Online Writing Convention Initial Proposal
Overview
A lot of people, for one reason or another, can’t attend in-person conferences and conventions. But the internet gives us so many types of resources and ways to communicate, why should we let anything stop us from still having that experience?
That’s why I want to propose an Online Writing Convention (name to be determined). I know WriteOnCon exists, and although I want to maintain that spirit of community, I wanted something more focused on panels, talks, workshops, and debates, instead of having a heavy focus on critiques and pitching. I want to involve different people from all parts of the publishing industry to talk about the entire process, from writing, querying, to publishing, and marketing. Let’s talk about story structure, diverse characters and stories, what to avoid doing in a query or the first chapter, what happens after you get an agent, book covers, anything and everything that a “normal” convention would have.
Goals
Ideally I would like to involve everyone from authors, agents, editors, to bloggers… Ideally, I would also like it to be free, but people do deserve to be paid for their time and work. So this is something to definitely consider.
Other thing to consider is when to do it. I was thinking perhaps it could last 2 to 3 days, and although the weekend would probably be best, we have to consider that some people might also not be available then. Perhaps we should make a poll to see when people would prefer it? Maybe around Spring / Summer 2016. (Also consider releasing all videos / recordings / things on demand).
The idea is to include all categories and genres in this convention. I’m partial to YA and speculative fiction myself, but I would like this to be open to all kinds of writers. If the following list is biased towards that category and genres, I apologize. Please feel free to suggest anything!
But first, I need to know if people would be interested in being a part of this. Would you be interested in doing something of this sort? Do you have ideas that you could bring to the table? Please tell me anything and everything! There’s a form at the end of the post if you want to send me something. If you can’t see it, here’s the link. Let’s make stuff!
Ideas I’d like to make happen (list to be updated as people suggest things):
| Writing Related | Genre / Category Related |
|---|---|
| – Let’s Make Great Characters – Most Common Mistakes in First Chapters – Plotter Guide to Pantsers (tips about structure, story arcs, etc) – Worldbuilding – How to research well – The Basics of Self Publishing – Graphic novels / Comics – Short stories – Editing tips – Podcasts – Writing for television / cinema – Revisions |
– Fantasy Panel – Science-fiction Panel – Horror Panel – Contemporary Panel – Mystery Panel – History Panel – How to blend genres – Speculative Fiction in New Adult – Fairytales and Retellings – Sex in YA – Differences between YA and NA |
| Diversity | Publishing Industry |
|---|---|
|
– How to talk about Disability – Activism / Feminism – Gender and sexuality – Faith in NA/YA/MG – Neurodiversity / Mental Illnesses – Language, Dialect, and Code-Switching |
– What happens when your relationship with your agent doesn’t work – A panel with agents and editors about trends / what hooks them despite them – A peek behind the veil of the industry (editors, agents, publishers, etc) – Small presses – What happens after you sign with an agent – Book covers |
If you are interested, please feel free to fill in the following form so I can add you to the list and contact you with further information.