Workshop Information
October 25, 2025
Utah State University - Salt Lake Center (Regional Campus)
920 W Levoy Drive, Taylorsville, Utah
Celebrating the genres of biography, autobiography, and memoir from aspiration to accomplishment
This workshop is a one-day event, open to novice biographers, seasoned family historians, as well as more experienced writers who might hope to someday win a prize like the Evans Biography Awards. There will be four workshop sessions (two concurrent sessions in the morning and two in the afternoon). Space is limited, so register early.
Registration deadline: Wednesday, October 22, 2025
Registration fee: $70 (a $10 discount will be applied to the first 20 registrations). Covers food and workshop supplies.
Event Schedule
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 9:00 am - 9:30 am | Check-in (Light continental breakfast available) |
| 9:30 am - 9:45 am | Welcome and Opening Remarks |
| 10:00 am - 12:00 noon |
Morning Workshops (Participants will choose one)
|
| 12:15 noon - 1:45 pm | Luncheon with Keynote Speaker: Documenting the Many Worlds of Andrew Jenson in the Intermountain West – Reid Neilson and Scott Marianno |
| 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm |
Afternoon Workshops (Participants will choose one)
|
Presenters
Luncheon Keynote: Reid Neilson and Scott Marianno
Documenting the Many Worlds of Andrew Jenson in the Intermountain West
Reid Neilson and Scott Marianno authored the winner of the 2024 Evans Biography Award, Restless Pilgrim: Andrew Jenson’s Quest for Latter-day Saint History. Compelling biography helps readers make sense of a life—its influences and impact. Andrew Jenson—Danish Latter-day Saint and prolific documenter of the Intermountain West—recorded change but was also shaped by the same forces he documented. This presentation will discuss how the authors balanced individuality, culture, and context in retelling the history of a life that both spoke to and transcended his times.
Reid L. Neilson is the assistant academic vice president for religious scholarly publications, at Brigham Young University where he oversees three organizations: the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, the Religious Studies Center, and BYU Studies. He was the managing director of the Church History Department from 2010 to 2019. He is an award-winning author and editor of dozens of books on the Latter-day Saints, and coeditor of Pacific Apostle: The 1920-21 Diary of David O. McKay in the Latter-day Saint Island Missions.
Scott Marianno is an historian in the Church History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and coeditor of A Voice in the Wilderness: The 1888-1930 General Conference Sermons of Mormon Historian Andrew Jenson.
Amber Caron
"Make a Scene"
According to Jerome Stern, when you really want to get everyone’s full attention in your writing, you make a scene. This workshop will focus on strategies for creating effective scenes in prose writing. Together, we will read sample scenes and study how they are structured, how they create tension, and how they move a piece forward. Participants will apply this new knowledge to a revision of their own stories.
Amber Caron is the author of the story collection Call Up the Waters (Milkweed Editions) and the recipient of the O’Henry Prize, the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers, Southwest Review’s McGinnis-Ritchie Award for fiction, and grants from the Elizabeth George Foundation and the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund. Her stories and essays have appeared in The Best Short Stories 2024: The O’Henry Prize Winners, PEN America Best Debut Short Stories, The Threepenny Review, AGNI, Bennington Review, Southwest Review, Longreads, Writer’s Chronicle, and elsewhere. She is an Assistant Professor of English and an Assistant Fiction Editor at AGNI. In addition to teaching courses on fiction writing and contemporary literature, she directs fiction theses and serves on creative writing theses of all genres.
Amy Ward
"Beyond the Records: Mining Historical Resources to Write the Story of your Ancestors"
Explore the lives of your ancestors in greater depth by learning how to place them within their historical context and go beyond traditional genealogical records. In this workshop, we’ll dive into investigative methods that teach you how to ask the right questions and uncover the rich, untold details of your ancestors' stories.
Amy Rose Ward received her BS degree in History from Utah State University. In 2022 she completed her Masters in Genealogical Studies from University of Strathclyde. She is working to become accredited in the New England region through ICAPGEN. She previously worked for FamilySearch in Salt Lake City as a research specialist, and has presented webinars about FamilySearch and other topics. Amy enjoys doing client research and writing family histories. She serves UGA as 1st Vice President and co-chair of the First Families of Utah committee. She is the president of her community’s orchestra where she plays the viola.
Holly George
“Moving Beyond the Pile of Research”
You love research! But how can you turn that mountain of details into a piece of written history? In this workshop, you'll learn tips on creating arguments and outlines and how to see the historical significance of your research topic. The second portion of the workshop will be a hands-on look at participant projects.
Holly George, PhD, is the editor of Utah Historical Quarterly and the author of Show Town: Theater and Culture in the Pacific Northwest, 1890–1920." George received a doctorate in American History from the University of Washington. She has been with the Utah Historical Society since 2013.
Ross Peterson
“Who are You?; IT MATTERS: The Value of Personal History – Ross Peterson”
Prof. Ross Peterson has recently published two volumes of stories surrounding his life. The focus is Christmas. His intent is to have the participants become believers in the need for personal histories in our own lives. Who we are and how we became what we are needs to be told. His focus will be on his work as well as that of others.
F. Ross Peterson is a native of Montpelier, Idaho. After graduating from Utah State University, he received a PhD from Washington State University in 1968. His first position was at the University of Texas-Arlington, the year the school integrated. Peterson has authored many books on Western U. S. History, including the History of Idaho and of Cache County. His books, Christmas in Montpelier and Christmas Beyond Montpelier, have many stories about his education and life dry farming as a youth. He is currently finishing an autobiographical book, In Search of Henry Aaron, an explanation of how he was catapulted from an Idaho farm to teaching Civil Rights because of baseball and agriculture.
This event is made possible in partnership with Utah Humanities as part of the annual Utah Humanities Book Festival.