According to the author of 23 books, William Bernhardt, the secret–and he admits this is something he shouldn’t share, that all his writer friends will shun him and editors will deny it and agents will drop him–but the key to getting published is to never give up.  They cannot beat you if you never stop, he says.

The Kings of Appletown was directed and produced by Oscar-winning Bobby Moresco.  You might know his work.  He co-wrote Crash and Million Dollar Baby, scooping up Hollywood’s most prestigious awards for both movies.  This new movie was written by Bobby’s daughter Amanda.  It was a perfect choice for the Maui Writers Conference, because it was inspired by one of America’s favorite literary masterpieces:  Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

For me, it was Roots.  Alex Haley’s masterpiece is the book that introduced the power of storytelling to me as a teenager.  Shortly thereafter, it was Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.  They both rocked my world.

For the first time ever, I saw Patricia Wood today wearing something other than white.  She gave a talk and a book signing today.  Maybe that had something to do with it.  Even though she’s like a little fish in the ocean known as a bird wrasse, darting here and there, I managed to wrangle a few bits of information out of her.  Here they are:

Mary from Everett, Washington:  “The best piece of writing advice I heard today came from Jillian Manus [of Manus & Associates Literary & Media Agency, Inc.] who said, ‘Know who reads your book and why, know what distinguishes your book from others and be ready to explain why you are the authority to write it.’

It’s the eve of the Maui Writers Conference, which they’re now calling the “Hawaiian Islands Writers Conference” because of its new location on Oahu, but like Coke Classic, I’m guessing the new name won’t stick.  New names don’t seem to catch on, do they?  Just like that restaurant in Princeville Shopping Center on Kaua’i.  I think its name is CJs, but everyone still calls it Chuck’s, because that’s what it was for years and years.  But John and Shannon Tullius, I’ll try to get it right.

The Hawaiian Islands Writers Conference opened with a chant and hula by Halau Hula Ka No’eau.  It’s tradition in Hawaii to open events–canoe races, groundbreaking ceremonies, writers conferences–with a recognition of the place and culture of Hawaii.