DFW Writers' Conference

This past weekend I attended the DFW Writers' Conference in lovely Hurst, TX.  Actually, I volunteered for most of it, but that was the best thing for this socially anxious gal.  If I've got something to do, it's a lot easier for me to talk to people.  The conference festivities began the night before for members of the DFW Writers' Workshop at Billy Bob's Texas.  Hence, the cowgirl gear.  Thanks go out to my friend Lori for loaning me the outfit and the boots!

The next day, it was all business. I moderated two classes for Mike Capuzzo, who I invited to attend the conference as a keynote.  I interviewed him on this here blog last year.  You can hear that interview here.  He was a hoot and I very much enjoyed his keynote speech.





On Sunday, I attended a class about sex at 8:30 am. The speaker/author, Suzy Spencer, is a true crime writer who admitted that she was tired of writing about murder.  She wanted to laugh, so she started out writing a journalistic exploration into alternative sex practices and it morphed into a memoir.  I tried to pick her brain, as I did the same thing with death.  She probably had more fun!  There I am with her book.  I started reading it last night.  Very interesting material!

Despite the fact that I didn't attend many classes, I had a great time at the conference.  It was killer to see Dawn Frederick with Red Sofa Literary at the Non-fiction panel.  She knows the writing world and she's a roller-girl ref to boot!  How cool is that? 

I also got to meet up with a few people that I only communicate with in the social media world.  It's totally cool to see those peeps in the flesh.

So, now I'm totally energized to write and make those changes that my editor suggested.  I don't know if I'll go the tradition route with "Death Becomes Us" or if I'll self publish.  What I do know is that I love the writing life.  I know sometimes that I bitch and moan about it, but I can't imagine doing anything else.



All The Cool Kids are Doing It

This past weekend, I attended the DFW Writers Conference in lovely Feet Worth, TX.  (And yes, I said feet.  My Tom Tom says feet worth and so shall I, dammit.)  As some of you know, I moved to Texas in August of last year.  The transition from Colorado was rocky, but despite all the setbacks, I found a kick ass writing workshop that I attend every Wednesday night.  And from this workshop, I was able to be a part of one of the best writers conferences I've ever attended.  And I mean EVER.  Take that AWP!

The keynote address by Sandra Brown was funny, informative, personable and my goodness for a sixty something year old woman who has written over sixty best selling books, Ms. Brown looked like a Stepford Wife and I mean that in the best way possible.  She was gorgeous!
I attended some wonderful classes, particularly Kristen Lamb's class on social media and agent Dawn Frederick's on the book proposal.  Both women were nice, inspiring and willing to share their knowledge and insight with little old me. (Well, me and a couple hundred other people, but I can't list them all here because my brain has turned all mushy from all the info I learned.)

Okay, so what made this conference different than the rest?  The people.  Hands down this was the nicest conference I've been to.  People were chatty and encouraging and genuinely interested in perfecting their craft.  Okay, okay, the Query gong show was really the highlight and I'm sorry I missed the first one.  George and Russ made it fun whie the agents gave the audience a peak into their thought process.  What stops an agent from reading or responding favorably to your query?
  • One word.  Cancer.
  • Too many big things going on, such as murder, espionage and maybe a tsunami all before the end of the first paragraph.
  • Starting out with a question such as, "What would you do if...?" 
  • Comparing your writing skills to a certain woman writer who happens to be richer than the Queen of England
  • Vampires
  • Teenagers bonding with old people.  Teenagers don't care about old people.  They care about boys or girls or both.
  • Lost journals.  Nobody wants to read a book about somebody reading a book. 
Oh, and there's more, but this old gal is tired.  I had a blast.  I spent the whole day writing.  I was that inspired.
What was your favorite part of the conference?  Any good quotes, overheard conversations, or lessons learned?  Tell me now...