I love writers’ conferences. I can immerse myself in the craft of writing and not feel like the odd duck. They can be expensive, but conferences help you make connections across both sides of the publishing industry, traditional and indie.
You might want to attend a conference but are worried about cost. I have ways to keep your expenses down.
If you are a regular here at Life in the Realm of Fantasy, you may have seen my two-part series on the business side of being an author. If not, and you are interested, I will put the links to those articles at the bottom of this post. In the meantime, here are some pointers for making attending a conference more affordable.
One: Join the association offering the conference because members get reduced conference fees, sometimes by as much as $100.00. Take advantage of the early-bird discount if you can. Members will often have opportunities for remote learning all year long. I belong to three writers’ associations, each offering virtual classes I can access all year.
Two: Small local events. Does your library system offer presentations on the craft of writing by local authors? These small classes will likely be free if it is a public library. If they don’t offer little seminars occasionally, suggest it to them. Perhaps they’ll be willing to ask some local authors to do such an event.
Three: Use the internet. Google “writers’ conferences in my area.” Local ones are great because you can eat food that fits your dietary needs and sleep at home. That way, you only pay for the conference itself.
Four: Did I mention food? If you are planning to attend a large convention or conference where you will need to stay in a hotel, take simple foods that can be prepared without a stove and are filling. As I am vegan, I’m an accomplished hotel-room chef. Most coffee bars don’t offer many plant-based options. If they do, there will likely only be one to choose from, and it may not interest you. While that bias is changing, I still travel prepared.
Conferences work for me as an extension of the self-education process. Most of what I know about the craft of writing, the genres I write in, and the publishing industry as a whole are things I could only learn from other authors.
I gained an extended professional network by joining The Pacific Northwest Writers Association in 2011. Every year since then, I have attended their annual conference. Even during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, they held a virtual conference, which was an excellent example of what humans are capable of at short notice.
I attend the Science-fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) Nebula Conference every year. The pandemic also inspired SFWA to move to a hybrid in-person and virtual conference, so my only cost is the conference fee itself. That cost is quite reasonable because I always take advantage of my membership and early bird discounts.
I am not a happy flyer, so a virtual conference is definitely my thing if I can’t drive there. However, since SFWA is a worldwide association of professional science fiction and fantasy authors, their conferences will also be available virtually for the foreseeable future.
I attended the Southwest Washington Writers Conference (SWWC) two weeks ago. This shindig is local enough that I can commute from my home. I was privileged to present a one-hour class on the character arc and layers of depth, Heroes and Villains – Who are they, and why should we care? I had a lot of fun talking to other writers and hearing what they struggle with. In the end, I hope what I had to say helped them through the rough spots.
This last weekend, I was in Seattle, Washington, attending PNWA’s 2023 conference. I expect the ideas and information I encountered will emerge in my posts over the next few months—after I’ve had time to distill it. Each time I’m exposed to a different way of looking at things, my creative thinking style is reshaped.
I’m a small fish in a vast ocean. Attending local conferences puts me in contact with other authors and industry professionals, most of whom are successfully pursuing their craft. I meet people I don’t usually come into contact with as they hail from all over Washington State, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia.
The connections I make within the writing community often turn into friendships, which are sometimes the most valuable things I bring home from the conference.
Here are the two posts on the Business Side of the Business:
Life in the Realm of Fantasy 