Find Your Readers, starting tomorrow!
Plus the mysterious creative muse and TONS of writing resources
*For writing links and resources, scroll down*
A quick reminder!
This is a friendly reminder that the Find Your Readers Summit will be held July 22-25 (starting TOMORROW!).
This online conference is about growing your audience while you’re still writing your book, and building a network after you finish it. There are sessions on:
pitching agents
hand-selling your novel at events
sharing your stories as a newsletter
hosting a virtual book event
new ways authors are making money
And guess what… yours truly will be giving a talk on Sunday morning on How to Find the Right Literary Agent! I’ll discuss the many things I learned during my time in the query trenches before (finally) signing with Ali Lake of Janklow & Nesbit.
You can watch the whole event live, for free, but it's also great to upgrade to the paid ticket. Check out my affiliate link for details.
The mysterious creative muse…
Writing is a paradox in so many ways. On the one hand, I am a firm believer in pure butt-in-chair persistence. You can’t wait for inspiration to strike; you have to put in regular time and effort, even when you don’t feel like writing. I know sometimes (often times!) writing is hard work. It’s not always fun, and it’s not always easy.
On the other hand… There is something magical that happens when you show up to the page. Creativity is such a mysterious animal. There are times when I look back at something I wrote years ago, and I think, did I write that? Or was I momentarily possessed by an otherworldly being whose ideas flowed through me?
(And by the way, if you haven’t watched Elizabeth Gilbert’s classic TED Talk on Your Elusive Creative Genius, do yourself a favor and watch it now.)
In my opinion, when you develop a regular writing practice, the muse sees you’re serious, and magical things start to happen. Story ideas, lines of prose, entire character conversations begin to float into your mind while you’re walking the dog or washing dishes. You happen to read something that gives you an idea for a new project. You happen to go somewhere that would be a perfect setting for a story. As you slog away at a chapter, characters seem to come to life, a new plot twist emerges. The muse arrives, just for a moment, and gifts you with a new idea or a perfect sentence.
Or maybe it’s not magical. Maybe when you write regularly, you’re training your brain to notice things, to pick up ideas, to synthesize bits of your life into stories. The more you show up to the page, the more your brain continues mulling things over even when you’re not actually writing.
I say all of this because for the past year I have been re-reading the short stories and poems I wrote both during and shortly after I got my MFA, and though sometimes I’m embarrassed, more often I’m amazed. I wrote this? Where did this come from? The answer is it came from my own brain… and maybe also from something outside of me, something bigger than me. From the creative energy of the universe.
Perhaps no story is a better example of this than one called “The Guide,” which I wrote while in grad school. Every morning I sat down at my laptop to write before going to work as an orthodontic assistant. One particular morning, I was feeling uninspired, so I took a break and went for a walk. Suddenly, as I plodded down Saint Charles Avenue, the first line of a story floated into my mind:
Friday evening I was feeling especially low, so I drove to Wal-Mart and bought a shovel.
A few more lines popped into my head. I had no idea where the story was going, but I hurried home to capture it. Of course, the muse disappeared about halfway through what was turning out to be a weird story about a woman who falls into an alternate dimension. But I stuck it out alone and kept on writing, trying to figure out a climax and a way to make it end. (I still don’t think I came up with the greatest ending, but it’s serviceable. We humans have to accept less than perfection.)
What I’m saying is, like with everything in life, writing is a balance. Be dedicated and persistent — put in the time — but also take breaks and allow your mind to wander. Be welcoming to the muse, from wherever she may come. Work hard, but keep yourself open to the possibility of magic.
P.S. Paid subscribers can read my short story “The Guide,” which was originally published in Main Street Rag’s Altered States Anthology.
Writing News:
For All Writers:
TONIGHT (Thursday, July 21 at 7pm EDT) The Writers Center is hosting a Virtual Craft Chat on Fiction with Fernando A. Flores. Free and open to the public!
If this was too short notice, The Writers Center will host another free event next Thursday: Virtual Craft Chat on Fiction with Gabrielle Lucille Fuentes on July 28 at 7pm EDT.
Don’t miss the YA Summer Thriller Panel TODAY (Thursday, July 21 at 5pm EDT) with authors Kit Frick, Amanda Panitch, Dana Mele, and Rebecca Barrow. Brought to you by Politics & Prose.
Today (and every Thursday) is #AskALibrarian on Twitter. This is a fantastic way to find reading recommendations, or comp titles if you’re querying. Simply tweet what you’re looking for and include the #AskALibrarian hashtag. Librarians from all over the country will respond with suggestions. It’s great!
This #CoachHunt from The Authors of Tomorrow on July 23 looks really cool. Pitch your story idea, and a mentor will reach out to you if they are interested in being your mentor/writing coach. (TAOT also offer a lot of great publishing workshops.)
Globe Soup is hosting an Open Short Story Competition. There’s no theme and the word count limit is 8,000. Early bird entry fee is £5 and the winner will receive £1,500. Entry deadline August 23.
I cannot believe this is real, but Kwame Alexander is going to be the host of a reality TV show called America’s Next Great Author… and you could be a participant. They’ll be filming the pilot October 30 in San Francisco. Authors pitch their book idea to a panel of judges and receive feedback, advice, and a chance to win a cash prize. I guess this is really happening!?
If you wrote 1,000 words a day, 6 days a week, you could have a novel-length manuscript in a couple of months. How amazing would that be? So go ahead — read about my virtual course Cultivating a Regular Writing Practice! This series of do-it-on-your-own-time lessons will help you create a writing routine that works for you and keeps you writing regularly for the long-term. All four lessons are available now for paid subscribers.
Don’t miss this short, helpful video from Mary Kole of The Good Story Company: Character Description in First Person.
Here’s a great Twitter thread from Sophie Flynn on how debut authors can market their books.
Summer can be a great time to prepare submissions. Poets & Writers has loads of searchable writing contests, awards, and grants And New Pages offers an exhaustive list of writing contests, organized by deadline date.
International Literary Seminars is launching a unique and intensive series of workshops, lectures, and cultural offerings. Apply for this year’s program, held in Kenya (application deadline Oct. 15), and check out the website for contests, fellowships, and other offerings.
Did you know there are some top-notch indie publishers to whom you can submit… without having an agent? Here are just a few. Make sure your manuscript is REALLY AND TRULY ready, and be sure to do your research before you query!
Polis Publishing
North Star Editions (check out their kidlit imprints Flux and Jellyfish)
Page Street Publishing (is distributed by MacMillion)
Holiday House (books for young readers)
Persea Books (adult literary books)
Quirk Books (they like quirky books, obviously; they published the Miss Peregrine’s books and Pride & Zombies!)
For Querying Writers:
If you live in or around NYC, consider participating in the Writer’s Digest Annual Conference PitchSlam on Friday, Jul 29. Yes, it’s like speed dating for writers (awkward!!), and yes it costs money, but you get immediate feedback on your pitch and the chance to pitch to lots of agents in person. In fact, my agent is participating!
I just learned about a very cool mentoring/pitching event called #PitchMe, taking place this fall. Here’s the timeline:
September 8: The submission window opens
September 22: Selected submissions announced
September 22-October 19: Mentoring takes place
October 20: Revised Twitter pitches posted; agents like their favorites
Every Friday, Operation Awesome offers one free query critique through their #QueryFriday contest.
The querying trenches are rough right now, and Twitter pitch parties can feel like a crapshoot, but still, as I always say, it’s a great way to meet other writers and it certainly doesn’t hurt to try. (After all, I found my agent through a Twitter pitch party. I am now an official success story!) So mark your calendar for these upcoming Twitter pitch parties. And be sure to read my article 13 Things to Know About Twitter Pitch Events.
August 1 and 2: #DVPit a Twitter pitch to agents for self-identifying, historically-marginalized authors and illustrators
August 1 (8AM - 8PM EST) for childrens & YA fiction/nonfiction
August 2 (8AM - 8PM EST) for adult fiction/nonfiction and for artists & illustrators using #DVart
September 15: #LatinxPitch — Twitter pitch for all unagented and agented Kidlit LATINX authors, author-illustrators, and illustrators
Writing Conferences (in person and virtual):
Don’t miss the Find Your Readers Summit July 22-25 (starting TOMORROW!). This online event is about growing your audience while you are still writing your book and building your network after you finish it. Not to mention, I’ll be giving a talk Saturday morning on Finding the Right Literary Agent!
The Writer’s Digest Annual Conference is happening in-person this year in New York City, July 28-31. Includes a pitch event called SlamPitch.
WOWCON, WriteMentor’s online conference for kidlit writers, is coming up September 24 - 26.
This New York Write to Pitch 2022 Conference looks intriguing. The Zoom portion is September 8-11 and the live part is September 22-25 in NYC. And there are pre- and post-content, too. They are calling it The Premier Career Launcher for Aspiring Authors. I’m going to be honest, there’s so much going on with this conference I’d need an entire day to study and digest the website, but it looks very professional and comprehensive, so take a look for yourself!
This year the Writing Day Workshop “How to Get Published” Conferences will be held virtually. I attended one of these conferences in person a few years ago in Philadelphia, and I thought it was fantastic. I can’t vouch for the virtual version, but there are some benefits: recorded classes, no travel expenses, attend in your comfy pants. Plus, you can sign up for Zoom pitch sessions with agents for $29 a piece. Check out the upcoming conferences (and remember, anyone can attend from anywhere; just keep the time zone in mind).
For more writing conferences, check out this list or this list of 19 Writing Conferences for Emerging and Established Writers.