MiniCon 2026
A one-day writers' conference in the Oklahoma City area
Saturday, April 18, 2026
Registration opens at 8:30 AM
New Hope Church of Christ
700 W 2nd St, Edmond, Oklahoma
Scroll down to reserve your spot!
MiniCon 2026 Speaker
Betsy St. Amant
Betsy St. Amant Haddox is the award-winning author of nearly thirty romance novels and novellas. She resides in north Louisiana with her hubby, two teenaged daughters, and one furry schnauzer-toddler. Betsy has a bachelor of arts in communication and loves teaching and speaking on the craft of writing. When she's not suffering through a CrossFit workout or baby talking her dog, she can usually be found in the vicinity of an iced coffee. She writes frequently for iBelieve, a devotional site for women, and offers author coaching and editing services through Storyside LLC.
Conference Schedule
8:00-8:50 - Registration
9:00-10:30 - Build A Character Live!
Join award-winning author Betsy St. Amant in a deep dive into strong character building with her "build a character live" group workshop. Learn what makes characters relatable, what makes them tick, and more importantly--what makes them linger in a reader's mind long after the final page has turned. In this workshop, Betsy will work with her class to build a character live on a board, utilizing her methods of “dressing your character from the inside out”, which always results in hilarious fun! Then each attendee will be encouraged to go through the same process to create their own characters individually to take home and put into stories. This workshop will include a handout titled: “Interview Your Characters”, which prompts authors to take further steps into determining their character’s GMC (Goal, Motivation & Conflict) for character depth.
10:45-12:15 - Marry Me: How to Create an Irresistible Proposal
Just like an eager boyfriend spends time creating an irresistible proposal for his future bride, authors need to spend time creating an irresistible proposal to portray their book in the best possible light. In this workshop, Betsy St. Amant walks attendees through the various categories of a proposal with detailed descriptions and examples, cheekily connecting the steps of someone preparing to propose marriage and how that crosses over to our book proposals. Attendees will leave the workshop feeling confident that they can apply the elements to their own novel and have an industry professional ready to say, “I do!”
12:15-1:45 - VIP Lunch, Speaker Q&A
1:45-3:15 - Building Your Author Family: It Takes a Village
The author journey is not meant to be solitary. Walk alongside and construct a make-believe village with Betsy St. Amant as she discusses the various elements of publishing for both indie and trad authors and shares who you need in your tribe in order to find success. This workshop covers how to be an author everyone wants to work with, be it with agents and editors, beta readers, cover designers, etc. and more importantly, how not to be a diva. (Here’s looking at you, Miss Patty from Gilmore Girls!) Learn how to be a good critique partner, how to create and handle launch teams, how to decide which elements of the publication journey are worth fighting for, and how to successfully pick those battles with industry professionals without turning into a “Miss Patty.” **wink**
3:30-5:00 - You Must Allow Me to Tell You How Ardently I Admire Your Dialogue
In this workshop, Betsy St. Amant covers the ins and outs of writing realistic, entertaining dialogue and why it matters so much to readers. She covers the age old “action beats vs. dialogue tags” debate, how to write humor, how to avoid stilted, formal dialogue, how to handle dialect and characters with accents, how to test your own writing, and how to generate that good ol’ witty banter we all love to read! With plenty of do’s and don’ts, plus a few fun quizzes on memorable dialogue from well-known characters, this workshop is guaranteed to take your characters’ communication to the next level.