Comic-Con for the Writing Nerd: A Midwest Writers Workshop Experience

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It's that time of year again, where everyone who is any one gathers in force in San Diego for the Comic-Con to beat all Cons. There are panels and celebrities and interviews and cosplay, a play ground landscape that could fuel even the nerdiest wet dream. Now dial this back a bit, swap tenth doctor and deadpool cosplays for business casual slacks and dress shirts, instead of celebrities there are authors and agents, and everywhere you look are writers. This, my writer comrades, is the beauty of a writers conference.

Last weekend, I was part of an intense three day writing conference at the Midwest Writers Workshop in Muncie Indiana. This was my first writers conference experience, and going in I really didn't know what to expect. From 8 in the morning to past 8 at night, myself and a little over two hundred other writers got together and experienced something that was for writers, by writers, about writing and it was exhilarating, inspiring, and exhausting. Last year when I participated in NaNoWriMo for the first time, I said that it made me really feel like a writer for the first time, despite going for a four year degree in creative writing. Suddenly I was generating fiction and it was amazing. When I walked out of the MWW14, I didn't just feel like a writer, but like a professional writer. It was no longer a question of if I would get published, but when. To quote Kyle Newbridge, a friend who also attended MWW14, “I actually feel like a writer now, instead of just a kid trying to throw words at paper in a pretty way”.

So what is it about this writers conference, or any other, that caused this reaction? 

Conferences give you the opportunity to meet people. Agents and publishers get hundreds and hundreds of queries and manuscripts every month, sometimes every week. Most of the beginning stages of publishing are completely played out through paper. Conferences give you the chance to make connections face to face with authors and agents alike. Networking, networking, networking. Learn to love it and know it and understand it, because a key part of becoming a published author is to not only have a following but to be part of a community of writers. Often this community of writers are the reason you find your way climbing up the publishing ladder in the first place. Where might you find the beginnings of this intimate writing community that you are supposed to be a part of? Well, a writers conference is a good place to start. I met so many amazing people and amazing writers this weekend. I've reached out through blogs and email and twitter to them since and already my writing circles have expanded. Sometimes all it takes is sitting in the right seat or standing in the right line. Exchange a card, have some brief conversation, and you've made a connection. These types of connections are so important because these are the kinds of people that will be with you, helping you through your career as a writer.

This is a place to learn. The people who set these up, guest speak, and work tirelessly to make the conference the best it can, they want you to succeed. I never considered myself someone who was ignorant in the ways of writing, but I can't even put into words all that I learned during those three days. It was almost overwhelming, seeing this whole side to the writing community I really had been ignorant of, and could have remained ignorant of had I not pushed myself to experience it. In the fast-paced media driven world we live in, the stereotype of the reclusive writer doesn't cut it anymore. To sell yourself and your work before you even get picked up by an agent or a publishing company you have to stay open to information and learning everyday. Otherwise you will miss out. At MWW14 there were panels with agents, specific presentations on everything from '7 steps to writing a novel' to the ins and outs of social networking as a professional writer. Just one example of something invaluable that I learned of that weekend was Pitch Wars, a writing competition built to help debuting writers cull their novels and get their name out there. Until MWW I never had a clue this existed. From the moment I got there until the moment I left, I will grew as a writer.

Did I mention opportunity? I'm sure it varies from conference to conference, but some of the insanely cool opportunities that are available to you at MWW for instance include: agent pitch sessions (5 minutes to pitch your novel to an agent and try your hand at getting representation), manuscript evaluations (published professionals critiquing your work to help make you better), query critiques, and more. These are one-on-one set ups where you interact with professionals who will give you the best feedback they can. Each person will get something different from a conference. Myself? In tandem with  the earlier quote, I walked in feeling like an amateur who had written "a long story" of questionable publishability, and came out with a referral to an agent, a request for the first 10 pgs of my mss from yet another agent, and more confidence in my novel than I ever believed I would have. 

So the next time you're planning a trip to meet your favorite celebrity with hopes of winning the best cosplay contest, remember to check out all the different writing conferences across the nation, and the world and nourish the other nerdy side of your brain. Your stories are amazing, so give yourself the extra push so they end up on my bookshelf too. 

- Many thanks to the Midwest Writers for giving me an amazing first experience with writing conferences. I will be back!