Bestselling author William Bernhardt discusses the latest news of interest to writers, then interviews several of the attendees at his current writing retreat about the benefits of retreats to authors and aspiring authors.

NOTE: This is a special live recording from the Writers Colony at Dairy Hollow in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and thus subject to the imperfections attendant to any live presentation. You will hear background sounds (like a truck rolling by during the news segment, and people passing the microphone). Host Bernhardt has occasional slips of the tongue ("audiobook" instead of "ebook," "publisher" instead of "author"). We hope you agree that these imperfections enhance the spontaneous fun of a live recording.

News:
1) Audible announces a plan to add captions to its audiobooks--and a firestorm erupts in the writing world.
2) The CASE Act--a small-claims court for copyright suits--nears passage.
3) Wattpad announces two monetization programs, including a Paid Stories program that will pay writers for their work.
4) Dean Koontz signs with Amazon Publishing.

In the interview segment, Bernhardt interviews the attendees at his writing retreat, including Julio Pinera, Lynette Bennett, John Fulton (The Janitor Must Die), Maithili Fulton, Suzi Korzak, and Lara Bernhardt (The Wantland Files). Attendees explain what brought them to the writers conference and the benefits they have found there, focusing on their work-in-progress and receiving directed, personal instruction and editing to help them advance their skills and improve their work.

Bernhardt's next writing retreat will take place December 8-12, 2019, in New Orleans. For more information, visit, www.williambernhardt.com.

It is not too late to register to attend WriterCon, the annual Red Sneaker writers conference in Oklahoma City over Labor Day weekend (August 30-September 2, 2019). For more information, visit writercon.org