Tiffany Yates Martin
OPENING KEYNOTE: Know Your Why & Your Enough
Creating a viable career in writing can be a tough road. Whether it’s finding representation, getting a publishing contract, attracting readers, or just mastering the immensely complex skill of telling a readable, marketable story, the learning curve is steep and competition is high. When the going gets difficult, knowing your reason for writing—and defining what you truly want from your writing career—can provide the spark that keeps your engine running.
CRAFT SESSION: The Biggest Mistakes Writers Make
No matter how experienced or talented you may be, it’s impossible to gain perfect objectivity when it comes to your own work, so it’s no wonder there are certain missteps almost every author makes at one time or another. Join Tiffany Yates Martin as she discusses how to recognize and address the most common mistakes that may be keeping your stories—and your writing—from being as effective and compelling as they can be.
Tiffany Yates Martin has spent her entire career as an editor in the publishing industry, working with major publishers and New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling and award-winning authors as well as newer writers. She is the founder of FoxPrint Editorial (named one of Writer’s Digest’s Best Websites for Authors) and author of Intuitive Editing: A Creative and Practical Guide to Revising Your Writing and The Intuitive Author: How to Grow & Sustain a Happier Writing Career. She is a regular contributor to writers’ outlets like Writer’s Digest, Jane Friedman, and Writer Unboxed, and a frequent presenter and keynote speaker for writers’ organizations around the country. Under her pen name, Phoebe Fox, she is the author of six novels. (foxprinteditorial.com)
Stephanie Elizondo Griest
A Sense Of Place: Travel Writing For Beginners
Do you have wanderlust? Join travel writer Stephanie Elizondo Griest as she explores ways to weave observations and sensory details from your travels into story arcs that recreate a rich sense of place. Griest will also discuss how and where to publish your travelogues, and offer tips for seeing the world on someone else’s budget via grants and magazine assignments.
Stephanie Elizondo Griest is the author of the award-winning memoirs Around the Bloc: My Life in Moscow, Beijing, and Havana; Mexican Enough: My Life Between the Borderlines; All the Agents & Saints: Dispatches from the U.S. Borderlands; and the guidebook 100 Places Every Woman Should Go. She won the 2007 Richard J. Margolis Award for Social Justice Reporting and edited Best Women’s Travel Writing 2010. Stephanie has contributed to numerous anthologies, including Family Trouble: Memoirists on the Hazards and Rewards of Revealing Family, Amazing Place: What North Carolina Means to Writers, and Best American Travel Writing 2017. Stephanie’s next book, Art Above Everything: One Woman’s Global Quest to Understand the Sacrifices and Glories of a Creative Life, will be published by Beacon Press in June 2025. (stephanieelizondogriest.com)
Don Vaughan
The Devil's In The Details: Specificity In Nonfiction Writing
Details matter greatly in nonfiction writing. They inform the reader, and add color and heft to your prose. Yet many writers, especially those at the start, trade in generalities rather than specifics. In this session filled with examples from popular authors, veteran freelancer Don Vaughan explores why supporting information is essential to successful nonfiction writing, the most common areas in which writers struggle with specificity, and tips for finding the appropriate facts to enrich your stories.
Don Vaughan has written professionally for 48 years and 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 scores of publications ranging from Writer’s Digest and The Saturday Evening Post to MAD Magazine and Encyclopedia Britannica. Don has also written, co-written, ghost-written, or contributed to nearly 35 books on an eclectic range of topics, but his proudest achievement is establishing Triangle Association of Freelancers (TAF).
Whitney Hill
Fantasy Worldbuilding & Real-World Research
The best fiction is immersive, inviting readers to experience other worlds or lives as if they are a part of them. This is especially true of science fiction and fantasy, though creating engaging worlds involving magic, futuristic tech, and other fictional tropes can be challenging. Join author Whitney Hill as she breaks down some of the key elements of fantasy worldbuilding, discusses how to conduct real-world research to build deeply engrossing worlds and settings, and applies examples from her award-winning book Elemental, which is set in the Triangle.
Whitney Hill is the author of the Shadows of Otherside fantasy series and the Otherside Heat paranormal romance series. She won the grand prize in the 8th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published E-Book Awards and made Kirkus Reviews’ Top 100 Indie Books list. Whitney is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) and founder of Benu Media, an indie publishing imprint. When she’s not writing or publishing, Whitney enjoys hiking, blacksmithing, and playing video games. (whitneyhillwrites.com)
Lisa Tomey-Zonneveld
Using Poetry To Elevate Journalistic Writing
Nonfiction writers frequently rely on elements of fiction, such as the recreation of conversations, to give their articles heft and nuance. Poetry, however, is rarely on their radar, which is a shame because poetry can bring a lyrical element that raises journalism to a new standard. Join Triangle poet Lisa Tomey-Zonneveld as she explores poetry as a tool of prose writing, reviews essential components such as metaphors and timing, and leads attendees in a brief practice session.
Lisa Tomey-Zonneveld is a widely published poet and writer, the founder of Prolific Pulse Press LLC, and Poet Laureate Emeritus of the Garden of Neuro Institute. She has edited numerous anthologies, including Heart Beats, Social Justice Inks, Cadence, and Dear Heart, and is an editor at Fine Lines Literary Journal. Lisa is also an organizer for Living Poetry, the largest poetry group in the Triangle. (prolificpulse.com)
David Menconi
Throwing A Pitch That Lands
Pitching article ideas to print and online publications can be daunting, no matter how experienced a writer may be. What are editors looking for, and how do you get their attention in a way that generates assignments? In this revealing session, journalist, author, and editor David Menconi shares vital tips for developing ideas that editors will love, and answers essential questions about querying.
The 2019 North Carolina Piedmont Laureate, David Menconi is a Raleigh-based author, critic, and journalist. He spent 34 years writing for daily newspapers, 28 of them at the Raleigh News & Observer, and has also written for Rolling Stone, Billboard, The Bluegrass Situation, and The New York Times. His most recent book, 2023's Oh, Didn't They Ramble: Rounder Records and the Transformation of American Roots Music, features a foreword written by Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Robert Plant. It won a Certificate of Merit from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections. (davidmenconi.com)
Rebecca Dalton
Creative Marketing For Self-Publishers
Self-publishing can be challenging at every turn, but none more than getting your books in front of potential readers. While self-promotion can be difficult for even the best of writers, don’t fret! We’ve got you covered. In this educational session, self-publishing expert Rebecca Dalton will showcase a variety of innovative and inexpensive ways to promote your book, from author websites to email newsletters and more, and keep readers coming back.
Rebecca Dalton loves seeing writers realize their dream of getting their books self-published. She has worked with clients on all aspects of publishing, from formatting to getting their books placed on numerous retail sites. Most importantly, she believes in developing sustainable marketing habits that help writers sell books without sacrificing time to write. When not working with clients, Rebecca writes stories that explore what our future could look like, and all the ways people can make the world a better place. She is a member of Triangle Association of Freelancers and a contributor to the annual TAF Omnibus. (indiewriterresources.com)
S.A. Cosby
CONCLUDING KEYNOTE: The Duty Of The Writer As Truth Sayer
In benefit of the reader, writers have an artistic and social responsibility to tell the truth for their characters and their journey. While in story mode, artists must be brutally honest about the larger existential issues that our writing encompasses. In this inspirational keynote, award-winning crime writer S.A. Cosby reveals how an honest and truthful approach to storytelling adds needed realism and strength to characters and plot.
CRAFT SESSION: How To Write Compelling Dialogue
Dialogue is an integral part of well-written fiction, yet many aspiring writers find authentic conversation between characters challenging. Join S.A. Cosby as he explains how to craft realistic, powerful dialogue that communicates your characters’ personalities, fears, and strengths, and also propels the narrative of your story.
S.A. Cosby is a New York Times best-selling author of “Southern noir” crime fiction. His award-winning novels include Brotherhood of the Blade, My Darkest Prayer, Blacktop Wasteland, Razorblade Tears, The Rhythm of Time (with Questlove), and All the Sinners Bleed. Blacktop Wasteland and Razorblade Tears won numerous awards, and both have been optioned for films. Cosby’s short fiction has appeared in a number of anthologies and magazines, and his story "Slant-Six" was selected as a Distinguished Story in The Best American Mystery Stories 2016. His short story "The Grass Beneath My Feet" won the Anthony Award for Best American Short Story 2019, and “Not My Cross to Bear” won the Anthony Award in 2022.