2027 Conference
Schedule
Five days of workshops, keynotes, panels, intensives, and celebrations — February 10–14, 2027, in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
Wednesday
Morning Write! (English)
Start your day writing! Join poet Judyth Hill for a half-hour of joyful, surprising early morning writing adventures…
HRM Gardens
Morning Yoga (English)
Begin each morning with yoga, breathwork, or meditation sessions by the reflection pond. These calming practices will help…
HRM Gardens
Open Plenary Welcome (English with simultaneous translation to Spanish)
HRM Ballroom
A Conversation with Contemporary Haitian Writers: The Politics of Language when Writing from Colonized Marginal Spaces (ENGLISH)
Cécile Accilien
Workshops — Session One
7 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 7 sessions in this block
- 100 In a Nutshell (SPANISH) Armando Alanís
- 101 It Happened Here and Then: Grounding Your Memoir in Time and Place (ENGLISH) Hope Edelman
- 102 Shaping Your Memoir (ENGLISH) Stephanie Elizondo Griest
- 103 Making the Most of Your Pitch Session (ENGLISH) Anna Knutson Geller
- 104 Don’t Get Stuck: How outlining and dramatic structure can help you finish your novel (ENGLISH) Howard Shrier
- 105 Writing by Ear: Developing Voice (ENGLISH) Merilyn Simonds
- 106 Hooking the Reader (ENGLISH) Jo Piazza
Affinity Groups (English)
One of the best ways to feel connected at the Conference is by joining an Affinity Group. These…
HRM Lobby
Industry Insiders Panel (English)
Get ready to pull back the curtain on book publishing. Our Industry Insiders panel is an all-access pass…
HRM Ballroom
801 Writing from Scarcity: Transforming Precarious Experience into Literary Power (ENGLISH)
Macaria España
Big Read (English)
The Big Read is an opportunity for us all to immerse ourselves in a book by one of…
HRM Gardens
Creative Writing Workshops for Teens (SPANISH)
Duncan Tonatiuh
Opening Reception
Join us for a vibrant kick-off to the conference at our Opening Reception! Connect with fellow attendees, meet…
HRM Gardens
Keynote: Amor Towles
Amor Towles is an American novelist celebrated for his elegant storytelling, unforgettable characters, and richly imagined worlds that bridge history and contemporary life. His acclaimed novels include Rules of Civility, A Gentleman in Moscow, The Lincoln Highway, and Table for Two. With wit and humanity, Towles explores ambition, friendship, resilience, and the choices that shape our lives, creating stories that have captivated readers around the world.
Fèt Haïtienne
Join us for a free community celebration honoring the rich culture of Haiti, our Featured Country. Enjoy an…
HRM Gardens
Thursday
Reading (and Writing) as an Act of Resistance (ENGLISH)
Danielle Trussoni
Workshops — Session Two
7 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 7 sessions in this block
- 200 From Page to Screen: The Art of Screenwriting (SPANISH) Soco Aguilar
- 201 Developing a Voice: Style in the Nonfiction Essay (ENGLISH) Colin Dickey
- 202 What Was I Thinking: Interiority in Memoir and Fiction (ENGLISH) Janis Cooke Newman
- 203 Basic Book Marketing (ENGLISH) Miriam Parker
- 204 WildWriting: Opening to the Heart of Poem (ENGLISH) Judyth Hill
- 205 Foundations of Fiction: An Organic Approach to Writing (ENGLISH) Howard Shrier
- 206 A Character Walks into a Predicament (ENGLISH) Tim Wynne-Jones
Agent Pitch Sessions (English) Thursday Morning Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Individual Consultations (English, Spanish) Thursday Morning Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
The Truth about Fiction (ENGLISH)
Nita Prose
Workshops — Session Three
8 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 8 sessions in this block
- 300 Literary Journalism: The Craft of Telling Books (SPANISH) Verónica Maza
- 301 Prose Poetry: Literature’s Bratty Lovechild (SPANISH) Catherine Black
- 302 Words Matter: How Power, Position, Perspective, and Privilege Lead to More Conscious & Inclusive Writing (ENGLISH) Rozella Kennedy
- 303 Family Drama: How to Write Without Getting Disowned (Or Sued!) (ENGLISH) Stephanie Elizondo Griest
- 304 Breakout Sensations: A Publisher’s Perspective on Creating Bestsellers (ENGLISH) Jynne Dilling
- 305 Story Beats: How to Use Cause and Effect to Understand and Revise Your Fiction (ENGLISH) Michelle Wildgen
- 306 Find the Right Voice for Your Character (ENGLISH) Myriam J. A. Chancy
- 307 Writing from Scarcity: Transforming Precarious Experience into Literary Power (ENGLISH) Macaria España
Keynote: Jennifer Finney Boylan
Jennifer Finney Boylan is a bestselling American author who has spent her career illuminating the complexities of identity, family, and belonging with warmth, humor, and profound humanity. From the groundbreaking memoir She’s Not There to the bestselling novel Mad Honey and her latest memoir, Cleavage, her work has made her a distinctive voice in contemporary American literature, inviting readers to consider identity, relationships, and the many ways we understand ourselves and one another.
Agent Pitch Sessions (English) Thursday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Hot Topic Discussion Circle: Respect, Representation, and the Line Between Inspiration and Appropriation with Ellen Morrison and Jamie Hemken (English)
Where is the line between respectful cultural inspiration and cultural appropriation? This discussion circle will provide an inclusive…
HRM Tents
Individual Consultations (English, Spanish) Thursday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Open Mic (Bilingual)
Enjoy captivating works from both accomplished local writers and conference attendees. Whether it’s poetry, prose, or something in…
HRM Gardens
Writing in My Pajamas (ENGLISH)
Sandra Cisneros
Creative Writing Workshops for Teens (SPANISH)
Duncan Tonatiuh
Dialogue Table: Decolonize the word (Spanish)
HRM Gardens
The Americas Read: Canada (English)
We have a brilliant and accomplished faculty, but it’s hard for each of us to meet all of…
HRM Gardens
Local Drinks Tasting
Join us in the evening and try the finest selection of local beverages from our esteemed sponsors. Immerse…
Bullring Patio
Keynote: Michelle Good
Michelle Good is an award-winning Cree writer and member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan whose work Michelle Good is an award-winning writer from Canada and a member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan whose work explores Indigenous history, justice, and reconciliation. A former lawyer and advocate for survivors of Canada’s Indian Residential School system, she is the bestselling author of Five Little Indians, winner of the 2020 Amazon Canada First Novel Award. Her writing celebrates the resilience, strength, and enduring stories of Indigenous communities.
Poetry and Song Circle with Camila Sánchez (Bilingual)
Join us for a delightful evening around a warm campfire under the moon and stars, sharing poetry and…
HRM Gardens
Friday
Malcolm Lowry in Cuernavaca – a geography of despair and the building of a novel (ENGLISH)
Rafael Segovia
Workshops — Session Four
7 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 7 sessions in this block
- 400 Writing Is Entrepreneurship (SPANISH) Juan José Zavala
- 401 Unlocking the Past: Incorporating Research into Nonfiction (ENGLISH) Colin Dickey
- 402 Make Your Memoir Read Like a Novel (ENGLISH) Janis Cooke Newman
- 403 Self-Publishing 101 (ENGLISH) Megan Williams
- 404 Nonfiction Unfettered! Liberate Your Writing Through Experimentation and Play (ENGLISH) Catherine Black
- 405 Speaking of Dialogue: Finding the Right Voice for Each Character (ENGLISH) Howard Shrier
- 406 To Do or Not to Do: Why is my character acting this way? Why now? An in-depth look at character motivation (ENGLISH) Tim Wynne-Jones
Agent Pitch Sessions (English) Friday Morning Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Individual Consultations (English, Spanish) Friday Morning Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Living in Nepantla: Reading and Writing the Architecture of the In-Between (ENGLISH)
Rafael Córdova
Workshops — Session Five
8 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 8 sessions in this block
- 500 The City as Character: Writing Urban Memory and Living Archives (SPANISH) Macaria España
- 501 I Would Prefer Not To: Literary Essay Workshop (SPANISH) Adrián Chávez
- 502 Experiments in Nonfiction: Lyric Essay, Hybridity, Ephemera (ENGLISH) Catherine Black
- 503 Writing Dialogue that Crackles and Sings (ENGLISH) Hope Edelman
- 504 Writing and Publishing the Short Story (ENGLISH) Heidi Pitlor
- 505 Writing from Grief: Bringing our Broken Open Heart to the Page (ENGLISH) Judyth Hill
- 506 Writing Disaster (ENGLISH) Myriam J. A. Chancy
- 507 Writing Strong Women: Building Complex, Unforgettable Female Characters (ENGLISH) Jo Piazza
Keynote: Martha Bátiz
Martha Bátiz is a Mexican author, translator, and professor based in Canada whose work bridges cultures, languages, and literary traditions. She is the author of acclaimed short story collections, the novel Las cervantas (A Daughter’s Place), and the founder of the University of Toronto’s Creative Writing in Spanish program. Her writing explores history, feminism, translation, and cultural identity with insight and imagination.
Agent Pitch Sessions (English) Friday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Individual Consultations (English, Spanish) Friday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Creative Writing Workshops for Teens (SPANISH)
Duncan Tonatiuh
The Americas Read: USA (English)
We have a brilliant and accomplished faculty, but it’s hard for each of us to meet all of…
HRM Gardens
Keynote: Xavier Velasco
Xavier Velasco is an acclaimed Mexican novelist, journalist, and columnist whose work is celebrated for its wit, originality, and unforgettable characters. Winner of the Alfaguara Prize for his novel Diablo guardián, he has published numerous works of fiction and nonfiction exploring identity, ambition, memory, and desire. A longtime cultural commentator, Velasco brings a distinctive voice to contemporary Mexican literature.
Fiesta
Immerse yourself in the vibrant spirit of San Miguel with our Mexican Fiesta! Enjoy traditional flavors, savor tequila…
HRM Bullring
Saturday
802 The Art of Pitching Your Work and Author Profile to Literary Agents and Editors (ENGLISH)
Verónica Flores
AI and Literature (ENGLISH)
Panel
Morning Intensives
6 deep-dive craft sessions (limited enrollment)
See the 6 sessions in this block
- 1000 Autobiographical Writing as Counternarrative (SPANISH) Socorro Venegas
- 1001 Elevating Life into Art: Creative Nonfiction (ENGLISH) Stephanie Elizondo Griest
- 1002 How to Sell Your Book to Readers (ENGLISH) Jo Piazza
- 1003 Publishing a Memoir: Behind the Scenes with a Publisher and Editor with Lisa Sharkey & Maddie Pillari (ENGLISH) Maddie Pillari
- 1004 Writing for the Change You Want to See in the World! Sing & Inspire! (ENGLISH) Judyth Hill
- 1005 Killer Characters: The Art of Creating a Dynamic Cast in Fiction and Memoir (ENGLISH) Danielle Trussoni
803 Mamina and Her Botanical Apprentice: from botany to literature, a reflection on plant life (ENGLISH) CHILDREN
Alejandro Magallanes
804 X-Ray of the Novella (SPANISH)
Adrián Chávez
Reading the Continent (ENGLISH)
Merilyn Simonds
805 Poetry and collage (BILINGUAL) TEENS
Matthew Sanabria
Afternoon Intensives
5 deep-dive craft sessions (limited enrollment)
See the 5 sessions in this block
- 2000 Structuring the Historical Novel with Real and Fictional Characters with Roberto Castellanos (SPANISH) Roberto Castellanos
- 2002 From Memory to Meaning: Crafting Pivotal Moments (ENGLISH) Rafael Córdova
- 2003 Building Your Successful Book Launch Plan (ENGLISH) Lainey Cameron
- 2004 Setting as a Main Character (ENGLISH) Jo Piazza
- 2005 Polishing Your Prose—A Self-Editing Workshop for Writers (ENGLISH) Nita Prose
Curated Literary History of San Miguel with Randolph Rogers (English)
This presentation will cover authors and poets from the 1940s, when Stirling Dickinson arrived on the scene, to…
HRM Classrooms
Agent Pitch Sessions (English) Saturday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Documentary and Q&A with Sandra Cisneros (Bilingual)
Sandra Cisneros: Neither Here Nor There — A Documentary in ProgressOne hundred years ago, her grandparents left Guanajuato…
HRM Ballroom
Individual Consultations (English, Spanish) Saturday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
The Americas Read: México (Spanish)
Readings of poems, short stories, novel excerpts, chronicles, scripts, and memoirs by writers who are part of the…
HRM Gardens
Keynote: Kiran Desai
Kiran Desai is an Indian American author and Booker Prize winner whose work brings a distinctive global perspective to contemporary American literature. Born in India and educated in both India and the United States, she is the author of The Inheritance of Loss and the acclaimed Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard. Her fiction explores migration, identity, family, and belonging, reflecting the experience of lives shaped across cultures and borders. Her work has been translated into dozens of languages and has earned international acclaim.
Poetry & Song Circle with Judyth Hill (Bilingual)
Join us for the Poetry & Song Circle under the stars, gathered around a glowing campfire in the…
HRM Gardens
Sunday
The First Time I Realized: Exploring Racial and Cultural Identity Development Through Story (ENGLISH)
Jamie Hemken
Workshops — Session Six
7 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 7 sessions in this block
- 600 A Passion for Brevity (SPANISH) Armando Alanís
- 601 Writing the Childhood Memoir: Decisions, Decisions, Decisions (ENGLISH) Hope Edelman
- 602 The Memoir Book Proposal: How to Turn Your Story into a Book That Sells (ENGLISH) Maddie Pillari
- 603 Social Media Bootcamp (ENGLISH) Lisa Sharkey
- 604 Deep Revision & Ultimate Craft: Editing Secrets Every Poet Needs! (ENGLISH) Judyth Hill
- 605 Your First Page (ENGLISH) Howard Shrier
- 606 The Score of a Narrative (ENGLISH) Tim Wynne-Jones
Concert of Stories: Did I Dream It or Did Someone Tell It to Me? with Norma Torres (Spanish)
A performance for the whole family.
HRM Gardens
Todos Somos Sagrados/All Are Sacred: An Exploration of Chicano and Indigenous Writers Whose Work Insists on Examining What Is Sacred in a Time of Fracture (ENGLISH)
Rey M. Rodriguez
Workshops — Session Seven
7 concurrent workshops across genres
See the 7 sessions in this block
- 700 Writing in My Pajamas (SPANISH) Sandra Cisneros
- 701 Compelling History: Making Historical Nonfiction Come Alive (ENGLISH) Colin Dickey
- 702 Time Travel: How to Handle Chronology in Memoir (ENGLISH) Janis Cooke Newman
- 703 Behind the Scenes of the Publishing Process with Cindy Speigel (ENGLISH) Cindy Spiegel
- 704 Prose Poetry: Literature’s Bratty Lovechild (ENGLISH) Catherine Black
- 705 From Image to Page (ENGLISH) Myriam J. A. Chancy
- 706 The City as Character: Writing Urban Memory and Living Archives (ENGLISH) Macaria España
Big Read (Spanish)
La Gran Lectura is one of the most anticipated events of the conference. It is a collective, open…
HRM Gardens
Keynote Panel (English)
It is rare in the literary world for so many famous authors to appear together in one event.…
HRM Ballroom
Agent Pitch Sessions (English) Sunday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Individual Consultations (English, Spanish) Sunday Afternoon Add-on
HRM Pool Garden
Keynote: Giller Prize Winner
Giller Spotlight: Every year we welcome the winner of the Giller Prize, which is announced mid November.
Keynote: Roxane Gay
Roxane Gay is an internationally acclaimed Haitian American author, essayist, editor, and cultural critic whose work explores identity, power, relationships, and contemporary life with honesty and insight. She is the bestselling author of Bad Feminist, Hunger, and An Untamed State. One of today’s most influential literary voices, Gay brings a wide-ranging perspective to conversations about literature, culture, and society, championing stories and experiences that broaden how we understand the world around us.
Closing Reception
Celebrate the conclusion of our eventful conference at the Closing Reception! Reflect on the memorable moments, share your…
HRM Gardens
All times are subject to change. Full program details available upon registration.
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