Next opportunity: Dream Bold Atlanta, November 5
Why did I join ASJA nearly 10 years ago? Let me count the ways. First: the prestige of becoming a member of the oldest (and best) organization of non-fiction writers in the U.S. Second: The opportunity to meet writers whose articles and books I greatly admire. Third: Client Connections.
At my first conference nearly 10 years ago, I met with four or five editors and landed one assignment that evolved into numerous articles and more than paid for my NYC expenses. Other years have been hit or miss, but each time I “hit,” I’ve received repeated assignments. Sometimes an assignment comes months after I’d given up hope of any response to my query. Case in point: an editor of a medical quarterly contacted me in January 2016 following the April 2015 conference. Though late, it defrayed the cost of the trip.
Last year, the intrepid Jennifer Goforth Gregory introduced yet another tool for members –Virtual Client Connections. I didn’t win the lottery the first few times, but during the last round, I put my name in the hopper for agents and landed two. Neither was familiar, but I’d just completed a ghosting project with billionaire, Don Panoz, whose name is hardly a household word – despite his founding two major pharmaceutical companies where he developed the nicotine patch, five resorts, a winery, champion racecars and sexy sports cars. Citing “no name recognition,” we had been either rejected or totally ignored by a dozen agents I approached.
During the second Skype meeting, I hit pay dirt.
I enthusiastically recited my elevator speech, named my subject, and the agent said, “Whoa. Stop right there. You had me at Don Panoz. I’ve been lusting after one of his Esperantes (the sexy sports cars) for years. Can I call you back after I’ve talked with the next writer?”
True to his word, he called, we talked and he asked for the proposal, followed by a request for the manuscript. Two days later, he mailed us a contract, and later that week, the deal was signed and sealed.
Will the book be picked up by a publisher? Go to a bidding war (I can dream, can’t I)? There are no guarantees. But this much I know. Without Virtual CC, we might never have landed an agent. And without the opportunity to participate in CC at the conferences, I would never have met some of my best and favorite clients.
On November 5, you, too, can meet one-on-one with potential clients at the Dream Bold Atlanta Conference at Agnes Scott College. The all-day program includes great panels and stellar national editors and content providers. An added bonus is the opportunity to mix and mingle over lunch and at the cocktail party following CC. For more information: www.asja/ATLANTA.