The People You Meet at a Writer's Conference

​Last week I attended the Wisconsin Writer’s Institute presented by the UW-Madison Division of Continuing Education.  In the last 16 years I’ve only missed one conference.  One of the reasons I like to attend the conference is to meet other authors. Specifically, I don’t mean to network.  To me networking implies intentionally meeting people that will benefit your own career.  Networking is selfish.  I just like to meet other authors to share experiences and learn from them.
On the first morning I sat with a group of people who looked engaging.  To my right I met a man attending the conference from Hong Kong.  I asked him why he chose the Writer’s Institute among all of those across the country as long as he was traveling from Hong Kong.  He chose this conference because of the critique services available and the variety of agents available to talk with.  I asked him to share the plot of his novel, he did, but all I remember was that it was complex.
On my left sat a retired teacher who wanted to learn how to write children’s books.  His way of giving back was to use his experience as a teacher to write engaging children’s books.  Next to him was a Japanese man who wanted to write about his Grandfather’s experience living in America during World War II.  His grandfather wasn’t in one of the camps but did have some interesting experiences.  The man sitting across from me wanted to write his autobiography but he didn’t say much about it.  A woman at our table was writing a memoir about her nine year battle with cancer.
One of the most frequently asked questions is:  have you published?  When I shared with those at my table that I had published two historical fiction novels they fell silent for a moment and then bombarded me with questions.  I shared as much as I could before the morning keynote speaker started.
I met a playwright who specializes in writing 10 minute plays.  The discipline it takes to write an entire play, which I learned is about 10 pages of script, is beyond belief.  It makes flash fiction look as easy as falling off a log.
I met an editor who is as passionate about starting a co-op grocery store in her community as she is about her profession.  I found it refreshing that she used her skills in writing and editing for another purpose, such as a creating a co-op.  Writers too are multi-dimensional and engaged with their local communities.
During the second day of the conference there is an opportunity for authors to sell their books.  A total of 30 attending the conference dragged books and promotional material to a room provided with small tables and a name placard.  I strolled through the “bookstore” and stopped to talk with many of the authors.  One author gave me her book only asking that I promise to write a review of her book on Amazon.  Who could resist? I cannot forget the desperation in her voice.  I asked when the book was launched and if she self-published.  She had launched her self-published book in February not been successful in gaining attention.  An experience I know well.  I’ll post a review in the next month and e-mail her to let her know I kept my promise.
Memoir has become very popular and at least half the people I met were working in that genre.  There was an agent’s question and answer session.  The agents explained that they are not interested in memoir because it meant you would only write one book and they wanted to represent someone who would write two or more books.  Have the agents forgotten about Frank McCourt?  I thought there view of memoir was harsh and crushed the hopes of many in the room.
I don’t know how many of the 350 or so attendees have published either traditional or self-published but my guess is less than 5% based on my less than scientific survey.  The one thing we all share, however, is the dream.