COEUR d’ALENE — Ghostwriters, novelists, poets and wordsmiths of every style are invited to assemble in appreciation of the written word Sept. 23-24 for the 2016 Idaho Writer's League State Conference.

"It's a chance for you to meet with other authors, network, share problems and even ask questions," longtime Idaho Writer's League member Larry Telles said Wednesday. "It's also learning from these speakers all different kinds of subjects."

The conference is open to the public and its theme is "The Pen is Mightier than the Sword." It features 18 different workshops and speakers who will discuss topics ranging from how to compose a memoir to writing and selling flash fiction.

"It's a gathering of people who have the same interests you do," Telles said. "You've got fiction, nonfiction, screenwriting, poetry, and it's all under one lump of 'writer.'"

Many of the speakers are local, including Idaho Writer's League Coeur d'Alene Chapter Vice President Emily Moore, whose session will be "Self-Starter Guide: Breaking into Freelance Writing."

"Freelancing has a different meaning for different people," Moore said. "Some people look at it as a career in writing, wanting to be published more regularly, others utilize it as a way to bolster their resume for bigger projects and others just do it for the passion of writing. They love what they do.

"If you're not formally trained, you don't necessarily know where to go, you need someone to guide you," she continued. "Then you know how to pitch to editors and publications and make a point that you are the best writer."

Inland Northwest-based travel writer and photographer Aaron Theisen will present "Everything You Wanted to Know About Travel Writing," Coeur d'Alene Public Library director Bette Ammon will present "Self Publishing and Your Library" and Cocollala-based freelance editor and marketer Jennifer Leo will present "Inspirational Fiction from an Editor's Perspective," to name a few sessions.

"The conference is a great opportunity for people to plug into the writing community, especially those who don't write or would like to," Moore said. "If you're a reader, a lot of our speakers are published. It's a great way to meet some of our authors who are local."

During the conference, members will be awarded monetary prizes for placing in writing contests. The themes for this year's contests are "Going Home" and "Without Warning" and the titles are "The Sealed Envelope" and "It Seemed Like A Good Idea at the Time." Contest categories fall under "assigned," "open" and "novel" and vary from essays and articles to humor shorts and children's fiction.

The 2016 Idaho Writers League Conference will be held in the Best Western Plus Coeur d'Alene Inn. It opens at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 23, continues through about 5 p.m. and continues Sept. 24 at 8:30 a.m. with sessions to follow and a banquet at 6:30 p.m.

Admission is $150 for both days, including meals, or $65 for Friday only or $75 for Saturday only. Special student walk-in price is $50 for the entire conference (no food) and must show valid student ID. Food for a spouse at the banquet is $30.

Registration pages are available on The Idaho Writers League Annual Writing Conference 2016 Facebook page, http://bit.ly/2cxQGBr, or guests can register and pay at the door.