Even before the pandemic, it had been a while since I attended a writing conference. Once all of my writing peers quit writing and the pandemic ended, I struggled with continuing the journey on my own. I’ve since found others to help with the steps of publication… but even this introvert likes to interact with people on occasion. When this conference came up, and only a couple of miles from home, I jumped at the chance to meet other writers, or at least see others in the same industry.
Tonight was a meet and greet. I knew one person, so we chatted. When we went to the conference room where the round tables were being held, one other person actually talked to me, asked me what I wrote, and then proceeded to tell me how I was doing it wrong. The first presentation was about being an indie author. Two other attendees contributed 90% of the information (all but one piece I already knew). One participant wanted to go indie, so everything that was said was completely new to her.
After 90 minutes, the topic switched to marketing. I still had my pen and paper out to take notes. Instead of a presentation, it was a round robin answer of, “What do you do for marketing?” In hearing what others do, I found myself nodding. Yes, I’ve tried that, and that, and that… then the one person I knew shared how her deceased husband had a skill to market books. Even though he’s been gone for five years, and she’s done nothing to keep the marketing going, and hasn’t released any new books in the series, the books still bring in an incredible amount each month. The leader of the group got a phone call, so I snuck out. It was late, and I get up early, and comparisonitis had sunk its claws in.
I hope I meet and talk to at least one new person this weekend. I hope the person who wins my raffle basket likes the goodies and will try one of the three books I’m including. I plan to use the change of scenery to finish my current short story. Maybe I’ll hear something someone does that helps them find readers that I can try, too. Maybe I’ll find some inspiration or motivation or realization that I can write a story, even if I don’t have 15,000 newsletter subscribers or a deposit from book retailers each month that equals my annual income. Have you ever wanted something, but it turned out differently than what you planned? If so, what did you do about it?
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