This morning I’m headed to the NESCBWI Conference!!! (It’s Daddy Party Weekend!!!) This is my first time attending a New England event, but I always here people raving about them. So excited to finally go. *fist pump* I’m very excited to meet up with some old friends and to make some new ones, too. I’m also thrilled with the amazing classes I’m taking. Lots to learn. Here’s what’s on the agenda. The 2013 NESCBWI Conference Word-by-Word: The Art of Craft. Can you guess where I’ll be? Come on, you know me pretty well by now.
No need to miss me while I’m gone. *grin* I’ll be tweeting live from the hashtag #nescbwi13 Feel free to join the virtual conversation. It will be just like I packed you in my suitcase and smuggled you in, but without appendages falling asleep and me getting in trouble LOL!
Of course when I get back I’ll have pictures and an overview of the conference for you. ((((hugs))))
My brain is spinning and I am exhausted, but it was another amazing NY SCBWI Conference. Notes are coming, but in the meantime you should know that a great SCBWI Conference is like a spoon full of sugar to help the medicine go down. (The best medicine against rejection, writer’s block, and marketing fatigue.) I’m serious, just ask the amazing Julie Andrews. I’ll tell you all about her Wednesday.
It’s Saturday. The alarm seems to go off earlier and by alarm I mean my roommate poking me with her finger. The Starbucks line seems longer and the excitement seems bigger. Maybe it’s the caffeine or maybe it’s because SCBWI Conferences are freaking awesome. Realistically–it could be both.
Starting off the morning with Karen Cushman and COURTING SURPRISE. She was fabulous so I must share some of my favorite bits of advice and wisdom…
*The function of freedom is to free someone else.
*Rules: Make your own rules, or better yet, don’t follow any.
*We find the unconscious gifts we give ourselves.
*There is a difference between and editor and a critic.
*Tell the truth–there are things we are morally certain of and that the kind of truth I’m talking about.
*Write with passion and heart.
*Lighthouses don’t run around looking for boats to save–they just stand there and shine. (My favorite)
I’m going to be honest–this year was the year of the Panels. The Editor, Picture Book and Agent Panels were among the best I’ve ever seen this time. I was truly impressed. This was the Editor Panel: HOW TO SUCCEED IN PUBLISHING–FINDING YOUR VOICE.
From left to right with some of their best tips…
(JB) Jordan Brown
(EH) Elise Howard
(NP) Neal Porter
(LO) Lin Oliver–Moderator
(FJ) Farrin Jacobs
(TB) Tamar Brazis
(LG) Laura Goodwin
How do you define voice?
LG–It’s what makes an author unique. Equated with style, not to be confused with being stylish. The more you know who you are the clearer your voice is.
EH–Read Dan Gutman’s faculty bio from the conference and 1,200 people knew who she was talking about. That’s voice.
FJ–Things can be “too voicey” and feel unnatural.
JB–Bad voice is when you are picturing an author in their house trying to write a scene instead of being swept into a scene.
What are the attributes of successful authors/illustrators?
LG–Flexibility
EH–They are a contradiction. When you send an editorial letter, they do what you’ve asked but they likely do it in their own unique way, bringing something new and unexpected to the table.
TB–The ability to revise–separate your ego from the project to make the work the best it can be.
FJ–They keep their “stuff” to themselves.
NP–Expensive presents. Ha!
JB–The knowledge that the editor and the author know that they are working together towards the same goal.
There is something special about Bryan Collier. Something very special. Once again he was one of those speakers who I listened to and wondered how my life could have been complete without knowing that he was in it. He blew me away when he talked about FROM A SEED TP A TREE. I’ll share some of him most moving bits, but know that it can’t possibly do him justice–he wears his heart on his sleeve. Every emotion he has is illustrated clearly on his face and he is a charming, funny, intelligent, beautiful soul. If you ever get a chance to meet him…you will come back here and tell me that I was right.
*On Ezra Jack Keats–I never met him and he never met me, but when he wrote the SNOWY DAY, he spoke to me directly.
*In high school–I loved sports, but nothing touched me deeper than making art.
*You have to protect and nurture this artistic seed inside of you, but you still have to eat. Give up the romantic notions and do what you have to do.
*On visiting the lobbies of publishing houses every week for seven years, in order to try to sell a book–The publishing houses didn’t know what they did to me when they let me sit in their lobbies. It was magical, incredible. Julie Andrews walked by one day. I just wanted to get there.
*Everybody’s afraid of your dream–nobody knows what is going on inside of you.
Of course I floated down to my first break-out session of the day…
Lots of fun and great information from Jay Asher–NO BOOKMARKS ALLOWED: HOW TO INJECT SUSPENSE INTO YOUR NOVEL
Jay used one of the greatest suspense stories of all time to teach us what we needed to know…
There’s a Monster at the End of This Book! LOL!
So what do we need to keep the bookmark from slipping between the pages?
*Anticipation
*You have to have one character the reader cares about.
*A satisfying ending is unpredictable, but you believe it had to happen just that way.
*Inject suspense
*Use chapter endings to your advantage.
*Suspense killers: bad dialogue, unnecessary description, forced motivation, vague action.
After a yummy break for lunch. (Frozen yogurt with M&M’s and chocolate sprinkles may have been involved.) We returned for another bang up keynote by Clare Vanderpool, author of MOON OVER MANIFEST. Clare was hysterical and moving when she talked about WRITING IN THE CROSSROADS: WHERE CRAFT AND CREATIVITY MEET.
Loved it when she talked about a little neighborhood boy who booked her to come into his classroom and talk. (too stinkin’ cute) He also asked her to sign his book–unfortunately for Clare it was the 4th Lemony Snicket book. ROTFL!!! Of course she did it. <3
*There is no “What to expect when your win the Newbery.” (Clare won as a debut author)
*Knowledge of craft can form the foundation to create.
*If we think we’re going to get our hands slapped every time we write a sentence, than it’s almost impossible to create.
*You really do have to put in the miles–just like running.
*It’s about writing, writing and more writing–you can’t learn to ride a bike without actually riding the bike.
*Sometimes we think something is wonderful and it’s not, but sometimes we think something is horrible and it is not.
* My theory is that the universe is made up of story.
*It might look like I’m doing nothing, but at the cellular level I’m very busy.
*Quiet is not validated in our society at all.
*There are built in pauses in our life.
*We owe it to the kids who read our books to make time for quiet–great things come from those pauses.
Back to the last break-out session of the day.
Jordan Brown–WRITING FOR BOYS
False perception: Writing for boys=Writing for people who don’t like to read. It has less to do with the ability to read and more to do with how to pitch to boys.
*Boys won’t like reading if they don’t like what they’re reading.
*Boys live in a multimedia world.
*Rise of the “Do it Yourself Aesthetic.”
*Developing connections with authors and readers
Kinds of things that have boy appeal.
*Boys don’t like to be talked down to.
*Boys do like gross-out humor but they know when it’s just thrown in randomly.
*Don’t assume that the things they like in life (sports etc…) are the only connections they will make to reading.
*Tether your fiction to the truth.
*It doesn’t have to be a boy character, but it helps.
*Guys just want to be yelled at less. Avoidance. They aren’t all about the personal development like girls.
Ruta talked about YOU CAN’T BREAK THE BROKEN: WRITING EMOTIONAL TRUTH
Ruta started to write because someone asked her what her story was and she dared to dig deep. She repeats often that history holds secrets, but it’s not just a political history that does this–it’s our own.
*How much of your emotional stuff are you willing to give?
*What is the novel only you can write?
*What scares you?
*What causes you pain?
*What do you wish would just go away?
*Expose your emotional truth, putting it behind your fiction–that is timeless.
*The things you are feeling–there is a reader out there who experiences the same thing.
*I met my savage self when I undertook this writing.
*You can’t break the broken–but you can glue yourself back together.
*Reveal yourself–you have a safety net–the SCBWI
By the time Ruta asked us “What is your story?” I was in tears and profoundly moved. Just like Bryan Collier, I can’t begin to translate the power of this keynote on to the page but I can tell you that I walked away feeling as if I give anything less than this to my writing than I’ve sold myself short.
Deborah Halverson did an amazing job with AN UP TO THE MINUTE SURVEY OF MARKET NEEDS AND TRENDS.
Just the broad strokes…
*Picture books–improved market, but still fragile.
*Chapter books–room for growth.
*MG–best spot for acquisition.
*YA–More successful that ever, but very dependent on the big list authors while the mid list authors are still struggling.
General Submissions:
*High use of agents (conference appearances and referrals)
*What’s in the slush pile is sent prematurely–not usually a thought out fit.
*It’s hard to find self-published authors who can turn into successful acquisitions.
Internal Mood:
*Cautiously optimistic
*Tastes of editors doesn’t change because of the market.
*Creativity is at the heart of what we do.
TIME FOR THE HIPPIE HOP!!!!!
Jodi Moore and Mike Jung
Amy Nichols and Me!!! (We’re blurry because we hippy hopping LOL!)
Me, Stephanie Ruble and Jodi Moore
Gretchen McNeil and Me!!!! Love her. <3
Debra Driza and Me…who knew she was so tall???
RA of Eastern Upstate New York…Nancy Castaldo in a fabulous jump suit!
Yes, we LOVE Lin Oliver!!!!
Leeza Hernandez had my favorite costume of the night!
Can you guess who this is? I’ll give you a hint from above…he loves Grover.
And don’t forget you can still win a Pre-order of TOUCHING THE SURFACE…HERE.
PS. It’s now 2am and I don’t have the braincells to read this over. I’m too tired to ask a creative conversational question so pop in if you’ve got something to say and if it’s got typos or formatting bloopers…I’ll fix it later *yawn* Night…
Had an absolute BLAST at SCBWI LA 2012!!! Duh! I can’t imagine having a bad time with my crazy, wonderful tribe. I’ll start blogging on Wednesday but I thought, since I have a couple minutes in the airport and a blog post due for today that I’d give you my conference “bloopers” first LOL!
Every year the tribe gets together on Saturday night for a themed dance party. This year was a 60′s Hippie Hop. And while I’m not one for dressing up–I am one for dancing like a fool. Mission accomplished….
Ummmm…moving on. So after staying up late dancing and talking to my friends until the late hours of the morning, I found getting up at 7:30 the next day a bit on the tragic side. But I did it it because I hate to miss any speaker or a single minute with my best buddy, Jodi. So, I dragged myself down to the overly long Starbucks line only to find out I’d left my SCBWI name tag in my room. Crap! Of course I run back up to the room to get it….Gahhhhhh….only to find out that I my key was in my name tag holder from last night’s Hippie Hop. *Pulls out Hair* So back down I go to get Jodi’s key and they I’m back up to retrieve my stuff. It’s a testament to how long that coffee line was that I still had to wait in it when I got back. *growls at barista* And just for the record…the coffee didn’t even help. Luckily for me I get a massive adrenaline rush from hearing fabulous speakers and the day was full of them.
I guess as far as bloopers go–dancing like a spaz (my girls at Workshop would be so embarrassed proud) and taking a few extra elevator rides with caffeine withdrawl really aren’t that bad. My recap posts will be full of awesomeness!
And can I tell you a secret? I may have also–in addition to looking like a spaz–looked so happy because of my book. I couldn’t stop thinking that the next time I come together with my tribe–I will be an author. And that, in and of itself, makes me want to dance and just not care what I look like. It just makes me feel good inside.
So, to celebrate my impending book and my earth shattering bravery at publicly posting a *clears throat* less than attractive, can’t be blamed on alcohol, picture of myself for your entertainment–I’m going to give you a chance to win a pre-order of TOUCHING THE SURFACE.
This contest will be open through all of my #LA12SCBWI recap posts and is open internationally. You must remember to put your contact information in your comment, because you can’t win if I can’t get in contact with you. What do you have to do to win? You can make a caption of my “lovely” picture. You can share one of your bloopers–picture or story. You can ask a question about the conference or conferences in general. You can even just tell me what you’re looking forward to about TOUCHING THE SURFACE.
Opps…my plane is getting ready to board and I don’t need that kind of blooper so time to go! See you on the east coast!
I’m leaving tomorrow for SCBWI LA…SQUEE!!!! The conference is sold out again and I can’t wait to go hang with the tribe! As you might have suspected, I’m keeping this short and sweet because I have a zillion, trillion things to get ready before I leave. But I have to give you some information…
Last year I went to the LA Conference for the first time and it was AMAZING!!!! But being my first time, it also meant that there were many years when I was living vicariously through the tweets, blogs and FB posts of those in attendance. Yup, I was trolling the net to find out what was going on. You can absolutely do that too. Virtual fun and information is a writer’s right of passage–it’s the next best thing to being there.
And you absolutely do not want to miss them. They put in so much hard work to make this conference accessible to everyone. (((group hug)))
Of course, I’ll mini blog from the conference as best as I can and you can guarantee I’ll have a full recall for you when I get back. In the mean time, check out the SCBWI, my old posts and start following the blogs and tweets, but if you have any questions about this conference or conferences in general, I’ll do my best to answer your questions. Also, what’s the best conference you’ve ever been to? Best tip for attending conferences? Is there a conference or speaker that got away and you’re kicking yourself for not attending? Dream speaker at a conference???? Come on…distract me from packing…it’s so easy.
Also–If you’re going and you’re by yourself, have no one to eat with, and are possibly feeling a little overwhelmed and TERRIFIED!!!! Let me know and we can connect!!!
I’m heading off the the Eastern PA SCBWI Pocono Mountain Retreat today!!!! So much fun–I love this conference. I’ve been going for years. It’s an intimate conference that has a professional, yet homey feel. It all has a nice mix of workshops that inspire and provide craft. And this year one of the keynote speakers is…
SQUEE!!!! It’s Laurie Halse Anderson.
No, you don’t have to clean out your ears–I AM SPENDING THE WHOLE WEEKEND IN A STATE OF COMPLETE AND UTTER FAN-GIRLINESS!!!!!! There are also lots of other great people and events that I can’t wait to share with you. I’ll be tweeting live on Twitter with the hashtag #SCBWIPA. So follow along–join the conversation. I’ll try to get on FB once in awhile too. Off to finish getting ready. See you on Monday!
So, if you could spend the weekend with any author at all…who would it be?
One of my favorite parts of the conference is Lin Oliver‘s stats and joke during the welcome.
I’ve come to look forward to them. So with out much ado…the 13th Annual New York Conference stats…
*1,148 people in attendance (a sold out show)
*301 were published authors and the remainder are pre-published because that’s how we role in the SCBWI
*392 were women, 56 were men and 700 were UNKNOWN. I met a few of the 700 and they were confused but very nice.
*There were 867 writers in the house and 485 illustrators
*19 different countries were in attendance, including Aruba and Jamaica. Yes, you are correct if you guessed that Lin was singing.
*We also had 49 out of 50 States in attendance but because South Dakota actually showed up this year, Lin was stumped as to who was dissing us.
You have to have the right kind of person to follow Lin Oliver and we were not disappointed.
9:00-10:00 KEYNOTE: TURNING REAL LIFE INTO FICTION – Chris Crutcher
Here are some of my best walk-aways…
*If you want to make life important…shorten it.
*The language of grief, the language of hard times–they need to be told in their native tongue.
*We tend to write for the censors instead of the people who are reading our books.
*The truth you know is the one that will get you published.
*Jesus had an older brother named Esus! Who knew? Chris’ older brother, that’s who. Bwahhhh!!!!
10:15-11:30 PANEL: CHILDREN’S BOOKS: TODAY AND TOMORROW” FOUR EXPERT IMPRESSIONS
Moderator: (LO) Lin Oliver
(RP) Ruben Pfeffer, Agent, East West Literary Agency
(BM) Barbara Markus, Strategic Innovations Advisor
(JF) Jean Feiwel, Senior Vice President and Publishing Director, Feiwel and Friends (MacMillan)
(NP) Nancy Paulsen, President and Publisher, Nancy Paulsen Books, (Penguin)
Question: Significant changes in publishing? (LO)
*(RP) Much more energized and commercial publishing going on.
*(BM) We have bestseller hardcover children’s books that sell better than adult books.
*(JF) The closing of Boarders the changes in Amazon, self-publishing etc…
*(NP) Social Media. Remember, you can use it to help support local bookstores.
Question: How do you characterize the market? (LO)
*(JF) In the last 10 years you could publish just about anything. The market has forced a correction–in order to be effective you need to know your core strengths.
*(RP) Because we publish fewer titles, we have to publish titles better.
Henry is dyslexic and he was wonderfully funny and thoughtful in his speech but I simply can’t capture his talk effectively, but I would like to add this link to a recent interview he did about his dyslexia. Henry Winkler on The Doctors.
*Take the familiar and raft a narrative that makes me see things in a new light
*If you have a clear sense of what you want to do–it shows in your writing.
*There has to be a consumer for your book.
*Keep your reader hooked.
*If something doesn’t feel natural to you–don’t write it.
*Be aware of trends, but if you’re writing to a trend it’s too late.
I also have to mention that Wendy gave a huge shout out to my fellow ApoclaypsieLissa Price and her up-coming debut novel STARTERS. Of course I was *squeeing* like mad–out loud when she was talking about Lissa’s book!!! And it gets better…Wendy gave me the ARC she was reading from!!!!! I started it on the train and LOVE it!!!! Contest coming soon!!!! Thank you Wendy and Lissa!!!!!
And don’t think you can sit down now–it’s off to the Gala where they had *drum roll* a mashed potato bar with toppings!!! If I hadn’t died and gone to heaven, I would have taken a picture. But here are a couple shots from the night.
I’m going to start my conference blog a little unusually. I’m going to begin with John Green and his newest YA novel THE FAULT IN OUR STARS. I’d decided that I wanted to read this on audiobook and I’m so glad that I did. The voices–they brought one of the most beautiful stories to life that I have ever read. Now I bet your asking what this book has to do with the conference. Well, I was five chapters from the end when I boarded the train to head to the city for the Marketing Intensives. I knew it was foolish to try to finish this book in such a public place but I couldn’t stop myself.
Yes, I cried on the train–no–that’s a lie. I sobbed on the train. I frightened the conductor. I tried to pass it off as the side effects of the cold that I had, but when the train stopped and I stood up to gather my things, I saw a writer friend sitting a few rows over. Seeing that one friendly face was my undoing. I put up a finger and and tried to explain, with tears running down my cheeks, how I was forever changed because I had read a book.
Yes, the regular commuters exited the train briskly, mouths gaping–glad I only ride the morning train once in a blue moon. But I’m not ashamed. It was that kind of book and I don’t think that there is a better way to kick off a conference than to walk into it with you heart open and your soul bared. I can’t really write a review of this book, because the truth is I’m not that good of a writer. It will take me a lifetime and many rereads to this story to be able to adequately express what it means to me. So, for now, I shall simply say…thank you John Green.
No longer slobbering, friend in tow, I was happy to easily navigate my arrival tasks of checking in, registering and eating a bagel slathered in cream cheese. I also got a chance to hook up with a few old friends and meet a new one before kicking off the Marketing Intensives. I’m going to share some of best nuggets of the day with you…
9:00-10:100 USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO YOUR BEST ADVANTAGE
(SD) Sarah Dickman, Senior Account Executive, Odyl.net
*Getting your school visit information up on a website is imperative because librarians do not have the time to be on the phone with you for too long. (DHT)
*Suggestion: Do five visits free and then start charging (DHT)
*On pricing: Not getting enough visits–charge less. Getting lots of visits–charge more. (DHT)
*Prepare yourself for schools and classes!!!! (DHT)
*DON’T GO IN THERE AND READ YOUR BOOK. They want to hear about your process, your childhood, your experiences. Bring Pictures. (DHT)
*I read books that are “not my kind of books” because the author won me over with their passion and personality. (NG)
*Creating lesson plans: It’s about using the test. (NG)
*You can apply to speak at conferences. (NG)
*Many schools do not let students play You Tube videos, so embed your trailer on your website.
*Never underestimate what a librarian will do if they like you. (NG)
-You’re responsible for creating your own online presence.
-Readers want to find out more about you.
-You’ll be amazed at how many visitors you get.
-Collect fan names-newsletter.
-Can even help you find an agent/publisher
*MAKE SURE YOUR WEBSITE IS UP TO DATE!
*Your name is your brand.
12:15-1:15 LUNCH!!!!
1:15-2:15 WORKING COLLABORATIVELY WITH PUBLISHERS: WHAT SHOULD YOU DO AND WHAT SHOULD THEY DO?
****Side note–Cindi Tamasi Hamilton just so happens to be an old friend that I hadn’t seen in ages. It took us a minute to figure it out LOL!!! But so nice to see her again and now we can keep track of each other in the cyber world!!!****
Cindy Tamasi Hamilton, Director of Publicity,HarperCollins
Tracy van Straaten, Vice Presiden of Publicity, Scholastic, Inc.
*What should I be doing before I get a Publicist?
-Create a list of any personal media contacts, booksellers or librarians
-Provide your editor with information regarding inspiration for your book, back story, things that might be interesting and helpful in pitching your book.
-Build your social media presence on FB/Twitter etc…
*If there is a trend-group marketing might be very beneficial. (ex-Paranormals)
*Sometimes seasonal or topical books from different houses can be beneficial because they will get lumped together.
*Your book being in the catalogue is one of the single most important things for your book!
2:15-3:00 TWEET PROMOTE AND BRAND YOUR WAY TO MARKETING SUCCESS:” STRATEGIES AND REAL WORLD SCENARIOS
*On Publishing: The means of production have been democratized. (JF)
*Discoverability is how you can push your book to the top of that tidal wave. Lots of different ways to tell and sell a story. (JF)
*Apps have only been around for 3 and a half years. (MK)
*On the future of publishing and marketing: There is going to be a lot of money spent and a lot of money wasted. Consider this the Wild, Wild West. (PR)
*The container for the story keeps changing, but in the end, it still needs to hold a wonderful story. (PR)
*On paper books: They are going to try to digitalize a teddy bear, but in the end, you’re always going to want to snuggle up with the real thing. (PR)
*It used to be the cover that mattered, but now it’s the meta data. (JF)
Phew…that was a lot! The rest of the intensives wound up with a lightning round of questions and then it was off to dinner and Kidlit Drink night. Where I got to meet up with some of the Apocalypsies and some of the members of the Class of 2k12.
If you find any of this information in this blog post useful or intriguing, I highly suggest that you follow up with the links to find out more about these amazing speakers. They were a wealth of knowledge. So, are there any that you think are really interesting? I know I’ve already explored a few. Plus, if you have any other marketing tips–feel free to share them! Coming up on Friday!! Saturday of the NY12SCBWI Conference.
So, I’m writing this post pre-conference because I know how tired I’ll be when I get back on Sunday evening, but surprisingly…I’m tired now too. Ya know–from all that packing and the dirty rotten cold that I’ve been fighting with all week. So, before I take some Nyquil and fall asleep, I thought I’d share with you some of my best packing tips for a conference since they’re fresh in my mind. Yes, I know this post would have been fantastic about a week ago, but I wasn’t packing then. Think about it as a well-prepared post for all those spring conferences coming up. Now on to it…
1. Dress in layers-you never know what the temp in the room is going to be like and it can change from room to room.
2. Wear comfortable shoes. Your fancy shoes should be comfortable and then also bring a REALLY comfortable pair and plan your outfit around them for Sunday–because by then your feet hate you. Also for Sunday’s outfit–I’ve learned to wear a really cool shirt (like a short sleeve) as my base layer because often that is book signing/I’ve already checked out of my room day and you are carrying enough stuff to make a pack mule look dainty. And because of that you might sweat…a little. I’ve learned this the hard way–trust me!
3. Pack enough chocolate for you and all your friends. I feel this should be self explanatory. If it is not, we will schedule a private tutorial.
3. If you already have books from an author that you want to get signed–pack them! Sounds like a no brainer, but you’d be surprised at how many times I’ve forgotten mine. Grrrr
4. Camera!!!! Especially if you have family and/or blog. For the family–(private use only) I try to take pics of things that I couldn’t possible adequately explain to them. If you’re blogging about the conference, your reader will get so much out of having visuals to go with your recap. I personally feel it really makes a difference and I know I always gravitate to the recaps with l0ts of eye catching pics.
5. Pack a sturdy bag for all the books you buy. You always think you might not buy so many but when a speaker talks about a book it becomes personal and it’s hard to resist buying it.
6. A list (even if it’s a mental one) of gifts that you might need to give. An author signed book is great for family and friends, charity (I get one or two for my children’s school library) or for a contest on your blog.
7. BRING BUSINESS CARDS!!!! I can’t stress this enough. Part of the fun of a conference is meeting wonderful new friends. You want these new friends to be able to stay in touch. I’ve meet the BEST PEOPLE EVER at my conferences.
8. These next items are going to be light in your suitcase but they are still important to bring with you–an open mind. Take it all in. Take notes. Take time to digest it. Let it all wash over you.
9. Take confidence. You belong at this conference. YOU ARE A WRITER AND THIS IS YOUR TRIBE–DO NOT FEEL LIKE A SECOND CLASS CITIZEN IN YOUR OWN TRIBE.
10. Bring kindness–not everyone packs #9 when they prepare for a conference, especially their first one. Be a friend. Do not let people eat alone, sit on the sidelines or feel like they do not belong. It costs you nothing to be kind, thoughtful and to remember what it felt like when you lack confidence. Be a leader.
I’ll be back on Wednesday with some after-action conference review. In the meantime, what’s your favorite conference tip? Did any of my tips make your to-do list? Do you have a link to a review of the conference you’d like to share? Come on–give me something because *yawn* I need to stay awake.
