Children’s Book Week 11-13 – Preperations

[cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ style=”margin: 0px;padding: 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]A few weeks have passed by since my last update. In that time I have been preparing for my first writer’s conference, which is this coming weekend. When going into something fresh off the boat as I am it is good to do your homework. Doing one’s due diligence can mean the difference between attending a conference or participating in it.

Knowing The Talk In Order to Walk The Walk

Knowing the speakers, their backgrounds and areas of expertise, their own books or projects, is a good way to start conversations. It also shows you are serious about your work. However, it cannot be overstated that knowing about your speakers is a lot different than making sure they know you know about them. Going up to a speaker and unnaturally  listing off every detail you know of them can be quite jarring. People want to be known, not stalked. This is something I will try to keep in mind.

Preparations also mean preparing to talk about myself, why I chose to pursue children’s book writing and other professional and personal information. As a person who doesn’t offer up much information when I first meet someone this is something I am going to have to work on. My initial response to meeting new people is to listen. I want to know what makes them tick, what their humor is like. Knowing those tidbits helps me to adjust my conversation. Yet, if I only listen and never speak I will never be heard. That’s one of the reasons for attending the conference, to find out how Farmer Dale’s Dilemma can be heard.

The writer’s conference is fast approaching. I am both excited and nervous. Hopefully all my preparations will help me out.  I have no idea what kind of fool or genius I will come across as but whether fool or genius or both I hope leave the conference with some good stories, some good leads and some new friends as I start down the path of children’s book author.

Attempt it. Chance it. Try it. Get to It![/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section]