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24th Annual
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The Mission of the Blue Ridge Writers' Conference is to educate, inform, and inspire writers. No matter the level of expertise, the Blue Ridge Writers’ Conference provides a venue for professional writers, editors and agents to provide honest and accurate feedback to the aspiring writer in how to craft that first novel, sell a magazine article, market yourself in the literary world, or finding inspiration for your poetry. Previous keynote speakers have included a number of well-known writers such as novelist Claire Cook, Terry Kay, mystery writers Patricia Sprinkle, Joshilyn Jackson and Sharyn McCrumb, essayists James Kilgo and Steven Harvey, suspense writer Karin Slaughter, and former Georgia poet laureate, David Bottoms.
This year’s virtual conference begins on Saturday, April 10th with our keynote speech. Our 2021 keynote speaker will be Melissa Fay Greene. Ms. Greene is the author of six nonfiction books and her latest is an expansion of “Wonder Dog,” a 2012 New York Times Magazine feature story which became one of the most-searched-for and most-shared TIMES stories of the year. Ms. Greene’s work has been translated into 12 languages and has been honored with a Guggenheim Fellowship (2015-2016), two National Book Award nominations, a National Book Critics Circle Award nomination, the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, the Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize, the Southern Book Critics Circle Award, the ACLU National Civil Liberties Award, an Anthony J. Lukacs Book Prize finalist citation, the Hadassah Myrtle Wreath Award, Elle Magazine Readers’ Prize, the Salon Book Prize, a Lyndhurst Foundation Fellowship, the Lillian Smith Book Award, the Georgia Author Award, an honorary doctorate of letters from Emory University in 2010, induction into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2011, and the Georgia Governor’s Award in the Arts & Humanities in 2013. Ms. Greene has contributed to The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, New York Magazine, Newsweek, LIFE, CNN.com, and other periodicals, and has been a frequent public radio guest. Sheetrock was named one of the Top 100 Works of American Journalism of the 20th Century and appeared on Entertainment Weekly’s list of “The New Classics—The 100 Best Books of the Last 25 Years.”
The day continues with concurrent virtual workshops and sessions on everything from Fiction and Non-Fiction to marketing a manuscript. Our 2021 speakers include a wide variety of fiction, non-fiction, poetry writers, editors, and even a Secretary Emeritus of the Smithsonian Institution. Select the About our Speakers tab above for more information on our 2021 speakers as information becomes available.
The Blue Ridge Writers’ Conference also offers a four-hour virtual Workshop Intensive on Friday, April 9th. For an additional fee, the Workshop Intensive provides a more concentrated workshop to strengthen and inspire your literary endeavors. The 2021 workshop leader will be fiction writer, Sheila Athens. This year's workshop will be: Make Your Story Stronger: Insights from a Book Coach/Developmental Editor.
High school and local college students from area counties are invited to attend and the Art Center offers scholarships to make this more affordable. Please let us know if you are interested in our scholarship options. We look forward to you joining us this year for our 24th Annual Blue Ridge Writers’ Conference!
This year’s virtual conference begins on Saturday, April 10th with our keynote speech. Our 2021 keynote speaker will be Melissa Fay Greene. Ms. Greene is the author of six nonfiction books and her latest is an expansion of “Wonder Dog,” a 2012 New York Times Magazine feature story which became one of the most-searched-for and most-shared TIMES stories of the year. Ms. Greene’s work has been translated into 12 languages and has been honored with a Guggenheim Fellowship (2015-2016), two National Book Award nominations, a National Book Critics Circle Award nomination, the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, the Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize, the Southern Book Critics Circle Award, the ACLU National Civil Liberties Award, an Anthony J. Lukacs Book Prize finalist citation, the Hadassah Myrtle Wreath Award, Elle Magazine Readers’ Prize, the Salon Book Prize, a Lyndhurst Foundation Fellowship, the Lillian Smith Book Award, the Georgia Author Award, an honorary doctorate of letters from Emory University in 2010, induction into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2011, and the Georgia Governor’s Award in the Arts & Humanities in 2013. Ms. Greene has contributed to The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, New York Magazine, Newsweek, LIFE, CNN.com, and other periodicals, and has been a frequent public radio guest. Sheetrock was named one of the Top 100 Works of American Journalism of the 20th Century and appeared on Entertainment Weekly’s list of “The New Classics—The 100 Best Books of the Last 25 Years.”
The day continues with concurrent virtual workshops and sessions on everything from Fiction and Non-Fiction to marketing a manuscript. Our 2021 speakers include a wide variety of fiction, non-fiction, poetry writers, editors, and even a Secretary Emeritus of the Smithsonian Institution. Select the About our Speakers tab above for more information on our 2021 speakers as information becomes available.
The Blue Ridge Writers’ Conference also offers a four-hour virtual Workshop Intensive on Friday, April 9th. For an additional fee, the Workshop Intensive provides a more concentrated workshop to strengthen and inspire your literary endeavors. The 2021 workshop leader will be fiction writer, Sheila Athens. This year's workshop will be: Make Your Story Stronger: Insights from a Book Coach/Developmental Editor.
High school and local college students from area counties are invited to attend and the Art Center offers scholarships to make this more affordable. Please let us know if you are interested in our scholarship options. We look forward to you joining us this year for our 24th Annual Blue Ridge Writers’ Conference!
