July 25, 2014 · 1:32 am

Conference Chatter and Advice

Today was a chock-full day of information, advice, and networking.

In one session I  learned several tricks and tips for being a faster, more effective writer in a limited time span. This was a great class for me because I am not afforded the pleasure of being able to write full time yet. I still work away from the laptop at another job and my sitting at the desk writing time is limited. This class gave me some techniques for getting more words on the page at a faster rate and during unusual time frames that I wouldn’t have thought of, such as on lunch hours from work.

At another session with a behavioral psychologist, I was introduced to a concept called dialogue cues. These are useful, powerful words and phrasing that gives your writing emotional punch and gets it to the next level necessary for publication.

I attended a character class with writer Susan Elizabeth Phillips, in which we were taught how to describe our plots by using our characters and showing how their personalities relate to the plot and story line. This was a very good class for getting me to think about the show don’t tell aspect of writing that is relentlessly drilled into writers.

But the best part of the day? A chat with Nora Roberts. For an hour she fielded questions from the audience, and she actually called on me twice!! I was in heaven. Literally. Literary heaven.

I go to sleep tonight full of new techniques to employ for my writing, and ideas just swimming around in my head.

Tomorrow is another full day.

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July 24, 2014 · 10:27 am

Dreams do come true…

Yesterday, I had a dream come true. It was a small one, comparative to others, and might even be categorized as a bucket list item. I met NORA ROBERTS.

I know.

I not only met her, I spoke with her. And she was lovely. Absolutely lovely. I was shaking and sweating and as nervous as could be, but she was, just, lovely.

Meeting her alone was worth the cost of this trip to RWA 2014.

I also had the pleasure of meeting Jill Shalvis, Catherine Coulter, and the amazing Holly Jacobs.

But that wasn’t the only reason for the trip. Today the fun work starts. Beginning at 8:30 and and going straight up until tonight, I’ve got workshops planned on the crafting, marketing, and selling of Romance books. I am tired already, but I think it is just because I am coming down  my from exhilarating meeting. One of those workshops is with…wait for it… Nora.

Can this trip get any better?

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July 23, 2014 · 12:00 pm

Classes, we’ve got classes!

I’ve got my course selections all worked out for the next three days here are RWA2014. I am jam-packed from sunup to sundown. Some of the courses I’ll be taking have  pretty descriptive names, such as Writing Faster, Writing Better; Dialogue Cues; Writing Great characters.

A few have VERY descriptive names: How to Write Hot Sex; Sex, Struggle, Intimacy and Control (it’s not just about the handcuffs), and How to write 300 pages without Demons, Death or World Destruction.

These classes promise to be goodies!

Oh, also, I get to attend a Chat Session …wait for it…NORA ROBERTS. This alone is worth the price and expense of the trip.

So fun!!

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July 23, 2014 · 1:14 am

This is me, Leaning in. Or trying to…

So I arrived for the 2014 RWA conference today in San Antonio, TX and I’m already overwhelmed! The check in bag  I was given at the conference registration had 10 – count’ em, 10 free books in it, along with a travel RWA mug, some pens, and a few small items of swag. 10 books! just at sign in. I’m told that every time you go to a group breakfast or dinner, you get more free books.

I didn’t pack a big enough suitcase to bring all this home!

There are soooooo many attendees at this conference. I’ll admit that is a little overwhelming as well. It takes me fifteen minutes to get to the lobby every time I leave my room because there are so many RWA people here, and not enough elevators for all of them – and that’s saying a lot because there are tons of elevators! I will also admit that I don’t necessary like to put myself out there and infringe on a group of people to introduce myself. I usually wait until ( or if,) someone introduces them self to me, before I start speaking. It’s not that I’m rude or even shy. I just don’t really ever think anyone wants to meet me.

Dumb, yes. Thy name is Margaret-Mary.

Anyway, tomorrow the conference officially starts and I am determined to introduce myself to people and to try and make a good impression on whomever I meet.

For this first night I am sitting in my absolutely fabulous hotel room, alone, penning this blog and trying to gird my loins against my inner angst at meeting new people. All my RWA- NH Chapter-mates have told me what a welcoming and wonderful group  RWA is. But even so, I know I need to make the effort and put myself out there, and push myself forward.

Say a prayer for me.

Or two or three.

Heck, say a novena and be done with it.

This is me, kids…leaning in. Or trying to.

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July 20, 2014 · 2:13 pm

San Antionio, here I come!

Well, the countdown has begun. In a few short days I leave for my first official RWA conference in San Antonio, TX, a state I’ve never visited before.

I’ve been trying on clothes for days, searching the long term forecast to see if my choices would be appropriate for the 100+ degree temps the Weather channel is predicting. Since this is the conference to end all conferences for the romance writing community, I want to not only look my best ( read, a professional author!) but I want to be remembered as well. So, I’ve got my business cards packed, too.

I’ve been reading up on the lovely city of San Antonio and if I have some time I’ll surely go visit some of the sites – historic and commercial. But the main reason I’m going on this solo trip is to drink in and savor and learn from all the fabulous courses that are being offered, in addition to (Hopefully!) meeting some of my absolute fav authors.

Wish me luck with the traveling since I never like to travel without my wingman!! He’ll be home, taking care of business, while I bask in the penultimate romance writing experience.

Yippie!

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July 17, 2014 · 8:48 pm

Doubts…I’ve got doubts

So, today I’ve been struggling with my motivation to keep on writing. Nothing is really happening, career-wise, right now for me with regards to publishing, and I’m beginning to let the doubt monsters creep into my brain every now and again. They settle in, like parasites, robbing me of my positive mojo, and make me doubt every word I pen. ( or in my case, type) These negative thoughts creep in, insidiously, trying to take over my creativity and confidence.

Nothing sparks these episodes, not really. But small events do make me realize what a long road I still have left to travel towards publication. The announcement of an acquaintance getting a book contract; the pride when a colleague tells me they’ve landed an agent; hearing about an upcoming release of yet another book by my favorite author.

None of these things singularly is enough to set me off on my spiral of self-doubt. But collectively, they can and do make me doubt myself as a writer.

The only way – aside from heavy medication, which I won’t do! – to get the negativities off my back, is for me to remember why I write in the first place. Publication was never the end goal for me. I know when I tell that to some people they roll their eyes and say, “Really?” with such disbelief that it’s comical, but it’s true. I didn’t start writing with the hope of being the next Nora Roberts or J.K. Rowling. I started writing again last year as an outlet for my creativity. I had so many  voices ( the good kind) swirling around in my head with stories to tell, I just wanted to give them an outlet. When I realized there were other people like me out there, with stories to tell and voices to let free, I began to see my writing in a different way. A few contest wins and suddenly I thought I might have something someone might actually want to publish. That goal became the paramount one – getting what I’d written letter perfect for an editor in the hopes that it would be purchased and published. I moved away from the goal in my heart.

Then, when publication didn’t happen in the millisecond I thought it would, I got depressed. Not “you need to talk me off a ledge” depressed, just a little down about the circumstances. Again, I forgot about the goal in my heart.

Today, during the self-doubt-a-thon hour I allowed myself, I wrote the following words on a piece of paper and taped it to the window in front of me. Remember WHY you write.

Now, when those nasty parasitic negativities come creeping back in, all I need to do is glance at that little piece of paper and they are once again banished to the outer recesses of my psyche.

Remember why you write.

Four little words that have the strength of ten thousand fighters.

 

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July 15, 2014 · 7:06 pm

What’s in a hero? And I don’t mean a sandwich…

Yesterday, I took an hour to read over one of my favorite go-to books about writing and re-read the chapter on writing The Hero. For those of us who write romance, getting the hero right is as important as getting the heroine down pat. No one wants a wishy-washy hero who’s unable to make decisions in a pinch, or one who is so messed up emotionally that even our wonderful heroine can’t help him through his troubles. No. We all want a hero who embodies the alpha male personality. But what makes a hero, well, a hero? And what are they typical alpha male attributes that you want your hero to have?After researching this topic a few times, and knowing what I like in a man, I’ve  jotted down my favorite parts of the hero ( in addition to the washboard abs, toned biceps and great hair!)

The Alpha male (hero):

1. Doesn’t give up. Ever. Whether it’s taking control of a bad situation, or pursuing the heroine.

2. Is courageous. He will do what needs to be done, even it is dangerous.

3. Is a leader, a natural born one. Enough said.

4. Isn’t conceited or a braggart – about his looks, his job, or his lifestyle.

5. Lives by rules and a moral code. If he needs to break them, it’s for a damned good reason.

6. Isn’t emotionally needy.

7. Is ultimately a one woman man. When he finds that one woman, nothing will stand in his way to get her. And having said that, he fights for what is his.

8. Is confident in who and what he is.

9. Is smart – book and common sense-wise

10. Is dependable. If he says he will do something, or be somewhere, come hell or high water, he will.

I could add a bunch more attributes like funny, sexy,hunky, good looking, and  charming, but those are givens!

I’ll admit it: I like a strong man- emotionally and physically. I like a guy who takes charge, but isn’t condescending or boastful; who knows what  he wants and goes after it – without leaving a trail of bodies behind him! I like a man who can make hard decisions for the right reasons, but also knows when he needs to makes changes.

And of course,  I like a man with washboard abs, toned biceps, and great hair.

I’d love to know what some of your alpha male/hero attributes are.

 

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July 12, 2014 · 10:28 am

Conference Countdown

In a little under two weeks I will be off to San Antonio, Texas for the yearly RWA conference. It’s my first RWA event and I am literally shaking in my Manolo’s! Can’t wait.

The conference has its own Scheduling app this year and WOWZA did that make it easier for me to figure out what events to attend. The two  events I’m looking forward to the most? A CHAT with Nora Roberts ( OMG!!!) and a session with Jayne Ann Krentz and Susan Elizabeth Phillips. This entire week is a dream come true for a neophyte writer like me. Just to be in the same area breathing the same air as the hundreds of amazing writers at this conference was worth the price of admission and everything else added to it.

I know I am gushing like a little kid on Christmas morning, but this is truly one of those bucket list items for me. Ever since I made the life changing decision to devote more of my time and efforts into writing and hopefully getting published, I have been waiting for an event like this come around. I’ve attended numerous conference over my lifespan – usually medical ones – but this is the first of it’s kind for me – an RWA sponsored event so big, they need a week to get it all done. Amazing.

Several of my “new writing friends” in my local RWA chapter are also attending the conference and by some wonderful coincidence, we are on the same flights into and out of San Antonio. This makes the conference even more wonderful for me because I will see familiar smiling faces wherever I go. Like I said: WOWZA!

I’ll be blogging from the event, detailing ALL the amazing and informative things that I learn and I’ll let you know who of my fan-girl crushes I happen to meet. And my phone will be set to camera-mode the entire time!!

Like I said (AGAIN!) WOWZA!!

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July 10, 2014 · 8:30 am

Why I re-read my “how to” books

Someone who read a recent blog of mine blog asked me “why do you re-read your old writing texts and “how to” books? Didn’t you get enough out of them the first time? Did you miss important stuff? Instead of answering the question directly, I asked this instead: “Haven’t you ever read something – a book,or an article – that was just so good you read it again just for the pleasure of it?” The answer I got back was typical of most people: “No. Once I read something, that’s it. I’m done.”

A sad, but a very common occurrence among  people. Most people will see a movie more than once if they like it – this is evidenced based fact: look at how many movie DVD’s are sold each and every day, not rented. Or, they will listen to a song endlessly. But to re-read a favored book? Not happening.

I’ve read Gone with the Wind  11 times. Cover to cover. And I could read it again tomorrow if I had the time to devote to it.

I’ve read To Kill A Mockingbird 8 times. I can quote descriptions and dialogue when prompted.

Last year I re-read every “In Death” book by J.D.Robb again, starting with the first one in the series, Naked in Death and finishing with the most current one Concealed in Death, straight out. I didn’t read anything else until I finished all of them. Re-reading the list in order, the way it was written, was very powerful for me.  I could see and watch how J.D.Robb grew her characters with each book, building on their personalities, using their individual backgrounds to advance the plot and the series characters themselves. It was  like taking a master class on how to develop character and plot arcs effectively. I gleamed so much valuable information and writing development wisdom from re-reading the series that has helped me enormously with my own writing.

To me, re-reading a favored book is more pleasurable than seeing a favored movie over and over again. Don’t get me wrong – I’ve seen The Birdcage at least two dozen times – and every time I laugh while I quote the dialogue! But to spend time to re-read a book, one that gave you such treasured hours of pleasure, one that, every time you read it, you learn something new, or find something new from, something you didn’t see before, is to me one of life’s most wonderful ways to spend a few hours.

Re-reading my writing craft books and texts brings me the same pleasure, because every time – EVERY TIME – I find something, some tidbit, some phrase of wisdom, I didn’t see when I read it the last time. And to me, that is time so valuably spent.

What’s your favorite book? When was the last time you read it? Why not get reacquainted and read it again? Believe me, you’ll be happy when you do.

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July 8, 2014 · 9:49 am

Summer reading list

Remember when we were all in school and at the end of every year we were given a summer reading list by next year’s English teacher? I was the dorky kid who actually liked getting that list because reading was, and still is, my favorite thing to do – during any season.

For the past two summers I’ve started up that summer reading list again for myself, but it’s not filled with literary classics, or modern contemporary fiction.  My reading lists now are filled with “how to” books or what I like to call the refresher  series. Those books that I read, every now and again, to remind me of the craft I love. The books that remind me how to “show,not tell,” the power of strong words not adverbs, the structure in plotting books, the dialogue helping books, and the general this is how you do it for “dummies” books.

Writing is a craft, an art, a talent, and a career. Like any career, you must learn the basics, the tools, and the procedures to be an effective worker. Sometimes, when I am lost in the throws of writing ecstasy,  I tend to forget the rules and just write what is in my head. When I edit, I remember the reason I should get rid of that “ly” word and replace it with a stronger one, the reason why saying “he thought” is probably redundant, and the reason saying “she turned her gaze..” instead of ” she turned her eyes..” is a better descriptor.

My crafting books are helpful in allowing me to remember the power of plotting, and how to do it so to reach a maximum of writing force. Plot structure, scene structure, and point of view refreshers are all helpful when I edit, and re-reading the basics of how to do each has benefited my writing enormously.

I love dialogue, probably because I love talking so much in real life. My dialogue refresher books are always helpful, especially when they help me find two words that will take the place of twenty.

Summer reading lists. Not just for kids, anymore.

Some of my favorite re-reads:

Plot and Structure,  James Scott Bell

Showing and Telling, Laurie Alberts

Writing for Emotional Impact, Karl Iglesias

The Emotional Thesaurus, Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi

G.M.C., Debra Dixon

Character Traits, Linda N. Edlestein, Ph.D

 

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