What Happens at Writers Conference Goes in a Blog

This past weekend I had the pleasure of attending the Nebraska Writers Guild's 2016 Fall Conference and it was fantastic! I have never been around so many writers in one place before and was in complete awe. I'm sure it showed on my face, too, but I'm like 87.2% positive I didn't make too much of an ass out of myself.

One thing I want to say right off the bat is, I am absolutely blown away by how much talent there is in my little corner of the world. Friday night of the conference, there was an open mic event where you could come and spend seven minutes reading anything you wanted (I read the opening section of Love Drunk and Dragon Tears and got a number of compliments so I was pretty happy). While everybody who got up did wonderfully (even the lady who was absolutely terrified of reading in front of us), a few stood out.

The first person to read was a guy who looked to be about 16 years old, but when he started reading, I forgot how young he was. He painted a picture with his words so vividly that I can still see them nearly a week later. I was blown away and I hope great things happen for him.

A gentleman got up and introduced his reading by saying he was a poet and he primarily wrote about his wife and their journey with her dementia. He used his poetry to keep the woman he loved alive and well in his mind. His words were beautiful and loving and even now, make my eyes well up with unshed tears.

The last woman to read started by showing us a picture that she had painted of a little Ponca girl, curled up in the fetal position. The girl's name was Water Willow and her story was what we heard. As soon as the author started reading, I was taken back in time to America's most ancient story-telling tradition, that of the Native Americans. I felt like I was there with the man on the shores of the stream waiting for his daughter's arrival and watching the star shower above. It was beautifully written and told and brought me to tears.

Saturday started with breakfast and networking then a presentation by New York Times Best Selling author Victorine Lieske on BookBub. BookBub, something I had never heard of before the conference, is a newsletter you can sign up for and it will let you know when e-books in your chosen genre(s) go on sale or are free.

It is probably something I should stay away from considering the number of physical books I have yet to read and I know I probably have twice the number waiting for me on my iPad.

But Victorine spent most of her time talking about how writers can utilize it for getting word of their books to the masses. There is a significant application process and high rejection rate, but she said it is well worth it to try.

The second presenter was Carrie Pestritto, an agent from Prospect Agency. She spent the first part of her presentation talking to us about how to create our 'brand' which is essentially who we are as an author to our readers. She also had great tips and advice for authors looking for agents and what happens after they find one. The second half of her presentation was just answering any questions the group had about the agent/publisher side of the business.

The part that scared me was that she recommend different pen names if you write different genres to help your readers keep your books straight. I understand that, but I write in nearly all the genres... that's a lot of pen names.

After lunch and more networking time, we finally got to hear from the featured New York Times Best Selling author, Taylor Stevens. The woman is just as fascinating as her thriller/suspense novels are (I'm assuming, since I'm only halfway through the first one and I am loving it!).

Katherine,
So happy to meet you :)
 Keep on writing and keep kicking butt :)
[Taylor Stevens]

Due to her background, (she's very open about it and you can read about it on her website, so I'm not going into it here except to say "apocalyptic cult") she did not get into writing by any traditional path and therefore has a very unique view of books, writing, and the publishing business. I love her rules for when you get a publisher: 1) Do what they tell you to, 2) Don't be crazy!

Our final speaker was Sabrina Sumsion, author, former publicist, and social media expert (I don't know if that is one of her actual titles, but she sure deserves it if it isn't). Her presentation was all on the dos and don't of using social media as an author. She really emphasized how authors need to treat their social media presence just like a business does: know your target audience, don't make every post about you and what you're selling, be entertaining, and DO NOT bring in politics and/or religion unless that is what you write about. "Retain dignity and grace no matter what."

As an author who primarily uses social media to connect with my readers, this was exceptionally interesting to me and I definitely learned a lot.

Overall, I learned so much from both the presenters and the other writers I met. It was amazing to find out how much I still have to learn and how much I didn't know that I didn't know. If you are a writer, I definitely recommend finding a local (or not so local) writers conference and attending. It is wonderful to find a community of people from all walks of life who have this one thing in common with you.

I'll tell you one more thing, I can't wait for spring conference!