The Writer to Writer writers’ conference was beneficial for one talented individual. On Sept. 18, Cherrilynn Ryerson Bisbano was awarded a publishing contract with Elk Lake Publishing.

Deb Ogle Haggerty, Elk Lake Publishing’s acquisitions editor, commented on the new contract.

“Elk Lake Publishing is proud to partner with Writer to Writer to encourage and publish new authors,” said Haggerty. “This year's winner of a publishing contract from Elk Lake is Cherrilynn Bisbano for her book True Star Quality: Learning to Shine. We look forward to working with Cherrilynn to bring her book to publication.”

Several contestants submitted their manuscripts for the Pub Board Session. Bisbano was one of the three selected contestants to be evaluated by the Writer to Writer faculty during the session, a Shark Tank-like experience designed to help authors assess their current work in progress.

Shawn Kuhn, host of Pub Board, explained the session’s goals more clearly.

“Pub Board is my favorite event at Writer to Writer,” said Kuhn. “It is as instructional for the audience as it is the contestants. The collective wisdom focused on an author's individual project is rarely experienced outside of an actual publisher's conference room and never for the ears of the author.”

Fred St. Laurent, president of Elk Lake Publishing, was excited to add Bisbano’s book to the company’s selection.

“We at Elk Lake Publishing ‘publish the positive’ and are dedicated to excellent content for Christians,” said St. Laurent. “Adding Cherrilynn's book True Star Quality is a wonderful way of expanding our publishing program with a book that will impact the lives of Christian women. We were pleased to award this contract in conjunction with Writer to Writer's Pub Board.”

Bisbano described the experience as exhilarating, eye-opening and educational. She said she will cherish the decision forever.

“As a previous attendee of Writer to Writer, I experienced the Pub Board from the audience’s point of view,” Bisbano says. “I knew what to expect. I donned my thick skin and presented. Although difficult to hear at times, the faculty’s questions and comments were priceless. I am planning on attending the next Writer to Writer conference in Hershey, Pennsylvania, next February.”

Writer to Writer is a writers’ conference with the goal of equipping writers. The conference offers workshops in four areas: nonfiction, fiction, publishing and marketing.

Second-year attendee Tommy Daugherty said the conference was a valuable experience.

“As a first time author, I was reluctant to spend the money to attend the September 2014 Writer to Writer conference in Murfreesboro, but the advice and encouragement I received was invaluable,” said Daugherty. “I made improvements to my draft manuscript that resulted in acceptance by a literary agent within a few weeks of making the changes. The September 2015 conference was equally encouraging. I highly recommend any first time author attend one of the conferences. There is no doubt the leaders of the conference very much care about the people who attend.”

Writer to Writer Hershey 2016 is set for Feb. 5-7, 2016. Key faculty will include Robert Liparulo, James L. Rubart, Cynthia Ruchti, Becky English, Karen Porter, Twila Belk, Steve Laube, Ben Wolf, Steve Lawson, Suzanne Kuhn and Kirk David Blank.

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