2024 Colorado Gold Writers Conference: Full Schedule

Welcome, writers! If you have any questions about the schedule or the conference at large, please refer to the conference website at rmfw.org/conference or email conference@rmfw.org.

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8:00am MDT

Scene Construction

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT

Conference Room I

Scenes are the stepping stones of a story that keep the reader turning the page. A character acts and reacts to the other characters on stage, the place or the events to advance the plot and develop character. This workshop will break down all the elements needed to construct a strong scene.

Speakers

Peggy Waide

Bestselling Author

#1 Amazon bestselling author Peggy entered her first book in the Colorado Gold. The editor offered a contract. She has published four romances with Dorchester. Montlake now publishes her books. She is shopping an amateur sleuth and a romantic suspense. She’s also been a trainer... Read More →

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT
Conference Room I

Conference Room I

Topic Workshop
Audience Beginner
Subject Craft
Area Hybrid

8:00am MDT

Emotional Intimacy in Fiction -- Your Key to Connecting with Readers

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT

Conference Room II

The emotional connection between your characters and the connection your reader forms with your characters make the difference between a story readers merely enjoy to one they can’t forget. In this workshop we’ll explore why emotional intimacy matters and how to build it into your stories.

Speakers

Cindi Myers

Award-Winning Author

Cindi Myers became one of the most popular people in eighth grade when she and a friend wrote and illustrated their first romance novel. It would be another couple of decades before Cindi saw her first novel published, but since then she has published over 100 novels -- historical... Read More →

Emotional Intimacy in Fiction Handout docx

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT
Conference Room II

Conference Room II

Topic Workshop
Audience Intermediate
Subject Craft
Area Hybrid

8:00am MDT

Beyond Romance: Crafting Character Relationships That Win Readers

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT

Conference Room IV

This one-hour session will teach the skills to construct dynamic, multi-dimensional connections between characters. We’ll delve into leveraging relationships for plot development, creating suspense, emphasizing the role of dialogue, and establishing connections with readers.

Speakers

Sarah Reichert

Author

Sarah Reichert (S.E. Reichert) is a novelist, poet, blogger, writing mentor, and herder of cats. She’s the Youth Coordinator for the Writing Heights Writers Association. She is also the webmaster for WyoPoets and a member of Wyoming Writers, Inc. Her Sweet Valley Series, a contemporary... Read More →

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT
Conference Room IV

Conference Room IV

Topic Workshop
Audience Intermediate
Subject Craft

8:00am MDT

The Faceted Story

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT

Conference Room V

A presentation about those elements of narrative fiction that lend depth, value and resonance to writing. Examples and techniques will be offered to help shape niches and expand any story into new areas of interest for a greater chance to stand out from the slush pile.

Speakers

Johnny Worthen

Award-Winning Author

Johnny Worthen is an award-winning, multiple-genre author of novels and short stories.His best-selling science fiction series Coronam, beginning with Of Kings, Queens & Colonies, then Of Civilized, Saved & Savages and now complete with Of Heroes, Homes & Honey, is an epic tale in... Read More →

Sunday September 29, 2024 8:00am - 8:50am MDT
Conference Room V

Conference Room V

Topic Workshop
Audience Advanced
Subject Craft
Area Hybrid

9:00am MDT

Not Your Mother's Tropes: How to Subvert without Alienating Your Readers

Sunday September 29, 2024 9:00am - 9:50am MDT

Conference Room II

Tropes are the building blocks of literary tradition, but the most exciting works of today are often subversive. Using examples and generative writing exercises, we’ll explore ways to balance reader expectations with innovation, how to make old familiar conventions fresh without alienating readers.

Speakers

Rachel Dempsey

Author

Rachel Dempsey is a writer of horror, mystery and thrillers living in Denver. Her short fiction has been published by Shacklebound Books, Brigids Gate Press, Timber Ghost Press and Twenty Bellows (Pushcart nominated, 2023). She holds a BFA in Drama and English from NYU'S Tisch, a... Read More →

Sunday September 29, 2024 9:00am - 9:50am MDT
Conference Room II

Conference Room II

Topic Workshop
Audience Intermediate
Subject Craft
Area Hybrid

9:00am MDT

Comedy (Seriously.)

Sunday September 29, 2024 9:00am - 9:50am MDT

Conference Room IV

No matter your audience, genre, or format, applying the principles that make comedy writing work can take any project from predictable to un-put-downable! This presentation is geared toward writers of any level of experience, with writing from laugh out loud to deathly dramatic.

Speakers

Christina Allen

Award-Winning Author

Christina Allen (publishing as C.W. Allen) is a Midwestern transplant to rural Utah where she serves as the President-Elect of the League of Utah Writers. She writes long stories for children and short stories for former children. She is also a frequent guest presenter at writing... Read More →

Comedy (seriously.) pdf

Sunday September 29, 2024 9:00am - 9:50am MDT
Conference Room IV

Conference Room IV

Topic Workshop
Audience Intermediate
Subject Craft, Genre

9:00am MDT

True Crime to Novel: Turn Headline News into Page-Turning Fiction

Sunday September 29, 2024 9:00am - 9:50am MDT

Conference Room VIII

Ever wonder how to turn an astonishing, newsworthy story into juicy crime fiction? In this workshop, we will talk about how authors turn true crime stories into fiction. Together, we will review examples of contemporary novels and the techniques authors use to make readers turn the page.

Speakers

Nanette Gamily

Author

Nanette Gamily’s debut Native American crime fiction novel, CRY FOR THE CHILD, is represented by Josh Getlzer at HG Literary. She’s an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation, a Tin House Finalist, a Regis University MFA graduate, and a guest blogger for Rocky Mountain Fiction... Read More →

Sunday September 29, 2024 9:00am - 9:50am MDT
Conference Room VIII

Conference Room VIII

Topic Workshop
Audience Beginner
Subject Genre, Craft