5 Things I Learned at #ATLWW

This past Saturday I had the great opportunity to go to the Atlanta's Writer's Digest Conference. It's a great conference that brings some of the most talented writers, editors and agents right to my door for one day only. The conference is filled with various panel discussions, informational workshops, the chance to get your pages critiqued and the opportunity to pitch your novel to agents. I knew I had to go even if I was flying solo. 
I had an incredible time and learned so much, but if I had to sum it up, here are 5 take aways. 

1. Make Friends
        I went into the conference not knowing anyone, and within a matter of minutes had already made friends simply by smiling and saying hello. Rather than eating lunch alone, I sat at a table surrounded by amazing writers laughing and sharing stories. Learning from other writers, giving and receiving advice made the conference fill like a reunion. Writers are a great bunch of people and everyone is mostly friendly and just as excited as you! 

2. Take Notes
 The panels are filled with information, and even if you get a handout, it's still not a bad idea to take notes. Write down anything and everything that clicks with you. Once you get home you probably won't remember everything and you'll be glad to have notes to refer to. It's also great if you've made friends and can share notes that way you get information from more than just the 1 session you can attend. 

3. Research agents
If you're planning to pitch your novel, make sure you take the time to research everyone you're thinking about pitching. Read interviews with them, read their manuscript wish lists, follow them on twitter, and take notes of your own. Be ready to answer questions and have a smile ready. 

4. Read.
This is a general writer rule but something that was hammered home by my agent meetings. Almost all of the agents I pitched asked me about what I was reading or what authors I enjoyed reading. Not having an answer would not look good so make sure that you are reading and know what books are out there. If the only books you can talk about are 20 years old you've got some work to do. Keep on top of current releases and what's going on in your genre. 

5. Learn something new
Be brave and go to a panel about a topic you know nothing about. Talk to someone who is pitching a novel totally outside of your usual genres. You'll be amazed at what new information can click into place and illuminate your writing brain. Always be striving to grow as a writer and as a person. 

All and all, I would highly recommend going to a conference and getting the experience. If you are writing in a particular genre, look for those writng associations. Many of them host writing conferences and it's a great chance to really hone your skills.

Tabletops and Storytelling

I was really late to the part with tabletop gaming. While I played once or twice in college, it never really clicked until after college when I joined a small group that played together once every two weeks or so.

That group made of only 4 people (3 players and one dungeon master) hooked me and I've been playing regularly ever since. I've even run a few campaigns of my own and have always enjoyed the adventures that can be built through storytelling and dice rolling. But one thing I've really been noticing more and more is how playing tabletop games has taught me a lot about storytelling and what makes a compelling tale. 

Let's start by defining what a tabletop game is. A tabletop game (like Dungeons and Dragons) is a game played with a group of players and led by a dungeon master. The dungeon master controls the enemies, and the general plot, but a good DM (Dungeon Master) will work with the players to tell a collabrative story. It requires a lot of imagination and innovation on all parts. The game is played by rolling dice to determine successes or failures. Combat is done in a similar way. You see a flash of Dungeons and Dragons at the very, very beginning of Stranger Things. 

So what can you learn about storytelling through a tabletop game? Lots. Here are 5 things I've learned over the years.

1. Little details can matter a lot.
I love when a random towns person you discover suddenyl becomes important to the plot later. Or if you discover a strange item that is suddenly very useful 7 or 8 games later. Tie the little details into the big picture and watch the story become a huge, steady narrative arc instead of disjointed mini-adventures. 

2. The first thing you think of is not always the best option.
The first idea you have to solve a puzzle, or get out of a dungeon is usually not the best option. Dig deep, think to the next option then the next then the next. Push yourself to not go with the obvious but to go with the subtle, the outlandish and the unexpected. 

3. You can fail at things you're amazing at. 
Nothing is more frustrating when your master assassin rolls a failure for a sneak attack. Something your character is literally trained to be the best at and you fail. It sucks, but it's also true in stories. Sometimes the hero fails at something that should be second nature. Things go wrong and the unexpected happens. How your character handles those failures is what builds them into something unforgettable. 

4. You can excel at things you're terrible at. 
Sometimes the huge minotaur in plate armor rolls an instant success on sneaking into a room. Just because your character is terrible at something doesn't mean they have to instantly fail at it, sometimes the unexpected works in your favor and that leads your character into new situations where you'll have to think fast to not die immediatly. 

5. Stories have multiple paths, your choices impact the tale you tell. 
Even with a set path of adventure, the choices your character makes along the way shape what the tale will be like. If you're in a cursed city filled with vampires and dread, you can still have a comedy on your hands if that's how the chraracters interact with the world. The characters create the interaction and build the 'flavor' of the story. Use that wisely. 

I love playing in my tabletop campaigns and every time I leave the game filled with a renewed sense of inspiration for my own work. Telling a story with a group of people all working together builds a unique and incredible tale that can be totally different every, single time and that is a whole new kind of magic that I can get behind. 

Seven Steps To Querying

So you've decided to look for an agent. Yay! Welcome to the club! It's an exciting step to decide to go the more traditional route and start the querying process. It's also a bit overwhelming and a little scary. There's a lot of information and it can feel a bit hard to decide where to even start. So let's do this thing! 

Party dog believes in you! You can do the thing, write all the words and send out all the queries! 

Step One: 
Polish Up Your Manuscript!

That's right, step one is not query. It's making sure you've got a badass manuscript ready to roll. I know it's so tempting when you type The End to ride off into querying land. But please, please, please, take your time. Polish up your manuscript to the very best it can be. Pay particular attention to the first 50 pages since that's the first impression of your story. Do those pages draw a reader in or is there a lot of nothing happening? 

This is also a good time to figure out what genre best fits your book. I know it can be hard to categorize your manuscript, but a genre is neccessary. This information also will help you know what to search for in agents. Also check your word counts for your genres. (A good resource on that is here from Writer's Digest.) If you have a 250,000 word young adult novel then you've got some major work ahead of you.

Step Two:
Research Agents. 

There are a lot of agents out there and it's easy to get overwhelmed with where to being. Now since you know your genre that gives you a great starting point. So where do you even start? First, read the 'thank yous' in a novel in your genre that you like. Most authors will mention their agents. (This also serves a dual purpose of giving you a comparative title to mention.)

Personally I like QueryTracker. It lets you search agents by genre, location, and query method. You also can read comments from others who have queried. It's a great start to get names. Writer's Digest is another great resource. There's also AgentQuery, and SFWA's guide to agents. 

Now, once you've put together a list of agents to look over, here comes more work! Take your time and really go through this list of agents. Go to their agency websites and read over the guidelines. Look at their twitter feeds or other public social media sites (don't make it creepy) and read interviews with them. 

At this point I make an excel spreadsheet that tracks these things: Agent Name, Agency Name, Where to Query, and What to Send. From there I divide agents into three categories: favs, awesome, and great. My favs are the agents I dream of working with and I think we'd be a perfect fit together. The awesomes are agents that I'm excited about working with but for some reason, they aren't a fav. These reasons can be simple as 'brand new agent' or 'isn't on twitter, just things that knock them down a pinch. The 'greats' are just one notch below the 'awesomes.' Again, usually it comes down to small reasons, nothing major. 

Step Three:
Keep Researching.

Seriously. Research, research, research. You don't want to end up with a bad agent or a scam artist so take your time. Check out preditors and editors to see if there are any red flags raised about that agent or agency. SFWA has a great breakdown of warning signs of a bad agent. Check them on Preditors and Editors. 

You also can take some time to explore the magical Manuscript Wishlist. This is an awesome resource started on twitter under #MSWL where agents and editors post about things they're looking for. (They even have a great website.) You might find one of the agents you're interested in posted about looking for a novel just like yours, neat! This may bump them from an awesome to a fav. It's a good way to see if there are any agents really looking for your kind of story. 

Step Four:
Write A Query.

Okay, there are dozens of resources on queries (like the incredible queryshark which you should read extensively) to learn about how to write one. Write one and get feedback. If you have the means, take a class and get a critique. (LitReactor has some great opportunities as does Writer's Digest.) Share your query and get feedback. Let people who have no idea what your book is about read over it. Does it make sense to them? 

Step Five:
Write A Synopsis. 

I hate writing a synopsis more than writing a query letter. A synopsis ties the whole plot up in a neat package. Not every agent will want a synopsis but enough will that you should go ahead and get it together. Get feedback and help on this too. Take your time.  Here are some great resources on writing a synopsis:

• Back to Basics: Writing a Novel Synopsis
• 6 Steps for Writing a Book Synopsis
• Synopsis Writing
• How To Write A Book Synopsis

Step Six:
QUERY

I recommend sending out batches of ten-ish queries at a time. Send a few to your favs, a few to your awesomes, and a few to your greats. Don't burn all your favs on your first batch. Now you track responses. Add more columns to your excel sheet: date sent, response date, result. 
When I get a form rejection I mark it all down and then black out that row on my sheet so I don't see it anymore. After you've marked it on your list, send out another one. However, if you're getting nothing but form rejections then it's time to go back to step four and try again. See if you can make your query stronger. A solid query should be getting some requests. 

Step Seven:
Keep Working. 

Just because you're querying doesn't mean you need to stop working on anything. Start on a new project and keep yourself busy. Writing and publishing is a lot of waiting for a response. Keep busy and don't fret yourself into an early grave. 

And that's it! Easy, right? (hahahahahahah)

My Hopes for You in 2017

2016 was a doozy for a lot of people for a lot of reasons. It's been a rocky 12 months for a lot of people and the breath of air at the beginning of the new year is welcomed and needed. So here's what I hope for you for 2017. 

I hope that you do something that makes you laugh so much your sides hurt and tears stream down your face. I hope you're laughing with a group of your favorite people feeling human and like the physical embodiment of helium. 

I hope you read and write things that challenge you. Don't read your same favorites over and over again in 2016. Read an author who is nothing like you. Write a story you've been afraid to tell. Push yourself out of your comfort zone and see what new wonders the world has to show you. 

Be kind to everyone you meet. The world is filled with people suffering with things we never know about. Don't add any weight to anyone else's life and try to help carry weight when you can. 

But don't mistake kindness with silence. Kindness is offering a hand when someone is knocked down. Kindness is not walking away in silence when someone needs your help. When you see racism, sexism, xenophobia, and hate in all its form, I hope you turn the spotlight on it. Tell hate that you see it, point it out to everyone around you and watch it wither. Hate thrives in the dark so don't let your silence be its fertilizer. 

I hope that you find your footing in anything you're struggling with. Whether it's with your budget, your relationships, your career, your home, whatever it is, I hope that you find the path that you've been searching for. Just remember that it's not going to be the easiest one, walk farther to end up where your heart longs to be. 

I really hope that you get rest. The world is so constantly go, go, go that it's almost impossible to not get washed into the current of busy-ness. The 'hustle harder' mentality is burning you mentally, physically and spiritually. I hope that you take the chance to sit down and take a breath. Enjoy a bubble bath, go on a walk, take a nap. The world will still be here when you get up. 

Reach out. Despite the ease of digital communication, it's easy to lose touch with people. Take 5 minutes out of your day to send a friend a nice tweet, a text, a Facebook message or a call. We are all on this ball of mud together, we might as well find a friend. 

I hope that you keep track of the good things that happen to you this year. The bad things fester in our memories, but there are moments of joy and beauty even in the awfulness. 2016 was filled with terribleness but there were moments of brightness, even if it's just something as simple as PokemonGo coming into our lives. (Team Instinct!)

Most of all, I hope 2017 brings you closer to your goals and to the person you were always meant to be. 

I'll be cheering you on. 

NaNoWriMo: Making Words Tips

So last Monday I wrote about ways you can start prepping your life for the NaNoWriMo challenge beginning in November. I'm a strong believer that your daily habits are what make your life so I super-duper recommend you do build time to write into your life even if it's just for NaNo. BUT, this post isn't about building your life around writing 50,000 words in 30 days. Instead, this post is going to be about what writing things you can do to prep for the word rush. (Note, there may be some overlap but that's because writing draws from your life. The two are connected much as we try to keep them separated.)

1. Have a general idea. 

For a long time, I thought I was a pantser (I'd just take off with no outline) and then I went hardcore into being a plotter (outlining), but means have their merits and work better for different people. If you know you're a pantser, at least take the time to think about the general idea of the story. One thing I've done is to come up with a short theme for your novel, something like 'friendship is magic' or something else that you can come back to when you get stuck. If you're a plotter than get to work on your outlines, plan out chapter by chapter, beat by beat, big moment by moment, etc. Do what works for you. What I've discovered works for me is to be a planter. I take a germ of an idea and bury it in a base outline. The story grows based on the nutrients in the soil but the shape of it is still free to shift and move with time. 
If you have no idea what you are? Try writing out a paragraph about your novel idea, just a paragraph. If writing that out takes some of the 'magic' out of the story, you're probably a pantser. If that paragraph makes you want to write out more, get to plotting. 

2. Find a support network. 

This is totally a life and writing thing, but part of what makes NaNoWriMo so much fun for so many people is the interaction with others. When you hit a low point, send out a tweet, hit a forum, shoot off a text, or call a friend who understands. Writing buddies are worth their weight in gold so try to start building your tribe now. 

3. Come up with names. 

Seriously. Name your characters. The number of times I've been stumped by needing a sudden name is amazing. Then I venture to the internet for help and...3 hours later I know the history of rum but still have no names. Create a list of names now that you can pull from when the need arises. If you already have an idea about your main characters, figure out what their names are and get that taken care of. You may go further than this with profiles or interviews with your characters but seriously, get some names together. (Recommendations here)

4. Decide how you want to write. 

I know it sounds simple but decide now, are you going to write in word, scrivener, notepad or something else? Are you going to read the previous day's writing before you start or not? Do you like writing sprints? (Usually started on twitter or Facebook where someone says 'Writing for the next 30, starting at 12:15') I LOVE writing sprints and hop onto them when I see one happening on twitter. It's amazing what that race like atmosphere can do for the writing muscles.  
There are also a surprising number of options for writing tools to help you reach your goals with minimal distractions. I like 750words.com and Cold Turkey Writer. 750words keeps track of your words, the time it takes you to reach them and a whole helluva lot more. I like racing myself and seeing if I can hit my target faster than the day before. Cold Turkey Writer takes over your computer until you either hit a certain word count or a set amount of time has passed, it's hardcore for making you focus on nothing but writing. 

5. Practice!

Start writing today. Right now. Get off this blog post and go write at least 1,000 words right now. I know NaNoWiMo hasn't started yet officially but that doesn't mean you can't start practicing now. You don't jump into a marathon without some training (at least I sure hope you don't because ow) so you shouldn't just leap straight from writing nothing to writing 50,000 words in a month (which is roughly 1,666 a day). Take some time now to write, get in the groove of it. When I'm really stuck I will just stream of conscious write what's going on in my head. The thing is to get those fingers limber and ready for a month of writing dangerously. 

I really enjoy NaNoWriMo and have participated for several years. I don't usually go to the in-person meet-ups but I've heard they can be incredibly inspiring and helpful. Regardless of whether you NaNo or not, getting into the habit of writing every day can't hurt if your goal is to be a writer. 

So, who's up for a writing sprint? 

ConCarolinas Schedule!

I'm so excited to be heading to ConCarolinas this weekend. This will be my first year visiting the convention and I've heard so many good things about it. I cannot wait!

Here's where I'll be for the weekend:

Friday, June 3

4:00 pm: Research for Dummies (Carolina A/B)

7:00 pm: Tools of the Trade: What Every Writer Should Have on Their Desk (Carolina C)

Saturday, June 4

10:00 am: Game Master 101 (Concord G)

6:00 pm: The Imposter Syndrome (Carolina C)

9:30 pm: Women and Gaming (Concord G)

Sunday, June 5

9:00 am: Writing for an Anthology, Series, or Shared Universe (Carolina A/B)

2:00 pm: The End of It (Carolina C)

I also will have a little table so you can come say hi between panels! 

You can check out all the amazing panels happening here. 

See you this weekend!