Jul 23, 2007 | Writing |
I'm working like crazy, trying to finish up this novel I started eons ago, and looking forward to working on the next one that I wrote the first pages to at National. I've got ideas, ideas, ideas! Always a good thing.
Finally, my calendar is fairly clear. No classes, no hint of classes, no plan to take any classes (what was I thinking anyway?!) and no company. I took two grad level classes for a certificate, and there's still an internship to go. At this point, I don't plan to do the internship anytime soon. Don't want to. If I never get this certificate, too bad. I'm not losing sleep.
What other lessons did I learn at National? Well, there's certainly a wealth of stuff that you can come across on the blogs. Folks are still talking about National. What to do, what not to do, who said what, pics, etc. I forgot my camera, so no pics of me other than the ones I ended up in with others.
But the most important thing I think I learned was to write my way. The process isn't important. The final product is. La Nora sits down and writes without any idea what will happen on page 2. Suz Brockmann outlines extensively and makes charts with multi-book plot arcs. I am definitely more of a sit down and write kind of gal. I tried the charts, but I got hung up on what happened when I didn't follow what I'd envisioned. That was depressing for me because I love Suz's work and think she's awesome. I figured I'd never be that good if I couldn't make plans for my books in advance.
Allison Brennan, in her fabulous workshop on No Plotters Allowed, says that she wrote the first chapter of one of her published books six different ways before she got it right. You just can't be afraid to redo something, or throw something out if it isn't working. Great advice.
So here I sit, writing forward and typing in words like STUFF HAPPENS when I don't yet know what's going to go in a scene. It's freeing and silly all at once.
Other things I learned at National:
Nora Roberts is COOL, y'all. She is well-spoken, hilarious, and so gorgeous. And her shoes are amazing. Patricia Gaffney is a hoot as well. Her intro of Nora was so good. (I remember once, many eons ago, when these two ladies did a booksigning in Waldorf, MD. Nora was not NORA then, and they sat at the table without huge lines waiting and I was too petrified to go up to them. I wanted to be an author too, and I was terrified of talking to them. Duh. I hadn't written the first word of a romance novel yet, but I'd decided that's what I was going to do. I wish I'd spoken to them.)
Comfortable shoes may be sensible, but fabulous shoes are better. I wore heels. Tall ones, but they were platforms so not too bad, and I loved every minute of it, even when my feet were screaming at me. 🙂
The bar is THE place to be. Writers like their diet coke and their alcohol. (On the plane back, for instance, I sat next to Gayle Wilson, previous RWA president, and across the aisle from us were the ladies of the Writing Playground. When the flight attendant came around asking what we'd like to drink, we all ordered diet coke (2 ladies ordered reg coke, but only because they prefer diet coke with Splenda).) Margaritas seemed to be the alcoholic drink of choice, though I went against the trend and had red wine. 🙂
Be nice to everyone. You never know who you are talking to, or who may overhear something you say. Thank heavens my mother ingrained in me the necessity to be polite at all times because I'm not afraid that I said anything bad. I did hear stories about bad behavior, editor/agent/fav author stalking, but didn't personally witness any of this. Whew.
Mostly, I learned that I will go to National again. I'd avoided it for years, simply because of the expense and the fact I usually lived a looooong way away, but it is a worthwhile way to spend a week. There's nothing like being in the company of 2000 other people who share the same compulsion. It freaking rocks!
Jul 10, 2007 | Writing |
I'm off to Dallas tomorrow for 5 exciting days of non-stop writerly stuff. 🙂 Just spent a week with company, finished a class, and now the conference. I'm prepared and unprepared. I've shopped till I've dropped, done the mani-pedi and hair routine, and now I have to get up bright and early for the drive to Birmingham for my flight to the Big D. I've packed way too many pairs of shoes, and I'm still trying to decide which dress to wear for the Ritas on Saturday night. *sigh*
If you're going, I hope to see you there!
(Mark, if you read this, I know I owe you email and sorry I missed your call.)
Jun 11, 2007 | Blogging, Writing |
Saturday was the Heart of Dixie RWA meeting. Have I said how much I love HOD? This is a committed, enthusiastic, sharing group of women (and one man). The group boasts more than one NYT bestselling writer as well as some fabulous authors who will get onto that list someday I am certain. And I can't forget the unpublished writers who are dedicated and professional and who will also sell books and have careers because they won't give up on their dreams. A talented, inspiring group to say the least.
Saturday, our guest speaker, a computer professional, talked about websites for writers. Very informative! I learned a lot. (My website, for instance, is in serious need of revamping. I'll have to work on that.)
But you know what he said that had me thinking? He said that blogs are a timesink and not usually worth the trouble (I've talked about this before, but hearing it from a pro made me think about it even more). They can be, when the author has a clear purpose and a goal (such as promoting upcoming releases, holding contests, etc). As daily diaries, not so much. They take away from the writing.
And then I started looking around that room at those NYT bestselling writers. Not one of them has a blog. So I thought about the other published authors in the room. Only one that I know of blogs. The rest do not.
Other NYTBSWs do blog, so that's not necessarily a definitive example. But it's something to think about. Writing comes first. (And I've already spent at least half an hour editing this post. Things that make you go hmmm.)
Jun 8, 2007 | Reading, Writing |
Long before the world heard of USBs and plug-n-play (well, okay, early 90s — not too long ago, but still), I would walk upstairs to Waldenbooks on my break with a fellow sales associate who also loved books. Inevitably, I'd stand at the window and say, “I wish I could just plug my brain into this store and have all these books inside my head instantly.” He agreed, but since that wasn't possible, we'd go inside and find our favorite sections. Mine were romance and writing and his was sci/fi and fantasy. After spending as long as we could, we'd head for the register with at least one book, sometimes several.
And, dammit, I still can't plug in and download. I have way too many books, and not enough time to read them all. I'm trying to update my Books Read section, and it's really not as pitiful as it looks. But I can't remember all the books I've read since I last updated and so I'm stuck plugging them in piecemeal.
I'm also looking at what I still have to read and wondering if I'll ever catch up. New releases happen all the time, of people I like and want to support, and I hardly ever read the book immediately. If you are published and I've linked to you, believe me I have a book of yours to read. 🙂
Today, I'm reading a book about teaching, a romantic suspense novel, and a vampire romance. What are you reading?
Jun 7, 2007 | Writing |
No, not me, but the Instigator, aka Kira, over at the Writing Playground has sold her book to Brenda Chin at Harlequin Blaze!!!! Yay!!!!!!
Jun 5, 2007 | Writing |
Well, I did it. I plunged back into the WIP, after too much time away, and the ideas are coming along. One thing about being uncontracted is that you can spend way too much time writing a book. Too much time procrastinating and gallivanting off in the meadows.
Contracted writers don't have that luxury. They have to write the book. They have to come up with new ideas and write new books and they have to deliver to an agent and an editor on a schedule.
It's easy to say that we'll be more disciplined when we have a contract, but the time really is now. It's the persistent writers who succeed. The ones who write regularly (notice I did not say every day, because not everyone is the same), who move forward and stop revising the first novel they ever wrote (I stopped that a long time ago, but I know people….).
Back to the grindstone then. I'm on deadline. 🙂
