JRW Conference 2007 Update

My wife and I are once again organizing this year’s James River Writers Conference. I’ve made mention of it a few times in the past months, and I’m happy so say it’s taking shape. Wednesday probably gave me the most exciting news I’ve had since we started inviting speakers. One of my favorite writers will be speaking at the conference: Kyle Mills. Kyle’s gotten quite a few mentions in “The Wildcat’s Lair,” since I started blogging. Last year, he even appeared in a “Wordslingers” interview entry, and I think any who read that will see why he has plenty to offer aspiring writers. I owe a thanks to thriller writer Steve Berry (The Alexandria Link) who helped me make contact with Kyle. I’ve never had the chance to meet Kyle in person, not even at a book signing. I’ve traded a few e-mails with him over the years as a fan, though.

While I’m incredibly excited about Kyle, I’m also happy to say we’ve gotten quite a strong lineup of speakers. Perhaps one of the most recognizable names is Sheri Reynolds, whose book The Rapture of Canaan was a New York Times Bestseller and an Oprah Book Club pick. Another New York Times Bestseller speaking at the conference is mystery writer Sharyn McCrumb... although to call her simply a mystery writer really doesn’t do her work justice. Then there’s fantasy/thriller writer Eric Van Lustbader (another fellow Steve Berry put me in touch with). Eric launched his career back in the seventies, and he’s still going strong. He’s recently taken over Robert Ludlum's "Bourne Series" of books. He was a natural pick for the job as he was close friends with Ludlum.



These are just a sample of the folks we've confirmed. There’s still plenty more speakers to invite, but we’re getting closer to locking in our speaker list. It’s really nice to see it come together.