What an amazing event. This was my first writers' conference. My goal: Survive. Really. I knew what I was up against: My own fears of rejection, not fitting in, making a mistake, saying something stupid, saying too much, not holding to the boundaries I've worked hard to establish, feeling out of place.
Why would I feel out of place? In a place saturated with other writers? I feel a bit like I'm in limbo. I'm not looking for an agent or editor. I've sold, but the first book won't be published until August, so I'm not quite published either.
I've decided to tackle this one day for each post. There's a lot of material, and this is me processing.
Friday, we had a three-hour presentation by Bob Mayer, Write It Forward. It was cram-packed with information. The vast majority of it I either did already or it didn't fit me. Stepping over the threshold puts me in a position of transition. It's awkward, no matter how you go about it. However, I'm so grateful I attended. If I have the opportunity to attend another of his workshops, I'll take it.
Perhaps, oddly enough, the most important thing I learned was if the bomb blast is enough to move you, it's enough to kill you. I corrected my manuscript to reflect what I'd learned. Whew.
I didn't attend any other workshops on Friday as I was helping at the Registration desk. I like being helpful. It allowed me to meet some new people, and chat a bit.
Dinner and the guest speaker, Tom Leveen, were good.
I was determined to take a break from everything. Alone in my room, I forced myself to settle in the silence. It took a bit of work, but it came. Then I asked myself: Why am I here? A soft answer filled my soul: To help others feel comfortable. Something I could do, though I've been known to make people feel uncomfortable as well. :-)
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