Books-in-Progress Conference

Carnegie Center’s 2022 Books-in-Progress Conference will be held in Lexington, KY on June 4-5 and in person, with an optional pre-conference session and a welcome reception on June 3. New York Times Bestseller Gwenda Bond, widely known for her YA Lois Lane series and official Stranger Things prequel novel Suspicious Minds will keynote. Immerse yourself in craft workshops led by top writers, editors, and writing professionals. Topics include fiction, nonfiction, YA, publishing, revision, and more. Virtual one-on-one pitches with literary agents will be available.

Regular conference rate: $195/ $175 students

Scholarship information: Thanks to the generous support of the National Society of Arts & Letters, we are offering a limited amount of partial scholarships for the Books-in-Progress Conference. If you are interested in applying for a scholarship, please email Sarah Chapman with a brief bio and statement of need by May 15, 2022. Recipients will be awarded the scholarship soon thereafter.

A limited amount of full scholarships will be available to members of the Kentucky Black Writers Collaborative. Please contact Claudia Love Mair to inquire about scholarships for Black writers.

This year’s speakers and presenters include Alice Speilburg (of the Speilburg Literary Agency), Leatha Kendrick, Zelda Knight, Tiffany Reisz, Ashley Blooms, Elizabeth Kilcoyne, Sheila Williams, Julia Royston, Tracee de Hahn, David Domine, and more! Read their bios below.

The Books-in-Progress Conference is sponsored by Kentucky Arts Council, LexArts, National Endowment for the Arts, Spalding MFA in Writing, Reitzel Cook, National Society of Arts and Letters, Lexington Writer’s Room, and WUKY.