Writer's Conference in Hawley, PA

I just came back from a writer’s conference hosted by the Wayne County Arts Alliance in Hawley, Pennsylvania. The speakers were all very good, and gave us writers some very good insights into certain aspects of the process. In the morning, we learned about writing memoirs, as well as the motivations and methods used to write them. I’ve never been a fancier of memoir’s myself, but the presenter, biographer Oana Nechita, gave some very good instruction as well as a delightful exercise in writing about our own lives.

In the midmorning, the writers Rich Wallace and Sandra Neil Wallace discussed character and voice as well as the source of our ideas and inspiration. Their presentation explained how many works might derive inspiration from our own day-to-day experiences. We also discussed story structure and the composition of a novel.

In the afternoon the publisher Stephen Roxburgh described the publishing process as well as what it takes to get into print. As many authors already know, the process is difficult and time consuming, and Stephen explained why so many authors received rejections.

Overall, the entire conference was inspiring and I especially enjoyed the question and answer sessions, which occurred after each presentation. I met other authors and illustrators who attended, who were intelligent and interesting.