2026 Conference Workshop Information 

Workshop Information

Conference workshops run on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (Morning)

Simply register to attend the conference when registration opens, then select whatever workshops interest you on the day(s) you selected. And if you become a member before registering for the conference, you save $60 ??? on the cost of attending the full conference! 

Click to download the 2026 Workshop Schedule and/or see all 2026 Presenter Bios and Agent Bios for this year's conference.
*Every effort will also be made to update this information if there are changes to class offerings.

Susan Gable
Marketing Without Losing Your Mind: Let the AI Do It!
Most writers dread marketing. It’s overwhelming, time-consuming, and pulls energy away from what we’d rather be doing—writing books. But what if you could hand off the hardest parts to AI tools that never run out of ideas or need a nap? This workshop is your stress-free guide to using AI (like ChatGPT, Canva Magic Write, and other free or low-cost tools) to handle the content creation side of author marketing. From newsletters to social media posts to launch plans, you’ll learn how to prompt AI in ways that reflect your voice and brand—without sounding robotic or generic.
We’ll walk through real examples of how to:

• Brainstorm and write social posts that feel like you
• Repurpose book content into blogs, graphics, or reels
• Generate newsletter ideas, sequences, and subject lines that get opened
• Build a sustainable content calendar—even if you’re “bad at planning”
• Turn blurbs, reviews, and scenes into engaging promo materials

This isn’t about hype or hacks. It’s about smart, repeatable systems that take marketing off your mental plate and help you show up consistently (even when your creative tank is low). If you’ve ever stared at a blank screen thinking “I should post something, but what?”—this is the workshop for you.
No marketing degree required. No selling your soul. Just practical tools, creative strategies, and a whole lot of relief. Whether you’re launching your debut or trying to revive a backlist, you’ll walk away with a toolkit full of plug-and-play ideas—and a new sense of confidence.

Chuck Wendig
TBD

Dr. Lawrence Knorr
The Impacts of Artificial Intelligence on Writing and Publishing
Dr. Lawrence Knorr, the Founder and CEO of Sunbury Press, the largest independent publisher in Pennsylvania, shares his 43 years of IT experience as a Chief Information Officer for a major manufacturer. Knorr completed post-doctoral AI training at the Kellogg School of Business and has applied it to both his day job as a CIO and his publishing business. Dr. Knorr covers the common creative challenges AI poses and delves into the impacts on book marketing, discovery, and order fulfillment. Knorr also discusses the impact on author identity and intellectual property.

Maria V. Snyder
Behind the Curtains
The workshop will take a “behind-the-scenes” dive into the operation of an independent bookstore. You’ll learn how they order books, set up events, and hand-sell titles. Also included is how authors can approach and work well with indie stores and how to avoid various faux pas like giving away an Amazon gift card during your signing.

Teresa Peschel
From Books to Movies: What Every Author Should Know
Text and film are very different mediums. When Hollywood adapts your book into a TV show or a movie, you should expect changes from small but annoying to radical rewrites. Why do they do this? And do you, Dear Author, have any control? I’ll answer these questions using the films of Agatha Christie to illustrate my points, because everything that can be done to an author has been done to Agatha Christie. Senseless rewrites? Changing the murderer? Bad directors? Poorly written scripts? Awful casting? Editing that chops the story to ribbons? Music that doesn’t fit the story or characters? Set design that telegraphs who the murderer is? Budget issues? Turning period novels into contemporaries? And contracts. You, Dear Author, must negotiate your contract for every detail, including getting your name listed as Author of in the opening titles. If you don’t ask, you don’t get. 3 What you want attendees to take away from this workshop: Attendees will learn that they have more control than they think they do, but only if they negotiate for it. Attendees will also learn that since Hollywood is a factory that makes art by committee, they have very little control over what finally makes it onto the screen. Most of all, attendees will be reminded that every TV show and movie can be marketing for their books, paid for by someone else.

James Rada
A Meeting of Minds: Selling In-Person
This workshop will look at two effective ways to sell books: At craft shows and at talks. Both methods continue to generate plenty of sales for authors who know how to use them effectively. They can even beat out book festivals and book signings. We’ll look out where to find shows and events, how to cross market them, and how to evaluate which ones work the best for you. We’ll also look at where to find talk opportunities and how to select a topic that will interest people in your book. You will also get some tips for how to make shows and talks into even greater money makers for you.

Misty Simon
Crafting the (Almost) Perfect Pitch
Together we'll talk about what to expect from yourself when pitching and how to put together something that will hopefully speak to the editor and/or agent who you are hoping will give you a chance to submit your story to them.

Robert Harrison
Cover Design Made Simple
“Never judge a book by its cover.” Most of us don’t do that, but the cover of a book often drives the buying decision. A well-designed, genre-specific book cover will grab a reader’s attention in the bookstore or while they’re scrolling through Amazon. In this revealing and educational workshop aimed at the indie author, Robert Harrison teaches the basics of general graphic design (skills that can be put into practice when creating flyers, bookmarks, and social media posts) and the specifics of cover design. As the owner of Seneca Author Services, he’s designed hundreds of book covers, and will demonstrate how to use the free graphics program, Canva, to create effective and compelling book covers.
Robert also teaches the basics of typography, color theory, and exporting for print and ebook. In addition, he shares resources for stock imagery and explains the appropriate licensing requirements. Take your book covers to the next level in this comprehensive design workshop.

Nancy Hughes
Secrets of Writing a Successful Series
Series potential! Every article, short story, novel, and play has it! First, I’ll ask a few questions to determine the audience’s level—whether they are devoted readers, hopeful new authors, published, through multi-published authors. My goal is to inspire attendees to stretch their imaginations beyond their current projects. To discuss sustainable plots, characters, and venues with long-term potential. Identifying and avoiding terminal mistakes. I’ll explore must-have elements and what to avoid like the plague. I’ll touch on a dozen types of series with illustrations from successful authors’ works and my own. And energize attendees to imagine their work in progress and spot specific items to pursue. The pervasive theme is to encourage positive thinking and embrace their expandable potential. I’m excited to share lessons learned from my own publishing history, learning the craft, determination, and taking advantage of organizations. Besides Pennwriters, mine include MWA, ITW, SinC and the Authors Guild—that are devoted to authors’ success. And encourage everyone to find their group. Whether poised to start that first draft or basking in a successful publishing history, Secrets of Writing A Series will be informative, lively, and focus attendees on their boundless potential. And hopefully, leave them with a check list to pursue, or euphoria from feeling, I’ve got this! Currently I’m expanding three series: my four-novel Trust series, the Hour series, and a third novel that will become a trilogy. I’ll share how I contrive multiple plots while keeping it all straight.

Janyce Brawn
Keeping Your Kiddie Car on the Path: Writing for Children
We spot the kiddie car we want to ride. Will it support our ideas? Can we make its vocabulary accessible for the age or grade we want to reach? What special tools do we need to make it zoom with delight and joy for young readers? In this workshop, we will discuss why we need to write engaging stories for children and what makes a children’s book a favorite for many generations. We will talk about how to craft a story after you’ve found that nugget of an idea and what vocabulary is appropriate for their ages. Writing short and tight but still conveying all the necessary meaning is critical. The story may be for children, but we can have a richer and a deeper meaning for adults who may read it to a child. We will discuss the various kinds of children’s books for different age levels and how to have exciting page turns, by adding tension or danger to keep the reader hooked into the story. Thumbnails, story boards and book dummies and how to send a manuscript to an agent or publisher will be discussed. There will be a question-and-answer time at the end and a handout will be available at that time. Let your kiddie car zoom ahead on your writing path with joy!

Susan Gable
Power Up Your Plot: Using GMC, Beat Sheets, and ChatGPT to Build Stronger Stories
Want to plot faster—and better—without sacrificing emotional depth or creative spark? Power Up Your Plot blends classic storytelling craft with modern AI support to help you build a strong, compelling story foundation. You’ll learn how to use time-tested tools like Debra Dixon’s Goal, Motivation, and Conflict (GMC), beat sheets, and character arcs—and discover how AI tools like ChatGPT can accelerate the process without taking over. This workshop is designed for writers who want a solid structure but don’t want to get bogged down in charts, spreadsheets, or story paralysis. You’ll learn how to prompt AI tools to brainstorm conflict, suggest turning points, explore character wounds, and generate outline options—all while you stay firmly in control of your creative vision. We’ll also introduce the Character Motto technique (developed by Susan Gable), which helps you define your character’s worldview in a single powerful phrase—guiding both internal motivation and outward choices. This deceptively simple tool helps clarify what drives your protagonist, how they’ll struggle, and what emotional arc they need to complete. Whether you’re a plotter, a discovery writer who wants to clean up your act, or someone stuck between drafts, this session will give you a clear path forward and a modern toolkit to get your story moving. No tech experience needed—just a willingness to experiment and a desire to write stories that resonate.

Lori Duffy Foster
Finding the Best Beta Beaders and Making the Most of Feedback
Your first draft is done and now you need a fresh set of eyes on the manuscript. Who do you turn to for feedback? In this workshop, we’ll discuss how to find the most valuable beta readers, how to instruct them in reviewing your manuscript and what to do with the feedback you receive. You might be surprised to find that fellow writers are not always the best choices.

Janet Pierce
How to Recognize Historical Road Signs along the Writer’s Path
Research guides the historical fiction writer to accurately describe and label characters, actions, and setting on their writing path. Signposts like culture and geography, and word usage of the time-period highlight how readers view our writing and show how writers need to be sensitive and authentic in their writing. After each concept, participants will pair with others to discuss applying the workshop ideas to their own writing journey. Then we will share this information as a group. A handout will be provided. This workshop is for novice to experienced writers of historical fiction. Participants are encouraged to bring their laptops to the session and examine their WIPs through the lens of ideas presented. My Power Point will include internet sites and writing examples for discussion.

Lara Brenckle Malmont
Heroes in the Attic: Using Genealogy to Build Compelling Historical Fiction Narratives
amily. All of us have one. But how it came together – or apart? That’s your story to tell. Family sagas that mine family history for ripping yarns – from multi-generational favorites like Little House on the Prairie and Roots to Pennsylvania-centric best sellers like The Hired Girl and The Blue Orchard – have brought success to many authors. This workshop details how writers can use genealogical research techniques and resources to craft rich, historically accurate, commercially marketable fiction that is also personally meaningful. Learn how and where to uncover records that can color character details, and, in some cases, metaphorically raise the dead. But be warned – skeletons may tumble out while digging up the past. This workshop also addresses how to navigate unexpected or emotionally tricky discoveries that are personally challenging and professionally intriguing.

Angela R Davis
Writing Cozy: Crafting Gentle Stories with Heart
What makes a story cozy, and why are readers craving comfort, warmth, and emotional resonance more than ever? In this genre-spanning workshop, we’ll explore the rising appeal of cozy fiction: stories that center connection over conflict, healing over heroics, and small-scale stakes with big emotional payoffs. While cozy mysteries have long held space on the shelf, cozy fantasy, sci-fi, romance, and even horror are blossoming with tales of magical tea shops, found families in space, and ghostly roommates who bake scones. Together, we’ll define what makes a story “cozy” beyond genre labels: focusing on tone, emotional safety, and character-driven storytelling. Through discussion you’ll learn how to:

• Identify cozy tropes and themes across genres
• Use low-stakes conflict to deepen character arcs
• Infuse your existing stories with cozy elements or start fresh with your own cozy concept

Whether you’re a seasoned writer seeking gentler storytelling or a curious creator drawn to warmth and whimsy, this workshop offers a welcoming space to explore cozy fiction’s possibilities.

Susan Meier
The Return of the Jedi…or coming back from an unexpected interruption that results in no writing time
You’ve been away from your writing for six weeks because of a big work project, or you haven’t written for the two months before your daughter’s wedding, or for three weeks while you were on vacation… And now you can’t motivate yourself to sit down at your desk? You don’t need motivation. You need strategies that help you to understand when, why and how you write. You also need tools: a list of twenty and a one-line story summary or one-paragraph story summary that don’t merely capture your idea; they capture the enthusiasm you felt for the story when you first created the idea.
Join Susan Meier as she explains how she fought and won the battle to get back to work after cancer treatments and recovery that lasted over six months. If you’re smart and prepared, it doesn’t have to be a battle.

Dr. Larry Schardt
Put a Positive Spin on Rejection – Propel Your Writing and Yourself into Success That Rocks!
A writer’s work is always on the line for criticism or rejection or both. When rejected, you may be tempted to toss your computer off a cliff, watch your hard work smash into tiny shards on the rocks below, crawl into a cave, and sink into the gloomy dungeon of self-pity. This workshop provides you with tools to help you escape from the dungeon and explore rejection from a different perspective, so you can grow, persist, and flourish. You will learn the secrets of becoming a victor instead of a victim, making happiness a habit, and overcoming the diseases of cynicism, negaholism, and blame. You will also learn the secrets of enjoying a life of “Success That Rocks.”

Terry Friedman
Revolving Door Characters, Rotating P.O.V.
Whose head are you in? Three characters' voices are better than one as long as they're not talking over each other. Rotating point of view chapters gives you many options. Writing in your villain's head helps you master their evil. You can do horrible things and not go to jail, plus you have inside information. What if the reader doesn't know who the villain is? This can create a mental labyrinth. Writing from the head of your protagonist shows their vulnerability, their quirks, their miscalculations, and their strengths. It's also fun to create a character on a parallel journey with your protagonist. When the reader is in more than one heads, authors create suspense and irony. You, the book chef, dole out information in small servings. What's better than splitting personalities without needing a psychiatrist? Join all the voices in your climax, and you'll have an explosive ending where all the puzzle pieces fit together.

Debra Sanchez
From Page to Stage: Playwriting
Writing for the STAGE is not the same as writing for the PAGE. It is also not the same as writing for the SCREEN. This workshop will focus on basic principles of writing for live stage performance.

• Elements of a play
• Character development
• Dialogue & Monologue
• Setting
• Stage Action/Directions
• Formatting
• Markets

Workshop includes hands-on exercises, if time permits.

Annette Dashofy
So, You Think You’re Ready to Submit
You’ve toiled endlessly to get your story just the way you want it and think you’re ready to submit it to agents or maybe indie-publish it yourself. STOP. You’re not done yet! In this workshop, Annette will share some of the most common (and less common) issues that writers might be blind to in their own pages. She’ll reveal the editorial letters she has received over the years and will divulge some tips and tricks to make your manuscript as finely polished as you can.

Julia Baird
Creating a Social Media Campaign
Together we are going to create a 6-month social media calendar that includes a specific campaign. I will show various ways of keeping organized and discuss multiple types of posts and styles. There will also be a discussion about apps that are helpful in creating posts.

Faith Addair
CAN-VA Do It? Yes, You Can!
Enjoy the freedom to be able to create your own media posts, posters for book signings, even your cover. Using Canva can help you continue to create your project as yours and not someone else’s idea of what they think you want. Faith will show you how to be a creative genius even if you do not believe you are one.

Wende Dikec (Abigail Drake)
Self-Publishing 101 (Two session workshop)
Are you intrigued by the idea of self-publishing, but don’t know where to start? Are you a traditionally published author who wants to rerelease a previously published book on your own? Never fear. Abigail Drake is here to take you by the hand and teach you step-by-step how to do it, and it’s not really as scary or as difficult as you might think. In this class, we will make sure your book is ready to be self-published, learn exactly how to put your book up on Kindle Direct Press, and go over what to consider when choosing genres and keywords. We’ll discuss the back cover blurb, analyze the merits of Kindle Unlimited, and figure out things like pricing, preorders, and distribution. This is a class intended for anyone considering taking the leap and trying out self-publishing for the first time. The first step is often the scariest. This class is designed to take away that worry, and help you realize your dreams of publication.

Hana Haatainen-Caye
Fictionalizing Your News Fatigue
Are you struggling with focusing on your writing while the world seems to be going to hell in a handbasket? In this workshop, Hana will help you find a way to refocus your frustrations, anger, fear, confusion, and whatever else the daily news is making you feel by rechanneling it into your fiction. Why not transfer your feelings to your characters and let them deal with those emotions? This is a hands-on workshop where you’ll do some writing, so come prepared with a character in mind who is ready to tackle some of your biggest feelings about today’s world. And then leave with a new skill to help you navigate through the tough world news so you can be free to get back to your WIP with a clearer perspective.

Brent Maguire
Rewrite Your Brain: How Expectation Shapes Your Writing Outcomes
What if your beliefs about writing don’t just reflect your ability but actively shape it? Join us for a science-backed workshop for writers who want to grow, persist, and create with more ease. Decades of research in psychology and neuroscience show that expectations influence performance, persistence, and even physiological outcomes. In writing, that means the way you anticipate your creative experience can determine whether you struggle, flow, or grow. This workshop introduces an evidence-supported framework for cultivating writing beliefs that support motivation, resilience, and creative problem-solving. You’ll learn to work with your brain, not against it, and build productive, grounded writing beliefs to develop an expectancy ritual that activates creative confidence and flexibility. You’ll leave with a personalized toolkit for engaging science-based expectations, perfect for writers who want to replace self-doubt and blocks with clarity, persistence, and curiosity.

Joy Givens
Applying Trauma-Informed Care to Writing for Young Readers
Trauma-informed care (TIC) is an approach to working with others that validates their experiences, builds feelings of safety and trust, and provides space for shared growth and empowerment. Commonly implemented in social work, counseling, and human services fields, TIC provides guiding principles that can make any environment more welcoming and respectful. This workshop will first provide a background on the fundamentals of trauma-informed care. Then, we’ll discuss specific ways to incorporate those principles into storytelling, particularly for young readers, as well as into author/illustrator school visits and events.

Timons Esaias
The “I Really Don’t Write Poetry” Poetry Workshop (Two Sessions Workshop)
We’ll let you in, even if you do write poetry, but the idea here is to play with the basic concepts of modern poetry, and explore several ways to just get started. Playfulness is the primary approach. Pretentiousness will be checked at the door. This workshop springs from one I gave for teenagers in the Dormont Public Library. None of the participants had written poetry when they came in, and they were producing decent work by the end. So, I’ve packaged it for a broader audience. Malt balls and chocolates will be available to those brave enough to share.

K.S. Via/Sabra Wineteer
In Their Own Words: Developing Characters Through Dialogue
Dialogue is a necessary part of fiction, but it’s often overlooked in favor of other craft issues. In this workshop, we will briefly touch on dialogue tags before exploring the true craft of dialogue— characters’ own words. By examining what is said between quotation marks, writers will understand the ways characters can and do speak. Through these subtle, but important differences, we will learn how dialogue shapes narrative and develops character. Finally, by analyzing, interpreting, and applying varied speech patterns, writers will learn how to create dialogue that brings their characters more fully alive on the page.

Dr. Lawrence Knorr
Key Elements When Writing about the Pennsylvania Dutch Culture
Dr. Lawrence Knorr, the Founder and CEO of Sunbury Press, the largest independent publisher in Pennsylvania, discusses his love for his Pennsylvania Dutch culture and the company's new imprint, Distelfink Press. Knorr earned his Ph.D. in History and delves into Pennsylvania Dutch elements, both past and present. Dr. Knorr reminds us we are much more than the stereotypes of buggy-riding bearded Amishmen and Amish ladies in bonnets romancing the "English"! He covers the variety of religious customs, cuisine, and language from colonial times to the present.

Panel Moderated by Rob Teplitz
“That STILL Ain’t How It Works!”
This panel discussion is for fiction writers in all genres who want to add authenticity and depth to their characters and stories. Experts from a variety of professional fields (e.g., law, medicine, politics, public safety, etc.) will discuss what fiction often gets wrong about their professions and how writers can avoid making those same mistakes in their writing. The panelists will also entertain questions to address specific concerns of attendees. If you want to kill the clichés, enhance the accuracy and believability of your writing, and hold the attention of a more sophisticated audience, join this lively and interactive workshop. You’ll never again have to hear, “That ain’t how it works!”
NOTE: The panelists/professions will be different from those at the workshop presented during the 2025 Pittsburgh conference, so don’t hesitate to attend again!

Kathryn Craft
That’s What She Thinks!
“Novels offer the reader the opportunity to experience countless paths not taken, places unexplored, situations never encountered, beliefs and prejudices never felt, and possibilities they never would have conceived. The protagonist you choose as your reader’s guide won’t be “everyman”—they will have a unique genetic makeup, physicality, spirit, and personality, as well as specific societal influences and past experiences. Blend these specifics together and you arrive at perspective: a blade that cuts into a story on a certain slant. This session takes a close look at how wielding this important craft element can drive story, make your novel endlessly discussable in book clubs, and achieve one of story’s highest callings: expanding the perspective of your reader.

Christopher Mele
Weaving Fact into your Fiction to Make it More Authentic
Have you ever read a novel that touched on a topic that you were familiar with and saw a description that was so outlandish or inaccurate that you knew it was flat-out wrong? Or have you read in a novel about a chain of events that strained belief (even for fiction) so much so that it caused you to stop reading or made you wonder if the author knew what they were talking about? Concrete details help the reader to trust the author. At the same time, those details can launch really big abstract ideas. Moving from concrete to abstract is an enjoyable experience for the human mind. But as the saying goes, the devil is in the details and getting those details just right can make or break a setting, a plot twist or a character. Sometimes we don’t have to invent details because we can draw from the real world for inspiration for our plots and make our writing more authentic and relatable. The best fiction can weave nonfiction references with dramatic narratives to make for “fictional realism.” That can take the form of small things, like the work titles of characters or how they do their jobs, or explanations for how certain things work, like crime-scene investigations, all of which can make your writing stand out for its attention to detail. This presentation will explore resources and techniques for grounding your fiction in reality and avoiding illogical leaps of faith that could leave readers confused or incredulous. We’ll also talk about getting into a fictional realism state of mind, researching, interviewing sources and finding the proper balance between authentic details and fictional ones so as not to spoil the fun of your manuscript.

Mrs. Rachel Gehman/Rachel D. Lyne
Critiquing Well in a World of Collisions
Words have the power to build up or tear down. Everyone has an option. But everyone also has a heart. For those who’ve been involved in a critique group, done beta reading, ARC, or posted on social media, you’ve seen how the mechanics of critique often work. For a critique group, for instance, we come in shaking with pages in hand. We hope that they treat our “word baby” well, and we long to hear that everything we’ve written is perfect. However, hard truths can sometimes feel like we’ve been in a collision despite well-meaning peers. Don’t get me wrong, critique groups are incredibly worthwhile, but (if not conducted with grace and healthy humility) they can run the risk of becoming an opinion train that derails us. This workshop focuses on two main areas that we are rarely taught and that anyone can benefit from: how to critique well and how to receive a critique well. We’ll explore aspects of empathy, faith, and perspective through two acronyms that are genuinely helpful and easy to remember: GRACE and HUMBLY. If you’re looking to become more effective at critiquing or want to learn how to apply critiques joyfully and positively, you won’t want to miss this workshop.
NOTE: This is a Faith-based view, but is practical for all walks

Bill Peschel
Kill Like Christie: Golden Age Tropes To Use In Your Mystery
The mysteries written between the two World Wars were known for their puzzling plots, unexpected twists, and narrative surprises. How did writers like Agatha Christie, Rex Stout, and Ellery Queen bring them off? This workshop will reveal the mystery behind the mysteries. It will detail the categories of clues (facts, misdirection, mislead, technique, timeplay, traps and others). We’ll also discuss archetypes, moral themes, authorial tricks, and motivation. To give you an idea of what I’m talking about, here’s the “Chance Remark” trope from “Kill Like Christie,” a work in progress: Chance Remark: “We were all stupid. We should have seen at once. Those lines from The Duchess of Malfi were really the clue to the whole thing.” — Miss Marple, Sleeping Murder. It comes out of nowhere. Someone says something that makes the detective say, “What? Say that again?” The light dawns, and the investigation takes a new turn. The remark may even lead to a solution. It can be a line that makes the detective reconsider what everyone had assumed to be true from the beginning of the case [HP49]. It can be an overheard remark that leads the detective to conclude that the wife is being poisoned [HP27.1]. It can also be a reminder that they had straightened up the crime scene twice, which means that somebody in between had planted an important clue [HP1]. Or, in the case of Miss Marple, the significance of a line from a play that triggered a latent memory [MM16]. A child could say something in an attempt to do what an adult told them to do [SG1]. It doesn’t have to be something another character says, the detective could hear “And set traps in my way” in a hymn and solve the case [HP23]. Nor does it have to be speech; it could be a character carrying papers secured by a rubber band that inspires the solution [W3]. Attendees will receive a toolbox of techniques that they can apply to their stories. They will understand the themes that Christie used in her most successful and powerful novels that may inspire them to create their own powerful themes.

Maria V. Snyder
Romantasy: Trend or New Subgenre?
Romantasy is a mash-up of romance and fantasy genres and it’s currently very popular. Authors like Jennifer L. Armentrout, Sarah J. Maas, and Rebecca Yarros are hitting the bestsellers’ list with their new releases. Is this a new trend that will fade with time or is it here to stay? And what exactly are readers expecting when they read a Romantasy. This workshop will take a deep dive into the world of romantic fantasy.

Carol Silvis
What To Do When The Words Aren’t Adding Up
How can you increase your word count? Yeah, you’ve heard the time management tips, the advice to write every single day, and the Nike advice Just Do It. Sometimes it helps to have a refresher on all that advice. But sometimes you need to become your own cheerleader. This workshop incorporates lots of practical writing advice, tips, and techniques to help you stay motivated to get the words down on paper.

Terry Friedman
EMO and Mood: How to Build an Emotional Scene
So, you want to write an emotional scene? Make sure tissues are nearby. First, you need to get yourself in the mood. Wine helps, but you need more than that. I will offer some tips. How do you know you've succeeded in creating a scene with EMO? If you cried, your reader will likely feel sorrow or happiness too. What makes it work is tone, characterization, backstory, and adding all the right elements. Learn what tone is and how to manipulate it, how to use your mood to inject emotional appeal, and the value of varying sentence lengths and bringing in nature. If after editing and revising twenty times, you still tear up, you have achieved your EMO goal. P.S. Those can be tears of joy too.

Stacy Rubin
Medicine in your Manuscript
What’s changed post-pandemic? A lot! Hospitals and medical offices have increased visitor restrictions, shifted care-provider roles, expanded electronic medical records, and increased security measures. Smaller community hospitals and rural health clinics are closing, forcing patients to travel long distance to access care. But what remains constant are the universal human experiences of accidents, illness, and childbirth. However, writing a realistic hospital scene, with true-to-life detail, is a challenge. This workshop explores what writers need to know about the modern medical professional, medical lingo, and the daily rigor behind hospital walls. Class includes examples of well-crafted scenes from novels. I am a neonatal nurse practitioner with over twenty-five years of experience caring for patients in a variety of settings, including service in the Army Nurse Corp. Currently, I work in a neonatal intensive care unit in Hartford, Connecticut. The protagonist in my debut novel, The Baby Nurse, is a NICU nurse. I am eager to share my first-hand experience and help writers craft realistic medical scenes.
Teaching Methods: PowerPoint, Lecture with examples, Lively discussion.
Learning Objectives: Workshop Participants will learn:

1. Identify today’s medical professional (RN, PA-C, APRN, M.D.) and their work environment.
2. Write a realistic medical scenario. Enrich your setting with realistic detail about healthcare shiftwork. How much detail is enough? But when is enough too much? Examples of contemporary novels.
3. Human anatomy: what’s life threatening and what’s not.
4. “STAT!” Deciphering common medical phrases.
5. Examples of scenes from contemporary novels.
6. Questions and lively discussion!

NOTE: This is an updated version of the workshop I did for the online Pennwriters conference in 2021.

Amy Rosa/Carla Conti
True Crime Uncovered: Writing with Purpose, Precision, Power, and Protection
As a former investigative reporter and the multi-award-winning author of Chained Birds: Crimemoir, I can give the audience a “field-tested” roadmap for crafting outstanding true crime. I’ll cover these topics:

1. Finding the story: locating cases with built-in narrative tension and social relevance. Background as a journalist helps, but isn’t necessary.
2. The Ethics Triangle: answering “Why now? Why this case? Why me?” before writing a single page.
3. Portraying victims and perpetrators with nuance, dignity, and—when necessary—accountability.
4. “Infotainment” done right: weaving social issues (in my case, prison and criminal justice reform) into a high-stakes narrative without preaching.
5. Reporting like a journalist: FOIA requests, court-file deep dives, corroborating inmate letters, and on-site research behind prison walls.
6. Turning facts into a thriller: pacing, scene construction, dialogue reconstruction, and cliff-hanger chapter endings that keep readers up past midnight.
7. CYA (cover your ass!): documenting your journey and interviews, obtaining “release letters” and protecting yourself with errors/omissions/media liability insurance and the formation of an LLC

Audience members will see how every crime story contains teachable moments—and how to surface them so readers walk away smarter and more engaged citizens. They’ll also leave with a checklist they can apply to a proposed true crime project or a manuscript in progress.

Julia Baird
Marketing Your Brand on Social Media
This presentation covers cultivating your brand and image on digital platforms. I will be covering what is brand, why is branding important, and some social media best practices. We will review some brands and discuss what is working and what to take away.

Wende Dikec/Abigail Drake
Facebook Ads for Beginners
Are you intimidated by the idea of Facebook ads? Are you not sure how to do it or even where to start? In this beginner- level class, Abigail Drake will lead you through the steps of creating effective Facebook Ads. You’ll learn how to set up the ads, and ways to perfect the ads for greater profit using different images, copy, and targeting. You’ll also learn about the Amazon Attribution Tool, and how it can be used to help you evaluate what’s working and what isn’t. This class is a step-by-step guide, and handouts will be provided.

Misty Simon
Finding Your Audience
Your book is awesome—now let’s find the people who’ll love it. We'll discuss how to identify your ideal readers, connect with them authentically, and grow a loyal fanbase. From discovering where your audience hangs out to finding book signings and building meaningful interactions, you’ll learn how to turn casual readers into die-hard supporters.

Cindy Hospador
Word-by-Word Self-Editing Techniques: Self-Editing for Every Author
This course explores how a Line/Copy Editor works with your manuscript and how you can improve your manuscript with self-editing techniques before an editor gets their hands on it. The better shape the manuscript is when you submit to an editor, is directly related to the quality of the manuscript when it is returned to you. Attendees will receive a handout with examples that they can apply to their manuscript.

Don Helin
The Magic of Setting
Arguments about which is more important — plot or character — misses the critical factor of setting. Every Story has a context — a story unto itself (maybe not the real world) but a world that lives and breathes, changes and grows, acts on your characters or may be indifferent to them. Be sure the reader gets to know a place through the eyes of the POV character, normally the protagonist, not through narrative. Setting is much more import than simply a description of rooms and landscapes, but rather fashions, ideas, human outlook, historical moment, spiritual mood. The essence of setting is bringing characters alive in this place. It sets the atmosphere around the story which allows the writer to build a world and lets your character run loose in that world.

Joanne Spence
Yoga for Authors
Writing can be deeply rewarding—but it is also mentally, emotionally, and physically demanding. Hours spent at the desk often come with stiff shoulders, tired eyes, scattered focus, and a creeping sense of burnout. Yoga for Authors offers a practical, restorative pause in the midst of the creative life. In this one-hour session, participants will explore simple, accessible yoga and mindfulness practices designed specifically for writers. You don’t need to be flexible, experienced, or even own a yoga mat—everything can be done in a chair or standing. Through gentle movement, breathwork, and guided awareness, we will release tension from common “writer’s hot spots” like the neck, back, and wrists. Participants will also learn techniques to regulate the nervous system, increase focus, and sustain creative energy without depleting themselves.
This is not about achieving perfect poses. Instead, it’s about creating space—physically, mentally, and spiritually—for words to flow. Whether you are drafting your first novel, revising a memoir, or facing down a blank page, yoga can help you reconnect with your body as a resource for clarity and creativity.
By the end of the hour, participants will:

• Feel refreshed and energized through gentle stretches.
• Experience breath practices that can calm or focus the mind.
• Take away simple, repeatable tools to use before, during, or after writing sessions.
• Discover how embodied awareness can deepen their writing practice.

Come as you are. Wear comfortable clothes, bring your curiosity, and be ready to try something new. This session is an invitation to nurture both body and imagination, equipping you with skills that support not only your writing but your overall well-being.

Agent/Editor Panel Discussion
Participants to Be Announced.

Dave Agans
The Elements of Smile - What Makes Things Funny
In this session, humorist Dave Agans will present the fundamentals of funny, including obvious techniques (e.g. timing and surprise), various kinds of incongruity (e.g. serious vs. trivial), and various humor types (e.g. puns and meta jokes). Dave will discuss how to get the most out of humor with slow builds, callbacks, and running gags. And he will demonstrate every technique with an example from a popular writer, TV show, or movie, so this will be a funny fifty minutes.

Faith Addair
Inspired by Pain
You have a story inside you that only you can tell. Going through traumatic circumstances can really make you feel like hiding yourself away to guard against further pain. Faith Addair lived through the harrowing journey of her son’s heroin addiction and recovery. Faith will show you how the power of the pain, fear, guilt, anger, and confusion are transparent and real and yes, inspiring.

Joy Givens
Strengthening Your Characters, Setting, and Voice through Short Fiction
Sometimes, writers in the thick of novel drafts can get so caught up in word counts and chapter titles that we begin to lose our characters’ journeys, our worlds, and our narrative voices. Taking the time to explore these elements through short fiction is an engaging, rewarding way both to build skills and to deepen our broader stories. This workshop will include a discussion of short fiction elements and styles, provide examples of short fiction that support character development and worldbuilding, and lead writers through a timed writing exercise to get the creative juices flowing!

Stacy Rubin
A Rose is More than a Flower: Effective Story Symbols
A red rose, Harry Potter’s scar, Fire in Fahrenheit 451. Writers deploy symbols across all genres of fiction. Symbols serve to deepen reader enjoyment and engagement. But a symbol is more than a detail; significant symbols travel an arc, often alongside the protagonist. In other words, a symbol is a dynamic literary element in your story. In this workshop we will deepen our understanding of symbolism by exploring examples from contemporary and classic fiction. By the end of this fun, interactive workshop, participants will be well equipped to incorporate a symbol in their work-in-progress or add significance to an existing symbol. Teaching methods: PowerPoint, interactive discussion, and examples from contemporary and classic fiction.
Learning Objectives: By the end of this workshop, participants will:

1. Define and recognize examples of literary symbolism.
2. Gain awareness of how cultures, religions, geography, and gender identification impact interpretation of symbols. Become sensitive to avoiding cultural appropriation.
3. Create a meaningful symbol that travels a story arc (with the character’s journey).

Cindy Hospador
Tame those Filter Words
Filter words such as thought, realized, heard, saw, etc. filter the story through the characters POV—creating a barrier between the characters experience and the reader. By removing these filters, the reader sinks into the character’s head and sees through their eyes and hears through their ears. Removing filters blurs the gap between the reader merely observing the MCs actions to the reader sharing the MCs experience. This workshop offers ways to identify and remove filter words through practice exercises.

Joanne Spence
Embodied Writing: Movement Practices for Clarity and Creativity
If you’ve ever heard “get out of your head and into your body” and thought, “Why? My head is where all the good stuff happens!”—this session is for you. As writers, we often treat our bodies as background players to our brilliant minds. But your body isn’t just a vehicle—it’s a partner in your creative process. In this experiential, practice-based session, author and yoga therapist Joanne Spence will guide you through gentle, accessible chair-based yoga, including breath work and mindful movement. No yoga mat (or yoga experience) required. Come in your favorite dress, jeans, or whatever makes you feel most like yourself. You’ll leave with simple tools you can use anytime — before a writing session, after a long day, or between chapters—to support calm, clarity, and creative resilience.

Hana Haatainen-Caye
Changing the Ending
Are you haunted by something from your past? Has a news story made you especially uncomfortable? Why not rewrite the ending? In this hands-on workshop, Hana will lead you through ways to create satisfying endings to traumatic and otherwise dissatisfying events that you wish had ended differently. Or, on a lighter note, do you hate the way a novel ended and you have a better idea? In this workshop, you are the god of your universe and the ending is in your hands.

Susan Gable
Not Auto-Pilot -- Co-Pilot: Writing with PlotDrive and ChatGPT
AI won’t write your book for you—and it shouldn’t. But with the right tools and mindset, it can help you brainstorm, plot, draft, and revise faster and with greater clarity. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to use AI tools like PlotDrive, RaptorWrite, and ChatGPT as creative co-pilots—supporting your process without taking the wheel. Whether you’re a plotter who wants help structuring a new story, a discovery writer looking for fresh prompts, or someone stuck in the messy middle, this session will show you how to blend human voice with machine assistance in a way that feels natural, productive, and empowering.
We’ll walk through practical, real-world examples of how to:

• Prompt ChatGPT to explore story ideas, expand scenes, or test dialogue
• Use PlotDrive (or RaptorWrite) to build a story structure that supports pacing and character arcs
• Break through writer’s block or indecision by “talking it out” with your AI assistant
• Revise flat scenes by asking smarter questions—and getting usable feedback
• Avoid common pitfalls of AI-generated fiction (like generic voice or weak emotional depth)

This is not about outsourcing your story. It’s about becoming a faster, more focused, and more confident writer by using smart tools to support your creative strengths. You’ll leave with actionable prompts, tool recommendations, and a flexible process you can adapt to your own workflow, whether you write full-time, on weekends, or in the margins of a busy life. Come curious, leave inspired.

Don Helin
A Memoir
A Memoir is a journey through the writers past. It is not an autobiography— one’s entire life — but a slice of life. What we want to accomplishes is to develop fictional techniques (Creative nonfiction) to help overcome what could be boring nonfiction. Begin the memoir with a tipping point — similar to an inciting incident in fiction which pulls the reader into the story. For example, we all remember what we were doing when Kennedy was shot and the Towers were attacked. Writing a memoir will help people understand what you were doing during critical points in your life.

Wende Dikec/Abigail Drake
Marketing is Storytelling
Does the idea of marketing your book send you into an anxiety spiral? Have you avoided doing anything because you don’t know where to start? This shouldn’t be the case, because as a writer, you are a storyteller, and all good marketing is storytelling. In this hands-on class, Abigail Drake will help you find the essence of your story, figure out if you are describing it effectively, and work on more effective ad copy, comps, blurbs, and taglines. Your readers are out there. Let’s figure out how to find them.

Brent Maguire
Strategic Solutions for the Writing Mind
Rethink Your Writing Blocks—Strategically. You’ve tried prompts, deadlines, affirmations, even more coffee. But the real reason you’re stuck might not be your discipline or your ideas; it might be how you’re solving the problem. This workshop introduces a strategic approach to writing resistance, inspired by therapeutic techniques used to shift stubborn behavior patterns. Instead of pushing harder or digging deeper, you’ll experiment with small, structured changes that disrupt the cycles of avoidance, perfectionism, and second-guessing. You won’t need to unpack your past. You will learn how to:

• Interrupt unproductive writing habits on purpose
• Change your creative patterns by changing your behavior
• Use surprising, counterintuitive strategies to move forward

We’ll explore tools drawn from strategic therapy to help you apply behavioral creativity to a creative problem. Leave with a fresh set of practical tools, renewed clarity, and a very different relationship with your own resistance.

Annette Dashofy
Creating 3-Dimensional Characters
Now matter what the genre, all of our stories are populated with characters. Have you been told that yours feel flat and uninteresting? Or they all sound alike? Or perhaps your main characters are vibrant, but your secondary characters feel like an afterthought. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to create a full cast of unique characters that will threaten to jump off the page. Be sure to bring your laptop or a notepad and pen. We’ll be working on getting to know our characters with several writing exercises during the course of the workshop.