So this year I joined the behind the scenes volunteers at WriteOnCon. It's a kidlit conference held entirely online. I've participated over the years and this year got the chance to help conduct some of the podcast interviews. I got the fun job - others were out there transcribing, editing, and of course doing the interviews I didn't do, running live events and so much more.
Most of these events are behind a registration wall, but the registration can be only $5.
Obviously, I think the whole event is pretty cool. Not just the parts with me in them. But I am going to provide some snippets about each of the interviews I got to do.
Writing Chapter Books with Debbie Michiko Florence - Before we started recording, we chatted about Connecticut things (she knows my cousin's husband). We talked publishing journey, and the fun of writing small but fun stories in the chapter book space.
Shiny New Ideas with Lydia Kang - We talked about the allure of the shiny ideas, how to care for and feed them, and how to make old ideas feel shiny.
Diverse Forms of Story Not Just Diverse Faces with Henry Lien was incredibly patient as we had a lot of tech difficulties recording, but talked about how increasing diversity in kidlit is also about different types of storytelling. Also, how he came to create a world with an ice skating form of martial arts.
Working with Packagers/IP Projects with Anna Meriano - We talked about book packaging and how that level of idea and story generation can work.
Neurodivergence in Young Adult with Laura Creedle - We talked about balancing things as a writer and writing characters with neurodivergence.
Researching Historical Fiction with Rosalyn Eves - We talked research and fantasy when to do the research (always) and how to know when to stop.
Big Reveals - Writing and Self-Discovery with Sally Pla - We talked how writing, both the process and the ideas that call to you, can lead to self discovery and how to really use that for your own and your story's benefit.
How Word Choice Influences the Feel of the Story with Jasmine Warga - We talked about specificity of words and how they can help you get to know your character and your setting better.
Writing Gender Empowerment with Diane Magras - We talked about writing stories that delve into gender roles and how characters can demonstrate agency even in historical settings.