What makes fiction feel real? Is it the setting, the characters, the conflict—or the pieces of ourselves that writers quietly weave into every story?
In the Writing Fiction panel at The RV Book Fair 2026, authors Verlin Darrow and Gary Smith came together for a lively conversation about the craft of fiction and the very different life experiences that have shaped their work.
Both authors demonstrate that writers rarely leave their own lives completely outside the pages they create. Gary, an award-winning author and photographer, explained how years spent looking through a camera lens influence the way he constructs a scene. He visualizes his chapters almost as photographs, composing the setting and perspective before putting the words on the page. His Warren Steelgrave novels also draw heavily from people and places he knows, including his father, who became a major inspiration for Warren. His connection to both the United States and Italy gives his fiction another personal dimension, allowing him to bring the cultures and landscapes of both countries into his stories.
Verlin Darrow brings an equally fascinating—and decidedly unconventional—collection of experiences to his writing. A psychotherapist, he has also been a professional volleyball player, singer-songwriter, NCAA coach, business owner, and much more. After beginning to write novels at nineteen, he continued developing his craft over the years and eventually became the author of seven published mysteries and thrillers.
Their conversation reminded us that fiction may be invented, but its strongest foundations often come from observation, experience, curiosity, and an understanding of people.
From creating believable characters to building suspense and transforming pieces of real life into imagined worlds, Writing Fiction celebrated the wonderful process through which writers take what they have seen, experienced, questioned, and imagined—and turn it into a story that belongs to the reader.
Watch the video here:
Hosts
Hosts – Lucia Matuonto – www.luciamatuonto.com and Pat Backley – www.patbackley.com
Speaker – Ellen Frazer Jameson – www.frazer-jameson.com
Guests
Gary Smith garysmithauthor.com
Verlin Darrow – www.verlindarrow.com