This page will be updated as more faculty members are
confirmed for the 2026 New England Writing Workshop.
Joel Brigham is the founder of Brigham Editorial, a fiction editing service that has helped writers find agents and agented authors prepare for submission and publication.
He also is an editorial consultant for The Purcell Agency, a literary agency based out of Chicago, Illinois. As an author, he writes YA contemporary fiction and has two books on submission, both represented by agent Tina P. Schwartz.
He also edits content for Basketball News and spent 12 years covering the NBA as a senior sportswriter for HoopsWorld and Basketball Insiders. He has a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing and a master’s degree in English Education and has taught high school English for 18 years.
At the event, he is offering add-on optional manuscript critiques for attendees.
Chuck Sambuchino (@chucksambuchino) is a freelance editor, bestselling book author, and former longtime staffer for Writer’s Digest Books.
For many years he edited the GUIDE TO LITERARY AGENTS and the CHILDREN’S WRITER’S & ILLUSTRATOR’S MARKET. His Guide to Literary Agents Blog was one of the largest blogs in publishing, and he wrote the platform guidebook CREATE YOUR WRITER PLATFORM.
He is the lead director of Writing Day Workshops writers conferences, and he has taught at more than 175 writers conferences throughout his career. He is the co-coordinator of the New England Writing Workshop.
His humor book, HOW TO SURVIVE A GARDEN GNOME ATTACK, was optioned by Sony Pictures. Chuck’s books have been mentioned in Reader’s Digest, USA Today, the New York Times, The Huffington Post, Variety, New York Magazine, Buzzfeed, Mental Floss,New York magazine, and many more media outlets.
All his latest books are about pickleball, including ULTIMATE PICKLEBALL, a 2026 tear-off desk calendar due out in August 2025 (Sellers Publishing). His picture book, GOODNIGHT, PICKLEBALL, released from Hachette in August 2025, as was carried in Target, and hit the USA Today bestseller list.
He is a successful freelance editor of queries, synopses, and manuscripts—seeing dozens of clients get agents or book deals following his consultations/edits. He loves meeting new writers.
Brian A. Klems (@BrianKlems) is the former online editor of WritersDigest.com. He is the current co-director of Writing Day Workshops.
His blog during his tenure there, The Writer’s Dig—which covered everything writing and publishing—was one of the largest blogs in the writing community. He is the co-coordinator of the New England Writing Workshop.
Brian’s first book, Oh Boy, You’re Having a Girl: A Dad’s Guide to Raising Daughters (Adams Media) was released in 2013. It received high-level buzz and praise from some of the funniest writers alive, including Dave Barry and Bruce Cameron.
Brian is also a proud graduate of the Ohio University E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, a husband, softball infielder, perennial fantasy sports underachiever, and father of three lovely girls.
Vicky Weber is a literary agent with Creative Media Agency.
At the 2026 event, she is teaching a class. She is also meeting with attendees for one-on-one meetings.
I’m a former elementary school teacher turned children’s book author and literary agent. I represent commercial fiction – board books through adult – but specialize in children’s literature.
In all manuscripts, I want intensity in the writing. (Give me all the feels!) I want to be dropped into the moment and experience the story alongside the characters. Character development and emotional arcs go hand-in-hand with the plot. If a book is high-concept, commercial fiction with beautiful, literary-leaning prose, it’s probably up my alley.
In adult and young adult fiction, she seeks: horror, psychological suspense, thrillers, commercial, upmarket, historical, women’s fiction, romance, fantasy (dark/high/epic), magical realism, speculative, and paranormal/supernatural. In middle grade and picture books, she seeks highly giftable, commercial fiction with a strong voice—stories that feel like they always should have been on the shelf
Jeanne De Vita is a literary agent with Martin Literary Management.
Before moving onto the agency side of the business, I worked in publishing for over a decade as an acquisitions editor and developmental editor for traditional publishers and authors. I’ve worked with hundreds of new and aspiring authors as well as established NYT bestsellers across the genres. I understand the mechanics of a great story and am looking for un-putdownable voice, expert structure/pacing, and a premise that I want to stay up late reading.
I still teach writing and editing craft at the college level, so I’m a technician who reads quickly and assesses books based on how successfully the submission meets the expectations of the genre, sub-genre, or niche. Are you a superfan of the genre you are writing? Can we swap excited stories about our favorite books and have honest conversations about the business, the process, and the work that goes into creating great stories? I have an editorial approach, a practical perspective on the business, and a deep passion for this work.
She is especially excited to seek out independent voices by tracking breakout self-published successes, surfacing under-the-radar talent, and scouting the indie authors whose sales, platforms, and craft signal they’re ready to leap into traditional publishing.
Patricia Westerhof is an author, speaker, and writing coach.
Patricia’s most recent book is The Canadian Guide to Creative Writing and Publishing (Dundurn Press 2023). Patricia also has two traditionally-published books of fiction—The Dove in Bathurst Station and Catch Me When I Fall. Her stories and essays have been published in Room, The Dalhousie Review, Write, West End Phoenix, The Feathertale Review, The Nashwaak Review, and the Toronto Star. Patricia teaches creative writing and a course on getting published at University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies, where she won the 2024 Excellence in Teaching Award.
At the 2026 event, Patricia is teaching.
Susan Alice Bickford is an author.
Susan was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and grew up in Central New York, the setting for many of her stories. Eventually her passion for technology pulled her to Silicon Valley, where she held a wide range of diverse roles and became an executive at a leading technology company.
She is now a full-time author but continues to be fascinated by all things high tech. She is a Past President of the Sisters in Crime Northern California Chapter and splits her time between Silicon Valley and her family’s home base in Vermont.
Bickford writes thrillers and suspense stories that are deeply embedded in the rural areas of New York State and New England, featuring resourceful female protagonists.
Bickford’s debut novel, A Short Time to Die, was published in 2017 and a was nominated for the 2018 Left Coast Crime Best Debut Novel. Her second novel, Edgar-nominated Dread of Winter, was released in October 2019. Her short stories have appeared in the anthologies Fish Out of Water, Fishy Business, The Fish that Got Away, and Invasive Species.
A.J. Van Belle (they/them) is a literary agent at the Booker Albert Literary Agency.
They are also a writer of fiction and nonfiction for adults and children, an editor, and a biologist. They have a BA in art with a minor in English from Columbia College, an MA in anthropology and an MS in biology from California State University, and a PhD in biology from Boston University.
A.J. welcomes queries from marginalized writers. They’re currently seeking MG and YA in all genres, and adult literary, general, historical, thriller, and women’s fiction. (Their list is currently full for adult sci-fi / fantasy / horror but they may reopen to these genres in the future.) In nonfiction, they’re seeking fresh ideas in science, popular science, self-help, and health/wellness from authors with established platforms. As a scientist who has published NSF-funded research in ecology, they welcome queries from authors whose expertise links with evolution, ecology, statistics, microbiology, and biogeoscience
You can find A.J. on socials @ajvanbelle.
Jacqui Lipton is a Senior Literary Agent at The Tobias Literary Agency and head of the Adult Department, although she selectively represents children’s books, particularly middle grade and young adult novels and nonfiction.
Jacqui is open to pretty much anything but has a soft spot for genre fiction (mystery/thriller, romance, selective science fiction). Jacqui is not the best fit for high fantasy (think Game of Thrones) or books with animal protagonists. Jacqui is open to unique takes on nonfiction but is not seeking memoir currently.
Jacqui holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts, is the author of Law and Authors: A Legal Handbook for Writers (UC Press, 2020) and Our Data, Ourselves: A Personal Guide to Digital Privacy (UC Press, 2022).
The 2026 New England Writing Workshop 
