Just as with the first year, in 2015 we had both a keynote address and a mini-keynote. Jane Kirkpatrick, author of more than 40 historical fiction books, provided the keynote. She spoke on the skills a writer needs to develop and often needs to discover within. Agent Scott Eagan gave the other keynote and spoke on what his profession could and could not do for a writer.
This year attendees had their choice of twelve workshops on topics such as writing, poetry, editing, and marketing. Melanie Dobson spoke on incorporating romance into genre writing. Jennifer Shaw Wolf taught Writing for Young Adults and Story Structure classes. Veronika Noize once again taught writers how to market their books and themselves.

I attended the Writing for Young Adults and Story Structure classes by Jennifer Shaw Wolf. I think she did both presentations well, and I learned things in both. However, I looked forward to the class with Veronika Noize on Marketing. I missed it last year because our presentations were at the same time. I’m an author and have little interest in marketing, but as an indie writer, the responsibility falls on my shoulders. She had many good ideas which I look forward to trying over the next few months.
Both years the conference has been organized by a few members of the Southwest Washington Writers Guild. As I mentioned, I’ve been a part of both efforts. We’re already planning the event for next year and I’m looking forward to it.