RICHARDSON, Texas (June 12, 2003) - The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), PEN Center USA West, PEN Texas and the National Endowment for the Arts are sponsoring a "Writers' Toolbox" panel discussion entitled "How to Get an Agent," on Sunday, June 22, from 3 to 5 p.m. in Room 2.604 (also known as the Jonsson Performance Hall) of the Jonsson Building on the UTD campus. The event is free and open to the public, and a reception will follow.

PEN is an international membership association of prominent literary writers and editors. The more than 10,000 members (2,700 in the United States) of PEN are poets, playwrights, essayists, editors and novelists, as well as literary translators and agents who have made substantial contributions to the literary community.

UTD's Dr. Tim Redman, a professor of literary studies in the School of Arts and Humanities, is a member of PEN and received a lifetime achievement award from PEN Texas in 2001 for his involvement with the Lone Star Writing Contest, his commitment to the Freedom-to-Write Committee, his biographical work on Ezra Pound, as well as his involvement with chess as an educational tool. Redman is the author of Ezra Pound and Italian Fascism (Cambridge University Press, 1991).

The forum will be moderated by the vice president of PEN USA Center West, Mark Lee. Panelists include:

• Jim Donovan, a successful literary agent for 10 years. Donovan has sold books that have become movies and New York Times bestsellers. In his 22 years in the book business, he's also been a trade book editor, chain book buyer, bookstore manager and author of several books, including Custer and the Little Bighorn (2001).
  
• B.J. Robbins, who opened her Los Angeles-based agency in 1992, but started her career years earlier in New York, where she worked in publicity at Simon & Schuster and as a senior editor at Harcourt Brace. Robbins' agency represents fiction and nonfiction works ranging from memoirs and narrative histories to self-help and parenting books. Robbins teaches at UCLA and at the Squaw Valley Community of Writers Fiction Workshop.
  
• Evan Fogelman, an entertainment lawyer and founder of the Fogelman Literary Agency, which represents more than 100 authors in all phases of intellectual property licensing. Fogelman is chairman of the State Bar of Texas Entertainment and Sports Law Section, is a member of the Association of Authors Representatives and is a noted speaker and author on book publishing and television finance.
  
• Mark Lee, vice president of PEN USA. Lee's critically acclaimed novel, The Canal House, was published by Algonquin Books in May. In addition to writing fiction, Lee has worked as a playwright, journalist and screenwriter.

"Writers' Toolboxes" consist of panel discussions and workshops designed to serve the needs of professional writers. Held in collaboration with community-based literary organizations in the western United States, they include such topics as working with a literary agent and promoting your own book.

About UTD
The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls more than 13,000 students. The school's freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university's Web site at http://www.utdallas.edu.