Writercon2023
Conventions offer so many great things and choices are not always one of them. Yes, there are plenty of choices but that isn’t always a good thing. If you choose one thing, you will miss out on something else. Writercon is no exception.
FOMO- How Do You Choose?
Every hour from nine to five, I had to make a choice between four to five workshops with amazing experts and talent, including New York Times best selling authors Lisa Gardner and Tosca Lee, USA Today bestselling Novelist Susan Meisner among 54 other authors, writers, agents, and publishers.
It is amazing to be among all these knowledgeable creatives willing to share their expertise but how do you choose? After running around last year like a metal marble in a pinball machine, trying to take in everything, I realized how easy it was to lose focus and come away with very little I could put into action. I decided this year I would get a clear focus on what I needed to get out of the conference to drive my dream forward.
Start Where You Are
I took a hard look at where I was in my writing and what my next steps were. Setting my lofty goal of being a bestselling author down for a moment, and concentrating on my very next step, I set some clear goals for the conference. I have a polished manuscript ready to publish and am starting to work on the next book in the series. I wanted to come away from the conference with a clear direction for publishing my first novel and then if there were any openings I would fill them in with outlining the next one.
Decide On Your Next Steps
I ended up attending 9 Workshops on marketing and publishing, 7 classes on plotting and building a fantasy world, and two manuscript reviews with some very accomplished writers. I attended three keynote speeches from best selling novelists, sat in on a small press panel, and attended a small roundtable discussion with an expert on self publishing.
Success!!!
Writercon 2023 was amazing and I think the way I approached the deluge of offerings was a success. I have a clear direction for building a business around my book, a direct path for publishing my book, and step by step instructions on plotting my next novel.
Are you going to a conference anytime soon? Even if you don’t have to make a choice every hour like I had to make, it is great to have some goals in mind.
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-with a link to the Conference Goals checklist
In The Portal coming up later this month there will be a Conference Goals checklist you can download. If you haven’t yet, sign up for the monthly newsletter where you will find links to all previous downloads and so much more.