In 2009, I attended my first writing conference—the UW-Madison Writers’ Institute. I didn’t know anyone or anything. I didn’t even know the proper way to format a manuscript. Since then, I’ve learned a heck of a lot (ha/ha). Now, I definitely know how to format a manuscript, a query letter, a synopsis, an e-book, a paperback . . . you get the picture. The majority of this I learned from writing conferences and a healthy dose of trial and error.