DFWCon 2026: Full Schedule

8:30am CDT

Dear Agent: Querying, Pitching, And Slush Piles

Saturday October 3, 2026 8:30am - 9:20am CDT

Ask the agents anything about querying, pitching, and how to get "the call."

Speakers

Christine Goss

Christine Goss is a literary agent with FinePrint Literary Management.

She graduated from Lake Forest College with a BA in communications. Formerly a sales representative, her skills pair well with her love of reading and story development. As an author herself, the craft of writing is very important to her when she looks at manuscripts... Read More →

Kevin O'Connor

Kevin O’Connor has always worked at the intersection of business and creative. As an agent, Kevin takes on children's projects (Ziggy Marley's Pajammin') and serious adult nonfiction, Who We Are by Jeffery Robinson, with a forward by Tom Hanks.

Kevin is the founding director of The Center for Nonfiction, a Columbia University Community Scholars Project dedicated to helping journalists and scholars understand the formal needs of trade publishers. He is an adjunct professor at NYU and currently working on a maste... Read More →

Eloy Bleifuss Prados

Eloy Bleifuss Prados is a literary agent with Neon Literary.

For fiction, he is especially interested in literary fiction along with character-driven, elevated genre fiction. His favorite novels are ones that bridge the high and the low, the real and the imaginary, the trashy and... Read More →

Eva Scalzo

Eva Scalzo is the Agency Director and Senior Literary Agent at Speilburg Literary. A lifelong romance reader—ever since discovering Sweet Valley High in the fifth grade—she proudly inherited her grandmother’s collection of vintage Harlequins and never looked back.

She gravitates toward voice-driven YA and romance with heart, humor, and hope—stories where falling in love leads to self-discovery. She loves high-concept premises, lush and escapist settings, sharp banter, and joyful tones that embrace emotional depth. Eva actively... Read More →

Saturday October 3, 2026 8:30am - 9:20am CDT
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Panel

9:30am CDT

Love Hurts: Conflict, Separation, And Angst In Romance

Saturday October 3, 2026 9:30am - 10:20am CDT

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How does conflict, separation, and emotional tension deepen a romance and make the eventual reunion more satisfying? Panelists will discuss balancing angst with hope, raising the emotional stakes, and creating obstacles that strengthen the love story rather than simply delay the happy ending.

Speakers

Sydney Applegate

Katherine Center

BookPage calls Katherine Center “the reigning queen of comfort reads.” She’s The New York Times bestselling author of over half a dozen books, including How to Walk Away, Things You Save in a Fire, and What You Wish For. Her latest, The Shippers, was released on May 19, 202... Read More →

Kayla Olson

Lauren Lanza Osias

Madeline Warthan

Saturday October 3, 2026 9:30am - 10:20am CDT
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Panel

10:30am CDT

Beyond The Default: Representation, Inclusion, and Authentic Storytelling

Saturday October 3, 2026 10:30am - 11:20am CDT

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How can writers create stories that reflect the richness and complexity of the world around them? Panelists will discuss writing characters across identities, cultures, abilities, and lived experiences; avoiding stereotypes and tokenism; researching beyond one’s own perspective; and approaching representation with empathy, specificity, and care.

Speakers

Jade Wong Baxter

Jade Wong-Baxter is a literary agent with the Frances Goldin Literary Agency.

She's looking for adult literary and upmarket/bookclub fiction, as well as narrative nonfiction. She particularly enjoys coming-of-age narratives; novels exploring queer identity; stories set within a specific subculture or hidden world; grounded speculative (no high fantasy... Read More →

Nikki Carrero

Nikki is a literary agent with The Rights Factory and has a background in education and in publishing.

Her love for the written word began when her grandmother brought her to the bookstore as a kid to pick out new books. She's currently looking for adult or young adult fiction in the following genres: mystery, thriller, romance, romantic suspense, magical realism, women’s... Read More →

Nicole Luongo

Nicole Luongo is an Associate Editor at Grand Central Publishing (GCP), part of Hachette Book Group. At GCP, Nicole acquires a wide range of edgy, voice-driven upmarket fiction, with a particular emphasis on amplifying marginalized voices.

Her editorial interests include upmarket speculative fiction (especially with a feminist bent); genre-subverting psychological thrillers (think cunning female perpetrators and unreliable narrators); select coming-of-age stories; and satire or dark comedy (she’s a sucker... Read More →

Andy C. Naranjo

Saturday October 3, 2026 10:30am - 11:20am CDT
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Panel

11:30am CDT

The Poet’s Eye: How Poetic Techniques Strengthen Every Writer's Work

Saturday October 3, 2026 11:30am - 12:20pm CDT

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Speakers

Moon Abbas

John Bartell

John Bartell is a past president of the Fort Worth Poetry Society and of the DFW Writer’s Workshop. His poems can be found in various journals, including The Orchards Poetry Review, Canyon Voices, The Loch Raven Review, Horror Writers Association Poetry Showcase X and XI, and... Read More →

Brooke Fossey

Brooke Fossey was once an aerospace engineer with a secret clearance before she traded it all in for motherhood and writing. She’s a past president and an honorary lifetime member of DFW Writers’ Workshop. Her work can be found in numerous publications, including Ruminate Mag... Read More →

Leslie Lutz

Saturday October 3, 2026 11:30am - 12:20pm CDT
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Panel

2:10pm CDT

Literary Smackdown

Saturday October 3, 2026 2:10pm - 3:00pm CDT

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Speakers

John Bartell

Mark Dye

A Lee Martinez

Lauren Lanza Osias

Saturday October 3, 2026 2:10pm - 3:00pm CDT
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Panel

3:10pm CDT

Trust No One: Building Dread and Suspense in Thrillers and Mysteries

Saturday October 3, 2026 3:10pm - 4:00pm CDT

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Explore how thriller writers create unease, escalate tension, and keep readers anticipating what might happen next. Panelists will discuss pacing, atmosphere, foreshadowing, psychological pressure, and the careful release of information that turns danger into dread.

Speakers

Katie Bernet

Katie is The New York Times, USA Today, and #1 Indie bestselling author of Beth Is Dead. She’s an award-winning creative director and a long-standing member of the DFW Writers’ Workshop. As the oldest of three sisters, she’s a diehard fan of Little Women.... Read More →

Larry Enmon

Stacey Graham

Stacey Graham is a literary agent with 3 Seas Literary Agency.

Stacey has worked both sides of the literary door as a humor writer with the wickedly funny Zombie Tarot, screenwriter, ghostwriter, short story writer, and specializes in offbeat nonfiction.

She loves working with writers at all stages of their careers, representing talented authors and illustrators from around the globe in picture books, middle grade, romance, graphic novels, and nonfiction. She is a member of the Association of American Literary Agents... Read More →

Brian Tracey

Saturday October 3, 2026 3:10pm - 4:00pm CDT
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Panel

4:10pm CDT

Here Be Dragons: Making Exposition in Your Fantasy Invisible

Saturday October 3, 2026 4:10pm - 5:00pm CDT

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How do you pitch fantasy without explaining the whole world? How much does a reader truly need to understand in the opening chapters? What are your favorite ways to reveal worldbuilding through action rather than explanation? What are the clearest signs that exposition has become an info dump? When can dialogue carry exposition successfully, and when does it sound like characters explaining things they already know?

Speakers

Kelsey Evans

Kelsey began as an editor, helping writers shape their work through developmental feedback, query critiques, and revision guidance.

Later, she moved into agenting, interning with Triada US and Creative Media Agency (CMA), where she gained hands-on experience in manuscri... Read More →

Sally Hamilton

Kate Khavari

Chelsea Moyer

Chelsea Moyer is a literary agent with the Raven Quill Literary Agency.

She loves genre fiction (especially mashups), speculative fiction, as well as contemporary. She's looking for stories that are fantastical, fierce, and filled with “big feelings" in Middle Grade, YA, and Adult categories. Prior to Raven Quill, Chelsea graduated with her M... Read More →

Saturday October 3, 2026 4:10pm - 5:00pm CDT
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Panel

9:00am CDT

On the Same Page: The Author-Agent Partnership

Sunday October 4, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am CDT

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Exploring the author/agent relationship and what to look for in an agent.

Speakers

Sydney Applegate

Kelly Dyksterhouse

Kelly Dyksterhouse is a literary agent with The Tobias Literary Agency.

She represents picture books, middle grade and young adult, both fiction and nonfiction, as well as graphic novels. She also represents illustrators.

For middle grade, she loves books with ensemble casts, books about good kids making bad decisions and then having to get themselves out of it, quests and hijinks, spooky stories and mysteries, and historical novels that feel relevant. For YA, Kelly is looking for much of... Read More →

Brooke Mondor

Brooke Mondor is a literary agent with Miller Bowers Griffin Literary Management. She previously interned at Folio Literary Management. While she primarily represents non-fiction writers, she is excited to build her adult fiction list.

In fiction, Brooke is particularly intereste... Read More →

Dana Swift

Dana started making up fantasy worlds when she was eleven years old and hasn’t stopped since. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, where she earned degrees in English and Advertising. Dana currently lives in Austin with her husband and her two dogs whose... Read More →

Haley Warrington

Haley Warrington is a iterary agent with The Booker Albert Literary Agency.

Haley is a fan of all things romance—bring the heat or leave it at the door. She’s also interested in representing Adult or New Adult fiction. Some of her favorite novels include The Match by Sara... Read More →

Madeline Warthan

Sunday October 4, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am CDT
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Panel

10:00am CDT

Queerly Beloved: LGBTQIA+ Romance

Sunday October 4, 2026 10:00am - 10:50am CDT

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Why does queer romance matter? Does every queer romance need to address homophobia? How do you balance queer joy with queer reality? How do you avoid sterotypes? Who is "allowed" to write queer stories? What are the trends with queer romance in the industry?

Speakers

Nikki Carrero

Christine Goss

Madelyn Knecht

Eva Scalzo

Sunday October 4, 2026 10:00am - 10:50am CDT
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Panel

11:00am CDT

Truth Be Told: Memoir And Creative Nonfiction

Sunday October 4, 2026 11:00am - 11:50am CDT

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Explore how writers shape lived experience, memory, and research into compelling narratives. Panelists will discuss finding the heart of a true story, balancing honesty with craft, handling gaps or conflicting memories, and turning real events into meaningful memoir and creative nonfiction.

Speakers

Michael Carr

Michael Carr is a literary agent with the Veritas Literary Agency.

With a strong background in editing and writing, Michael enjoys teaching at workshops and conferences to help develop emerging writers. He is fluent in Spanish and speaks conversational French. Before joining Veritas, Michael had professions as diverse as programming simulators... Read More →

Harry Hall

Harry Hall spent 11 years traveling the country, researching an obscure group of a handful of women athletic pioneers who, 150 years ago, made their own rules and set standards that even today, seem impossible. Although around only a few years, the pedestriennes contributed to the... Read More →

Christina Lopez

Christina Lopez is an editor with St.Martin's Press, where she started as an intern.

She's passionate about giving a voice to writers of underrepresented backgrounds, with interests in adult and YA commercial fiction, women’s fiction, historical fiction, romance/rom-com, speculative fiction/ magical realism, and some non-fiction focused on pop culture and... Read More →

Carrie Turner

Sunday October 4, 2026 11:00am - 11:50am CDT
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Panel

1:40pm CDT

Own The Process: Building a Career in Self-Publishing

Sunday October 4, 2026 1:40pm - 2:30pm CDT

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Panelists will discuss producing a professional book, finding readers, managing the business side of authorship, and creating a sustainable path that fits each writer’s goals.

Speakers

Russell C Connor

Russell C. Connor has been writing horror since the age of five. His short fiction has appeared in such publications as Black Petals Magazine, Alien Skin, Burial Day, Sanitarium, Beware the Dark, and the Stupefying Stories Showcase, as well as the anthologies Roadkill: Tex... Read More →

Kay Goodnight

ChristaCarol Jones

Matthew Rollins

Sunday October 4, 2026 1:40pm - 2:30pm CDT
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Panel

2:40pm CDT

The Young and the Restless: Exploring the Heart of Young Adult Fiction

Sunday October 4, 2026 2:40pm - 3:30pm CDT

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What makes young adult fiction resonate with teen readers? From authentic voice and emotional immediacy to identity, relationships, and the uncertainty of becoming, panelists will discuss writing young protagonists with depth, balancing universal themes with distinctly teen experiences, and creating stories that honor who young people are while imagining who they might become.

Speakers

Olivia Emerick

Olivia Emerick is a literary agent with the Metamorphosis Literary Agency.

A Boston College graduate with a background in English and Classics, Olivia has always had her nose in a book. With her experience in the literary and theatrical spaces, she values collaboration, communication, and human stories. She is passionate about advancing authors... Read More →

Sean Fletcher

Sean Fletcher is the award-winning, bestselling author of a number of fantasy series, such as the Savage Wilds, My Dearest Monster, Legacy of Dragons, Heir of Dragons, and more, in addition to forthcoming books whose characters will not give him a moment's peace until they get their turn in the spotlight. When not making up highly-enjoyable lies and putting them down on paper, he's often doing something most people find masochistic, like cyclin... Read More →

Anna Lindsey

Dana Swift

Sunday October 4, 2026 2:40pm - 3:30pm CDT
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Panel

3:40pm CDT

✅ Let's Chat: An Overview & Celebration of DFWCON 2026!

Sunday October 4, 2026 3:40pm - 4:30pm CDT

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Whoo, it's been a long, exciting weekend at DFWCon 2026! So let's celebrate and debrief. This class is a community open forum discussion of what attendees learned at DFWCon, what marketing and craft tactics they plan on implementing, and overall the biggest take-aways and celebrations of the art of writing. Consider it a nice wrap-up catch all, where you can ask Dana Swift any last questions about querying, submission, book deals, marketing after release, etc. All the while she'll be celebrating attendees and the lessons you learned. This might just be the best way to learn about a class or two you missed so have your notebooks ready.

Is this your first writers conference? Classes with a ✅ in the title like this one are especially good for newcomers.

Speakers