An Oasis in the dessert: The Write Stuff Conference

The writer’s journey is predominantly a solitary quest, spending many hours alone in front of the keyboard, but every so often an oasis rises up in the distance promising a reprieve from the solitude. The Greater Lehigh Valley Writer’s Group’s The Write Stuff Conference is one such event.

Held at The Four Points Sheraton located at 3400 Airport Road Allentown, PA, this conference once again offered a chance to meet with old friends and to make new ones. Aside from the camaraderie, there were also, as is always the case at this conference, great educational opportunities. I particularly enjoyed Hana Haatainen Caye’s The Business of Writing - Ways to Make Money as a Freelance Writer, and Mindy Starns Clark’s Making Mr. Right. (Although as a paranormal suspense writer I must admit I was disappointed that Mindy’s session was not about the Frankenstein monster.) Actually, her lecture on adding romance to genres outside of the romance novel was very informative. Both women inspired me to try new things in my writing.


James Scott Bell entertained, educated, and moved us with his keynote speech “Storytellers Save the World: How Fiction Keeps Us From Going Nuts.”


I left The Write Stuff Conference once again refreshed and ready to continue my own writer’s journey. If you have never attended this excellent conference, then I highly recommend you consider it next year.