paths to publishing

1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. | Thursday, July 31, 2025

The Paths to Publishing panel features writers from the MCWC community who published in the last year. This year’s seminar will include faculty who will share about their publishing journey and the steps that led to their success.

AGENT SEMINAR

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Thursday, July 31, 2025

Details coming soon…

EDITOR SEMINAR

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Thursday, July 31, 2025

Details coming soon…

INTRODUCTION TO MIDDLE GRADE WRITING

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Thursday, July 31, 2025

Details coming soon...

Pitch Panel

4:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. | Thursday, July 31, 2025

Pitch your book in two minutes flat to an editor, an agent, and a published author. They’ll give you frank reactions to the concept of your book, and to the way you made your pitch.

Participants will have the opportunity to drop their name in the hat for selection, though we cannot guarantee that all interested participants will get a turn to pitch. Private, one-on-one consultations can also be requested when you register for the conference. Consultations are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

faculty Reading

5:30 p.m. | Thursday, July 31, 2025

Enjoy a medley of readings by the MCWC faculty.

This event is free and open to the public from 6:30 p.m. on.

open mic 

1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. | Friday, August 1, 2025

Share a two-minute excerpt of your work—or sit back and enjoy a medley of good writing and entertainment.

This event is free and open to the public.

WRITING SUSPENSEFUL PLOTS

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Friday, August 1, 2025

Suspense and tension are the catalyst of imagination! They are the cornerstone of any great plot and character development. But more importantly, they are just so fun. There are great suspense-creating devices that can be applied to any genre in both drafting and revision. Learn how to leave readers wanting more and turning the pages late into the night.

Only Water is for Everyone: Using Rejection to Embolden Your Style

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Friday, August 1, 2025

There are many paths to becoming a writer, and they are all paved with lots (and lots!) of rejection. Of course, nobody likes the feeling of being rejected or criticized, but anyone who tries to please everyone will fail. Your work will never have universal appeal, and this is a great thing—you don’t want to be the literary equivalent of water (colorless, flavorless–as close to nothing as you can get).

This seminar will cover ways to use rejection and harsh criticism to foment personal style and a unique perspective. We will look at the work and rejections of audacious and innovative writers such as Christine Schutt, Ursula LeGuin, Tony Tulathimutte, Miranda July, Alex Chee and others to see how haters often show us exactly what we're doing right. Rejection can make us feel like we're sitting around waiting to get chosen, but with every daring aesthetic decision you make, YOU choose your audience. Authenticity and fearlessness on the page will ultimately draw the right readers to you: the boldest, most stylish version of yourself.

Writing Humor in Memoir & Essay

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Friday, August 1, 2025

Sometimes the truth hurts, and, more times than not, it is a laughing matter. Humor is a connective tissue: No matter what we’re trying to work through, we’re bound by the laughs that come from it. It’s a powerful tool on the page, too.

This seminar will examine how we metabolize our stories through humor. We will focus on the art of layering levity into our writing by analyzing different approaches to comedic storytelling, engaging in in-depth discussions, and using generative writing exercises to shape your ideas.

ANONYMOUS Critique

4:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. | Friday, August 1, 2025

Submit your opening page to see the candid reactions of an editor, an agent, and an author.

Participants will have the opportunity to drop their opening lines in the hat for selection, though we cannot guarantee that all submissions will be read.

faculty Reading

7:00 p.m. | Friday August 1, 2025

Enjoy a medley of readings by the MCWC faculty.

This event is free and open to the public.

open mic 

1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. | Saturday, August 2, 2025

Share a two-minute excerpt of your work—or sit back and enjoy a medley of good writing and entertainment.

This event is free and open to the public.

Crafting a Fantastical World Your Readers Won't Want to Leave

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Saturday, August 2, 2025

In this seminar we will focus on building an engaging and realistic fictional world while avoiding the pitfalls of infodumping and pesky plot holes.

RESEARCHING YOUR MEMOIR

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Saturday, August 2, 2025

Details coming soon…

Guided Meditation into Visualizing Your Story

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m | Saturday, August 2, 2025

A playful, mind bending exercise--Using a guided meditation technique, I will prompt you to think visually and to draw out the spaces and places in your writing.

Pitch Panel

4:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. | Saturday, August 2, 2025

Pitch your book in two minutes flat to an editor, an agent, and an author. They’ll give you frank reactions to the concept of your book, and to the way you made your pitch.

Participants will have the opportunity to drop their name in the hat for selection, though we cannot guarantee that all interested participants will get a turn to pitch. Private, one-on-one consultations can also be requested when you register for the conference. Consultations are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

Closing Keynote ADdress

5:30 p.m. | Saturday, August 2, 2025

We’ll wrap up the conference with a keynote address by Byron F. Aspaas. Raised within the four sacred mountains of Dinétah. Aspaas’s first published work was included in Yellow Medicine Review and since then his writing has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. Aspaas’s writing revisits the destruction of sacred land and engages his readers in a dialogue about preserving Diné culture and land. He uses imagery and persona to present explorations of language, landscape, and identity. Byron is faculty at San Juan College’s English Department and Western Colorado University’s Graduate Program in Creative Writing Program.