I did 3 workshops yesterday and attended 3 big networking events. Today, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m presenting 2 more workshops and I have 2 consultations scheduled with individuals. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot of networking that goes on at events like this, or there should be. I keep hearing from attendees that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s intimidating. Some say their heads are swimming with information and they don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know if they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll ever sort it all out. By the end of the day yesterday, most attendees were on overload. Some are confused by what seems to be contradictory advice. <\/p>\n
I am having a great time chatting with faculty, agents, editors from Grand Central Publishing (Warner), Morrow, etc and, of course, attendees who have come from all over the U.S. One woman came from Paris. When asked if anyone came from farther away than Paris, one hopeful author raised her hand and said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Cleveland, Ohio.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Maybe she thought the French woman was referring to Perris, California. <\/p>\n
It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a great group of people. Some of the attendees have what sound like marvelous book ideas or books in the works. And some of them will experience the success they desire. All of them will experience a level of success equal to their efforts and their open-mindedness and their ability to make the right choices. What a hopeful author must understand is that the right choice for one author might not be the right choice for him or her. <\/p>\n
Presenters frequently receive a common question from conference attendees: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Should I seek an agent or a publisher or should I \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcself-publish\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 my book?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I hear others tell hopeful authors the same thing I tell them: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It depends on you and it depends on your book.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
Some people attend writers\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 conferences seeking absolutes. But they rarely receive them. Instead, they are given the information, the options, the tools and the resources to make intelligent decisions on behalf of their projects. We arm them with the knowledge they need, if only they will use it responsibility, sensibly, thoughtfully. <\/p>\n
We presenters really work for our keep at conferences such as this. But a conference is an equally trying experience for attendees. They have an enormous amount of information and material coming at them. They must listen with an open mind and eventually sort through it all in order to discover the truths that will help them to take their particular project to the limits. What does this mean to an attendee?<\/p>\n
\u00c2\u00b7\tHe may realize that he must rewrite his manuscript in order to attract a wider audience.
\n\u00c2\u00b7\tHe might see the wisdom in writing a book proposal NOW.
\n\u00c2\u00b7\tPerhaps she will realize she must start building a platform.
\n\u00c2\u00b7\tMaybe she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll decide that self-publishing is not for her.<\/p>\n
What happens at a writers\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 conference and the decisions the attendee ultimately makes could very well mean the difference between failure or mediocre to even wild success. And it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all up to the attendee. The opportunities are definitely there. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just a matter of who\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s listening and who will actually recognize and act upon the gifts they receive.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I did 3 workshops yesterday and attended 3 big networking events. Today, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m presenting 2 more workshops and I have 2 consultations scheduled with individuals. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot of networking that goes on at events like this, or there should be. I keep hearing from attendees that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s intimidating. Some say their heads are swimming […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t