How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything

 

For this year's conference finale, Christina Katz made her second appearance as the Sunday morning keynote speaker.  Her presentation, How You Do Anything Is How You Do Everything, was based on her years of experience at platform building.

 

My first encountered the concept of a writer's "platform" during the Building a Platform from Nothing workshop a few years back, hosted by Karen Burns. 

 

At some point during the seminar, Karen emphasized that the book Get Known Before the Book Deal, was a must-have guide to platform construction.  Shortly thereafter, I came across a book-review in an issue of either Writer's Digest, or The Writer.

 

I assumed the Universe was trying to tell me something, so I ordered a copy of Christina's book--along with one, or two additional items to take advantage of Amazon.com's free shipping for orders over $25.

 

But I digress.

 

Establishing a platform is essential to launching your career as a writer in today's publishing market.

 

 

But what is a platform?

 

It is a way of communicating your expertise to others, primarily on-line.

 

Platform building--and maintaining--is an integrated part of a writer's work.  Writers need to continue their professional development throughout their career.  Never stop learning--it's the only way to keep up with on-going trends.

 

Getting started though, may be the hardest part.  Writers often suffer from one of three, or all three of these maladies:

 

1. Nervous anxiety.

2. Scattered thinking.

3.  Procrastination.

 

To overcome these:  Manage anxiety, stay focused and work in a manner you enjoy so you feel confident, excited and alive about what you're doing. 

 

Writers are professional communicators.  So ask yourself:  What do you want to give to the world?  Once you answer this question, commit to creating an on-line presence and establish your platform.

 

Developing the following skills will assist you in not only building your platform, but will enhance your writing career:

 

1. Knowing how to harness your strengths.  (Or as Christina said:  "Just write your brains out").

2. Be willing to sell your work.  Selling is merely a means of offering, but some writers hate this more than platforming.

3. Develop a specialty by "writing your way" into one.

 

As I mentioned in Christina's Mailbox Full of $$$ workshop, writers need to develop a micropublishing skill set.  This will strengthen writing skills and establish your platform.

 

What makes a successful platform? 

 

It is:

 

1. Distinct.

2. Vibrant.  (Use colors and express your personality--but don't be obnoxious).

3. Creative.

4. Confident (without being arrogant).

5. Dynamic.  That is, it is on-going.

6. Professional.

7. And thriving.  That is, you continually gain fans and followers.

 

Platforms are most often associated with non-fiction writers, people with expertise beyond writing.  However, platforms are also important for fiction authors as well.  A platform-strong writer exerts influence, even off-line.  Authors can have an impact in their local community, regionally, nationally or internationally.

 

The steps of platform development are:

 

1. Have a homebase URL (Uniform Resource Locator) that is your name.  This is most important, because an author may publish multiple works--but your name won't change and will make it easy for fans to find you.

 

2. Develop contact lists and e-mail lists.

 

3. Join social media networks.  Keep in mind this is not just a place to broadcast (one-way communication), but to truly connect with others (two-way communication).

 

4. Trade resources with other writers, such as guest blogging on their sites.

 

Keep in mind, this is a dynamic process of potential and action, which involves many stages of growth.  The key point to remember is:  Consistently create content for your readers and followers.

 

This certainly isn't the magical means of getting published like the movies portray.  To become that "overnight success" (eventually):

 

1. Prioritize your time.

2. Be able to say "no."  (Some projects are too long, or pay too little, if at all, with a minimal amount of return).

3. Share who you are and what makes you unique.

4. No matter how many books you write, you are the owner of your platform--not a publishing company.

 

So to recap the basics, an on-line platform should have the following:

 

1. Your name as the URL.

2. A unique identity, or tag-line.

3. A short, snappy bio.

4. A mission statement.  That is, what you do and what you'll provide.

5. Testimonials from fans and followers. 

6. A professional quality headshot photo.

7. Photos of you in action.

 

On a personal note:  My much-highlighted--and now autographed--copy of Get Known Before the Book Deal has been invaluable to me.  I still have a ways to go in fully developing my platform, but I've been enjoying the journey so far.

Trigger Writing: The Art and Craft of Trusting Your Readers

 

Since I write short pieces, like blog posts, graphic novels and YouTube video scripts, I strive to use words with maximum impact.  So I was drawn to Bernadette Pajer's workshop on Trigger Writing:  The Art and Craft of Trusting Your Readers. 

 

A "trigger" in this case, is a carefully crafted description or nugget of information that will unleash the reader's imagination.  Therefore, the author is relieved of having to write EVERYTHING.  That putting words on the page is not the story, but its the reader's imagination that creates the story.

 

The nuggets-of-info I thought of for this post deal with handguns.  The term "pistol" can be too vague and generic.  But if I wrote:  "She drew a Broomhandle Mauser from her purse..."  the reader, especially a firearm aficionado may imagine a scene like this...

 

(Image from:  Lupin III)

 

Whereas, if I wrote:  "Han Solo yanked his heavy blaster pistol from his holster..." the reader, especially Star Wars fans, would imagine a scene like this...

 

 

In both examples, knowing who the primary readers would be, alleviates the need for detailed descriptions of the weapons involved.  Which, thanks to the Star Wars prop-masters, is a modified version of the C96 Mauser...

 

 

 

Movie special effects nuggets aside, Bernadette started the session by quoting Chris Humphreys:  "Words are energy compressed by the author and released by the reader."

 

Or in Bernadette's own words:  The writer only provides a portion of the story.  The reader unpacks the story and embarks on an emotional journey.

 

A successful journey requires a degree of trust.  You must trust yourself as a writer--and trust the reader.  If your writing sounds boring to you--it will certainly be boring for the reader.

 

This makes triggers, he ultimate in "Show don't tell."  They can be used in one of three ways:  Description, action and gestures.  Subtext, or "story questions," are another form of triggers and there can be setting subtexts, character subtexts and situational subtexts woven throughout the story.

 

Triggers allow the reader to participate in the unfolding of the story.  Writers need to think of the story as a journey and where they want the reader to be and what they want the readers to be thinking of along the way.

 

The challenge is to determine what the writer provides and what the reader brings to the story.  Think about what triggers your imagination as a reader--and then write about it.

 

Bernadette then finished her workshop with Elmore Leonard's Ten Tips to Writing:

 

1. Never open a story with the weather.

2. Avoid prologues.

3. Never use a verb other than "said" as a tag-line in dialogue.

4. Never modify "said" with an adverb.

5. Minimize the use of exclamation points.

6. Never use "suddenly," or "all Hell broke loose."

7. Use regional dialect sparingly.

8. Avoid detailed description of characters.

9. Avoid detailed description of setting.

10. Leave out the part that readers skip (most often setting descriptions).

 

As an FYI aside:  I came across G6CSY, which on this page, lists all the books/movies/TV shows that the C96 appears in.

 

Mailbox Full of $$$ from Micro-Publishing

 

Novels on average, weigh-in at 300 pages, or about 80,000+ words.  That's a lot of dead trees for an author to toil over and for a publishing company to invest time and money into.  It may be years, even a decade or more, for a writer's first published book to hit the shelves.

 

That's a lot of time without any positive cash flow.

 

Christina Katz discussed how one can earn an income in her Mailbox Full of $$$: Micro-Publishing Your Way from Beginner to Book Deal workshop.

 

In the Pre-Internet Days, the literary world was divided into two distinct camps:  Aspiring Writers and Published Authors.  Now, thanks to the internet, along with the shrinking attention span of readers, there's a sliding scale of grey between these two black and white groups. 

 

Somewhere in the middle, is the "Salability Point," where a writer begins to earn money for their work.  And this income doesn't necessarily have to be in the form of a printed book either.  Other publishing options exist, such as:

 

--Producing an e-book (50-100 pages)

--How-to-Tips

--Anecdotes

--Essays

--Fillers

--Articles

 

By writing these short pieces you can develop your skills as a write and build your platform (area of expertise and web presence).  Anything you write, could lead to something bigger. 

 

Christina's a firm believer that writers should make money and not be starving artists.  However, you may have to start out writing shorter pieces for less money--and then write lots of things for less money--before moving on to write full-length books.

 

Even when you do decide to tackle writing a book, you have to decide whether to self publish or seek traditional publication.  Keep in mind though, traditionally published books are also produced on a spectrum.  Not every book will be as successful as anticipated, so budgets are tighter and publishers are pickier than ever on what books they decide to print. 

 

On a lighter note, no matter what we write, we should enjoy what we do.  When we get away from our playful/creative side, the less we'll enjoy our writing and our work will suffer.

 

March of the Penguin

 

 

The Saturday lunch-time Spotlight session was about Penguin Books.  The presentation was hosted by four Penguin editors; Tracy Bernstein, Thomas Colgan, Colleen Lindsay and Meghan Stevenson. 

 

Prior to this event, I only associated Penguin with it's classic books line.  I had no idea this 75 year-old company spans nine countries and has over 35 imprints.

 

Talk about the power of the penguin.

Some Snippets on Publishing Alternatives

With my migraine gone, I woke up eager to attend today's workshops.  The first on my list was the Author Master Class, hosted by PNWA's very own William Kenower.

I climbed into my Jeep and turned the ignition key.

CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK....

My paraphrased expression was something like this:  Oh, crap.  My day is fudged.

I managed to get the engine running (by stomping on the gas) and tried contacting, then searching for my girlfriend, who lived in a nearby town.  After swinging by her place I found her car at a nearby Fred Meyer.  I didn't go inside because I was afraid to shut the engine off.  As it was nearing 9 AM, I headed over to Les Schwab. 

My girlfriend finally got my frantic message and the Les Schwab mechanic told me all my Jeep needed was a new battery, which would be replaced within an hour.

The twist this ordeal was:  I planned to have the battery examined the following week during my oil-change appointment.

So I missed all of Bill's seminar and most of Alternatives to Traditional Publishing, hosted by Adrian Liang and Colleen Lindsay.

For several minutes a sat in my seat fuming and unable to pay attention.  But after scrawling a rant on an entire page of my notebook, I actually felt better. 

Somewhat.

Here's what I managed to glean from this seminar:

--Despite the on-going technological revolution, traditional publishing companies are powerhouses in distribution. 

--There is no "right way" to publish your book.

--Before you self-publish, ask yourself:  How much control do you want in your product?

--Conduct research on Print On Demand (POD) companies, because they make most of their money by selling books back to the author!

--POD primarily caters to non-fiction, businesses and people writing family histories, or other "vanity books."

--Technical and editorial support is often spotty, so the presenters recommend paying for eidorial help and packaging.

--Once the books are printed, Adrian and Colleen suggested you get to know the local booksellers, because they may put your books on consignment.

So, by all means, get your book out there into the hands of your readers--but know what you're getting into.

2012 PNWA Conference's Featured Speaker: Debbie Macomber

(Image from:  Debbie Macomber's Press Room)

 

The Friday evening Featured Speaker was Port Orchard resident, Debbie Macomber.  The audience was held in rapt attention as this author of inspirational stories, children's books and cookbooks, described her struggle to get her first novel published, while her family was in dire financial straights. 

 

The moral of her tale, was twofold:  There are no "overnight" successes and authors need a support network of friends and family to achieve said "overnight" success.

Settings and Atmosphere

(Image from:  Gizmodo)

 

In Donald Maas's workshop, two blogposts back, he mentioned descriptions were the most skipped portions of any novel. 

 

However, characters don't act in a vacuum. 

 

How then, does a writer incorporated the background into the story without boring the reader, or having her skip over those eloquent descriptions you toiled over?

 

Book doctor, Jason Black, had several bits of advice to offer in his Settings and Atmosphere workshop. 

 

His key warning was not to use labels.  Two examples he used were bathtubs and bathrooms.  Both come in a variety of shapes and sizes, depending on the location, setting and timeframe of the story.  Instead, he suggested, use concrete details.  This helps the reader understand the action and governs what is possible for the characters to do.  Details establish the parameters in determining how hard it may be for the characters to achieve their objectives and shapes how the readers will judge their actions.  It also helps readers anticipate future actions.

 

"Sell" the location by ginving enough surrounding detail to mask any clues and to make it real in the readers' minds.  Specifiy what matters, then you can use a label once the setting has been described. 

 

However, don't overdo it, otherwise readers will start skimming.

 

Not every location is easy to describe.  Unfamiliar places, like space stations, or other sci-fi and fantasy places are difficult because no one has any tangible experience with them in the real world. 

 

Speaking of the real world, "non-physical" setting like dreams and cyberspace are totally conjectural, so are even harder to describe. 

 

As mentioned in previous workshop posts:  Use scenes, not descriptions to show cause and effect at work. 

 

"Atmosphere" is the emotional part of the setting and helps readers empathize with the characters.  A general description of atmosphere will help readers understand the space emotionally, while specific details will make the reader feel what it is like to be in the scene.  So select the details, not for what they are, but what they evoke.  You can't tell readers how to feel, but must work at weaving the desired effect into the narrative.

 

One technique to evoke the mood of the story is to layer the descriptions.  Don't do a front-load, data-dump.  Instead, mix in descriptions with action and dialogue.  In all-out action scenes though, descriptions will slow the pace, so place the descriptions before the eruption and then after the dust settles.

 

The point of view (POV) a writer chooses also plays a role in evoking the story's atmosphere.  In first person narration, the reader should be limited to what the POV character sees/hears/feels.  Everything beyond should be shadowed, making the reader wonder what's around the corner...

Historicals Are Making a Comeback

(Image from the:  Historical Fiction Newsletter)



A couple years ago, Chris Humphreys and Deborah Schneider teamed up to present Writing Sex Scenes.  This year, the dynamic duo of double entendre reunited to present the Historicals are Making a Comeback workshop. 

With today's dire news, why all the interest in the past?

One reason is, TV and film are leading this trend with shows like Deadwood and Hell on Wheels. 

The first bit of advice they gave was not to second guess the market.  Everyone seems to think the vampire sub-genre finally has a steak driven through it's heart, only to have another coven of blood suckers rise from the supposed grave.

When writing an historical novel, the key point to remember is the characters, real and imaginary, don't think of themselves as historical, or antiquated figures.  They are contemporaries of their time.  Just like we feel we're better off than folks living in the 19th--and even early-to-mid 20th Century--most characters in historical novels will feel they're better off than their predecessors.

Historical fiction also has its subgenres, like:

--Epics (big events), or what Chris called "intimate epics," that is, big events seen throught the eyes of a handful of people.
--Biographies, which are about 1 person.
--Swashbucklers
--Young Adult (YA) Historical Fiction
--Crime
--Historical Romance, which is further subdivided into:
----Regency Era
----Highlanders
----Ireland
----Western
----Civil War
----Victorian Era
 ----Medieval

The cut-off point between Historical Romance and Contemporary Romance is the end of World War I, or what contemporaries called "The Great War."

So, why write historical fiction?

What you love to read is what you love to write.  It's also a way of looking at a world that shaped our world.  While writing, keep in mind what influences shaped the characters.

Past societies don't have the same standards of behavior as ours does.  A writer shouldn't worry about "what people think," because the reader will judge the characters not the author.  The reader is a partner in the book.

Most successful novels are about known historical figures, because novelists go further into character study and motivation than historians.  However, the writer must make plausible choices on the facts he chooses to use.

Other tips for writing historicals are:

--Determine the best point of view to tell the story in.
--Avoid jarring anachronisms and slang.
--But you can spice up the narrative with a colloquial word, or two.
--While a writer needs to know the history in order to understand the characters, they should avoid overdoing the research.
--Any scene should be judged by the effect of moving the story forward and keep the reader turning the page. 
--So don't do an info dump.  Instead, stage a scene where a character needs to know a fact.  One method is to create an arguement through dialogue or involve secondary characters.
--Actual facts give a writer structure, but not every factoid needs to be included to move the story forward.

Remember, readers are drawn to characters in action, or better yet, characters in peril.

Writing in the 21st Century

(The Bookreader of the Future from:  Retronaut)

 

 

In the past, the PNWA Summer Conference held a "Lunch with (Insert Name of Author Here)" around noon.  Lunch usually consisted of a cellophane wrapped sandwich, bag of chips and a drink, purchased at the temporary sandwich stands.  Attendees would scarf down these midday meals while trying to listen to the afternoon's guest over the sound of crunching nachos and slurping sodas.

This year, the conference organizers did something different and held "Spotlight" seminars, which were open to all sorts of writing-related topics. 

The nacho-crunching and soda slurping remained the same.

The first Spotlight session was led by Donald Maas, author of several "how to" books on writing.  Donald's seminar, Writing in the 21st Century, wasn't about the whiz-bang technology that continues to change the nature of reading and publishing.  Technology which is evolving so fast, today's toys may be as outdated as the "Bookreader of the Future." 

Instead, Donald discussed the continued appeal of literary fiction.  Stories that have an emotional inner journey as well as a physical journey, because it is emotions that connect us to the characters in a story.  So a writer must create an "emotional landscape" for the protagonist and other characters to travel through.

To set out on this journey, a writer must know how well, or ill-prepared, the protagonist is, to make this journey, by asking these questions:

What shames the protagonist the most?
What will force the protagonist to face this shame?
When will the protagonist have to own their past mistake(s)?
At what length will the protagonist go to conceal a shameful secret?
How has the protagonist attempted to compensate for his past actions/offenses?
Who else in the story can keep a similar secret?
Who guesses the truth before the protagonist?
Who must the protagonist forgive?
Who is withholding the healing, the protagonist is looking for?
What will it cost someone else, if/when the protagonist is healed?
What will bring about reconciliation between the protagonist and another?
When healing is possible and forgiveness arrives, how will home look to him now?
What change occurs outwardly?  What will change symbolically?
What is the most challenging thing the protagonist must do?
Is the course of action against the protagonist's principles?
(Clue to highly-charged story:  Everything the protagonist hates and fears is what he must do to change).
The protagonist should have one rock-solid belief about people in the world he lives in--then find a place in the story where the protagonist proves to be dead-wrong about this belief.
What is the protagonist's greatest hope?
Why does this journey matter?
What does your protagonist dream about, or dream of?
In what way is the protagonist's dream naive?  How will he find out?
How is this dream unattainable/impossible?
What will cause the protagonist to let his dream go?
And, what will replace it?

But literary fiction isn't merely about inner turmoil.  There's a physical journey characters must embark upon.  The writer then, must set the scene, by asking these questions:

What does the protagonist hope to achieve upon arrival at the destination?
What is dissappointing?  What exceeds expectations?
What do at least three people say about the destination?
How do these predictions come true?

Keep in mind the destination is only a place.  The true journey is the innermost, emotional one.

To maintain a reader's interest, the characters in the story must have universal appeal.  They must be unlike anyone else.  However, a writer should include at least two traits the protagonist has in common with everyone else.

Also, play on the character's beliefs and superstitions.  Donald used a great example of a man leaving one sip of coffee left in his cup as an offering to his gods.  Then he suggested, at 2/3rds of the way into the story, the hero slurps down a whole cup of coffee without giving thanks.

Uh-oh. 

The readers will now be bracing themselves for the mayhem they KNOW is about to ensue.

Finally, Donald discussed the use of descriptions in fiction.  Classic literary fiction is chock-full of scene-setting descriptions.  Donald suggested tossing them aside, since today's readers skip the scenery in order to get back into the action.  Use characters as a subjective "filter" to the world around them.  Ask:

What is "true" to the characters?
What intangible things make up the reality of the characters' world?
What is the one "truth" and one "ugly truth" your protagonist "knows" about people in his world?

Strong opinions on a page are much better than descriptions.

What does your protagonist feel about some of the sundry of things in his world, such as:  Soda (or pop)? SUVs? Luxury vehicles? Abstract art? Longform narrative poetry? Pop music? Credit? Fourth down passes?

Magnify such opinions.  As an example, Donald went into a staged rant (or was it real?) over ice cream should never be served in the bland-tasting wafer cones, but nestled in the sweet-tasting waffle cones.

Remember:  The more particular and unique a character is, the more universal they become.

Wargaming at the Writers Conference

Figures from Chris Humphreys' collection representing the Royal Horse Guards and the Polish Lancers.

I introduced myself to Chris Humphreys a few PNWA conferences ago.  He was conducting a seminar with Deborah Schneider and made a comment about how difficult it was to write battle scenes in historical novels.  After class, I approached Chris and asked him if he was familiar with wargames, suggested he could game-out the action and then write the sequence of events.

Our conversation went something like this--

Chris:  Oh, I use to play wargames with my brother all the time.  I still have a collection of Napoleonic figures I painted when I was a teenager.  Are you a gamer?

Me:  Why, as a matter of fact....

....and it went downhill from there.  Chris has made a number of friends among the PNWA staff and has been a regular presenter ever since. 

Several months ago he e-mailed me, asking if I knew of any simple Napoleonic wargame rules he could use to introduce to his 8 year-old son to the joys of wargaming.  I suggested Musket and Saber, by Wes Rogers.  This 2-page set of rules, designed to be played at game conventions, was available on-line for free.  Unfortunately, Wes disabled his old site and the rules are no longer available on-line.  (If his rules become available again, I'll post a notice on this blog).

A few weeks before the convention started, Chris contacted me again, asking if I'd mind bringing some miniatures to the convention and play a turn or three.  Even though Chris read the rules, he wanted to get a good grasp of actually using them, before attempting to play the game with his son.  This was completely understandable, because wargaming, more often than not (at least with me), involves kinesthetic learning. 

As to bringing any figures:  Even though the Napoleonic Era is my favorite period in history, ironically, I don't own any miniatures.  The elegant, parade-ground uniforms have always been too difficult for me to paint.  Instead, I've relied on the counters from games like System 7 Napoleonics to wage my tabletop battles.  For our demo session, I used some counters I made from Napoleon's Battles, shrunk down to 6millimeter (mm) scale, along a green Army blanket and some fan-made terrain cards for Napoleon in Europe.  I didn't bring my entire counter collection, just enough to run a small Peninsular War battle. 

We settled on getting together during the Agents Forum, since he was free during that time and I wasn't stalking seeking any agents to represent the work I'm doing. 

I met Chris at his room and set up my "wargame-in-a-blanket" on the hotel desk.  One of the first pieces I pulled out represented Sir John Moore.  Chris and I instantly concluded our desktop demo would be a replay of the Battle of Corunna.  We couldn't remember if the opposing French general was Soult or Massena, so we settled on Massena.  (It was Soult.  So much for our encyclopedic knowledge of Napoleon's Marshals). 

The British (red and green counters), with their backs to the coast; held the woods, village  and heights.  The French (in blue), formed-up behind a small stream and were prepared to assault the British positions.  Unfortunately, the French cavalry (on the right) didn't receive orders to charge their British counterparts.

The British cavalry, on the other hand, wasted no time in waiting for orders from Sir John (Chris) and slammed into the French 4th Infantry Brigade as it crossed the stream, while still in column formation.

Predictably, a great slaughter of the French ensued...

Seeing their comrades hacked down, the French troopers spurred their mounts and counter-charged the British cavalry.  Meanwhile, the British artillery battery on the heights fired into the densely-packed column of the French 3rd Infantry Brigade, inflicting scores of casualties.

While the British cavalry was driven back, the French Infantry 3rd Brigade retreated from the shot and shell spewing from the British gun battery.  The 4th Infantry Brigade quit the field and the 1st Infantry Brigade struggled to cross the stream.  This left the 2nd Infantry Brigade unsupported as it attempted to assault the British battalion holding Corunna proper.

Unfortunately, the 2nd Infantry Brigade was shot to pieces by the combined fire of the British fusiliers and riflemen (the green counters) emerging from the woods.  Seeing his attack collapse, Massena ordered a retreat.  The Emperor would not be pleased.

So the French "...came on in the same old-style..." and were "...beaten in the same old-style."  Just before packing up the game, Chris posed with his victorious army...

Running this demo helped both of us get a better feel for the rules and Chris wrote copious amounts of notes as reminders and examples-of-play.

As I wrote this post, I began to wonder if we set a precedent at this year's conference.  Game sessions are often conducted during comic book and sci-fi/fantasy conventions.  But I've never heard of a wargame being played during a writers conference, at least here at PNWA. 

 

When I contacted our President, Pam Binder about this, she'd never heard of anyone doing anything of this sort in any of the past conferences.

 

Maybe this is the beginning of a new PNWA trend?

2012 PNWA Conference: The Agents Forum

(Image from:  Archer). 

Agents, the book-type, not the secret-type, are the liaisons between writers and publishers.  They know the type of material editors are looking for--and just as important--what they're not interested in. 

As with finding editors, the best way to meet these literary linchpins is in-person, at writers conferences.

But like the irresponsible Sterling Archer, I skipped-out of this important forum altogether.  The reason why will be the subject of my next post--so, stay tuned!

Thanks to the PNWA 57th Writers Conference Guide, I can still provide you with the list of agents I didn't meet this year:

 Brandi Bowles, Elise Capron, Stacia Decker, Scott Eagan, April Eberhardt, Sally Harding, Mandy Hubbard, Andrea Hurst, Emily Keyes, Elizabeth Kracht, Rachel Letofsky, Jim McCarthy, Kate McKean, Laurie McLean, Beth Miller, Peter Miller, Vicky Motter, Kathleen Ortiz, Rita Rosenkranz, Kathleen Rushall, Victoria Skurnick, Elizabeth Wales, Andrew Wetzel, and Joy Azmitia.

2012 PNWA Conference: Editors Forum

(Image:  J.K. Simmons, as J. Jonah Jameson in Spider-Man)

Getting published can make one feel like a superhero.  But even superheroes need a support network.  Because of their role, writers often view editors as adversaries, like Spiderman vs. J. Jonah Jameson.  However, they have a business to manage and, like writers, are also trying to produce the best work possible.

Publishing is a collaborative effort among writers, agents, editors and publication companies.  So it's best to maintain a sense of professionalism at all times.  In doing so, a writer might gain an editor as an ally, just like Superman did with Perry White.

(Image:  Laurence Fishburne, as Perry White in the upcoming movie, Man of Steel) 

The trick in gaining an editor-ally is finding them.  And attending writers conferences, like this year's PNWA conference, is one good way to gain personal access to potential allies. 

The Editors Forum was the lead event for the second day of the conference (Friday, 20 July).  According to the official guide, nine editors were on hand for a panel discussion.  But by the time I arrived, I swear there was ten, or more people on stage. 

Yes, I was late again.  This time, I ended up chatting with C.C. Humphreys about a wargame rules orientation we planned on conducting.  (More about this after my Agents Forum post).

When I finally sat down, Bob Dugoni, our perennial emcee, had the forum well underway.  The panel consisted of the following editors (links are to the publishing houses they represented):

Tracy Bernstein, Tom Colgan, Renda Dodge, Diane Gedymin, Peter Lynch, Melissa Manlove, Lynn Price and Tom Schulte.

I'm afraid I was preoccupied with my upcoming game with Chris, so I don't have extensive notes on this opening forum.  I did however, manage to jot down the following advice:

From Tom Colgan:  Don't write to the market. 

The hot, new trend will be old and cold by the time you're ready to present your draft to an agent or editor.

From Tim Schulte:  Write what you're passionate about. 

This is a change from the old mantra that was "write what you know,"  because it's not possible to become an expert in everything. 

Lynn Price and Diane Gedymin had this to say, regarding memoirs:  They must have a unique perspective and a consistent theme throughout. 

In other words, a memoir should be more than a laundry list of significant and/or sucky events that have happened in your life.

Bob brought up the issue of self publishing and said there was good news and bad news.

The good news:  Anybody can self publish.

This means you can get your book printed, even without approval from the publishing industry's "gatekeepers."

But the bad news is:  Anybody can self publish.

In other words, there's a lot of trash out there readers have to be wary of. 

Finally, Tim Schulte had this to say:  Write a good story.

Sounds simple enough, doesn't it?

The Art of Finding the Right Agent

(Image from:  Mr. & Mrs. Smith)

Meeting a literary agent that you hope will endorse your work, can be an awkward affair, like in the opening scene of Mr. & Mrs. Smith.  Or it can make you feel wrecked, as in this later scene...

How can you avoid such emotionally catastrophic events, while trying to publish your novel? 

In the workshop, The Art of Finding the Right Agent, Sarah Callender explained that finding Mr. or Mrs. Rightagent, was like a romance story:

Writer meets agent.

Writer ditches, or (most often) gets ditched by agent.

Writer finds another agent.

Or as Sarah put it:

Getting hitched.

Getting ditched.

Learning to love again.

So, how do you avoid, or at least mitigate the effects of this road-to-publication roller coaster?

You research and prepare.

Before you being your quest for Mr./Ms. Rightagent, you need the following:

1. A polished manuscript (for fiction), or proposal (for non-fiction).

2. A supportive community of writing pals.

3. A list of available and APPROPRIATE agents.

One of the "recurring themes" agents complain about, are on receiving manuscripts from genres they have no interest in representing--even when its clearly posted on their website.

Once you are prepared, it is time to submit a query letter.  The key parts of this introduction to you and your work should include:

1. Pertinent details about your manuscript.

2. Pertinent details about you.

3. Why the agent seems to be a good fit for you.

4. Sample pages, but only if they are requested.

Have a plan when you undergo the querying process.  Sometimes you'll receive form-letter rejections, while other times, you may not hear anything back at all.  Give yourself and the agent(s) you queried a reasonable amount of time, before launching another salvo of query letters to other literary agencies.

Then be prepared for more rejections.

And more rejections.

And...well...you get the idea.

Every author I've encountered, talked about how discouraging this serial rejection can be.  Despite such an onslaught against your emotional health and well-being, it's important to maintain your professionalism during such adversity. 

You don't want to burn any bridges...

Pitch Perfect

(Image:  Seattle Mariners starting pitcher, Felix Hernandez)

Sorry sports fans, I'm talking about literary pitches, where an author discusses his, or her, book to perspective agents and editors.  But as long as you're here, you may as well read the rest of the blogpost, right?

The Pitch Perfect workshop was hosted by Janna Cawrse Esarey, author of The Motion of the Ocean.  (If you've read my last PNWA 2012 blogpost, or even if you haven't, you should be able to guess what the setting is in this book.  I won't even get in to who's obsessed and who the protagonist are...)

But before I discuss Janna's seminar, let me give you something of a (Oh no! The dreaded) backstory...

This year PNWA ran its pitch sessions differently.  They were called "Power Pitches,"  which were conducted in 90-minute block-times on Friday and Saturday.  Each author had 3 minutes to win the heart and mind of an agent.  Kind of like speed dating.  It was under these rules of engagement, that Janna tailored her workshop.

We now return you to our (ir)regularly scheduled blogpost...

A pitch, Janna explained, simply tells someone what your book is about, as succinctly as possible.  The basic parts of the pitch are:

--Topic

--Genre

--Be clear

--Be interesting

Within the 3-minute window each author had with an agent, they had a mere 60 seconds to pitch their book, which is often called the Elevator Pitch. 

Janna's tips on maximizing this time included the following tips, which can apply to anyone you're scheduled to meet and pitch an idea to:

1. Do your home.  Research the agent, or other person of interest, you're scheduled to meet.  Read their bios and website and find out what they're interested in.

2. Never give an agent or editor any hardcopy material--they don't want to lug it back with them.

3. It's okay to hold a notecard, but maintain eye contact with the agent your pitching to.

4. Pitch only one book.  Now is not the time to discuss your trilogy.

5. Pitch to fellow writers every chance you get.

6. Be professional, prepared, polite and brief.

#6 should go without saying, but stories emerge from lots of writers conferences about people violating this rule. 

Pitch Delivery

--2-5 sentences within 60 seconds or less.

--Answer any questions--briefly.

--If you get no response, ask if you may send additional material.

If you do get the go-ahead to submit your work, be sure the subject line in your e-mail reads:  Requested Materials Enclosed.  This will remind the agent about your meeting, and will save your submission from being cast into the spam filter/recycle bin.

There are two basic pitch formats, one for fiction and the other for non-fiction.

Pitch Format (Fiction)

Intro:  Title and genre.

Set up:  Protagonist and setting.

Conflict:  A problem or compelling turn of events that changes everything for the protagonist.

Resolution:  A wrap-up that evokes an emotion or big concept.

Pitch Format (Non-Fiction)

--Title and Genre.

--The book's concept.

Formatting is one thing.  You still need to deliver a good pitch to woo an agent.  Janna had the following tips for delivering a good pitch:

1. Be clear about the title and genre.

2. Make it read like the back-cover of a book.

3. Provide set-up and resolution.

4. Don't talk ABOUT your book.  Instead IMMERSE the reader into your book.

5. End your pitch with a big concept using an active voice.

Since "practice makes perfect,"  Janna had all the attendees write their pitches, then break into small groups to read aloud and gain feedback.

I wasn't pitching anything this year because I'm writing a webcomic.  However, I thought I could use the practice and maybe get use to doing in-class writing exercises.  (I normally hate these, because it takes me longer than a few minutes to get "in the zone").

Even though we worked on pitches in Pam Binder's Popular Fiction-I class, I'm glad I participated, because I received a couple of great tips that I incorporated into my narrative.

So, if I were to pitch my webcomic, it would read like this:

Breakout from Bongolaan is my Star Wars graphic novel.

Callithea Lockridge, administrative assistant to her ambassador, is on the planet Bongolaan to help negotiate a trade deal for her world.  However, negotiations are cut short when the Galactic Empire invades the planet.  Now trapped, Callithea must find her way off war-torn Bongolaan and make it to the custody hearing on her homeworld.  Otherwise, her ex-husband will be granted sole custody of her son.

Friend and foe alike, will learn that not even a galactic empire should stand between a mother and her child.

It might be a while before I actually pitch a book to an agent or editor.  But at least I have a template to work with.

Playing God and Creating Wonderful Characters

(Image:  Detail from The Creation of Adam, by Michelangelo)

One of the most enjoyable aspects of role-playing games (RPGs), is creating, or as it's known in game-terms, "rolling-up," a character.  Some games provide detailed charts and narratives to develop a player-character (PC).  While other rules leave the inner details up to the player's imagination to conjure-up what his PC is like and what he's been doing, right until the initial adventure.

While I've rolled-up several characters for games, I'm still a newbee at rolling them up for fiction.  But thanks to Bob Dugoni's workshop, Playing God and Creating Wonderful Characters, I have a better understanding of character development, beyond how proficient they are at wielding a broadsword or blaster pistol.

First and foremost, it is the characters that entertain the reader.

But what about the plot/theme/story?

Bob countered that readers remember characters more than story lines.  Besides, there's very little difference between stories.  To illustrate his point, he compared the following three books/movies:

Jaws

What's the theme?  Obsession.

Setting:  The ocean.

Who's obsessed?  Captain Quint

Who's the protagonist?  Police Chief Brody

Moby Dick

What's the theme?  Obsession.

Setting:  The ocean.

Who's obsessed? Captain Ahab.

Who's the protagonist?  Ishmael.

Run Silent Run Deep 

What's the theme?  Obsession.

Setting:  The ocean.

Who's obsessed? Captain Richardson.

Who's the protagonist?  Lieutenant Bledsoe.

Rarely will there be a book with a unique theme.  It's the characters that will make the story. 

Make readers fall in love with the characters in your story.  However, in order for such love to blossom, the characters need to change over the course of the novel.

Why is this so important?

Because most of us ordinary mortals rarely change during the course of our lifetime.  People don't want to read about the ordinary goings-on of ordinary people.  So to be successful authors, we need to write about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, or extraordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. 

Both ordinary and extraordinary characters need to evolve.  There are Five Levels of Change:

Level 1--The protagonist only cares about herself.
Level 2--The protagonist becomes concerned about another person or thing.
Level 3--The protagonist grows to care about a group.
Level 4--The protagonist now cares about the community.  (Not every character will reach this level).
Level 5--The protagonist now acts out of love for mankind.  (Very difficult level to achieve, if at all).

If you make an empathetic character, then the level of change can go in the reverse direction, because readers will understand why the protagonist is "backsliding."

 Ask yourself the following questions when developing a character:

1.  What is their personality?  What does the character want at the beginning of the story?
2.  Is the character capable of change?
3.  What experiences/obstacles is the character going to go through in order to undergo change?
4.  What does the character want at the story's end?  (This may not be the same as at the beginning).

Minor characters often outshine the main ones, because writers may often be concerned readers will view the protagonist as an author's veiled self-portrait.  To help avoid this, incorporate characteristics of the people around you; ones that you know, or read about.  Bob even recommended reading the obituaries, because they contain succinct character sketches.

How do you introduce characters into a story?

Avoid the data-dump biography.  DO NOT stop the action in the story for a character sketch.  Instead, weave character details into a scene by getting him to speak and move, through dialogue and action.  (Regarding 1st Person narratives, one can get away with a little more personal exposition, than in 3rd Person).

Another way of introducing a character, is through the eyes of another, like the way Sherlock Holmes was introduced to the reader via Doctor Watson.

Characters must have strength.  Not only some physical strength, but a willingness to forgive and to be self-sacrificing.

On the otherhand, with the exception of Mary Poppins, no one wants to read about "practically perfect people."  Characters, like real people, should come with flaws.  Ask:  What is the character's inner conflict? 

The key point is:  Make the characters sympathetic, better yet, even empathetic; just don't make them pathetic.

To avoid looking pathetic, characters should have some self-regard.  Make them care about what's going on--and get them to take action.

Finally, take into account some practical considerations:

1. Character's physical appearance.
2. How does the character dress?
3. What is the character's physical behavior?
4. How does the character speak?
5. What is the character's insight/perspective/view of the world?

Most likely you won't, or at least shouldn't, use every scrap of data in your character sketch, to fill the pages of your story. 

But, remember--don't throw anything away.  You may use this material in subsequent stories--like a continuing series.