Writers Conferences from San Francisco to VT

With the new year quickly approaching, it isn't too early to consider attending 2016 writers' conferences! Here's a round-up of several top-notch conferences that cover the west coast, east coast and midwest, ordered by date of event. Some require an application to register:

San Francisco Writers Conference
Date: Feb. 11 - 14, 2016
Location: Mark Hopkins Hotel, San Francisco
Cost: $725 (early rate until Jan. 1)
Register: click here

Highlights: 80+ sessions for writers–from the craft of writing to the business of publishing. Elegant keynote luncheons and networking breakfasts are included in the registration fee as is the Welcome Gala on Friday night. See list of presenters, agents and editors here.

AWP Conference & Bookfair
Date: March 30 - April 2, 2016
Location: Los Angeles Convention Center & JW Marriott LA
Cost: varies ($50 student to $260 nonmember
Register: Pre-reg. until Feb. 12

Highlights:  The 2015 conference featured over 2,000 presenters and 550 readings, panels, and craft lectures. The bookfair hosted over 800 presses, journals, and literary organizations from around the world. AWP’s is now the largest literary conference in North America. See list of presenters here.

Creative Nonfiction Writers' Conference
Date: May 27 - 29, 2016
Location: Wyndham University Center, Pittsburgh
Cost: not listed
Register: opens Dec. 15

Highlights: In just three days you can meet one-on-one with a literary agent, get advice from professional writers, learn about publishing options, and do some writing in an inspiring small-group session. You’ll also meet and mingle with writers from across the country who share your excitement about the writing process. 

The Riverteeth Nonfiction Writers Conference
Date: June 3 - 5, 2016
Location: Ashland, Ohio
Cost: $425 (student scholarships available by March 15)
Apply: Applications submitted before April 15 will receive a $50 discount on registration

Highlights: A weekend of manuscript consultations, seminars, and readings, all focused on the craft of nonfiction. The conference will emphasize essay, memoir, literary journalism, and building the kind of relationships that sustain writers throughout the writing process, from early draft all the way through to book promotion. Your conference registration fee includes admission into all panels, seminars, social events, book signings, and open-mics, breakfast Saturday and Sunday mornings, and a complimentary one-year subscription to River Teeth. See list of presenters, including keynote Dinty W. Moore, here.

Bread Loaf Orion Environmental Writers' Conference
Date: June 3 - 9, 2016
Location: Bread Loaf Campus of Middlebury College, Ripton, VT
Cost: $2,140 general contributors; $1,820 auditors. Includes tuition, room, and board)
Apply: March 15 deadline; $15 fee

Highlights: This week-long conference of workshops, classes, lectures, readings, and discussions is for writers who want to improve their writing about the environment; for writers who seek to become better advocates for the environment through their writing; for poets who are drawn to writing about the natural world; for teachers and scholars who wish to write for a more general readership; and for environmental professionals who want to bring better writing skills to bear on their work. See list of faculty & guests here.

Middlebury Bread Loaf Writers' Conference
Date: Aug. 10 - 20, 2016
Location: Bread Loaf Campus of Middlebury College, Ripton, VT
Cost: $3,170 general contributors; $3,035 auditors. Includes tuition, room and board. 
Apply: March 1 deadline; $15 fee

Highlights: Workshops in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction are at the core of the conference. Each faculty member conducts a workshop that meets for five two-hour sessions over the course of the 10 days. Groups are kept small to facilitate discussion, and all participants meet individually with their faculty leaders to elaborate on workshop comments. Faculty members also offer lectures on issues around literary writing and one-hour classes on specific aspects of the craft. See list of faculty & guests here.

Heading to the AWP Writing Conference in Chicago!

This week I'm heading to Chicago for the AWP (Association of Writers and Writing Programs) annual conference! Sold out at 9,500 registrants, the event takes place between two hotels and many other  venues, such as bookstores and pubs, throughout town. (Special bonus: dinner with my cousin Paul.)

I haven't been blogging as regularly as I'd like, but rest assured I'll take notes for upcoming posts. Last week I submitted my first short fiction story (at 13 pages) for my writing workshop. My story, Schoolyard, is "up" (as they say) for critique by my cohort Tuesday. Then I'm off to the San Francisco airport and the windy city Wednesday. Wish me luck!

This amazing conference, featuring keynote Margaret Atwood, lasts three days and has an overwhelming multitude of choices (as many as 25!) each 1.25 hour session--from craft of writing to teaching to sustaining a writing life. Here are some I'm interested in:

Nominated to National Literary Competition

My nonfiction piece, What It's Like, was nominated by University of San Francisco for the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) 2011 national contest! The AWP's Intro Journals Project is "a literary competition for the discovery & publication of the best new works by students currently enrolled in the programs of AWP."

I wrote and revised the story in my MFA program's autobiographical intensive during summer 2010. I submitted it, thinking, "Why not? I've got nothing to lose." The final judge who chose my piece (judged blind, without names) among the three nonfiction finalists also happens to be my current workshop instructor, Associate Professor David Vann. His Sukkwan Island, taken from his book Legend of a Suicide, just won the prestigious Prix Medicis award from France. Vann said he could tell my revision process paid off because the piece was "polished." Graduate school, and diligent work, does make a difference!