2023 Conference Sessions

Friday Morning Keynote

What I Wish I’d Known Before I Wrote a Book: Adventures and Misadventures in My Publishing Journey

John Bytheway

Popular Latter-day Saint author and speaker John Bytheway shares his favorite lessons in writing and publishing. With his trademark humor and practical wisdom, John dissects flops as well as triumphs. He writes: “For example, I’ve had a few terrible titles, some cringeworthy covers, and out-of-print outrages—but in writing about everything from golf to Isaiah, I’ve learned one lesson: trust your instincts and just WRITE! Hopefully I’ll provide a few laughs as well as surprising tips and practices.”

Bio: Author of numerous bestselling books, audio talks, and DVDs, John Bytheway is among the most-requested keynote speakers each year by LDSPMA members. John was born and raised in Salt Lake City and served a mission in the Philippines. He earned a master’s degree in religious education from BYU and currently teaches religion courses at the BYU Salt Lake Center. John and his wife, Kimberly, have six children and a completely full SUV, which doubles in value when it’s full of gasoline. John currently serves as a member of the Young Men’s Advisory Council (formerly known as the General Board). His books and  audio programs, he says, are effective non-prescription sleep-aids.

Friday Afternoon Keynote

The Many Dimensions of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Publishing: How the New Deseret Book Intercultural Team Is Confronting Challenges and Applying What They Learn

Laurel C. Day, J. Teresa Davis, Jalynne Geddes, and Levi Heperi

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are among the biggest issues throughout the publishing world. Hundreds of publishing companies already have major DEI initiatives underway and are making changes in their policies, practices, and publications. In this frank and candid discussion, the new Deseret Book intercultural team—consisting of the company president, DEI liaison, DEI content specialist, and director of intercultural strategy—will share what they have learned over the past three years, what initiatives they have undertaken, what difficulties they have encountered, and how they are seeking to overcome these difficulties in increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout Deseret Book. Their discussion will cover DEI issues and actions in all publishing areas, including author selection, company staffing, publication content review, company operations, and marketing strategy.

Bio: Laurel Christensen Day is the president of Deseret Book Company. Prior to being named president in May 2021, Laurel ran Deseret Book’s successful Time Out for Women program and led a major rebranding of the company’s retail chain and catalog business. Laurel is deeply committed to ensuring that Deseret Book’s content and products better represent the worldwide membership of the Church. Laurel is the author of several messages for teenage girls and has spent more than a decade traveling around the country speaking to both girls and women.

Bio: J Teresa Davis is the diversity, equity, and inclusion manager for Deseret Book. She studied behavioral science at Utah Valley University and academic advising at Kansas State University. Throughout her career she has accomplished much work within the realm of diversity, equity, and inclusion including trainings, helping with the writing of a strategic plan, and sitting on various committees to effect change. J Teresa is a proud native of Chicago.

Bio: Jalynne Geddes is the DEI content specialist at Deseret Book. She has studied at the Tourism Training Institute of British Columbia, the Saskatoon Business College in Saskatchewan, Portland State University, and the University of Alberta. She has worked with local Indigenous nonprofits in Saskatchewan and with the National Indian Child Welfare Association. She is also a successful beadwork artist. Jalynne is Cree/Nehiyaw from the Beardy’s and Okemasis Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, Canada.

Bio: Levi Heperi is the director of intercultural strategy at Deseret Book, where he oversees the company’s DEI initiatives and develops the strategy to take Deseret Book to international markets. He studied communications at BYU and earned a master’s degree in adult learning and higher education from the University of Oklahoma (OU). He has worked as an inner-city elementary school teacher in Oklahoma, at OU’s school of social work, and at BYU in admissions and as the assistant director of multicultural student services. Levi is Mohawk Native American and Māori.

Saturday Morning Keynote

Faith and Discipline in the Creative Process: How We Change the World One Person at a Time

Bonnie L. Oscarson

To create something original and inspiring—something that will touch others’ lives—is to follow the example of the ultimate Creator. Bonnie Oscarson’s callings and assignments have required her not to create great literature, but to communicate inspired truths. In this session, Bonnie will share what she has learned about the creative process. That process involves developing new abilities and connecting with heaven through the Spirit. It involves overcoming self-doubt, trusting ourselves and God, and being willing to work harder than we have ever worked before.

Bio: Bonnie L. Oscarson served as the Young Women General President of the Church from 2013 to 2018. She and her husband, Paul, served as mission president and companion in the Sweden Gothenburg Mission in the 1970s and returned to Sweden thirty years later as temple president and matron for the temple in Stockholm. Bonnie is the author of What Makes Us Sisters (Deseret Book, 2015). She was the 2021 Honored Alumni Lecturer for the BYU College of Humanities on “The Magic of Lifelong Learning through Literature.” Bonnie and Paul have seven children and twenty-nine fascinating grandchildren.

Saturday Afternoon Keynote

Turning Crisis into Crescendo: Using the Power of Creativity and Grace

Steven Sharp Nelson

Creativity and crisis seem to be enharmonic—notes with the same pitch but different names. Why were Beethoven’s finest works created on the heels of personal devastation? What do we do when our art seems to miss more than it hits? Or when burnout turns what we love into what we loathe? In his signature style that has earned worldwide acclaim, Steven shares scientific data corroborated by heartwarming and hilarious stories from his roller-coaster career as a cello-playing “Piano Guy,” all mixed into live musical performances of favorites and special tunes rarely heard. Journey with him as he seeks to answer the question of how to turn a midlife, faith, health, or artistic crisis into crescendo using creativity and the power of grace. 

Bio: Steven Sharp Nelson is widely considered one of the most watched musicians in the world and a pioneer of “classicool music” via his twelve years of cello work with The Piano Guys. His content is listened to or watched 3 million times every day. Steven has performed or spoken to over 2 million people from Tooele to Tokyo, including appearances on Today, Good Morning America, and The Tonight Show. He draws his inspiration from his soulmate Julie, his “superpower” ADHD, the great composers in history, and most of all from his best friend, Jesus. His favorite thing in the world is that all four of his children, ages 10–17, still call him “Daddy.” Sometimes even out of love.

Tools of the Trade: How to Start a Small Publishing Company

Kiri Jorgensen

Does the business side of writing get you excited? Would you like to help authors get their books out into the world? Starting your own publishing company may seem like a daunting task, but with a handful of pinpointed action plans, the process becomes manageable. In this workshop, Kiri Jorgensen will guide you through those action plans, give real-world tools and examples, and provide the boost you need to guide you toward your dream.

Bio: Kiri Jorgensen is the Publisher and Senior Editor at Chicken Scratch Books. Her involvement in the world of children’s literature spans three decades and includes teaching, writing, editing, and leadership. Her passion is all books middle grade and teaching kids how to embrace those books. Kiri loves bragging about her four amazing kids and lives with her husband and a plethora of animals in rural Montana, where she cooks her meals on a wood-burning cookstove and is grateful every day for being right where she is.

Understanding the World of Book Publishing for Authors

Laurel C. Day and Christopher Robbins

Intended Audience: Authors interested in better understanding how a publishing business works and how that business impacts them as authors.

The book publishing business is a global industry that is a maze and is a challenge to navigate successfully. Join industry veterans and CEOs Laurel Day of Deseret Book and Christopher Robbins of Familius as they give you the nickel tour of book publishing and share what every author should know!

Bio: Laurel Christensen Day is the president of Deseret Book Company. Prior to being named president in May 2021, Laurel ran Deseret Book’s successful Time Out for Women program and led a major rebranding of the company’s retail chain and catalog business. Laurel is deeply committed to ensuring that Deseret Book’s content and products better represent the worldwide membership of the Church. Laurel is the author of several messages for teenage girls and has spent more than a decade traveling around the country speaking to both girls and women.

Bio: Christopher Robbins is the co-founder and CEO of Familius, a trade book publishing company founded in 2012 with a mission to help families be happy. Familius has been one of the fastest growing independent publishing companies in the U.S. for the past five years as reported by Publishers Weekly. Christopher earned a BA in English and an MBA from BYU. He has worked in publishing since 1990 as the CEO of Novelocity.com, Editorial Director of NPI, CEO of Gibbs Smith, President of American West Books, and co-founder of Hummingbird Digital Media. He has served on numerous boards including Writers@Work, the Children’s Book Council, and the Independent Book Publishers Association.

Self-Publishing: A–Zs of Creating a Professional Product

Heather B. Moore

Intended Audience: Writers interested in exploring and succeeding in self-publishing their book.

Are you considering self-publishing? Learn what it takes to be your own publisher from USA Today bestselling author Heather B. Moore, a hybrid author who writes for traditional publishers and self-publishes through her imprint Mirror Press. Heather will walk you through the basics of creating your final ebook and paperback. She covers making decisions on titles and series titles, choosing your cover, working with a freelance editor, adding front and back matter in your book, setting release dates, and creating marketing strategies. Learn how to present your book in the best light possible so that it can be at the same competitive level as traditional publications.

Bio: Heather B. Moore is a USA Today bestselling author of more than 90 publications. She writes primarily historical and #herstory fiction about the humanity and heroism of the everyday person. Publishing in a breadth of genres, Heather dives into the hearts and souls of her characters, meshing her love of research with her love of storytelling. Recent publications include Under the Java Moon, Young Readers Edition of The Paper Daughters of Chinatown, The Slow March of Light, In the Shadow of a Queen, and Hannah—Mother of a Prophet. Heather attended Cairo American College in Egypt, the Anglican School of Jerusalem in Israel, and BYU.

Understanding Your Author’s Contract

Christopher Robbins

Intended Audience: Authors who are exploring working with a publisher and want to understand their author contact.

You have an author contract! Fantastic! But what does it mean? Join 30-year publishing veteran Christopher Robbins as he helps you navigate the author contract—from your grant of rights to royalties to indemnification and warranties to everything you’ll expect to see and want to understand.

Bio: Christopher Robbins is the co-founder and CEO of Familius, a trade book publishing company founded in 2012 with a mission to help families be happy. Familius has been one of the fastest growing independent publishing companies in the U.S. for the past five years as reported by Publishers Weekly. Christopher earned a BA in English and an MBA from BYU. He has worked in publishing since 1990 as the CEO of Novelocity.com, Editorial Director of NPI, CEO of Gibbs Smith, President of American West Books, and co-founder of Hummingbird Digital Media. He has served on numerous boards including Writers@Work, the Children’s Book Council, and the Independent Book Publishers Association.

The Perfect Pitch: How to Get Your Book Noticed!

Brooke Jorden and Lisa Mangum

Intended Audience: Writers wanting to learn what they can do to have a traditional publisher take interest in their book proposal.

When the majority of submissions get stuck in the slush pile, how can you make your proposal stand out from the crowd? In this session, Lisa Mangum of Shadow Mountain and Brooke Jorden of Familius will share what they look for in query letters and guide you through the formula for a powerful proposal. Together, they will explain what makes a good hook, how to identify comp titles, and how to tailor your pitch for different publishers or different genres. With examples of pitches that work and resources to help new and aspiring authors, this session will help you craft the perfect pitch.

Bio: Brooke Jorden earned a BA in English and editing from Brigham Young University. She has been working in the publishing industry for ten years and is the Editorial Director at Familius, a book publisher with a mission to help families be happy. At Familius, she oversees new acquisitions, manages the editorial production, and provides art direction to illustrators. Brooke is the author of over twenty books, including the Lit for Little Hands series; I Dig Bathtime; and How Does Our Food Grow?, a collaboration with the United Nations organization Kitchen Connection. In addition to writing, Brooke is an award-winning editor and book designer. Brooke and her husband, Tyler, currently live in Cedar Hills, Utah, with their three children and two cats.

Bio: Lisa Mangum has worked in publishing since 1997 and has been the managing editor for Shadow Mountain since 2014. She is also the author of four national bestselling YA novels, several short stories and novellas, and a nonfiction book about the craft of writing.

What 5 Different Publishers Are Doing to Advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI): Challenges, Practices, and Policies across Many Publishing Dimensions

Panelists: Marci Monson, J Teresa Davis, Levi Heperi, Christopher Robbins, Dru Huffaker, and Steve Piersanti.

In this session leaders at five publishing companies—Cedar Fort, Familius, Gibbs Smith, Deseret Book, and Berrett-Koehler—will describe the challenges they are encountering, the initiatives they are taking, and what is working and not working in advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in their companies.  They will cover all dimensions of DEI in publishing, including (1) finding and selecting authors, (2) vetting and editing the content of their publications, (3) creating visuals in their publications that reflect diversity, (4) achieving DEI in company staffing, and (5) adjusting company policies and operations.  They will also address conference attendees’ questions that have come up in response to Friday’s DEI session by four leaders of Deseret Book.

Bio: Marci Monson is the marketing and publicity manager at Gibbs Smith Books. She earned a B.S. in English from USU and a graduate certificate in publishing from the Denver Publishing Institute. She markets and works with authors from her 1908 barn office, producing over 80 book and gift products per year. She is from Smithfield, Utah, and loves bright colors, traveling, and cross-stitching. 

Bio: J Teresa Davis is the diversity, equity, and inclusion manager for Deseret Book. She studied behavioral science at Utah Valley University and academic advising at Kansas State University. Throughout her career she has accomplished much work within the realm of diversity, equity, and inclusion including trainings, helping with the writing of a strategic plan, and sitting on various committees to effect change. J Teresa is a proud native of Chicago.

Bio: Levi Heperi is the director of intercultural strategy at Deseret Book, where he oversees the company’s DEI initiatives and develops the strategy to take Deseret Book to international markets. He studied communications at BYU and earned a master’s degree in adult learning and higher ed from the University of Oklahoma (OU). He has worked as an inner-city elementary school teacher in Oklahoma, at OU’s school of social work, and at BYU in admissions and as the assistant director of multicultural student services. Levi is Mohawk Native American and Māori.

Bio: Christopher Robbins is the co-founder and CEO of Familius, a trade book publishing company founded in 2012 with a mission to help families be happy. Familius has been one of the fastest growing independent publishing companies in the U.S. for the past five years as reported by Publishers Weekly. Christopher earned a BA in English and an MBA from BYU. He has worked in publishing since 1990 as the CEO of Novelocity.com, Editorial Director of NPI, CEO of Gibbs Smith, President of American West Books, and co-founder of Hummingbird Digital Media. He has served on numerous boards including Writers@Work, the Children’s Book Council, and the Independent Book Publishers Association.

Bio: Dru Huffaker is the executive vice present of sales and marketing, acquisitions, and events for Cedar Fort Publishing & Media. She oversees the entire sales team and spearheads global account management for partners such as Costco, Deseret Book, and Ingram.  Dru cultivates profitable business relationships through sales strategies, manuscript acquisitions, and event coordination.  She has previously held senior leadership roles in several other organizations, including Blendtec and Utah Valley University.

Bio: Steve Piersanti is a senior editor at Berrett-Koehler Publishers, where he acquires books on business, leadership, personal growth, organizational change, societal transformation, economic justice, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.  He is the founder and former CEO of Berrett-Koehler, and he previously was CEO of Jossey-Bass Publishers.  He entered publishing in 1977 as a promotional copywriter, after graduating from BYU, then became an editor in 1982, so he has 46 years of experience in book publishing, including 41 years of editorial experience and 34 years of executive experience.  Steve is an Italian American who grew up in Jackpot, Nevada.

Enlightened Business Systems That Support Your Creative Ministry

Daniel Blomberg & Doug Pew

Intended Audience: Beginning, intermediate, and advanced musicians and other creators (authors, speakers, etc.)

Any organization needs solid systems to succeed, and your creative ministry is no different—even if it’s just you writing songs in your bedroom. This is a class on entrepreneurship for musicians and any other creator. You will learn how to set up systems in marketing, sales, business finance, and more, so you can move toward your goals in an organized and efficient way, and be on your way to blessing people’s lives.

Bio: Daniel Blomberg built a six-figure music production company in just over three years with his wife and business partner Kathryn, making mainly religious music, in a place where musicians are often viewed as a “dime-a-dozen” commodity. Blomberg Music Productions works with professionals and hobbyists alike, including several of Utah’s household music names, to help flood the Earth with God’s music.

Bio: Dr. Douglas Pew is an award-winning composer of classical music. He is also a sought-after marketer and online business coach who has helped his clients make millions selling their expertise in the form of digital courses, memberships, masterminds, and coaching programs. Douglas currently serves as composer-in-residence at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Cincinnati. His music is published by Boosey & Hawkes, Schott Music, Santa Barbara Music Publishing, Jackman Music Corporation, and his own publishing house, Blue Shore Music.

Navigating the Recording Process: Maximizing Results from Demo to Master

Dave Zimmerman

Intended Audience: Beginning, intermediate and advanced musicians

Are you having trouble achieving your desired results in the recording studio? Are you spending too much money and struggling to effectively communicate your ideas to recording engineers and producers? Dave provides valuable tips and insights to help you optimize your recording process, from pre-production to mixing and mastering. He offers practical guidance on how to prepare for the process and achieve recordings that align with your vision.

Bio: Dave Zimmerman is an accomplished recording engineer and producer and the owner of Noisebox Studios. He has worked with renowned artists such as GENTRI and Mat and Savanna Shaw, whose music has achieved multiple top-three rankings on the Billboard Charts. With a seventeen-year career in the recording industry, Dave has worked on close to ten thousand songs with hundreds of artists.

Enlightened Marketing: How to Sell Online Without Sleaze

Douglas Pew and Daniel Blomberg

Intended Audience: Beginning, intermediate, and advanced musicians and other creators (authors, speakers, etc.)

How can you sell your works or products without being pushy or annoying? To turn your music, writing, or art into a viable business, you need to master a new style of communication. You need the right words that turn browsers into buyers and fans into life-long customers. But you don’t have to go back to school to figure this out. All it takes is the simple 5-part M.U.S.I.C. formula you’ll get during this session.

Bio: Dr. Douglas Pew is an award-winning composer of classical music. He is also a sought-after marketer and online business coach who has helped his clients make millions selling their expertise in the form of digital courses, memberships, masterminds, and coaching programs. Douglas currently serves as composer-in-residence at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Cincinnati. His music is published by Boosey & Hawkes, Schott Music, Santa Barbara Music Publishing, Jackman Music Corporation, and his own publishing house, Blue Shore Music.

Bio: Daniel Blomberg built a six-figure music production company in just over three years with his wife and business partner Kathryn, making mainly religious music, in a place where musicians are often viewed as a “dime-a-dozen” commodity. Blomberg Music Productions works with professionals and hobbyists alike, including several of Utah’s household music names, to help flood the Earth with God’s music.

The Essential Role of Arranger/Producer in the Three-Act Story of a Song

James Stevens

Intended Audience: Songwriters/Arrangers/Producers from beginner to intermediate

This presentation will take you through the three fundamental stages of a song with a focus on arranging and production techniques that industry pros regularly use to take songs from demo to distribution, including how to enhance your value in the writers room, the “Three-Act Story Song Strategy” and the Arranger/Producer Toolbox.

Bio: James Stevens is a singer-songwriter, arranger, and producer whose arrangements and productions have reached millions of listeners, earned time on billboard charts, made appearances on TV and radio, Time Out For Women, and in many performance halls around the world. He is currently pursuing the songwriter/sync artist path relying heavily on his roles as an arranger and producer. His favorite role is being a member of the “family band” that includes his wife and four talented children.

How to Get Your Black Box Songwriter Royalties Before Someone Else Does

Ben Fales

Intended Audience: Beginner, intermediate and advanced musicians

This session explores one of the least-understood aspects of music publishing, namely how a songwriter must register their compositions with the proper agencies in order to claim royalties that would otherwise end up in a “black box” and eventually be distributed to other songwriters across the world.

Bio: Ben Fales has 20+ years of experience developing BYU’s global music brand. As head of BYU’s record label, Fales has driven the production, marketing, and distribution of albums and music videos featuring BYU’s performing groups, including 100+ YouTube videos that have garnered 330+ million views. Fales also runs There Is a Reason Music Publishing, which registers works and collects audio and video streaming royalties on behalf of songwriters and publishers.

Growing Revenue Streams and Wearing Different Hats as a Music Artist

Oba Bonner

Intended Audience: Beginner and intermediate musicians and music producers

This discussion aims to help aspiring musicians and producers learn how to open doors by using multiple skills such as writing songs, producing music, and engineering vocals. With tips and advice from songwriter and producer Oba Bonner, who has worked with popular artists like the Ninja Kidz, Why Don’t We, and Queen Latifah, this guide provides actionable advice for beginners and intermediate musicians.

Bio: Oba Bonner is a songwriter and music producer. Since he began writing songs from start to finish at age 11, Oba has been no stranger to making music. Oba has worked with notable mainstream artists like Jojo, Queen Latifah, Why Don’t We, Ninja Kidz, and others. His unique style is a breath of fresh air to the pop music world.

Interactive Session

Real-Time Reactions: Songwriting

Facilitated by Daniel Blomberg

Saturday, October 21, 1:00–1:50 pm

In this session, 3–4 songwriters will share a 2-to-4-minute excerpt of a recent or in-progress song. They will then have the opportunity to receive feedback from audience members and from a panel of professional musicians.

Expert panelists:

• Ben Fales, general manager and executive producer of BYU Music Group
• Allie Gardner, recording artist and songwriter
• Oba Bonner, music producer and recording artist
• Chelsea Stevens, songwriter and recording artist
• Daniel Blomberg, music producer and music business coach

Conference registrants can submit a song to be reviewed starting Thursday, July 20, through the Conference Portal.

Come Follow Me: Photographing President Russell M. Nelson Around the World

Jeffrey Allred

Intended Audience: Anyone interested in photography and/or wanting to hear what it’s like to document the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ as they tour the world.

Ever wonder what it’s like to follow the prophet and other church leaders as they minister to the saints around the world? Jeffrey Allred will share his experience and talk about what it takes to make a photographic history of events as they happen: how he is able to capture moments and help others feel like they are there with him.

Bio: Photojournalist Jeffrey Allred has photographed for 37 years. He shoots for The New York Times, USA Today, The Deseret News, The Church News, and the Associated Press. Allred has documented President Russell M. Nelson’s visits to 32 countries during his world tours. Allred’s recent coverage includes the Rose Bowl, temple dedications in Japan, Guam, and Brazil, the Haiti earthquake, two Olympic games, NBA finals, the NFL, and various collegiate sports.

Video Basics for Telling Your Story and Marketing Your Creative Work

Brian Howard

Intended Audience: Artists, marketers, and authors with limited skills in creating video content (video beginners)

Aspiring authors, artists, and creatives want to share their stories and work with video but don’t know where to start. This session provides tools and training to turn your smartphone or iPad into a personal production studio. Topics include shooting and editing video, smartphone apps, and affordable video peripherals.

Bio: Brian Howard teaches social and digital media, video journalism, and mass media courses at BYU-Idaho. He is the host and executive producer of Latter-day Profiles on BYUtv. His side business, Shoebox Story, produces videos for local businesses, online news outlets, live events, and personal history videos to preserve family memories.

The Why and How of Making and Marketing Music Videos

Josh Sales

Intended Audience: Musicians thinking about or starting on the journey of making music videos.

This class will teach everything you need to know from the beginning stages of producing music videos to getting these music videos seen by the most people possible. Josh Sales will cover questions like “Why should I film a music video?,” “Now that my music video is done, now what?,” and “How do these music videos make me revenue?”

Bio: Josh Sales is a videographer born and raised in Spanish Fork, Utah. He has spent the past seven years making music videos and has worked with names like The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Mat & Savanna Shaw, Rise Up Children’s Choir, BYU Vocal Point, Madilyn Paige, and many more. Josh’s videos have accumulated a total of over 250 million views over the past seven years.

Capturing Your Beginning Steps into the Film Industry with Informational Topics, Tips, and Storytelling

Ana Katia

Intended Audience: Beginner film and model artists

This session will give you tips in the following topics: Safety in film and modeling. First-time headshot tips. How to start networking and connect. Calming preparatory tips. Getting familiar with film crew set lingo. Crew jobs. Navigating film and modeling opportunities (gigs) for pay. Personal film storytelling experiences. Lastly, what to wear, prep, and have available off and on set.

Bio: Ana Katia is a sought-after actress, appearing frequently on UT film, television, print, and digital media, including multiple Church productions. She founded adopted4change.com and wrote Fourteen Days, the story of her adoption and her return to Costa Rica to find her birth mother. Ana is also an advocate and model for the Saprea (formerly Younique Foundation) Haven Retreat, a certified Rape Crisis Center Facilitator, and an Operation Underground Railroad (OUR) volunteer.

From Script to Screen: How to Make Independent Films

Spanky Ward

Intended Audience: Those who want to go into screenwriting and indie film production.

This is a step-by-step instructional class on creating independent films from beginning through production.

Bio: Dustin “Spanky” Ward is a producer, director, and writer known for I Love You, Riot (Dolph Lundgren, Chuck Liddell), Ruling of the Heart, Christmas Break-In (Danny Glover, Denise Richards, Cameron Seely), and The Santa Box. He has written, produced, and directed features and over 70 short films and commercials. He has also optioned or sold over a dozen screenplays, and is in the process of turning his screenplays into novels.

Finding Success with 3 Simple Steps: Be Curious, Be Confident, Be Kind

Ben Lomu

Intended Audience: Beginner and intermediate influencers and media creators

Gospel principles can be found in everything you do. Finding success doesn’t have to mean lowering your standards or pretending to be someone you are not. In this session you will learn how to use simple gospel principles to be able to communicate, work, and connect with others from all walks of life.

Bio: Ben Lomu has hosted over 150 episodes for BYUtv’s show, Come Follow Up. He has over 15 years of experience working in the entertainment industry as an actor, model, and spokesperson. He has been a religious educator for almost 20 years and is currently an institute instructor at the UVU Institute.

Artificial Intelligence and the Artist: Friends or Foes

Steevun Lemon

AI (artificial intelligence) is here to stay, and it is only going to improve what it can do. What is it today, and how do creatives/artists/writers embrace and protect themselves from the changes to the marketplace AI will bring?

Bio: Steevun Lemon is the president and CEO of Havenlight Publishing, one of the largest fine art publishers of religious imagery in the world. Beyond the retail and online distribution owned by the company, Havenlight partners include The Chosen, Angel Studios, Deseret, Costco, Hallmark, and Sam’s Club. Steevun led a rebuild of the business through culture change, vertical integration, financial controls, international sourcing, and acquisitions.

Design for Non-Designers

Monica Ewing Jensen

Intended Audience: Anyone who finds themselves needing to design flyers, graphics, programs, books, or other materials but who doesn’t have formal training as a designer.

Good design is not as subjective as you think. Learn the rules of graphic design, plus tips, tricks, and tools to elevate your designs from mediocre to professional-looking, whether you’re making newsletters, social media posts, emails, web pages, ads, flyers, postcards, bookmarks, logos, brochures, or posters. Learn best design practices and the things you should never do. Equipping yourself with design principles and resources will help you create beautiful, clutter-free, attention-grabbing materials that people will actually read—and act upon.

Bio: Monica Ewing Jensen is the design director at AAA, where she designs for Via magazine and the marketing department. She was previously a designer at Real Simple and Sunset magazines and a freelance website designer. In her free time, she blogs about her home-decorating crafts, copyedits and retouches photos for her friends, and writes a science-fiction four-book series, which is seven years in the making and counting.

Harnessing the Power of Light in Photography

Alan Fullmer

Intended Audience: Professional and amateur photographers

In this class, you will learn the fundamental principles of photography and how to use light to create stunning images. Topics will include the types of cameras and lenses and how to choose the equipment you need, understanding light and its importance in photography, the types of light and their properties, exposure and how to control it, lighting techniques for different situations, and practical applications of photography. If there is time, we will go over advanced concepts such as exposure blending, HDR, and luminosity masking.

Bio: Alan has been into photography and music for over thirty years. His father was a portrait photographer and his grandfather was a landscape oil painter. He takes great pride in combining his ancestry of both fine painting and photography in the creation of his own works of art. Alan is recognized by institutions, collectors, and other photographers as a leader in his field. He enjoys sharing his experience and knowledge through the mentoring of up-and-coming photographers and artists. See examples of his work at alanfullmer.com.

The Illustrator’s Process: Taking the Spark of an Idea and Turning it into an Illustration

Manelle Oliphant

This class is for artists who want to learn the process of creating an illustration, starting with their initial idea and developing it into a full-color illustration that can be used for books, websites, posters, or magazines.

Bio: Manelle’s love of art and stories began with the books and movies she enjoyed as a child. It was a happy day when her mom finally let her get her own library card. (Then she accidentally ran it through the washing machine, but that’s another story.) Her love for storytelling had only grown as she found ways to share ideas through illustration and writing. She received a bachelor’s degree in illustration from BYU-Idaho and since then has illustrated many children’s books, both working with publishers and through self-publishing. See her work at talesfantastic.com.

Exploration and Application of Color Theory

Lovetta Reyes-Cairo

Color is among the most mysterious and impactful tools an artist can use. In this class, we will discuss color theory and how to apply it. We will debunk some oversimplifications that you may have heard and explore color choices in master paintings. This class will open your mind and train your eyes to see the world and art in a new way.

Bio: Lovetta Reyes-Cairo earned her degree in education from BYU and also studied art at Beaux-Arts Academy, along with other artist workshops. She received an honorable mention from the Springville Museum’s Spiritual Religious Show in 2022, and her art has been featured in a few publications, most recently Dear Divine Daughter: Inspiring Stories of Women in Latter-day Scripture. She currently paints from her home studio where she lives with her husband, two sons, mom, their dog, and 16 fruit trees. Her work often uses figures as symbols to explore ideas about motherhood, spirituality, and love. You can see more of her work at www.lovettareyescairoart.com.

Interactive Session

Art Mart Showcase: How to Show and Market Your Visual Arts

Organized by Randel McGee

Friday, October 20, 2:00–2:50 pm

The visual arts are integral to publishing and media. Illustrations (in 2D & 3D), graphic arts and design, concept art/storyboarding, photography, painting, and sculpture are all tools that enhance communication. In this showcase, we will explore with 4 visual artists how they show, promote, and market their particular art. Class participants will learn strategies from the panel for how they can better show, promote, and market their art.

Showcase Presenters

Tom Holdman has been creating and selling art glass since he was 21. He is the owner and operator of Holdman Studios, which has been commissioned worldwide to design and create various projects ranging in budget from $5,000 to up to $3 million. Commissioned projects range from commercial buildings and private residences to religious installations and public art projects, with notable clients including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Roman Catholic Church, Thanksgiving Point, and Utah Valley University.

Matt Watts is a 2D animator, Toon Boom Harmony rigging artist, and an adjunct instructor at UVU. He has animated on Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure series for Disney and has also worked on the Odd1sOut YouTube channel. Whenever he presents a panel, he brings his organizer full of free handouts regarding advice about illustration and animation careers. Make sure to ask him about those after the panel if you are
interested!

Cindy Bean has always loved drawing, but it wasn’t until a visit to Germany in 2006 that she considered doing scherenschnitte, or paper cutting. Cindy explores a variety of topics in her artwork—religious, traditional, pop culture—but her favorite theme is the macabre of Halloween. One of her favorite projects has been to work for a month in the Tower of London, where she spent a month creating papercuts for their Children’s Education Room. She has entered works and been accepted at the Springville Art Museum, but also has found herself selling her wares at FanX.

Rob Adamson is a passionate painter and teacher, who for 27 years has been drawn to cityscapes throughout the United States, including landscapes of the Intermountain West. Rob is a professor at the Salt Lake Community College, where he teaches classes in drawing, painting, landscape painting, portrait painting, and figure drawing. Rob is a member of the Plein Air Painters of Utah, the American Impressionist Society, and the Oil Painters of America. His award-winning work is included in many private and public collections and has been displayed in galleries and museums throughout the United States.

Sharyl Myers Adamson has worked as a production artist for an envelope company; an animation layout artist for a TV animation company, and a production artist for the Church of Jesus Christ creating forms, lesson manuals, and posters. In 1994 she retired to support her husband Rob in his career and to create an artistic home for their children. In 2014, Sharyl created a series of monotypes with Sandy Brunvand at Saltgrass Printmakers through Art Access. Her monotype, Vertical Desert II, received a purchase award in the 10th International Art Competition. Her solar print, Remember, won second place in the wildcard category of the 2019 Speedball New Impressions Show.

The Editor Is In: A Live Editing Demonstration

Lisa Mangum

Intended Audience: Editors, beginner to experienced. Authors and other people who self-edit may also find value.

Lisa Mangum, managing editor of Shadow Mountain Publishing, will live-edit the first two pages of a project from someone in the class. She will discuss her thought process about what she changes—and what she doesn’t—and why.

Bio: Lisa Mangum has worked in publishing since 1997 and has been the managing editor for Shadow Mountain since 2014. She is also the author of four national bestselling YA novels, several short stories and novellas, and a nonfiction book about the craft of writing.

The A to Z of Audiobooks and Podcasting

Jared Garrett

Intended Audience: Voice actors (beginner to advanced); professionals branching into audiobook or podcast production

In this class, you will learn all that you need to get started on producing your own audiobooks, and by extension, your own podcast. You’ll get a detailed introduction to the equipment and software, tips on voice acting, and information on platforms for audiobooks and podcasts.

Bio: Jared Garrett, who also writes under the pen name Gerry Ironspear, is an accomplished actor as well as audiobook and podcast producer. His Tales from a Cult Insider has over 27,000 listens and counting. He has produced nearly 100 hours of audiobook and voiceover work. He’s also published twelve books across multiple genres and won a prime time game show two years ago. Today, he works from home as a full-time homemaker and author/speaker. When he was a child, books saved him from a bleak existence in a weird end-times cult, so it’s only fitting that he writes books during every second of spare time he has.

Ten Time-Saving Tips for Editors: How to Maximize Productivity without Minimizing Quality

Liz Kazandzhy

Intended Audience: Editors (beginner to advanced)

Editors often have the task of performing quickly while also delivering high-quality work. Though this is difficult to accomplish, there are ways to speed up your editing process without compromising on quality. From adopting a “division of labor” workflow to taking time to “sharpen your saw,” discover what you can do to maximize your productivity as a top-notch editor.

Bio: Liz Kazandzhy has worked as a freelance editor since 2019. She began her editing career specializing in academic and nonfiction work on the website Upwork, where she was consistently among the top 3% of freelancers on the platform. Later, she landed her dream job with Cedar Fort Publishing & Media doing line editing and interior layouts for Latter-day Saint nonfiction.

Navigating the Author-Editor Relationship (Without Burning Your Manuscript to a Crisp)

Heather B. Moore

Intended Audience: Authors (beginner or intermediate). Editors and beta readers may also find value in understanding the authors’ perspective.

Before you call your editor the big, bad wolf or decide to drop your manuscript into the firepit page by page while munching on your fifth s’more or (even worse) publish your book as is, please know it’s possible to stay objective during the revision process. Author Heather B. Moore will share her strategies for effectively using feedback from beta readers, critique partners, and editors who will make your manuscript better, and how to know the difference between good advice and not-so-good advice. Learn the stages of editing, the purpose and goals of each, when to stet, and when to take a professional’s advice.

Bio: Heather B. Moore is a USA Today bestselling author of more than ninety publications. She writes primarily historical and #herstory fiction about the humanity and heroism of the everyday person. Recent publications include Under the Java Moon, Young Readers Edition of The Paper Daughters of Chinatown, The Slow March of Light, In the Shadow of a Queen, and Hannah—Mother of a Prophet. Heather attended Cairo American College in Egypt, the Anglican School of Jerusalem in Israel, and BYU.

Book Covers: Crucial Considerations and Secrets to Indie Success

Angelica Hagman

Audience: Beginning to intermediate designers; publishers or self-published authors in charge of the cover design process

Whether you are a designer creating book covers or a publisher or self-published author planning to work with a designer, this class will help you make more informed book cover decisions. We will discuss basic principles of cover design and other important cover considerations (including how to not get sued). Learn about size requirements, selecting the right designer for your cover, and avoiding the book cover mistakes that thousands have made before you.

Bio: Angelica Hagman is an indie book cover designer and a writer, which means she frequently tortures herself by selling book covers she wishes she could write the stories for herself. In addition, she has published over sixty short stories and nonfiction articles in print magazines, is a certified life coach, and enjoys living room dance parties.

Alpha/Beta Reader Fraternity/Sorority

Rebecca Connolly

Audience: Authors. Editors or publishers who work with manuscript reviewers may also find benefit.

Alpha reader? Beta reader? Do we need readers for all Greek letters? No, not really, but we do need some for a well-constructed, well-written, and well-edited novel. Come and learn about the different types of beta readers and their characteristics (friends, fans, paid manuscript reviewers, sensitivity readers, advanced readers, etc.), where different kinds of readers should fall in the writing/revision/publishing timeline, how to find willing beta readers, and how to sort through feedback and apply it (or not) to your manuscript.

Bio: Rebecca Connolly is the author of more than two dozen novels. She calls herself a Midwest girl, having lived in Ohio and Indiana. She’s always been a bookworm, and her grandma would send her books almost every month so she would never run out. Book fairs were her carnival, and libraries are her happy place. She has been creating stories since childhood, and there are home videos to prove it! She received a master’s degree from West Virginia University and is a hot-cocoa addict.

Making Middle Grade Middle Grade: Nailing the Tone and Voice

Kiri Jorgensen

Intended Audience: Beginning/intermediate writers of middle grade.

One of the most vital and challenging aspects of writing strong middle grade fiction is getting the tone and voice right. Middle grade is a very unique age category, and your readers are very particular. So how can an author get that elusive feel to fit? In this workshop, Kiri Jorgensen uses real examples to guide you through specific methods of identifying, strengthening, and truing-up your middle grade tone and voice.

Bio: Kiri Jorgensen is the publisher and senior editor at Chicken Scratch Books. Her involvement in the world of children’s literature spans three decades and includes teaching, writing, editing, and leadership. Her passion is all books middle grade, and then teaching kids how to embrace those books too. Kiri loves bragging about her four amazing kids. She lives with her husband and a plethora of animals in rural Montana, where she cooks her meals on a wood-burning cookstove and is grateful every day for being right where she is.

Dissecting the Frog: How (and Why) to Use Humor in Your Writing

Dennis Gaunt

Intended Audience: Writers of any skill level or genre who want to incorporate humor in their writing

E. B. White said, “Analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog. Few people are interested, and the frog dies of it.” With that ringing endorsement in mind, this class will analyze humor: why it’s important to read and write, and practical tips to include more humor in your story. We will talk about how virtually every genre can be improved with the addition of humor. Come ready to laugh and have fun. (Also, no actual frogs will be harmed).

Bio: Dennis Gaunt has been a writer ever since that fateful day he pulled a magic pen from a stone. At least, that’s what he tells people. The truth is that he has been working with Deseret Book and Shadow Mountain Publishers as a slushpile reader since 2000, and in that time, he’s seen it all and then some, and is eager to share what he’s learned. He has published books and talks for Latter-day Saint young adults with both Deseret Book and Covenant Communications. He is also a long-time youth speaker and teacher. He enjoys playing the guitar, going to Disneyland, and viewing Godzilla movies. He also hates onions.

Author Panel: The Path to Publishing

Heather B. Moore, Annette Lyon, James Goldberg, Kaela Rivera

Have you wondered how other authors found their way to being published? In this class, panelists will share how they have navigated the publishing path, including self-publishing, hybrid, traditional, and collaboration. There are many paths to follow to become a published author. Attend this session and you may discover yours.

Bio: Heather B. Moore is a USA Today bestselling author of more than 90 publications. She writes primarily historical and #herstory fiction about the humanity and heroism of the everyday person. Publishing in a breadth of genres, Heather dives into the hearts and souls of her characters, meshing her love of research with her love of storytelling. Recent publications include Under the Java Moon, Young Readers Edition of The Paper Daughters of Chinatown, The Slow March of Light, In the Shadow of a Queen, and Hannah—Mother of a Prophet. Heather attended Cairo American College in Egypt, the Anglican School of Jerusalem in Israel, and BYU.

Bio: Annette Lyon is a USA Today bestselling author known for her women’s fiction, historical fiction, and romance. Her first suspense novel, Just One More, with Scarlet Suspense in New York, came out to rave reviews in March 2023. Among her accolades are nine Best of State medals in Utah, a Praiseworthy Award for short nonfiction, and a Whitney Award. Annette is represented by Jill Marsal of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.

Bio: James Goldberg holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from BYU. In his work at the Church History Department, he is constantly choosing which source material to use to represent larger patterns. Goldberg is also a poet, novelist, essayist, playwright, literary translator, and editor, known for his work on Latter-day Saint themes.

Bio: Kaela Rivera is the award-winning author of the Cece Rios series and currently lives in the soaring mountains of Utah. When not crafting stories, she works as a managing editor for a marketing company. She aims to write hope-filled adventures that help children (and readers of all ages) process, progress through, and thrive after trauma. Visit her at kaelarivera.com.

Showing Emotion in Your Writing

Julie Daines

Show don’t tell. We’ve heard it a million times, but what we really need to know is HOW. Clenched fists and pounding hearts—these are not the answer to the Show Don’t Tell rule. This class will cover a number of techniques on how to take emotion to the next level through dialogue, psychic distance, metaphors, objective correlatives, and much more.

Bio: Julie Daines is an award-winning and bestselling author and a nominee for the American Library Association’s Schneider Family Book Award. She spent eighteen months living in London, where she studied and fell in love with English literature, sticky toffee pudding, and the mysterious guy who ran the kebab store around the corner. She picks Captain Wentworth over Mr. Darcy, firmly believes in second breakfast, and never leaves home without her vervain.

Writing Flawed Characters Well, and Why It Matters

Kaela Rivera

Intended Audience: Intermediate fiction writers

If your characters are too perfect, no one can relate with them. But if you go too far with your character’s flaws, you can accidentally enable and perpetuate abusive characteristics. In this class, we’ll look at why writing flawed characters is important, how to implement flaws in your characters that are essential to the lifeblood of the story, and how to responsibly differentiate flawed characters from abusive ones.

Bio: Kaela Rivera is the award-winning author of the Cece Rios series and currently lives in the soaring mountains of Utah. When not crafting stories, she works as a managing editor for a marketing company. She aims to write hope-filled adventures that help children (and readers of all ages) process, progress through, and thrive after trauma. Visit her at kaelarivera.com.

Writing Suspense: Beyond Red Herrings

Annette Lyon

Intended Audience: Beginning and intermediate fiction authors

Questions, structure, misdirection, and payoff: cozy mysteries, psychological thrillers, and other suspense genres rely on these pillars to craft a satisfying read. We’ll dive into each one so you’ll have the tools to weave an un-put-downable story. Oh, and spoiler alert: these tools belong in any fiction writer’s toolkit, whether your focus is romance, fantasy, or another genre. Indeed, it’s suspense that keeps readers turning pages right to the very end.

Bio: Annette Lyon is a USA Today bestselling author known for her women’s fiction, historical fiction, and romance. Her first suspense novel, Just One More, with Scarlet Suspense in New York, came out to rave reviews in March 2023. Among her accolades are nine Best of State medals in Utah, a Praiseworthy Award for short nonfiction, and a Whitney Award. Annette is represented by Jill Marsal of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.

Interactive Session

Real-Time Reactions: Fiction Query Letters

Facilitated by Aurellia Saunders

Saturday, Oct 21, 2:00–2:50 pm

Hear a panel of editors/acquisitions editors/publishers share what immediately attracts their interest and what turns them off as they react on-the-spot to real query letters for fiction books, submitted anonymously in advance by conference attendees. They will give their reactions to what they are reading, both positive and negative, and offer advice to help improve the query letter.

Panelists:

• Lisa Mangum – managing editor at Shadow Mountain
• Emma Heggem – former acquisitions director at Future House Publishing (now a freelance editor)
• Holli Anderson – chief editor at Immortal Works Press
• Kiri Jorgensen – senior publisher at Chicken Scratch Books

Conference registrants can submit a query letter to be reviewed starting Thursday, July 20, through the Conference Portal.

Choosing Characters in Memoir and Nonfiction

James Goldberg

When writing about true events, how do you choose which people to feature and how to present them? Drawing on his experience as a co-writer of The Burning Book, Song of Names, and Saints Vol. 1, and on recent memoirs like Allison Hong Merrill’s Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops and Rachel Rueckert’s East Winds, James Goldberg offers guidance on how to curate a cast of supporting characters in a work of nonfiction. 

Bio: James Goldberg holds an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from BYU. In his work at the Church History Department, he is constantly choosing which source material to use to represent larger patterns. Goldberg is also a poet, novelist, essayist, playwright, literary translator, and editor, known for his work on Latter-day Saint themes.

Publishing Tips from the Trenches—Venues, Copyrights, and Angst

Devan Jensen and Kenneth L. Alford

As experienced authors and editors, we will spotlight many academic and general interest venues for Latter-day Saint authors to publish their nonfiction. We will discuss copyright restrictions for using quotations and images and how to obtain permissions. We will share stories from the trenches about the agony and ecstasy of publishing.

Bio: Devan Jensen is the executive editor at the BYU Religious Studies Center and has edited hundreds of books and magazine and journal articles. He is a past president of LDSPMA. He has published six books and fifty-eight articles or chapters. His latest book is Battlefields to Temple Grounds: Latter-day Saints in Guam and Micronesia. He enjoys cycling, singing, and performing magic tricks.

Bio: Kenneth L. Alford is a professor of Church history and doctrine at BYU and a retired U.S. Army colonel. Ken served in numerous assignments during almost 30 years of Army active duty—including the Pentagon, teaching computer science at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and as a department chair and professor of strategic leadership at the National Defense University in Washington, DC. He has published ten books and over one hundred book chapters and articles on a wide variety of subjects.

Handling and Healing the Skeletons in the Family Closet

Bridget Cook-Burch

While family stories bring us closer and hold deep meaning, many of us face pesky skeletons in the family closet. Let courage and unconditional love guide the way to extraordinary healing:

• Embrace colorful stories and revel in the flavor of your family history. 
• Decide to include or preclude specific details (e.g., changing names).
• Reconcile shame, overcome fear, and prevent anxiety.
• Gain skills that empower your whole family and may even save lives

Bio: Clients call Bridget Cook-Burch “The Book Whisperer,” a New York Times bestselling author, mentor, humanitarian, and speaker known for riveting, transformational stories. Her books and authors have been showcased on Oprah, Dateline, Netflix, Paramount, A&E, CNN, GMA, NPR and in People among others. With her company, Your Inspired Story, she helps storytellers, like you, discover the importance of your own story. 

Spanning the Globe: Building Stories that Unite Our World

Moderator: Cynthia W. Connell
Panelists: Devan Jensen, Allison Hong Merrill, and Rachel Rueckert

Whether it was missionary service, a year-long globe-trotting honeymoon, or the complexities of starting a life in a new country, each of our panelists has successfully published works that help inform and enlighten their readers by providing meaningful context regarding the world’s diverse peoples and cultures. Our panelists will share both the successes and stumbling blocks they experience while building stories that unite our world.

Cynthia W. Connell:  Cynthia W. Connell is a multicultural writer with over 35 years of experience. Her articles, essays, and poetry appear in national and international publications. Along with writing, Cynthia works in Native American advocacy and education. She has lived in Polynesian, Asian, Native American, and Spanish-speaking communities. Cynthia served as a Lamanite Cultural Specialist on Temple Square. She holds a BA in English from BYU and is an LDSPMA Spark Award Nominee for 2023.

Devan Jensen: Devan Jensen is an editor of Battlefields to Temple Grounds: Latter-day Saints in Guam and Micronesia. He has edited island histories on Chuuk, Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Guam, Hawai’i, Kiribati, Kosrae, Marshall Islands, New Zealand, Palau, Pohnpei, Saipan, Samoa, Tonga, and Yap.  Devan is a past president of LDSPMA.

Allison Hong Merrill: Allison is a Taiwanese immigrant and the author of Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops: A Memoir. Her work appears in the New York Times. She is an editor at Dialogue Journal and a keynote speaker, instructor, and panelist at various writers’ conferences nationwide and in Asia. She also appears on TV, radio, and podcasts and in magazines, newspapers, and journals. Allison is an LDSPMA Praiseworthy Award winner for 2022.

Rachel Rueckert: Rachel Rueckert is a writer, editor, and teacher. She holds an MFA from Columbia University, an M.Ed from Boston University, and a BA from BYU in English and anthropology. Rachel serves as editor-in-chief of Exponent II. She authored East Winds (BCC, 2023) and If the Tide Turns (Kensington, 2024), two books that required sensitivity and careful research when depicting diverse cultures and people.

Moving Beyond “Warm Fuzzies”: Bearing Testimony in Literary Art

Darlene Young

You are a writer of faith. You want to write honestly about the whole human experience, which includes faith. Good! The world needs more art that addresses faith honestly and well. But that’s the trick: how do you tell the truth as you see it, including bearing testimony, without lapsing into sentimentality or didacticism? We will discuss principles and techniques of bearing testimony in literature in ways that respect the reader’s agency, ways that retain a sense of both humility and artistry.

Bio: Darlene Young’s poetry collection, Homespun and Angel Feathers, was published by BCC Press in 2019 and won the Association for Mormon Letters prize for poetry. Darlene teaches creative writing at BYU and has served as poetry editor of Dialogue and Segullah. Her work has been noted in Best American Essays and nominated for Pushcart prizes. She and her husband have four sons and live in South Jordan, Utah.

Mining Your Memories

Krista M. Isaacson

Intended Audience: Beginning and Intermediate Writers

Whether you’re writing creative nonfiction or recording tales from your family history, great stories should include vivid, relatable details that pull us straight into the action and make us feel like we’re actually there. In this interactive class, you’ll practice using your own life experiences to write with enhanced sensory depth that will pull readers in deeply. 

Be prepared to choose a simple personal experience, learn to mine your memory for specific details, and share your progress with the class as we work together to turn your tiny tale into a rich masterpiece.

Bio: Krista M. Isaacson is a married mother of six children—including a daughter who has earned her angel wings. She is the award-winning author of Unbearable Burden: One Mother’s Decision to Trust God When He Asked the Impossible, and the founder of Reality Writers, an online guild for nonfiction authors. Krista’s passion for testifying of Christ through her writing has given her precious opportunities to speak at BYU Women’s Conference, BYU’s Life After Loss Conference, and BYU TV’s Come Follow Up, and on several podcasts and church videos. She loves vintage children’s books, pumpkin spice, and her mountain bike named Breezy.

Interactive Session

Real-Time Reactions: Nonfiction Book Proposals

Facilitated by Aurellia Saunders

Saturday, October 21, 1:00–1:50 pm

Hear a panel of editors/acquisitions editors/publishers share what immediately attracts their interest and what turns them off as they react on-the-spot to real proposals for nonfiction books, submitted anonymously in advance by conference attendees. They will give their reactions to what they are reading, both positive and negative, and offer advice to help improve the book proposal.

Panelists:

• Christopher Robbins – founder and CEO of Familius
• Terri Baranowski – literary agent at Gateway Literary
• Marci Monson – trade marketing manager at Gibbs Smith Education

Conference registrants can submit a book proposal to be reviewed starting Thursday, July 20, through the Conference Portal.