Thrillerfest 2013

by Jodie Renner, editor, author, speaker

Just got home from Thrillerfest in NYC and realized it's my turn to post a blog here! Hope I can stay awake long enough to say a few words about THE biggest (only?) thriller writers' conference of the year.

This was my fourth Craftfest/Thrillerfest in a row - and maybe my last, as The Big Apple is expensive - especially in July! But I had such a great time that I may just scrimp and save to go back again next year...

The conference is four days long, with all day Wed. and Thurs. a.m. devoted to Craftfest workshops and a luncheon. Thurs. pm is Agentfest (which I didn't attend), followed by two days of Thrillerfest panels, interviews, author signings, book-buying, cocktail parties, and general schmoozing and catching up with or getting to know other authors and aspiring authors.

Janice Bashman, David Morrell, Jenny Milchman, Pam Stack

As always, there were a lot of bestselling authors signing books, giving talks, and mingling at the parties. Michael Connelly, David Morrell, Michael Palmer and Steve Berry, among others, drew large crowds for their workshops at Craftfest. Lee Child didn't speak this year, but was at all the social gatherings. Anne Rice was interviewed by her son, bestselling author Christopher Rice, Michael Palmer was interviewed by his son Daniel Palmer, Michael Connelly was interviewed by Jon Land, and T. Jefferson Parker was interviewed by DP Lyle. All were insightful and inspiring! (Apologies - my photo-taking was sporadic this year.)

Lee Child, Anne Rice

 

I highly recommend Craftfest, the first day and a half, for aspiring authors and anyone wanting to hone their craft. The workshops are always excellent, and are presented by accomplished authors who are also great teachers. And most of them are pretty entertaining, too!

Steven James introduces David Morrell

Thrillerfest is mostly panels and interviews, and of course a lot of socializing. This year I was on a panel for the first time, called "How to Become a Masterful Editor - of Your Own Work."

Brad Parks was highly entertaining as our panel master. I had prepared handouts on three self-editing-related topics, all of which were scarfed up immediately. I had no idea we'd get a packed room for our panel! Click HERE to read the handouts on steps for revising and self-editing, how to save on editing costs, and cutting word count.

And a great spin-off was that a lot of people came up to me at the end and asked for my card and expressed an interest in my two craft of writing books, Style That Sizzles & Pacing for Power, and Writing a Killer Thriller. I ended up selling a lot of books at the conference - way more than I thought I would.

Janice Gable Bashman, Allison Brennan, Jodie Renner

The best part of the four-day conference was connecting and networking with author friends from Facebook -- and also meeting a bunch of great new people.

with Doug Lyle

Stimulating and fun, and I came away with so many ideas, from writing and editing to publishing to marketing and promoting!

If you attended Craftfest and/or Thrillerfest this year, what were some of the highlights for you?
    

Pam Stack, Jodie, Amy Shojai

Conferences can be expensive, but they're so worth it in many ways. And there's always the option of trying to find one close to home...

Do you enjoy writers' conferences or conventions? Which are your favorites, and why? How about ones you'd like to attend but haven't yet?

And by the way, as with many big conferences, all the workshops, panels, and interviews were recorded, and you can buy the CDs at www.Thrillerfest.com.

Jodie Renner has published two books to date in her series, An Editor’s Guide to Writing Compelling Fiction: Writing a Killer Thriller and Fire up Your Fiction (Style That Sizzles & Pacing for Power), which has won two book awards so far. Look for the third book in the series, out soon. For more info, please visit Jodie’s author website or editor website, her other blogs, The Kill Zone and Resources for Writers, or find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. And sign up for her newsletter.

If you won't listen to reason, will you listen to nonsense?

By Gayle Carline

Tomorrow I'm going to San Diego for the Southern California Writers' Conference, to spend a weekend with writers, talking about all things writing, from the craft to the business end of it. I will return on Monday feeling both energized and frustrated by being around other writers.

Some writers know how to get the most out of any writer's conference. They are a joy and I've made some great friends among them. Some writers still don't get it, no matter how many times you offer to show them the ropes. So, since they won't learn from positive example...

How To Have a Crappy Writer's Conference Experience

1. Attend with the only goal of getting your book published. I can't tell you the number of people who are convinced their novel is ready for publication by a major house and spend the entire weekend stalking every agent to get signed. Maybe it's a brilliant piece of work. Maybe it's a piece of something else. Doesn't matter. Here's some news: you send off a needy-creepy vibe that makes most agents turn and bolt out the door.

2. Don't talk to anyone the whole weekend. Yes, we writers can be shy, but if you are too tongue-tied, you will miss opportunities to network with other writers and possibly even publishers and agents. Put on your Big Girl/Boy pants and resolve, at each workshop, to walk up to a stranger and say, "Hi, my name is (blank). What do you write?"

3. Make your every conversation about YOUR book. Yes, we do talk about our work, within the context of problem solving and our craft, but if you are sitting with a table of others, wondering how you can turn the conversation back to your post-apocalyptic dinosaur thriller, well, knock it off. Invest yourself in the topic at hand, or find another table.

4. Spend all of your time in Read & Critique workshops. This particular conference offers all-day sessions of read and critique groups, and some people spend the whole weekend going from one R&C to another. If you're convinced your work is gold and want to read it aloud all day to an admiring audience, stand outside a Starbucks and give it a go. If, despite having at least one room of people tell you what is and isn't working in your first five pages, you're still not sure, one more of these sessions is not going to help you. Go back and study the craft of writing. Take some of THOSE workshops.

5. Be rigid and unwilling to learn anything. Some writers come with strong convictions, from their skill set is stronger than it is, to spelling/grammar aren't that important, all the way to self-publishing is the only way to do it or the mark of Satan. If no one can change your mind about anything, why are you attending a conference that is supposed to offer teaching?

6. Take yourself seriously. We work hard and we play hard. When we're not in workshops, talking about writing, we're in the bar talking about everything. I'm going to go out on a limb here and tell you that if you think we're a flippant and disrespectful group, you are going to have a hard time when your work is published and you start getting those one-star reviews. Learn to chill now, or your head will explode later. 

I will be teaching two workshops. One will offer tools to writers who are unsure of how to correctly pace their work. The other is a discussion about what it takes to self-publish.

When I'm not teaching, you'll find me checking out some of the other workshops, learning something. Or I'll be at the bar, maybe hanging out with Drew Kaufman. If you are at the conference, come hang out with me. We have a lot of fun!