2026 Festival of Faith and Writing: Full Schedule

2:30pm EDT

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

What does it mean to take our pain and make something out of it? What is the process of turning our grief into a gift? Who is the one who emerges from the community to lead the ceremony? Mixing comedic narrative, honest storytelling, and image curation, artist and author Scott Erickson walks us through the inevitable invitation to become the wounded healer. 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby 

Speakers

Scott Erickson

Scott Erickson is a touring painter, performance speaker, creative curate, and author. Scott's work has appeared on CNN, National Geographic, and in various magazines and newspaper outlets. He is the author of Say Yes: Discover the Surprising Life Beyond the Death of a Dream, Hon... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

Hope in the Wake of History

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Chapel

Ayana Mathis reflects on the themes of freedom, idealism, and disappointment in her fiction, exploring how hope meets history and how storytelling makes space for both possibility and the truths that challenge it.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Ayana Mathis

Mathis's bestselling debut, The Twelve Tribes of Hattie, was an Oprah's Book Club selection. Her newest, The Unsettled, is a searing multi-generational novel set in a historically Black town in Alabama and racially and politically turbulent Philadelphia. Mathis was the first Black woman to be a permanent faculty member at the Iowa Writers' Workshop... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

Inside the Issue: The Art and Ethics of Curating Literary Journals

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

In conversation, Jacob Schepers and Alan Koppschall discuss the craft of shaping a literary journal—from selecting work and nurturing emerging voices to balancing editorial vision with community care.

Speakers

Alan Koppschall

Plough

Alan Koppschall is an editor and the event coordinator at Plough. He is a member of the Bruderhof and lives with his wife, Marilyn, at the Woodcrest Bruderhof in Rifton, New York. He previously worked as a journalist for Catholic News Agency's Vatican Bureau... Read More →

Jacob Schepers

Jacob Schepers is cofounder and coeditor of Ballast, a 501(c)(3) non-profit online literary magazine, and the author of the poetry collections A Bundle of Careful Compromises and Ugly Ground Swell Moss, and the chapbooks Connections & Choreography and Shipwreck Abstracted... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Conversation

2:30pm EDT

Shaping the Past for Young Minds

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Gezon Auditorium

In conversation, authors Dana VanderLugt and Kate Albus explore the craft of writing historical fiction for young readers, reflecting on the interplay of research and imagination, the power of storytelling to recover the past, and the ways stories can invite young readers to see themselves within the larger human story.

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Kate Albus

Kate Albus writes historical fiction for young readers. Her novels A Place to Hang the Moon and Nothing Else But Miracles have been recognized by the NY Public Library, Kids Indie Next, SCBWI, Bank Street College of Education, JLG, CCBC, the ALA's Association for Library Service to Children, and state reading lists around the country. Kate lives with her family in rural Maryland... Read More →

Dana VanderLugt

Dana VanderLugt descends from a family of apple growers and storytellers. Her debut novel in verse, Enemies in the Orchard, is inspired by German POWs who worked on her family orchard during WWII. A former English teacher, she now works as a literacy consultant in Michigan, where she lives with her husband, sons, and spoiled golden retriever. And yes, she makes a mean apple pie... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

2:30pm EDT

The Beauty in Broken Things: Writing Sadness with Grace

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

In conversation, poets Todd Davis and Kiki Petrosino explore how sorrow can be rendered with clarity, tenderness, and artistic precision, revealing how writing about sadness can open space for truth, connection, and unexpected forms of healing. 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Todd Davis

Todd Davis is the author of eight books of poetry, most recently Ditch Memory: New & Selected Poems and Coffin Honey. He also edited A Literary Field Guide to Northern Appalachia and Fast Break to Line Break: Poets on the Art of Basketball. His writing has won the Midwest Book Award and the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize. He teaches environmental studies at Penn State University... Read More →

Kiki Petrosino

Kiki Petrosino is the author of four books of poetry, including White Blood: a Lyric of Virginia. She holds graduate degrees from the University of Chicago and the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop. Her memoir, Bright, was released from Sarabande in 2022. She is a Professor of Poetry at the University of Virginia... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Conversation

2:30pm EDT

The Invitation of Desert Literature: Meeting Ourselves and God in Bleak Places

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Deserts are often places of God encounter–in Scripture, literature, and our hearts. Novelist and Flannery O’Connor Award winner A. Muia discusses the lure of the desert as a space where we come to the edge of ourselves and wait for God. Muia uses published works of desert literature to illustrate how characters (and perhaps we ourselves) find good news, even in the bleakest of landscapes.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

A. Muia

A. Muia is the 2024 winner of the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction for her novel, A Desert Between Two Seas. Her fiction has appeared in journals throughout the U.S. She holds a degree in Spanish language, a master's in teaching English to speakers of other languages, an... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

About a Million Blessings a Day

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

A poetry reading and writing practice is, by its very nature, a mindfulness practice. It can become a spiritual practice as well. In the tradition of William Stafford, poet Carrie Fountain has, over twenty-five years, developed an early morning writing and reading ritual that has become a kind of sleight-of-hand prayer practice. Fountain discusses how developing such a habit can, again and again, root one in the real world and attune one to the many miracles of the everyday. 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Carrie Fountain

Carrie Fountain is the author of three books of poetry: The Life, Instant Winner, and Burn Lake; the YA novel I’m Not Missing; and the children’s book The Poem Forest. She is currently adapting I’m Not Missing for the screen, working on a second YA novel, and finishing a th... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

AI in the Literary Arts

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

It can seem our culture is all-in on AI replacing the creative arts. From writing and the visual arts to film production and music, AI is ascendant. Is AI merely another tool in the artist’s toolbox, or is it an idol to which we are outsourcing our humanity? Join veteran audiobook narrator (and nerd) Adam Verner in exploring this very timely issue.

Speakers

Adam Verner

Adam is a full time narrator and has recorded over 700 titles for publishers and authors large and small. Winner of a 2017 VoiceArts award and multiple Earphones Awards, he holds his MFA in Acting from Roosevelt University. He lives with his wife and family in beautiful Colorado... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Cultivating Curiosity with Picture Books

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Children’s book author Larissa Theule believes that stories shape the world one young reader at a time. She discusses how the art and craft of picture books cultivate children’s curiosity, prompting them to think critically and engage with life in meaningful, creative ways.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Larissa Theule

Larissa Theule is the author of critically-acclaimed fiction and nonfiction books for children, including Tove Under the Tree, illustrated by Julie Benbassat, Kafka and the Doll, illustrated by Rebecca Green, and the Material Marvels. She lives and writes in Pasadena, California... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Holding Both: Navigating Grief and Hope Together

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Chapel

In conversation, Hillary McBride and J.S. Park explore the tender, often difficult work of carrying grief and hope at the same time, inviting us to live honestly without abandoning the possibility of joy.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Hillary McBride

Dr. Hillary McBride is a registered psychologist, a researcher, and podcaster, and mother, with expertise including trauma, embodiment, psychedelic psychotherapy, and the intersection of spirituality and mental health. Hillary makes her home in Victoria, Canada.

J. S. Park

J.S. Park is a hospital chaplain, published author, and online educator. He serves a 1000+ bed hospital and Level 1 Trauma Center, providing grief support and end-of-life care.

J.S. has been interviewed by CNN, CBS News, Good Morning America, and The Today Show for his work in dea... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Conversation

4:00pm EDT

How the Stories Find Us

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Ariel Lawhon never intended to write historical fiction. She was just lucky enough to be paying attention when a great idea found her. Twelve years and six novels later, she understands that the creative works we undertake are the ones meant specifically for us. Lawhon discusses how faith and observation and an insatiable curiosity are the keys to a fulfilling life in the arts.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Ariel Lawhon

Ariel Lawhon is the New York Times bestselling author of The Frozen River as well as several other works of historical fiction, including I Was Anastasia and Code Name Hélène. The Frozen River was an instant paperback bestseller, rapidly ascending the New York Times bestseller... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Writing in Place

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Gezon Auditorium

In a world where we are increasingly pressured to write and compete for a global audience, what does it mean to write and create IN place and FOR place in all its particularities? Opelt explores how place and embodied community shapes our writing, and how we, in turn, shape place and community with our words.

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Amanda Held Opelt

Amanda Held Opelt is a speaker, songwriter, and author of the books Holy Unhappiness and A Hole in the World, which was selected by Publisher's Weekly as one of the best books of 2022. Amanda spent 15 years serving in the non-profit and humanitarian aid sectors. She lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina with her husband and two young daughters... Read More →

Thursday April 16, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Beyond Nostalgia: The Art of Remembering

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

How do we write the past without hiding its scars? Dana VanderLugt examines the "middle place” of memory, reflecting on how to honor history without anesthetizing it and wrestling with how we might reject simple nostalgia in favor of complex stories that access the grit and grace of the truth. 

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Dana VanderLugt

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Reclaiming Christianity from the Christians: The Witness of Las Casas

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

In the 16th century, a former conquistador named Bartolomé de las Casas boldly confronted his fellow Christians and spoke out against colonial violence in the Americas. In this session, Daniel José Camacho shares about Las Casas’s fascinating life and underappreciated writings that contain crucial lessons about faith and empathy that remain relevant in our own day.

Speakers

Daniel José Camacho

Daniel José Camacho is currently working on a book about Bartolomé de las Casas with Avid Reader Press. Previously an editor at Sojourners and Fortress Press, he won a Robert B. Silvers Foundation Grant for his essay "Saint Augustine's Slave Play," which became one of the top-t... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Scratching the Creative Itch: Art, Curiosity, and the Myth of the Renaissance Man

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Andrew Peterson explores the joys and perils of a career as a multidisciplinary writer and artist.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby 
(Please note: This is the only book signing for Andrew Peterson.)

Speakers

Andrew Peterson

Recording artist, songwriter, producer, filmmaker, publisher and award-winning author of The Wingfeather Saga, and memoirs The God of the Garden and Adorning the Dark, Andrew Peterson is also founder and president of The Rabbit Room. He launched Shining Isle Productions to produc... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Seen & Heard: Character, Authenticity and Connection

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

In her novel Lookout and memoir Dirt Work: An Education in the Woods, Christine Byl centers deeply emplaced, complex characters while resisting stereotypes. In this session, Byl discusses reading and writing nuanced portrayals of complicated people, families and communities, and how stories can both polarize and connect.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Christine Byl

Christine Byl is the author of the novel Lookout, short-listed for the Center for Fiction's 2023 First Novel prize and recipient of a Montana Book Award Honor, and Dirt Work: An Education in the Woods, shortlisted for the 2014 Willa Award in nonfiction. Christine has worked as a professional trail-builder for nearly three decades. She lives in Interior Alaska on the homelands of Dene' people... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Shared Roots: Converging Faiths in Care for the Earth 

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Gezon Auditorium

In conversation, Robin Wall Kimmerer and Kyle Meyaard-Schaap discuss how distinct spiritual traditions—Indigenous wisdom and Christian climate activism—meet in a common call to love, protect, and learn from the earth.

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Robin Wall Kimmerer

Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants; Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of ... Read More →

Kyle Meyaard-Schaap

Rev. Kyle Meyaard-Schaap is the Executive Director of the Association for a More Just Society-US. His work has been featured in news outlets such as PBS, NPR, CNN, NBC News, the New York Times, and more. He was named a Yale Public Voices Fellow on the Climate Crisis in 2020 and to the Grist 50 Fixers cohort in 2022 or for his work on climate change education and advocacy... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

10:30am EDT

A Language for Grief: Words for What the Heart Must Speak 

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

From deathbeds to deliveries at a level 1 trauma center, J.S. Park noticed a common thread of frustration as he tended to thousands of patients over a decade as a hospital chaplain: Patients and families plagued by a lack of “grief literacy” due to a pervasive fear of discussing loss. With story, stats, metaphor, and poetry, Park discusses how we can use words to honor our losses, and why, especially now, we need the language to talk about our collective and communal grief.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

J. S. Park

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

Close Enough to See, Far Enough to Tell

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Eliza Griswold reflects on the craft and responsibility of immersive journalism, considering the delicate balance between getting close to a story and maintaining clear-eyed perspective. She explores how writers navigate trust, truth, and the moral stakes of bearing witness in complex human situations.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby 

Speakers

Eliza Griswold

A celebrated author, poet, and New Yorker reporter covering religion, politics, and the environment, Griswold is the author of Circle of Hope: A Reckoning with Love, Power, and Justice in an American Church, a finalist for the National Book Award, and Amity and Prosperity: One Fa... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

Faith, Imagination, and the Marketplace: Writing and Publishing Christian Genre Fiction 

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

What does it mean to write stories of faith within genres like mystery, romance, fantasy, or science fiction? This panel gathers Christian authors and editors to discuss how imaginative storytelling can illuminate truth, wrestle with belief, and reach wide audiences, and to offer insight into the craft and calling behind contemporary Christian genre fiction.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Stephanie Broene

Stephanie is the Associate Publisher of fiction at Tyndale House Publishers. For the past twenty years, she has loved working with authors to help them cultivate and bring their stories to the page, managing the publishing process from the idea phase to finished product. She has been... Read More →

Janyre Tromp

Janyre Tromp is a best-selling historical suspense novelist who writes fiery myth-laced tales that, at their core, hunt for beauty—even when it isn’t pretty. Her books include The Scorpion Thief, Darkness Calls the Tiger, and Shadows in the Mind’s Eye. But she’s also a mo... Read More →

Kellie VanHorn

Kellie VanHorn is a Publishers Weekly bestselling author of inspirational romantic suspense. Her novel Hunted in the Wilderness won an ACFW Carol Award in the Short Novel category, and her debut YA thriller was published by Penguin Random House in 2023 (writing as Kellie M. Parke... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Panel Session

10:30am EDT

Rewriting the Record: Literature, Memory, and the Histories We Inherit

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Gezon Auditorium

In conversation, Laurie Halse Anderson and Ayana Mathis discuss how literature can illuminate, challenge, and reshape historical narratives—especially those marked by racial injustice.They explore storytelling as an act of truthtelling and repair, revealing how writers help readers reckon with the past while imagining more honest, humane futures. 

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Laurie Halse Anderson

Laurie Halse Anderson is a New York Times bestselling author whose writing spans young readers, teens, and adults. Combined, her books have sold more than 8 million copies.

Two of her novels, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists, and Chains was short-listed for the... Read More →

Ayana Mathis

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

10:30am EDT

Session Cancelled

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Tasha Jun will no longer be speaking at the Festival.

Friday April 17, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

A Conversation with Ariel Lawhon

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Chapel

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Ariel Lawhon

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Interview

11:45am EDT

As You Please: Writing From a Place of Joy

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

As writers, each of us draws on the well of books that have inspired us to be storytellers. Whether it’s their plots, their characters, or their prose that delight us, these books make up our own personal syllabi. In this session, Albus serves as your writing cheerleader, encouraging you to find what makes you tick as a writer and to use it to write from a place of joy. 

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Kate Albus

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

Holy Hurt

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Spiritual trauma can leave lasting wounds—shaping how we trust ourselves, our bodies, and the sacred. Dr. Hillary McBride uses psychological theory, narrative, and empirical data to explore the impact of high-control belief systems, the process of deconstruction, and how agency can open a path toward wholeness, meaning, and spirituality wide enough to hold life's complexity.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Hillary McBride

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

Religion Reporting in an Era of Distrust

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

At a time when distrust of institutions and media runs high, Religion News Service reporter Kathryn Post shares behind-the-scenes stories of earning trust with her sources, from conservative Christian "momfluencers" to ex-evangelicals and survivors of religious abuse. She discusses what she's learned about building relationships and why getting religion right matters in today's newsrooms.

Speakers

Kathryn Post

Kathryn Post is an award-winning national reporter for Religion News Service (RNS). Based in Pittsburgh, Kathryn covers topics such as religious "nones," religious higher education and abuse in religious contexts. She joined RNS in 2021 after earning a Master of Arts in Religion from... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

Spell, Ceremony, Miracle: The Literacy Narrative of a Lapsed Catholic

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Kiki Petrosino's poems and essays trace the story of her own literacy across complex terrains of text and memory. In this discussion, she talks about how her grief, following her grandfather's suicide, was shaped by her literary explorations of Shakespeare and Dante as well as by the ceremonies of her childhood Catholic faith.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Kiki Petrosino

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

The Power of Parable: Personal Story-telling as a Tool for Advocacy in the Church

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Gezon Auditorium

As a Palestinian Episcopal priest, deeply committed to a Church that fails her own people, Leyla King grapples with the impact such dissonance has on her faith and her vocation. From that space, she discusses the power of telling her own family's stories as parables that dismantle systemic and personal defensive structures of the Church to open ears, hearts, and minds.

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Leyla K. King

Leyla K. King is a Palestinian-American Episcopal priest and author. She is a founding member of both Palestinian Anglicans and Clergy Allies (www.palestiniananglicans.org) and The Small Churches Big Impact Collective. She writes about her experiences as a Palestinian, a clergywo... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

A Conversation with Carrie Fountain

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Gezon Auditorium

Join us in a conversation with Carrie Fountain, interviewed by Abram VanEngen.

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Carrie Fountain

Abram VanEngen

Abram Van Engen is the Stanley Elkin Professor of the Humanities at Washington University in St. Louis. His books include City on a Hill: A History of American Exceptionalism (2020) and Word Made Fresh: An Invitation to Poetry for the Church (2024), named Best Book of 2024 in Cul... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Interview

2:30pm EDT

Finding Faith in Traditionally Published Children's Books

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Chapel

Karina Yan Glaser, the New York Times bestselling children’s book author of The Vanderbeeker series and the Newbery Honor-winning The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli, reflects on how faith informs her work and guides the creation of the characters in her stories. 

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Karina Yan Glaser

Karina Yan Glaser is the New York Times bestselling author of the Vanderbeeker series, the standalone middle grade novel A Duet for Home, the chapter book Poppy Song Bakes A Way (part of the multi-author series The Kids in Mrs. Z's Class), and the Newbery Honor-winning historical... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

How to Pitch Your Nonfiction Book

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

You have a book inside you that you know will be a gift to readers. But to reach those readers, you need to persuade the gatekeepers—agents and publishers—to say “yes.” The good news is that when you discover how gatekeepers think, you can deliver what they want. In this session, Starbuck will dish about how to craft a strategic pitch that gives gatekeepers every reason to say “yes.”

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Margot Starbuck

Margot is a New York Times bestselling writer who’s written over 50 books and works with publishers as a writer, editor, and coach. She specializes in helping nonfiction writers get published by equipping them to dazzle gatekeepers. As a collaborator, Margot enjoys writing alongside... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

Listening for the Lyric

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Join a panel of songwriters as they reflect on the creative and spiritual dimensions of their craft. Through conversation about inspiration, artistry, and the power of music to express faith and human experience, this session invites attendees into a deeper appreciation of how songs are made and what they can mean.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby
(Please note: Andrew Peterson will not be signing books after this session.) 

Speakers

Amanda Held Opelt

Andrew Peterson

Jess Ray

Jess Ray is a singer-songwriter, producer, and creative supernova based in her beloved home state of North Carolina. Crafting a new wave of music for those seeking God, Jess blends fresh sonic style with timeless truths, delicately weaving it all together with the realities of the human experience... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Panel Session

2:30pm EDT

Talking To Strangers: How To Ask Better Questions, Get Better Answers, and Even Get The Reluctant Haters To Tell You Something Useful

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Since we have so many ways to separate us from one another, the art of the interview has become more important than ever. Dean Nelson has been asking questions as a journalist and as host of the annual Writer's Symposium By The Sea for more than 30 years. In this session, Nelson shows you how to engage others at a deeper and more profound level. It's more than serendipity and intuition. It's a skill you can learn. 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Dean Nelson

Dean Nelson is the founder and director of the journalism program at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, and the founder and host of the annual Writer's Symposium By The Sea, where he has interviewed great writers for more than 30 years. His most recent books are Talking... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

The Grief and Hope of Conversion

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

In her memoir We Carry Smoke and Paper, poet and essayist Melody S. Gee explores the grief and hope of becoming Catholic at age 35. She discusses what is lost and found in religious conversion--what is gained, let go, and sometimes resurrected.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Melody S. Gee

Melody S. Gee is the author of We Carry Smoke and Paper: Essays on the Grief and Hope of Conversion (University of Iowa Press, October 2024) and three books of poetry. She is the recipient of Kundiman fellowships in poetry and fiction, a Sustainable Arts Foundation Award, and Artist Support Grants from the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Drawing Stories Together: Writers and Illustrators in Creative Partnership

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Gezon Auditorium

In conversation, Aimee Reid and Larissa Theule discuss the collaborative art of creating children’s picture books, exploring how writers and illustrators bring a shared story to life. This conversation will touch on communication, trust, and the joyful surprises that emerge when visual and written imagination meet, shaping books that resonate with young readers and their grownups. 

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Aimee Reid

Children's author Aimee Reid learned to read through frequent story times with the Beginner Books from Random House. She soon read her way through the books in her Kindergarten classroom and received entrance to the big school library. It was special to release her first picture book... Read More →

Larissa Theule

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

4:00pm EDT

Finding and Working with a Literary Agent: The Dos, the Don’ts, and the Reality

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

What really happens when writers start looking for a literary agent—and what should they expect if they find one? Drawing on over 20 years in publishing, including the past decade as an agent at Yates & Yates, Mike Salisbury offers a candid, light-hearted look at the dos, don’ts, and realities of literary representation.

Speakers

Mike Salisbury

For nearly twenty years, Mike Salisbury has helped authors transform ideas into bestselling books and enduring brands. As a literary agent at Yates & Yates and a consultant at Author Coaching, he has guided high-capacity communicators—pastors, speakers, thought leaders—through... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

How to Write Good

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Sarah Perry reflects on how her work has considered theological and philosophical ideas of personal and collective moral responsibility, the influence of her strict Calvinist upbringing, whether a writer has an ethical duty to their readers, and to what extent artistic excellence might be considered a moral virtue.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby 

Speakers

Sarah Perry

Sarah Perry is the internationally best selling author of the novels Melmouth, The Essex Serpent, After Me Comes the Flood, and Enlightenment, and the nonfiction Essex Girls.

Her essays have been widely published, and she has contributed to the Guardian, the New York Times, the ... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Making and Meaning: The Creative Rhythm of Courage and Reflection

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Chapel

In conversation, artist Scott Erickson and scholar Lanta Davis explore the essential interplay between creating and pausing, making and discerning, considering why creative work demands both bold action and thoughtful reflection–and how holding these modes together can deepen our art, our faith, and our capacity to see the world with clarity.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Lanta Davis

Lanta Davis writes and teaches about the sacramental imagination, beauty, and character formation. Her book, Becoming by Beholding: The Power of the Imagination in Spiritual Formation, was named one of Christianity Today's best books of the year, and her writing has also appeared... Read More →

Scott Erickson

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Conversation

4:00pm EDT

Poetics of the Sacred

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

How might artistic practices invoke the qualities of prayer? By extension, is it possible to articulate a poetics of the sacred? In this session, Patrick Rosal explores his complex relationship to prayer, the sacred, and a secular artistic practice, sharing how he was influenced by his relationship with his father, who was a priest and theologian trained in the Thomist tradition.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Patrick Rosal

Patrick Rosal is the author of The Last Thing and has been published in The New York Times, The Nation, Best American Poetry and elsewhere. A Guggenheim and NEA Fellow, he is a Distinguished Professor at Rutgers-Camden. His mother and father immigrated from the Philippines and met in the U.S., while his father was still a Catholic priest and theologian in the Thomist tradition... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Reporting Across the Divide

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

In this moderated conversation, these seasoned journalists explore the challenges of reporting at the intersection of politics and religion in a polarized era: covering culturewar issues, writing about people across political and theological divides, and staying faithful to the principles of their craft while reflecting on how personal worldview shapes their work.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Eliza Griswold

Kathryn Post

Astead Herndon

Journalist Astead W. Herndon is a host and editorial director at Vox, where he helps lead politics coverage across text, video, audio, and social media platforms. Previously at The New York Times, he distinguished himself as a sharp, accessible voice on American politics, hosti... Read More →

Friday April 17, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Panel Session

9:00am EDT

Christian Advocacy for the Common Good: Loving Our Neighbors in Public

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Chapel

Advocacy for social justice can be viewed by people of faith as either dangerously radical or pityingly naive. Meyaard-Schaap has spent years pushing Christians to see it differently. By tracing its lineage through Christian history, he shares how faith-rooted advocacy through storytelling, writing, and direct action is more than merely a political act, but a public act of love for our neighbors.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex 

Speakers

Kyle Meyaard-Schaap

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Forms of Joy and Witness: Poetry and Prose in Conversation

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

In this conversation, Ross Gay and Patrick Rosal reflect on what they have learned from one another about play, collaboration, and attentiveness, both on and off the page.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby 
(Please note: Ross Gay requests no photos, videos, or audio recordings at any time throughout his participation in the Festival.This includes before, during, and after sessions, at book signings, and in between events. Thank you for honoring this request.) 

Speakers

Ross Gay

Ross Gay is the author of four books of poetry: Against Which; Bringing the Shovel Down; Be Holding, winner of the PEN America Literary Jean Stein Award; and Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award and the 2016 Kingsley Tufts Poetry A... Read More →

Patrick Rosal

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

9:00am EDT

Grace Notes: Tiny Moments that Make Our Stories Sing

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Using several examples across the modern landscape of literary fiction, Bilal explores the power of the instant in storytelling, attuning us to the littlest details that add sparkle, beauty and meaning to the works we love. 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Aaliyah Bilal

Aaliyah Bilal is a fiction and nonfiction writer who focuses on the Black American Muslim experience and stories that connect Chinese and Afro-Diasporic peoples. She has experience as a director and producer of short films and she has published stories and essays with The Michiga... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

Playing with Fire: Christian Poets Reflect on Faith and Practice

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Gezon Auditorium

David Clark and L.S. Klatt discuss the publication journey of their new edited collection Playing with Fire: Christian Poets Reflect on Faith and Practice. In this session, they talk about the genesis of the project, the community of writers they cultivated in exploring what a Christian poetics might look like, and the special challenges and graces they encountered in putting together a theologically diverse collection of essays.

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

George David Clark

George David Clark is the author of Reveille (winner of the Miller Williams Poetry Prize, Arkansas) and Newly Not Eternal (LSU), and coeditor, with Lew Klatt, of Playing with Fire: Christian Poets Reflect on Faith and Practice. The editor-in-chief of 32 Poems, David teaches creative writing at Washington & Jefferson College... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

9:00am EDT

Stained Glass and Sticky Hands: Writing Faithfully for Children in Our Holy and Messy World

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Children are born into a world of both stunning sunsets and dropped ice cream cones. Our words and our presence can model what it means to live with an awareness of God’s goodness alongside the bumpy realities of skinned knees and playground politics. Reid encourages and equips us to contemplate the power of words infused with grace and truth and always grounded in hope.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Aimee Reid

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

9:00am EDT

The Art of Fashioning the Soul

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

We become what we behold. The imagination shapes how we see the world and our place within it. So how might we intentionally form the imagination to become the type of people we want to become? Lanta Davis introduces “the art of fashioning the soul,” a historic Christian practice that trains the imagination as part of spiritual formation. 

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Lanta Davis

Saturday April 18, 2026 9:00am - 9:45am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

A Conversation with Barbara Brown Taylor

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

A conversation with Barbara Brown Taylor, interviewed by Calvin University Pastor Rev. Mary S. Hulst.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Barbara Brown Taylor

Barbara Brown Taylor is the New York Times bestselling author of An Altar in the World, Learning to Walk in the Dark, and Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others.

In 2024, she was elected to the Georgia Writer’s Hall of Fame at the University of Georgia, and her new bo... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Interview

10:30am EDT

Acts of Translation, Acts of Justice

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Gezon Auditorium

What does it mean to do justice to a text as a translator? What does it mean to do justice in the world? This talk will explore the attention, responsibility, and respect that this work calls us to. 

Book signing follows in the Spoelhof Atrium

Speakers

Alejandra Oliva

Alejandra Oliva is an essayist, embroiderer and translator. Her book, Rivermouth: A Chronicle of Language, Faith and Migration, was published by Astra House, and received a Whiting Nonfiction Grant. She was the Yale Whitney Humanities Center Franke Visiting Fellow in Spring 2022... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Gezon Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

Lightning Rod Poetry & Tuning Fork Poetics

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Jacob Schepers writes, writes about, and edits avant-garde and experimental poetry. In this talk, he discusses pushing the boundaries of poetic practice and what formal, thematic, and philosophical considerations may inform such decisions. He suggests writers and readers alike may benefit from testing riskier and uglier creative practices beyond typical "shock value" alone.

Speakers

Jacob Schepers

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

Listening Across Distance

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Chapel

In an era of division, how do we meaningfully talk—and truly listen—to people we don’t agree with? Drawing from years of reporting and firsthand encounters, Astead Herndon reflects on how curiosity, dignity, and empathy open doors across disagreement, and explores what it means to listen without yielding truth, build trust where none seems possible, and reimagine how dialogue can shape healthier communities.

Speakers

Astead Herndon

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

Rituals, Mentors, Priorities and Joy: the Ingredients of My Comics Career

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

The 2024 publication of Timid, Todd's semi-autobiographical, middle-grade graphic novel, fulfilled a dream he had since he was 8. He will share his 40-year journey to book-length publication, which included development of daily rituals, timely encouragement from people who believed in his work, making writing a priority in his everyday life, and approaching the craft of writing with joy.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Jonathan Todd

Jonathan Todd is the author and illustrator of the semi-autobiographical graphic novel Timid (Scholastic/Graphix), which was inspired by his struggle to overcome shyness as a tween following his family's move from Miami to a Boston suburb in the 1980s. He is a recipient of a 2024 New England Book Award. For more information about Jonathan, including his author visits, visit... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

10:30am EDT

Writer Websites That Dazzle Publishers

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

When an agent or publisher receives your pitch, you know what they do? They Google you! Today your writer website is your business card and there is a degree to which it legitimizes you as a professional communicator. Your site can be simple, but it does need to be doing its job. Impress gatekeepers by offering a site that gives them every reason to say “yes.” 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Margot Starbuck

Saturday April 18, 2026 10:30am - 11:15am EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

A Conversation with Leyla K. King

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Chapel

In this interview, Leyla K. King explores the layered, often tender work of telling a life shaped by multiple cultures, identities, and spiritual landscapes.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Leyla K. King

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Interview

11:45am EDT

A Conversation with Neal Shusterman

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

A Conversation with Neal Shusterman, interviewed by Dean Nelson.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Neal Shusterman

Neal Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling author of more than fifty award-winning books for children, teens, and adults, including Challenger Deep, which won the National Book Award, Courage to Dream, a Sydney Taylor Honor Book, Scythe, a Michael L. Printz Honor Book, the... Read More →

Dean Nelson

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Interview

11:45am EDT

Faith, Family, Football: Eli Cranor on the Dark Side of the American Dream

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

In small-town America, football is more than just a game—it's a religion, a family legacy, and a path to salvation. But beneath the bright lights of "Friday Night Lights" lies a world of desperation, corruption, and violence. Award-winning author and former professional quarterback Eli Cranor dissects the powerful themes that fuel his acclaimed Southern noir novels.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Eli Cranor

Nationally-bestselling, Edgar Award-winning author, Eli Cranor played quarterback at every level: peewee to professional. These days, he serves as the Writer in Residence at Arkansas Tech, where he also lends his expertise to the university's football team. His previous works include... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

11:45am EDT

From Manuscript to Marketplace

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

In this session, marketing professionals discuss how books find their readers in a crowded landscape, exploring strategies, trends, and challenges unique to faith-related publishing. This panel offers practical insight into audience engagement, platform building, and the creative collaboration that helps bring books into the world.

Speakers

Alexis DeWeese

Alexis De Weese is a writer, digital marketer, and student of theology. Her work is devoted to creating space for necessary conversations within the Church and helping others cultivate practices of digital hospitality.

As senior marketing manager with Zondervan Reflective, an... Read More →

Pete Ford

Pete Ford is a stay-at-home dad as well as a digital marketer for Christian authors, publishers, and nonprofits. By night, he is a reader, focusing on topics including nonviolence, time, the built environment, and spiritual practices like Sabbath.

Jeremy Wells

Jeremy Wells serves as Senior Marketing Director for Baker Academic & Brazos Press, where he brings
two decades of publishing experience to connecting readers with transformative books. He also works as a
part-time bookseller at Plumfield Books in Ada, Michigan, keeping him grounde... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Panel Session

11:45am EDT

The Art of Poetry and the Gift of Attention

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Abram Van Engen has been reaching a wide range of listeners for the past five years with his popular podcast Poetry For All and his book Word Made Fresh: An Invitation to Poetry for the Church. He explores poetry as a gift of attention, and he explains why this gift might be worth our time, including how to sift poems and take them up in ways that deepen our spiritual lives.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Abram VanEngen

Saturday April 18, 2026 11:45am - 12:30pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

A Conversation with Sarah Perry

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

A Conversation with Sarah Perry, interviewed by Jennifer L. Holberg, CCFW Director.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Sarah Perry

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Interview

2:30pm EDT

A Conversation with Terumi Echols

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

A Conversation with Terumi Echols, Interviewed by Scott Hoezee, Center for Excellence in Preaching.

Speakers

Terumi Echols

Terumi Echols is the President and Publisher of InterVarsity Press (IVP), where she leads a mission-driven publishing ministry committed to deepening lives in Christ and equipping the church for faithful witness and renewal. Under her leadership, IVP has strengthened its financial health, expanded its global reach, and launched significant initiatives... Read More →

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Interview

2:30pm EDT

Families We Know, Families We Imagine: Writing Identity for Young Readers

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Karina Yan Glaser and Jonathan Todd explore how stories for children can honor the richness of family and identity. In this conversation, they'll discuss crafting characters kids can see themselves in, portraying complex home lives with honesty and warmth, and creating narratives that help young readers feel recognized, included, and deeply at home.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Karina Yan Glaser

Jonathan Todd

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Conversation

2:30pm EDT

The Grace of Wild Things: Finding a Language for Praise and Lamentation

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

As the son of a veterinarian and the grandson of poor Appalachian farmers, Todd Davis searches for wildness in forests and remote streams. At root is his deep belief that we are kin to all species, not just humankind, and that as kin, we have a responsibility to care for one another. Rooted in praise and lamentation, Davis’s poems seek to situate our small role in the whole of creation.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

Todd Davis

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

2:30pm EDT

Witnessing What’s There: Writing Attention in a Wounded World

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT

Chapel

Daniel José Camacho and Alejandra Oliva explore writing as an act of paying attention—especially in places marked by structural suffering. In this conversation, they consider how faithful witnessing becomes a moral and spiritual practice, inviting writers to see clearly, name truthfully, and cultivate a gaze that honors both human dignity and the possibility of repair.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Daniel José Camacho

Alejandra Oliva

Saturday April 18, 2026 2:30pm - 3:15pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Conversation

4:00pm EDT

Audiobooks for Authors

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Why should authors push for their work in audio? How does the selling of audio rights work with established publishers? How can an indie-published author hire a narrator and create their own audiobook? Join Adam Verner, a veteran narrator, for a deep dive into the world of audio and the importance of the spoken word.

Speakers

Adam Verner

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Willow Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

In the Spirit of Others' Words

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Prince Conference Center, Board Room

As editor and executive director of 32 Poems for the past 15 years, George David Clark curates and champions his favorite contemporary poems. He discusses the balance of humility and hubris required of active editors, the development of long-term artistic partnerships, editorial creativity, and the spirit of collaboration.

Book signing follows in the Prince Conference Center, Fireside Room

Speakers

George David Clark

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Prince Conference Center, Board Room

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Place and Landscape as Character

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

In conversation, A. Muia, Christine Byl, and Eli Cranor explore how landscape shapes story—becoming not just backdrop but an active, breathing presence. They consider writing rooted in place, the ethics of depicting land and community, and how attentive engagement with the physical world deepens narrative voice, character, and meaning.

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Christine Byl

Eli Cranor

A. Muia

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall

Concurrent Session, Conversation

4:00pm EDT

Rethinking Dystopia

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

In this session, novelist Neal Shusterman explores how to use dystopian literature to break down, dissect, and rebuild the current world through the lens of writing. How can writers not only stir up the space, but give readers something to aspire to rather than fear? 

Book signing follows in the Covenant Fine Arts Center Lobby

Speakers

Neal Shusterman

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Auditorium

Concurrent Session, Solo Session

4:00pm EDT

Sacred Traces: Writing the Texture of Religious Experience

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT

Chapel

In conversation, Aaliyah Bilal and Melody Gee explore how writers draw from lived religious experience—its rituals, questions, inheritances, and contradictions—to craft resonant stories.

Book signing follows in the Chapel Narthex

Speakers

Aaliyah Bilal

Melody S. Gee

Saturday April 18, 2026 4:00pm - 4:45pm EDT
Chapel

Concurrent Session, Conversation