Rappahannock Writers Conference

Thank you to Platinum Sponsor Germanna Community College, opens a new window for supporting the 2023 Rappahannock Writers' Conference.

With Support From

  • Lobby Registration: 8:15-8:45am

  • Welcome & Conference Introduction: Sealy Auditorium, 8:45-9:00am

  • Morning Keynote: Sealy Auditorium, 9:00-9:45am

  • Class Sessions I: 9:55-10:45am

  • Class Sessions II: 10:55-11:45am

  • Lunch and Networking: 11:45-12:50pm

  • Midday Address: Sealy Auditorium, 1:00-1:45pm

  • Class Sessions III: 1:55-2:45pm

  • Class Sessions IV: 2:55-3:45pm

  • Book signing and closing: 4:00-5:00pm

Morning Keynote: 9:00-9:45am

There’s Power in Releasing Your Pen!
Presented by Kim B. Miller, Poet Laureate of Prince William County


About Kim B. Miller

Kim B. Miller uses her words to connect people to their strength. She makes empowerment touchable so you can obtain it. She’s a speaker that cultivates growth and a poet who speaks bold truths. She gets people to explore hope and knowledge.

Check out Kim's Book: My Poetry Is the Beauty You Overlook

Midday Address: 1:00-1:45pm

WE ARE THE MYTH MAKERS
Presented by New York Times bestselling author S.A. Cosby


About S. A. Cosby

S. A. Cosby is an Anthony, Barry, and Macavity Award-winning writer from Southeastern Virginia.

He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Razorblade Tears, which was recommended on Barack Obama’s Summer Reading List and named a Best Book of 2021 by NPR, the Washington Post, TIME, Roxane Gay, and more.

His novel Blacktop Wasteland won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, was a New York Times Notable Book, and was named a best book of the year by NPR, The Guardian, and Library Journal, among others. When not writing, he is an avid hiker and chess player.

Class Sessions I: 9:55-10:45am

In-Person Track
Filtering Out Filter Words
Intelligent Writing for Teens and Kids
Panel: Different Paths to Publishing
Teen Track
Build-A-Character: How Psychology Can Help
Virtual Track
Microsoft Word for Fiction Writers

 

Filtering Out Filter Words

Presented by Ellie Whitney
In Sealy Auditorium 

What are filter words? They’re “telling” verbs that inadvertently keep your readers at a distance from the story.

Learn to strike “filter verbs” from your writing vocabulary and draw readers inside your character’s head to experience the story simultaneously with the main character instead of being “told” about the experience.

Type: General Craft
Level: All Levels

Intelligent Writing for Teens and Kids
Panel: Different Paths to Publishing
Build-A-Character: How Psychology Can Help
Microsoft Word for Fiction Writers

Class Sessions II: 10:55-11:45am

In-Person Track
It’s Alive! Bringing Your Characters to Life
Screenwriting 101
Panel: Care and Feeding of Sources
Teen Track
Three-Dimensional Silhouettes: Creating Characters in a Flash
Virtual Track
What Prose Can Learn From Poetry

 

It’s Alive! Bringing Your Characters to Life

Presented by Bill Blume
In Sealy Auditorium

Discover how to create characters readers want to journey with. Learn why some characters are just clichés and how to keep them active throughout your story.

Author Bill Blume shows how he built the cast for his Gidion Keep series and what he's gotten right (and wrong) to improve your stories.

Type: General Craft
Level: All Levels

Screenwriting 101
Panel: Care and Feeding of Sources
Three-Dimensional Silhouettes: Creating Characters in a Flash
What Prose Can Learn From Poetry

Class Sessions III: 1:55-2:45pm

In-Person Track
Building Tension: Writing a Page-Turner in Any Genre
Writing Magical Realism
Panel: All About Marketing
Teen Track
Weaving Setting and Atmosphere in Your Writing
Virtual Track
The Pit of Despair: Where Characters Grow in Depth

 

Building Tension: Writing a Page-Turner in Any Genre

Presented by Sarah Warburton
In Sealy Auditorium

What hooks a reader (or an agent or a publisher)? Whether you're writing a mystery, a romance, science fiction, or memoir, tension is the key to story.

We'll discuss what tension is, how it works in story, how to introduce it in your work, and how to maintain it on every page.

Type: General Craft, Advanced Craft
Level: All Levels

Writing Magical Realism
Panel: All About Marketing
Weaving Setting and Atmosphere in Your Writing
The Pit of Despair: Where Characters Grow in Depth

Class Sessions IV: 2:55-3:45pm

In-Person Track
Receiving Feedback Without Breaking
Conflict and Suspense
Freelance Writing and Speaking Engagements
Teen Track
The Poet in Everyone
Virtual Track
Setting a Book in the UK

 

Receiving Feedback Without Breaking

Presented by Lisa Swinton
In Sealy Auditorium

You're a good writer - except when you get feedback from your critique group. Or read your reviews. Or get unsolicited advice from Aunt Jane about how to improve your story. Then you want to drown your sorrows in a big plate of nachos or a tub of ice cream.

So, how do you grow a strong spine, thick skin, and fearlessly face down the mighty red pen? Come to this class and learn.

Type: General Craft
Level: All Levels

Conflict and Suspense
Freelance Writing and Speaking Engagements
The Poet in Everyone
Setting a Book in the UK

Speakers & Panelists, A-C

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Speakers & Panelists, E-M

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Speakers & Panelists, M-S

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Speakers & Panelists, S-W

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