I know many of you will be in Colorado next month for ACFW's Annual Conference and some of you are signed up for other conferences this year or next. Congratulations!
The week before you leave will be full of little details--packing, smoothing out family and work problems, printing out travel plans, and making sure you have everything necessary to thrive at the conference. So, I'd like you to take some time now, or a few weeks before you're scheduled to leave, to clarify what you want out of the conference.
What is your goal in attending this conference?
You may have several, but one will stick out more than the others. This is your main goal, the one you want to focus your energy on. When you have met this, you can relax and pick activities that will meet your other goals. But don't waste all of your energy on activities that don't matter to you at the expense of the one that does.
My goal in attending RWA's National Conference was to make a personal connection with my dream editor and agent. In order to do this I scheduled pitch appointments. I wanted to discuss my book with each of them so they could put my name to my face, and, more than anything, I wanted to make a positive impression on them.
My lesser goals were to network and to make a few real connections each day, and to learn more about the publishing industry.
Please, please, do not set your main goal as "selling your book." A conference isn't a book-selling sweepstakes. It may help you sell your book. It may help you get your project in the right person's hands or it may nudge your foot in an agent's door, but you will not come home with a contract.
And many of you will disagree with me on this, and that's okay, but here is my opinion on a touchy subject.
Save your pitches for your pitch appointments.
These poor agents and editors are stalked relentlessly. They don't want to get accosted in the elevator. They're tired, they're stressed, and they want to relax at night. They don't want to listen to a complete stranger's book concept outside of a pitch session. (If I were an agent or editor, I might not even want to listen to the pitches in the sessions! It looked exhausting.)
I'm not saying to ignore the agents and editors if you see them in the lobby, but treat them as you would any other human being. Be friendly. If you've already pitched your book, go up to them and say hello, chit chat a minute, then leave them alone. Don't make it all about you and your writing. Respect them.
If your main goal is to learn more about the industry, then plan on attending at least one industry related workshop each day. If you want to immerse yourself in craft, attend at least one craft related workshop each day. If you're there to network, try to make two or three meaningful connections every day.
Remember, everyone has different goals at a conference. Don't be afraid to say no to an invitation from another writer if the event will take away from one of your goals. You can always meet up later that evening or for breakfast.
Join me on Wednesday when I'll discuss the finer points of meaningful networking.
Happy Writing!
Monday, August 17, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Go Ahead. Compare Yourself.
Haven't I always spouted off about not comparing yourself to other writers? Today, I'm throwing up my hands. Go ahead, compare all you want.
Compare myself to my favorite author? Okay, I'm game.
The facts about my fave author: she researched cancer cures, lived all over the world, and writes the best heroes on the planet.
How do I compare: I don't research cancer cures, haven't been overseas, and struggle to write a decent book.
Hmm..that didn't feel very good. It felt kind of kick-in-the-ribs bad.
I'll try again.
How do I compare: I sympathize with and help people who are going through tough times. I've been blessed to live in many places and have met interesting folks wherever I went. Writing a terrific hero is important to me.
Not bad.
If we're going to compare, we should at least spin ourselves in a positive light. Someone else's success doesn't equal our failure.
How do you compare to your favorite author?
Happy Writing!
Join me next week as I offer encouragement on keeping your confidence high during a conference.
Compare myself to my favorite author? Okay, I'm game.
The facts about my fave author: she researched cancer cures, lived all over the world, and writes the best heroes on the planet.
How do I compare: I don't research cancer cures, haven't been overseas, and struggle to write a decent book.
Hmm..that didn't feel very good. It felt kind of kick-in-the-ribs bad.
I'll try again.
How do I compare: I sympathize with and help people who are going through tough times. I've been blessed to live in many places and have met interesting folks wherever I went. Writing a terrific hero is important to me.
Not bad.
If we're going to compare, we should at least spin ourselves in a positive light. Someone else's success doesn't equal our failure.
How do you compare to your favorite author?
Happy Writing!
Join me next week as I offer encouragement on keeping your confidence high during a conference.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Rules, Uniqueness, Blah, Blah, Blah...
With all of the talk about "rules," I sometimes wonder if we aren't being groomed to sound exactly the same, like we're all writing into the same corner. Let's call it the 2009 Writing Rules Corner. I'm thankful for the rules, but it's possible to take them to the extreme, and worse, they change all the time.
I agree with most of them and, trust me, I'm thankful for them. My writing has improved leaps and bounds, but some of the rules have changed my writing style in a bad way. With my last book, I stomped my foot and made the decision to break a few rules.
Adverbs are not demons. "Ing" verbs aren't the devil's minions. Dialogue tags are sometimes necessary. And no, I'm not saying to dump adverbs, ing-verbs, and dialogue tags back into your work willy-nilly, but they aren't disgusting scabs to pick out. They're words.
I'm glad I bent the rules, because my voice peeked through. Sure, many will read my book and tsk-tsk over the rule-breakage, but the writing reflects me.
Trust your voice. Believe in it. Don't worry about breaking some of the rules. Your voice is what makes you unique, and if your voice includes a few adverbs, so be it!
Have any of the rules stifled your voice?
Happy Writing!
I agree with most of them and, trust me, I'm thankful for them. My writing has improved leaps and bounds, but some of the rules have changed my writing style in a bad way. With my last book, I stomped my foot and made the decision to break a few rules.
Adverbs are not demons. "Ing" verbs aren't the devil's minions. Dialogue tags are sometimes necessary. And no, I'm not saying to dump adverbs, ing-verbs, and dialogue tags back into your work willy-nilly, but they aren't disgusting scabs to pick out. They're words.
I'm glad I bent the rules, because my voice peeked through. Sure, many will read my book and tsk-tsk over the rule-breakage, but the writing reflects me.
Trust your voice. Believe in it. Don't worry about breaking some of the rules. Your voice is what makes you unique, and if your voice includes a few adverbs, so be it!
Have any of the rules stifled your voice?
Happy Writing!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Confidence and Humble-Pie
I don't know about you, but when I started writing, I soared over the atmosphere in happiness. Perfect fit, writing and me. So I wrote my first book, my second, my third, and I submitted them as I finished. It felt good, natural, lovely. And anything that felt so good and natural and lovely meant instant success, right?
Now by success, I'm not talking about huge advances and press releases, I'm talking about getting "the call."
While I wrote those first books, I had no access to any critique group, and I was still a new-ish member of my local RWA. All that earlier confidence slipped a notch or two as I listened to the members share their stories. I dreamed of instant publication, but these were talented people, and most of them had experienced skads of rejection. I thought, why would I be different?
I hadn't been rejected yet, nor had I received contest results or gotten feedback on my books from fellow writers. A nagging voice urged me to have other writers read my work, so I did. Contest results arrived along with the form rejection. And my confidence plummetted. But I learned something very valuable.
Blind confidence is necessary to succeed in this business.
Did I read that wrong? She must have made a typo.
Blind confidence is necessary. If anyone starts out on their writing journey without a massive dose of confidence, they won't be able to handle the upcoming, bone-crushing blows to their ego. Now mind you, there are plenty of talented writers who get published on their first try out. I'd never pretend everyone is doomed to write for years before getting the call. However, the vast majority of us will experience plenty of rejection before we get published, and in order to survive, we need confidence.
But we also need humble-pie. It wouldn't make sense to get feedback from contests, critique partners, and editors, and then toss the advice aside. Sure, we need to evaluate the comments and decide if they're right for us, but to cling to a false confidence will only hold us back.
Photo by timparkinson
We need to be objective about our own work. We need to accurately assess our strengths and our weaknesses, and the best way to do it is to throw off our preconceived notions about our writing and listen carefully to anyone generous enough to point out our problems.
At first, it's not easy. It's hard to read criticism from contest judges. It's painful to read suggestions from critique partners, and it's devastating to get rejections in the mail. But then, we take the advice and apply it to our current or next novel. We study and avoid making the same mistakes. And we repeat the process. Sometimes over and over. And it gets so much easier.
If your path resembles mine, be thankful. We're learning to accept criticism. We're learning to be objective about our work and to take advice. Editors will be giving us plenty of suggestions when we do get the call, and we'll be able to handle it. When our books are published and we open a review, we might have hurt feelings if it's negative, but we'll remind ourselves how far we've come and look ahead to how far we have yet to go.
And we'll smile.
Next week I'll be sharing tips on keeping your confidence high while attending a conference, but this week's posts are general encouragement. Thanks for waiting!
Now by success, I'm not talking about huge advances and press releases, I'm talking about getting "the call."
While I wrote those first books, I had no access to any critique group, and I was still a new-ish member of my local RWA. All that earlier confidence slipped a notch or two as I listened to the members share their stories. I dreamed of instant publication, but these were talented people, and most of them had experienced skads of rejection. I thought, why would I be different?
I hadn't been rejected yet, nor had I received contest results or gotten feedback on my books from fellow writers. A nagging voice urged me to have other writers read my work, so I did. Contest results arrived along with the form rejection. And my confidence plummetted. But I learned something very valuable.
Blind confidence is necessary to succeed in this business.
Did I read that wrong? She must have made a typo.
Blind confidence is necessary. If anyone starts out on their writing journey without a massive dose of confidence, they won't be able to handle the upcoming, bone-crushing blows to their ego. Now mind you, there are plenty of talented writers who get published on their first try out. I'd never pretend everyone is doomed to write for years before getting the call. However, the vast majority of us will experience plenty of rejection before we get published, and in order to survive, we need confidence.
But we also need humble-pie. It wouldn't make sense to get feedback from contests, critique partners, and editors, and then toss the advice aside. Sure, we need to evaluate the comments and decide if they're right for us, but to cling to a false confidence will only hold us back.
Photo by timparkinson
We need to be objective about our own work. We need to accurately assess our strengths and our weaknesses, and the best way to do it is to throw off our preconceived notions about our writing and listen carefully to anyone generous enough to point out our problems.
At first, it's not easy. It's hard to read criticism from contest judges. It's painful to read suggestions from critique partners, and it's devastating to get rejections in the mail. But then, we take the advice and apply it to our current or next novel. We study and avoid making the same mistakes. And we repeat the process. Sometimes over and over. And it gets so much easier.
If your path resembles mine, be thankful. We're learning to accept criticism. We're learning to be objective about our work and to take advice. Editors will be giving us plenty of suggestions when we do get the call, and we'll be able to handle it. When our books are published and we open a review, we might have hurt feelings if it's negative, but we'll remind ourselves how far we've come and look ahead to how far we have yet to go.
And we'll smile.
Next week I'll be sharing tips on keeping your confidence high while attending a conference, but this week's posts are general encouragement. Thanks for waiting!
Friday, August 7, 2009
Expectations
Do you ever get frustrated when you have a set-back? Most of us do. Or maybe you meet an incredible writer and find out she published her very first book? You're happy for her, but in the back of your mind, you're wondering why your first book didn't sell? And then you start feeling bad, insecure, less worthy.
It's very hard to have realistic expectations in the publishing business, because each writer's journey varies wildly. There is no sure-fire path to publication. Some hit it big instantly, while many other talented writers push on for years before getting the call. How do we know which path ours will be? And are we inferior if it takes several books before an editor takes a chance on us?
I went to college to be an electrical engineer. The journey made sense. I went through four (okay, five) years of college, got my degree, and landed a job. My superiors trained me, and slowly, I became good at it. They didn't expect me to be Engineer Extraordinaire right off the bat because it takes time, practice, and application of skill. And they knew it.
When I decided to pursue my dream of writing romance novels for a living, I searched for the magic formula to get published.
I didn't find it.
Does having a master's degree in creative writing help? Sure. Does it guarantee you'll get published? Nope. What about writing every day? Well, it's a good start! But, again, unless you're studying craft, getting feedback, and growing as a writer, you can't expect your writing habits to open the first door.
So how do we deal with our expectations? Can we even have realistic expectations?
For all of you whose very first book gets published, congratulations! But please, read on. You're going to have reviews coming out, and some may be negative. Amazon readers will comment on your book, and many will rip it to shreds. We all have to deal with our inner demons, no matter where we are at.
For all of you who aren't published yet, don't worry about when you'll get published. Just keep moving forward. Talent needs to be honed, and even Olympic gold medalists don't win every match. They show up every day, without guarantee, because they are driven, focused, and extremely good at what they do. You are too. You just don't have a coach.
So go ahead, dream of your fabulous future, but don't let set-backs stall your progress. Don't let unrealistic expectations rob you of even a moment of joy. Someday, you'll be telling other writers your story of "the call," and these days will be a distant, and hopefully happy, memory.
Enjoy your weekend!
It's very hard to have realistic expectations in the publishing business, because each writer's journey varies wildly. There is no sure-fire path to publication. Some hit it big instantly, while many other talented writers push on for years before getting the call. How do we know which path ours will be? And are we inferior if it takes several books before an editor takes a chance on us?
I went to college to be an electrical engineer. The journey made sense. I went through four (okay, five) years of college, got my degree, and landed a job. My superiors trained me, and slowly, I became good at it. They didn't expect me to be Engineer Extraordinaire right off the bat because it takes time, practice, and application of skill. And they knew it.
When I decided to pursue my dream of writing romance novels for a living, I searched for the magic formula to get published.
I didn't find it.
Does having a master's degree in creative writing help? Sure. Does it guarantee you'll get published? Nope. What about writing every day? Well, it's a good start! But, again, unless you're studying craft, getting feedback, and growing as a writer, you can't expect your writing habits to open the first door.
So how do we deal with our expectations? Can we even have realistic expectations?
For all of you whose very first book gets published, congratulations! But please, read on. You're going to have reviews coming out, and some may be negative. Amazon readers will comment on your book, and many will rip it to shreds. We all have to deal with our inner demons, no matter where we are at.
For all of you who aren't published yet, don't worry about when you'll get published. Just keep moving forward. Talent needs to be honed, and even Olympic gold medalists don't win every match. They show up every day, without guarantee, because they are driven, focused, and extremely good at what they do. You are too. You just don't have a coach.
So go ahead, dream of your fabulous future, but don't let set-backs stall your progress. Don't let unrealistic expectations rob you of even a moment of joy. Someday, you'll be telling other writers your story of "the call," and these days will be a distant, and hopefully happy, memory.
Enjoy your weekend!
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
August Topic: Believe in Yourself
The last hurrah of summer--August! I know many of you will be attending ACFW's conference in September, and I wanted to encourage you as you prepare. After my experience at RWA National Conference, I can guess what many of you are feeling in the days leading up to such an exciting event.
Please take a few moments each day this month to believe in yourself. It doesn't matter if you're writing your first book or have completed your tenth--you're a writer and that's enough. Do not feel inadequate if you aren't published yet. Do not pin every hope on your current manuscript. And do not wish you were further on your journey. You are exactly where you need to be right now.
If you're attending next month's conference, relax. Soon, you'll be out of your cocoon, surrounded by talented writers, and it will be an absolute rush. But it might also prove intimidating for anyone not published. Don't worry and don't compare. No one will think less of you if you aren't published. And if you are published? Please take time out of your busy schedule to encourage a few writers who aren't. They'll remember you forever.
If you aren't attending next month's conference, relax. Maybe you desperately wanted to go but couldn't afford it. Or maybe you've never heard of it and could care less. Either way, you're blessed with time at home to focus on your current project. When it's the right time for you to go, you will.
So join me as I share practical tips on keeping your confidence level high this month. No matter what step you are on in your journey, you should feel elated. You're in the game. That's all that matters.
Happy Writing!
Please take a few moments each day this month to believe in yourself. It doesn't matter if you're writing your first book or have completed your tenth--you're a writer and that's enough. Do not feel inadequate if you aren't published yet. Do not pin every hope on your current manuscript. And do not wish you were further on your journey. You are exactly where you need to be right now.
If you're attending next month's conference, relax. Soon, you'll be out of your cocoon, surrounded by talented writers, and it will be an absolute rush. But it might also prove intimidating for anyone not published. Don't worry and don't compare. No one will think less of you if you aren't published. And if you are published? Please take time out of your busy schedule to encourage a few writers who aren't. They'll remember you forever.
If you aren't attending next month's conference, relax. Maybe you desperately wanted to go but couldn't afford it. Or maybe you've never heard of it and could care less. Either way, you're blessed with time at home to focus on your current project. When it's the right time for you to go, you will.
So join me as I share practical tips on keeping your confidence level high this month. No matter what step you are on in your journey, you should feel elated. You're in the game. That's all that matters.
Happy Writing!
Monday, August 3, 2009
Interested in My Journey?
Guess what? The incredible Keli Gwyn has honored me with an interview on her amazing blog, Romance Writers on the Journey. Many of you are familiar with Keli, but for those of you who aren't, I urge you to check out her sites.
It's fun to watch her writing progress over at On the Path to Publication. If you're looking for useful writing advice and fun interviews of authors, head to her blog, Romance Writers on the Journey. And you can learn about her award winning (double Golden Heart finalist!!) inspirational, historical romances at her website, Keli Gwyn: Journeys of the Heart...and Soul. I know it's only a matter of time before we see Ms. Gwyn's books on store shelves.
And here's an added bonus: Keli is giving away the cutest binder clips for one lucky winner who leaves a comment on Romance Writers on the Journey anytime up until August 10!! You don't want to miss a chance at these!
I'm honored to be interviewed by Keli. Anyone interested in reading the interview, please click here.
Have a wonderful Monday!
It's fun to watch her writing progress over at On the Path to Publication. If you're looking for useful writing advice and fun interviews of authors, head to her blog, Romance Writers on the Journey. And you can learn about her award winning (double Golden Heart finalist!!) inspirational, historical romances at her website, Keli Gwyn: Journeys of the Heart...and Soul. I know it's only a matter of time before we see Ms. Gwyn's books on store shelves.
And here's an added bonus: Keli is giving away the cutest binder clips for one lucky winner who leaves a comment on Romance Writers on the Journey anytime up until August 10!! You don't want to miss a chance at these!
I'm honored to be interviewed by Keli. Anyone interested in reading the interview, please click here.
Have a wonderful Monday!
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