Conference Hopping with Stefanie London

My Romance Writers of America badge

This year I'm attending more conferences than ever. As you're reading this, I would have just finished up at the Romance Writers of Australia conference in Brisbane. I also attended the Romance Writers of America Conference in Orlando, Florida back in July. Then I'm off to speak at both Fiction Fest in Connecticut and the Put Your Heart in a Book conference in New Jersey in September and October.

Phew! That's a lot of travel.

Conferences are a great part of being a writer, in my opinion. Yes, they're often expensive to attend and for introverts (including me) they can be challenging. But the pros far outweigh the cons.

So what are the best bits about attending a writers conference?

• Getting to spend time with my friends that live in other locations. Sometimes conference is the only time I get to see them face to face!
• Meeting readers. Many of the big conferences, like the Romance Writers of America one, have signings where I get to people who read my books. This is always a surreal moment.
• Free books. I try to restrain myself from not filling up my suitcase, but it's tough!
• Meeting editors/agents/publishers and other people whom I often communicate with via email. It's great to speak to the people who help make bring my stories to readers, and to build those relationships.
• Education. These days I don't always make it to a ton of sessions, so I choose wisely. There's so much information to be gleaned from conferences - both from the presentations and from chatting to other authors.
• Being around like-minded people. Being an author is a very unique experience, so chatting with other authors always makes me feel better about the ups and downs this career has to offer.

Me and the lovely Alison Stuart

If you're an aspiring author then I definitely recommend that you attend a conference at least once to see what it's like. If you're a reader, there are plenty of reader-focused events in the writing community such as the RT Booklovers Convention.

Attending a writers conference for the first time and not sure what to expect? Here are my tips:

• If the conference has an app, download it! This will make navigating the schedule so much easier.
• Leave some space in your luggage for books and other goodies that you will inevitably pick up.
• Find some cute and comfy shoes to wear, conference involves a lot more walking that you'd think. Especially if the hotel is big and the events are very spread out.
• Take the opportunity to talk to people. Even if you're shy (don't worry, I am too!) try to say hello to people next to you in the elevator/line/workshop. You're all there for the same reason, so you have inbuilt conversation.
• Keep all your receipts. In many places you can record such activities as deductions from your taxable income even if you are not yet published. For more information, speak to a tax expert in your area.

Have you ever attended a conference before, whether for writing or something else? What's your best tip for new conference goers? 

Foreign Language Challenges - Annie West

Well, guess where I am as you're reading this? It's the first day of the inaugural Festival du Roman Feminin in Paris - a two day festival designed especially for readers of romance!

That means I may be a bit tardy dropping by the LoveCats blog. By the look of the marvellous program, I'm going to be very busy for the next couple of days, before moving on to Berlin for the LoveLetter Convention, again just for romance readers. Talk about a thrilling week! To share the thrill I'm including a couple of location shots you might enjoy - not from this year's Festival but from a previous visit to Paris (and yes, I do know how lucky I am to have more than one visit here).

 

 

These festivals also mean I'm going to be very, very challenged. You see, I'm not one of the world's better linguists and I didn't learn a second language at school. They say if you start learning early it stays with you longer, don't they? Well, I was a late starter, which means I'm going to be struggling. You see, I have no French. I can say hello and thank you. I can order a glass of wine or a bottle of water but apart from that? Sigh.

 

Now, fortunately these festivals are beautifully organised so that even linguistically challenged authors like me can speak in English and be understood, but it does make me feel guilty that I can't say far more in the local language. I had the best intentions to do a crash course in French and to brush up my very little amount of German before leaving. Sadly some family issues took up my time and I'll be lucky to arrive with a properly packed bag.

 

I'll be trying to learn a little on the plane but given my ability to make terrible mistakes, it's a worry that I've left it so late. I've embarrassed myself many times trying to speak another language. Like the time I walked into a shop and asked, quite confidently I might add, to buy a kiss instead of a cushion. You can imagine how that went down!

 

So now I'm girding my loins to utter a few words of French and then German and keeping my fingers crossed I don't say anything too appalling.

 

How about you? Are you great with second, third or even fourth languages? Is there one you love or one you'd love to master? Or are you like me, struggling with a smile and lots of sign language?



Count Down to Conference

By the time you see this post I’ll be in New York! That’s right, with the Romance Writers of America conference happening next week my husband and I decided to squeeze in a little sight-seeing.

This will be my second trip to New York but my first time attending the conference.

What am I most excited for?

The Harlequin Black and White Ball

This is a special event for all the Harlequin authors and it’s going to be held at the Waldorf Astoria!!! I love old school glamour, so this is right up my street. The idea of black and white events always appealed (Derby Day, anyone?) and of course I had to by a new dress. You know, it’s for work…right?

The “Readers for Life” Literacy Signing

This will be my first time signing books at an event! Seems like all those years practising my signature on my school books is about to pay off. The great thing about this event is that it’s raising money for three different literacy-based charities, so it

Exciting events mean a new dress!

’s for a good cause.

Meeting up with all my writer friends

When all the people you chat to day in and day out on Facebook are scattered across the globe, any event that brings them together is a good thing! I’m excited to catch up with my fellow LoveCats who’re making the trek over as well as meeting a ton of people who I only know online. For me, writing is never a lonely task as there’s always an email or message from a friend to respond to, and plenty of people willing to lend an ear or offer a kind word when things get rough.

Meeting my editor and agent

These people play such an important role in an author’s career and it’s easy to go years without ever meeting them in person. I’m taking advantage of everyone being in New York for the conference to put a face to the name (or should that be a face to the email address?)

Learning and growing

Conference is a hugely busy time. But I’m promising myself to make it to a few workshops on the topics I’m most interested in. I’m also playing the role of moderator in one session, which will be fun as it’s been a while since I’ve had my public speaking hat on.

Have you ever been to conference for work? Was it a good experience? I’d love to hear any funny stories of things that happened while you were there :)

What's your passion?

By Helen Lacey

A couple of years ago my husband said he wanted to buy a car. This wasn't your average everyday driver though. This was a 1979 Holden Torana...bright yellow, hatch, V8...and as I discovered when he bought it and brought it home on a trailer...in a thousand pieces. Okay, maybe not a thousand pieces...but lots of pieces much of which was in boxes. Fast forward to present day and the car was put back together and last weekend I accompanied him to my first ever interstate car show.

I wasn't sure what to expect...cars, certainly. But I guess I had a preconceived idea about who would be there and the people it would attract. I quickly discovered it attracted all kinds of people as I observed these enthusiasts ohh-ing and ahh-ing about the cars on display. What really struck me though was the mix of models and brands. There were Holden's and Fords and Chrysler's and Chevrolet's and it actually reminded me of a writer's conference where authors from different genres merge together to celebrate/talk/share stories about the craft. And this was no different. The car enthusiasts were sharing and talking regardless of make and model and clearly there was a strong sense of community amongst  them.

And it was fun...just like a writer's conference. So, sitting in my spot under a tent with a laptop on my knees (I was on a deadline at the time) I starting thinking about passion (not the steamy kind) and what drives us to to do things like attend conferences, or train for our favourite sport, or sit in the hot sun under a tent and watch as other people walk by and admire your car. it was passion that made these car owners travel interstate and get their vehicle's into the best condition they could be in and then proudly show them off. No different perhaps to the passion it takes an author to strive for publication or an actor to yearn for the lead in a Hollywood movie.

So, what's your passion? Climbing mountains? Reading? Writing? Fast cars? Cooking? What do you love to to? And more importantly, what makes you happy?