Washington Writers Conference

The Washington Writers Conference, sponsored by the Washington Independent Review of Books, will be held May 1 to May 2 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel in Rockville, Maryland. The conference features pitch sessions, panels, craft discussions, and workshops for poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers. Featured writers include poets Sunu P. Chandy, Jona Colson, Teri Ellen Cross Davis, Hiram Larew, Dwayne Lawson-Brown, Chloe Yelena Miller, and Michelle Wolf; fiction writers Samuel Ashworth, E. A. (Ed) Aymar, Lacey N. Dunham, Hannah Grieco, Marisa Kashino, Alma Katsu, Bethany C. Morrow, Katherine Pickett, Zach Powers, Colleen J. Shogan, and Jennifer Bort Yacovissi; and nonfiction writers Cathy Alter, A’Lelia Bundles, Melanie D.G. Kaplan, Leonard Pitts Jr., and Jeannie Vanasco. Publishing professionals include agents Ritu Anand (D4EO Literary Agency), Sam Farkas (Jill Grinberg Literary Management), Robert Guinsler (Sterling Lord Literistic), Gabrielle Harbowy (Corvisiero Literary Agency), Cole Hildebrand (Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency), Sam Hiyate (The Rights Factory), Barbara Jones (Stuart Kirchevsky Literary Agency), Gina Panettieri (Talcott Notch Literary Services), Rita Rosenkranz (Rita Rosenkranz Literary Agency), Elizabeth Winick Rubinstein (McIntosh & Otis), Katharine Sands (Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency), Ellen Scordato (Stonesong), Emily Sylvan Kim (Prospect Agency), Hannah Teachout (Folio Literary Management), and Christina Zobel (JABberwocky Literary Agency). Nonfiction writers Aran Shetterly and Margot Lee Shetterly will be the keynote speakers. The cost of the conference, which includes three pitch sessions, is $429. Limited lodging is available at the conference hotel for $139 per night. Registration is first come, first served through April 27. Visit the website for more information.

Accessibility accommodations include public transportation near the venue; elevators in all multilevel event spaces; accessible sidewalks, pathways, and doorways; accommodations for service animals; accessible parking; accessible restrooms; and accessible hotel rooms. Contact co-chair Stephanie Harshman Diaz via e-mail for additional accessibility details.