Writer Events: The 2019 Atlanta Writing Workshop (March 9, 2019)

When you live in a big city, there will be events of all types to enjoy and Atlanta is no exception. A couple of weeks back I was able to enjoy my first writer event in the city at the Atlanta Writing Workshop, coordinated by Jessica Bell with support from the Broadleaf Writer’s Association. 

This was an all-day event that started at 9:30 AM and lasted until 5:00 PM. It consisted of Five Blocks, where each block had three simultaneous conferences occurring. So naturally, the first thing I had done is identify the conference titles that drew my attention. Below I’ll put the topics covered and will bold and underline the ones I chose. After that, I’ll talk about why I chose the conferences I did and give a brief overview.

BLOCK ONE

Getting published in Today’s World: 10 tips to Make You The Writer Agents and Publishers Want

Writing Other Worlds – a Guide to blending Setting, Plot, and Character in Science Fiction and Fantasy

How to Add Comic Relief to Your Fiction (And Make it Better)

BLOCK TWO

Pitch, Please: An Agent’s Guide To Pitches & Queries

15 Tips on How to Write Like the Pros

*Here are the main takeaways courtesy of Lydi B (Thanks so much for offering your insights!)

- Open a book with conflict, introducing characters in unique ways
- Keep dialogue short and natural (skipping hellos and goodbyes, etc. pleasantries)
- Unusual character names are more memorable

Savvy Strategies for Creating Realistic Romantic Relationships

BLOCK THREE

Writer’s Got Talent – a Page 1 Critique Fest

Another interesting series of tidbits courtesy of Lydi B: Writer's Got Talent was immensely helpful for understanding what excites agents as well as what types of mistakes make them dump your manuscript before finishing page 1.

- Strong opening sentence/paragraph that draws attention
- Get to conflict quickly, pepper in details about how later
- Don't get bogged down in details, especially environment
- Read first pages of stories in your chosen genre on Amazon to see how published authors succeeded

How to Sell a Non-Fiction Book: The 9 Musts of a Proposal

Breaking in with Picture Books

BLOCK FOUR

The 10 Principles of Building a Platform

New Southern Writing

The Fiendish Art of Crafting Suspense for Thrillers, Mysteries, and Crime (& Any Novel Really)

BLOCK FIVE

18 Frequently Asked Questions About Publishing

From A to Z: Strategies for Plotting & Pacing Tightly

How to Make your YA or MG Book Un-Put-Down-Able

BLOCK ONE: Getting published in Today’s World: 10 tips to Make You The Writer Agents and Publishers Want

Some people might be surprised I chose this as one of my seminars since I’m an indie author and do enjoy a lot about being an indie author. The reality is that I’ve heard the term hybrid author, where you publish certain things as an indie and other things as a publisher and that flexibility does appeal a lot. The reality is that being an indie author, reach is something that will be far limited when compared to traditional publishing and it’s something I’m curious to explore. This conference was offered by Brian A. Klems, author of “Oh boy, you’re having a girl.” From the get-go I have to say that Brian has great energy and honestly spoke like one of those professors in college that inspire someone to follow a path to win a Nobel Prize or something. Super nice guy, engaging, answered all questions, and he was honest… and consistent (this would be the first of many times I’d see Brian, lol). The tips he offered were sensible on several levels and my main take away is that talent might go a long way to getting an agent’s attention, but being easy to work with is absolutely golden. When you read pitch/submission guidelines, follow them. Don’t get creative, don’t try to cheat the system, play by the rules and you’ll be ahead of over half of the pack that is trying to be clever and not follow instructions.  

BLOCK TWO: Pitch, Please: An Agent’s Guide To Pitches & Queries

I have several author friends of all likes who have pitched to an agent, be it on Twitter, or through snail mail. I was curious to see what I could learn from this conference, and thanks to Caroline George, I learned a lot… almost too much, lol. She shared some stories of the weirdest submissions she’s gotten, and from riddles to incomprehensible manifesto-like queries, she hasn’t seen it all, but she’s seen a lot. Following the line of the first conference, she insisted: follow the guidelines. Be clear. Also, don’t harass and always be professional. Just those tidbits will go a LONG way to ensuring you don’t waste anyone’s time, because although Caroline does read every single submission, some take a long time simply because of how out there they are. She talked about the difference between a pitch and a query, described the agent-author relationship, and insisted on the importance of being able to talk about your WIP in 30 seconds, 3 minutes, and half an hour. Also, when you pitch, do your research and personalize it. No one likes boiler plate letters…. And agents are in fact, human. 

BLOCK THREE: How to Sell a Non-Fiction Book: The 9 Musts of a Proposal

I honestly believe most people went to the Writer’s Got Talent 1 page critique, but since I write non-fiction, it was important to me to go to the Non-Fiction conference… and who do I find, but Brian A. Klems. Once again, Brian brought an A-game in regards to energy and information and honestly opened my eyes to how different non-fiction is to fiction when it comes to pitching it. Rather than a synopsis, you include the idea and from the get-go, you NEED a logline (i.e. a one-line pitch of your work of non-fiction, who it is for, and why it can sell). For me, this particular conference put a LOT of things in perspective if I also want to try my hand at non-fiction (and we all know I do, because why not?) Main take away is that for non-fiction, you don’t need a finished manuscript, you just need an idea that knocks it out of the park. Also, memoirs are more fiction than non-fiction so if you’re thinking of a memoir, you’ll need to write all of it before pitching. And one last tidbit, becoming an expert in an area and engaging people on that topic on your author platform will be invaluable. 

BLOCK FOUR: The 10 Principles of Building a Platform

I chose this conference because I honestly wanted to know if what I’m doing online is on the right path. I do a lot of things to try and have a positive impact but there are recurring themes: socks, tea, cheeky humor, and of course, bananas. Also, guess who was giving this conference. :) Once again Brian offered some great and practical information, a lot of which I’ll be implementing. My main takeaway here, commit to platforms, be consistent, and engage. If you try to do too many things, you won’t find your audience. 

BLOCK FIVE: 18 Frequently Asked Questions About Publishing

For my last conference, I wanted to get more info on publishing because I’m genuinely curious. And once again, the Energizer bunny known as Brian A. Klems was offering this conference. I make a point to highlight Brian’s energy for several reasons. A. His energy never wavered in any conference. B. He does this without the aid of caffeine. C. He might repeat some points from his Writer Journey, but at NO point was he redundant or even remotely boring. To be honest, Brian gave a hell of an example of professionalism as a public speaker. He made such a great impression on me, I gifted him a book but more geared toward his 3 daughters. Sure, I had copies of my non-fiction books with me, but I wanted to thank him by thanking his daughters. I don’t mean to digress, but honestly, if you see a conference with him in town, give it a chance. I think he has a lot of knowledge to share and a very kind heart, and I’m all for supporting that. As for his conference, solid again. He recommends to query multiple agents, always be working on something and when you pitch something, always have something else you’re working on. I’m ridiculously oversimplifying what he offered, but re-read that last sentence… each point… and apply it. It makes a LOT of sense and offered a LOT of food for thought. 

So that was my overview of what I watched, but if anyone reads this that saw any of the other conferences, and you’d like to offer your perspective and some info on those other conference, feel free to writer a comment or reach out to me on any social media to offer a more comprehensive overview of this event. For me, it was pricey but I think I got a lot from it, though that will ALWAYS be up to you. Please remember, being at an event will not guarantee you anything. You either pay attention, engage, ask questions, or are just a passer-by. The choice is yours, but I think there’s a lot to gain from the experience and think all the conferences offered a lot of information that was new to me, and I’ve been writing and checking out information since 2014, so there’s also that. 

In case you’re curious, here’s a list of the price for the event and the other things you could add on:

$189 — EARLY BIRD base price for registration to the 2019 ATLWW

Add $29 — 10-minute one-on-one meeting with any of our literary agents or editors in attendance. 

Add $69 — for an in-depth, personal critique of your one-page query letter from Brian Klems, one of the day’s instructors. 

Add $89 — for an in-depth personal critique of the first 10 pages of your novel. 

 * * *

I’d love to hear from other people who attended the event and people who went all in with the add-ons to hear your experience. I honestly think that sharing experiences will benefit us all. I’m also very happy to have met and interacted with Lydia Boatright, J Brice Odom, Madhav Mathur, Matt Ward, Karen D. Murphy and another Matt whose last name I simply can’t remember lol, which brings me to my last point… Take business cards and exchange with fellow authors at these events. You never know who you’ll meet that’ll become a lifelong writer friend. 

Thanks for reading and if you’d like to read a bit about the other writer event I went to during March, check out my recap of the Self-Publishing Seminar hosted by the Broadleaf Writers Association by clicking here. 

Peace, love, and maki rolls