Every year, I look forward to September, though not for the reason most parents of children do.
I love September, because it brings me gold – specifically, the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers’ Colorado Gold Conference.
I’ve been to many conferences, from the Maui Writers Conference to RWA writing conferences and smaller, local “cons” but – in my opinion – Colorado Gold outshines them all, both for the high-quality workshops and for the people who make RMFW and its conference the most consistently welcoming conference I’ve ever attended.
And that was as true my first year, when I didn’t know a soul, as it is now that I return to visit with the multitude of friends and fellow authors I’ve met in the years since then.
I’m an introvert and, left to my own devices, often find myself at the back of the room, observing other people’s interactions. Not the case at Colorado Gold.
During my first visit, in 2010, the other attendees – many of them multi-published authors – saw my “first time attendee” ribbon and pulled me into the conversation, including me at their dinner tables and encouraging me to join the social fun at the hospitality suite in the evening hours. Carol Berg invited me to share her breakfast table. Janet Lane made me feel comfortable at a banquet where I didn’t know a soul. Everyone I met made me feel like “one of the cool kids” and “one of the gang” – including my then-unpublished new friends Piper Bayard and Tammy Salyer – both of whom are now published authors and both of whom are still close friends of mine.
I can’t promise that your experience will be the same as mine. Conferences are an individual experience, like books themselves. But if you come to Colorado this September, you’ll find me there – I’m teaching a couple of classes and also individual “confidence pitching” sessions to help writers prepare for meeting with agents and editors. That’s not the only reason I’m going, however.
I’ve attended Colorado Gold each year since 2010, and intend to attend every future year that I can, whether I’m teaching there or not. Because Colorado Gold is more than just a conference – it’s a time to meet with a special, and inclusive, group of people who come together to celebrate each year. It’s a time to see my friends and to make new ones – and to help new writers feel at home, the way the others did for me.
Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers is more than just a group. It’s a family and a tribe that welcomes its members with open arms.
If that sounds good, then come to Colorado this September. Join me … join RMFW … join the tribe. Registration is open now – don’t miss out on the fun!