How To Get the Most from a Conference
Where Fleur makes friends with a few thousand Texas librarians, one at a time.
I’m back from the Texas Library Association Conference in San Antonio…! It was humid but wonderful, and also kind of ENORMOUS. It took me a minute to adjust and embrace that little bit of extrovert in me; it helped that everyone was so incredibly nice. The best part was to be surrounded with thousands of people who love books as much as you do. I highly recommend the experience.
This was me at the Bluebonnet Librarian Speed Dating event.
This is Sant Antonio’s Riverwalk, with a very beautiful tree (I am a tree nerd).
Of course, I wasn’t just there to walk along the river and hang out with librarians, even if they are my favorite people. Daybreak on Raven Island is on the Texas Bluebonnet Award List, which it turns out is a very big deal. The kind people from the Penguin Young Readers School and Library team were there with boxes of books for me to sign and hand out, plus I got to attend several cool events and was even interviewed by the Austin Library’s puppet (a first for me). More on this when that interview goes live.
I’m still buzzing from all the peopling, so I’m sure I’ll have more meaningful things to say at a later date. But as I’m doing my laundry and making my to-do list for the week, I thought I would share some nuggets of wisdom for you fellow writers and educators, as perhaps you’re also more of an introvert, like me.
Set a goal or two for your event. What are you hoping to get out of it? I’ve spent my share of conferences overwhelmed and looking for an exit when I could’ve made more friends. It helps to set some goals. For the TXLA conference, I knew I wanted to connect with librarians, my publisher’s team, and gather information from the vendors who were attending. That part was very productive.
Follow up. Next week, I’ll be getting in touch with friends, exhibitors, and anyone else I’ve met via email. I took a bunch of business cards, but I know everyone else is just as overwhelmed by the crowd as I was. Following up cements the meeting into a professional relationship. Plus, I learned about organizations I could possibly partner with as an author. Don’t worry about who will buy your book; instead, focus on building new relationships.
Evaluate the event. Was it worth it? I’ve been to a few conventions where I was the odd duck as a writer of children’s books, or I just didn’t get that much out of it in general. It costs to go to these conventions, in money and time away from your family and writing desk. Some events are just not worth it, others are super productive.
Just because you see other writers going to an event doesn’t mean you should too. Every career is different.
It’s also good to look back and consider what you might be able to do to make for a more productive time. I always forget to take photos, or the ones I take are terrible. Again, I failed in my paparazzi skills at TXLA. I did okay on the first day, but then just forgot again.
I did take this fun selfie with fellow Bluebonnet Award nominee and author friend Kirby Larson. On day 1, of course.
What I’m Writing
After all this great book energy, I’m energized to get back to work and have been researching WWII for my novel project. I have a 35K-word skeleton draft; this week I hope to outline the next chunk, trying to be a bit more detailed this time, now that I know where the novel is going.
Where I’m Going
I’ll see you at Pikes Peak Writers Conference, I hope! I’m hosting a table as faculty, plus I’ll be running a session on Kidlit 101: Intro to the Children’s Book Market and one on how to create an author marketing plan in the post-Covid age, with a focus on children’s, MG and YA writers. Say hi if you’re there, and let’s take a picture, huh?
Your Weekly Floof
Floof does not agree with the amount of traveling that’s happening.
She was sleeping on my pillow while I was gone, so my head is now covered in her fur.
