CONFERENCESCENE
1 Hampton Roads Writers Conference
Accelerate your journey to publishing success at this workshop-heavy event on the scenic Virginia coast.
Sept. 19–21, 2019 Holiday Inn Virginia Beach-Norfolk Hotel and Conference Center, Virginia Beach, Va. $240 for Hampton Roads Writers members, $275 for nonmembers through Sept. 8; $280 for all after. $150 for students with proof of full-time enrollment. Other special rates available, with scholarships Breakout sessions are tightly focused on specific topics and presented as interactive workshops—no moderated panel or Q&A sessions disguised as workshops, Executive Director Lauran Strait says. “We also offer multiple networking opportunities between attendees and faculty, including a meet and greet Thursday evening and a cocktail social and open mic Friday evening,” Strait adds. 225. Novelists Sharyn McCrumb (); Laurence O’Bryan (); Colin W. Sargent (); Jenna Jaxon (); Allie Marie (True Colors series); nonfiction writers John McCarthy; Jennifer Malia; Peter Porosky; poets Michael Khandelwal; Annmarie Lockhart; Alison Joseph; Jon Tribble; screenwriter Diane Fine; agents Caitie Flum (Liza Dawson Associates); Rebecca Scherer (Jane Rotrosen Agency); Steven Salpeter (Curtis Brown, Ltd); many others. Multiple workshops of up to two hours address an eclectic array of topics, including poetry, songwriting, crafting an elevator pitch, flash fiction, and even podcasting. A four-hour pre-conference writers’ boot camp, taught by award-winning writer Frank Milligan, will be offered Thursday afternoon for an additional $80. Conference registration includes three 10-minute agent pitches, entry into the three writing contests, entry into the first 10 lines critique sessions, entry into a two-hour open mic, and more. Give your brain a rest with a visit to the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center on General Booth Blvd. It features thousands of fish and animals representing more than 300 species, ranging from sharks to seals to Komodo dragons.
