Pikes Peak Writers Conference 2026: Full Schedule

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The 2026 Pikes Peak Writers Conference is in the books!
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8:30am MDT

Read & Critique Session 1

Friday April 17, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am MDT

Fremont

Mystery/Suspense/Thriller

Faculty

Mary Robinette Kowal

Keynote

Mary Robinette Kowal is the author of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award winning alternate history novel The Calculating Stars, the first book in the Lady Astronaut series which continues in 2025 with The Martian Contingency. She is also the author of The Glamourist Histories series, Ghost... Read More →

Agents & Editors

Anna Michels

Senior Editorial Director, Sourcebooks

Anna Michels has been at Sourcebooks for more than thirteen years and is Senior Editorial Director of Sourcebooks nonfiction and Poisoned Pen Press. Anna is looking for a wide variety of books under the nonfiction umbrella, including history, narrative and prescriptive nonfiction... Read More →

Bowen Gillings

Associate Agent, Savvy Literary

Bowen Gillings joined Savvy Literary in 2025 and has nearly a decade of experience as an author and champion of authors. Currently building his list, Bowen seeks to partner with writers who possess a sense of professionalism and a sense of humor. He loves books with a strong narrative... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am MDT
Fremont

Business of Writing

Moderator DJ Cochran, Torie Fox-Phillips

9:45am MDT

Read & Critique Session 2

Friday April 17, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT

Fremont

Fantasy/SciFi

Faculty

Carol Berg

Carol Berg, former software engineer, never expected to write epic fantasy novels. Nor did she expect to win the Colorado Book Award four times or hear that her books had been read on the slopes of Denali, in the war zone of Iraq, or underneath the Mediterranean. She certainly never... Read More →

Agents & Editors

Elisa Saphier

Agent, MacGregor & Luedeke

Elisa Saphier is an agent with MacGregor & Luedeke where she is the exception, looking for nonreligious nonfiction and upmarket genre fiction (especially mystery/thriller and romance) to balance out her mostly literary list. She represents upper middle grade through adult (fiction... Read More →

Kelly Stone

Associate Editor, St. Martin’s Publishing Group

Kelly Stone is an associate editor at St. Martin’s Publishing Group. She joined St. Martin’s in 2021 after graduating from Cornell University with a degree in Communication. Her list consists of action-packed thrillers, rom-com/mystery mash-ups, elevated cozy mysteries, and humor-filled... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT
Fremont

Business of Writing

Moderator DJ Cochran, Torie Fox-Phillips

11:00am MDT

Speed Pitch

Friday April 17, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm MDT

Fremont

Welcome to Speed Pitch!
Here you are at PPWC 2025 where everybody is curious to learn about you and your book. Nevertheless, people have short attention spans and lots of other writers to meet. Can you explain the highlights of your project without confusing, or worse, boring your listeners? Speed Pitch Practice is here to help.

How the Session Works
Participants will wait “quietly” in line for a turn to speak one-on-one for five minutes with a randomly assigned published author, seasoned writer, or maybe a VIP. You will verbally pitch your book and your coach will ask you questions to refine it. When the time is up, you’re done! But you’re welcome to get back in line for another go.

Friday April 17, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm MDT
Fremont

Business of Writing

Moderator Torie Fox-Phillips, Carrie Moore

2:00pm MDT

Read & Critique Session 4

Friday April 17, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm MDT

Fremont

Historical/Horror/Western

Faculty

Reavis Z. Wortham

Keynote

NYT Bestselling author, Reavis Z. Wortham, is the recipient of many awards, including two Spur Awards from the Western Writers Association, and six Will Rogers Medallions. Kirkus Reviews listed his first novel in the historical Red River series, The Rock Hole, as one of their Top... Read More →

Agents & Editors

Casey Cowan

Roan & Weatherford Publishing Associates

Casey Cowan began his career in graphic design, shaping projects across a wide range of industries for nearly two decades before finding his niche and co-founding Roan & Weatherford Publishing Associates in 2013. Under his leadership, the company has grown into a successful, award-winning... Read More →

Cathie Hedrick-Armstrong

Literary Agent, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency

Cathie Hedrick-Armstrong is a literary agent at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency with
nearly a decade of industry experience. A life-long lover of books, Cathie enjoys
vivid memories of the exact moment she unlocked the secret code behind the
letters that, when combined, form words. Sinc... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm MDT
Fremont

Business of Writing

Moderator Chris Mandeville, Jodi Anderson

3:15pm MDT

Read & Critique Session 5

Friday April 17, 2026 3:15pm - 4:15pm MDT

Fremont

Children/MG/YA

Faculty

Kelley J. P. Lindberg

President, Blue Raven Services Inc.

Kelley J. P. Lindberg writes adult and YA fiction, but her writing history is littered with dozens of how-to books (including several bestsellers) and hundreds of articles. Her fiction and essays have appeared in literary magazines, in anthologies including PPW’s Journeys into... Read More →

Agents & Editors

Drue VanDuker

Assistant Editor, St. Martin's Press

Drue VanDuker is an assistant editor at St. Martin's Press, where she has worked since 2022 after graduating from The University of Texas at Austin with a degree in English and a minor in Rhetoric and Writing. At SMP, she has worked across a wide range of genres, including book club... Read More →

T.S. Ferguson

Azantian Literary Agency

Before joining Azantian Literary Agency, T.S. Ferguson worked for 16 years as an editor for some of the top children's and teen book publishers in the business, including Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Harlequin Teen/Inkyard Press, and JIMMY Patterson Books. He has worked... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 3:15pm - 4:15pm MDT
Fremont

Business of Writing

Moderator Chris Mandeville, DJ Cochran

4:45pm MDT

Read & Critique Session 6

Friday April 17, 2026 4:45pm - 5:45pm MDT

Fremont

Romance

Faculty

Pippa Grant

Keynote

Pippa Grant wanted to write books, so she did.Before she became a USA Today and #1 Amazon bestselling romantic comedy author, she was a young military spouse who got into writing as self-therapy. That happened around the time she discovered reading romance novels, and the two eventually... Read More →

Agents & Editors

Jessica Berg

Literary Agent, Rosecliff Literary

Jessica Berg is the founder and agency director of Rosecliff Literary, a boutique agency built on the belief that ambitious writers deserve transparency, strategy, and a seat at the table. She earned her MFA from Spalding University and brings more than a decade of experience to her... Read More →

Nicole Luongo

Associate Editor, Hachette Book Group

If you asked six-year-old me and present-day-me what a “perfect day” looked like, our answers would be identical: hot cocoa, a loaded bookstore gift card—with unlimited browsing time—mint chocolate chip ice cream, and an evening of uninterrupted reading. (I’m nothing if... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 4:45pm - 5:45pm MDT
Fremont

Business of Writing

Moderator Deb Courtney, Torie Fox-Phillips

9:00pm MDT

Write Drunk, Edit Sober

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00pm - 10:00pm MDT

Fremont

The first session, Write Drunk, has you writing to various prompts while drinking. The follow-up Edit Sober session takes you through examining what you wrote and how to edit it into shape.

This workshop has an extra charge. Add via registration form.

Faculty

Deb Courtney

Past President, Pikes Peak Writers

Deb Courtney holds a degree in Fiction from the University of South Florida, where she was a Saunders Scholar in Fiction. She has had numerous short stories published and has worked as a freelance journalist, creativity coach and freelance editor. Her background also includes more... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00pm - 10:00pm MDT
Fremont

Craft of Writing

6:00pm MDT

Book Signing

Saturday April 18, 2026 6:00pm - 7:00pm MDT

Fremont

Saturday April 18, 2026 6:00pm - 7:00pm MDT
Fremont

Conference

8:30am MDT

9:45am MDT

11:00am MDT

2:00pm MDT

3:15pm MDT

4:45pm MDT

9:00pm MDT

6:00pm MDT

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