a visit to Kenora for a writer’s conference
Wally the Walleye is the Kenora mascot
I had the pleasure of attending the first ever “Word Fest” in Kenora, Ontario, Canada–a lovely resort town on Lake of the Woods located three hours from my home in Manitoba. The event was held October 22nd and Oct 23rd, 2010, at the Super 8 Motel, a terrific facility overlooking the lake.
I’m very familiar with Kenora, as our family had a cottage at Star Lake in nearby Whiteshell Provincial Park for many years, so we made the short trip to Kenora pretty much every summer as I was growing up. We don’t get to Kenora as frequently now that I live in Manitoba’s Interlake region, but I was pleased to see there being so much positive energy emanating from everyone I spoke to.
The positive energy was especially prevalent at Word Fest, the event for writers, publishers and readers organized by Rick Brignall, Elsie Neufeld and members of the Lake of the Woods Arts Collective. Although attendance at the event was small, it was enthusiastic, and I found it to be more than worthwhile to be a participant. I met other writers, I engaged with publishers, readers and sold books, enjoyed making the presentations, raised my profile and had some fun doing it.
I enjoyed being a speaker at the Kenora writer’s event.
As mentioned in a previous post, I had been asked to give a workshop on the life of a freelance writer. You’ll find the tips I shared with the audience in tips for the freelance writer. I had also been asked to give a talk on volunteerism, as I am author of “Before You Say Yes …” a guide to the pleasure and pitfalls of volunteer boards. If you are interested in volunteerism and non-profit boards, I invite you to join the Facebook page for the book. We have lots of interesting discussions, and you can post questions to me on related issues you may be dealing with.
Gloria Alcock reads to a fascinated audience
The rest of the presenters at Word Fest ranged from storytellers extraordinaire, Gloria Alcock, who wrote, Nurse at the Top of the World, and Jake MacDonald (who has a number of terrific books) to UFO expert, Chris Rutkowski and nature enthusiast, Lil Anderson. There were many more great presenters. Check out the Kenora Word Fest page on Facebook to see more, and to keep up to date with plans for next year’s event. The name may change, but I have no doubt the enthusiasm will be there.
The Kenora Super 8 had the perfect room for workshops and readings. The Minis Hall is spacious, informal and woodsy, with lots of light for daytime events and a cozy setting for night-time events. I’ll be back!
Have you been to Kenora, Ontario? Have you participated as an author in a similar event? Would love to hear your thoughts.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Elizabeth, and for spreading your enthusiasm! With your positive attitude and your determination, you can't help but succeed.
I so often find my energy level and enthusiasm pumped after attending a writer's conference. That's why I'm so "up" about networking for writers. Without it, you work in isolation and can easily become discouraged.
Good luck with everything.
It was great meeting you at WordFest, Doreen!
WordFest was a wonderful event. I say that as both a presenter, organiser and sponsor.
I should have been exhausted when we closed the doors on Saturday night. The event came together in less than two months under the direction of seven people. And I was so wired, I couldn't sleep Friday night!
But energy is still with me. My writing career was in a real slump going into WordFest. Since it ended, and with Doreen's encouragement (I won her door prize of a mentoring package!!! How great is that!) I've got another story ready for competition and a line of queries ready to send out to magazines. I feel like nothing can stop me!
Thanks for sharing your insights. Dawn. Always great to hear from you.
I agree with you that the audience participants at any writer's fest are just about as important as the presenters themselves.
Without audience interest & participation, we may as well be talking to ourselves.
Regarding my presentation about volunteerism, I'm happy to spread my wings even further and come out to TO if the audience is willing.
Hope to see you again soon,
Doreen.
I am a northern gal, as you know Doreen, and spent many days windsurfing the lakes and camping in that region! It sounds like it was a great place to host a writer's event. As a presenter, most of my personal and professional satisfaction comes from sharing with participants. We can also learn from those eager to share their experiences. Attendees don't often realize how much they contribute, themselves, by simply taking part. The best events also draw an experienced roster of seminar leaders and presenters that help to motivate and inspire me. I would love to hear your presentation about volunteerism on boards!
Smiles always!
You're most welcome, Jackie. We pet-loving writers have to stick together.
And thanks for dropping into the blog, Paul. You may represent a larger segment of the writing population that I do in that I think many writers are solitary creatures. I definitely am not.
I belong to many writers orgs and other assns and am out of the office at least as much as I am in.
Just wanted to say thank for visiting my blog today; it means a lot.
Writing is such a lonely task, which I love about it. But once in a while, you have to get out there and see people!
Thanks for the comment, Ann, and for sharing the link to the OWC in Ajax. Hopefully some of the readers here on the blog will make the trek out your way as you have so much valuable advice to share.
Networking definitely does rock for writers.
Hi Doreen –
I totally agree with you: getting out to connect with and share experiences with other writers is so important. Each time I attend a conference (such as the one you attended), I learn new things and I meet new people — people who understand the joys and challenges of the writing life.
An upcoming writers' conference that people might want to mark on their calendars is the Ontario Writers' Conference (http://www.thewritersconference.com/Ontario-Writers-Conference.html) on April 30, 2011 in Ajax, Ontario. I'll be one of the presenters that day.