2026 Chanticleer Author’s Conference Wrap Up

Last week I attended the Chanticleer Author Conference in Bellingham, WA. The conference is a great way to network with other authors and to learn more about writing craft and marketing.

My favorite craft classes were by Donald Maass, a major literary agent who helped us with some great techniques for adding microtension, writing immersive point of view, and building scenes around change. The marketing and writing business classes were great too. Topics covered included lots on technology for writers, getting more out of ads, hooking readers, writing pitches and loglines, making the book launch an experience, and productivity hacks.

I got to participate on a panel about writing short stories. It’s a lot of fun to be on the presenter side of things and tell other writers what you have learned. There were some other fantastic short story writers, and I think we were able to give the audience some great insights on the process and how to market them.

The CAC26 awards banquet was a lot of fun too. My short story, Purrfect Revenge, was a finalist in the SEA Shorts category. I didn’t come away with a ribbon this year, but I am not hugely disappointed. Last year I won a first place award in the category for Finding Namaste, and the year before I won grand prize for The Heart of Kublai Khan’s Menagerie Keeper, so I feel very proud of my short story efforts in the last few years. And the real win was my first place ribbon for The Appearance of Power last year in the Dante Rossetti Young Adult category.

Another perk of the conference was catching up with other writer friends and making some wonderful new connections. I picked up a bunch of great books at the book fair, including:

• The Claiming by JA Nielsen
• After Pearl by Stephen G. Eoannou
• Stone by Strider S.R. Klusman
• The Mourning Fields by David Beaumier (see my previous review)
• The Catalyst by ME Schuman
• Cleopatra’s Vendetta by Avanti Centrae

I have a very full reading schedule right now, so I am not sure when I will fit these books in, but they all look great. Check out my previous post if you want to know what’s on my April TBR!

The bonus for my trip to the conference was that I was able to visit with friends and family who live in Western Washington. I moved away a year ago, and I miss them all so much. I also miss the climate and the natural beauty. I got to visit the rhododendron garden in Federal Way, take the scenic Chuckanut Drive near Bellingham, and enjoy the tulips at Tulip Valley Farms and Roozengaarde in Skagit Valley.

Thanks for reading!