Frequently Asked Questions by Parents
Can my child bring a friend?
If your son or daughter has a friend has serious interest in the craft of writing and they register,
they can come just like anyone else. Only registered (and therefore
paid for) attendees will be allowed to attend the conference. Please do read well the instructions regarding behavior on the registration form.
Can adults attend the Teen Writers’ Conference?
The short answer is, no, you’re not a teen. :0)
The long answer is that the whole purpose of this conference is to focus on topics that are relevant and age-appropriate to teenage attendees. We intend that the Teen Writers Conference become a springboard for these youth into eventual full conferences. We desire to help ease the intimidation of a traditional writer’s conference by giving teens a valuable experience, one they can use as a reference as they consider attending adult conferences and beginning their actual writing career. For the younger attendees, we also hope to show them that writing is a fun and valuable use of their time.
Another purpose of the conference is to show these dynamic youth there are things they can apply to their writing now
to help them take advantage of
opportunities available to them currently (yearbook staff, newspaper,
Christmas letters, Sterling Scholar, Reflections, etc.) Our focus is to provide a gentle and safe environment that gears the
schedule, topics, encouragement, and setting for teens: their
generation, their skills, their dreams.
In summary, we don’t want teenage attendees to be intimidated by adults in attendance, we don’t want parents of attendees to worry about safety issues for their children, and we, as developers of the conference, do not desire to adjust our content to meet expectations of adult writers, which then is counterproductive to the needs of the teenagers in attendance.
But please do come for the final panel presentation at 4:30 p.m. and awards. You can join us in celebrating what the teens have accomplished and to hear national authors speak! That panel presentation will begin at 4:30 p.m. (room # to be announced).
What if my child wants me to attend with him/her? What if they are too shy to go by themselves?
While we understand this is a new experience for the attendees, if they
are overly nervous about attending by themselves perhaps they are
not yet ready for this experience. We would love to have them come next year! We plan to have this conference
yearly. Many of the presenters at the
conference are parents themselves. As such, each is dedicated to the comfort of our conference participants.
We have activities planned to help each youth feel welcomed, safe, and encouraged to thrive in an atmosphere of creativity.
Feel free to arrive with your
child any time after 8:30 a.m. to meet the staff and get familiar with
the set up for the conference. You are welcome to remain on campus. There are numerous
reading and working areas at Weber State that you can take
advantage of, but we ask you to stay away from the conference itself so
as not to interfere with the process. We will allow kids to keep their
cell phones turned on, but they will be asked to keep them out of sight and
set to silent during the classes. Our entire focus is your child's successful experience at his or her writer's camp for the day!
Why is the conference so inexpensive?
We're so glad you asked! You're right; the conference is incredibly inexpensive - especially when you look at the
average cost of most other writing conferences. In fact, we would make it free if we could. The cost is based on
the price to rent the rooms at Weber State, print
materials and other incidentals. Other than being reimbursed for gas, the presenters and staff members are volunteering their time. We keep the
price low to make it possible for as many teenage
attendees as possible.
We do encourage each youth to pay for at least part of the conference themselves so they take it seriously. (Of course, this is up to the parents and their child, but we hope all the attendees will take this opportunity seriously and value the national authors who are donating their time out of love and service.)
Are kids allowed to bring snacks or make purchases from the vending machine?
Absolutely. Attendees are welcome to bring whatever snacks they feel they will need throughout the day; lunch is the only food we’ll have available. The attendees are welcome to eat in class, but we ask that they clean up after themselves and be respectful to the presenters.
Why do we put so much time and effort into something for which we do not get paid?
Because we love literature and are excited by the talent of this new generation!
For information on *THE 2011 Teen Writers Conference* subscribe to: Newsletter@TeenWritersConference.com