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Conventions, Conferences and Critique Groups: How to Get the Most from Them with James Van Pelt

September 2, 2025 @ 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Free

September Writer’s Night

 

You know the best practice to improve your writing is to write. Don’t forget that.

But there are other ways to help, to jump-start your thinking, to skip the steps that if you had to take them on your own could take months and months: conventions, conferences, and critique groups.

Long-time teacher, conventioneer, and critique group leader James Van Pelt will talk about strategies to get the most from your participation at each, and offer resources to find the valuable ones.

If you’ve attended any of these useful activities and are willing to share, be ready with your best (or worst) moments in your experience.

Please note:  All Writer’s Nights are on the first Tuesday of the month and are held at The Art Center near 7th and Orchard in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Speaker Bio

James Van Pelt has been selling short fiction to many of the major venues since 1989. Recently he retired from teaching high school English after thirty-seven years in the classroom. He has been a finalist for the Nebula, the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award, Locus Awards, and Analog and Asimov’s Reader’s Choice awards. Years and years ago, he was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. He still feels “new.” Fairwood Press recently released a huge, limited-edition, signed, and numbered collection of his work, THE BEST OF JAMES VAN PELT. He can be found online at his website or on Facebook.

Details

Organizer

Venue

  • The Art Center
  • 1803 N. 7th Street
    Grand Junction, CO 81501 United States
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