Survival Tips for the Waiting Part of Writing Tip #13 – Be Conference Ready

Writer’s conference season is upon us. If you’re like me, this time of year gets your creative juices flowing and turns you into a bundle of excitement and nerves. This will be my fourth season to enjoy the bounty these wonderful gatherings bestow. Nope, the thrill still has not faded.  If you have never attended a writer’s conference, I would highly recommend you go to at least one. After you’ve shared several days with people who get your writerly heart, I promise you’ll be hooked.

Writer’s conferences provide some of the best opportunities for encouragement and motivation a writer can ever know—especially if that writer is in the middle of a long waiting season. These events offer networking opportunities with fellow writers, classes to help improve your craft, and face-to-face time with agents and editors who are usually difficult to access.

But before you venture out into conference land it’s important to be adequately prepared for the journey. Here are a few tips to jumpstart your conference success:

1. Pray and ask God for guidance about which conference(s) to attend. He will place you right where He wants you. Plus, He’ll often prepare divine appointments where and when you’d least expect them.
2. Once you’re registered, immediately research the conference website and take full advantage of signups for mentoring, intensives, VIP lunches, practicums etc. Many conferences offer special perks that have limited space and require advance registration. If you don’t scour the website, way in advance, you might miss out on some of these valuable opportunities.
3. Enter the conference contest if they offer one. You’d be amazed at how a dose of competition can take your writing to the next level. It’s exhilarating to hear your name called from stage if you place, but even if you don’t the experience is guaranteed to kick your writing game up a notch.
4. Research the faculty ahead of time. If you have writing that is ready to pitch, make sure to do your homework before you attend the conference. Find out which agents and editors will be attending. Spend a good amount of time online getting to know who they are and what they’re looking for. If you find a good fit for your work, be prepared to jump at every chance to meet with that faculty member at the conference. A little planning can go a long way.
5. Pack your professional essentials. Be sure to take business cards, one sheets, paper and pen, clothing that shows you’re serious about the profession, and the confidence you need to sell your yourself and your work.
6. Polish your work, practice your pitch, and prepare your heart. Prior to the conference dedicate some time to make sure that you’ll be taking your very best with you. Best work. Best pitch. Best you.

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 4:12

Fun Fact or Helpful Resource: If you’d like more details about preparing a one sheet and pitching, here are some excellent resources:

One Page Sell Sheet

How to Prepare For Pitch Sessions at a Writing Conference

Annette Marie Griffin is a award-winning writer who speaks at local women’s group meetings and women’s retreats on the topic of biblical womanhood and finding our identity in Christ. She is the Operations and Events Coordinator at a private school for special needs students and is the editor of their quarterly newsletter. She has written custom curriculum for women’s retreats and children’s church curriculum for Gateway Church in San Antonio, Texas where she served as Children’s Ministry Director and Family Program Director for over twenty years. She and her husband John have five amazing children and two adorable grands. She’s a member of Word Weavers International, ACFW, SCBWI, and serves on the Board of Directors for The Creative Writing Institute.