Writing conferences..

Try this site: http://writing.shawguides.com/

You just missed one of the best - the Backspace conference. Keynote speaker was a Pulitzer prizewinner, and there were so many agents in attendance it was apparently hard to move without tripping over one - http://www.backspacewritersconference.com/zpresenters.htm

I missed it, but reports from people I know who attended were glowing. I will most definitely be at the next one.

They also have a list of conferences at http://www.bksp.org/secondarypages/conferences.htm, some with reviews.

I'm told they're having and agent/author event later in the year, I'lllet you know when I know more, or you can subscribe to their newsletter and find out about it when I do!

I have a follow-up... Are conferences still beneficial once you've already signed with an agent?? I recently canceled my reservation at the Maui Writers Conference because I signed with an agent. I saved a ton on money, but I'm feeling unsure whether I did the right thing.

Which ones are best depends on what you write.

As far as whether a writing conference is useful once you're with an agent, ask the agent. They're suppose to do more than take money from you.

I went to my first conf this spring - The Pike's Peak Writer's Conference here in beautiful Colorado Springs. It was a great time of rubbing elbows (as you said), learning, and getting motivated to keep plugging along. I was able to eat dinner with 3 different agents and had an 8 minute pitch session that went well...though the agent ultimately rejected my pages. There are a lot of published authors taht run around and do workshops or have a few minutes to chat about their publishing experiences...very worthwhile. I would definitely recommend going. I will keep attending for sure! ;-)

scribbler1382 said:

Which ones are best depends on what you write.

As far as whether a writing conference is useful once you're with an agent, ask the agent. They're suppose to do more than take money from you.

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I agree. But thus far, my agent hasn't taken any money from me. Rather, he's put a few hundred dollars out on my behalf for copies and such.

Maui

Begbie said:

I have a follow-up... Are conferences still beneficial once you've already signed with an agent?? I recently canceled my reservation at the Maui Writers Conference because I signed with an agent. I saved a ton on money, but I'm feeling unsure whether I did the right thing.

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Well, you'll meet some people you probably admire, probably a few editors, and you'll be in Hawaii. What could be better?

I recently attended the Lighthouse Writer's Workshop Literary Festival in Denver. I attended "a la carte" which means I was able to pick a few things to attend instead of spending $550 to attend all of it, I spent about $285.

My inlaws were in town for the weekend, and I live about an hour from the activities, so it was all I could manage.

For my $285, I bought the following:

Writing Humor: 2 hour class $50
Creating Dramatic Structure: 2.5 hour class *well worth the $50
Wine and apps reception with agents and editors and other writers $10
Full day of business 2 hr Q&A panel with an agents/editors $5 for parking $5 lunch
1 20 min pitch with an editor (is reading 3ch of my novel) $40
1 20 min pitch with agent/consultant (worthless 20 min.) $40
2.5 hour query letter boot camp with Dan Lazar (letter + 10 pages crit)painful, for most of us (including me) but helpful. $75

Would I do it again? Maybe. Not the pitches, but attending the Q&A panel was very informative.

Backspace’s Agent-Author Seminar - "All Agents; All Day"

On Friday, November 3, 2006, Backspace is sponsoring another event at The Algonquin Hotel, this one crafted specifically for writers in search of an agent. Backspace’s Agent-Author Seminar is an intense, one-day event of panels and workshops with only agents on the faculty - 20 agents, with a ceiling of 100 registrants. With an author-friendly five-to-one ratio, there will be plenty of opportunity for authors to talk to agents, so there will be no formal pitch sessions; instead, the program parts will be 45 minutes long to allow a full 15 minutes in between so attending authors can meet and chat with participating agents. There will also be a 45-minute mixer during the afternoon.

The day will begin at 10:00 a.m. to allow those who live within commuting distance time to get to the city, and end at 5:00.

More details with be forthcoming when the Agent-Author Seminar website goes live next week ( http://bksp.org/allagents/ ). As of this writing, Jennifer Unter, Paul Cirone, Dan Lazar, Jenny Bent, Rolph Blythe, Michael Bourret, Sharlene Martin, and Scott Hoffman have confirmed their participation on the program.

This promises to be a unique opportunity for aspiring authors to spend quality time with a stellar group of literary agents. Tell your friends!

Begbie said:

I have a follow-up... Are conferences still beneficial once you've already signed with an agent?? I recently canceled my reservation at the Maui Writers Conference because I signed with an agent. I saved a ton on money, but I'm feeling unsure whether I did the right thing.

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It depends on your reasons for going. If it's solely to seek agent representation, and you're happy with your choice, yes, save yourself the money. However, I continue to attend conferences whenever I can even though I have representation simply because I enjoy meeting other writers, networking with professionals and just being in an environment where I can talk writing without being thought of as crazy or strange. I suspect that even if I become a published writer, I will still be attending in some capacity or other (though, of course, would be nice to be a paid speaker rather than a paying attendee) but the fact is, I just love going to them.

Do they continue to be beneficial? I think so. It's still a great opportunity to meet other writers, to make friends and connections with agents and editors who will remember your name and face. After all, you still have no guarantees of what will happen with this agent you've signed with, and it's good to have other valuable connections as well--you can't ever have too many of those.

I'm envious. I'm in the arse-end of nowhere. Nearest I get to a writers' conference is me talking to myself.

Great comment arrowqueen. This gets my vote as best post of the day. I love the word "arse". It's so very continental.