To Confer or Not to Confer

by Kaye George

That is the question for so many writers. Especially those who have never attended a writers’ conference. They’re big, they’re complicated, and—worst of all—they are expensive. I’ll address only mystery cons here, because they are mostly what I have experience with.

  

The reasons to skip them and stay home are compelling for people who love to sit alone in a room and write for an unseen audience. Many of us are introverts who would rather listen in on conversations than participate in them. Hardly any of us make much money, so it’s hard to justify the expense if there are no benefits you can think of.

There are reasons to go, too, and I’m in the pro-conference camp.

First of all, know that there are two types of writerly gatherings: conferences and conventions. Or, in other words, fan conferences and writer conferences. At the former, many mystery fans show up and buy books. They are thrilled to meet the authors and get signatures in those books. They love to attend your panel discussions and see what you look like, how you sound.

My short story panel at Malice 2019

The writers’ conferences are aimed AT the writer. They include instructional and informative panels, useful stuff for us. They often offer a meeting with an agent or editor in some sort of pitch session.

The former are the big ones: Malice Domestic, Bouchercon, etc. The latter are smaller and often regional.

When I attended my first Malice Domestic, I was unpublished. I went to see what it was about, and to dream of being on one of those panels and sitting at one of those signing tables. I volunteered, so I would have something to do besides wandering aimlessly. That’s all it took for me, one time. I was hooked.

Where else can you enter the bar and sit with a complete stranger who is wearing the same conference badge that you’re wearing, and immediately strike up a conversation? Where else can you be sitting alone in the bar and have a complete stranger wearing that badge come sit with you? These are places where kindred souls can meet and discuss things we have to whisper about in polite company: advantages and disadvantages of various weapons and poisons, body decomposition, the particulars of dark personalities, ways to structure our crimes and our detection. We can also gripe about publishers and others involved in getting our books into print or hindering that process. The list goes on and on.

A bunch at the bar, Killer Nashville, 2014

I hope all writers know that you can deduct the cost of these, whether or not you’re published. If you are diligently working toward that goal and have records (time sheets, rejections), there is no IRS limitation on how many years it takes you to start earning money.

Some years my earnings cover my costs. Some years they don’t. But there’s nothing I’d rather do than write mysteries and hang around with others who write them.