Popular Local History – A Practical Approach

Sunday, 4 March 2007, 2:00 PM
Dalnavert Museum and Visitors Centre,
61 Carlton, Winnipeg

Join author Russ Gourluck for a presentation on the process of writing popular history books. As a previously unpublished author, he will share his experiences and insights on the major steps of the writing and publishing process, beginning with how to choose a topic that’s worth writing and reading, some techniques of efficient research and writing, where to locate useful images, how to find a publisher (and why self-publishing is usually a bad idea), and what writers can do to market their books.

This practical and sometimes provocative presentation includes a number of key tips (including “Finalizing the Never-Ending Story”, “Preventing TMI Syndrome”, “Avoiding the World’s Worst Editor and Proofreader”, “Achieving a Little Fame and a Small Amount of Fortune” “Getting Over Yourself”, and “Protecting Your Privacy”). This will be more of an interactive session than a lecture, and audience participation will be welcomed. Russ Gourluck believes that local history offers plenty of opportunity for aspiring authors not only to see their work in publication, but also to know that people are enjoying reading the results of their efforts. Join him at Dalnavert at 2:00 pm on Sunday March 4th to find out why.

About the presenter...

Since 2004, Russ Gourluck has written two books on Winnipeg history. A Store Like No Other: Eaton’s of Winnipeg was on the McNally Robinson best seller list for several months, became a Canadian best seller, and received the MHS’s Margaret McWilliams Popular History Award. Going Downtown: A History of Winnipeg’s Portage Avenue sold out its first printing within a couple of weeks, became a Canadian best seller in less than two months, and was named by McNally Robinson as the best selling Manitoba book for 2006.

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