21st Annual Jambalaya Writers’ Conference: Saturday, April 25, 2026
Keynote Speaker Mary Manhein
Mary H. Manhein, Forensic Anthropologist, is the creator and retired director of the LSU FACES Laboratory (Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services lab). She has published multiple books on her case work, has lectured twice at Scotland Yard in London, and has given hundreds of presentations across America. She has also published both adult and children’s mysteries. Her newest publication is A Call to Rowan, a novella set in the 1950’s in rural North Louisiana, following the Korean War.
First Page Blind Auditions
NOW 90 minutes! Bring in your first page of your manuscript, novel, poem, fiction, or non-fiction. Here is a chance to have your work critiqued by experts anonymously – low risk! The library director will read each page aloud and give three professionals a chance to give you feedback.
- One page with no name: poem, short story, or manuscriapt
- Make sure it is a copy
- Your work will NOT be returned.
- Your work must be typed.
- Font must be 12 point or larger
- Must be simple font: Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri, etc.
- 5 line spacing minimum
- 1 inch margins
- First Come, First Serve
- Works can be turned in starting at 8:10 am.
- Numbers will be put on each submission as it is is handed in.
- They will be read in the order of submission.
- Due to time constraints, not every submission may be read.
- It is at the discretion of the director if a submission is appropriate or not and will or will not be read.
- All critiques offered by the panel are their opinions and are not necessarily the views of the Library, the Friends, or JWC.
Lunch (featuring local food trucks)
Book Sales & Vendors
Previews
Query Letters 101 | Elizabeth Prats
Saturday, March 21, 2026
10 am – Noon
Ever wondered what it takes to land a literary agent on your journey to publication? Join us for a practical workshop to demystity the greatest tool in your toolbox: Your Query letter. Sign up to meet with Jenny Keegan from LSU Press on April 25th.
Full schedule coming soon
Full Schedule
BOOK SIGNINGS FOR 15 MINS AFTER AUTHOR PRESENTATIONS
CAVALIER HOUSE BOOKS AVAILABLE ON SITE & ONLINE.
*Funding for this project has been provided by the State of Louisiana and administered by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (LEH). The views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this (publication, program, exhibition, website) do not necessarily represent those of either the Louisiana vEndowment for the Humanities or the State of Louisiana.
Support for the Jambalaya Writers’ Conference was provided in part by the
- Friends of the Terrebonne Parish Library
- Explore Houma
- State of Louisiana
- Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities
- Bayou Regional Arts Council
