"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island." - Walt Disney

Friday, August 5, 2011

Free Writer’s Conferences


Readers often ask me about attending writer’s conferences. They know it’s important to attend them, but they don’t have the time, the money, or both.  I ask them if they’ve heard of WriteOnCon.


WriteOnCon is a totally free, interactive online Writer’s Conference that can be viewed from the convenience of your home anytime after the initial post. Held annually during the summer, the dates for the 2011 conference are Tuesday, August 16 – Thursday, August 18.

Similar to a blog that is updated every hour - give or take, each new post will be by an author, agent, editor etc. and I believe they will release a schedule a few days before it begins. The Conference is designed to give attendees many of the features of a live writer’s conference, but in an online environment. Thanks to technologies like blogging, vlogging, livestreaming, and chats, WriteOnCon connects writers with both industry professionals and fellow peers. Critique forums allow writers to receive feedback and exposure for their work, and the entire program is designed to be both informative and entertaining.

The first WriteOnCon conference, held August 10-12, 2010, had over 11,000 attendees. Click HERE to read the story in Publisher’s Weekly. All of the content from last year’s conference can still be found HERE.

Did you attend WriteOnCon last year? If so, please share your thoughts and experiences.

Will you attend this year?

17 comments:

Paula Martin said...

Can't find a link to this year's conference, Sylvia. Do you have one?

Sylvia Ney said...

Paula - try this: http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/gearing-up-for-writeoncon-2011-%e2%80%93-more-faculty-announcements/

Paula Martin said...

Thanks, Sylvia - just signed up :-) Not sure how it actually works, but will work it out.

Sylvia Ney said...

Paula - it's like a blog that is updated every hour - give or take. Each new post will be by an author, agent, editor etc. I believe they will release a schedule a few days before it begins.

Paula Martin said...

Thanks, Sylvia. It sounds interesting, I'll look forward to it.

Li said...

What a cool idea! Thanks, I'll check it out. One of the great things about blogging is coming across gems of info like this - thanks for sharing.

Bethe77 said...

Very cool!
Blessings

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Sylvia .. what a great idea .. I'd love to do it - but next year I suspect will be better. A good learning curve experience ..

Thanks for telling us about it .. Hilary

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Sylvia .. I just wanted to pass on this blog post I have just come across in my reader .. from Writers Beware ....

http://accrispin.blogspot.com/2011/08/contest-alert-writeoncon.html

It's worth a read I think ...

I don't want to put a dampener on things and it may be not relevant .. however - we all need to be aware .. especially authors ... Hilary

Tonja said...

I had the impression WriteOnCon was for kidlit writers. The site says other writers can participate but it looks like the forums are specialized. I have an almost-done middle reader, so I may do it.

Sylvia Ney said...

Hilary - Thanks for the heads up. Did you notice they changed it to say the copyright remains with the author and they no longer claim rights? I urge ALL writers to read guidelines carefully before submitting to anyone.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Sylvia .. I just copied the link over - simply because it hit my reader the same time as your post & I thought it was worth knowing about - or the site worth joining - as I read other high-powered publishing sites mention WriterBeware ..

But I agree - you, as authors, me as bumbling around on the edges .. need to do our homework for when the time comes.

Good for you to remind everyone to read the Guidelines ..

Thanks for coming back to me .. and I hope I clarified my reason for just giving you the link ..

Enjoy the weekend .. Hilary

Sylvia Ney said...

Deirdra - Thank you, but you already gave me this award several months ago. You can still see it with a link to your own blog on my "Awards" page.

Deirdra A. Eden said...

Hi Sylvia, Sorry I double awarded you. You really deserve it. You qualify for almost very award I have. You are welcome to pick your favorite and post it with the others.

(((HUGS)))

~Deirdra

Susan Kane said...

What a novel idea--convention on line. I will check into it--intriguing.

Heather said...

I love WriteOnCon! It's one of my must attend events of the year now.

Thank you for stopping by Heather's Odyssey and for following! I'm glad we met, I love your blog and what you've got going on here. Looking forward to chatting with you!

Unknown said...

The idea of a BookCamp is being introduced is England and wonderful - the first will be in my own town of Ludlow!