2024 Retreat Keynotes

Love Hudson-Maggio & Jennifer Moorman

Meet the Authors: Love & Jennifer

Joshilyn Jackson

New York Times Best Seller

Meet the Author: Joshilyn Jackson

Full – Weekend $300

Includes Friday Happy Hour, 2 Keynotes & Lunches

One-Day $145 (either Saturday or Sunday)

Includes 1 Keynote & Lunch

per Session $40

Keynote Lunch $40

Welcome!

Welcome to Georgia Writers Museum’s 3rd Annual Writers Retreat!

We are excited to bring together budding and experienced authors for a weekend of workshops, networking, and an overall fun and informative experience. Working with advice and assistance from the Atlanta Writers Club, we are honored to welcome notable writers from across the state. Together, we are forming a creative and supportive environment for writers to work on their craft and gain tips for publishing from some of the best writers in the state. Convening in Eatonton, Georgia, your retreat is nestled in the center of Georgia’s literary heartland. Nine Georgia Writers Hall of Fame members lived, worked, and wrote within 30 miles of Georgia Writers Museum. As we say, there must be something in the water!

Looking forward to hosting you at GWM’s Writers Retreat!

Melissa Swindell, GWM Executive Director

Friday, Feb. 9

Sat, Feb. 10

9:15-10:30am Session 1

How to Create Suspense – Five Unforgettable Chapter Ending-Cliffhanger Techniques with Melinda Farris
Pre-Publication Readership with Roger Johns and Kim Conrey (2 Georgia Authors of the Year)

10:45am-12:00pm Session 2

Learn the Fundamentals of Writing Speculative Fiction Novels and Short Stories and Where to Submit Them with Kim Conrey, Roger Johns, and George Weinstein (Director, Atlanta Writers Club)
Marketing: Step One – Your Website with Rona Simmons

12:15pm-1:45pm Osprey Foundation’s Anne River Siddons Memorial Keynote with Love Hudson-Maggio & Jennifer Moorman

2:00pm-3:15pm Session 3

Rewriting the Narrative: Mastering the Art of Revision with Nury Crawford
Things I Wish I’d Known Before Publishing My First Book with Kristine Anderson (Ferrol Sams Award for Fiction), Rona Simmons, J Shaw, Chris Swann, and T.M. Brown

Saturday Keynote

KEYNOTE with LOVE HUDSON-MAGGIO

& JENNIFER MOORMAN

SATURDAY, FEB. 10 / 12:15 – 1:45PM

About Love Hudson-Maggio: Love Hudson-Maggio is CEO and Founder of a marketing technology firm with offices in Atlanta, GA and Manhattan, NY. She writes southern women’s fiction with a travel flair about smart people with a lot to learn about life and love. Love’s passion for travel shows up in her books as her characters find themselves transported between the southern sweetness of Atlanta, GA to other international picturesque locations like India. Love lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband, two sons and their dog. Love was admitted as a screenwriting fellow at Columbia University for her short play As the Vow Breaks. Upon completion of her screenwriting fellowship her play Eating for Two was performed at a small theater in New York’s Lower East Side as a part of a female ensemble. Love believes that the love you give away will find its way back to you. Her books reflect this truth.

About Jennifer Moorman: Born and raised in southern Georgia, where honeysuckle grows wild and the whippoorwills sing, Jennifer Moorman is the bestselling author of the magical realism Mystic Water series. Jennifer started writing in elementary school, crafting epic tales of adventure and love and magic. She wrote stories in Mead notebooks, on printer paper, on napkins, on the soles of her shoes. Her blog is full of dishes inspired by fiction, and she hosts baking classes showcasing these recipes. Jennifer considers herself a traveler, a baker, and a dreamer. She can always be won over with chocolate, unicorns, or rainbows. She believes in love—everlasting and forever.

Sun, Feb. 11

9:15-10:30am Session 1

Writer’s Toolbox: Mastering Minor Characters & Story Pacing with George Weinstein (Director, Atlanta Writers Club), and the Wild Women Who Write: Kim Conrey and Kathy Nichols
Turning Your Literary Masterpiece into a National Best-Seller with Chip Bell

10:45am-12:00pm Session 2

Two Artists, One Household: Building an at Home Writer’s Retreat with Mickey Dubrow and Jessica Handler
Writing is the Easy Part: Tools for Success in Self-Publishing with Samantha SoRelle

12:15pm-1:45pm Osprey Foundation’s Anne River Siddons Memorial Keynote with Joshilyn Jackson

2:00pm-3:15pm Session 3

Writing About Sensitive Topics with Beverly Armento
How to Land an Agent with Bill Walsh

Sunday Keynote

KEYNOTE with JOSHILYN JACKSON

SUNDAY, FEB. 11 / 12:15 – 1:45PM

About Joshilyn Jackson: New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Joshilyn Jackson’s books have been translated into a dozen languages, won SIBA’s Novel of the Year award, three times been the #1 Book Sense Pick, twice been the #1 Indie Next Pick, twice won Georgia Author of the Year, been a top ten finalist in the Goodreads Choice Awards, been the Target Book Club Pick, three times been a Books-A-Million Book Club Pick, four times been shortlisted for the Townsend Prize for Fiction, been a finalist for the Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction, and won the Patricia Winn Award for Southern Fiction.

A former actor, Jackson reads the audio versions of both her own novels and other writers’ books. Her work in this field has been nominated for the Audie Award, included on AudioFile Magazine’s best of the year list, won three Earphones Awards, made the Audible All-Star list for highest listener ranks/reviews, and garnered three Listen Up Awards from Publishers Weekly.

As a volunteer with Reforming Arts, Jackson spent six years teaching creative writing in Georgia’s maximum security facility for women. She currently serves on their board of directors, focusing on re-entry. She lives in Decatur, Georgia, with her family, two entitled cats, and a modestly-sized dog.