This year I will be attending Infinity Publishing’s Express Yourself! Conference for the second year in a row. On the “Writers’ Day” immediately before the conference, I’ll be speaking, which I’m very excited about.

It’s been on my mind because 1) I need to start preparing my presentation (though I’ve done similar ones before so I won’t be starting from scratch) and 2) I’ve gotten a few emails with questions from the organizers.

I was just over at Absolute Write and stumbled across a blog post on Tips for Attending Writers Conferences. It gives some great advice.

I’d like to add some other ones:

10. Be Yourself: Don’t be overly formal and stiff. Let some of your personality shine through. When a publisher buys a book, they are really buying your overall package, so don’t act like a life-size cardboard cut-out!

11. Don’t Forget to Network: You can’t possibly meet everyone, but try to meet and establish a connection with several people you feel comfortable with. Keep in touch after the conference.

12. Want to Stand Out to an agent/editor/other presenter?: Send them a note of thanks after the conference if you learned something valuable or especially enjoyed talking to them. I remember the people that do that. And I post the notes on my “feel good” bulletin board.

Writers conferences are great fun. Someday I’d even like to host one!