Hey everyone! Here we are with the first stand-alone post of this series. I’m super excited to share this post since it’s a fun reflection post. I know some readers don’t enjoy reflection posts but sometimes I feel like I need to make them. So, without further ado…
Storymakers Reflections
Back in May I attended a writing conference called Storymakers. The Teen Writing Conference that I used to attend when I was younger was based off of this conference, so I already had a general idea of what to expect but in a larger form. I was very excited. It wasn’t quite how I thought it would be, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the event.
I want in this post to reflect both on the amazing and good things that happened but also the things that I thought weren’t so good or could be improved upon because everything in life can be improved upon a little bit.
Pros
There were a lot of good things that I enjoyed about this conference. I am always excited and happy to be in a space with other writers where we are there to discuss our mutual interest in writing and the things we write. It’s invigorating and inspiring to be around so many writers and to feel a little less strange than you might feel on your own.
This conference was also a great place to network. Everyone was excited and interested in getting to know each other and asking about each other’s writing. I know I, personally, was just as excited to ask someone about their writing as I was to be asked about my own. I was able to exchange information with some people, make new friends, and gain possible mentors for the future steps towards publication.
There was also a bookstore. I would say that this could also really strongly be in the cons list because its really hard personally to not buy more books than I have a budget for. But I loved having authors that I knew there as well as new authors who I had never met. It was fun to see them at panels or get to know them and then go and be able to support them by purchasing their book. And some of the panels/presentations were very interesting to attend and learn from.
The Keynote speaker for the final lunch was Katherine Paterson, author of Bridge to Terabithia and other kid’s books. Her speech was amazing. I don’t think there was a single person in that conference who wasn’t moved by her speech, and I wrote down so many amazing inspiring things that I want to put on my wall to inspire me.
Cons
One of the biggest cons that I found personally was that some of the panels I sat through were not what I would assume they would be based on the description. Some presentations I attended were because I was under the impression that they would be more advanced when instead they seemed to be more basic and for beginners and also attended one where I wanted to know the basics but instead got a more advanced class. I think labels on the panels/presentations on what level they are would be helpful.
The other issue I had was parking. This one no fault of the event organizers but just the area where the event was held. There was no free parking at the venue at all which made it difficult not only for participants who wanted to come to the conference but also for those who were bringing a large number of items for displays or for the vendors who had to bring the products. They had to park at sometimes inconvenient distances and then pay rather large fees for parking.
Other than those two cons however, I sincerely enjoyed my time at Storymakers. I personally made a group of writing friends, met up with writers that I already knew but hadn’t seen in a while, and enjoyed just getting to be in an environment for two days where it was all writers just being writers. If you ever have a chance to attend a local writers conference, I would certainly recommend it.
That’s all I have for this week’s post! Next week will be another stand-alone post. There will be four stand-alone posts in this series and the last one will have the new series reveal. Don’t forget to like, subscribe, become a blog page member, share, and follow me on social media at the links below. And remember,
Get Up, Get Writing, and Get Published. See you next week!
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