Puerto Vallarta, Jal.- A lot of people dream of writing their memoirs. Puerto Vallarta’s Maurice Monette did more. He did it. Now he is willing to share the secrets of how he did it.
The author of Confessions of a Married Priest promises that guidance at the 9th Puerto Vallarta International Writers Conference March 6-8 at Biblioteca Los Mangos. The event – with the theme Leaving Our Mark ... Awakening More than Memoir -- is sponsored jointly by the Puerto Vallarta Writers’ Group and the Iibrary.
“I will offer five tips on how to write a memoir,” he says. “I’ll describe how I got started, what obstacles I faced, and how I succeeded in finishing.” Then he’ll entertain questions.
Monette published his first article in the early ’70s and has not stopped since. In recent years his interest has shifted from professional books and articles to what he calls “more right-brained creative writing.” He says he writes because he has to and it is his way of inviting self-awareness and savoring life.
He has been full a full-time resident of Vallarta for 10 years where he and his partner Jeff do organizational consulting with non-profits under the umbrella of “The Vallarta Institute.”
Another Vallartan, part-time resident James Callan – author How to Write Great Dialogue -- will instruct a workshop on that very subject. He will explain and illustrate how dialogue for a novel is not the same as everyday conversation. The focus will be on how to achieve written dialogue that will raise a novel to new heights. In the workshop, participants will write some samples for improvement.
“All writers, aspiring and experienced, understand the necessity of a good plot and good characters,” Callan says. “But many think that since they carry on conversations (dialogue) every day, they can write quality dialogue in a novel. But everyday dialogue does not necessarily make good novel dialogue. I will show the difference, explain why this is so, and then show how to write dialogue that will improve your novel dialogue -- and possibly make the difference between selling a manuscript or not, or between publishing a novel that people rave about, or not.”
Registration is $125 U.S. Registration forms and information are by email at
Texas writer Caleb Pirtle, author of 60 books, also promises to motivate as keynote speaker. Other presenters -- Sarah Cortez, Donna Dahl, Thomas Pulley and Melissa Frost -- will offer seminars, workshops and interaction on subjects ranging from song writing to working with social media. Evelyn Byrne of White Bird Publishing and literary agent Elise Capron, representing the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, will be on hand to consider manuscripts.
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