The third annual Comadres & Compadres Writers Conference, held at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, Sept. 27, was fantastic, and it was made possible by Las Comadres Para Las Americas, a virtual community of women who thrive on connectivity and dialogues about education, employment, culture and resources.

In collaboration with CUNY: National Black Writers Conference, the Center for Black Literature and the Association for Latin American Studies, Scholastic and many others, Las Comadres offered participants a full-day of panels, presentations, workshops and networking opportunities. Keynote speaker and bestselling author Esmeralda Santiago spoke with a room of ambitious writers and readers, and attendees were able to confer with authors and publishers and have one-on-one sessions with literary agents and editors.

"Every year this conference gets bigger and better! Many of the participants are returning for the second and third time, and we could not ask for a better endorsement. The authors, editors, and agents that participated were incredibly helpful, and many stayed with us past their panel/time to mix with the participants. We are already planning for 2015!" Nora de Hoyos Comstock, the National and International Founder, President and CEO of Las Comadres Para Las Americas, said to Latin Post in an email.

Comstock and fellow comadres Adriana Dominquez and Marcela Landres welcomed everyone to the event, then, the room was split. Attendees had the opportunity to choose between the "Craft Workshop for Adult Books" panel and the "Craft Workshop for Children's Books," which was led by author Meg Medina ("Yagui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass").

The "Adult Books" workshop was led by Luis Jaramillo, Director of the School of Writing at the New School and author of the novel "The Doctor's Wife." He began the session by introducing the fundamentals of a good book; noting humor, strong characters, emotions, suspense, and being able to "say enough so that editors and audiences ask questions" as key components. Also, he stated that authors should know what a story is ... and what it isn't.

"When someone's telling you a dream, and it has no point, that's not a story. When you're writing something that's kind of fun to write, but has no momentum ... or upward trajectory or downward trajectory, that's not a story either. It's important to trust that that feeling, because that feeling is correct," said Jaramillo.

Writers need to learn how to read their own work as readers, and they also need to learn how to establish primary conflict, as well as create a "logic vs. emotion" dynamic, which sets up expectations. Introducing action prior to introducing background is also beneficial, because background can answer questions that were posed because of the action. Also, the plot is developed from consequences and the desires of a character; their needs and their internal and external conflict fuels how that character sees the world. He also added that making characters vulnerable makes them appear real even though books are "an artificial thing." Sentence-by-sentence, readers should be able to see the resistance and struggle, as well as the emotion and gratification of characters.

Following the initial panel, attendees were able to choose between a fiction and non-fiction panel. The fiction panel included Theresa Varela ("Covering the Sun with My Hand") and Sandra Rodriguez Barron ("Stay With Me") and it was moderated by Chris Campanioni ("Going Down"). The non-fiction panel featured Alina Garcia-Lapuerta ("La Belle Creole: The Cuban Countess"), Daisy Hernandez ("A Cup of Water Under My Bed) and moderator Jose Luis Vilson ("This is Not A Test").

The nonfiction panel began by clarifying the differences between nonfiction and fiction, with the constraint of facts being the most prominent difference. Opinions on facts and history can be voiced, but ultimately stories adhere to the reality of the stories being told, yet they must be told in a readable "fiction" style.

The writers and panelists offered smart tips about writing and publishing non-fiction. The "show and tell" advantage of non-fiction must be stifled, to include only the important stories. Trust stories that are important, and omit stories that are of no benefit to the grander work. The book must feel as if it belongs to the writer, yet the writer has to be open to criticism and understand that an editor "is editing your book, not your life."

Some other tips offered were: don't show writing to others until it is complete and ready; read poetry prior to writing in order to absorb the language; network and maintain a strong social media presence; and remember that memoirs are not autobiographies are also important. When writing a memoir, one must be able to "build conversation and let it go."

To learn more about Las Comadres Para Las Americas and the Comadres & Compadres Writers Conference, please visit the Las Comadres website, check out their book, "Count on Me: Tales of Sisterhoods and Fierce Friendships" and find them on Twitter.