2007 Frontiers in Writing Conference & Contest

BARRY EISLER — Author of the best-selling
thriller series centered around the exploits
of assassin John Rain, Mr. Eisler’s latest
novel Requiem For An Assassin, the sixth in
the series, hits bookstores May 22nd. Three
of the Rain books—Rain Fall, Hard Rain,
and Rain Storm, have been optioned for
film by Barrie Osborne, Oscar-winning
producer of The Lord of the Rings. Mr.
Eisler will be our keynote speaker on Friday
evening and also will conduct two
workshops—one on The Fundamentals of
Good Writing and the other on The
Professional Writer’s Guide to Marketing.
For more about Barry Eisler, see the
author’s Web site at barryeisler.com.

JODI THOMAS — Author of twenty-four
novels and three anthologies, Ms. Thomas
also has won three RITAs from the
Romance Writers of America and was
inducted recently into the organization’s
Hall of Fame. Texas Rain, the beginning of
her “Whispering Mountain” trilogy was just
released in November. Ms. Thomas will
speak to us at the luncheon on Saturday
about Setting Fire to Your Talent and will
conduct a workshop on Making Characters
Come Alive in Your Writing. A fifth-
generation Texan, Ms. Thomas also serves
as Writer in Residence at West Texas A&M
University. For more about Jodi Thomas,
see the author’s Web site at jodithomas.com.

BRITTA COLEMAN — An award-winning
author, journalist, and inspirational
speaker, Ms. Coleman’s debut novel from
Time Warner Books, Potter Springs, has
garnered national media attention, critical
acclaim, and endorsements from best-
selling authors. Her “Practically Parenting”
column is published as a regular newspaper
feature, and she was recently given the
Barnes & Noble Lone Star Scribe Award for
excellence in writing. Ms. Coleman will
present workshops on The Art of Rewriting
and Writing Breakout Fiction. For more
about Britta Coleman, see the author’s Web
site at brittacoleman.com.

SOLANA DELAMANT — Dancer, poet,
teacher, writer, bilingual in English and
Spanish, Ms. DeLamant currently teaches
writing and works on her PhD in
Humanities at the University of Texas at
Dallas, where she is managing editor for
Sojourn, the literary magazine for UTD. She
is a 2006-2007 nominee for the Pushcart
Prize in poetry. Multi-published in poetry
and chapbooks, she will conduct two
workshops centered around creativity in
poetry and fiction. For more information
about Solana DeLamant, see her Web site at
worddancer.com.

LINDA ROHRBOUGH — She writes about
personal computers, weight loss, and
making money in cyberspace, and has
appeared on the program at the Writers’
League of Texas Pitch Conference. An
award-winning, multipublished author, Ms.
Rohrbough knows what she’s talking about
when it comes to writing as a business. She
will conduct workshops on Creating and
Selling Your Nonfiction Book and How to
Talk about Your Book to an Editor or Agent,
and she will conduct a critique session. For
more information about Linda Rohrbough,
see PCbios.com.

ANDREA BROWN — Executive director of
the prestigious Big Sur Writing Workshops
and owner of her own literary agency since
1981, Ms. Brown has placed more than 1,000
books with publishers. Prior to opening her
own firm, she was an editor at Alfred A.
Knopf and worked in the editorial
departments of Random House and Dell.
Ms. Brown will conduct workshops on The
Dark Side of an Agent and The Hot
Children’s Book Market, and she will be
available for appointments and conduct a
critique session. For more information
about Andrea Brown, see her Web site at
andreabrownlit.com.

MELANIE RIGNEY — She’s worked as a wire-
service reporter and bureau chief, magazine
editor (Writer’s Digest), publishing editorial
director, and, of course, she writes. Since
January, 2004, Ms. Rigney has helped more
than one hundred authors, publishers, and
literary agents with manuscript evaluations,
book proposals, content editing, copy
editing, and coaching as an independent
editor. She will conduct workshops about
Creativity and about Alternative Publishing,
and she will be available for appointments.
For more information about Melanie Rigney,
see her Web site at editorforyou.com.

HILARY SARES — A familiar face around
the Frontiers in Writing conference, Ms.
Sares is an acquiring editor with Kensington
Publishing, one of the last remaining large
independent publishers. A native New York
City resident, she has fallen in love with the
wide open spaces of west Texas, and she
even bought a pair of cowboy boots in
Amarillo! Word is she could be seen boot
scootin' in the halls of Kensington before
coming to last year's conference. Ms. Sares
will conduct workshops entitled “Rich
Writer, Poor Writer” and “Breaking in
Without the Nervous Breakdown,” and she
will be available for appointments and
conduct a critique session. For more
information about Kensington Publishing,
see the company’s Web site at
kensingtonbooks.com.

TERRY WHALIN — A professional writer
who has written and co-written more than
60 books and, during the last twenty years,
published in more than 50 magazines, Mr.
Whalin specializes in inspirational writing,
but he also writes for the general market.
He is a literary agent at Whalin Literary
Agency. For the last five years, he has been
a book acquisitions editor at Howard
Publishing, an imprint of Simon and
Schuster and Cook Communications. Mr.
Whalin is on the board of directors for the
leading nonfiction writers group in the U.S.,
the American Society of Journalists and
Authors. He will conduct workshops about
Marketing and How to Turn a Fascination
with People into Books and Magazine
Articles, and he will be available for
appointments and conduct a critique
session. The author of Book Proposals That
Sell, Mr. Whalin is the creator of Right-
Writing.com which encourages writers of
nonfiction and fiction. He also blogs about
The Writing Life, which has almost 600
searchable entries.