WriteOnCon is Back!

If you've been part of the online kidlit writing community for a while, you may remember WriteOnCon, an amazing, completely online writer's conference that ran from 2010-2013. Putting on the conference was a TON of work, including boatloads of planning, setting up and monitoring forums for sharing work, and hosting live agent chats and keynote presentations. The organizers (understandably) decided to take a break after the 2013 conference, and it wasn't certain whether it would be held again.

I learned so much from the conference back in 2013, and I even got a couple of ninja agent requests after sharing my query and pages in the forums. So I was delighted to see that there's a shiny new WriteOnCon for 2017! It begins tomorrow, February 2, and runs through the end of the day on Saturday, February 4.

One of the big changes this year is that there's a nominal $1 fee to attend the conference. This gets you access to the blogs and vlogs. If you want to attend the live events with industry professionals, the cost is $5. This money helps defray the cost of web hosting and the time of the organizers and industry professionals.

And guys, it is TOTALLY WORTH IT. You'll pay a minimum of several hundred dollars to attend even a very small conference in person—and this one you can enjoy from the comfort of your own home! If you've been reading this blog for a while, you'll know that all of us here at Thinking to Inking are huge fans of writing conferences (in fact, that's how we all met!). WriteOnCon is an awesome way to mingle with like-minded people and benefit from the wisdom and experience of industry professionals, even if you don't have the time and/or money to go to an in-person conference.

Interested in checking it out? The main WriteOnCon page is here. There you'll find links to register, FAQs, schedules, and more.

(Psst: you can post your query and pages in the WOC forums for other writers to read and critique for free, even if you don't want to attend other parts of the conference. I have it on good authority that there will be secretive ninja agents and editors prowling around, so you may even get a request to see more pages if they like what they see!)

Why You Should Go to Writers' Conferences, Even if (Especially if) You're Scared

I attended one of my favorite writers' conferences last week, the Midwest Writers Workshop. It was a blast, as usual—tons of great writing advice, valuable networking with industry professionals, and fun times with writer friends I don't get to see often enough.

I pitched to two agents, had a one-on-one query critique with the Query Shark herself (which was amazing!), and did more socializing than I normally do in a period of several months. On the way home, I was thinking about how comfortable and relaxed I felt the whole time—a complete 180 from the way I felt before attending my first conference back in 2012. I remember sitting in my car in the parking lot, literally shaking as I psyched myself up to go inside the hotel where the conference was being held.

That conference, by the way, was where I met friends and critique partners I still keep in touch with (hi Stacy, Jenn, and Lauren!). I learned that agents and editors weren't scary people—they were just looking for something they loved that they could sell. I also got the expert advice I needed to improve my writing to the point where I finally started getting lots of requests for partials and fulls from agents. If I hadn't been brave enough to sign up for that conference (and actually leave my car), I firmly believe I would have kept spinning my wheels for much, much longer.

We writerly types often (usually?) would rather sit at home with a good book than spend two or three days interacting with a ton of people. But it's so worth it. It's impossible to describe how good it feels to find people who think and feel and write just like you do. And I guarantee that your writing will improve.

If the very idea of a conference still makes you want to throw up, try starting small. Many SCBWI chapters have mini-conferences where they bring in one or two publishing professionals to do a day of workshops. You can also attend an online workshop (like the fabulous WriteOnCon) to get a taste of what an in-person conference might be like.

Or just take the leap and sign up for that big conference you've been eyeing. You definitely won't regret it.

Some happy Midwest Writer's Workshop attendees (I'm second from the right!)

Reminder: WriteOnCon!

We've said it before, but we still thought it important to remind you that it's the eve of something great. WriteOnCon is amazing for oh so many reasons like:

*It's free
*It's all on-line
*Great people
*A contest where you can earn $$$$$
*Perceptive writing tips from greats
*Tons of free feedback
*Ninja agents. (very misleading. I was really hoping to see Jen Rofe in black with nun chucks. Not that, but it's still awesome. Agents lurk the boards and request partials and fulls from unsuspecting authors)
*It's free
*Great insights into the publishing world from top professionals
*There is now a Thinking to Inking group anyone can join so you don't have to feel like you're attending it alone & we always like to make new friends for future conferences, too :)
*You can participate in your pjs while eating chocolate and no one will judge you.
*It's free

So if you haven't registered and said "hello" yet, what are you waiting for???

PS Contest closes today so get on it ASAP, and Ninja Agents start prowling tomorrow so you'll want to make sure you have your query, first 250 words, & first 5 pages posted in the forums.

Writer's Resource: WriteOnCon - A FREE Writing Conference With No Travel Needed!

It was about a year ago that I finished a very rough draft of my manuscript and started my research on the wonderful world of publishing. During my early digging, I stumbled upon a game changing opportunity - WriteOnCon.  A free, multi-day virtual writing conference. No travel necessary. No entrance fee. No hotel room. All you need is a computer, a desire to learn, and perhaps a pair of comfortable elastic wasted pants.

Several things happened to me during the 3 day event:

1. I found my first beta reader
2. I entered my first contest
3. I got invaluable feedback on my query
4. I got "ninja-ed" by an agent (my first full request!)
5. I spent 3 days in my cube pretending to work while I devoured the information from the many amazing sessions (luckily my computer monitor faced away from my coworkers...)
6.  I learned so. freaking. much. about the industry, what to expect, and what I needed to work on.

I am SO excited to know that it's coming back, and it's only a month away! Squeee! 

Check out the early info on the homepage, and mark your calenders for August 14th and 15th, when the fun begins. 

Bring it on, WriteOn!

What can you look forward to?  The same things you would at any conference, except you can wear your pajamas. 

There are agents.  There are informative sessions.  There are thousands of fellow writers to virtually mingle with in the forums.  There's a forum to post queries and first pages for feedback from writers.
The biggest highlight for those with finished manuscripts are the ninja agents - they lurk around the forums offering up critiques, partial requests and even the occasional full.  In fact, that's how I received my first ever full request from a real live agent. (!!!)
I cringe when I think about how rough my manuscript was back then, but it was encouraging to have a professional in the industry respond to my writing so early on.  

This year, my manuscript is polished and ready to go.  So bring on the ninjas!  Bring on the forums!  Bring on the fun!

Hope to see you there.  (I'll be the one in the pink onesie.)