The Writers' Connection
About This Event
The Doylestown Bookshop is excited to announce a new series: The Writers' Connection, a monthly "speed-dating for writers" event. These workshops will be led by local author Philip William Stover, a.k.a. Georgie Kain. Join us for our second event on Wednesday, November 4th, 2026 at 6:00pm.
Looking for a writing partner who you click with? Join us for an evening of literary speed dating.
We'll kick things off with a quick lesson on a simple, effective feedback technique so everyone's speaking the same language. Then rapid-fire rotating rounds of reading, giving, and getting feedback with fellow writers in the room. Fast connections, fresh perspectives, and maybe an introduction to a future critique partner.
This is a ticketed event with limited capacity. Tickets include general admission only. The event leader's books will be available for sale.
Writing is a solitary practice, but our words require an audience. To understand how our work truly lands, we need a clear, authentic mirror—not a critic. The Writer's Connection is intentionally structured to provide rapid, non-judgmental feedback and a space for genuine connection. It works like speed dating. I'll start with a brief explanation of the workshop technique we will agree to use. Then you'll read a short piece to a few different people and receive very structured feedback. You'll also participate as a responder. Everyone will be in both roles.
Schedule
6:00–6:15 | Welcome & Method: Brief introduction to this month's feedback technique.
6:15–6:35 | Round 1: 20-minute paired reading and reflection. (includes a 1-minute transition)
6:35–6:55 | Round 2: 20-minute paired reflection (includes a 1-minute transition).
6:55–7:15 | Round 3: 20-minute paired reflection (includes a 1-minute transition).
7:15–7:30 | Wrap-Up: Group reflections and closing connection.
Format
During each 20-minute round, you will read your work aloud for up to 5 minutes. Your partner will provide you with structured feedback based on the technique we learned this month. Then, you swap roles. There are no critiques, judgments, or fixes offered—just clear, restorative reflection.
What to Bring
The Excerpt: Any genre, any stage of completion.
The Limit: Strictly 600 to 650 words maximum (this ensures the reading remains under 5 minutes).
The Copies: Bring five printed copies so your partners can follow along and physically map the energy on the page.
About our Guest:
Philip William Stover is the author of The Problem with Perfect, also from Hera, as well as The Hideaway Inn, The Beautiful Things Shoppe, and There Galapagos My Heart. He lives on the Upper Eastside in New York City and in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He has an MFA in writing and is a professor in Global Liberal Studies at New York University. He grew up tearing the covers off the romance novels he devoured so he wouldn't get teased at school. Now he enjoys traveling the world with his husband of over twenty years and would never consider defacing any of the books he loves.Georgie Kain collects vintage paint-by-numbers, well-read copies of Jane Austen and Jackie Collins novels, and brownie recipes. When he was fifteen, he won an award for a short story about a male stripper who crashes a neighborhood Tupperware party. Since then, he has written everything from epically long grocery lists to ad copy for antique rugs, but this book is a fresh start, and he hopes it finds its way to you.
Featured Author
Philip William Stover
Philip William Stover is the author of The Problem with Perfect, also from Hera, as well as The Hideaway Inn, The Beautiful Things Shoppe, and There Galapagos My Heart. He lives on the Upper Eastside in New York City and in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He has an MFA in writing and is a professor in Global Liberal Studies at New York University. He grew up tearing the covers off the romance novels he devoured so he wouldn't get teased at school. Now he enjoys traveling the world with his husband of over twenty years and would never consider defacing any of the books he loves.
About the Venue
The Doylestown Bookshop
"The Doylestown and Lahaska Bookshops are locally owned and operated bookstores dedicated to preserving the heritage and traditions of independent bookstore ideals. Since opening our doors in downtown Doylestown in 1998, we have offered our customers an alternative to the ordinary. We carry an extensive inventory of new books, from classic literature to current bestsellers, and a curated selection of gifts, cards, toys and much more. Our staff is knowledgeable, friendly, and looking forward to helping you choose the perfect book for you or your family. Both bookstores were sold again in September 2023 to long-time Bucks County residents and business owners Lauren & Damian Ford. We opened our second store, the Lahaska Bookshop, in September 2017. The Lahaska Bookshop is located in Peddler's Village and is dedicated to providing the same customer service and wide selection of books that the Doylestown Bookshop provides.
Visit store pageMore at The Doylestown Bookshop
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Doylestown: Dani Cessna // GHOST ORCHID
Join us in welcoming debut author Dani Cessna as she discusses and signs her book, Ghost Orchid at The Doylestown Bookshop on Saturday, November 7th, 2026 at 1:00pm. She will be in conversation with author Nicole M. Wolverton. This event is free to attend, and no ticket is required. About the Book: Deep in the swamps of Florida, a grieving park ranger forms a friendship with a mysterious recluse--and uncovers long-rumored secrets about a plant that raises the dead.Once ambitious and spontaneous, all park ranger Miranda wants after losing her best friend is stillness. Her new job at Everglades National Park and the rekindled connection with an old flame offer some stability and comfort. But everything changes after a rash decision brings her face-to-face with the so-called swamp witch.In Estelle, Miranda finds an unexpected friendship. The old woman is feisty, independent, and extraordinarily green-thumbed. Plants, Estelle tells her, have a language of their own. Miranda learns to listen to the whispers of peace lilies and desert roses, and witnesses their uncanny power to heal or reveal hidden truths.But a hurricane brews off the coast, and tensions rise. Rumors spread about Estelle's abilities, including her knowledge of the rare ghost orchid said to resurrect the dead--bringing the most dangerous kind of grief to Estelle's doorstep.In the lush Everglades, the swamp can grow, transform--or destroy. Miranda discovers that true growth means releasing the grief that keeps us rootbound. And somewhere, in the tangled heart of the swamp, the ghost orchid waits. About Our Guests: Dani Cessna grew up roaming the woods and nature-journaling in tree stands. A park ranger and naturalist for eighteen years, she has lived in five states and worked at six different national parks. She wages a war against endometriosis every day but never lets it stand between her and the next book or next adventure. She currently resides in the Poconos of Pennsylvania with her best friend, two dogs, three cats, thirty or so koi, two American eels, and an indeterminate number of snapping turtles, depending on when the eggs in her sunroom hatch. Nicole Wolverton is the author of the psychological thriller The Trajectory of Dreams (March 2013, Bitingduck Press). Her short fiction has appeared in Black Heart Magazine, The Molotov Cocktail, and Penduline, among others. She writes adult and young adult fiction. She lives in the Philadelphia area with her husband, two cats, and a dog. She is a freelance writer and editor, and she enjoys running and outrigger canoeing.
Lahaska: Local Author Expo
Join us on Sunday November 8, 2026 from 1:00-3:00 PM for the Lahaska Bookshop's Local Author Expo, where we will showcase a variety of authors from our community. We are very excited to be able to expand our Local Author Expo into our Lahaska store as well as Doylestown, to be able to accommodate more local authors and to celebrate authors who are local to the Lahaska area but are not necessarily Pennsylvania residents. Participating Authors: Randee Dawn, Amanda Casile, and Barry Morgenstein About the Local Author Expo:This event began as the Local Author Spotlight at the Doylestown Bookshop and hosts authors from several genres for a large group book signing event in our store. The Doylestown Bookshop believes everyone’s voice should be heard, whether with a small publisher, self-published, or with larger or more traditional publishers. We have re-branded this event as the Doylestown Bookshop's Local Author Expo because it has grown in quality and quantity over the years. Interested in participating in a future Local Author Expo? Fill out this form: https://forms.gle/J48DCjVmzg6JSud39 or email events@doylestownbookshop.com with your name, book title, ISBN, and publisher as applicable, to be added to the waitlist. Please note: The Doylestown and Lahaska Bookshops are committed to celebrating work that reflects human creativity, knowledge, and expertise. In keeping with that commitment, our Local Author Expo events will not sell or promote books or art created by artificial intelligence (AI), either partially or wholly. The Doylestown and Lahaska Bookshops reserve the right to reject any work suspected of utilizing AI in its creation at any time before or during the day of the event. About the Books: Tune in Tomorrow Tune in Tomorrow is a funny, pop-culture fantasy about a reality TV show run by magical creatures, for the enjoyment of magical creatures -- but starring humans! Starr is an aspiring (human) actress cast on the fantastical series who runs afoul of local diva Fiona, who will do anything to be upstaged. Anything! We Interrupt This Program We Interrupt This Program focuses on a magical, fairy-created town full of humans ... where they film cozy mysteries starring the citizens! Or, at least they did before the Muses showed up on a "gal-cation" and everything started to fall apart... (We Interrupt takes place in the same Tune-iverse as Tune in Tomorrow, but is a standalone novel.) Broken Trail This trail will break you . . .After criminal psychologist Clara’s divorce shatters her family, she retreats into her work. But, instead of finding comfort there, Clara develops a growing obsession with one patient, a young woman accused of murdering her boyfriend on a remote hiking trail.Desperate to discover what happened and to mend the bonds between her and her estranged daughters, Clara makes an ill-fated decision: to hike that very same trail, with her family in tow. Once they hit the trail, however, violent visions plague her dreams, and when a close encounter with a mysterious presence splits them apart, what began as a family bonding trip becomes a battle for survival. Clara must confront her own demons and the thing that prowls the forest to find her family and get them out alive before the forest claims them all, for good. Rock & Soul: Portraits by Barry Morgenstein Rock & Soul: Portraits by Barry Morgenstein offers a backstage pass to music history through powerful portraits of icons including Michael Jackson, Elton John, Whitney Houston, Steven Tyler, Chuck Berry, Paul McCartney and so many more. Spanning decades of Barry’s career, this striking coffee table book captures the raw emotion, unforgettable personalities, and electric spirt of the artists who defined generations. About the Authors: Randee Dawn is the bestselling author of the "funny as hell" pop culture fantasy novels Tune in Tomorrow and We Interrupt This Program. She's also the author of the dark Celtic musical fantasies The Only Song Worth Singing and Leave No Trace. Her short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies, and she is the co-author of The Law & Order: SVU Unofficial Companion. She also hosts a course called How to Be Interviewed through Creative Coaching Partners, and curates and hosts a monthly reading series called Brooklyn Books & Booze. A veteran entertainment journalist for The LA Times, Variety and Today.com, Randee lives in Brooklyn. Amanda Casile is a writer and speech pathologist living in suburbia with her partner, two (nice) kids and one (naughty) cat. When not writing or teaching kids to talk, she can usually be found listening to Kpop, training for half marathons, or wandering the woods looking for ghosts. Her short stories have appeared in anthologies from Quill and Crow, Eerie River Press, Bag of Bones Press, and Flame Tree Publishing, and her debut novel, Broken Trail, released December 2025 from CamCat Books. She has an upcoming Arctic Horror novel set for release in October 2027 from Blackstone Publishing. Barry Morgenstein is a renowned portrait photographer with decades of experience behind music, entertainment, and media. Known for his raw yet polished style, his work has appeared in national magazines, on album covers, and on book jackets. Barry’s studio is based in New York City, where he creates authentic portraits that reflect his passion for storytelling and reveals the person behind the lens.