The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of educational experiences, networking, and travel. As I am getting deeper into my career, I have realized the importance of continued education and networking to improve my publicity and social media manager skills. With that, I decided that attending a variety of conferences would be my best option without paying for a continued higher education.

On May 22nd, I attended the U.S. Book Show in Manhattan. At that conference, I connected with former colleagues, attended various insightful panels, met a slew of new literary agents, authors, and industry professionals, and opened my eyes to the possibilities of what I am capable of.

The U.S. Book Show was a larger, more general event for the industry, whereas the following week was more specific to the press I work for now. I traveled to Chicago, Illinois, for the Association of Catholic Publishers Annual Membership Meeting. At this conference, I connected with so many peers in religious (Catholic, Christian, and Protestant) publishing; I went to several specific panels for my day-to-day, learned a TON, and broke off into peer groups with members who manage a lot of the same tasks I do, which gave me a heaping amount of insight.

These are the first conferences I’ve had the pleasure of attending during my career, and I cannot wait for the next one. The value of education, networking, and communication does not go unnoticed. To me, it is one of the best things to help drive your career forward, no matter the industry. I’ve learned so much in the last few weeks, and although I’ve been swamped and exhausted from doing so, I wouldn’t have changed anything about the events.

As always, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little update.