Top writers from the United States and beyond will be guests at the 29th Annual Writer’s Symposium By The Sea at Point Loma Nazarene University from February 20-23. The lineup includes Elizabeth Gilbert, Nick Hornby, Susan Orlean and Paulette Jiles.
This year, on February 22 the symposium will take place at downtown San Diego’s Balboa Theatre. That show will feature Gilbert, who will give one of her patented talks, followed by an interview with Symposium founder and director Dean Nelson.
“Most people know Elizabeth Gilbert for her memoir Eat Pray Love, and for the movie that was made from it, but she has such a great collection of novels and nonfiction, that I think the audience will be amazed at how much she has produced over the years,” Nelson says. “She’s a wonderful writer in all genres.”
When writer and filmmaker Hornby arrives on stage on the PLNU campus on February 23 for an interview alongside New Yorker writer Susan Orlean to discuss their new collaborative project, it will be the first time they’ve met in person. Hornby, known for his books High Fidelity, Fever Pitch, About A Boy, and many others, is adapting Orlean’s book Rin Tin Tin for film. They’ve been collaborating long distance. Orlean’s books include The Orchid Thief, The Library Book, and The Bullfighter Checks Her Makeup.
“They obviously know each other professionally and virtually, but our stage will be the first time they will be in the same physical space,” Nelson says. “Both are so talented and intelligent and funny, that I’m thinking there will be some sort of spontaneous combustion when we’re all together.”
Paulette Jiles, known best for her novel News of the World, which was made into a film starring Tom Hanks, will be part of the Symposium on February 20 at PLNU.
“She captures the indigenous voices, particularly of the southern U.S., that sets her apart from all the others,” Nelson says.
The purpose of the Writer’s Symposium By The Sea is to celebrate, model and inspire great storytelling.
Past Symposium guests include Amy Tan, Ray Bradbury, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Alice Walker, Anthony Doerr, Maria Hinojosa, Isabell Allende, Anne Lamott, Billy Collins and dozens of others.
For ticket information, go to: 2024 Symposium. SDSun
