Steph Auteri is a writer, editor, and familiar face at HippoCamp. This year, her session The Anatomy of an Effective Query Letter will attract any writer who wants to learn the delicate art of emailing literary agents. Steph’s memoir A Dirty Word was published in 2018, so she knows a thing or two about successfully querying agents. We asked Steph what she is most looking forward to at this year’s conference
HM: Tell us a little about your involvement this year at HippoCamp. What can attendees expect from your break-out session?
SA: When trying to break into a new publication, it can help to establish some sort of personal connection with the editor you’re querying. But what if you don’t have a connection? What if it feels like you’re just sending your queries out into the shrieking void? All you can do is sell yourself on the strength of your query letter.
I’ve been told a number of times that I “give good email,” and this skill has served me well in my time as a freelance writer. During my flash session on Sunday, I’m going to break down one of my successful query letters and share exactly how each element of the letter serves the greater whole.
HM: Our motto is “memorable creative nonfiction.” Tell us about one of the more recent memoirs, essay collections, or individual essays you’ve read and why it was memorable.
SA: I’m going to go meta and give a shout-out to Harrison Scott Key’s Congratulations, Who Are You Again? In it, Key writes (hilariously) about his dream of becoming a published author. The journey. The reality of finally achieving that dream.
I read Key’s book just a few months after publishing my own, at a time when I felt burnt out, unsure about what I wanted to work on next. (I still have no clue.) I so appreciated Key’s blatant honesty around the topic. I think it’s a book many HippoCampers would appreciate.
HM: What made you decide to participate in HippoCamp this year as a speaker?
SA: I won’t lie. Public speaking terrifies me, and, no matter what you see when I’m up on that stage, inside, I’m screaming. But I also get such a charge out of sharing what I can. Sharing the type of information I wish I had when I started out as a professional writer.
HM: How did your past experiences encourage you to want to come back?
SA: I gave a flash presentation last year about idea generation, and people seemed to enjoy it. I hope that people find my session this year to be just as helpful!
HM: What’s going to keep you busy between now and HippoCamp?
SA: I spend my days permalance editing and pitching out stories on female sexuality and sex education. But I’m still trying to clarify my next big project. I’ve been doing a bit of research and I don’t want to reveal too much because it’s still so new and unformed, but I will share that I was accepted into a one-week residency that takes place just a few weeks before HippoCamp. Hopefully, by the time I see everyone in Lancaster, I’ll have made a good amount of progress.
HM: Since you’ll also be attending the conference, when you’re not wearing your “speaker hat,” what are you most looking forward to learning or doing?
SA: I always learn something new at the breakout sessions, but my favorite thing about writing conferences is the opportunity to meet other writers, despite being a socially anxious introvert. So if you see me cowering in a corner with a book or a glass of wine, BY ALL MEANS INTRODUCE YOURSELF.
HM: We love introducing Lancaster to attendees. If you live here or have been here before, what would you recommend to other attendees?
SA: Last year, I played hooky one evening and met a writer friend for drinks and live music at Tellus360, the bar right next to the hotel. I’ll just say that it was a good life choice.
HM: Is there anything else you want Hippocamp attendees to know about you?
SA: These days, I feel like I do everything BUT writing, but it feels good to fuel my creativity in different ways. Most notably, I joined a women’s choir that has, as its focus, resistance songs, and I’m teaching myself how to play the ukulele. Many thanks to fellow HippoCamper Lisa Cottrell for pointing me toward some great online resources. I can now play “Imagine” in slow motion. 😉
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Thanks for sharing, Steph! We are looking forward to seeing you again in Lancaster (and maybe we’ll hear some of your ukulele skills if we’re lucky).
You can learn more about HippoCamp 2019 and register for the conference here.
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