9/26/17- My Second Writers' Conference

This past Saturday I attended my second writers' conference.  The first writers' conference I ever attended was the SCBWI LA 2016 conference, and I learned lots of useful information. And while the LA conference was cool, the Arizona conference (also hosted by SCBWI, which any aspiring children's book author should check out the org) was more intimate.  I really enjoyed being able to network with more authors, including the ones I consider friends, and the connections made at this conference feel like they are going to last longer (probably because most of us are local, unlike the LA conference, although I did make a friend or two at the LA conference).

There were also some great presentations from editors and agents.  Kat, from Feiwel and Friends, provided great tips on the business side of writing, including "Know Your Genre." That means read, read, read the books (especially current books) that are in the genre you write.  I'm hoping I can accomplish reading more Young Adult, Middle Grade, and Chapter Books, as Jack, Bobby and I read lots of Picture Books together.  It's hard to squeeze in reading time when you have like 4 different jobs.  But reading is fun for me, so I am very much on board with this tip.

Russell from Little Brown Books gave a really fun presentation about humor in picture books.  He gave us tips and suggestions for humor, but what I liked best, was that we had to implement these tips and suggestions through 2 writing exercises.  The engineer in me likes taking the subject learned and applying said subject.  I also want to thank Bobby for always sharing "Dad Jokes" with me (which I love by the way; most of them make me chuckle), as his jokes came in handy for the humor writing exercises.

Any budding writer/author should attend at least one writing conference early in their career; that's my advice to you all.  The connections you make with other authors and all the knowledge you learn about writing (the "craft") and about the publishing business are pretty invaluable.  Plus, you might win a door prize (I did, woo-hoo)! Happy writing to all (whether it's a blog, a book, or an office memo)!

Here are some tips from other sources if you are attending a writing conference for the first time:

Making the Most of Your Next Writers Conference

Do's and Don't's of Attending a Writers Conference

Specific Tips for a SCBWI Conference