Hey Medium, It’s Time for a Writer’s Conference

Let’s connect online!

I’ve been active on Medium for nearly three months. I’ve loved the attention my essays have received. I also love reading the work of other writers. There’s also a large poetry community on Medium. The poet in me is thrilled to see poets on this platform.

So, with all that being said, I think Medium should have a virtual writer’s conference. I want to see some of the people behind the poems and stories. I want to get to know Medium members and what drives them to write. Some of the members write every day. Some write a couple of times a week. Some even write once a month. I want to understand their process.

In addition, a writer’s conference would allow Medium publications to showcase their writing. I follow many publications and write for a few of them. I would love to learn about all of the publications on this platform. It would be better than seeing a few come up on my timeline.

You’re probably thinking, good idea, Shirley, but how do we pull it off? Well, if you can pull off the Medium Writer Challenge, why can’t you do a writing conference? Everything would be online. Medium writers could attend sessions for free. For specialty sessions, writers would be charged a discount rate. Anyone new to Medium would need to pay full price. Everyone would connect through Zoom and have specific links to workshops and sessions.

All you would need is someone to run the conference and people to run the workshops and sessions. Make sure everything is recorded on Zoom. Do it during a specific time (week-long conference or weekend conference). Make sure dates and times are clearly noted. Someone needs to run advertising, marketing, and promotion of the event. Voila! You have your Medium Writer’s Conference.

I would be more than happy to help with conference planning. I have attended my share of in-person and online conferences to help with the process. I think it would be a great way for Medium to be introduced to more people, help writers connect with each other, and discuss the craft of writing. I think it’s time. With the Delta Variant running rampant across the U.S,. we may be on lockdown again. Might as well have a conference so people can focus on their writing.

Let me know what you think!