PANEL ON BOOK COLLABORATIONS:
The Profits, the Pleasures – and the Perils

Sunday October 26, 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
1501 Beacon Street, Brookline, MA
(on the Green Line; plenty of free parking)

Double your writing income by adding a co-author to your byline - just look at all the shared credits on the bestseller lists.

How do you put together a winning team? Our stellar panel will explain the secrets:

• Tips for finding a co-author, whether you're looking for a writer or an expert
• Guidelines for a fair split: how to divide the dollars and the credit
• Suggestions for working harmoniously
• Savvy advice on that all-important collaboration agreement

Expert panel

Each panelist will speak for about 15 minutes. After the talks, you'll have plenty of opportunity to ask questions.

Anne Bernays is author of eight novels, including Professor Romeo and Growing Up Rich, as well as three collaborative works of non-fiction, including Back Then: Two Lives in 1950s New York and The Language of Names, both written with Justin Kaplan, and What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers, written with Pamela Painter. Her articles and essays have appeared in numerous major publications, among them The Nation, the New York Times, Town & Country, and Sports Illustrated. A longtime writing instructor, she teaches at Harvard's Nieman Foundation.

Archie Brodsky is co-author of fifteen trade and professional books in psychology and health care, including Love and Addiction, The Truth About Addiction and Recovery, and If This Is Love, Why Do I Feel So Insecure? As a research associate in the Harvard Medical School Program in Psychiatry and the Law and the Heller Graduate School at Brandeis University, he has co-authored numerous articles in leading scholarly journals. Archie was one of the first NWU book contract advisers. As an adviser specializing in collaboration agreements, he gives members the benefit of his long experience with book collaborations.

Jill Kneerim is Co-Director of Kneerim & Williams at Fish & Richardson, the literary and dramatic rights agency. She represents a wide range of authors, including best-selling novelist Brad Meltzer; Edward M. Hallowell, author of Driven to Distraction; and leading women thinkers and spokeswomen such as Dr. Susan Love. Kneerim is author of Revelations of New England Architecture, as well as a former editor and publisher who has worked for Simon and Schuster, American Heritage, and Grossman Publishers. She has overseen the creation of many books and worked with hundreds of authors over the past thirty years. Kneerim is a member of the executive committee of PEN New England.

Zick Rubin is an attorney who specializes in publishing and copyright law. Among his many author clients is Alice Randall, the author of The Wind Done Gone, the parody of Gone With the Wind that the heirs of Margaret Mitchell unsuccessfully attempted to suppress. A former psychology professor at Harvard and Brandeis, Rubin's own books include Children's Friendships and Liking and Loving: An Invitation to Social Psychology. His articles and op-ed pieces have appeared in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, Salon, Publishers Weekly, and the National Law Journal. In 2002, Boston Magazine named him one of Boston's five best intellectual property lawyers.

Sarah Wernick, panel moderator, is an award-winning freelance writer with a PhD in sociology from Columbia University, who specializes in health, parenting, and self-help collaborations. She is co-author of six books, including the bestselling Strong Women Stay Young and Lung Cancer: Myths, Facts, Choices - and Hope, winner of the 2003 June Roth Memorial Award for Health and Medical books from the American Society of Journalists and Authors. She has moderated two NWU-Boston workshops on writing non-fiction book proposals.

To register

Admission is $40 for NWU members and $50 for non-members. NWU members who volunteer to help at the event will receive a $10 rebate afterward. Proceeds benefit NWU-Boston. All speakers are donating their services.

Make out your check to NWU-Boston. Mail to:
Book Collaboration Panel
c/o Leslie Brunetta
29 Roberts Road, Cambridge, MA 02138

Include your name, telephone number, and email address. Optional: Add a few words explaining why you're interested in the panel; this will help us plan the event. Registration will be confirmed by email; travel directions will be included. If you don't have email, or prefer to have your registration confirmed by postal mail, please enclose a stamped self-addressed envelope.

For additional information, see FAQ. If you have further questions or would like to assist at the event, write to Sarah Wernick at sarah@sarahwernick.com.

What participants say about
Sarah Wernick's book proposal workshops

"This was the best Union event I've ever attended."
– Dexter Van Zile

"A well-structured, fast-paced, informative (and often entertaining) workshop"
– Doris Landau Fine

"The rave reviews from last year were not exaggerated. Organization was superb."
– Sue Katz

• Is this event just for writers?
• If I volunteer, what would I have to do?
• Where will the workshop take place?
• Is the site handicapped accessible?
• What’s the cancellation policy?
• If registration fills, will you have a waiting list?
• Why collaborate? One writer's view

Is this event just for writers? No. Anyone interested in working with a co-author - such as an expert who would like to publish a book with a writer collaborator - can benefit. And all are welcome to attend.

If I volunteer, what would I have to do? If you help, you'll make an important contribution to this Union fundraiser. You'll also receive a $10 rebate after the workshop. Some tasks can be performed ahead of time, but most volunteers will be asked to arrive early (by 9 a.m.) and stay late (until 1:00 p.m.) on the day of the event.

Where will the workshop take place? The workshop will be held in a large meeting room on the ground floor of 1501 Beacon Street, an apartment house in Brookline located between Harvard Street (Coolidge Corner) and Washington Street (Washington Square). There's plenty of free on-street parking, and it's also convenient to the T (C line). Detailed driving and public transportation directions will be provided to registrants. Smoking is not permitted inside the building.

Is the site handicapped accessible? We will try to accommodate everyone who wishes to attend - please contact the NWU office to describe your needs, The meeting room (three steps down) and the restrooms are not wheelchair accessible, though we will provide as much physical assistance as possible to anyone who requires it.

What's the cancelation policy? If you withdraw from the panel by October 17, you will receive a full refund. If you withdraw after October 17, you will receive a refund only if we are able to fill your place.

If registration fills, will you have a waiting list? Registration is limited to 60 people. There will be a waiting list if the event fills. People who wish to be placed on the waiting list must register and send a check. As slots open, those on the waiting list will be contacted in order of their registration. They can withdraw from the waiting list at any time and receive a full refund. If they remain on the list and cannot attend, a full refund will be sent shortly after the event.

Collaboration isn't for everyone. There are drawbacks and potential risks. If you want to check out the possibilities – and learn how to avoid the pitfalls – come to the NWU-Boston Book Collaboration Panel!

Updated 9/19/03, 5 PM by SW