Ever since becoming an active member of the writing community on Twitter, and interacting with independent authors and publishers, a new world of books and opportunities has opened to me. I found out about the WriteHive e-Convention from my author friend, Erynn Lehtonen, when she asked me to be on one of the panels. Forever curious when it comes to books, reading and writing, I decided to learn more about the convention and how I could help.
Today I’m in conversation with Joshua Lee Ronin, the Executive Coordinator of the WriteHive.
Can you tell us a little about yourself, Joshua?
Of course! My name is Joshua Lee Ronin. I’m a science fiction and fantasy novelist currently residing in Denver, Colorado. I was most recently employed as a Soldier in the United States Army. After a tour to Afghanistan, I decided to leave the military and pursue more creative endeavors. I’ve always wanted to be a writer, and I was just at a place where it was feasible to really give it my best shot.
Once I left the service, I converted a van into a mobile home and traveled the States for about a year. In that time, I collected a bunch of stories and learned a lot about myself. I’ve recently made a big push to be my own boss, go totally indie (because I believe it really is the future of publishing), and be a big advocate for people who want to follow their passions.
My first book, Devil of Osuki, is an epic fantasy inspired by Japanese history and comes out on 16 November 2019. I guess I’m most known for being an advocate for diversity, inclusion, cooperation, and peace in Twitter’s #WritingCommunity, and I’m the “mastermind” behind WriteHive.
What is WriteHive?
WriteHive is a free, online writing convention for the writing community, created and managed exclusively by volunteer members of that community. We’re completely indie, with a hard focus on accessibility. One of our goals is to challenge the conventional (ha!) ideas about conferences/conventions. We’re reaching out to the whole world and inviting everyone, everywhere to take part. The con will take place 18 and 19 April 2020.
Where did the ‘hive’ theme come from?
It just… kind of made sense, honestly. When I was coming up with the name for the con, I was trying to synthesize the core ideals of the event. I asked myself what I really wanted it to be about. What did I want the name to convey? And as I was brainstorming, my mind just kept coming back to this image of a hive. I was stuck on it.
A hive is a beautiful thing. If you’ve ever had the distinctly awesome opportunity to see a hive up close (maybe at a museum or something), you’ll see just how magnificent they are. I don’t just mean the physical structure. Yes, those are pretty. But a hive is more than just the “house”. It goes beyond that. A hive’s success depends on the members that are physically present, sure, but also on the members that aren’t. The ones out there in the world gathering resources and experience to bring back.
When we’re talking about an online convention, that’s really the ideal we’re reaching toward. Not everyone is in the same place. They’re out there, wherever they are, doing their thing. Writing books or editing stories or publishing dreams. They’re gathering experience and wisdom from all sorts of places. And our goal at WriteHive is to celebrate that.
We aren’t weaker because our community isn’t in a single, physical location. In fact, we’re stronger because of that. I think the hive imagery really is the best way to imagine what we’re trying to do here.
For someone who has never been to a convention, what would you tell them about it, and how they can get the best out of it?
At their core, conventions are just networking events. They’re places for professionals and would-be professionals to meet, connect, and share. Also, to “nerd out” a little over whatever the con is about. In this case, writing and all the things surrounding it.
Writing can be a very solitary, lonely experience. Writing conventions are designed to mitigate that a little bit. It’s about meeting like-minded people and sharing experience! Having a community around you can be very useful for lots of personal and professional reasons. The more people you have in your corner, the better off you’ll be in the long run. At typical cons, this can be hard, especially for artist types. (We have a tendency toward introversion.) But connecting with people online is much easier, so hopefully that’ll help! Plus, our community is very supportive and welcoming.
In general, when you’re attending a con, you should be seeking to gain something. Be open to experiencing new things, developing new skills, and meeting new people. The more you absorb, the better a writer you’ll be.
But, of course, the most important thing is having fun!
So, before you attend, maybe write down these three things to guide you if you ever get overwhelmed:
— What do you want to learn at the con?
— What kind of person (or specific person) do you hope to meet?
— What event just looks like a ball of fun?
Who can attend WriteHive?
WriteHive is an all-access, non-exclusive, 24/7 convention. It’s built for everybody, everywhere. If you have an Internet connection, you can attend.
We welcome writers, editors, designers, cover artists, screenwriters, publishers… really anyone who is involved with or interested in storytelling media. Comics, manga, movies, cinema, literature. Everything. Everyone. If the con sounds interesting to you, then we invite you to attend! We’re open to all walks of life, all identities, all backgrounds. We want to focus on what brings us together.
Where did the idea of WriteHive come from?
So, a convention for Twitter’s #WritingCommunity is not a new idea. I definitely didn’t come up with it. Lots of people have bounced around the idea of getting a con together. But everyone was focused on physical location, and that comes with serious logistics issues. Where’s it gonna be? Who’s renting the venue? Will there be enough people to cover the overhead?
More importantly, a physical writing convention creates the same problems as any physical convention. People often have a hard time going. Either they can’t afford it, it’s too far away, they have to work or have responsibilities at home, etc. And that creates a feeling not only of inaccessibility, but also of exclusivity and non-inclusion. Pardon the language, but f*ck that. It’s the writing community, not the writing “small group of privileged friends.”
One night, someone was lamenting over not being able to go to Comic-Con on Twitter and I asked my partner, “What if someone hosted that online?” She thought it was an awesome idea. I put up a poll on Twitter and it EXPLODED. My phone wouldn’t stop. The community had spoken. So, it was just a matter of sucking it up and being willing to put in the time/effort to make it happen. Someone had to do it. Why not me? Since then, we’ve had a ton of support and our admin staff gets bigger every day. All volunteers. It’s really kinda jaw-dropping, honestly.
What would an ideal day at the convention look like?
SUPER HUGE NEWS! WriteHive2020 will be held… *drumroll*…
— WriteHive (@Write_Hive) October 4, 2019
APRIL 18-19, 2020!
Please help spread the word! Like and RT so as many people in the #WritingCommunity know about it as possible! We can’t wait to see you at the con!#WriteHive2020 pic.twitter.com/sOCqgbtQ5m
The con is all virtual, happening 24/7 over a weekend (18 & 19 April 2020). On the day of the con, attendees can go to the WriteHive website and check out a program schedule. That schedule will display the events happening throughout the day—things like Reddit AMAs, video panel live-streams on Twitch and YouTube, Twitter Q&As, Discord discussions, presentations, contests, and workshops. Each event on the schedule will have a link. All you have to do is click it. It’s that simple. Come back to the WriteHive site when your event is over to find the next one you want to check out!
I should note that every event—or, as many as is feasible with our administration crew—will be transcribed and/or archived. So even if people want to go to the con but they can’t make the live events on the weekend, they’ll be able to check recordings, et cetera later on.
And like I said, the event is 24/7. So something will totally be happening in conjunction with your timezones/part of the world. Your location will not (and should not) hinder you from enjoying a convention. That’s what WriteHive is all about.
Top 5 things someone attending the convention can do. And this can be something which is in the works.
Oh, man! I definitely don’t want to play favorites! We have 48 straight hours of incredible lectures, panels, contests, workshops, and more. There’s really something for everybody. I will say, though, that there’s a Plotters vs. Panstsers panel going on that I’m really excited for, and a Science in Science Fiction panel that features legit scientists from a very diverse scientific background. So both of those will be awesome.
We also have some lectures from incredible writing teachers!
And one of our partners is HAZMAT-certified and will be doing a presentation on writing realistic nuclear apocalypse scenarios. So there’s a lot to be excited for! (We also have a few surprises in store.) If people are interested, there’s a full list of events on the site.
If people are interested in helping, what can they do?
- The first big thing is getting the word out. We want as many people to know about it as possible. This event is for all the people that have always wanted to attend a con but have never been able to do so for whatever reason. There are lots of those people out there. So, the more the merrier, honestly.
- We’re always looking for volunteers and Moderators to help welcome people into the Discord chat servers we have running. On the weekend of the con, having Mods helping people and answering questions is going to be super critical. We have a team, but we can always use more people. If anyone is interested in applying to be a Mod, there’s an application form on the website!
- We are also setting up a crowdfunding arm so people can donate money. This helps us pay for hosting costs, web development, and that sort of thing. A huge portion of donations is going to a lucky writer/artist out there to pay for money hurdles stopping them from publishing their work. So book cover, pro editing, that sort of thing. We’re essentially going to angel invest an author in need, which I love. Donors will be getting monthly rewards for their support as well, but I can’t talk about that just yet. Keep an eye on the Twitter (@Write_Hive) and the website for more info as that unfolds!
** Update: Link to Patreon is now up!**
Is there anything you wanted to say to the people seeing this and getting interested in the event?
Totally! Hey, you are loved. And appreciated. And there’s a big, wide community out here that’s full of amazing people just waiting to connect with you. If you go to this con, I just know you’ll meet a new friend. Someone who can speak your language and understand what you’re going through as a writer, editor, publisher, etc. Someone who can motivate and support you on your journey. Making art can be a terribly lonely endeavor. But it doesn’t have to be.
If you’ve been looking for a loving, wonderful community, you found it. Join the Hive. We’d love to have you.
Hope you enjoyed getting to know about the WriteHive and Joshua! The WritteHive is in April 2020 so mark your calendars and stay tuned because I’ll be talking more with the team in the future. Also, apart from the book reviewer panel, I’ll also be presenting about bookblogging separately! 🙂 Check out all the event details here.
WriteHive logo and Joshua’s photo shared by Joshua.
Joshua’s upcoming book image from his website.
Photo of woman taking notes: Photo by The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash
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