Writers Conferences and Book Festivals

There are many excellent conferences for writers seeking to expand their writing skills, learn more about the business of publishing, connect with an agent or publisher, or just get inspiration and encouragement from published authors. These vary from large writers conferences with thousands of attendees to small, intimate writing retreats. The conferences and retreats offer a variety of training and opportunities for the attendees.  You can click on the name of the conference to go to their website for more detailed information, but we have indicated some of the key types of content.

Writers - Conferences and retreats that provided training on the art of writing. Conferences which only have this indicator will have the strongest focus on helping you to be a better writer.

Publishing - These conferences will have classes in the business of publishing, especially on self-publishing. These classes often focus on ways to market your book.

Agents - Agents and acquisition editors from traditional publishers attend some conferences looking for excellent manuscripts. If it is indicated that there are agents at the conference, there will usually be some structured way for an author to pitch their manuscript to the agents and editors. These sessions fill up quickly so apply early. The quality of the agents and editors that attend the conferences will vary.

Festivals - A book festival is more of a celebration of books, but some may have writing conferences associated with them. Often there are opportunities for authors to do readings and/or sell their books at festivals.

Specialty - Unless otherwise indicated, the conferences and festivals listed here are for all genres of books. We do not list conferences that specialize in poetry.

Top Conferences - Conferences that we know to provide excellent curriculum and exceptional faculty are noted by the  symbol.

Special Trade Shows - We have included some large book industry trade shows  that may be useful to some authors and independent publishers. The primary purpose of these shows is to facilitate introducing new books to book retailers and libraries. These shows are becoming more open to small, independent publishers, including self-publishing authors.

UPDATES AND ADDITIONS: We use our best efforts to maintain this listing as accurately as possible. If your Conference or Festival is not listed or the information isn't up to date, please contact us by using the Conference Contact Form.