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

Fact vs. Fiction: Writing Authentic Investigations

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

Palmer

• Understanding the basics of criminal investigations and avoiding the “TV version” of crime.
• Using real case files, FOIA requests, and verified sources for accuracy.
• Q&A: How can writers responsibly use real case material without risking harm to survivors or investigations?

Faculty

David Lyons

David Lyons is a former homicide detective and retired police commander, living in central Kentucky. In retirement, he focuses on two passions. One, his role as a faculty member with FBI-LEEDA (the Law Enforcement Executive Development Association), the other, producing The Murder... Read More →

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

Craft of Writing

Moderator Catherine Dilts

9:45am MDT

Lending a Voice to Your Voice: Mastering the Author-Narrator Relationship

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

Palmer

A writer and her narrator (and best pals) Chris Mandeville(writer) and Aaron Fors(Narrator) talk about the ins and outs of producing an audiobook. How to find potential narrators, how to audition and select a narrator, the research, preparation, artistic calibration, and retake/pickup process, the release, the works. How to build and maintain a relationship and workflow that produces the best product and what to expect. Having just finished work on a 143,000 word audiobook together, we'll use our process as a template to talk in-depth, as well as drawing from our diverse experiences.

Faculty

Aaron Fors

Aaron Fors is an author, actor, filmmaker, creator thingy! An obsessive collector of obscure skills and knowledge, they love infusing their passion for the niche into their works. Aaron writes scifi, fantasy, and whatever fills their heart up and makes them feel like they’re going... Read More →

Chris Mandeville

Author

Chris Mandeville is an unrepentant coffee drinker, night owl, and binge writer. She can write anywhere, but her usual spot is a comfy chair at home in the Rocky Mountains with her service dog, Oski, snoozing by her feet. When she isn't writing, she loves to cook, travel, and teach... Read More →

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

Business of Writing

Moderator Jeff Schmoyer

11:00am MDT

0 to 60: Write Pacing Your Readers Won’t Forget

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

Palmer

Keep your readers on the edge of their seats. You've got great characters and a good idea for your plot, but your story builds tension too slowly; even you get bored in the middle, and you're the one writing it. How do you avoid the slow start, the overly predictable middle, the boggy subplots, and the unsatisfying ending? Pacing is not just about action. It's about the way you dance with the reader–where you drop clues, where you misdirect, where you cut between scenes, when you throw in unexpected complications, and how you raise the stakes. It's about knowing when to delay and when to deliver. So how do you rev up the speed at just the right moments, give just the right amount of pause for breath, and play with readers’ expectations in ways that build suspense and give your readers surprises they'll be discussing for days? Jump into Stant Litore’s exhilarating crash course on pacing in fiction.

Faculty

Stant Litore

Stant Litore is the author of Ansible, The Screaming of the Tyrannosaur (recently adapted into an Emmy-nominated episode of Love, Death, and Robots), The Zombie Bible, and Dante’s Heart. Besides science fiction and fantasy, he has written the writers’ toolkits Write Wo... Read More →

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

Craft of Writing

Moderator Catherine Dilts

2:00pm MDT

Story Spark Bootcamp: AI Hands-On Story Building Workshop

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

Palmer

Grounded in Authors Guild guidance and current U.S. copyright guidance for AI-assisted work.

Bring your laptop or phone and your latest spark of an idea. In this live, hands-on workshop, you will work in real time with SimoneAI™, your Story Development and Market Positioning Coach. Through 20 Socratic questions, SimoneAI™ will help you shape your concept, test its market fit, and determine whether this is the story you should be writing now.

Walk away with a Story Starter Kit and Readiness Score you can use to move forward with clarity, confidence, and a story worth building.

Faculty

Ana del Valle

AI Creative Writing Academy

In alignment with U.S. Copyright Law and the Author’s Guild’s 2025 guidelines on ethical AI use, Ana del Valle is an award-winning novelist, technologist, and recognized authority on AI in fiction writing. She is the host of The Novelist Studio podcast and YouTube channel, and... Read More →

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

Writing Tools

Moderator Pam McCutcheon

3:15pm MDT

Words, Words, Words

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

Palmer

Words are the building blocks of prose. Vivid, precise nouns and verbs imbue prose with energy and originality, help create a believable fictional setting, and bring flat characters to life. But how do you choose the right words? We will address how to find and select nuanced words, as well as how to avoid those that sap prose of energy and drive readers crazy. We’ll address the sensitive topics of adverbs, anachronisms, and weasel words, and explore the role of word choice in persona voice and fictional world building.

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 →

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

Craft of Writing

Moderator Kaitlyn Price

4:45pm MDT

Time to Get Creative: Time Management and Productivity for Writers

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

Palmer

The business world is bursting with gurus hawking their systems and claiming they'll change your life. Many of them have useful ideas, but most of them aren't quite applicable to a creative lifestyle, especially for those of us who are neurodivergent, part-time writers with day jobs, primary caregivers, multi-passionate, or not quite raking in enough royalties to hire help. Learn what today's popular theories have in common and how to tweak useful systems to a creative lifestyle. Creatives aren’t always motivated the same way as business bros, and creative success isn’t measured by the same rubrics. Whether you’re hyper-focused or bouncing between projects, there are productivity methods to help you!

Faculty

Taryn Skipper

Author/artist Taryn Skipper’s publications include her science fiction novel for young adults, Between Tungsten and Gold (Sept. 2025, Splinter Press), picture and activity books for children, short stories and poetry in anthologies, cover art, and a decade of commissioned portraits and paintings. She enjoys presenting and volunteering at writing events and conferences and sits on the Storymakers G... Read More →

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

Writing Tools

Moderator Bill Bush

9:00pm MDT

Sandboxes: Building Castles with Co-Writing

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

Palmer

This workshop will explore co-writing! This endeavor is both trickier and easier than you're initially imagining. Come find out some of the best ways to outline and prepare for writing with a co-author, various techniques to splitting the workload, and the “yes, and” mindset that helps make these stories shine their brightest. We'll also discuss how to find these opportunities and what to do to make the most of them.

If you’ve ever written a book but didn’t have the expertise to flesh it out the way you wanted, want to write in another author’s IP, or just want to write a novel with your best buddy, we’ve got you covered.

Faculty

H.Y. Gregor

Author

H.Y. Gregor was born in Portland, Oregon, but will always call the mountains of Colorado home. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science but put it down often enough to narrowly avoid law school. Now she spends her free time weaving fantasy tales and battling plot gremlins... Read More →

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

Craft of Writing

8:30am MDT

Decision Making for Authors

Saturday April 18, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am MDT

Palmer

Writers who treat their work as a business must make clear-eyed, professional decisions. This class helps you use data instead of emotions to guide your next steps in all aspects of writing life.

Faculty

Kevin Ikenberry

Author

Kevin Ikenberry is a life-long space geek and retired Army officer. As an adult, he managed the U.S. Space Camp program, two Challenger Learning Centers, and served on active duty in space operations before Space Force was a thing. He’s an international bestselling science fiction... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 8:30am - 9:30am MDT
Palmer

Business of Writing

Moderator Catherine Dilts

9:45am MDT

The Super Power of Writing Sprints: Smash Writer’s Block (2 hours)

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:45am - 12:00pm MDT

Palmer

For those of us who overthink our writing process, writing sprints can help us break through our writer’s block, self-doubt, and paralyzing perfectionism. In this improv-writing workshop, we’ll use writing sprints (timed writing exercises) to glide right past writer’s block, dive deeply into characters, and more. Bring pen & paper or your laptop, and be prepared to let your mind surprise you with fresh, uninhibited writing.

Faculty

Johnny Worthen

Award-Winning Author

Johnny Worthen grew up in the high desert snows and warm summer winds of the Wasatch Mountains. He graduated with a B.A. in English, minor in Classics and a Master's in American Studies from the University of Utah. After a series of businesses and adventures, including years abroad... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:45am - 12:00pm MDT
Palmer

Craft of Writing

Moderator Bill Bush
Audience Intermediate

2:00pm MDT

Rock Your Reader Magnet

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm MDT

Palmer

Build your fan base the easy way.

Most authors know that growing your fan base with a free giveaway makes great sense. But what do you offer? This workshop offers a slew of enticing options (for both fiction and nonfiction authors) for items that will have readers jumping on to your newsletter list.

We’ll cover:
>What to offer, including five different kinds of reader magnets
>Easy ways to format your giveaway
>How to easily deliver your freebie

Your list will grow in no time, and that means a built-in audience to buy your books.

Faculty

Debbie Maxwell Allen

Editor, Author, Scrivener Coach

Debbie Maxwell Allen writes historical fiction–with a touch of the unexplainable–set in quirky Mediterranean locations in the 18th century. She has placed in the Zebulon Contest three times and contributed to the Fresh Starts anthology. Her debut series launches in 2024. Debbie teaches workshops on the craft of writing, productivity, and how to use Scrivener and Vellum software at local writing groups and writing conferences... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm MDT
Palmer

Business of Writing

Moderator Catherine Dilts

3:15pm MDT

Writing Worlds That Work

Saturday April 18, 2026 3:15pm - 4:15pm MDT

Palmer

How can we make our fictional world–especially those we invent–real and immediate? Let’s discuss the building blocks of believable societies, how to avoid common world-creation mistakes, and how to get our readers to see and experience that world without boring them with long passages of description.

Faculty

Carol Berg

Saturday April 18, 2026 3:15pm - 4:15pm MDT
Palmer

Genre-Specific

Moderator Kaitlyn Price

4:45pm MDT

Editing Beyond “Gut Feel”: A Checklist for Success

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:45pm - 5:45pm MDT

Palmer

Revising your work (or critiquing others’) can be overwhelming. Without specific elements to look for, it’s easy to fall back on our “gut feel,” which is hard to articulate and even harder to trust. Learn to evaluate 17 storytelling aspects to edit and strengthen any manuscript, including your own!

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 →

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:45pm - 5:45pm MDT
Palmer

Craft of Writing

Moderator Joe Lenhoff

9:00am MDT

Self-Publishing: Is It Your Friend or Foe?

Sunday April 19, 2026 9:00am - 10:00am MDT

Palmer

This course is designed as an introduction to the ever-evolving indie market. It focuses on defining and clarifying terms of the indie/self-publishing world and on answering questions of those who have one toe in the water but are reluctant to dive into the ocean. Ample time is given for questions and the sharing of experiences between participants.

Faculty

Laurie Marr Wasmund

Author, lost ranch books

Laurie Marr Wasmund holds an M.A. in literature from the University of Denver. She has been an editor, community college instructor, and national writing workshop presenter. Her short stories have appeared in literary magazines such as Cimarron Review and Weber Studies. She is... Read More →

Sunday April 19, 2026 9:00am - 10:00am MDT
Palmer

Business of Writing

Moderator Mike Torreanno

10:15am MDT

Marketing 101 for Writers (2 hours)

Sunday April 19, 2026 10:15am - 12:30pm MDT

Palmer

Whether you're launching your debut or leveling up your growing platform, this two-hour workshop gives you the roadmap to market your books with confidence and clarity. We’ll dig into the essentials authors must know: identifying your ideal reader, crafting a compelling brand, building an email list that converts, and choosing the right mix of social media, events, and partnerships. You'll learn practical, repeatable strategies to boost visibility, grow engagement, and sustain momentum long after launch day. Walk away with a personalized action plan, fresh ideas, and the tools to take your author career to the next level.

Faculty

Jenny Kate

Director, Pike Peak Writers Conference

Jenny Kate is a professional communicator. She has been quoted by the New York Times, CNN, FoxNews, and Time Magazine, and wrote her first novel in the second grade. She is a member of Washington Romance Writers, Sisters in Crime, and freelanced for New York literary agent Ethan Ellenberg... Read More →

Sunday April 19, 2026 10:15am - 12:30pm MDT
Palmer

Business of Writing

Moderator Mike Torreanno

8:30am MDT

9:45am MDT

11:00am MDT

2:00pm MDT

3:15pm MDT

4:45pm MDT

9:00pm MDT

8:30am MDT

9:45am MDT

2:00pm MDT

3:15pm MDT

4:45pm MDT

9:00am MDT

10:15am MDT

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