COWC1 Workshops, Schedule & Staff

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The COWC provides multi-tiered workshop tracks. Advance sign-up is not required for most sessions, so conferees are free to go to any they choose. Should you find that a particular one is not for you, simply tap into another. Workshop summaries can be found here (when available).

Dates for our inaugural event in the destination city of Bend, Oregon are October 17-19, 2025.

• Authors & Industry Experts
• Workshops
• Weekend Schedule

Special Guest Speakers

Authors & Industry Experts

GAYLE CARLINE is a humor columnist for an Orange County newspaper and author of the popular Peri Minneopa Mysteries, including Freezer Burn, Hit or Missus, The Hot Mess, Clean Sweep and A More Deadly Union, featuring a housecleaner-turned-detective living in the OC. Other titles include the stand-alone From the Horse’s Mouth: One Lucky Memoir, the first of a new equine-themed murder-mystery series, Murder on the Hoof and new historical fantasy Dragon Shadows trilogy, Blood Dragon Rising, Moon Dragon Falling and New Dragon Soaring. Writing as M.G. Wetherholt, here latest is geared for younger readers, Paws on the Pier (A Magical Mouse Caper).

• SESSIONS: TBA
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: Fiction, mystery, fantasy, humor, columns; first 10 pages (or multiple columns up to 10 pages), cover letter

CHARLOTTE CHIPPERFIELD is a developmental editor, and author of women’s fiction and nonfiction, including Write with Intention: A Mindful Journey to Writing Your Book. Through her platform, Her Narrative, she empowers authors to unapologetically write, edit, and publish books that inspire and create impact. With a focus on telling stories of women finding their voices and going for what they want—both on the page and in real life—Charlotte combines expertise with compassion to help writers develop their unique narratives. She is a contributor to the spiritual self-help anthology Soul Rising: Guidance for Navigating Your Spiritual Awakening (Divine Flow Publishing).

• SESSIONS: TBA
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: TBA

MIKE COOPER is president of the Central Oregon Writers Guild. He holds an MFA from Oregon State University Cascades in Bend, Oregon. His short story “Call Me When You Get There” was published in The Baltimore Review winter ’24 issue and he has been a finalist in Glimmer Train, The Lascaux Review, Driftwood Press and Cutthroat. He teaches writing at Central Oregon Community College and OSU-Cascades (undergraduate and in the MFA Program), as well as creative writing workshops through Blank Pages Workshops and The Forge, and at the Deschutes Public Library, COCC Community Learning and Deer Ridge Correctional Institute.

• SESSIONS: “Between ‘Once Upon a Time’ and ‘Happily Ever After’”

KRISTIN R. DORSEY is a college instructor with over 20 years experience teaching academic and creative writing, children’s literature, mythology and folklore, and a host of other literature classes. Her work and hobbies mostly intersect (so reading and writing, watching film).  While interested in all things craft-related, generative writing is her particular passion in the field of creative writing. She is also the mother of 6-year-old twins, one of whom is a budding writer in her own right.

• SESSIONS: TBA
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: TBA

MICHAEL STEVEN GREGORY, Executive Director of both the Central Oregon Writers’ Conference and Southern California Writers’ Conference, is an award-winning filmmaker and screenwriter. He has scripted network series, directed television and features, and been involved as a writer, producer or director in over 150 short films. His longform projects include the doculogues We, The Writer and We, The Screenwriter, the romantic-comedy A Valentine Carol, and groundbreaking Don King Presents: Prizefighter, for 2K Games. His books include Disc Golf: All You Need to Know about the Game You Want to Play, which remained a periodic bestseller well over a decade after publication. Michael is also the owner of AuthorEdge, a transmedia content producer for publishers.

• SESSIONS: No-Host Mixer, Introductions
  
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: Screenplays, episodic and short-form scripts; first 15 pages in proper format, cover letter

CHERIE KEPHART‘s award-winning memoir, A Few Minor Adjustments, is called by Kirkus Reviews, “A rich and complicated story, told on each page with clear dialogue and memorable anecdotes,” and by Publisher’s Weekly, “A story of gut-wrenching perseverance and determination.” Her other publications include, The Healing 100 and Poetry of Peace, as well as essays, short stories, and poems in various literary journals and anthologies. Cherie is also a freelance editor, writing coach, and workshop facilitator with a passion for helping writers on all aspects of their writing journey. A graduate with first class honors from the University of Auckland in Medical and Cultural Anthropology, Cherie also holds a BA in Communications from UCSD and a Certification in Scientific and Technical Writing.

• SESSIONS: “Editing Explained,” “Soul Therapy: Sculpting Your Memoir’s Story,” Read & Critique
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: Historical fiction; Memoir, personal stories, wellness, practical nonfiction, self-help, personal transformation, metaphysical; first 10 pages, cover letter

LIEVE MAAS is a seasoned book designer and self-publishing coach with over two decades of experience helping authors turn their manuscripts into professionally designed and published titles. She studied at the Royal Art Academy in Antwerp (Belgium) and the University of Amsterdam (Netherlands), and holds master’s degrees in both art and education. As founder of Bright Light Graphics, Lieve combines design expertise with a teaching background to support authors through the publishing and marketing process. Lieve is the author of From Manuscript to Published Book: Seven Straightforward Steps to Self-Publishing and forthcoming The NOACH Project.

• SESSIONS: TBA
  
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: TBA

KATHRYN (KAT) MATTINGLY is the author of six novels including Journey, Katya, The Tutor, Olivia’s Ghost, Benjamin, and a short story collection, Fractured Hearts, all released by Winter Goose Publishing. She has won multiple awards for her work. Kat teaches Novel & Memoir Writing, Short Stories & Flash Fiction, and Get Published at her local college.

• SESSIONS: TBA
  
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: TBA

JENNIFER SILVA REDMOND spent more than a decade as editor-in-chief/acquisitions editor at Sunbelt Publications before becoming a freelance publishing consultant and editor. On the staff of the Southern California Writers Conference and San Diego Writers, Ink, she was also prose editor for A Year in Ink Vol 3, and co-founder of the Sea of Cortez Review. Her essays, articles, and short fiction have been published in various anthologies, such as Latinos in Lotusland, and national magazines. She is always looking for “great new stuff” and has a wide circle of agents, editors, and publishers with whom to share marketable fiction and nonfiction. Her memoir Honeymoon at Sea: How I Found Myself Living on a Small Boat is now out.

• SESSIONS: TBA
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: Fiction, nonfiction, memoir, short stories; first 10 pages double-spaced, cover letter

JANIS THOMAS  is the bestselling author of such domestic suspense novels as All That’s Left of Me and What Remains True, both with Lake Union, and three critically acclaimed humorous works of women’s fiction—Something New, Sweet Nothings, and Say Never—as well as the mystery Murder in A-Minor. She has written more than fifty songs and two children’s books, which she created with her dad, is a passionate writing advocate, a popular workshop leader, speaker, and editor.  Her latest is the paranormal thriller Finding Grace, which Kirkus Reviews calls “An authentically creepy tale.” Janis is also Director of the Southern California Writers’ Conference.

• SESSIONS: TBA “Dialogue in Motion,” “Plot vs. Character: What’s Driving Your Story?,”
  “What’s Your Story and Why?”
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE: Women’s fiction, suspense, mystery; first 10 pages double-spaced; cover letter

PATRICIA WILKINSON, Director of the Central Oregon Writers’ Conference, is a writing coach, freelance editor, novelist, and coauthor of Amazon bestselling and Readers’ Choice winner Brain Stages: How to Raise Smart, Confident Kids and Have Fun Doing It. A credentialed, mentor teacher of 23 years, Trish has helped numerous writers find their voices, hone their craft and move on to publication. Her clients include David Crow, whose memoir The Pale Face Lie: A True Story sold more than 100,000 copies, Captain Jack Molan (You Can’t Make This Stuff Up: My Thirty Years as Captain in the Bering Sea), Linda Berry (The Killing Woods), and Howard Shulman (Running from the Mirror: A Memoir).

• SESSIONS: “Build a Better Author Bio: A Powerful Tool to Attract Readers” and “What ‘Show Don’t Tell’ Actually Means”
• ADVANCE SUBMISSION CRITIQUE:
  Adult and YA fiction; Memoir, narrative and practical nonfiction; nonfiction book proposals, first 10 pages double-spaced; cover letter

Workshops: Read & Critique

• All-Genre
• Commercial/Women’s/Memoir/Romance/Narrative
• Literary/Alternative/Narrative Nonfiction
• Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/Crime
• Paranormal/Horror/Transcendental
• Young Adult/New Adult

Workshops: Craft & Execution

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Workshops: Memoir/Creative Nonfiction

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Workshops: Path to Publication

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Daily Schedule

Panels, Appointments and Events

• Advance Submission One-on-One Consultations
• No-host Mixer
• Page One Cage Match
• Saturday Evening Special Guest Speaker: TBA
• Sunday Afternoon Special Guest Speaker: TBA