A Great New Writers' Conference at SCSU

I recently attended the MFA Writers' Conference: A Gathering of Connecticut-Region Writers, a new writers' conference at Southern Connecticut State University.  The event was free and open to the public, organized by Professor of English at SCSU, Tim Parrish.

There was a lot of great advice, good-natured joking and entertaining stories by the panelists.  The conference had one-hour panels comprised of four writers per panel.  For those beginning writers out there who weren't able to attend, here's a summary of the panels and their advice.

The first panel was called "Getting Published" and included William Black (short story writer), Laurie Foos (novelist/short story writer) and Margot Schilpp (poet), with moderator Jessica Forcier (short story writer).

The panelists discussed various topics, including when to know a piece is ready to be submitted to a publisher, how to find places to get published, and how to develop a relationship with an editor.  They also answered specific audience questions about the process of submitting, such as about simultaneous submissions, cover letters, agents, social media platforms, writers groups, and how much editing to do before re-sending out or retiring a piece.

Favorite quotes from the panel:
William Black [when recalling a conversation with the editor of a prominent magazine]: Stories are most often rejected because they didn't fit the style of the magazine.
Laurie Foos: Always aim high - if you're going to be rejected, might as well be from the best.
Margot Schilpp: Marry a writer so they can read your stuff.

The second panel was called "Literary Periodicals, The Virtual Writing Community" and included Patricia D'Ascoli (publisher/journalist/essayist), Bennett Lovett-Graff (publisher/essayist) and Lisa Mangini (poet), with moderator Jeff Mock (poet).

The panelists spoke about how they got into the business of writing and publishing, what their individual publications are looking for, how to promote your own writing, the editorial process, the difference between publishers and editors, reading in order to write better, and the role of the book review.

Favorite quotes from the panel:
Patricia D'Ascoli: No one makes money [from writing.]
Bennett Lovett-Graff: Little magazines are the lifeblood of authors - not for money or loads of readers, but where you practice your craft and validate your writing.
Lisa Mangini: Readers [of magazines] are ostensibly other writers, so the bar is set high.
Jeff Mock: The editorial process is a mystery - I worked as an editor for a dozen years and I'm still mystified by the process.  Don't ever take it [a rejection] personally.  The best anyone can do is be professional.

The third panel was called "Writing for a Living" and included Denise Burrell-Stinson (editor/journalist), Beth Levine (essayist/publicist) and Mark Oppenheimer (journalist/essayist), with moderator Tim Parrish (novelist/memoir writer/short story writer).

The panelists discussed their career path, the diversity of paying jobs for writers, the difference of jobs for beginning writers versus established writers, networking, the importance of reading and research, what they love most about being a writer, the importance of New York City in writing careers, the authors who influenced them, content writing and the role of advertising in journalism.

Favorite quotes from the panel:
Denise Burrell-Stinson: If you are not a reader, you are not a writer, you are not a part of the writing community.
Beth Levine: Be ballsy - not pushy.
Mark Oppenheimer: What piece of the world are you going to corner that you're the expert on?

The final panel of the day was called "The Creative Process" and included Jim Finnegan (poet), Sandi Shelton (novelist) and Tim Parrish (novelist/memoir writer/short story writer), with moderator Masha Hamilton (novelist/essayist/journalist).

The panelists spoke about the transition from the initial idea of a piece to the finished product and where they got their ideas, procrastination's role in the creative process, editing while writing, perseverance versus creativity, the difference in the creative process for nonfiction versus fiction, their mentors and influences, whether it's important for a writer to write every day or not, taboo topics in nonfiction, and juggling multiple writing projects.

Favorite quotes from the panel:
Jim Finnegan: Very important poems can come from very small events in life.
Sandi Shelton: Each novel is starting over - you're an expert on the one you just finished, not the one you're about to write.
Tim Parrish: One of my mentors said, "You write towards the fear." A lot of commercial writers find a formula and stick to it, but that's death for a literary writer - always need to be experimenting and changing.

Overall, I walked away from the conference very glad that I had gone and ready to donate to the program to make this conference a reality for next year.  The panelists were entertaining, had lots of information, and were receptive to questions from the attendees.  Most of all, it was very well organized and the panels ran (and ended!) on time.

Because this event was free, they are asking for donations in order to help support the MFA Writer's Program and hopefully to hold the conference again next year.  If you would like to donate, please go here and check the box saying you'd like to donate to the MFA program.  And maybe I'll see you there next year!