Libraries and bookstores are an integral part of the reading community, and they’re a great way to reach people who might otherwise never find your books. Librarians and booksellers are your friends, and like you, they love engaging with delighted and excited readers. That said, they are also bombarded with sales pitches and author requests. They want to support your book. You just have to make it easy and give them a reason why it belongs on their shelves. Misha Stone (Reader Services Librarian, Seattle Public Library) and Paula J. Gallagher (Adult and Community Engagement Specialist, Baltimore County Public Library) will join SFWA’s favorite genre booksellers to ensure participants develop tools to successfully partner with libraries and bookstores. At the end of the session, participants will understand how to successfully pitch collaborations with bookstores and librarians. In break out sessions, participants will get feedback on outreach emails to bookstores and libraries.

Read more about Seminar 2.3 The Business of Writing: Working with Bookstores and Libraries

Join Jennifer Hudak for an “out of this world” experience – or, at least, a much needed meditative pause, with SFF flair.

Read more about Meditation Station (Wellness Activity)

In an age of portents, how could we resist? Join BrightFlame and Lane Smith for a rich conversation about how and why to incorporate Tarot concepts into your speculative storytelling. What does a structure, an art form, and a ritual like Tarot do for your worldbuilding? How does it empower and how can it be inflected to improve and imperil? This conversation will be followed by a breakout room activity that allows participants (limited sign-up!) to get deeper into the nuances of the form.

Read more about Seminar 2.2 Tarot Need-to-Knows for Writers (with Bonus Breakout-Room Chats and Readings!)

Working with so many different voices is no easy feat! How do we curate short story collections with care? What makes for a strong theme, and how do we strengthen our own editorial voice as we go forward? At Quasar, we’re sitting with Sheree Renée Thomas to learn what it takes, and how to prepare ourselves for the slings and arrows of advancing good work in anthology form.

Read more about Workshop 2.1 The Business of Writing: Publishing Short Story Anthologies

Rob Cameron – teacher, linguist, writer – will be guiding us through the process of creating hope for the next generation through SFF. How do we get out of our own way as older writers, to create spaces in prose where the next generation can learn about and explore the world as confidently as possible? How do we lead with curiosity, when meeting younger readers where they are, and help them to understand that there are older helpers on hand, to face whatever challenges lie ahead?

Read more about Workshop 1.2 Creating Real-World Hope through Speculative MG/YA

We’re honored to host a conversation moderated by Victoria Strauss of Writer Beware, with agents Alice Speilburg and Natascha Morris, who can speak to the challenges writers face when protecting their rights as creators. In a year that has brought us many major industry discussions around AI piracy, merch clauses, moral rights waivers, copyright, and rights reversion, it’s time for seasoned and early professionals alike to empower ourselves and one another. This seminar has a hands-on learning component.

Read more about Seminar 1.1 Contract Need-to-Knows for a Challenging Year in Industry