------>please note we had one person who had a hard time making their deposit via the Square link, if you have problems just submit your form and email us<------
WE ARE LOCATED IN BOWIE, MARYLAND — IN THE DMV (District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia) AREA, BETWEEN BALTIMORE (not far from BWI Airport), WASHINGTON DC, AND ANNAPOLIS
***please note that some of the answers in the FAQ -MAY- change***
COPY THIS LINK AND SEND IT TO YOURSELF OR WRITE IT DOWN
Once you submit this form you won't be able to get back to it and you'll want to have this link handy.
ALL PAYMENT LINKS HAVE TO BE DONE SEPERATELY - there isn't a cart or online store situation. We hope it's not too inconvenient, but please know we are working on that for next time!
WELCOME! We are so excited you're here! I know there is a lot of info below but we appreciate you reading it so your expectations are set for success and a mutually beneficial experience.
IMPORTANT NOTE: We are not requiring your full payment as a deposit this year. We are going to try out a $100 deposit model instead. The deposit is *non-refundable, but we feel it makes things a little easier for some participants to be able to partially pay now and pay the rest in July when we send out invoices. We want to continue to be as accessible as possible, even as we grow.
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PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS & IMPORTANT INFORMATION
- We need a headshot for our graphics - chest/shoulders/head. It doesn't have to be a professionally done headshot, but it needs to be clear and well lit and able to be 800x800pix without pixelating. Headshots will be requested this July, so you'll have plenty of time to get one together.
- We feel we were not doing a good job of communicating this previously, so if you broke down early previously, that's on us. Moving forward, you must be willing to NOT break down early even if it's quiet in the last hour. When we say the event ends at 5pm, that means breakdown is at 5:05pm. You can of course start tidying and organizing close to the end of the event, but we need you to stay available to late-arriving attendees, even if there is just one. When you break down early it affects your neighboring authors and makes attendees distrust coming to the event and if anybody is doing any kind of shopping, it sucks the air out of the room.
- We hate and cannot believe that we have to say this but your books must be written by humans and not be written by generative AI. It's fine if you use any author tools and software that assist with formatting, spelling, and grammar that use AI in that manner. But the writing cannot be primarily created by generative AI.
Your registration fee will include both days! We've added: an additional day at the hotel, light breakfast options/coffee/tea Saturday, and an after-party Saturday. There will be lunch on Sunday for each registrant.
Dates:
Saturday & Sunday, July 19 & 20, 2025
Saturday is the author tabling/signing event and after-party.
Sunday is author panels, workshops & networking, no tabling this day.
Location:Bowie Comfort Inn & Conference Centerhttps://bowiemdhotel.com/Schedule/Time: TBAINCLUDED IN ALL REGISTRATIONSSaturday: — Coffee/tea/muffins/pastry/yogurt/fruit in the AM— Lunch & beverage— The Write Women Book Fest
AFTER PARTY! We are so excited to be offering this experience for our sixth year. The appetizers are included, it will be a cash bar.Sunday:— Lunch & beverage— Access to any panels and workshops you want to attend and the opportunity to appear on panels
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REGISTRATION FEES & SPACE
If you need to bring an assistant on Saturday you must buy the full table option.
Ballroom Full Table:
Full 6'x18" table — WITH Assistant - includes assistant pass for Saturday & Sunday, two lite breakfasts and two lunches on Saturday, two passes and two lunches on Sunday. Your registration includes two passes for the After Party, and you can add-on an After Party pass for a partner, friend or spouse. The exception to the rule is two authors or two people who share a brand or pen name can register for one of these tables.
$350
Full table without an assistant (Saturday: one breakfast/coffee, lunch, After Party pass. Sunday: one lunch, attendance at workshops, panels, participation options as well)
$289
Ballroom or Hallway Half Table:
Half of a 6'x18" table (Ballroom) or Half of a 8'x18" table (Hallway) — includes lite Saturday breakfast, lunch for both days, and one After Party pass and Sunday lunch and any workshops or panels you want to attend (if you have an assistant, you will need to get a full table).
$189
Add-On After Party Ticket:
We have a limited amount of add-on tickets if you want to bring a friend, spouse, or partner.
AFTER PARTY PASS LINK:
https://square.link/u/G6tlHnzp_____________________________________________
TABLES/SPACES FURTHER EXPLAINEDFull 6'x18" table in the BALLROOM with 2 chairs — these tables are shallower than what some people are used to, so take note of that in planning your displays. These are tables that the hotel provides to us as part of our contract.
Half of a 6'x18" table in the BALLROOM with 1 chair for your half, so your space will be 3'x18" and will be shared with another author or vendor.
Half of a 8'x18" table in the HALLWAY OUTSIDE OF BALLROOM ENTRANCE with 1 chair for your half. Again, these are the 18" deep tables though they are a bit longer.
Please don't bring your own table.
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SPONSORSHIPS & VIRTUAL PARTICIPATION
We've had "virtual authors" previously, but this sometimes confuses not just the authors, but also readers who think we are running an online book fest. That's understandable because we did have to do that for 2020 and we had hybrid events in 2021 and 2022. What we are doing for 2025 is offering authors who want to participate and be partnered with this event, but maybe can't come in person, a "sponsorship" listing. This gets you a listing on the sponsorship page and everybody will know you helped make this event happen. That listing will also be linked to your website or a social page.
Author Sponsors Virtual Listing — $79
This option is for authors only. We are converting our "virtual" author participation into sponsorships on a sponsorship page. It will include a listing of your name and a hotlink to whatever link you prefer.
PAYMENT LINK: https://square.link/u/QgwpFPY5Publishing Pro Business Sponsors Virtual Listing — $149If you have an editing business, hybrid press, author services, or are a narrator or other publishing-adjacent business, this is an option for you. Your business name will be listed on the sponsorship page. If you're interested in higher visibility, we suggest one of the front page graphic sponsorships found on our 2025 Sponsorship page on our website.
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PARTNERSHIPS
We are further out than usual and haven't sealed any of our partnerships and such yet, but as soon as we know whether the public library, Barnes & Noble, and any other partners will be with us for 2025 we will update you via the VENDOR BLOG — you can check there regularly throughout this whole process for the latest updates.
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FAQs & INFO
Is the library participating this year? Is Bowie Barnes & Noble doing a display? How do I know what the latest information for the book fest is?
We haven't finalized any of these details yet. We keep you informed on the vendor blog:
Should I get half a table or a full table?
If you have lots of books OR need an assistant, you will need a full table. Half tables are a little cozy, so don't bring too many large display pieces.
Why isn't a half table half the cost of a full table?
Each author that is added to the event creates administrative and organizational work as well as supply expenses because we treat all of our authors like superstars. Everybody gets the same effort from us.
What if I have a group or organization that has multiple authors?
We would love to have you! We always set aside a few tables for this and the maximum number of authors at the table is five. Please email Heather if you need to discuss this option at
thewritewomenbookfest@gmail.com
Can I share a table with an author friend?
Yes! We ask in registration below who you would like to be paired up with if you have a friend you want to table with. However, you need to register and pay individually and leave each other's names in the appropriate section of the registration form.
How many books should I bring and which ones?
We can't advise you on this because there are too many variables, but we can give you some guidelines to help you figure it out. We cannot guarantee book sales. We do our best to make a great environment for you to make book sales and build a fanbase.
— If you already have a decent-sized fanbase you may sell a case of books, so bring your most popular ones and be ready to talk about them! If you have series, bring the first book in the series for sure, unless it's free. If it's free bring a postcard, or a sign with a QR code for people to download the first book for free and you can perhaps sell them the second book.
— You can help gauge interest by setting up a pre-order! You can do that in Google Forms pretty easily. We'll do a blog post on it. But hold on doing this until we have the logistics worked out!
— We always advise authors to look at this as a chance to BUILD a fanbase and NETWORK with other authors and publishing professionals. I (Heather) consider book events as part of my marketing budget. You may not break even with book sales, but you WILL build fans if you engage with attendees. Even if they don't buy that day, be sure to send them away with something that might get them to buy later.
Can I ship books to the venue if I am traveling by plane?
We will update you on this, but probably yes.
Will you market our pre-orders?
WE WOULD LOVE TO MARKET YOUR PRE-ORDERS! It's a great idea to set up pre-orders so your fans can meet you in person and get their books signed! All you have to do is watch for us to put out a call for graphics and links to market on socials to encourage people to pre-order.
Update 4/29/24: We aren't sure yet how pre-orders are going to work, so please wait for instructions.
Will you be charging for tickets?
Yes we charge for tickets. This helps us not have to put the full cost on authors. All tickets are what we consider fair for the market and are less than $30. Some authors were unhappy that we charged for tickets, but it's a common practice and if we don't charge for tickets, we have to put more costs onto the authors. There will be multiple chances to tell your audience about discounted tickets, so please watch for that.
Update 4/29/24: We are deciding if we want to do registration instead of ticket-checking and give everybody a swag bag. If so, the cost may increase due to the added expense.
If I have fans bring in books they already own to be signed, is that ok?
Absolutely! They do have to buy a ticket to attend the event, but they are welcome to bring as many books as you are willing to sign.
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HOTEL ROOMS AT THE VENUE
Please wait to book your hotel room until we get our discount info.
SWAG
*OPTIONAL*
We always recommend swag of some kind. We used to pre-stuff the swag bags, but that sometimes took multiple days. We are still providing a certain number of swag bags and encouraging attendees to circulate and collect swag and meet the authors.
INFLUENCER SWAG
*RECOMMENDED BUT OPTIONAL*
We are offering special influencer swag bags that we will be stuffing for invited book influencers. We expect to have just 20 of them. If you have extra nice swag, this is what you should send it for. Swag instructions will come later.
IF YOU KNOW OF A BOOK INFLUENCER OR BOOK CLUB LEADER WHO MIGHT LIKE SPECIAL SWAG PLEASE ASK THEM TO REACH OUT TO HEATHER DIRECTLY at
thewritewomenbookfest@gmail.com and put "Book Influencer" in the subject line.
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*PLEASE NOTE: Paying the deposit holds your place but we reserve the right to refuse or reject businesses that do not fit in with our mission, or otherwise may be harmful to authors or marginalized individuals. If we decide that your business or brand is not a good partnership with us we reserve the right to reject your registration and in this case your deposit would be refunded.