Halfway around the world to attend my very first writer’s conference
It’s easy to forget, in our connected world, just how big the planet is. It’s been a while since I got on a plane for a flight as long as this, but it was worth it. So, so worth it. My destination – St Louis, Missouri, to attend the Realmmakers Conference 2019.
Just how far away was it? Seven hours from Singapore to Tokyo. Twelve hours from Tokyo to Chicago. Six hour delay at Chicago. Another one hour into St Louis. Thankfully, by some divine miracle, I got upgraded for the twelve hour flight from Tokyo to Chicago. Business class on Japan Airlines wasn’t as good as Singapore Airlines’, but hey anything is better than economy.
But Chicago O’Hare. Oh, heck. Rain delays, flight delays, a total mess. My flight in from Japan was delayed one hour on the tarmac after we landed. As in, the plane didn’t even get to a disembarkation gate until we sat for one hour just a stone’s throw from the terminal. Apparently delays caused our gate to remain occupied by another plane. We couldn’t get off until that plane left. And when we finally did, things started to get worse. Bad weather moved in and more flights got cancelled. Our departure time was pushed back several times, each an hour or so. And the departure gate kept changing as well, so I basically ran from one end of the airport to the other several times, dragging my carry-on bags with me. I was just thankful that we managed to leave Chicago at all. I wasn’t keen on spending a night in the terminal or an airport hotel. That was the low point of the trip. Everything got a whole lot better from then on.
The registration process for the conference involved picking stickers and placing them on my name tag, which I didn’t realise until day 2 when I saw lots of people with the stickers on their tags. To explain, “1” means how many times I’d been to Realmmakers. The dragon denoted the type of books I write – fantasy. And the “talkable” sticker meant – “go ahead and say hi to me, I’m social”. Yes, that’s for real. There are more than a few writers who are so shy that they don’t want to talk to strangers at all, at least not except on their own terms and of their own accord. So the talkable sticker is really to respect that and for people to give space to one another. You can also see I opted for the complete meal package. It’s not cheap, but I didn’t want to have to wander around on my own looking for food, but most of all, I traveled halfway around the globe, so I wanted to maximise the amount of time I had with eminent people there. And it turned out to be a very good decision. I ended up sitting at Brent Weeks’ table for one meal, and Terry Brooks’ for two.
Brent was the keynote speaker for the event. He gave the opening address and the closing one. Both were his own personal and absolutely mind-blowing stories of faith and struggle and redemption. Before arriving in St Louis, I didn’t know who he was at all and hadn’t read any of his books. By the end of it, I wanted so badly to get to know him better. A very real, very warm, down-to-earth guy who loves God. His two addresses were better than most sermons you’ll hear in church. Powerful, insightful, humbling. I don’t normally try to get people’s autographs, but I did for him.
The guest of honour for the conference was Terry Brooks. Terry is an absolute legend in the fantasy writing world, having penned the Shannara Chronicles (which we discovered at the conference that it was pronounced “shen-arra” and not “shuh-narra”), a bestselling series. And he’s still going strong, writing books today and just bounding around with great energy. It was an absolute delight listening to him share his thoughts both on the platform and around the dinner table. Not sure if they’ll ever come by Singapore, but I extended him (and likewise Brent) an offer to host them if they are ever in town.
The sessions themselves were very interesting and eye-opening. Julie Hall conducted a series on digital marketing for indie authors. So much good stuff there, I could barely write everything down. One interesting point from her, mirroring my own struggles – though she technically writes young adult fiction (meaning “teen”), her audience is mostly adults who like to read YA. She admits that she also has difficulty reaching teens, because most of them don’t read e-books. This was why I travelled all the way to Realmmakers – I couldn’t get my e-books into the hands of teens, so I was looking to see if I could get them published in paperback in the U.S. Kids and teenagers mostly still read physical books.
Other great sessions included the one by Steve Laube, where he pulled back the curtain briefly for us to see what goes on inside a publishing house, helping us to understand why it is so hard to get published and why even when you do, it takes so long. It was a chastening lesson but it also gave me encouragement that lots of other good authors fail at this hurdle at the beginning. Perseverance, both to keep improving your writing craft, as well as to keep enquiring and pitching to agents and publishers, is the only way to get that very first book published.
What was really nice about Realmmakers was that everybody is just so friendly and welcoming. I guess being a gathering of believers, the spirit and mindset is just different. People are very helpful and there’s no bitching or backbiting that I could see. And many people attest that compared to “regular” writer’s conferences where the politics can be suffocating and the general atmosphere toxic, this place feels like a family gathering. Friday night was gala night, where people were encouraged to dress up (or “cosplay”). And of course, dress up as a fantasy or sci-fi character. I figured since I’d come so far, might as well go all the way. I dug out my old wedding dinner outfit and somehow carted it thousands of miles across an ocean without damaging it. I could still wear it (somewhat) after almost fifteen years of not really taking care of my waist and weight. Thank God for baggy robes. The dinner itself was fun and we saw lots of really cool costumes, but it was all over a little too quickly.
The winner of the best costume prize was a guy in a completely inspired costume. He came as Leeroy Jenkins! Or, specifically, the Leeroy Jenkins card in Hearthstone. Those who don’t know who Leeroy Jenkins is, check out this absolutely infamous viral video.
In terms of what I came to do, I had the opportunity to pitch to two different agents and two publishers. They were all intrigued by what I’d written, but even more by the fact that I’d come halfway around the globe just for this. There were some challenges involved in trying to publish so far away from home, and the fact that my book was already available on Amazon created a huge issue (since it is technically “already published”). But they were still nice enough to take copies of the books back to look at them, though reminding me that there were no guarantees of anything concrete necessarily coming out from it. I was fine with that – this was my first time pitching; I was there to learn as much as I can. If I get an offer, praise the Lord. If I don’t, it’s ok. I’m in good company. Many bestselling authors today struggled to get their very first book published. I’m just starting on this journey, I need to have patience, faith and perseverance.
I made up my mind that I would definitely come back for Realmmakers 2020. This was such a leap forward in my learning journey as a writer, I couldn’t wait for the next iteration. And when I heard that it was going to be held in Atlantic City, that sealed it for me. Atlantic City is just a short train ride away from Newark. Newark is the airport that Singapore Airlines flies to, non-stop, for people going to New York. Which basically means that next year, I can (a) fly Singapore Airlines to get to Realmmakers; and (b) I can avoid any domestic flights. Just land at Newark and take the train down. A bonus was that I could spend a few days in New York as well, one of my favourite cities in the world (along with Washington, D.C. and London). When I told my wife, she was excited as well. We’re both going next year.
The return journey was, thankfully, smooth. No flight delays, no bad weather, no significant turbulence. I didn’t get upgraded this time, but I didn’t need it. I was just happy to be on the way home, to see the wife and kids. And having had a really powerful and eye-opening experience. It’d been a long and tiring journey. It wasn’t cheap. And I had a whole lot of work waiting for me back home. But it was worth it, completely.
Realmmakers 2020. Already blocked out in my diary.