Last weekend I attended the Breathe Christian Writers Conference in West Olive Michigan. It was my second year and the conferences’ fifth or sixth. Breathe is a value-packed conference that is priced right. Although most attendees were from southern Michigan, some came from out of state, as far away as Texas. Interestingly, Breathe was founded and is organized by a local writers group, The Writers’ Guild, an octet of talented, published ladies.
In addition to main sessions, featuring an author and keynote speaker Caryn Rivadeneira, there were 24 breakout sessions to pick from and a concluding panel discussion. The sessions I attended were:
- Creating the Best First Line (Cynthia Beach)
- Digital World 101 (David Frees)
- Publishing Process Overview (Andrew Rogers)
- Agenting 101: Finding an Agent (Karen Neumair)
- Adding Market Value with Study Questions (Sharron Carrns)
- Book Publicity 201 (Kelly Hughes)
Of course, there were 18 sessions that I couldn’t go to, many of which held equal interest and pull. I also was able to talk with friends from prior conferences and meet with an agent. See what you missed?
My head is still spinning with all the information that was shared and the ideas that were generated. My to-do list is long and will keep me busy for quite some time.
Next year’s conference will be October 12-13, 2012 and it is already on my calendar. I encourage you to add it to yours—and hope to see you there.
What writing conferences have you attended?
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Peter Lyle DeHaan is an author, blogger, and publisher with over 30 years of writing and publishing experience. Check out his book Successful Author FAQs for insider tips and insights.