Many of us aspire to write long-form journalism but fewer venues are willing to publish, or pay for, long, narrative pieces.  Perhaps in our quest for long, we’re missing myriad opportunities to “write short.”  Short writing — from tweets to headlines to essays and news pieces — is powerful, especially in the digital age, says veteran Poynter Institute writing teacher Roy Peter Clark. But to do it well you have to know how to get the most out of a limited word count. Fortunately, writing short is a skill that can and should be honed — and Clark is just the man to guide us. In this session, Clark will share examples of powerful short forms and offer techniques to help us improve our writing.

Tribes share knowledge — be it ideas, inspirations, experiences or lessons learned. Joining, or creating, a tribe of writers can help combat the downsides of a too-often isolating existence. Writing tribes can be large, international affairs or smaller, intimate forums. Panelists will discuss motivations for forming tribes, unexpected benefits and challenges that arise, and strategies to ensure a group works for all. Specifically, invited panelists will share how they tribe-source everything from contract negotiations to reporting dilemmas. They will also offer guidelines on forming a new group — including creating and enforcing tribal "rules”. A Q&A session will follow the panelist discussion.

Mister Spock and the Cylons piqued the curiosity of generations and even steered some toward careers as scientists and science writers. Popular interest in science remains high, as reflected in the success of recent films and television series such as The Big Bang Theory, House, M.D., the CSI franchises and A Beautiful Mind. But how good is the science on TV and in the cinema? This panel features representatives from the worlds of science and Hollywood, and an organization that works to bring them together. Panelists will discuss collaborations that help the entertainment industry get the science right. They’ll touch on how the best-laid plans to get the science right can go awry, the extent to which the portrayal of science in films influences public opinion, what science communicators can learn from Hollywood, and whether there’s a place for science writers at Hollywood & Vine.