WRITE NOW!’S GREATEST HITS!

By Don Vaughan

Triangle Association of Freelancers has been fortunate to host some truly amazing presenters at our Write Now! conferences over the years: writers, editors, and novelists with decades of experience who blew attendees away with their insights and expertise. All have been inspiring, but some were especially memorable. Let’s talk about Write Now!’s Greatest Hits.

The first Write Now! conference was held in 2008, and our keynote guest was Elizabeth Hudson, editor of Our State magazine. The following year, we hosted travel writer, journalist, and author Peggy Payne. Both were terrific. As our attendance grew, we started looking outside of North Carolina for presenters.

Our first big break occurred in 2015 when David Morrell, the author of First Blood — the book that introduced John Rambo— agreed to be our fiction guest of honor. David’s reputation was huge, but he could not have been nicer. Upon arriving at the conference, he saw a display of his books that my wife Nan and I had brought from our library. Without saying a word, he took out his pen and signed every one of them.

David’s opening keynote, Be Yourself: Finding Your Own Voice and Subject Matter, was a huge crowd pleaser. He offered personal insight and information that everyone took to heart. He so impressed everyone that his later craft session on Description and Dialogue was almost standing room only. David became a good friend of TAF and later joined us for a TAF Talk and more.

Two years later, we hosted award-winning middle-grade author Donna Gephart as our fiction guest of honor and Redbook Magazine editor Sarah Smith as our nonfiction guest of honor. Their participation raised Write Now! to an entirely new level. Donna’s keynote, Everything I Know About Living a Creative Life I Learned in Kindergarten, brought the audience to tears. Literally. Meanwhile, Sarah’s keynote, Slush Pile Confidential, provided a wealth of information for nonfiction writers new to the game. Our reputation was growing.

Philip Gerard, a journalist and creative writing professor at UNC-Wilmington, joined us as a presenter in 2018 and as our nonfiction guest of honor in 2020. Philip wrote frequently about North Carolina history, and his keynote, The Full Story: Developing a Deeper Narrative, reflected that. The wisdom he imparted was significant, and his enthusiasm for Write Now! was apparent. He had a great time, and his passion was infectious. We were deeply saddened when Philip passed away suddenly in 2022.

Award-winning southern crime writer S.A. Cosby, who joined us in 2025, was one of the most unique guests we’ve ever hosted. Known for his casual attire— jeans, flannel shirt, and an ancient baseball cap— he noted with a laugh, “When you achieve a certain level of success, you can dress any way you want.” But casual attire aside, Cosby proved to be a pro’s pro. He spoke with heart and passion about his creative journey, his long road to success, and what drives him as a writer. The audience was riveted. Rarely had we heard someone speak with such heart.

Cosby was an accomplished storyteller. Over dinner, he told of meeting Barack Obama, whose production company was interested in adapting one of his books. Obama asked Cosby to call him Barry. “I’m afraid I can’t do that, Mr. President,” was his stuttered reply.

Our nonfiction keynote in 2025, developmental editor, writing coach, and novelist Tiffany Yates Martin, was also a crowd favorite. Having worked as a copy editor for major publishing houses and penned books on writing and editing, she offered a book’s worth of advice in just 50 minutes.

Over the years, Write Now! has also hosted numerous representatives from Writer’s Digest, most notably editor Amy Jones in 2024. Triangle Association of Freelancers has a unique relationship with WD, and everyone we have hosted from the magazine has been exceptional. We look forward to hosting more WD folk in the future.

The presenters noted above are just a few of Write Now!’s Greatest Hits. Each year, we strive to bring in writers and editors who are not only popular but also have something important to share. Just because a writer is successful in print doesn’t mean they are an effective speaker. A potential guest’s professional experience is important, but what they have to impart from that experience even more so.

Our keynotes for Write Now! 2026, Meg Medina and Molly Guptill Manning, have a lot to share. Meg comes from a Cuban American background where books and storytelling were vitally important, and she was encouraged to pursue writing by her mother and aunts. Originally a nonfiction writer, she found her authentic voice writing for children and won the prestigious John Newbery Medal in 2019 for Merci Suarez Changes Gears. Meg was also the 2024-25 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, sponsored by the Library of Congress.

Molly Manning also has a unique voice. A legal historian, she specializes in little-known stories from mid-20th-century America, such as the role of literature in WWII, and relates them with finesse, precision, and solid storytelling. A law professor at the New York Law School, Molly writes because she loves a good tale and is eager to tell it. She’s also an adept researcher who’s willing to dig as deep as necessary to find the whole story.

Write Now! has grown considerably since our first effort in 2008, which was held at Wake Tech North Campus. While the conference has grown in size, our mission remains the same: to offer an event where attendees can meet and mingle with top writers and editors and come away with a wealth of information they can put to immediate use.

I hope you’ll join us for Write Now! 2026. It’s going to be a blast.

Don Vaughan has worked as a full-time freelance writer since 1991. During that time, he has published more than 2,000 articles, columns, and stories in publications ranging from MAD Magazine to Encyclopedia Britannica. He has also written, co-written, ghostwritten, or contributed to nearly 35 books on a range of topics. But his proudest achievement is founding Triangle Association of Freelancers.