On Tuesday, I head out to San Antonio, Texas, for the Romance Writers of America national conference. I have never been to San Antonio, but hear it is lovely. I’ve also never been to a national writers conference before. Having been to a smaller, regional conference, I sort of know what to expect, but I anticipate it being bigger, louder, and even more overwhelming. I’m also going as a recently accepted member of PRO, the RWA designation for authors who are actively pursuing publication, or have been published but don’t qualify for their Published Authors Network designation. I’ll be proudly wearing my PRO pin to conference, as it signals my commitment to writing as a profession, and as a business. I’ve been an entrepreneur all my life, and to me, writing is another expression of my desire to work for myself. As a writer, especially in today’s world, one wears a lot of hats. I embrace them all, even the ones that aren’t as much fun to wear (tax preparer, public relations), because I’m not a person who likes to create in a vacuum. I love to write, but getting the writing out there, into the hands of readers, involves so much more. That’s one reason I love being a member of RWA; it supports the author creatively but also professionally. I’m brimming with excitement to attend the conference and I intend to wring as much out of it as possible. I’ll be coming home exhausted, but professionally energized. Stay tuned for photos to commemorate my first national conference!
