About

Since 2014, the Southwest Washington Writers Conference has provided writers with a craft-focused experience. Held at Centralia College, the event consists of master classes on Friday and opens on Saturday with a keynote speaker, followed by a day full of workshops. In 2024, the AAUW debuted its Evening with Authors on Friday night. This volunteer-run conference seeks to motivate, inspire, and encourage writers at all career stages.

It’s exciting for us to offer aspiring writers, published authors, and students the opportunity to learn while raising money for the Centralia College Foundation. While eager to inspire writers who attend our conference, we also strive to benefit the community. Proceeds support the conference and provide scholarships through the Centralia College Foundation.

Jane PorterKeynote Speaker and Workshop Presenter

Jane Porter is a bestselling author with more than seventy-five published books, sixteen women’s fiction, two historical romances, and the rest contemporary romance. In total she has sold more than fifteen million books worldwide. She will be our keynote Saturday speaker and teach two workshops in addition to answering questions at the Evening with Authors on Friday, Sept. 12, 2025. Jane is known for her passionate, powerful stories and relatable heroines.

Bill KenowerMaster Class Presenter and Workshop Presenter

William “Bill” Kenower is the author of Fearless Writing: How to Create Boldly and Write with Confidence, Write Within Yourself: An Author’s Companion, and Everyone Has What It Takes: A Writer’s Guide to the End of Self-Doubt. He is the editor-in-chief of Author magazine, as well as speaker and teacher. In addition to his books he’s been published in The New York Times, Edible Seattle, Writer’s Digest, Parent Map, and Tiferet Journal. He also has been a featured blogger for the Huffington Post.

Miriam GershowMaster Class Presenter and Workshop Presenter

Miriam Gershow is the author of Survival Tips: Stories, The Local News, and Closer. Miriam’s stories have appeared in The Georgia Review, Gulf Coast and Black Warrior Review. Her flash fiction has been published in anthologies from Alan Squire Books, Alternating Currents, and Fractured Lit, as well as many journals, including Pithead Chapel, Had, and Variant Lit. Her creative nonfiction is featured in Salon and Craft Literary. Her stories have been listed in the 100 Distinguished Stories of The Best American Short Stories and appeared in the Robert Olen Butler Prize Stories. Her writing has been nominated for multiple Pushcart Prizes, an Independent Publisher Book Awards silver medalist, and a Pencraft Awards Best Book. She is also a two-time finalist for the Oregon Book Awards’ Ken Kesey Award for Fiction.

The Southwest Washington Writers Conference is held at the Walton Science Center at Centralia College every September. Several parking lots are available. There’s one on South Washington and Centralia College Boulevard and another on North Oak Street and Centralia College Boulevard. Parking is free. The building has two entrances, one on the South Washington Avenue side and one after crossing the open greenspace across from North Oak Street.

Evening with Authors will take place at 6 p.m. after Friday’s Master Classes, at the TransAlta Building across from the Walton Science Center. The cost is $20 and includes admission and appetizers. The Lewis County AAUW (American Association of University Women) sponsors this event and all proceeds benefit Hope Alliance, which helps survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.

Workshop Speakers, Class Info, and Bios for the 2025 Conference: We have many new presenters this year and a few perennial favorites. Scroll this page to read the presenter’ bios and about their workshops. Proceeds go toward scholarships with the Centralia College Foundation and toward the continuation of the conference. Friday’s Master Class Presenters: (listed …