturday, September 24

Time  Room # Speaker Focus Title
9:00–9:50 a.m. 2254 Brandon Mull,
Author of Fablehaven and Beyonders
General Session Follow Your Passion
9:50–10:00 a.m. 2254 Steve Piersanti,
LDSPPA President,
President of Berrett-Koehler Publishers
LDSPPA Business
10:00–10:50 a.m. 2254 Moderator: Blair Hodges (Public Communications Specialist at Neal A. Maxwell Institute)
Sue Bergin,
Author
Adam Miller,
Author
Rachel Hunt Steenblik,
Author
Laura Hales,
Author and Editor
Brian Whitney,
Editor at Greg Kofford Books
Writing The Art of Writing for More Diverse Audiences
10:00–10:50 a.m. 2258 Josh Perkey,
New Era Editor and Writer’s Mentor
Writing Rewrite Your Backstory, Supercharge Your Success
10:00–10:50 a.m. 2260 Adam McLain,
Managing Editor at Leading Edge
Hayley Brooks,
Editor in Chief at Leading Edge
Marketing Social Media Connections & Strategy
11:00–11:50 a.m. 2254 Brent L. Top,
BYU Dean of Religious Education and Professor of Church History and Doctrine
General Session Seeing the Grandeur of God All Around Us
12:00–12:50 p.m. Pavilion Suzy Bills,
LDSPPA Director of Standards and Awards, Editor at The Joseph Smith Papers
LDSPPA Awards  Lunch

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