On Saturday I was thrilled to get up at the crack of dawn to attend the Rutgers One-on-One Plus conference for the second year in a row. (I really was thrilled. I'm a ridiculously early riser anyway, and besides, that's why coffee was invented.)
Last year was fabulous, and I expected this year to be the same. It was. For those who aren't familiar with the conference, attendees are paired with a mentor– an editor, agent, author or illustrator– who spends 45 minutes giving feedback on your work.
This year I met with a lovely author who offered many insightful suggestions for my picture book dummy... ones that I think will help take it to another level. Meeting her was just one of the delightful surprises of the day!
There was also a great panel of speakers– Deborah Sloan, Alvina Ling, and Katie Davis– who talked about the value of social networking and some of the ins and outs of Facebook and Twitter. Check out #rcclbuzz on Twitter if you want to learn more. (Dear Twitter, I do love you, but have a hard time keeping up!)
Oh! And I can't forget the 5-on-5 group, where groups of five mentees and mentors meet to discuss whatever burning questions about the industry anyone might have.
The grand finale of the day was keynote speaker, the awesome Deborah Heiligman. (She really is awesome, and not just because she handed out waterproof notebooks to everyone in the audience in case we find ideas in the shower! If you ever get a chance to hear her talk, do it.) Deborah was funny and inspiring. Instead of me trying to paraphrase what she said, here it is in her own words. And here's another take.
Good, good stuff. Heading off to my bubble now...
The conference was fabulous! I really enjoyed myself and learned so much.
Looks like your one-on-one session went very well.
Good luck with your projects. :)
That's so cool that you got to attend this conference again, Jennifer! I had such a great time last year and from for your description I can see it was another great event!
Thanks for all the links, especially to Deborah Heiligman's speech, that was fantastic!
Oh, I'm really looking forward to "Maggie and Oliver"!!
Thanks, Karen, and good luck to you too! I really think this is one of the best conferences out there.
Mônica, I was wondering if you would be there again! (Silly me, I should have just emailed you beforehand.) It was so great to meet last year. Hey, and I am looking forward to YOUR book! :-)