For International Writers’ Day, we’re celebrating the voices who bring worlds to life at the Gen Con 2025 Writers Symposium! The Writers Symposium brings together top authors, editors, and publishers for in-depth panels, workshops, and networking sessions that rival any dedicated writing convention.
To mark this day, we’re spotlighting three incredible writers who will be joining us for Gen Con 2025. Whether you’re a seasoned storyteller or just starting your writing adventure, the Writers Symposium is where creativity thrives. Stay tuned for exclusive interviews with other authors—because every great game, world, and adventure starts with a story!
Gini Koch
Gini Koch writes the fast, fresh, and funny award-winning and best-selling Alien/Katherine “Kitty” Katt series and many others. She writes in every length and genre and under a variety of pen names, including A.E. Stanton, G.J. Koch, Jemma Chase, J.C. Koch, and Anita Ensal.
What’s the hardest part of writing fiction that no one warns you about?
Meeting deadlines. But seriously, it’s the research. Research is fun and great, but you’re going to do a lot more of it than you realize when you start out. I practically have a self-taught degree in astrophysics due to the Alien series, for example.
What’s a writing habit or ritual you swear by?
I always have to have music playing, all forms of rock in particular. As long as it’s music and someone’s singing, I can write. I’ve also found that body doubling is hugely important to my process, and I thank those who body double with me daily because they’re a vital part of my process and my life.
What’s your favorite trick for overcoming writer’s block?
Oftentimes, it’s alcohol, but usually, it’s just forcing myself to sit down, find the right song or band to get me revving, and make myself write.
How do you balance world-building without overwhelming the story?
I have a much longer answer for this, but in brief, I focus on the characters and only tell the reader what they NEED to know to understand where the characters “are” and what’s going on around them. No one needs to know the color of the walls of the hallways the characters are walking down. But if the characters are going to be attacked, it’s helpful to know beforehand that there’s a convenient door on the right.
What’s your favorite fictional world to get lost in—book, game, or movie?
I like all three and refuse to choose!
What’s a lesser-known book that has deeply influenced your writing?
WISHBRINGER by Craig Shaw Gardner. It was LitRPG before we called it that, and while I’d never played the game it was based on, I couldn’t get enough of this book. The beats really influenced how I thought about writing.
What makes the Writers Symposium at Gen Con special for writers and readers alike?
It’s a fun, diverse, experienced group of authors coming to teach, interact, and, frankly, just have fun with their peers, the aspiring authors they’ll meet, and the games. Gen Con has the nicest attendees out of every con I’ve been to, and there’s a fun, fizzy feel from beginning to end.
Find more information about Gini on her website.
Richard Dansky
A 25-year veteran of the video game industry, Richard Dansky is widely regarded as a leading expert on game writing and narrative. He has written for franchises including The Division, Far Cry, Assassin’s Creed, Splinter Cell, and many more, and he is currently the Narrative Director at Romero Games. Richard has also published 8 novels and 2 short story collections, and he was a key contributor to the epic TTRPG setting The World of Darkness.
What’s the hardest part of writing fiction that no one warns you about?
The hardest part of writing fiction is learning to trust your characters and letting them do what’s right and natural – even if it isn’t smart or safe – rather than trying to force them along a plot that no longer suits them. You get taught about plotting early on, and in so many ways, it’s an inexperienced writer’s North Star, and letting go of that to let the characters drive the action organically is frightening. But, in the end, it’s worth it.
What’s a writing habit or ritual you swear by?
I have an ornate and complicated ritual that I follow religiously.
In the evening after work, I go to my office. I turn out the lights, light a candle, take my watch off and put it to the right of my computer, and then play the music that I have selected as the soundtrack for the project I will be writing that night. I listen for ten minutes to get in the headspace and then start writing.
What’s your favorite trick for overcoming writer’s block?
When confronted with writer’s block, I skip forward to a place in the story where I have surer footing. Then I go back and fill in the missing bits later, now that I know how it’s going to turn out.
How do you balance world-building without overwhelming the story?
I swear by the question, “Does the reader/player benefit from knowing this right now?” If the answer is no, then I back burner that detail until later or pass it off to a different delivery mechanism in the case of a game. The trick is separating “I want to tell you this” from “You should know this.”
What’s your favorite fictional world to get lost in—book, game, or movie?
The Commonwealth of Letters, from Silverlock by John Myers Myers. Because it’s pretty much all the stories all together all at once.
What’s a lesser-known book that has deeply influenced your writing?
Nightmare Seasons by the great Charles L. Grant. That book taught me how you can do so much more with less when writing horror.
What makes the Writers Symposium at Gen Con special for writers and readers alike?
It’s a glorious intersection of writers and readers, and each group benefits from the symposium’s friendly, open interactions.
Follow Richard on Bluesky, LinkedIn, or his website.
Shveta Thakrar
Shveta Thakrar is a part-time nagini and a full-time believer in magic. Her work has appeared in a number of magazines and anthologies, including ENCHANTED LIVING, UNCANNY MAGAZINE, A THOUSAND BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS, and TOIL & TROUBLE. Her debut young adult fantasy novel, STAR DAUGHTER, was a finalist for the 2021 Andre Norton Nebula Award, and her second and third novels, THE DREAM RUNNERS and the forthcoming DIVINING THE LEAVES, take place in the same universe. Her adult fantasy novella, INTO THE MOON GARDEN, is available as an original audiobook from Audible.
What’s the hardest part of writing fiction that no one warns you about?
Feeling like you forgot how to tap into the magic that inspired the story. It usually comes back in the end―often after a phase of hating the writing process―but until then, ouch.
What’s a writing habit or ritual you swear by?
Recharging by taking in other media and forms of inspiration (being out in nature, shopping in tiny boutiques, looking through a selection of colorful fabrics). Basically, tapping back into that magic I mentioned above.
What’s your favorite trick for overcoming writer’s block?
Talking through plot and ideas with friends. It helps me figure out what I don’t want to do and what connections I haven’t yet made.
How do you balance world-building without overwhelming the story?
For me, worldbuilding is about creating immersion for the reader—a magical feel. So, I describe as much as I feel necessary to achieve that effect and stop there.
What’s your favorite fictional world to get lost in—book, game, or movie?
Ahhh, I can never have just one favorite of anything! But to pick one randomly, let’s go with Holly Black’s Faerie in her Modern Faerie Tale series.
What’s a lesser-known book that has deeply influenced your writing?
THE SEASON OF PASSAGE, by Christopher Pike.
What makes the Writers Symposium at Gen Con special for writers and readers alike?
Since this will be my first time attending, I’m looking forward to finding out! But for now, I can say that Maurice Broaddus is pretty great. 🙂
Follow Shveta on Instagram and Bluesky.
Check back for Part 2 as we continue to share our 2025 Writers Symposium authors. Follow Gen Con on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn for updates on this year’s con!