Image by Flickr user kreg.steppe
Sure, it's a couple hours from Charleston, but the third annual Create South in Myrtle Beach on Saturday, April 17, may well be worth the trip if you have any interest in, as the organizers say, "blogging, podcasting, video, social networking or any other form of self-expression."
The collaborative conference is free and offers a multitude of presentations on things as ranging as shooting video with an SLR, to how to publish your own book, to how to safeguard your identity in the age of Facebook.
And diversity is just what they're aiming for. Organizer of the community track, Heather Solos of Home Ec 101, says, "It's for anybody regardless of their skill level." -- It's a message that seems to be having a growing audience. Two years ago the conference pulled in the 50 range, 2009 pulled slightly more than 100, but this year well over 100 are expected to attend as word spreads.
Also helping the conference grow is that the host, Horry-Georgetown Technical Conference, has allocated more space, allowing for more presenters and more tracks, Online Community, Social Media, Art and Photography, and Audio, Video, and Rich Media.
Presenter Jared Smith of ReadWriteWeb reminds that those attending should, "bring an open mind and get ready to be involved as there's plenty of opportunity for interaction."
If you're intrigued, check out the full session list and do the free registration (they need a head count to make sure they don't run short on the FREE BBQ.)
If you're still not sold about the drive from Charleston to Myrtle Beach, both Smith and Solos have this to tell you: "It's worth the drive. Yeah, it's absolutely worth the drive."
The conference will be held Saturday, April 17th, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Horry Georgetown Technical College, Grand Strand Campus in Myrtle Beach at 950 Crabtree Lane (formerly Meyers Avenue).
If you'll be staying the night, the Springmaid Beach Resort has a special rate of $75 for conference goers (the code is 8834, call 866-764-8501.) Also, the night before the conference, the Myrtle Beach Geekout will host a meeting and "Twitter Crawl/Scavenger Hunt."
(Disclosure: I'll be presenting on "Community via Content Curation.")
