Hi there--Klaus, the kat here, once again!
I've been designated to deliver you the headline news. (Spoiler alert–it's about a conference!) It's no picnic, you know, being woken up from your mid-evening nap to start paw-pounding on this lap-top.
So, my owner, Cora spent four days, last month at the online Write His Answer Christian Writer's Conference. Apparently, it was the Colorado and Greater Philly conferences, combined. See link at: writehisanswer.com
She thought it was marvelous, not having to pay for a hotel or flight. (Okay--I know, she never left the house; but it was still discombobulating for me.) Said she was doing it all from the comfort of her own home–oh yeah–while I got kitty well ignored... I could count the number of times, on one paw, that she rubbed my head the whole four days, cat egorically speaking, that is...
But I have to admit, I made a bargain with her by demanding she make me a gourmet non-gmo, organic, smoked salmon gumbo, in exchange for our rapidly shrinking snuggle schedule... I know, I know--too many adjectives... But reading the Chicago Manual of Style is above my pay grade. Just remembering that gumbo is making my mouth water, and it'd be a cat astrophe to let that happen more than three times a day. And I still say, Pavlov should have used felines as his subjects in that experiment; the canine species just cannot be relied on, for empirical data.
But I just don't get why humans love this virtual world. Four days, staring into that box–with all those voices coming out: lecturing, asking questions, talking again, music, even singing... I mean, how could Cora have so much fun without me?
She said the conference was like a wonderful writing craft buffet--with a huge variety of workshops, (chat boxes included) critique groups etc. The small group breakout sessions also, were amazing--the conferees were automatically dropped into a virtual room with several other writers, twice a day--a great way to make new friends. Then there were round table mealtimes, when you could meet authors, agents and editors.
So, I heard the most exciting part of the conference was the personal appointments with agents and editors. And get this, Cora got three ten-minute appointments with editors and literary agents. (The only agent I ever had an appointment with, was an FBI agent--you know, from the Fur Ball Investigation department. The whole thing made me go catty wampus.)
The writers had to send in a one-sheet and one page of a story, before the conference. Then they had to give a thirty-second pitch for their book to the agent. Sounds quite intimidating but apparently, two or three writers were together in each virtual room for the interviews. Also, they'd had podcasts and zoom meetings before the conference to prepare for this.
Cora said she got a lot of pawsitive feedback on her book. Her book? Yowsers! I'd better be a good boy, so she puts me in her book.
On second thoughts, I'd better be a good boy, so she doesn't put me in her book. With my luck, I'd be the villain.
