B4) Going tribal: Cultivating community in an isolating profession

Tribes share knowledge — be it ideas, inspirations, experiences or lessons learned. Joining, or creating, a tribe of writers can help combat the downsides of a too-often isolating existence. Writing tribes can be large, international affairs or smaller, intimate forums. Panelists will discuss motivations for forming tribes, unexpected benefits and challenges that arise, and strategies to ensure a group works for all. Specifically, invited panelists will share how they tribe-source everything from contract negotiations to reporting dilemmas. They will also offer guidelines on forming a new group — including creating and enforcing tribal "rules”. A Q&A session will follow the panelist discussion.