Welcome to the New Orleans Writers' Conference (NOWC), the most unique conference of its kind in the nation. The Conference has united aspiring writers and top editors and agents, generated bylines and launched successful careers.

The 2005 New Orleans Writers' Conference was held May 11-13, 2005 at the Hotel Monteleone. Almost 50 agents, editors and authors traveled to New Orleans to share their expertise with 135 aspiring writers from all over the United States and two foreign countries! Relationships were developed, both personal and professional, with agents, editors and authors from some of the nation's most prestigious publishing houses, including St. Martin's Press, Viking Penguin and Simon & Schuster. We have gotten lots of great feedback and planning for next year's Conference has already begun. The tentative dates for next year's Conference are May 17-19, 2006. Please check back periodically for Web site changes. We hope to see you next spring!

The winner of the 2005 Walker Percy Literary Award was Molly Felder. Felder wrote the children's fiction manuscript, "Something Different." Alice Pope, managing editor of Writer's Digest Books, reviewed Felder's manuscript and said "Molly did her homework before she got to the Conference. She knew what the trends in the industry were. She promises to be a great writer.