Writing Conference Recap

Well. I'm home from the Pikes Peak Writers Conference. Four full days of workshops, learning, and volunteering has left me a little on the tired side. But I wanted to give you an idea of how wonderful conferences can be. I'll be writing some future posts about the amazing things I've learned. Here are a few highlights from each day.

Thursday was spent in an eight-hour workshop with agent Donald Maass. He taught from material that will be included in his forthcoming book Writing 21st Century Fiction: High Impact Techniques for Exceptional Storytelling in Modern Fiction. Each of us wrote as fast as we could, trying to record both his questions to consider for our stories, and making notes for changes to our manuscripts. Suffice it to say, I'll be buying the book.

I ducked out of the end of the workshop to make a trip to the airport, where I picked up agent Amanda Luedecke and Berkeley editor Leis Pederson. I had fun taking them on a quick tour of the beautiful Garden of the Gods, and then to dinner afterwards.

Friday started off bright and early with two amazing workshops by fantasy author Carol Berg, who gave great tips for revising a manuscript. After lunch with Titan editor Steve Saffel, it was on to a workshop where Amanda Luedecke listened to our first pages and offered fantastic feedback. I attended an agent panel consisting of Luedecke, Rachelle Gardner, Paige Wheeler, Taylor Martindale, Evan Gregory, Weronicka Janczuk, and Kristin Nelson. I learned so much from the Q&A. Following that, I volunteered in the Green Room, where faculty take a break between sessions.

Dinner on Friday was really interesting. It was a costume party, and my daughter and I had forgotten to bring our outfits. We'd heard that non-participants might be forced to dress in togas, so Katie bought us each something to wear. For me, she selected a little tutu, which I wore over my clothes. Not too embarrassing, I thought, until I sat down next to Donald Maass! Yes, I ate dinner with him while wearing a tutu. We had a wonderful time, conversing about the sad Pulitzer news, and he was so gracious to offer Katie an opportunity to apply for an internship at his agency.

Saturday was pitch day for me. I was thrilled to have Kristin Nelson's first pitch of the day, partly so she wouldn't be tired, and I wouldn't have to be nervous the whole day. The pitches are on the seventh floor, and (wouldn't you know?) every elevator stopped working at the exact moment I needed to use them. I ran up all seven flights (using up some of my nervous energy in the process) and was still panting when I began my pitch. Somehow, regardless of my likely wild-eyed expression, she said send it.

In other Saturday news, I learned about author branding, how to use screenplay techniques to make fiction better, and how to create memorable heroes, villains, & sidekicks. For lunch, I sat with SmashWords founder Mark Coker. Donald Maass gave the keynote speech, which was so inspiring, I'll have to do a separate post. Then it was off to take Legend author Marie Lu to the airport (and grill her about her experiences as a much-touted debut author). I came back to the hotel to help decorate the ballroom for the dinner that night.

Saturday night was the awards dinner, where I received my certificate for placing in the Pikes Peak Writers Contest. The speaker that night was thriller writer Robert Crais (to whom I had committed a major faux pas, but he was gracious and only ribbed me about it the rest of the weekend). Mystery writer Jeffery Deaver tapped me on the shoulder to ask my daughter and I to solve a friendly argument he was having with someone. When I asked him how the conference was going, he mentioned he'd found a few minutes between sessions to write a few thousand words on his WIP. That's called being a writer.

Sunday came, and though weariness was setting in, I was so glad I didn't sleep in. Agent Weronika Janczuk gave a fantastic workshop on compactness in queries and first chapters. I'm using her tips already. Then I listened to urban fantasy author Karen Duvall speak about creating the best turning points and reversals in your plotting. I skipped the last session to help out in the ballroom again (like Katie and I had been doing before each meal). For the closing lunch, we sat with Carol Berg, who related to us her amazing story of starting writing at age 40 and becoming the prolific author she is. Romance author Susan Wiggs gave the final keynote. I especially loved this quote:

The only guaranteed way to fail is to quit.

Besides all the things you learn, writing conferences are an amazing way to be surrounded by people with the same passion as you, to get to know some of your literary heroes, and make great new friends. Of course, I'm partial to this one (Writer's Digest listed it as on of the top ten in the country), but any conference will do these things for you. Could I meet you there next year?