Conference Report!
Well, my first conference has come to a close, and I have to say that overall it was a great experience. I’m definitely going to do one of these again. I met some great people, heard some great stories, learned about the business, learned about the craft and got even more inspired about my current WIP.
Friday, April 11
6:50 am: Alarm went off. I dragged myself out of bed, grumbling under my breath because I hate the morning.
8:30 am: I got there and found that the conference was taking place in a really beautiful historical building and that the “main” panels would be taking place in the middle of a library as seen in the picture above. Really beautiful area. I registered, got my name tag and snacked on some breakfast. I also got a big Strand bag (one of their sponsors) full of swag. I like swag.
9:00 am: I sat in on the Birth of a Book panel about Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris. It was really interesting to hear his story about how he wrote it, got an agent, got an editor and how they promoted it. I absolutely loved his agent, Julie Barer, but from what she said and what I have found online, she doesn’t represent YA. Everyone else seemed to love her too, as she seemed like the agent who got approached the most.
11:00 am: I sat in on the fiction agents panel. They talked about the process of acquiring an agent and the best way to go about it. A lot of what they said I already knew because of my obsessive internet research tendencies, but it was still really great to hear them talk about it. One panelist seemed like a great match for me as an agent, and I’m definitely going to query her when my novel is ready. Some other writers and I had a discussion afterwards about how great it was to actually see these agents and get a sense of their personality. It’s a better way to tell if they’d be a good match for you in a relationship that is extremely important.
12:30 pm: Lunchtime! We mingled around for a bit, and I chatted with some other aspiring writers. Then, thriller writer Lincoln Child gave a keynote speech and answered questions from the audience. Another great story from a successful author. Funny guy too. I haven’t ever read any of his work, but I’m going to have to give it a try.
2:00 pm: I sat in on the fiction editors panel. They all insisted that editors do in fact still edit because they are constantly doing so, especially on nights and on weekends. I really liked two of the editors on this panel. Funny, smart and hardworking women. Also, big publishing houses apparently do not read any slush these days. They used to do slush lunches, but those have been scrapped. So, it’s a bad idea to send an unsolicited manuscript to the big guys because they don’t look at them at all anymore.
4:00 pm: Sat in on Writing and Publishing Beautiful Children by Charles Bock. Another interesting story from an author who has had pretty good success with his debut novel. Some great things were said here, but I can’t recall anything specific because I’m kind of tired right now.
5:30 pm: I was getting pretty tired and hungry by this point so I headed out for some dinner.
Saturday, April 12
6:50 am: Alarm went off, and the snooze button was hit.
9:00 am: The query letter workshop was going on, but because I had slept in, I didn’t make it to this one. Boo. I was kinda looking forward to it because this is really important to me.
11:00 am: This was a panel with various authors who answered questions about the writing life, getting published and everything after.
12:30 pm: Lunchtime! Author Alice Hoffman spoke and signed books. I spoke to her, and she was so friendly. She asked me about my current project and wished me luck. She writes YA and thought it was great that I was working on one, and told me that writing what you love to read is the best way to go about writing.
2:00 pm: I attended the master class with Sol Stein about writing foolproof dialogue. This was a lot of fun. He loves first person just as I do, and he talked about why first person is a great idea. He also mentioned a great technique when writing dialogue. Pretend you’re taking one character into a private room and tell him his side of the story. Then, take the other character into a private room and tell the other her side of the story. Neither character knows what is in the other’s mind. I already do this do an extent, but I’m going to try specifically thinking of this when I work on my novel tonight.
4:00 pm: I sat in on the What’s Next panel that was kind of a wrap-up of all the panels over the two days. Several authors sat on the panel and gave their advice on finishing the novel and getting it published. I met Susan Breen, author of The Fiction Class. She suggested attending a conference with pitch sessions once my novel was finished because that is how she found her editor.
5:30 pm: Reception time. I only stuck around for about half an hour, mingling with the other conference attendees. It was a great chance to network, but I left early because I was feeling very sleepy by that time. Also, I had been making plot notes in my notebook all day, and I’m feeling pretty inspired to work on my novel tonight.
Overall, this was a great experience. It was focused more on the agenting and publishing side of things rather than craft. I’m interested in both since my aim is to be published one day. I also think the focus was more on those authors who haven’t been published yet, so it was a perfect fit for me since, you know, I haven’t been published yet. It made me wish that I was going to RWA Nationals this year, but I don’t think I can swing it. We’ll see. I might change my mind.
Kudos to Libba Bray| WIP Status » »
Comments
Sweet. I’ve wanted to go to a writer’s conference for a long time. However, hubby’s not up for me traveling without him, and the one conference in our area is coming up pretty quick and I don’t have enough vacation time left.
Maybe next year, but then… I’m hoping to have sold my WIP by then!
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