08/26/2026
Rejection doesn’t end with the first publishing contract.
Ten years ago, I was at a low. I had multiple books published, but my sales were going in the wrong direction. My publisher had told me gently but firmly that they weren’t sure they wanted more books from me. At the same time, my youngest son had graduated from high school, and I was both celebrating and grieving the empty nest.
If I wasn’t an author and wasn’t a hands-on mom…who was I?
I came to the writers conference unmoored, dejected, and devoid of ideas. I left anchored, encouraged, and inspired.
For years, I’d attended with the purpose of getting a contract. At conferences, I learned the craft, the industry, and marketing. I got to know publishing professionals, and I made deep friendships with fellow writers-on-the-journey.
I thought my first contract was the payoff for the years of slow hard work and patient
(and not-so-patient) waiting. But ten years ago was the true payoff.
Keynote addresses that spoke to exactly where I was. Workshops that prodded new ideas, including ones that made my next proposal spring to life. A long chat with my agent that was far better in person than it would have been on the phone.
We need each other. So, come. Come to learn, to be inspired, and to connect. Who
knows? You might even be the one to encourage the dejected.
Sarah Sundin
Conference Co-Director
Early Bird Pricing flies away August 31!
