Four Writers' Conference Survival Tips

​I missed the 2016 nostalgia trend, but let’s revisit 2016 anyway. Would you look at that—2016 happens to be the year I attended my first writers’ conference.

I was fifteen years old, studying a college campus map for the first time to locate my first session. My bag overflowed with anything and everything I could possibly need—more than I needed. I was an hour away from home and staying at a hotel, which seemed like the journey of a lifetime.

Now let’s come back to 2026. I’m twenty-five years old, but this time I am the map, wearing a very official volunteer badge and pointing people in the right direction. This time, I’m five and half hours from home in an unfamiliar city. And I’m doing all this while dressed as Inigo Montoya, complete with an eyeliner mustache.
2016 me could have never.

I make no secret that this blog is for the girls who feel a little too weird. While I do give some writing advice here, I do try to make sure this appeals to you whether you’re an artist or not.

But a lot of you self-proclaimed weird girls are creatives, which means you may find yourself at a writers’ conference or convention this summer.

I’ve attended writers’ conference for ten years now. As I compare my most recent experiences to my first one back in 2016, I’ve discovered some tips and tricks I wish I’d known back then. Whether you’re attending your first conference or your tenth, I want to share those tips with you today.

Have a plan, then throw it out.

I used to build myself a schedule down to the very last minute. What sessions I would attend, where they were located, how much time I needed to travel in between rooms. Overkill? Perhaps.

That doesn’t make it bad. I still put together a little schedule. I pick out my sessions and study the map. It helps me feel more prepared, and it helps me get excited for the event.

But now I know that when I get to the conference, I’ll likely throw out that plan.

Not everything will go according to plan. You might find that you can’t keep up with all the sessions you scheduled. You might miss a signing for an author you hoped to meet. You might leave your costume sword five and a half hours away. (I definitely have never done that.) You cannot do it all, and you will miss opportunities.

But new opportunities that you could never have dreamed will take their place. You might miss a session so you can grab an impromptu snack with some new friends. Or you might snag a last-minute appointment with a faculty member. Or you might meet a favorite author wandering around the expo hall.

Grab those opportunities and go with the flow. But falling back on a color-coded schedule never hurts either.

Prioritize people.

Don’t get me wrong—teaching is invaluable. But the most powerful thing about conferences and conventions is the connections.

So if you must choose between two spectacular opportunities, as a general rule, I would always advise whichever one lets you connect with fellow attendees and faculty.

Go sightseeing with friends. Chat with the people beside you before a session begins. Start an empty table at meals and see who joins it.

And be open to unlikely connections. When I first started out, I had this vision that I’d magically find myself at a table with people who wrote exactly the same genre I did. And I have found those people. But I also found myself at a table with a technical writer. Or sitting beside a cozy mystery author in a session. Don’t assume that they have nothing to share with you just because of the differences between you, or that you have nothing to share with them.

Respect your need for space.

As I’ve written about throwing out the plan and interacting with people, you might feel panic rising.

Let’s be clear—the only reason I can embrace that spontaneity is because I build in rest and alone time.

Head back to your hotel room at a good hour so you can relax and sleep. Take yourself out for lunch—just you. Walk the campus between sessions.

Coordinating with people I already know has helped me. My writing group got a room together at a recent conference, so I knew every day I could return to a quiet room with familiar people.

Don’t feel like you have to do it all, and don’t panic if an opportunity passes you by. What is meant to happen will happen.

Do the brave thing.

I feel like I shapeshift into another person at conferences. I become this creature who fearlessly approaches authors I admire and asks them to sign my books. This alternate me can chat up a random stranger in the expo without effort and give directions without flinching.

Writers’ conferences are a space where you’re with people who get the creative life. Let that make you brave. Do the thing that might seem weird or impulsive anywhere else. Approach people. Raise your hand and ask questions in sessions. Sign up for open mic night. Draw on an eyeliner mustache and dress like Inigo Montoya.

Now, obviously, there are impulsive things you shouldn’t do. Politeness and manners and common sense do still exist here. But also don’t be afraid to stretch yourself and do the thing that feels out there. I assure you, it’s probably more normal than you think.

These tips might have made 2016 me break out in hives. But they’re the things I wish I could tell her most, and they made my recent conferences such wonderful, enriching experiences. I hope this article brings you both some peace of mind while also making you more eager for what lies ahead. Approach your conferences with confidence!

Are you attending any conferences, conventions, or retreats this summer? What are some events you’ve loved in the past? How many conferences have you attended? Let me know in the comments below!