Why the Fundraising Campaign?
We know how expensive in-person conferences can be, having attended a few ourselves. You’re not just paying the conference fee, but also for the hotel room, meals out, plane fare or gas money, lost wages from your day job, etc. An online conference eliminates these concerns.
Unfortunately, the donation system formerly in place made WriteOnCon unsustainable for the long-term. But we believe that knowledge and community should be available to all, so we’re asking for a simple and affordable contribution of $1.
The keynote speeches and critique forums are free and open to all, but for a measly dollar, you’ll also have access to the conference’s blogs and vlogs. Five dollars gets you all of that, plus access to the live events. And the perks only go up from there! All contributors at the $5 amount or more are automatically entered into our raffle to win items such as a query critique from an industry professional, and there will be multiple winners. Check out the list to the right for other opportunities to get your work looked at by published writers, agents, and editors.
How Do I Attend?
Any one of the perks included in our campaign will give you admission to the conference events. You can use either PayPal or a credit card in order to purchase one of our perks.
The conference will be hosted through our website: writeoncon.org. All backers of perks will be provided with instructions for entrance into the conference as we near the conference dates.
How Will the Money Be Spent?
In addition to covering the expenses associated with hosting and maintaining the WriteOnCon website and forums, along with the advanced plug-ins required to keep our site happy (ie. not crashing), we also hope to compensate all of our organizers and speakers, even if it’s just a small honorarium. We believe that artists, writers, and industry professionals shouldn’t have to work solely for “exposure” or because of “passion,” but should be rewarded for their time, effort, and knowledge with something that can actually buy them groceries.
Those providing critiques will receive nearly all of the funds paid for their critiques; only a small portion will be retained for WriteOnCon, PayPal, and credit card transaction expenses.
I’m Excited! When Is This Taking Place?
This campaign will run for one month, from November 1st through December 7th, 2017.
WriteOnCon itself will be live from February 9th-11th, 2018, and the forums will remain open for a while afterwards.
Is the Campaign My Only Chance to Join WriteOnCon?
You will still be able to sign up for the conference even after the campaign is over, but the cost will be a little higher and we will only be offering the general, full, and extended access admission levels. As you can see to the right, the critiques and consultations are all campaign perk exclusives, so we recommend signing up ASAP through this page!
This Sounds Great, But I Write Adult Literature/I’m Busy In February/I’m Not A Writer or Illustrator/Etc.
First of all, you don’t have to write/illustrate kidlit to participate in the conference! The blogs, vlogs, and live events will provide craft and industry knowledge that applies to writers and illustrators across the board.
Second, take note of our “Extended Access to the Conference” perk level, which allows you to enjoy the conference at your own pace for up to a month after it officially ends.
And finally, you could still help us by spreading the word! Share this page, re-tweet our account, email your critique partners. Are you a member of SCBWI or a local writing group? Are you participating in NaNoWriMo or know someone who is? Be a pal and let them know about our campaign! We here at WriteOnCon thank you.
I Bought a Perk, What Now?
If you bought a critique: We’ll be in touch within a week of purchase with instructions for how to submit!
If you bought entrance to the conference: You’ll be automatically added to our membership on Dec 1, and any further instructions will come then!
If you win a raffle item: We’ll email you the details! You’ll have 48 hours to respond and claim your prize before we select another name from the hat.
Do I have to Pay with PayPal?
No! If you click “pay with PayPal,” it will take you to a screen where you can choose to pay with debit or credit, PayPal account not required. It’s confusing, we know.
I have More Questions!
Sweet! Shoot us an email and we’ll help you out.