The ASJA conference and Client Connections are live and in person in 2025, and take place Feb. 24-26 in New York City.
In keeping with the conference’s midtown Manhattan location at the Fashion Institute of Technology, the theme for the event is: ASJA: Always in Fashion NYC 2025.
The conference features three days of educational sessions, keynotes, fireside chats, receptions, and special events, plus opportunities for ASJA professional members to pitch stories and themselves to writing clients.
Registration for the event opens soon. If you don’t already receive the ASJA Weekly newsletter, subscribe now for the latest details about the conference, information about ASJA member events and benefits, and relevant non-ASJA programs and media industry news.
2025 Conference Sessions Sneak Peek
Here’s a taste of the educational sessions that are already confirmed for the 2025 conference:
- True Crime Reporting from the Pros. People are fascinated with true-crime stories, a beat that’s at home in a national outlet or hyper-local publication. Find out from true crime reporting pros what you need to excel, including how to cultivate sources, research records, and work with law enforcement.
- Creating a Podcast 101. Learn the nuts and bolts of podcasting, including how to break in, take your current podcast to the next level, make money, or extend your brand. Current podcasters discuss platforms, best practices and equipment, what makes for an attractive guest, and more.
- Working with Public Relations. Writers can have productive relationships with public relations reps – yes, really. This session shares how to stop PR email spam, have a great press visit, use publicists to save time on deadline, and more.
- Use Your Freelance Skills to Create Passive Income. Attend this interactive workshop to learn how to transform your freelance skills into revenue streams that don’t require client writing assignments. Find out how to create passive income by offering courses, coaching, printable resources, membership groups, corporate sponsorships, and more.
- Writing Alumni Magazine Gold. Alumni magazines run the stories of accomplished, often fascinating, graduates along with trend pieces and features. Alumni publication editors discuss their magazines’ editorial goals, how they work with freelancers, and how to get their attention.
- Content Marketing LOI Slam. Hear what content marketing clients want in a letter of introduction, directly from the horse’s mouth. During this fast-paced feedback session, writers read their LOIs and get instant feedback from content marketing industry panelists.
Other sessions will cover subjects of interest to writers of nonfiction books, as well as topics applicable to self-employed writers of all types.
Client Connections 2025
The 2025 conference will once again include Client Connections, ASJA’s signature client networking event. Client Connections offers ASJA professional members attending the conference the opportunity to have one-on-one meetings with top newspapers, magazines, content marketing managers, agents, and publishers. After following up, members often find themselves with new client contacts and assignments.
More than 60 clients participated in Client Connections 2024, and the majority were “happy” or “very happy” with the number of Client Connections meetings they received, according to our post-conference survey. Eighty percent of ASJA professional members who signed up for Client Connection got a meeting with their first pick of a client, close to 98% got their first or second choice, and every single person got their first, second, or third choice.
Informal Networking, FIT, Volunteering, and More
In addition to formal networking, the 2025 conference will provide other opportunities for attendees to mingle with colleagues, editors, and industry professionals at ASJA-hosted receptions and in an informal writer’s lounge area.
The Fashion Institute of Technology is located at 227 W. 27th Street, in New York City’s Chelsea neighborhood. FIT is surrounded by hotels and restaurants, and is within walking distance of famous New York attractions, including the Empire State Building, Times Square, Greenwich Village, the High Line, and the Meatpacking District.
Information on hotel discounts for writers attending the ASJA conference will be available soon.
The 2025 conference planning committee is looking for volunteers to fill a number of roles before and during the conference, including:
- Promotions
- Scholarships
- Sponsorships
- Client Connections committee members
- Social events and entertainment
- Onsite registration
- Session moderators (to help lead the discussion)
- Session monitors (to keep track of session start and stop times)
- Planning informal networking opportunities
To volunteer, you must sign into the members-only ASJA website. Go to Members Only > Volunteer Opportunities and scroll to the “ASJA Call for Volunteers” form. Fill in your name and email address, select the Annual Conference Committee, and share a note about how you’d like to help.
For updates about the conference, check the ASJA Weekly and the ASJA Confidential blog. For questions about the conference or ASJA, contact asjaoffice@asja.org.