Paths to Publishing (CLE)

The journey from aspiring writer to published author demands persistence, purpose, and careful preparation. With the established reputation of traditional publishing and the growing appeal of self-publishing, writers today have more paths to success than ever before. Join traditionally published author Sheba Karim, self-published author Mytecia Myles, literary agent Margaret Riley King, editor Ami McConnell, and business affairs counsel Mike Bzozowski for this dynamic panel. Attendees will explore the pros and cons of various publishing avenues with valuable insights from authors, publishers, and other industry professionals.

This course is approved by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education for a maximum of one and a half (1.5) hours of general credit.

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All attendees will receive a 10% off coupon good at Parnassus Books for the day of the event. Valid for in-store purchases only. Restrictions apply.

Moderator

Mike Bzozowski, Business Affairs Counsel

Mike Bzozowski Esq. is the Business Affairs Counsel for HarperCollins Christian Publishing in Nashville, TN. He focuses on intellectual property, corporate law, and contract management. He attended law school at the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University and is a licensed attorney in Tennessee and New York. He is originally from New Jersey and in his spare time, he reads and studies Italian with his wife, who is an acquisitions editor at HarperCollins.

Panelists

Sheba Karim, Author

Sheba Karim is the author of the YA novels Skunk Girl, That Thing We Call a Heart, which made several Best Book lists including Bank Street and Kirkus, Mariam Sharma Hits the Road, a NPR Best Book of the Year, and The Marvelous Mirza Girls, winner of the South Asia Book Award. She is also the editor of the anthology Alchemy: The Tranquebar Book of Erotic Short Stories 2 (Tranquebar Press, 2012). Her fiction and essays have been featured or are forthcoming in 580 Split, Asia Literary Review, India Today, Literary Hub, Michigan Quarterly Review, Off Assignment, Sewanee Review, Shenandoah, South Asian Review, The Rumpus, Time Out Delhi and various anthologies in the United States and India. Her short script, Blighted, was a finalist at the 2022 Austin Film Festival and is currently in post-production. She has an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and is a Writer-in-Residence at Vanderbilt University.

Ami McConnell, Editor

Ami McConnell is a writer, editor, and publishing consultant based in Nashville, TN. She is the founder and president of WriterFest Nashville, a gathering for writers of book, song, and film. She formerly served as Editor-in-Chief and VP of Howard Books/Simon & Schuster. Before that she acquired and edited for HarperCollins where she helped launch a successful fiction imprint. Editing credits include numerous New York Times bestsellers and award-winning titles. Today she works with celebrities and artists of all stripes to create bestselling books. She lives with her family in Franklin, Tennessee.

Mytecia Myles, Author

A native of Detroit, MI, Mytecia Myles is a creative, bold, and authentic leader. She is an author strategist. She is the founder and global head of PR of Supernatural Success, LLC., a strategic communication consulting firm serving writers, authors, publishers, and producers. She is a mentor to extraordinary women in business. Myles is an associate literary agent, publishing consultant, and head of author development for Embolden Media Group. Myles has had the honor of working with diverse groups of writers and served in the entertainment industry as a publicist and ghostwriter. She is a faculty member at Middle Tennessee State University, School of Journalism and Strategic Media. She is an author and associate minister. Myles enjoys empowering and inspiring writers as they share their sacred writing with readers.

Margaret Riley King, Literary Agent

Margaret Riley King is a partner and literary agent in WME’s global book division representing a roster of bestselling and award-winning authors in all areas of fiction and nonfiction. Her clients include Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Sue Monk Kidd, Austin Channing Brown, Chloe Benjamin, Dani Shapiro, Jeannette Walls, Sarah Pekkanen, Greer Hendricks, Lara Prescott, Ann Leary, Meg Waite Clayton, Caroline Randall Williams, Jenna Kutcher, Nadia Bolz Weber, Valarie Kaur, among others.  She splits her time between her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, and New York City.