President Letter

 

From the President's Desk
January 2009
The ASJA 2009 Conference is Coming

by Russell Wild

I simply can't wax poetic enough about the annual ASJA conference. I haven't missed a single one since joining ASJA 14 years ago. At past conferences, I've met numerous assigning magazine editors, as well as the agent who sold my last four books. I've gained invaluable knowledge of the publishing industry. And I've made a few good friends.

I'm especially looking forward to the 2009 conference—"The Writer's GPS: On Track for Success!"—to be held April 24 (members only), 25, and 26. We have a new location: The Roosevelt Hotel, 45 East 45th Street (corner of Madison Avenue), New York City. It's a classy old place (opened in 1924), and I believe it could serve as our best venue yet.

Looking at the tentative schedule of panel sessions and workshops, you may have a hard time choosing between "Hot Topics That Sell: Health, Finance & More," and "Why Editors Don't Answer Your Query" or between "Guerilla Marketing for the 21st Century," and "Your Web Site, Your Success." Conference co-chairs Sally Stich and Sherry Paprocki and their team have put together a fabulous lineup of events. Along with conference standbys, such as Personal Pitch (meet editors and agents face-to-face and make your pitches) and Idea Marketplace (where interesting sources of all sorts give you their pitches), the '09 ASJA Conference will prove to be a first-rate career booster.

The price for ASJA members is a very reasonable $145 for Friday (Members Day), $145 for Saturday, and $75 for Sunday … or $325 for the entire weekend with early registration—no more than in past years. For accommodations, consider The Roosevelt for maximum convenience; $309 a night is the special conference rate. That's for single or double occupancy. Or for greater economy, well, I'm sure there will be discussion on the members' forum of alternative digs.

For further Conference '09 information, see Sherry Paprocki's article on page 5 of this newsletter, or go to www.asja.org/wc/2009. I hope to see you there!


ASJA President Russell Wild will travel to the conference from his home base of Allentown, PA, 90 miles to the west of Manhattan.

 

 


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