Annual author workshops for Mid-Columbia students returns to CBC

Just as daffodils and robins have returned with spring, so has Cavalcade of Authors and the opportunities it provides students and the public to meet with and learn from published authors.

Organizers are expecting between 900 and 1,000 students from Mid-Columbia middle and high schools to attend the March 11 workshops with the 17 participating writers. That’s down from the roughly 1,100 students who attended last year, a result of limited space at Columbia Basin College for the event and schools facing challenges in getting students to the campus.

But there’s still a lot of enthusiasm for the workshops, said director Michelle Lane. There also will be public events through local libraries and a bookstore to give everybody a chance hear from the authors of the books they love.

The annual writing conference for students is celebrating its eighth year. The event started as a reading program at Enterprise Middle School in West Richland before growing to include students from eight districts.

Students attend the event free of charge but are required to read books from at least four of the authors scheduled to attend the conference to earn a spot.

Students then can choose from a number of seminars by each author and can also compete in a writing contest.

The authors attending the event are generally focused on reaching young readers but cover a range of literary genres. Leigh Bardugo, the New York Times best-selling author of the Grisha Trilogy, will lead a workshop on fantasy writing.

Amie Borst writes her own twists on traditional tales in Cinderskella and Little Dead Riding Hood.

Steve Sheinkin used to write history textbooks but now writes historic non-fiction such as the discovery that eventually led to the atomic bomb or the man behind the release of the Pentagon Papers that contributed to the downfall of President Richard Nixon.

“We always try to hit various different genres,” Lane said.

This year’s event also has two veteran Cavalcade authors returning, Lorie Ann Grover, who attended in 2010, and Colleen Houck, who gave a workshop in 2012. Houck will use the fee she’s been paid to attend, along with her personal money, to ensure each student who attends her workshop receives one of her books, Lane said.

Some of the authors also visit local schools ahead of the workshops, but all also are scheduled to be at Barnes & Noble Booksellers at Columbia Center in Kennewick from 4 to 6 p.m. March 10. Tui Sutherland, author of several fantasy series, will also visit Mid-Columbia Libraries’ West Richland branch from 6 to 7 p.m. March 8 and the Richland Public Library from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. March 9.

Because some students won’t be able to attend this year because their schools were unable to continue participating or there just wasn’t enough space, Lane said she’s already looking toward the future. Next year’s event is planned to be at Washington State University Tri-Cities and later in the spring, potentially opening it up to more students. It will also be on a Saturday, a move made to accommodate students who want to attend but are unable to miss a day of classes to attend.

“I have a hard time saying no to kids,” Lane said.

This story was originally published March 7, 2016 at 11:08 AM with the headline "Annual author workshops for Mid-Columbia students returns to CBC."