I go to a fair number of conferences and workshops. I go because my degree is an MBA, not an MFA. I also go because the more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know.
Here are a few of my favorites:
Iowa Summer Writing Festival: This writer’s conference is hosted by the University of Iowa in June and July each year. The U of Iowa is home to one of the most prestigious creative writing MFA’s in the country, which means that Festival attendees get to share in some of that mojo. There are week-long and weekend sessions, a few two-week sessions, and each session is part writing, part teaching, part critique. A writing conference where attendees write seems optimal. I usually stay at the Sheraton; with conference rates of $104/night it’s a bargain. Weeklong workshops cost $604 in 2015 and weekend workshops are $320.
Erma Bombeck Writer’s Workshop: The Erma Bombeck Writer’s Workshop is something special. It’s put on only once every two years. I attended the 2012 and the 2014 conferences. Registration is limited to about 320 attendees and fills up within the first one to two days, so I mark my Outlook calendar and register the minute the site is open. I have never encountered a warmer group of people and the speakers are high quality. Last year Phil Donahue made me a fan with his keynote about his friendship with Erma Bombeck. The sessions are great and the cost is quite reasonable–in 2014 it was $395, which included three dinners, two lunches and two continental breakfasts. Make early reservations at the conference hotel to avoid shuttling in every day. Sessions are held on the University of Dayton Campus, within walking or shuttle distance of the conference hotel.
Onliten.com: This isn’t a conference per se, but it’s like a mini-conference you can go to in your pajamas, without incurring any travel or hotel costs. Katrina Kittle, author of The Blessings of the Animals and The Kindness of Strangers, teaches online classes on topics like Revision (90 minutes for $30), Characterization (5 one-hour sessions for $100), Inspiration & Motivation (5 one-hour sessions for $100), and Voice & Point of View (4 one-hour sessions, $80.). She also has a great series called The Fiction Writer’s Toolbox (6 one-hour sessions for $120.) The classes can be attended live or via the recording, which is handy when travel or other conflicts interfere with the schedule. Katrina is a generous, skilled, and inspiring teacher.
Indiana Faith & Writing Conference: This one surprised me. I was looking for a Christian writer’s conference that wasn’t sappy or straight-down-the-middle Evangelical Christian. The conference turned out to be eclectic and high-quality, and at $104 for the Early Bird registration (which includes a 15-minute conference with an agent or editor) this two-day conference is a steal. In 2014, I stayed in a dorm for something like $25/night. Conference dates in 2015 are October 30 and 31.
Tips for Successful Attendance at a Writer’s Conference:
1. Bring your best stuff. One time, I made the mistake of bringing first draft work for a meeting with a guy who turned out to be a highly acclaimed poet, and he pretty much tossed it aside and talked with me in generalities. It would have been a better conversation if I could have learned how to make my most polished work better.
2. Be ready to learn. Have a notebook, take notes, review your notes when you go back to your hotel room. The presenters are trying to give you their best stuff. Are you taking it back with you?
3. Go for more than yourself. Be an encourager. Enjoy seeing how different people are successful taking different approaches to their writing. Writing is NOT a zero-sum game!
Is a Writer’s Conference in your Future?
Writer’s Conferences or classes can be just the shot in the arm you need to finish that novel or submit your poetry. Be strategic about what conferences you attend so you get the most benefit, whether you measure that in friends made or pages written.
I’ve named four different entry points to writing conferences or classes. What would you add?
Susan Fuchtman 