PubWest 2020 Keynote Ensuring a More Literate Future for All

The PubWest 2020 conference will be held February 20th-22nd, 2020, at the Portland Hilton in Portland, Oregon.    Our theme for the conference is “Publishing in the Clouds: Practical Solutions for Big Ideas.”  Ensuring a More Literate Future for All Access to and engagement with literature is critical to inspiring creativity, fostering literacy, and strengthening communities. Join three of today’s leading literary advocates and find out how they are helping shape a more literate future for readers, writers, and publishers. This lively, moderated talk will address how diversity, inclusion, and community engagement play critical roles in nurturing new readers and writers, while expanding the current—and future—audience for books. THE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS ARE:

Laura Brief CEO, 826 National. Brief has worked in the fields of education and social impact for nearly twenty years. Over that time, she’s developed a practice of designing, scaling, and leading organizations aimed at leveling the playing field. She’s held key leadership positions at some of the nation’s most dynamic organizations in this realm, including The Posse Foundation, BUILD, First Graduate, Juma Ventures, and Youth Speaks, where she currently serves as board chair. Laura is proud of her present role as CEO of 826 National, which works with the largest youth writing network in the country, serving over 80,000 students ages 6 to18 each year. A former therapist for survivors of trauma, she holds master’s degrees in education and in counseling psychology from Columbia University.

Guy LeCharles Gonzalez Project Lead, Panorama Project. Gonzalez is chief strategist at Free Verse Media and project lead for the Panorama Project. Previously, he was publisher and marketing director for Writer’s Digest; director, content strategy & audience development for Library Journal and School Library Journal; and founding director of programming and business development for Digital Book World. Follow him on Twitter @glecharles.

Andrew Proctor Executive Director, Literary Arts. Proctor has been the director of Literary Arts since 2009. Born and raised in Canada, Proctor, worked in London for the Cultural Attaché to the Canadian High Commission. In the UK, he earned an MA in English Literature at the University of East Anglia under the supervision of England’s then Poet Laureate, Andrew Motion. From 2000 to 2004, he worked as an editor for HarperCollins in New York City and then as the Membership and Operations Director of the PEN American Center, a global literary and human rights organization focused on the welfare of writers and editors. In total, Proctor has worked in the literary world for over 20 years in the governmental, for-profit, and nonprofit sectors.

PubWest Conference 2020 Publishing in the Clouds: Practical Solutions for Big Ideas February 20–22, 2020 Portland Hilton Downtown, Portland, Oregon Registration and more information Register now through December 20, 2019 and save 15% with Early Bird Rates!

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