Virtual Writing Workshop Takeaways

This past weekend, I attended the Pacific Northwest Writer’s Association (PNWA)’s inaugural Winter Writing Intensive. It was a three-day virtual workshop or mini-conference focused on several aspects of writing. Friday’s sessions included a welcome speech, a critique group do’s and don’ts, and a panel discussion about genre. Workshops over the next two days included:

• The Magic Ingredient in Fiction that Sells: Revision with Pam Binder
• Get Inspired, Stay inspired: Cultivate Good Writing Habits and Stay Motivated with Nicole Persun
• How to Plot Your Fiction Novel with Darcy Carson
• Rules and Guidelines for Submitting to Agents and Publishers and Entering Contests with Sandy McCormack and Jennifer Douwes
• Writing Prompt’s Workshop with Pam Binder
• Story Focus with Terry Persun
• Learning to Love the Book Proposal with William Kenower

…for people who aren’t doing it already, take classes – they’re worthwhile. Workshops or classes – a workshop is where you do actually get feedback on your work, not just something where you go and sit for a day. Octavia E. Butler

Virtual Writing Workshop Takeaways

First, when you attend a virtual workshop, expect hiccups. Although the weekend generally ran smoothly, there were certainly some lessons to be learned. Zoom links were missing, presenters forgot to admit participants who arrived late, and inevitably, a participant forgot to mute themself and had a lengthy conversation with a loved one that we all got to listen to. More went right than wrong, and I expect the next PNWA workshop will improve.

Second, some presenters were more prepared than others. Like any conference, some of the presentations had flow and purpose while others rambled. I did find something useful in every session I attended, but some were certainly more focused and helpful than others.

Third, annoying people are annoying virtually too. Like any conference, we had participants who jumped into the Q&A portion with “questions” and proceeded to use the remainder of the time to talk about their books and/or themselves. The same people often lectured in the chat window during the presentation too.

Fourth, I liked the virtual format. I liked wearing my comfortable lounging-around-the-house clothes, I liked that my coffee machine was so close, and I liked the size of the group. Most of the participants chose to turn their cameras on so it felt like we were together. Bonus, even though the PNWA is a “local” association, we had writers from Canada and Texas join!

Fifth, while this virtual workshop didn’t have a networking session, I still met some cool local people that I can’t wait to meet in person, including another Jami. It’s a Jami thing, you may not understand.

Diversity Matters!

Sixth, there wasn’t enough diversity. The group was predominately white women. There were only four of us out of 45 or so who weren’t white and that’s not enough. I would have liked to see more diversity in the participants and certainly in the presenters.

Seventh, attending the workshop inspired me to write. I actually finished a short story that I’ll be sharing here in a few weeks, so stay tuned!

Eighth, you’re never too old to write (or learn how to unmute yourself on zoom). One of the participants celebrated her 100TH birthday yeah, I said one-hundredth birthday during the weekend. She’s my new hero.

Ninth, the presentation I thought was the best was also the least attended. On Sunday, William Kenower talked about how to organize a book proposal. Granted, this session was geared toward nonfiction writers, but I went because I wanted to hear what he had to say about it. Who knows? Maybe I’ll write a nonfiction book someday.

Moving Forward

Although I didn’t recognize his name on the program, I did recognize the book cover he had sitting behind him; he’s the author of Fearless Writing. I bought a copy a while ago to deal with writing-related fear but hadn’t read it. After attending his session, not only did I read his book (see my review on Goodreads here), I also signed up for his workshops, Fearless Writing and Fearless Marketing. He is an engaging, high-energy speaker and I’m looking forward to them.

The PNWA is planning on having another popup workshop around May so if you’re interested, consider subscribing to their email list. Have you attended a virtual writing workshop?

Header Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash