Mixing Work With Pleasure

Today, tomorrow and for part of the day on Sunday, I'll be enjoying myself at the  annual Pennwriters Conference held in Lancaster, PA. This writers' group caters to all levels and genres of writing. Short stories, non-fiction, poetry and fiction will be covered in the workshops. Agents and editors will be taking pitches and offering general advice during panel sessions. Really, there's too much going on to describe here.

I don't have any new works ready to pitch to anyone but I'll attend workshops to hone some skills. I'm looking forward to a workshop on short stories and another on advanced techniques with online media. I still haven't figured out how Linked In helps me. Anything on promotion will probably find me in attendance. The keynote dinner speaker is Kami Garcia. Maybe I can learn how to get one of my novels turned into a major motion picture from her.

Another great thing about the conference is getting the chance to mix with other writers. There are a few I've known for a while but it's been a while since I've seen them personally. And I'm sure I'll meet some new writerly friends.

Like previous conferences, the sessions and the people I meet will provide material for this blog for a few weeks to come. I think I had material for an entire month last time I attended.

And finally, nothing gets the muse galloping for me like mixing around with other writers. I find them so inspiring and supportive that I just want to go home and write and write.

If you could attend a writing conference with any guest speaker you wished, who would it be? What is one workshop you would attend if you could pick any subject? Is there a particular workshop you would feel comfortable teaching?