by Charlotte Hinger
The annual Western Writers of America convention will always be my favorite event. It was due to connections made at this conference that I sold my first book. Ironically, I had been warned away by an official in another writers' organization. He said "it's not for the likes of you. This is a business conference with a lot of New York editors in attendance."
I decided that's where I wanted to go. Because real editors went. And because it was a business conference
The conference is held in a different locale every year. This year it was in Great Falls, Montana and next year will be in Rapid City, South Dakota. The group is intensely interested in history and the settlement of the West. Learning about different regions and tours is an important feature of the meetings.
Our attendance was down this year. We are still feeling the effects of the Covid scare. The event was cancelled in 2020.
I wouldn't have missed for anything because my best friend in the writing community is and always will be Irene Bennett Brown, and she received the Wister Award for lifetime achievement. She began with award-winning children's books, then later moved on to novels for adults, and at the age of 90 (this year) Irene signed a new two-book contract. She and her husband, Robert, recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary and were married at 19.
Angela Bates, my friend from Nicodemus, and I drove. Even though it was a 12 hour drive we clipped right along. We got up at 5:00 am and arrived in Great Falls at 5:00 pm.
