Survey: High Praise for 2025 ASJA Conference Content, Networking

People who attended the ASJA 2025 conference appreciated the advice and insights they got from keynoters and other speakers, were happy with the value for the money, and based on their experience, would recommend the conference to other writers, according to a post-event survey. 

The ASJA conference planning committee routinely surveys conference attendees about their experience and incorporates feedback and suggestions into shaping future events. ASJA will use the feedback on the 2025 event to plan the virtual conference, likely to take place in early spring 2026. 

Top Ratings for ASJA Conference Speakers and Topics

More than half of attendees rated their overall satisfaction with the conference as “very satisfied.” More than 60% of respondents rated the conference as good value for the money.

“I’m so glad I made the ASJA Conference a priority this year,” said ASJA member Rose de Fremery. “Everywhere I turned, there were friendly, smart, kind, generous, and thoughtful people who went out of their way to make me feel welcome and share any helpful insights they could.” 

Sessions and speakers resonated with attendees, who gave high marks to the journalism and books slams and the LOI pitch slam. Attendees appreciated the live feedback and learned from seeing other pitches, with one attendee calling them “invaluable.” 

Attendees also liked sessions that provided specific things they could take action on immediately. Many cited as examples the sessions “From Campus to Cover: Writing Alumni Gold” about writing for alumni magazines, and “The Fearless Researcher: 5 Strategies to Tame the Powers of the Internet,” with Barbara Gray, chief librarian and professor at CUNY Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism.

All three conference keynote speakers received accolades from attendees, and the overwhelming majority rated them good to excellent. Keynote speakers included Versha Sharma, Editor-in-Chief, Teen Vogue; Stephanie Chang, director of content strategy and operations, The Trust, WSJ; and Emil Wilbekin, Journalist, FIT Assistant Professor and founder of Native Son. More than half of attendees rated a fireside chat-style conversation about the craft of storytelling between prize-winning feature writers and editor as “excellent,” and one called it “informative and inspirational.” Society of Feature Journalists President and long-time feature writer Laura Coffey moderated the conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lane DeGregory and Mike Wilson, deputy editor of The New York Times feature “The Great Read.” The bulk of attendees’ freelance work comes from a combination of journalism and content marketing writing (27.9%), followed by content marketing writing (23.3%), and journalism (20.9%). 

“As a first-time conference attendee, I was grateful for both the journalism and author tracks! It’s very rare to find a conference addressing both! I’m SO glad I found ASJA!,” said ASJA member Julia Torres Barden.

Participants “Very Happy” With Client Connections 2025

Client Connections ran in conjunction with the conference. Survey participants said they had one-on-one meetings with “great clients” among the more than 40 editors, agents, and others from top magazines, newspapers, book agents, and marketing agencies who attended. One reported meeting with a “dream pub editor.” 

Almost half of respondents rated their Client Connections meetings as “excellent” overall, and 76% were “very happy” with the number of Client Connections meetings they received. A participant received an assignment “almost immediately following the conference, which made the entire conference worth attending for me.” 

Seventy-two percent of survey respondents rated the Client Connections sign-up process as excellent. Overall, respondents appreciated the tutorial that the Client Connections committee co-chairs ran before the event, which they said made them feel “very prepared” for their meetings. One participant liked the “clear communication on appointment length and times.” 

More than 80% of attendees had previously participated in Client Connections, and 92% would like to participate again in the future. 

Multiple Reasons for Attending

More than three-quarters of respondents said they were very likely to recommend an ASJA in-person conference to friends and colleagues. 

“The ASJA conference provides amazing ROI for my career,” said ASJA member and conference content marketing writing co-chair Karon Warren. “The client connections, the sessions, networking in the halls: These all provide opportunities to grow my business.” 

More than three-quarters of survey respondents learned about the conference from ASJA announcements, and the top reasons they chose to attend were: 

• Network
• Gain new clients
• Learn how to grow my freelance business
• Learn more about industry trends
• Hear keynote speakers 

“I’m still glowing from my amazing experience at the ASJA conference,” said ASJA member Kristin Baird Rattini.“I loved networking with dozens of talented writers and potential clients, and I have so many new ideas to implement in my business. My excitement for my freelance career is reinvigorated!” 

“Every time I go to an ASJA conference, I come home with a grab bag of new ways to sell my writing that I spend the next year implementing,” summed up ASJA member Charmaine Seitz.

If you’re interested in helping with future ASJA conferences, please fill out the volunteer form, and you’ll be contacted by a member of the conference committee.

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Emily Dalamangas is a content marketing writer and ASJA member based in Rockland County, New York. She was the assistant chair for the 2025 in-person conference.