DFWCon 2026

DFWCon 2026

12:00pm CDT

Pre-Con Workshop: Pitch Perfect SOLD OUT Room 5

5:00pm CDT

Attendee Pre-Conference Mixer Hilton Garden Inn Atrium

7:30am CDT

Conference Doors Open Hurst Conference Center

8:00am CDT

Welcome to DFWCon 2026 Ballroom

8:30am CDT

Get Out of the Way: Writing First Person That Pulls Readers In Room 2 Growing Up: Moving from Writing YA to Adult Fantasy Room 3 Age Isn't Just a Number: Exploring Age Categories in KidLit Room 1 How to Revise a Chapter: Let's Edit a Chapter Together (Live!) Room 6 ✅ [START HERE] A FIRST-TIMER'S SURVIVAL GUIDE TO CON Room 5 Dear Agent: Querying, Pitching, And Slush Piles Room E-F Read & Critique Room 4

9:30am CDT

Creating An Online Presence As An Author Room 5 Bridge Over Troubled Water II Room 1 Navigating Literary and Revelatory Poetry Room 2 Your First Five Pages Room 6 ✅ Understanding and Utilizing Narrative Position Room 3 Love Hurts: Conflict, Separation, And Angst In Romance Room E-F So Here's My Problem: FIction Room 4

10:30am CDT

Book Signing: Sydney Applegate, Kayla Olson, Brian Tracey, Madeline Warthan Bookstore Reels, SEO & Carousels, Oh My! Intermediate Social Media Tips Room 3 Character Assassination: How to Torture Your Characters with Their Past Room 6 How to Hide Research in Historical Fiction Room 5 ✅ Mind Your Mannerisms Room 1 ✅ Read Like You Write: Unlocking the Wisdom of Your Literary Heroes Room 2 Beyond The Default: Representation, Inclusion, and Authentic Storytelling Room E-F Read & Critique Room 4

11:30am CDT

Book Signing: Sean Fletcher, A. Lee Martinez, Jennifer Moorhead Bookstore How To Hook An Agent – From The Query Letter Through The Opening Pages Room 2 How the Door Swings: A Guide to Writing Romance Heat Levels Room 6 Micro Expressions, Macro Impact: Writing Body Language That Speaks Room 5 Writing Human Women Room 1 ✅ Treat Every Book Like a Thriller: Tips for Writing Page-Turners in Any Genre Room 3 The Poet’s Eye: How Poetic Techniques Strengthen Every Writer's Work Room E-F So Here's My Problem: Indie Marketing Room 4

12:30pm CDT

Lunch: Keynote Speaker Katherine Center Ballroom

2:10pm CDT

Book Signing: Katherine Center, Katie Bernet, Amber Helt Bookstore The Art Of The Elevator Pitch (Editor's Edition) Room 6 The Art of Truth: Writing Nonfiction They Can't Put Down Room 1 You Think That’s Funny? Room 2 ✅ Book Balderdash: Play a Game, Fool Your Friends & Improve Your Writing! Room 3 ✅ Workshop: Top 5 Lessons from Self-Editing for Fiction Writers and How to Implement Them Now Room 5 Literary Smackdown Room E-F Read & Critique Room 4

3:10pm CDT

Book Signing: Kate Khavari, Sarah Mensinga, BJ Sloan Bookstore The Untraditional Choice: Indie Press or Self-Pub? Room 2 Banter and Barbs Room 5 Character Driven Fiction Room 6 Me Write Pretty One Day Room 1 ✅ Writing in the Margins Room 3 Trust No One: Building Dread and Suspense in Thrillers and Mysteries Room E-F So, Here's My Problem: Querying Room 4

4:10pm CDT

Book Signing: Helen Dent, Brooke Fossey, Matthew Rollins, Shawn Warner Bookstore ✅ Long Story Short: Tips On Writing The Synopsis Room 5 Anatomy of the Unreliable Narrator Room 2 The Editorial Escape Room: Curse on a Doomed Draft Room 3 Turn That Spark into a Blaze: 7 Steps to Crafting Compelling Conflict Room 6 Writing for Kids These Days Room 1 Here Be Dragons: Making Exposition in Your Fantasy Invisible Room E-F Read & Critique Room 4

7:00pm CDT

Cocktail Reception Hurst Conference Center

7:30am CDT

Conference Doors Open Hurst Conference Center

8:00am CDT

Dawn Of The Gong! The Query Gong Show Ballroom

9:00am CDT

Publishing 101 Room 5 Home Is Where the Heart Is: Using the Setting Around You to Build Fantasical Worlds Room 2 Screen to Page: Screenwriting Techniques for Creating Dynamic Fiction Room 3 You Can’t Always Leave the Past in the Past: Trauma, Flashbacks, and the Art of Backstory Room 1 ✅ Writing Resources 101 Room 6 On the Same Page: The Author-Agent Partnership Room E-F Read & Critique Room 4

10:00am CDT

Book Signing: Duygu Balan, RC Bramhall, Andy C. Naranjo, Dana Swift Bookstore The Art of the BookBub Deal Room 1 Strategic Dialogue Deployment: Subtext, Story Beats, and Other Things You Didn’t Know Dialogue Could Do Room 2 Writing Middle Grade Books Room 3 Writing Suspense, Mysteries, and Thrillers Room 6 ✅ Feed Your Readers: All About Social Media Content For Authors Room 5 Queerly Beloved: LGBTQIA+ Romance Room E-F So Here's My Problem: Fiction Room 4

11:00am CDT

Book Signing: Kay Goodnight, Rosemary Clement Bookstore Welcome to the Indie Author Trenches Room 1 Andor: A Study in Adding Politics to Your Plot Room 2 Grammar AMA Room 5 How To Revise Like An Editor Room 6 ✅ Scene Structure Room 3 Truth Be Told: Memoir And Creative Nonfiction Room E-F Read & Critique Room 4

12:00pm CDT

Lunch: Keynote Speaker Natalie Sue Ballroom

1:40pm CDT

Book Signing: Natalie Sue, Matthew Pitt, Harry Hall Bookstore How to Plot a Romance Arc That Complements the External Plot Room 1 No Small Parts: Big Worlds Built with Minor Characters Room 6 Revision as Momentum Engineering: Building a Revision Roadmap That Actually Works Room 3 Write a Picture Book with Me! Room 5 ✅ Brick House Chapter Building Room 2 Own The Process: Building a Career in Self-Publishing Room E-F So Here's My Problem: Querying Room 4

2:40pm CDT

Book Signing: Amanda Arista, CCS Jones, Aleese Lin Bookstore How to Self-Publish with Amazon: From Start to Finish Room 2 The Art of the Breakup Room 5 The Greatest Duos of All Time: How to Craft Killer Character Foils Room 3 ✅ The Writing Habit: How to Create Routines That Reduce Writing Anxiety and Produce Better Work TBA The Speed Editing Event Room 6 The Young and the Restless: Exploring the Heart of Young Adult Fiction Room E-F Read & Critique TBA

3:40pm CDT

Book Signing: Jalyn Renae Fiske, Leslie Lutz, Dr. Kimberlee Mendoza Bookstore From Badge to Courtroom: Understanding the Layers of Criminal Investigation Room 2 The Art of the Memoir: Telling Your Story Room 5 Time Travels — A Fiction Workshop on the Clock Room 3 When to Rework It and When to Kill It: Revising vs Rewriting Room 1 ✅ Let's Chat: An Overview & Celebration of DFWCON 2026! Room E-F So Here's My Problem: Fiction Room 4