Mitt Romney ignited a feminist revolution during the 2012 presidential debates when he said, “I went to a number of women’s groups and said: ‘Can you help us find folks?’ And they brought us whole binders full of women.”
Throw VIDA’s pie charts highlighting “gender disparity in major literary publications and book reviews” into the mix, and you’ll grasp the necessity of Out of the Binders, a two-day solution/conference at NYU of workshops and panels “on/for/by women in the literary arts and film/TV” (which is probably you if you’re reading this post), aimed “to empower women and gender non-conforming writers with tools, connections, and strategies to advance their careers” (and enhance cup size).
Panels will include these essential discussions:
Women in the newsroom
Starting to write after forty
Challenges faced by women writers of color
Professional development workshops on pitching and accounting for freelancers
Literary agent “speed dating”
(Think something’s missing from the list? Check out the call for speaking proposals that will stimulate and motivate, due August 11.)
Symposiums aren’t cheap (I fear I’m missing an opportunity for a joke here), so there’s a Kickstarter to make it happen. Please donate to buy a ticket or apply for scholarship if you believe in yourself and your dreams.
Inspired by “Binders Full of Women Writers,” a non-evil Facebook group, Out of the Binders will help you: Build skills! Network! Develop professionally! Write! Dance (not guaranteed)! Synergize backward overflow!
And now for some binder wordplay: trap her; keep her.
