The first thing that immediately stuck out to me was just how friendly everyone was. I've never met a more inviting, encouraging group of writers in one place like that before.
It was so refreshing to be around so many people that produced nothing but positive vibes all weekend.
As for what I learned at the conference...well, let's just say I'm still in information overload. I began the weekend with a four-hour long class on novel beginnings by best selling author, Sharon Mignerey. There was an extra fee to attend that class, but what I learned in that class alone was enough to justify the cost of admission for the entire weekend.
The rest of the weekend was full of workshops, panels, pitches, and everything else a newbie like me needs to know to get his foot in the door.
As far as the craft itself, I won't get into any specifics yet; we'll put that in future posts, but I do want to mention perhaps the two most important things I took away from the weekend.
1) I will make it. I have no doubt about that anymore. It really is just a matter of when, and not if.
2) It's not something I want anymore; it's something I need. Writing has always been in my blood. But, damn, this convention made it real. And hanging around 300+ authors who are there (or at least half-way to the top) makes it just that much more feasible.
That, and authors are just fun people to drink with.
Finally, I'd like to send out special thanks to Bonnie Ramthun for taking the time to discuss my novel, my pitch, and some general revision tips to make it more marketable. I can't even begin to describe how helpful she was.
So, keep reading, keep writing, and try to attend a writing conference like this sometime.
I'll be back tomorrow to return to a mostly regular blogging schedule, with a new(ish) focus for my posts. We'll have more on that tomorrow, too.
Image credit rmfw.org
No comments:
Post a Comment