I joke that if I didn’t like my husband, I could arrange to be away at writers conferences 90% of the time. The truth is, Christian publishing blesses industry professionals with many excellent opportunities, including classes, worship, professional speakers, the chance to meet top agents, editors, and writers, along with mentorships and fellowship, to name a few. Each conference is unique and offers its own ideas and opportunities. How to choose?
Intangibles are good.
Meeting new writers, seeing old friends, and strengthening connections with other industry professionals are all significant reasons to be on the faculty. If the conference location works with taking a vacation, seeing extended family and friends, or conducting other business, making the trip may be more than well worth your time.
If you’re a happily published author but are not on the faculty, the trip will likely be about intangible benefits for you. At this point, you don’t need to meet with editors or agents. You may like two or three classes, but most workshops probably won’t be geared toward you. However, when a conference you can afford to attend allows you to meet with many other authors, the money will be well spent. If your editor and/or agent happen to be going as well, this is an opportunity to chat with them. At this point in your career, attending a conference shouldn’t make or break your career.
If you’re a new author, attending a conference is a big deal on many levels. Some authors attend a small conference close to home before attending a national conference with hundreds of conferees and loads of faculty. Other authors jump right in with the big conference. Whatever works for your personality, time, and budget will be deciding factors for you.
Have a plan. Do you want to meet with editors to garner interest and then find an agent based on editors’ interest, or do you want to meet only with agents? Either way is legitimate. However, I recommend that authors seeking an agent use the time to meet with agents if the conference permits this. Agents know editors, so we can open doors with many editors, whereas authors are likely to be able to meet with one or two editors at any given conference.
Consider faculty members. Most conferences post pictures and bios of scheduled faculty members on their websites. Visit the website of every conference you can realistically attend and see if you can meet with an agent or editor you want to work with. I don’t know of any conference that guarantees beforehand that an author will meet with a particular agent or editor. If you can’t get an appointment with your selected faculty members, attend a panel or class where they will be present, sit with them at a meal, or try to see them some other way. Speaking for myself, after a conference, I’m not opposed to receiving a note from an author who says they couldn’t see me but are interested in working with me.
Consider the unstated conference goal. Each conference has its own personality and slant. You can see which conferences emphasize magazine writing, books, fiction, nonfiction, or specific genres. When choosing the best conference for yourself, review the classes offered and the faculty who will be present. If possible, it’s better to spend a little more money and time to attend a conference that seems geared to helping you fulfill your goals than to participate just because it’s cheap or close to home.
Hard for you to travel? Many conferences have an option to meet with industry professionals over Zoom. As an agent, I find this option helpful, and I have been blessed to spend time over Zoom with many talented authors.
The main point is to take the time to do the research before committing to any conference. Using our resources that belong to the Lord is a way to honor our commitment to writing for Him.
The best way I can honour God
is now to step away
from the path I’ve lately trod,
and help others on their way
with love and encouragement,
perhaps a kind of grace,
and so I won’t be present
in the conference-space.
Let others take the meetings
that I once may have sought,
finding strength in hopeful greetings
to give it their best shot
to write their faith and speak God’s truth
with fervor of an ageless youth.
Andrew, thank you for being such a blessing!
Thank YOU, Tamela, for the care you take in helping writers up the steep and narrow path.
Funny you should post this today. I am very seriously thinking about going to the Kentucky Christian Writers conference in October.
Should I take it as a sign, or is it just a sign that conference season is upon us?
Nora, conference season is upon us, but if this article has blessed you and will help you decide, I’m so glad!
I plan to attend that conference and take appointments on behalf of Elk Lake Publishing. Hope to see you there
I LOVE attending writers conferences! It’s such a blessing to connect with other like-minded writers and build relationships. I try to attend one large conference each year, and of course, I always attend our ACFW Virginia virtual conference – the best value around!
I love the Virginia ACFW virtual conference!
Outstanding advice! Very thoroughly doing the homework ahead of time made me feel like everything I did at the conference was productive and I came home with multiple invitations to submit proposals and even a whole manuscript to agents and publishers. Then the REAL work began! 😉
So true, Linda!
I agree, Tamela. Conferences are beneficial on all levels. I enjoy all levels of opportunities.
So true!
Excellent advice, Tamela!
I’ve been on faculty, and I’ve been a conferee. I love conferences! There’s always something to learn.
I’m looking forward to attending Write To Publish this June for the first time! New friends to meet, new workshops to take, and new appointments to have. I’ll be pitching at one, and the other, I’ll be asking advice. Some of my best appointments were ones where I asked for advice.
I enjoy strategizing with authors!
Thank you so much for explaining the different ways and reasons for authors to attend conferences, Tamela. I found it really helpful that you broke it down by what season each author is in and which conference would best suit our individual needs. Everyone has different goals, financial constraints, and level of comfortability. This was very thoughtful from all angles and gives me encouragement to pursue attending a conference someday.
Thank you for the encouragement! I’m so glad this post was beneficial to you!
Thank you, good information. Seems conferences that would be beneficial for me are generally too far away to attend, so I stick with whatever I can find online.
I wish there were more of them.
If to a conference you travel,
here’s how to avoid the blues
from sore feet making plans unravel:
wear a pair of comfy shoes!
You will stand more than you think,
chatting with the writing tribe
while sipping from a fizzy drink
(I know it’s not booze you imbibe!).
You’ll walk far through the conference space,
and if in San Antonio
you’ll visit Texas’ sacred place,
the grand and solemn Alamo,
while every person that you meet
smiles at Air Jordans on your feet.
Thanks for sharing this.
Blessings.
Wise counsel, Tamela. We have to choose carefully or we could spend all our time attending conferences, with no time to write. I have made lasting friendships through these gatherings, though, and wouldn’t trade them for anything.