The publishing world has secrets...
Secrets can't be kept forever.
The fictional Clymer Workshop is one of the oldest writers' conferences in the country. Aspiring writers who are accepted, like Laura Belmont, are dazzled by its reputation.
Laura's plan is to make a connection with one of the famous staff authors or a literary agent who will help her get a publishing contract. But after she arrives at the conference she realizes that other writers are attending for the same reason she is there.
The male writers on the staff are more interested in Laura’s body than in her manuscript. She goes to creative writing workshops unaware of the literary politics being played in the shadows by the famous authors teaching her—the favors made, the courtesies given, the grudges held.
As the intensity at the conference builds, Laura receives an offer that comes with a price. It also comes with a veiled threat.
Is there a price too high to pay for your dream?
“The twists of the plot are unexpected; there is so much information about the realities of the publishing world; and her characters' dark sides and hope breathe life into a well-constructed novel. A great read.” Lillian Bloom
“I enjoyed every minute that I spent reading this excellent novel, and I was pleased to read so many reviews from writers who confirm that the description of the conference is quite accurate.” A. Rees
Keywords: literary fiction, Story about writers, creative writing workshops, getting a literary agent, writers’ conferences, novels about writers, literary success, writers at work, writers on writing, inside publishing, aspiring writers
About the author
Marian D. Schwartz was born in Buffalo, New York. Books were her escape from the legendary Buffalo winters and probably contributed to her becoming a writer. Now she lives in Central Virginia near the Blue Ridge Mountains, where she enjoys gardening with the exception of fighting deer, who also enjoy her garden by browsing there regularly. Her books include The Last Season, The Story of a Marriage, Harry Danced Divinely, War on Giffort Street, The Writers’ Conference, and Realities, which was a selection of the Swedish Book-of-the-Month Club.
