The theme of DFWCon 2024 is Craft, Career and Community. This is a can't miss opportunity to grow as a writer! Keep reading to find out more.
DFWCon 2024 is only a few months away, but it’ll be here before you know it.
(Save the Date for October 5-6, 2024 at the Hurst Conference Center)
This year, I’m honored to be the Chairman of DFWCon. DFWCon has been an important part of my life. It’s helped me grow as a writer, it’s where I met my agent, but first and foremost, it also led me to the DFW Writers’ Workshop, without which my writing career would be stuck in the mud and, more importantly, I wouldn’t have met some of the greatest people on earth.
Now. Why did I word it that way? Well, because of Tex Thompson’s “Punching Up Your Prose” class from DFWCon 2014. During the class, Tex showed us how to beef up your writing by using alliteration (C, C, C), as well as a Tricolon crescens, which includes phrases or words in three parts, growing successively larger, stronger, or more complex. In this case, 1 syllable, 2 syllables, 3 syllables. Among other ways.
But I digress.
This year’s conference features two amazing keynote speakers, NYT Best Selling Thriller Writer Steve Berry and Multi-Award Winning YA Author A.S. King. We’ll have 15+ talented agents and editors who’ll be taking pitches, as well as 40+ hand-picked speakers who will lead classes on everything ranging from the business of writing to the craft.
Several years ago, I published a blog post here entitled “Finding Your Tribe.” My opinion on that topic has only hardened over the years. In fact, I think building your writing community is the most important outcome of any conference. More important than craft. More important than career. Because a great community can help you improve your craft and career even faster.
We’re often told that writing is a lonely journey, a concept that I categorically reject. Yes, it’s only you in the chair beating out the words, but that’s the only solo part of your journey. Beyond your craft and your career, a good writing community will keep you sane during the highs and lows that accompany any writer.
I’ve been blessed to be part of three incredible writing communities: Backspace (retired), Internal Thriller Writers and, of course, the DFW Writers’ Workshop, the host of DFWCon. The members of these organizations are among the greatest authors in the world. But they also have three other defining characteristics.
- They are welcoming no matter who you are. At DFWWW, our many differences take a backseat to the one thing that ties us together so tightly: the writing.
- They are helpful. No matter how many books they’ve sold, no matter how famous they are, great writers want to help. They want to help you become a better writer. They want to help you navigate the confusing book-industry maze, from queries to promotion.
- They’re great people. Some of the best people I’ve ever met.
If you’re attending DFWCon this year (and I hope you do — you can register here), I wish you the best of luck with your pitch. I hope you learn everything you possibly can about the craft. But I want to challenge you to take the opportunity to build your writing community. Take the initiative to reach out to someone at the conference. Talk about your work. Talk about your goals. Talk about your dreams.
And then when it’s over and everyone’s gone home, take the next important step: join a writers’ group that can help you get where you need to go. If you’re local, visit us every Wednesday at the Grapevine Convention Center at 7 pm. We can’t wait to meet you.
About Brian Tracey
At one point in his life, Brian Tracey was a rocket scientist, a hockey player and a musician, depending on the time of day. Since then, he's been a global business development executive, the past-President and a former board member of the Notre Dame Club of Dallas and, of course, a thriller writer. He also somehow managed to have a CD of his music fly into space aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis during the program's final mission.
Currently, he's the Chairman of DFWCon, the premier multi-genre writing conference in Texas. He's an active member of the DFW Writers’ Workshop, having served as an officer, and a member of International Thriller Writers, serving as a volunteer in several capacities for ITW's annual conference, ThrillerFest. He's published business articles and white papers and his short stories have appeared in Suspense Magazine under a pen name. He lives in Texas with his wife, two children, three cats and many rabbits who've claimed his yard as their own.
About DFWCon
The Dallas Fort Worth Writers Conference, also known as DFWCon, is hosted by the DFW Writers’ Workshop, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization specializing in helping writers improve their work and has been operating since 1977. Over the years, our keynote speakers have included Dave Eggers, Evangeline Lilly, Heather Graham, Scott Westerfeld, Sandra Brown, James Rollins, Donald Maass, Charlaine Harris, Rachel Caine, Stephanie Klein, Kevin J. Anderson, Christopher Golden, Jonathan Maberry, Michael Capuzzo, Deborah Crombie, Jodi Thomas, Chuck Wendig, and Candace Havens.
This blog was originally published on BrianTraceyBooks.com