25 Writers' Conferences in October

October is jam-packed with conferences for writers. You will find everything from author readings, craft workshops, private consultations and critiques from professionals, and pitch sessions with agents and editors. Several state and national writing organizations are holding conferences this month, offering excellent opportunities for writers to meet the leaders in their genres.

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Getting an agent: Schmooze or you lose (How to find conferences in your area)
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American Medical Writers Association Annual Conference, Sept 30 - Oct 3, San Antonio, TX. Workshops in medical writing, designing materials for patients, analysis, clinical reports, and more.

St. Augustine Writers Conference, October 1 - 6, St. Augustine, Florida. Focus on fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry with special sessions on publishing. Faculty includes Sascha Feinstein, Connie May Fowler, Parneshia Jones, and Laura van den Berg. Panel discussions, readings, and workshops.

State Writing Conference & Convention, sponsored by The Kansas Authors Club, October 2 - 4, Topeka, Kansas. Writing workshops, panels, and presentations by Thomas Fox Averill, Mark Bouton, Elle Lothlorien, Max McCoy, Kevin Rabas, T. Dawn Richard, Dennis Smirl.

Write Your Memoir Retreat 2015, October 2 - 4, Westbrook, Connecticut. A memoir writing intensive weekend geared to both experienced and emerging writers. Addressing how to shape your memoir, issues of truth, time sequencing and emotional balance, and more. Faculty: Kaylie Jones, Judy L. Mandel.

Write on the Sound Writers Conference, October 2 - 4, Edmonds, Washington. Workshops in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as manuscript consultations, discussions, readings, and a book signing. The faculty includes poets Laura Read and Maya Jewell Zeller; fiction writers Q Lindsey Barrett, Scott Driscoll, Robert Dugoni, Elena Hartwell, Nick O’Connell, Michael Schein, Roger Weston, and Eric Witchey; and creative nonfiction writers Christine Dubois, Claire Gebben, Jennifer D. Munro, and Sylvia Taylor. Guest speakers include fiction writer Stella Cameron and creative nonfiction writer Rick Steves. SOLD OUT

Pacific Coast Children's Writers Novel Workshop & Retreat, October 2 - 4, Santa Cruz, California. Seminar for writers of MG/YA fiction. Includes whole-novel manuscript critiques by editor or agent; partial manuscripts critiqued by editor and agent. (All written as well as in person.) Plus critiques from target-age readers; advanced craft sessions. Faculty includes Harpercollins executive editor Kristen Pettit, Writers House senior "editorial" editor Stephen Barr. Teens' faculty: Helen Pyne, former Doubleday Children's Book Editor. 

The Pacific Northwest Workshop Retreat, October 7 - 11, Whidbey Island, WA.  "The retreat is enhanced with new pre-event studies, extended personal consult time with business professionals (see bios on the right), and an emphasis on making each writer's work as competitive as possible in its chosen market. The workshop retreat accommodates a variety of genres including mystery/thriller or detective, women's fiction, suspense, adult and YA fantasy and SF, urban fantasy, historical, and paranormal and historical romance, as well as general and upmarket fiction more appropriate for literary presses and select major imprints."

San Diego Writing Workshop. October 9, San Diego, CA. “How to Get Published” is one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript. Faculty includes literary agent Paul S. Levine (Paul S. Levine Literary); Jill Marr (Sandra Dijkstra Literary); Courtney Miller-Callihan (Sanford J. Greenberger Associates); Taylor Martindale (Full Circle Literary);Patricia Nelson (Marsal Lyon Literary); literary agent Jennifer Azantian (Azantian Literary); Annie Bomke (Annie Bomke Literary Agency).

Haiku North America Conference, October 14 - 18, Schenectady, NY. Conference devoted to haiku as a literary art. Includes presentations, readings, panels, bookfair, exhibits, banquet, anthology. Faculty: William Higginson, Jane Hirshfield, Jim Hackett, George Swede, Haruo Shirane, Sonia Sanchez, John Brandi, Michael Dylan Welch, Jim Kacian, Lee Gurga, Emiko Miyashita, Fay Aoyagi, Ce Rosenow, Lucien Stryk, Gerald Vizenor, Charles Trumbull, Richard Gilbert. 

14th Annual Florida Writers Conference, October 15 - 18, Lake Mary, Florida. Four workshops and panels dedicated to help you learn how to pitch your story, and more than fifty acclaimed authors, poets, and publishing industry experts for three days of networking opportunities.

Nimrod Conference for Readers and Writers, October 16 - 17, University of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Workshops in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, as well as readings, master classes, panel discussions, and individual manuscript consultations with faculty. Participants include poets Tina Chang and Benjamin Myers, fiction writers Molly Antopol and Karen Russell, creative nonfiction writer Héctor Tobar, and recent winners of the Nimrod Literary Awards.

James River Writers Conference, October 16 - 18, Richmond, Virginia. Master classes, meetings with agents, panel discussions, and pitch sessions for poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. Participants include fiction writers I. W. Gregorio, Becky Masterman, Ellen Oh, and Jewell Parker Rhodes; nonfiction writers Tim Cahill and Kristen Green; and literary agents Linda Camacho (Prospect Agency), Heather Flaherty (Bent Agency), Helen Heller (Helen Heller Agency), Beth Phelan (Bent Agency), and Rebecca Podos (Rees Literary).

Northern Woodlands Writers & Readers Conference, October 16 - 18, Fairlee, Vermont. Sponsored by The Trust for Public Land, the conference explores how writers, artists and educators express the rich forest heritage of the Northeast: both the natural history of our region, and the interactions of people and place. The event will include writing workshops, readings, a nature illustration class, special workshops for educators, woods walks, fun talks on forest topics, and plenty of time for informal conversations over meals and around the campfire. Plenary Speakers: Peter Forbes, Bernd Heinrich, Ben Kilham, David Macaulay, & Kent McFarland. Also including: Robert Kimber, Susan Morse, David Sobel, Adelaide Tyrol, Ted Levin, Michael Wojtech, Jim Collins, Terry Osborne & the staff of Northern Woodlands.

Writers Retreat in the Rockies Conference, October 16 - 18, Estes Park, Colorado. Conference features agents, authors, writers and publishers. Faculty: Todd Mitchell, Shane Kuhn, Michelle Theall, Kerrie Flanagan, Rachel Weaver, Buzzy Jackson, Shannon Hassain, Rachel Walker.

WriteAngles, October 17, South Hadley, Massachusetts. Panels and workshops, with two keynoters, a limited number of agent meetings. Continental breakfast, and buffet lunch included. Agents: Kaylee Davis (Dee Mura), Kimiko Nakamura (Dee Mura), Gina Panettieri (founder and president of Milford, Connecticut-based Talcott Notch Literary).

The Eighth Annual Rochester Writers’ Conference, October 17, Rochester Hills, Michigan. Lectures, Workshops and Panel Discussions in fiction, non-fiction and business of writing presentations. Open to new, working and published writers of all genres. Attendees select four presentations from a dozen to tailor fit their needs.

Cascade Writers Workshop, October 17 - 18. Seattle, Washington. Critique of a story or novel chapter, Q&A and intensive discussion with industry pros. Registration is open. Writers 18+ may attend. Seats in critique workshops are limited to 8 per group. Word count is 4k, standard manuscript formatting, due October 1, 2015 by email to info@cascadewriters.com. Faculty: Ellen Datlow, Kat Richardson, John (J.A.) Pitts, and Elliott Kay. 

Writing By Writers Workshop @ Tomales Bay. October 21 - 25, Tomales Bay, California. Manuscript and poetry workshops are limited to 12 participants and generative workshops are limited to 15 to ensure an intimate setting.

APH 20th Anniversary Conference, October 21 - 25, Sacramento, California. Sponsored by the Association of Personal Historians (APH). Speakers: Andy Anderson, Ph.D. - Wells Fargo Exec VP and Chief Historian, Satsuki Ina, Ph.D. - Emmy Award-Winning Filmmaker, Chris Enss - New York Times Bestselling Author, Scriptwriter, and Comedienne.

Elk River Writer’s Workshop, October 22 - 25, Paradise Valley, Montana. Workshops, seminars, lectures, and readings for poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers. The faculty includes poets William Pitt Root and Pam Uschuk, fiction writers Kevin Canty and William Hjortsberg, fiction and nonfiction writers Rick Bass and William Kittredge, and nonfiction writers Tim Cahill, Doug Peacock, and Maryanne Vollers.

Quit Whining Start Writing 2015 Writers' Conference, Oct 23 - 24, Grand Rapids, Michigan. 15 workshops encompassing writing fiction, for children, non-fiction, memoir, poetry, for the screen, and more; using social media effectively; and creating and maintaining effective websites. 

Memoir Writers Conference, Oct 23 - 25, Van Nuys, California. Panels, seminars, interactive workshops, pitch sessions and more, featuring educators, industry experts, best-selling authors, literary agents and publishers. Attendees can also take advantage of ProCritiques where part of your work is read and critiqued by advanced submission to professional editors, and Masters ProCritiques with literary agents and publishers. You can also meet with agents and publishers looking for new talent during free pitch sessions, by appointment. The event is open to all levels.

Indiana Writing Workshop. October 24, Indianapolis, IN. “How to Get Published” is one day full of classes and advice designed to give you the best instruction concerning how to get your writing & books published. We’ll discuss your publishing opportunities today, how to write queries & pitches, how to market yourself and your books, what makes an agent/editor stop reading your manuscript. Faculty includes literary agent Alice Speilburg (Speilburg Literary), literary agent Victoria Lea (Aponte Literary), literary agent Laura Crockett of TriadaUS, and literary agent Amanda Luedeke (MacGregor Literary).

American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) Conference, October 28 - 31, Tucson, Arizona. Panels, workshops, readings, a book fair, and opportunities to meet with editors for translators. The 2015 theme is “Translation and Traffic.” The keynote speakers are translators Jerome Rothenberg and Stephen Snyder.

2015 Western Fictioneers Convention, Oct 30 - Nov 1, St. Louis, Missouri. Western fiction writers/publishers gather for panels and workshops. Topics include Native Americans/U.S. Cavalry/Texas Rangers and more; Tips for Selling Your Story; Western Romance; Publisher Panels; Book Signings. Faculty: Robert Randisi, Frank Roderus, Robert Vaughan, Dusty Richards, James Reasoner, Jacquie Rogers, James J. Griffin, Kathleen Rice Adams, Troy D. Smith.