Austin Pena - Pikes Peak Writers Conference 2025

Pikes Peak Writers Conference 2025

Registration for the 2025 Pikes Peak Writers Conference is now open!
The current schedule, like much of our writing, is a work-in-progress and is subject to change.
Sched is sponsored by Reedsy.

Austin Pena

University of Nebraska-Lincoln TRIO SSS

Retention Specialist

Find me on

About me

Old Soul in an almost thirty-year-old body
I'm perfecting my poetry but I want to write stories, short and novel
Ask me about movies or dreams and we'll talk for hours
Add a Cuba Libre or a cigar and French press and we'll talk until the sun comes up

8:00am MDT

Newcomers Briefing AcademyLaura Hayden

8:30am MDT

Assembling Your Publishing Dream Team Pikes Peak/Royal GorgeRicardo Fayet

9:45am MDT

Starting Your Story in the Right Place DouglasDavid R. Slayton

10:45am MDT

Zeb's Lounge Seven Falls

11:00am MDT

Non-verbal Communication in Fiction DouglasDeb Courtney

12:15pm MDT

Welcome Lunch BallroomAvery Flynn

2:00pm MDT

When You See It: A Practical Guide to Show, Don’t Tell El PasoDawn Alexander

3:15pm MDT

Refilling Your Creative Well DouglasJames Persichetti

4:15pm MDT

Snack Break Ballroom

4:45pm MDT

Decoding Blockbuster Plots and Synopses DouglasSusan Mitchell

9:00pm MDT

Write Drunk Edit Sober FremontDeb Courtney

7:00am MDT

Breakfast Ballroom

8:00am MDT

Zeb's Lounge Seven Falls

8:30am MDT

But Is It a Good Idea? El PasoCallie Stoker

9:45am MDT

Bangs & Booms 101: Technical Stuff That Writers Should Get Right Academy/PalmerJohn Gilstrap

11:00am MDT

Write Drunk Edit Sober Follow-up Seven FallsDeb Courtney Write What You Feel: Emotion in Fiction Academy/PalmerDavid R. Slayton

12:15pm MDT

Lunch with Keynotes BallroomRicardo Fayet • Alexandra Diaz • David R. Slayton • Avery Flynn • John Gilstrap

2:00pm MDT

Secrets of Pacing and Clarity Pikes Peak/Royal GorgeSteve Saffel Strong Language: For and Against Swearing in Fiction Academy/PalmerDeb Courtney

3:15pm MDT

Book to Film Strategies to Sell Your Story in a Single Sentence, Treatment, Pitch Deck or Bible DouglasJennifer S. Wilkov Map Out Your Plot Using Story Structure Pikes Peak/Royal GorgeChris Mandeville Thrills, Chills...and Ills? What Makes a Story Horror? El PasoShannon Lawrence

4:15pm MDT

Snack Break Ballroom

4:45pm MDT

Plotting Your Character's Demise El PasoJames Persichetti

7:30pm MDT

Banquet BallroomJohn Gilstrap

7:30am MDT

Breakfast Ballroom

9:00am MDT

Full-on Fight Scenes: Tools and Tips to Fit Your Tale FremontBowen Gillings • AJ Metzger There's No "Right" Way to Write El PasoAlexandra Diaz

10:15am MDT

Short Story Generative Workshop (Part 2) Seven FallsShannon Lawrence

11:30am MDT

Write Towards the Ending El PasoJames Persichetti So You Went to a Writers Conference, Now What? DouglasKim Olgren

12:45pm MDT

Lunch BallroomDavid R. Slayton