Right at the end of March I went to the first writing conference type thing that I’ve been to since I was at the Surrey International Writers Conference back in… I don’t even remember how long ago that was. So it’s been a while, but I got a pass1 and made it!
I heard about it initially about this back in November with VCon, and it was pitched as a writers conference by writers for writers and that’s exactly what I got. It’s out by BCIT and I took the one day off so that I could make it for the whole thing and it was fantastic.
In contrast to SIWC, there was a lot of focus on the business aspects of writing. There were some sessions about the craft, don’t get me wrong. I attended some great sessions about short stories and how to write for specific audiences. But there was also a good deal about the business of writing, like how to do in person signings, specifics about self publishing and marketing strategies that are and are not currently working.
At this stage in my writing, the conference was fantastic. It’s a lot more affordable than SIWC, and it is much more focused on the business and craft of writing than the introductory classes. There’s also not of a focus on a chance to pitch to agents, though there was a decent about on information about getting into traditional publishing. I’ll definitely going again next year and dragging a few more people with me!
- Thank you Grace Fong! [↩]