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I can't speak about conferences in general, but I have gone to the SCBWI summer conference for the last couple of years.
Both times have been incredible experiences and this year I registered within the first hour.
The sessions are very good. There are separate tracks for artists, unpublished writers, and published writers. Also, the keynotes are generally very good and often hilarious.
But the best part is the networking and the people that you meet who are going through the same things you are. Writing is an incredibly solitary activity, even for those of us with critique groups. It's fun to get together with a thousand other people that understand what you are going through.
I have been a member of a number of different professional organizations in different fields, and find the SCBWI to be unique. They were founded forty-odd years ago by a couple of self-acknowledged hippies who didn't know what they were doing. So instead of creating an organization that is only concerned about itself and raking in money, they created a group that has the gall to be more concerned about their members.
Even if you don't attend, I would recommend joining the organization.
If you do attend, maybe I will see you there.
And FWIW, outside of paying my dues for the last three years, I am not affiliated with SCBWI in any way.
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