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Anonymous author learns about firearm safety during a recent Writers' Police Academy. |
Greetings! We’re working through some technical issues. So, we thought we might interrupt our regular blogger rotation this week to discuss a topic near and dear to many of us: writing conferences, seminars, and workshops. And, to let our readers know that many “writers” events welcome (and encourage) non-writers, i.e., readers a/k/a “kind, intelligent people who buy our books.”Writing, at its essence, is not a group activity, right? No doubt we’ve all seen the acronym: BICFOK—Butt in chair, fingers on keyboard. We’re pounded with the adjuration “That novel’s not going to write itself, is it?”
Yet, just as no person “… is an island entire of itself,” a writer depends on many others—editors, beta readers, proofreaders, publishers, and, ultimately, readers. So maybe writing is, indeed, a group activity. After all, it takes a village, doesn’t it?
Writers, even the most introverted of us, must seek support
from others. The group. The community. The village. And there are few better
places to seek support than at a writer-oriented conference, seminar, or
workshop. It must be the case. Just search the Internet for “Upcoming Writers
Conferences.” You’ll get list after list after list of writers conferences,
seminars, and workshops at all sorts of locations around the country and world, of every
shape, description, genre, and duration.
Ask a dozen writers about their favorite conference,
seminar, or workshop and you will likely receive two dozen answers. “I liked Conference
A. But Workshop B was great, too. They’re both my favorites.”
I’ve been to a number of writers conferences in my relative
short time as an author. I’ve learned something at each. One of my favorites is
the Writers’ Police Academy (WPA), the brainchild of Lee and Denene Lofland (Lee Lofland - The Graveyard Shift - Lee Lofland). Here's
a brief description from the WPA website (Writers' Police Academy
(writerspoliceacademy.com)):
Writers' Police Academy’s unique hands-on training takes place in Green Bay, WI., at the Public Safety Training Academy of Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC). Beyond basic certifications, the Academy offers specialized courses including SWAT, Boat Patrol, and Homicide Investigations, to name only a few. The Public Safety Academy/Writers’ Police Academy facilities include a 26-acre closed road course, defensive and arrest tactics rooms, tactical house, jail cells, indoor firing range, forced-entry structure, and a 4-story burn tower.
What a blast! Driving fast, chasing “criminals” and
making their vehicles spin out, battering down doors as part of a police “stack,”
and shooting (targets, not people). And did I mention learning about crime scene
investigations, fingerprinting, and blood spatter? Or the lecture from a
retired FBI agent who was part of the team searching the Unabomber’s
cabin? Need I go on? How about the
authors invited as each academy’s “Guest of Honor.”? People like Craig Johnson,
Heather Graham, Robert Dugoni, and Hank Philippi Ryan. Wow! Double Wow!!
Enough from me. What about other writers? What is your
favorite conference, seminar, or workshop? Why is it your favorite? Leave a
comment and tell us all about it (or them).
Readers, don’t feel left out. Many “writing” conferences embrace your involvement, like Bouchercon (https://www.bouchercon.com/) or Malice Domestic (https://www.malicedomestic.org/). They even include a “Fan Guest of Honor.” Oh, for our local readers, don't forget the Suffolk, Virginia, Mystery Author's Festival on March 11, 2023 (suffolkmysteryauthorsfestival.com). It's for writers AND readers. The "Sisters" will be there in force. We hope to see you! Stop by and say hello.
