Writers and Editors

See also Mastering Multimedia (improving your writing, reporting and speaking skills; mastering multimedia; making the most of Word software; Choosing the right equipment, software, tools; and Tech tutorials for computer novices).

Calendars and lists of colonies, conferences, and festivals:
• Colonies, Conferences, and Festivals (Poetry Society of America links)
• Shaw Guide to Writers Conferences and Workshops
• Writers conferences, by month (Bowker's list)
• Conferences, Workshops, and Seminars (AgentQuery's list, with descriptions)
• International Writer's Calendar (Screenwriters Online)
• Writing Conferences, Workshops, Retreats, Centers, Residencies & Book & Literary Festivals (NewPages.com, by state)
• Writers' Conferences & Centers (members only, Association of Writers & Writing Programs, AWP)
• List of writers' conferences (Wikipedia)
• Major Christian Writers Conferences (Terry Whalin's list)
• Residencies & Colonies (AgentQuery)
• Convention and Festival Listings (Preditors and Editors)

ACES (national conference of the American Copy Editors Society). Covers broad array of topics, from nuts-and-bolts techniques, style and problems (e.g., plagiarism) to industry trends and career management." The Associated Press often announces big changes to the year's edition of its stylebook. Welcoming atmosphere.

Algonkian novel writing events . Algonkian fiction writers conferences began in 2002 on the banks of the Potomac in northern Virginia.
• FAQs about Algonkian writer conferences
• Harpers Ferry writers conference (small group writer conferences focused on craft and market)
• Santa Barbara Author-Mentor conference
• San Francisco Write to Market Conference
• New York Pitch Conference
• Video of attendees at Algonkian conferences (YouTube video)
• Syllabus

Aloha Writers Conference (January in Hawaii!). Check out Lessons from the Aloha Writer's Conference (posted by Toby, 1-24-13)

ASJA conference (American Society of Journalists & Authors, for freelance journalists). Typically late April, early May--Friday for members only, Saturday and Sunday open to public. Order tapes from ASJA conferences here.

American Christian Fiction Conference

The Art of the Pitch (Alan Rinzler's insider tips for preparing and delivering a winning pitch to an agent or editor at a writer's conference, The Book Deal, 3-29-10)

Association of Personal Historians (APH) conference (for professionals who help noncelebrities tell their life stories). Read this account of a conference in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, in 2009 .

AWP Official Guide to Writing Programs (Association of Writers and Writing Programs)

Backspace Writers Conference (for all fiction genres), supplemented by forums, articles, Stet! a blog of articles and opinions.

Bread Loaf Writers' Conference (August, Ripton, Vermont). A conference with a long, distinguished reputation-- as reviewed by participant Eugene Cross in What I Learned from Charlie: Inside the Bread Loaf Conference (Hayden's Ferry Review, 2009)

Colonies, Conferences, and Festivals (Poetry Society of America links)

Dean Wesley Smith workshops for fiction writers (with Kristine Kathryn Rusch)

Drupal BarCamp 2010. Listen to sessions in audio, including Josh Ward of Volacci on Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)

The Economist's Ideas Economy conferences (held at different times, in the Americas--press covers to keep abreast about trends that cross bounds of politics, culture and technology). Scroll down for list.

Excellence in Journalism conference (sponsored by the Society of Professional Journalists, Radio Television Digital News Association, and National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Also, SPJ has grant money that allows them to bring training to news outlets and universities in sessions on such topics as mobile newsgathering, writing for the web, social media listening tools, ways to verify sources and stories, using social tools to be a better journalist, video tips and techniques, etc.

Global Investigative Journalism Network's conference brings together thousands of participants from 100 countries. Member organizations also hold regional conferences, such as the Power Reporting Conference (sponsored by the African Investigative Journalism Conference and WITS University)
sponsored by the Forum for African Investigative Reporters and Wits University in Johannesburg. Sites for the fall GIJN conference have been Copenhagen (2001 and 2003), Amsterdam (2005), Toronto (2007), Lillehammer (2008), Geneva (2010), Kiev (2011) and Rio de Janeiro (October 2013)

Grub Street Seminars and Weekend Workshops (Boston) include a Weekend of Manuscript Consultations (March, $140, with submissions in February) followed by Muse and the Marketplace conference in May. Here's Dell Smith's review from the 2009 M&M conference.

Highlight Foundation Workshops for Children's Writers and Illustrators (seminars, small-group workshops, and one-on-one sessions with some of the most accomplished and prominent authors, illustrators, editors, critics, and publishers in the world of children’s literature)

Historical Novel Society conference . North American branch of the London-based HNS holds a conference for authors and readers of historical fiction every two years--this year June 21-23, 2013, in St. Petersburg, FL.

HP Learning Center: Microsoft Office and Adobe (free online classes, available 24/​7; topics include Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint,Digital Photos, etc. Go to www.hp.com/​go/​learningcenter.

International Women's Writing Guild (IWWG) holds conferences and retreats.

Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE's) training events . IRE offers a powerful conference, where attendees pick up great story ideas, new tools, and make good conndctions. IRE also offers several more specific types of training, from computer-assisted reporting boot camps to focused, multi-day workshops to train investigative reporting techniques. At the Computer-Assisted Reporting (CAR) Boot Camps, for example, you learn to acquire electronic information, use spreadsheets and databases to analyze information and translate that information into stories. Esther Kaplan wrote,, on LinkedIn (in answer to a question about which conferences are worth attending:) "It's guided by an incredible generosity of spirit, where reporters who have done big investigative pieces over the previous year crack open their notebooks and share how they got the story. Each presenter prepares a tip sheet as a takeaway that I promise you will save and refer to often."
See also conferences held by the Global Investigative Journalism Network

It's 2010 — er, 2011! Where's your career heading? (Bevi Chagnon, PubCom, on which training courses you should be getting)

Journalism & Women Symposium (JAWS) has an annual JAWS Camp (Conference and Mentoring Project), which brings together women journalists and journalism educators and researchers to meet in an atmosphere of mutual support, professional growth and a chance to exercise the tongue instead of biting it.

Key West Literary Seminar , a four-day readers’ event that explores a unique literary theme each January. A separate Writers' Workshop program is also held in January.

Malice Domestic (May convention saluting the traditional, especially "cozy," mystery, where fans buy books from enthusiastic, often new, writers) and The Usual Suspects (the Malice Domestic newsletter); Malice Domestic awards.

Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference (Grapevine, Texas, July). Read about as experienced and described by Sam Eifling in I Heard It While in Grapevine (Columbia Journalism Review, 7-28-09). Other stories that emerged from that conference:
http:/​/​niemanstoryboard.us/​?s=mayborn+conference

Muse and the Marketplace (two-day Boston literary conference for aspiring writers of fiction and nonfiction, sponsored by Grub Street. For an additional fee, writers can get 20 minutes of feedback on a manuscript from an agent or editor, in the Manuscript Mart.

Napa Valley Writers' Conference (July, Napa Valley, California, poetry and fiction)

New York Times Knowledge Network, online courses, including Creative Writing and Nonfiction Writing. Here's a list of all categories in which classes are taught.

NICAR, IRE, and CAR training . See Investigative Reporters & Editors, above. IRE offers a national conference and several local boot camps on computer-assisted reporting (CAR).

Online Course in Science Journalism (WFSJ and SciDev.Net), created by the World Federation of Science Journalists in close cooperation with the Science and Development Network, for use by professional journalists, journalism students and teachers. The first eight lessons (free for use by anyone in the world):
1) Planning and structuring your work (Jan Lublinkski)
2) Finding and judging science stories (Julie Clayton)
3) The interview (Christina Scott)
4) Writing skills (Nadia El-Awady)
5) What is science? (Gervais Mbarga and Jean-Marc Fleury)
6) Reporting on controversies (KS Jayaraman)
7) Reporting on science policy (Hepeng Jia and Richard Stone)
8) How to shoot science (Šárka Speváková and Carolyn Robinson).
For each course there is an e-lecture, self-teaching questions, assignments, and PDF versions.

Online News Association (ONA) conference and awards banquet (to learn about new tools, techniques, technologies, advances in the field, to network and share best practices.
"It's like Disney World for today's journalists," says Ericka Boston. "There's so much to experience and learn (Intro to Data Visualizations, Mobile Storytelling: The Next Level, SMO Is the New SEO) that it can be a bit overwhelming. But you'll go home reinvigorated, ready for future industry curveballs and thinking, 'That was awesome. I can't wait to do it again!'"

OpenCourseWare (Wikipedia's entry about and listing of courses created by universities and shared freely with the world on the Internet (often partly free). The OCW movement took off with launching of MIT's OpenCourseWare. Check out, for example, MIT OpenCourseWare on Writing and the Humanities (thanks for this link to Chelsea Biondolillo of Transatlantic Enchilada.

PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature (100+ writers from 40 nations convene in NYC)

The Power of Narrative: The Rebirth of Storytelling (about storytelling in all kinds of media, on all kinds of platforms--held at Boston University). Cousin of the now-suspended Nieman Narrative Nonfiction conference. Typically held in April. Here's one participant's reports: 10 Highlights from #BUNarrative (Susan Johnston, The Urban Muse, 4-10-13). Susan also posted:
Star-Trib’s Laurie Hertzel at #BUNarrative: “Write with a camera angle” (on E-byline's The News Hook, 4-9-13)

Poynter Training. A top training organization in journalism, with boot camps, self-directed training, etc, on such topics as: Reporting, writing for TV and the Web; Writing for the Ear; Cleaning Your Copy: Grammar, Style, and more; Writing Better Headlines and SEO Essentials; Watching TV News--How to Be a Better Viewer; Beat Basics--introduction to reporting.

Publishing University Online (Independent Book Publishers Association, IBPA, formerly PMA)

Retreats for Writers with an interesting chart on relative cost of retreats, by state and a list of retreat deals (inexpensive retreat cities).

Romance Writers of America (RWA) conference (a gathering of more than 2,100 published and aspiring romance writers, editors, agents, and other industry professionals). Here's one of many stories about this major conference:
'Romance' Is Never a Dirty Word at Romance Writers of America Conference (Monica Hesse, Washington Post, 7-18-09). And here's Once Upon a Romance's list of romance writing workshops, conferences, and writing contests.

San Miguel Writers' Conference (in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico), as described by Nathan Bransford, literary agent.

Santa Fe Science Writing Workshop (one must apply)

Sewanee Writers Conference. In one summer week, a distinguished faculty provides instruction and criticism through workshops and craft lectures in poetry, fiction, and playwriting. Read Brett Foster's account of his experience there.

Sleuth Fest (writer-oriented mystery writing conference in Florida, February)

Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) international conferences. See also SCBWI regional events. Read Esther Hershenhorn's Confessions and Secrets of a Veteran SCBWI Conference Goer (or, Do As I Say, Not As I Did). For example: Consider registering (early!) for any of this year's optional Day of Intensives for Writers & Illustrators. Don’t leave home without your manuscripts and sketches! The conference offers informal Peer Critique Groups by Genre Friday and Sunday evenings.

Society of Environmental Journalists conference (reportedly am exceptional conference)

Society of Professional Journalists Conference , which has been recast as the Excellence in Journalism Conference (August, sponsored by the Society of Professional Journalists, Radio Television Digital News Association, and National Association of Hispanic Journalists)

Squaw Valley Community of Writers (located in the California Sierra Nevada, close to the north shore of Lake Tahoe)

Story Circle Network online classes

Sun Valley Writers' Conference (a four-day literary house party, a once-a-year community of readers and writers who discuss fiction, nonfiction, journalism, poetry, and filmmaking -- conference pass $850)

TED (Technology, Education, Design)
• TED Talks (videos and snippets from the best talks at TED conferences, designed to spread ideas (at $2000 a registration)
• TED (ideas worth spreading, the official site)
• TedEd Series (great audiovisual explanations from the people who brought us TedTalks)
• TED conferences

TOC (O'Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing Conference--"spreading the knowledge of innovators"). You can download free Best of TOC: Analysis and Ideas About the Future of Publishing -

What is the difference between a certificate and certification? (Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society--scroll down for explanation).

Willamette Writers Conference (August, Oregon)

Writers' Conferences & Centers (a searchable international directory of member conferences, for which listings are available to the public, apparently run by the Association of Writers and Writing Programs)

Writers Retreats (Retreats for Writers) with an interesting chart on relative cost of retreats, by state and a list of retreat deals (inexpensive retreat cities).