The Association of Writers & Writing Programs – AWP – is the world’s biggest writing conference, and this year it took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Every year, writers, publishers, agents, editors, and educators come together to attend the bookfair and panels hosted by the conference. Whether your interest lies in short stories, poems, novels, playwriting, screenwriting, or publishing, there’s something at AWP for everyone. This year, courtesy of CU Boulder’s Writing and Rhetoric Program, I had the chance to see what it was all about.
The Bookfair:
Driving into the city from the airport, it was clear that there was plenty of sightseeing to do in Philadelphia. There are old, historic buildings scattered all throughout the city. That’s not to mention all of the famous sites like the Liberty Bell and the Rocky Steps. There were enough art museums on the path from my AirBNB to the convention center to last a lifetime.
At the convention center, I wormed my way through the long security line and got to work setting up my booth at the bookfair. The bookfair is where all the different publications in attendance gather to sell their books and look for new submitters. It was nice to finally set down all those heavy journals I had been carrying with me!
I was running a booth for CU Boulder’s creative nonfiction magazine: Hindsight. Despite being on the edges of the bookfair, there were so many people coming by that it got to be pretty hard to give them all my attention. My voice was definitely hoarse by the end of it!
But what was even more awesome than running a booth was looking at all the other ones. All throughout the room, contributors for hundreds of publications, from Harvard Review to Stillhouse Press, were setting up their own booths. One booth was holding a flash fiction contest with cash prizes, another one had an old typewriter that anyone could stop by and write a poem on, and – my personal favorite – one magazine was handing out free Moon Pies. That’s not to mention the incredible variety of books for sale. It was like being at a library except that when you bought a book you could almost always get the author to sign it on the spot.
The Panels:
Like any convention worth its salt, AWP has an expansive list of panels that visitors can attend. Over the course of the three day conference, there were dozens of different panels that could be attended all day from nine to five. That’s a lot to cram into one day, but it’s totally worth it as they are hosted by many notable and knowledgeable writers from all over.
These panels cover everything from noir as an agent for social change, to debuting with a small press, to tackling trauma through writing. There truly is something for everyone. Personally, I was most interested in the panels that focused on fiction writing craft. With a conference badge, all of these panels could be attended for free with no limits, so it was easy to hop from one to another to get a little sample of all the different conversations going on in the literary world.
The bookfair and the panels were incredible parts of the conference, but to me the best part of AWP is having the opportunity to connect with writers who I would have never had the opportunity to meet otherwise. It was amazing to meet other writers in various stages of their career; many are established authors who have been published in an assortment of different places, while others are just starting out. Each of them have unique advice to share that stems from their various experiences in the field. It is a wonderful opportunity to network and make connections. Even better, it was an incredible way to spend spring break! If you’re interested in attending, be on the lookout for AWP 2023 in Seattle.