Have you ever come across an opportunity that would be a great help in you pursuing your dreams, but it cost A LOT of money? It’s an exciting opportunity. You want to take part. You know you’ll learn a lot, but you look at the cost, and look at your bank account, and think about all the bills you have to pay, and you wonder if you can afford it?
Last year when I attended an Online Writing Day Workshop, I queried an agent who ended up telling me about this group of writers called Realm Makers. They’re Christian writers like me. The agent told me she saw them as the “cool kids of the fantasy genre.” She felt they would be a great resource in helping me pursue my dream of getting published. I looked them up after that workshop was over. Signed up for their newsletter, and stalked a few of their pages. Turns out, they have their own writing conference every year. After looking into more about them, I decided I wanted to go. This conference would be a new experience.
Well, I missed the 2023 conference, but I wasn’t concerned. I have a goal of attending at least one writing conference a year and I already did that for 2023. For 2024, I was determined to go to Realm Makers. I asked off work ahead of time when I learned of the dates, and I checked their pages weekly to see when registration was opening.
Registration opened on February 1st–and it’s still open for any of you writers out there interested in going. It was the first thing I looked at when I got up in the morning. I skimmed through the speakers and faculty and recognized a couple names. Some of the class titles sounded really interesting. It was exciting to think about all the possibilities that could happen at this conference. Maybe someone would be interested in my book? Maybe I’d get great feedback on how to improve my book? Maybe I’d make friends in this writing community? Friends who would help me grow as a writer and hold me accountable for when I don’t write. It was inspiring.
Then I saw the price.
The amount knocked me off my feet. I’ve never paid so much for a writing conference. It made me start questioning everything. Can I afford it? Do I really want to go? Will going make any difference? Would it even be worth it?
The debate in my mind lasted throughout the day. It even made it hard to focus on my job. The money aspect of this conference completely deflated my excitement for this conference. Doesn’t it suck how money does that? You can be super excited about something. Maybe a trip or a job opportunity, but you see how much it costs or how little the job pays and suddenly it’s not that exciting anymore.
So, what do you do? Do you take a chance? Spend the money or take the job and budget every penny so you can save what you spent back up? Or do you play it safe and not risk the money on a dream that may not come true?
As for me, I’m taking the chance. I’m gonna go hang out with the “cool kids of the fantasy genre,” and hope for the best. It’ll be a new adventure despite the cost, and I can’t wait.
nikki diekemper 