Write in the Harbor

About

Write in the Harbor (WitH) is an annual event offered through Tacoma Community College’s Continuing Education department. WitH supports the literary arts by providing opportunities for writers to convene and learn  the craft of writing and the business of getting it published.

The conference features a keynote and master class by a local author and workshops focused on the craft and business of writing. Authors Garth Stein, Jim Lynch, and J.A. Jance have been featured at previous conferences. This is a popular event and we expect seats to sell out again this year!

For 2018, Write in the Harbor will be held Friday evening Nov. 2 and all day Saturday Nov. 3, and will feature local writer and former The News Tribune sports writer Dave Boling.

Friday night is our keynote address, and all conference attendees are welcome:

• Keynote Event, 6:30pm - 9pm
• Doors open at 6:30pm, light refreshments with beer and wine
• Program begins at 7pm, welcome from Dr. Ivan Harrell, TCC President, and keynote address including Q&A with Dave Boling
• Dave Boling will sign books beginning at 8pm
• Doors close at 9pm

 

2018 Keynote Speaker and Master Class instructor: Dave Boling

A Writer’s Journey

At age 53, journalist Dave Boling sensed impending troubles for the newspaper business and thought it wise to examine alternatives. As a fallback plan, he gave fiction-writing a try. While still writing four newspaper columns a week, he dedicated every free moment to crafting his first novel, the award-winning, historical-fiction debut “Guernica,” which was published around the world. It was another step in Boling’s unusual progression from blue-collar laborer to journalist to author. In addition to his second novel, “The Lost History of Stars” (2017), he has published three sports books and two collaborative memoirs. His co-authored “The Warner Boys,” will be published in the fall of 2018. It is a collaboration with former Seahawk star Curt Warner (and his wife, Ana) accounting their lives raising twin autistic sons. His message to aspirational authors is clear: No matter your age or work background, getting published is always a possibility.

A Writer’s Conscience

Pinned to a cork board next to author Dave Boling’s computer in his home office is the transcript of John Steinbeck’s 1962 Nobel Prize acceptance speech. Underlined is a portion in which Steinbeck cites his theories on a writer’s obligation. “The writer is delegated to declare and celebrate man’s proven capacity for greatness of heart and spirit — for gallantry in defeat, for courage, compassion and love.” Through the challenges of selecting topics, creating characters and plotting their stories, Boling finds it crucial to maintain a guiding principle, a “true north” writer’s compass by which he steers his works. This pledge by Steinbeck is one, among others, he will discuss in his presentation.