Morning Weather Report

Today

Partly sunny, with a high near 43. Wind chill values between 20 and 30. Windy, with a northwest wind 24 to 28 mph, with gusts as high as 44 mph.

Tonight

Partly cloudy, with a low around 27. Wind chill values between 20 and 25. Blustery, with a northwest wind 17 to 22 mph decreasing to 10 to 15 mph after midnight.

Tomorrow

Mostly sunny, with a high near 50. Wind chill values between 15 and 25 early. West wind around 9 mph.

Tomorrow Night

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 37. Southwest wind 5 to 7 mph.

Westport Writers’ Workshop Returns to Westport Library for Pitch & Publish Conference

(L-R): Liz Matthews, Julie Sarkissian of Westport Writers’ Workshop. Photo contributed by Elizabeth Foley. 

Press Release

Westport Writers’ Workshop (WWW) announced their return to the Westport Library for their 2nd Annual Pitch & Publish Conference on Saturday, May 20, which will be  both in-person and virtual. Pitch & Publish is the ideal opportunity for those seeking a literary agent, wanting to be educated about the industry at large, or looking to meet and be inspired by authors, agents, and editors. The keynote speaker is Courtney Maum, author of five books, including Year of the Horses, the groundbreaking publishing guide Before and After the Book Deal, and Touch, among others. The conference also includes a Friday night welcome party at WWW’s locale, followed by Saturday’s informative panels, one-on-one pitches, and a wrap party. Doors to the library open for light breakfast to sign in at 8 am, and the event begins at 9 am on Saturday morning. Individual tickets for the conference only are $350 each (walk-ins accepted) tickets for the conference plus two one-on-one pitches with literary agents are $600 each (early bird discount if registered by March 31), $675 each thereafter. Register here: https://www.westportwriters.org/pitch-and-publish-conference-2023.

The conference will include three interactive panel discussions: “Ask The Agent,” “The Road to Publication,” “Level Up your Writing Game,” moderated by Liz Matthews, Kate Schneider and Leigh Stein, respectively. In addition, there will be an inspirational talk, “Live the Process, Own the Process, Celebrate the Process,” and the keynote address by Courtney Maum.

Attendees who purchase “Conference with Pitches” tickets will have the rare opportunity to pitch their books in-person to two elite literary agents and/or small presses during one-on-one sessions. Writers with this type of ticket will be alerted to their individual meetings and the deadline for query letters prior to Pitch & Publish. The agents include: Nora Gonzalez (Gernert Agency), Sarah Landis (Sterling Lord Literistic, Inc.), Jaclyn Gilbert (Driftless Literary), Eloy Bleifuss (Jankow & Nesbit), Ayla Zuraw-Friedland (Goldin Lit,) Samantha Wilkenson (Thomson Lit. Agency), Betsey Lerner (Dunow, Carlson & Lerner,) Agents taking pitches remotely are Marin Takikawa (Friedrich Agency) and Michaela Whatnall (Dystel, Goderich & Bourret). 

“Empowering writers in any and every way is what Westport Writers’ Workshop is all about, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to be joining forces with the Westport Library, Courtney Maum, Leigh Stein, and so many other passionate literary citizens and publishing insiders to deliver a day full of education, inspiration and opportunities for our community. Westport has such a rich history of supporting the arts and we are so proud to continue that legacy,” said Julie Sarkissian, Westport Writers’ Workshop Instructor

Other highlights of the daylong event include an interactive writing experience, books for sale, goodie bags, refreshments, and a literary door prize gift basket. In addition, registrants are invited to the Friday night welcome party at WWW’s studio location at 25 Sylvan Road South/Suite J, Westport. 

“I wanted to say how much I enjoyed the opportunity to be part of the conference this weekend. There was so much to appreciate: the honest, kind, and informed esteemed panelists, the range of topics, the encouragement and humor, the comradeship between volunteers, writers, agents — everyone. I walked away inspired and happy, as did so many. I loved the chance to root for my fellow writers and classmates on their pitch, and loved the partnership between two of my favorite intellectual and community hubs — WWW and the Westport Library,” said 2022 conference participant, Leila Shields

Westport Writers’ Workshop is an independent literary arts center offering enriching supportive creative writing classes, as well as free literary readings to the public. The organization provides free writing workshops to underserved populations in their own communities. For more information regarding Pitch and Publish or year round workshops, visit www.westportwriters.org. 

Morning Weather Report

Today:

Rain and snow before 11am, then rain between 11am and 2pm, then rain and snow after 2pm. High near 38. Wind chill values between 25 and 30. Breezy, with a northwest wind 13 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.

Tonight:

Snow, mainly before 11pm. Low around 32. Wind chill values between 20 and 25. Windy, with a northwest wind around 26 mph, with gusts as high as 46 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

Tomorrow:

Partly sunny, with a high near 43. Wind chill values between 20 and 30. Windy, with a northwest wind 26 to 29 mph, with gusts as high as 45 mph.

Tomorrow Night:

Mostly clear, with a low around 28. Blustery, with a northwest wind 13 to 21 mph.

Governor Orders Partial Activation of Emergency Operations Center ahead of Winter Storm

Governor Ned Lamont today announced that he is ordering the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to be partially activated effective at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, March 14, 2023, to monitor conditions from the winter storm that is anticipated to impact Connecticut.

Throughout the duration of the storm, the EOC will be staffed in-person with personnel from several state agencies, such as the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (including the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security and the State Police), the Department of Transportation, the Department of Administrative Services IT support, and the Connecticut National Guard. Additionally, representatives of Eversource and United Illuminating will be on site. Staff from several other state agencies and the Red Cross and United Way 2-1-1 will be available on a virtual emergency operations center link to communicate instantly, if needed.

Governor Lamont’s office has been in contact with leadership of Connecticut’s utility companies, including Eversource and United Illuminating, and stressed to them the importance of having preparations in place and ready to employ well in advance of the storm should widespread outages occur.

“Different weather models are showing varying projections at the moment, however there is the potential that Connecticut will see quite a range in snowfall totals, with the greatest impact likely occurring in the northwestern and northeastern portions of the state,” Governor Lamont said. “The most concerning part about the forecast is how wet and heavy this snow may be, combined with its very strong wind gusts. These two factors together may bring down power lines and tree limbs, resulting in power outages. I strongly encourage everyone to have preparations in place in the event that you lose electricity, and particularly keep all of your mobile devices fully charged in case you need to call and report an emergency. I also encourage everyone to stay off the roads to the greatest extent possible throughout the duration of the storm.”

For winter safety tips and resources, visit the CTPrepares website at ct.gov/ctprepares or download the CTPrepares app on mobile devices at the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.