Register Now for the WriteAngles Conference!

Registration is now open for the 2016 WriteAngles Conference! The conference by writers, for writers will be held on Saturday, October 29 at Mount Holyoke College’s Willits-Hallowell Center in South Hadley, Mass. The annual event, now in its 30th year, offers participants the chance to mix with experienced writers and agents in panel discussions, face-to-face meetings and in casual networking opportunities. Carole DeSanti and Lisa Papademetriou will be keynote speakers. WriteAngles 2016 offers eight new panels and workshops, a legal clinic and opportunities for participants to discuss their work one-on-one with a literary agent. For more information, and to register, please visit writeanglesconference.com

Another WriteAngles Conference Come and Gone

It's hard to believe, but after months of hard work, this year's WriteAngles Conference is over. We had a ton of fun, and there were so many interesting panels to choose from, it was hard to decide what to do.

As registrar, I didn't get a chance to attend too many panels, but I did manage to take in the entire Writing Young Adult and Middle Grade Fiction one. D. Dina Friedman moderated this panel that included writers Jeannine Atkins and Lisa Papademetriou. I was so impressed with what these ladies had to say that I bought one of each of their books. If I were richer, I would have picked up more.

Add in two great keynote speakers and four fabulous agents and it was a wonderful day. The staff from the Willits-Hallowell Center at Mount Holyoke College did a superb job of creating a relaxing, pleasant setting for the conference, and once again, the food was phenomenal. After a short rest, I'm ready to do it all again.

Have you attended any writers conferences this year? What was your favorite part?

Why Can't All Weeks Be Like This?

You ever have one of those weeks where you get so much accomplished and feel so inspired that you wonder why all weeks can't be like this?

Last week was that week for me. I edited, based upon feedback from my critique group, the first three chapters of the middle grade novel I'm working on. I also self-edited the next two chapters and then sent all five off to a few readers.

I had a big breakthrough on this WIP too, so I've got some travel plans in the spring for research.

The WriteAngles Planning Committee met this week. We managed to narrow down the field of potential keynote speakers, select the eight workshops we want to present, and assign coordinators to most of the panels.

I'm also considering going to Las Vegas in June to attend and present at a writers conference. Money, school schedules, and tackling my fear of flying alone will help me make my final decision.

Virtual book tour planning for March is going well, and I am already working on April and May tours. I'll need to get ahead so that when my first children's book, Little Shepherd, comes out this fall, I'll have time to market it and still provide the best service for my clients.

I hope the productive, inspiring weeks continue. Usually my winter months are filled with procrastination and no desire to accomplish much. I'm easily affected by the darker days, so this is a pleasant and exciting change.