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When Words Collide 2026
When Words Collide 2026
A Festival for Writers, Readers, and Fans
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Kim Kelln
Friday
, August 14
10:00am
MDT
Welcome! Opening Ceremony & Keynote
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 4+6
Terry Brooks
12:00pm
MDT
Launch of last year's WWC collaborative novel, Whiskers Through Time
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Thompson Social Hub
Shawn L. Bird
You're Write About It!
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Stephen B
Kevin Weir • Winston Pei (he/they/il/iel) • Megan Baldrey • Erin Weir
Survival Skills in Dystopian Fiction
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Herald
Valerie L. King • Sandy Fitzpatrick • Gary Renshaw • Don Miasek • Susan Forest
The AI Argument
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 5
D.G. Valdron • Jason Pearce • Cleodel Khrishna • Alison McBain
1:30pm
MDT
A CRASH COURSE IN CONTRACTS FOR WRITERS
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
D.G. Valdron
Fear Factor: How Fear Rewires Your Character’s Behavior, Logic & Responses
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Angela Ackerman
Short & Sweet, Why Word-Economy Needs to be in Every Writer's Toolkit
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Alexis Marie Chute
3:00pm
MDT
From Overwhelmed to Organized: Your 12 Month Marketing Plan
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
Angela Douglas
Let's Talk About Sex: Writing Effective Sex Scenes
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Brenna Bailey-Davies
Adventures in Shorts! Finding Success with Short Fiction and Personal Essays
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Doll
J.C. (John) Corry • Kim Harbridge • Susan Calder • Hilary Faktor
Paths to Publication: Traditional, Hybrid, and Self-Publishing in Today’s Market
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Herald
Linda Sanche • Craig DiLouie • Leanne Janzen • Carly Watters • Felicia Zuniga
High stakes short fiction
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Lexie Angelo
4:30pm
MDT
Book Banning and Censorship: Looking at the Bigger Picture
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Kit Dobson
Bucket of Bones: Building the Skeleton of Your Murder Mystery
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Dave Sweet • Charlotte Morganti
The Whole Package: Creating a Top-Quality Published Book That Jumps Off the Shelf and Attacks Your Reader (Nicely)
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
Jennifer Sommersby
9:00pm
MDT
Noir at the Bar
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Thompson Social Hub
Niall Howell
Saturday
, August 15
9:00am
MDT
Writing Beyond the Self: Creating Characters Outside Our Lived Experience
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 5
James Downe • Robert J. Sawyer • Huck Kahng • Finnian Burnett
10:30am
MDT
15 Ways to Make Money in the Writing World
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
Suzy Vadori
The Modern Hero - Virtues of Uncommon People
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Dave Sweet
Creating a Unique Detective Figure
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 5
Chris Carolan • Juanita R Violini • Jonathan Whitelaw • Lexie Angelo
12:00pm
MDT
Quiplash With WWC
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Stephen A
Kevin Weir
A CRASH COURSE IN COPYRIGHT
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
D.G. Valdron
1:30pm
MDT
Butterflies and Plot Twists: Chaos Theory for Writers
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Stephen B
Ron S. Friedman
3:00pm
MDT
Offstage Characters: What Are They Up To?
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Susan Forest
4:30pm
MDT
The Most Powerful Characterization Detail You're Overlooking: A Character's Job
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Angela Ackerman
From the Past to the Page: Transforming Historical Research into Compelling Fiction
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 5
Bob Booth • Susan Calder • Lisa Williamson • Pamela Clark
6:00pm
MDT
IFWA at the Improv
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Thompson Social Hub
Calvin Jim
Sunday
, August 16
9:00am
MDT
What Next? Self-editing Strategies for Moving Your Manuscript Forward
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Sandra McIntyre
10:30am
MDT
Ten Ways to Market Your Book on a Budget
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
Faye Arcand
Inside the Villain's Mind: The Psychology Behind The Crime
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 5
Pamela Donison • Valerie L. King • P.D. Workman • Dave Sweet
Marketing Without the Ick: Show Up, Be Seen, and Share With Heart
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Rosey Hwang
12:00pm
MDT
My Stupid Career, with Kevin McDonald
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 6
Kevin McDonald
The Do's and Don'ts of Cover Design
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Stephen B
Crystal Kladreau
Historical research methods that work for you
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 5
Tema Frank • J.C. (John) Corry • Donna D. Conrad • Marie Powell
Get that grant! How to win literary arts grants
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Lexie Angelo
1:30pm
MDT
How to Make Readers Fall in Love (or Hate) Your Characters
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 9
Chris Corvan
3:00pm
MDT
War of the Words Readings
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Stephen B
Tricks, Tips & Traps for Successful Writing Groups
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Herald
Sandy Navrady • Lareina Abbott • Sean Crawford • Em Williamson
4:30pm
MDT
Developmental Editing Your Book
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 7
Suzy Vadori
Something in the Air Tonight: Using Setting to Reflect Emotion
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 8
Fiona McTaggart
The Hidden Architecture of Character Desire: How Want, Fear, and Contradiction Drive Every Scene
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Stephen B
Sarah Brinley
6:00pm
MDT
Closing Ceremony: TWONOTE with Andrew Buckley, Gemma Files; plus War of the Words Winners
Hyatt Regency Calgary - Imperial Ballroom 4+6
Andrew Buckley • Gemma Files
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