Writing Conferences Across America

RWA 2011 Book Signing

By Debby Giusti

Romance Writers of America will host their 2012 National Writers Conference next week in Anaheim, California. Some of you will be there, attending workshops, networking with industry professionals and soaking up as much information as possible about writing, marketing and the future of publishing.  The conference offers opportunities to pitch your stories to editors and agents, take part in the “Readers for Life” charity book signing for literacy and reconnect with writing friends from around the world.  Onsite registration will be available. Learn more here. Next year’s conference will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, July 17-21, 2013.

FYI: The literacy book signing format has changed this year.  Authors are not sitting alphabetically. I’ll be at Table 407. Please stop by and say hello!

Fast forward to September 20th and the American Fiction Writers Conference, held this year in Dallas.  Hopefully many of you are making plans to attend what is considered the “premier conference” in the country focused on Christian fiction. Each day begins with prayer and follows with a wide range of workshops and special education sessions geared to various levels from the beginning writer to the multi-published bestseller.  Agents and editors mix and mingle with writers who often pitch their stories over lunch or during assigned appointment sessions. The welcoming, informal environment fosters friendships and a relaxing exchange of information.

ACFW 2011

Not able to attend either of the national conferences?  Perhaps a regional venue might be a better fit.  A number of RWA chapters throughout the country hold their own conferences.  A complete list of RWA chapters can be found on the national website. Click on the chapter names to learn about educational opportunities and conferences available near you.

Walt and his beautiful wife, Mo, at M&M

I clicked on my home chapter, Georgia Romance Writers, and found information on our upcoming Moonlight and Magnolias Conference, to be held in Atlanta, Oct 5-7. I’m the Georgia Featured Author so I may be biased, but this year’s M&M promises to be extra special. Five editors and four agents will be taking pitches and eagerly looking for new writers. An excellent lineup of professionals will offer more than thirty, in-depth workshops and programs that promise to, as this year’s theme suggests, “Light a Fire Under Your Fiction.” Winners of the Maggie Award of Excellence will be announced at a gala banquet Saturday, followed with dancing until midnight.  Held in a lovely Hilton, called the “Castle on the Hill,” the nightly room rate of $79 keeps costs at a minimum.  

Looking for some fun in the sun along with your conference? Seeker Cara Lynn James recommends her Gulf Coast Chapter’s Silken Sands Conference. “The conference is held every two years in the spring at the Hampton Inn right on Pensacola Beach. The weather has almost always been beautiful! Our pitching sessions are usually done on the back patio overlooking the beach and Gulf of Mexico. We all spend a lot of time outside enjoying northwest Florida at the best time of the year.” The next conference will be held in 2014. Watch for details on the Gulf Coast’swebsite. 

Be sure to also check out Cara’s August release, Path Toward Love.

L to R: Julie, Audra, Janet, Cara and Debby

If you’re not into the beach scene, head north to Wisconsin.  Author Lyn Cote enjoys her WisRWA Chapter’s Write Touch Conference. “We have a yearly Friday evening to Sunday A.M. conference in June with agents and editor appointments and national best-selling romance authors as keynote speakers.” Next year’s event will be May 31-June 2. Lyn has two current releases, La Belle Christiane and Winter’s Secret.

Seeker Glynna Kaye enjoys attending Desert Dreams, hosted by the Desert
Rose RWA Chapter.  “You can't beat the Sonoran Desert in the Spring!  Palm trees, flowers, pleasantly warm days and cool nights.  Chaparral Suites Resort in Scottsdale is an all
suites, two pools, buffet-style hotel with breakfast provided. Free transportation provided

to/from Sky Harbor International Airport. Nearby shopping and restaurants.  The event is held every other year which allows the hosts to invest time and money in a really classy,
well-organized conference. Limited to about 300 attendees, it feels very personal with

opportunities to chat one-on-one other writers and guest speakers/workshop instructors as

well as name editors and agents.  (This is the conference where I first met MY
agent, Natasha Kern.)” Join Glynna at the next conference in April 2014. Be sure to read Glynna's latest release, High Country Hearts.

 

Pepper and Carol

Grammar guru Darlene Buchholz has presented workshops at numerous conferences and offers the following information about the New Jersey Romance Writers’ Put Your Heart in a Book Conference. “Held every year in October, the conference is close to the Newark airport. Because New Jersey is close to New York, many editors and agents from big publishing houses attend this conference. For 2012, there are 8 agents and at least 9 editors, 6 of whom are from Harlequin. Workshops are plentiful and varied. Some are offered by well-known authors but many workshops are offered by genre authors perhaps less known but with sterling advice. Winners of the Put Your Heart in a Book writing contest are announced toward the end of the conference. Final judges are well-known editors/agents. Costs of the conference are moderate.” 

Another of Darlene’s favorites is the New Hampshire Romance Writers’ Fall Fling, scheduled for September 2013. “The conference is held in historical Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and easily accessible from the Manchester NH airport or from Boston if you must fly in to a big airport. The setting provides delightful sightseeing which is mere footsteps from the hotel. Several agents and editors who are actively seeing new writers attend. This is a small conference so there are fewer workshops. The way the workshops are staggered, you seldom have to decide between two great ones you want to attend. Presenters sit at the designated lunch tables with the workshop attendees, giving you a wonderful opportunity to network with new friends and with a presenter you particularly enjoyed.” 

What about regional Christian writing conferences?

Seeker Myra Johnson highly recommends Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. An annual event for the last 43 years, Mt. Hermon is held over the Palm Sunday weekend, and the conference center is nestled in the beautiful Santa Cruz Mountains of California. “I’ve been to Mount Hermon three times. It's a great experience, so much more relaxed than ACFW or RWA, but equally inspiring, motivational, and educational. The faculty and classes are always outstanding, worship is a big part of the daily schedule, the food is great, and the setting, amidst all those giant redwoods, is unbelievable!” Don’t miss Myra’s latest release, A Horseman’s Gift.

An east coast mountain venue is Blue Ridge Christian Writers Conference. Held in Ashville, North Carolina, each May, the conference has a 25-year history of success and teaches all forms of writing, from magazine and devotionals to full-length Christian fiction.

The same North Carolina venue will host the Blue Ridge Autumn in the Mountains Christian Novelist Retreat, October 14- 17.

Carol Award winning author Carrie Turansky has two favorite conferences. “The Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers' Conference will be held this year from August 1-4 in Langhorne, PA. This is for both fiction and non-fiction and is the sister conference to the Colorado Christian Writers' Conference held in May. Marlene Bagnull oversees both conferences. There is a spiritual atmosphere and lots of great workshops, continuing sessions, and clinics.”  Read Carrie’s latest Love Inspired romance, A Man to Trust.

How about combining a conference with a cruise? AMERICAN CHRISTIAN WRITERS CARIBBEAN CRUISE, November 25-Dec 2. 

Having fun at ACFW!

Kiddie Lit and YA? Write2Ignite, a two-day Christian conference for writers of children’s literature and young adult will be held March 15-16, 2013, at North Greenville University, in Tigerville, South Carolina. 

For more Christian conference info, check out the following blogs:

 http://fliterary.blogspot.com and http://keikihendrix.com/2012-christian-writers-conferences/

Seeker Fun at Breakfast

Interested in the mystery/suspense genre?

SleuthFest is sponsored by the Florida Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. 

Bouchercon moves around the country and will be in Cleveland, Ohio, this year, October 4-7.

MaliceDomestic attracts mystery writers and fans and is held each May in Arlington, Virginia.

KillerNashville is promoted as a thriller, mystery and suspense writers and literature lovers’ conference held in—you guessed it—Nashville.  

Janet, Helen, Debby and Cara

Author Lynette Eason calls The Writers Police Academy, in Jamestown, North Carolina, a must for mystery and suspense writers. “It’s is a fabulous resource for writers who are interested in writing true-to-life crime fiction. I attended the first year and learned too much to even describe." Lynette’s latest release is The Black Sheep's Redemption from LIS.

A list of additional mystery and suspense conferences can be found at: http://inreferencetomurder.com/html/conferences.html

RomCon, an event for fans and writers of romance and women’s fiction, is held each spring in Denver, CO.

DragonCon attracts sci-fi and fantasy fans and authors to Atlanta each Labor Day.  Bring your costumes to wear in the parade. 

RT Booklovers Convention, sponsored yearly by RT Book Reviews, will be May 1-5, 2013, in Kansas City. The event attracts both readers and writers. 

As you can see, writers’ conferences abound.  Tell us about the conferences in your local area or any writing event that you’ve found worthwhile.  We’ll pool our resources for the betterment of all.

Leave a comment to be entered in the drawing for one of my books, your choice.

Happy writing,

Debby Giusti

www.DebbyGiusti.com

www.craftieladiesofromance.blogspot.com

Watch for THE COLONEL’S DAUGHTER, the third book in my Military Investigations series, in bookstores this August.

THE COLONEL’S DAUGHTER

By Debby Giusti

UNDER SIEGE

A ruthless killer is targeting the families of soldiers in a U.S. Army

colonel’s brigade. Special agent Jamison Steele, of the Criminal

Investigation Division, vows to stop him—because this time,

Jamison’s heart is involved. The colonel’s daughter, the woman who loved and left Jamison without a word, came face-to-face with the murderer. Protecting Michele Logan means constant surveillance. And solving the mystery of the serial killer’s motive requires asking Michele the questions she least wants to answer. Questions that may lead them both into a deadly trap.