WriterCon Newsletter (March 2026)

Hey Friends! I hope you’re enjoying yourself. We’re in the midst of a weirdly warm spring (It’s 92 degrees outside right now, and last weekend it so cold even my cat wouldn’t go outside). We just finished the WriterCon Cruise (the tropics were warm, at least) and I’m planning a research trip to NYC (with family). But the BIG UPCOMING EVENT is the release of The Superman Wars, my first work of autobiography/history, on April 28. It has great pre-sales and advance reviews (which of course I will share). I’m already recording interviews and can’t wait till this book hits the street so I can do more and most importantly—YOU CAN READ IT!

We stayed busy on the WriterCon Cruise working with our authors, but this cruise was a little longer than previous ones so we had more time to have fun. Lara loves the animals, so when we found an aquarium in St. Maarten with capybaras, we had to do it. They also had parrots and a sea lion who got right in your face, then snorted. A good time was had by all.

AND DON’T FORGET:

WRITERCON RETREAT July 15-19, 2026

We’re returning to Canebrake Resort for a five-day writing retreat next year. The Retreat gives us more time to work on your individual manuscript in a workshop setting. Hoping for some feedback on your work-in-progress? This is where you get it. Plus you’re in one of the most gorgeous, inspirational settings on earth. Click here for more details.

WRITERCON CONFERENCE Sept 4-7, 2026

And of course, the annual conference will return. This is the Big WriterCon event. Last year we had almost 300 people attending. This year I expect more. Over 60 speakers. More than 100 breakout sessions. Superstar presenters covering every aspect of writing. Contests, manuscript reviews, private consultations! Here are a few of the headliners:

This is one of the biggest and (imho) best conferences in the country, and definitely the warmest, friendliest conference working hard to give you what you need to catapult your career. Sign up now to take advantage of the Early-Bird prices. Click here for more information.

CAROL VAN DEN HENDE is an award-winning author who pens stories of resilience and hope. Her Goodbye, Orchid series draws from her Chinese American heritage and has won 40 literary and design awards, including the American Fiction Award, IAN Outstanding Fiction First Novel Award, and Royal Dragonfly Awards for Cultural Diversity and Disability Awareness. Carol’s newest book, Dear Orchid, is a collection of true stories and short fiction told in a lyrical, letter-style format. Here’s her article.

Have you heard the authorly adage “Write for one reader”?

If you’re intrigued by the idea of finding ways to connect more deeply with your one reader, you should consider writing in the epistolary, or letter, format.

Penning letters is an age-old tradition. Yet the format still resonates in contemporary times. Consider the warm reception for the recently released Letters of John Updike which shares his real-life correspondence. Likewise, the Letters of Ayn Rand, first published in 1995, is still in print.

WHY IT WORKS

Think back to the real-life missives that have captivated your imagination: a personal note, unexpected praise, or a love letter.

There’s good reason that these are embedded in your long-term memory.

The messages are written in the rarely used “you” second-person point of view which brings a unique voice to the form.

They are housed within one particular relationship with its nuances, backstory, intricacies and conflict.

And yet, it’s a familiar format that every reader can relate to. For all these reasons and more, it holds the power to unlock an intimate space between a writer and their reader.

EPISTOLARY GENRES

Letters are a natural vehicle for period pieces in which postal correspondence was a main form of communication. For instance, historical fiction books like The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, employ literary letters. The story, set in 1946, follows a writer connecting with Guernsey residents about their experiences under German occupation during WWII.

Contemporary novels have successfully employed this format as well. Virginia Evans’s debut novel, The Correspondent, uses this literary form to great success. In 2025, her book was touted by Ann Patchett, became a New York Times bestseller, was nominated for three Goodreads Choice awards and boasts a quarter-million reviews on Goodreads. Sybil Van Antwerp is the titular character, who, at 73, finds letters to be her most satisfying means of correspondence.

I adore this quote in particular:

“Imagine, the letters one has sent out into the world, the letters received back in turn, are like the pieces of a magnificent puzzle, or, a better metaphor, if dated, the links of a long chain, and even if those links are never put back together, which they will certainly never be, even if they remain for the rest of time dispersed across the earth like the fragile blown seeds of a dying dandelion, isn’t there something wonderful in that, to think that a story of one’s life is preserved in some way, that this very letter may one day mean something, even if it is a very small thing, to someone?”

― Virginia Evans, The Correspondent

This passage beautifully describes the magic of a letter.

CREATIVE VARIATIONS

The good news is that any writer can experiment with this format. The epistles don’t have to be strictly letters with an envelope and postage either. Nicola Yoon experimented with structure in her Young Adult novel, Everything Everything, utilizing a creative blend of diary entries, text messages, and illustrations.

The older set of Griffin and Sabine books by Nick Bantock likewise relies upon a creative combination of handwritten letters and charts to deepen the mystery between the couple.

The key is that having one character corresponding with another specific person, or the author writing to one individual, generates intimacy based on the shared history between the pair, the details of that moment in time, and the conflict within one particular relationship.

MY ORIGIN STORY

My own journey with the epistolary format started with a letter to the Purple Heart-decorated veteran who helped me with my Goodbye Orchid trilogy, Sgt Bryan Anderson. I had contacted him to share that his memoir, No Turning Back, had moved me. When he heard that my protagonist suffered injuries similar to the ones he had sustained as a U.S. solider in Iraq, he responded with generosity. “Come spend some time with me. I’ll show you how easy I make it look to be a triple amputee.”

One sunny day, I arrived at his single-story house outside of Los Angeles, full of awe, as if on a religious trek. Our time together didn’t disappoint. Throughout our day, whether simply folding laundry together, lunching at a local restaurant, or enjoying the speed of his sports car, it was clear that Bryan’s life overflowed with love, joy, and humor.

During that time, back in 2015, actor Mary-Louise Parker’s memoir, Dear Mr. You, had captured my imagination. In it, she wrote letters to men who held meaning in her life: her grandfather, a friend’s husband, ex-boyfriends, and her daughter’s future partner. Inspired, I wrote my own Dear Mr. You letter to Bryan. When we next met, I read it aloud to him. Bryan’s eyes glistened. “Thank you,” he said, his voice husky. Later, he shared that he saved that piece of paper inside his wooden memento box, the place for his most meaningful memorabilia.

I hadn’t initially created the letter for publication. But when I included it in a collection of short stories that I sent to my editor, she adored the piece. She moved my letter to Bryan, “Still, You’re Tall,” from the back half of the manuscript to the powerful opening spot.

As with all good editors, she had spotted something true. She encouraged me to write more letters. Once I started, the stories flowed from my memory. I wrote to a girl who’d been newly freed from East Berlin, my secret auntie, a man who didn’t speak, and paid homage to my childhood best friend. In one caffeine-fueled weekend, my imagination produced seven chapters.

Beyond the book, my letter to Bryan brought us full circle. As part of the finishing touches to my literary collection, Dear Orchid, we re-connected to record an interview as special bonus material for the audiobook. During our talk, we reminisced, laughed, and he admitted something.

Bryan told me that he will forever keep my letter. A decade later, it stays nestled among his most important possessions inside his treasured memento box.

YOUR TURN

Don’t underestimate the power of a letter to have a reader see themselves as the “you” you’re writing to, relate to your work powerfully, and keep reading.

To experiment with this format, simply imagine a person, character, or situation, and then write a letter to them as the author, as a narrator, or from another character’s point of view.

In our own full circle moment, consider my article to be your invitation to write back to me. Please share: who did you write to? How has this practice deepened your story’s connection to the reader? I’d love to hear from you. Who knows, maybe we’ll start our own correspondence.

Contest for Novelists

ProWritingAid has started a contest called Novel Beginnings. Anyone unrepresented or not traditionally published can submit the first 5,000 words of a manuscript. The grand-prize winner will receive $50,000, and up to nine new writers will be awarded $5,000. Shortlisted writers will be offered a manuscript development program. Entry fee: $20 (unless you’re also paying for ProWritingAid). Deadline is March 31, so don’t delay!

Horror Imprint

Evil Twin will release its first book this summer, and plans six to eight titles every year. Zando CEO Molly Stern said, “As we have with Slowburn, Zando is building on discovery-driven momentum for Evil Twin, meeting the surge in reader demand while curating best-in-class contemporary horror that blends psychological intensity with social and emotional depth.”

ALLi Starts the Indie Author Bookstore

This week, the Alliance of Independent Authors debuted the Indie Author Bookstore to help readers and influencers discover self-published authors. It features the work of ALLi members.

New Agent

René Kooiker has joined and is actively building his list in both fiction and nonfiction. He is open to submissions.

New Agent

Jane McGehee has joined as literary agent and foreign rights manager seeking a wide range of nonfiction, especially “LGBTQ+ and feminist narratives, surprising scientific explorations, elevated true crime, and memoirs and essays with a distinct point of view.” In fiction, she prefers literary and upmarket fiction.

New Agent

Eman Bare has joined The Rights Factory and will represent both fiction and nonfiction.

The WriterCon Facebook Page

For more breaking news from the publishing world, join our Facebook group! Doesn’t cost a thing and guarantees you’ll know about important book news when it breaks. My favorite part of the page, though, is seeing how many WriterCon writers are successfully publishing and marketing their books. Click Here to Join.

On a recent podcast episode we interviewed Carol Van Den Hande, author of the Goodbye Orchid series (she also wrote the article above on Memoir). We discussed some recent news stories of interest to writers, like Bindery Books hiring book influencers to be their acquiring editors, and bookstreaming coming to Twitch! Betsey Kulakowski contributed a lovely segment on writing suspense, or as she labels it, “creating dread.” Click here to listen!

Till next time, keep writing, and remember—you cannot fail if you refuse to quit.

William Bernhardt

willbern@gmail.com

www.writercon.com