Are Writers Conferences Worth It?
I’ve never been to a writers conference. I’ve always wanted to. The reason I’ve never been to one is because they’re really expensive. I’ve researched them and the lowest are $300 to $500 while the highest reach $5000. The average falls in the $2000 range. This is not including travel, lodging, food, gas, etc.
Conferences offer things like workshops, panels, and spending time with an agent or editor. Most of the aspiring writers that go to the conferences go to spend time with the agent or editor. Sadly, at most you spend 10-15 minutes with them.
I believe you should go to a conference taking away something. With as much money as you’re spending, you shouldn’t go to feel good about yourself or your writing. How much can you learn from 10 minutes? You spend a few minutes giving your pitch, they spend a few reading your work then giving you some feedback. I’m not saying they’re not going to give you any insight or valuable feedback. I’m just saying that it’s a really expensive cost to time to feedback ratio.
I believe you should go to conferences to network if you already have a book out or one that’s about to come out. That way you can meet people and they can get to know both you and your book.
People will spend thousands of dollars to go to writers conferences and won’t bat an eye. Yet people won’t pay for editing when editing is about the same price or cheaper. I don’t understand why.
I think if you’re looking to get your work published, looking for an editor is the way to go. You get way more attention from hiring a freelance editor than seeing one at a conference. They spend hours going over your work, helping you refine it. If you have any questions, you can contact them. The one on one, personal contact you get with an editor is way more valuable. As much as I believed in my work enough to submit it, it needed work. A lot of work. If I had gone to a writers conference, I’m sure I would have learned a few things but I wouldn’t have learned as much as hiring an editor.
Unless you’re going to network and already have a book out, writers conferences are not worth it. Remember, this is just my outsider’s view. I hope to experience and find out what they’re actually like one day.
Marc Johnson
January 6th, 2011 at 12:49 am
Writers conferences can be very valuable tools, even if you’re not published or about to be. Yes, the editor/agent pitch is only 10-15 minutes (sometimes less at larger ones), but if you’re going to a genre specific conference, you can take some fabulous workshops hosted and led by some of your favorite, or at the least, very experienced, authors. In addition, a lot of them hold editor or agent panels, and those are really great to get some industry knowledge.
They are also excellent networking tools, and in this business, that is HUGE! You can meet critique partners, become friendly with editors and agents during social events, and meet your favorite authors. I got my first agent by literally closing down the hotel bar with her. I met several editors over the years who now know me, and it helps when submitting manuscripts. also have met many many friends, some of whom became critique partners. I have never ever paid someone to go over my manuscript and work with me, most of my CP’s are published, many multi-published. Their knowledge and experience has helped way more than anyone who offered to assist me for a fee – and my CP’s advice and assistance is free, and they are some of my closest friends now.
Yes, costs can be prohibitive, but many local chapters of the national orgs host local, smaller and cheaper conferences. There are a lot of benefits to attending even one of these. I have to say some of the best craft or marketing workshops I’ve taken are at smaller conferences, and what I learned helped immensely. And don’t discount the networking, ever. It’s a tool you should always use, it does make a difference.
And that’s my take from attending conferences for close to 20 years now!
January 6th, 2011 at 9:58 pm
I don’t disagree with you about networking. I think it’s necessary in all things.
I probably should have mentioned this in my post, but I think you can do networking at cheaper non-writing conventions such as Dragoncon and Gencon. There’s a lot of writers, agents, and editors there. People always say you could hang out at the bars and meet people so you don’t have to go to any conventions or conferences.
Maybe it’s because I live on the West Coast but all the conferences seem more expensive over here.
I do want to go to a writers conference one of these days. Hopefully, the one in Hawaii because it’s in Hawaii.