Seize the Opportunity to Meet New Friends at a Writing Conference

by Julie Lavender @JLavenderWrites

Are you ready for the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference? It’s just around the corner – mere days away. By now, you’ve pondered what to wear, picked out matching accessories, prepared one sheets, perfected your pitch, and prioritized classes. You’re organized, put-together, and acting wisely prior to the conference.

Sounds like a great strategy and one I’ve enacted may times before a conference. But, can I make a suggestion? Don’t get so busy with publishing agendas that you miss out on the opportunity to make lifelong friends while there. Don’t overlook the unplanned moments at a conference. Some even call them God-ordained appointments! 

Some of my dearest writing friends now are those I met in seemingly-random fashion between one-on-one appointments, lectures, and keynote speakers. Here are some of my tips for seizing unexpected opportunities to find friends you’ll treasure for a long time.

Tips for Forging New Relationships at a Writing Conference

• Ignore your introvert vibe

Let’s face it—many of us writers are introverts. (I know, many of you aren’t! And I admire that.) For just the few days while at the conference, make an exception and snitch any opportunity to talk with fellow writers. Two of my good friends met while standing in the dinner line. You know, that time when you really just want to close out all the noise around you and think about that editor you’re meeting with tomorrow? Chat in line about writing goals, dreams, and accomplishments, children, pets, unique hobbies, and who lives in the coolest state.

• Connect with someone on a similar writing journey as you

Make a connection with someone in the continuing session you’re attending. If you’ve both picked that subject to learn more about, then you already have something in common. One of my dearest writing friends approached me during a continuing session, after I’d asked a question she could relate to in her writing journey. We formed a bond that’s grown over the years made possible by social media, email, and texting.

• Be ready to serve others

Another friendship began when I loaned a pen to an attendee, which turned into a conversation about my love of pens. In fact .. it’s more like an obsession with pens that borders on a syndrome that might need intervention. You know how they say admitting the problem is the first part of the battle, right? Well, I’m quick to recognize that I’m a kleptoPENiac. I won’t say that I actually just outright steal a pen .. but I have been known to make two circles around a floorshow to make sure I’ve collected more than one pen from each booth! Plan ahead to serve others – carry extra pens and mints, stop to assist the first-timer who looks lost, or hold the elevator door for the person laden with paraphernalia.

• Join someone sitting alone 

Many conference attendees arrive not knowing even one other person on the campus. Keep your eyes open for someone dining alone or sitting alone in big-group sessions. You just might be surprised how much you have in common. Or even better, you might be more surprised to find out how very different you are, and that can make for a really intriguing relationship.

• Worship with someone new 

I’m a creature of habit—are you? I sit in the same pew every Sunday; I park on the same row at Walmart for every shopping trip, and I sit in the same chair at my mom’s for our large-family gatherings. But whenever I attend writing conferences, I enjoy choosing different spots of the auditorium for worship and keynotes. This gives me a chance to meet other people, the ones who sit in the same spot every night of the conference, LOL.

• Get to know your roomie

Many of you probably picked your roommate before signing up for the conference. Some may wind up with a random roomie you don’t know. However, if you’re like me, the words “random” and “coincidence” aren’t words you use often in God’s kingdom. I once got paired with a roommate many years ago at a conference out west that seemed on the surface to be a total mismatch. We differed in more ways than commonalities. Yet that first night, after talking until the wee hours of the morning, the two of us became dear friends and our relationship eventually turned into a professional one when we wrote together for a Denver newspaper.

You probably have great tips to capitalize unplanned moments, too. Join the conversation and share some of your ideas for meeting new friends at an upcoming conference. Or share a fun story about meeting that dear writing friend in one of those God-ordained appointments. I look forward to hearing your tips and stories.

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Julie Lavender loves the friends she’s met over the years at writers conferences and looks forward to connecting with many of them in just a couple of weeks at Ridgecrest. Julie is the author, with her husband David, of the new book, Raising Good Sons: Christian Parenting Principles for Nurturing Boys of Faith and Character.