Train of Thought

Just saw Avengers last night so I had to throw in a superhero reference. Yes, I know Batman is DC and Avengers is Marvel, but I can't think of anyone who used to sidekick it up like Robin, so there we have it.

Moving on, I have been super busy lately, thus no recent post. My apologies, I'll do better in the future. As a result, here's one of my famous catch-up entries. Firstly, I want to show some love to my Novel Clique girls. All of us pitched to agents at OWFI and earned requests for our work, two or three times over! I am thrilled about my requests from Louise Fury of the L. Perkins Agency, Jessica Sinsheimer of the Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency, and Melissa Frain of Tor Books We are currently giving our work a quick look over and all submissions will be...well, submitted by the weekend. Stay turned for a post on in-person pitching and everything I learned in a session taught by the incomparable Chuck Sambuchino.

Secondly, The Writer's Voice kicked off this past week and...I GOT IN! I don't know if I screamed loud enough last time. I was selected by the amazing, the wonderful, the glamorous Brenda Drake. And might I mention a bit of good news for my fabulous coach? Take a gander:

"Brenda Drake's debut LIBRARY JUMPERS, in which a sixteen-year-old finds that a simple flip of the page can transport her to the library of her choosing, thus thrusting her into a Mystik world hidden amongst the pages of library books, where evil abounds, secrets unfold, and mortals are running out of time, to Georgia McBride at Month9Books, in a nice deal, at auction, in a three-book deal, for publication in February 2014, by Lauren Hammond of ADA Management Group (World)."

What did I tell you? Ah-mazing. Go Team Brenda!

She gave me some incredible feedback on COVETED and I, along with the rest of my great team, are anxiously awaiting the next round of the competition where we will OBLITERATE ALL OPPOSITION--...I mean, we will rise to victory.

Thirdly, the ladies behind The Writer's Voice have set up an opportunity for all writers to pitch to two, not one but two, agents via Twitter. John M. Cusick of Scott Treimel NY , and Vickie Motter of Andrea Hurst Literary Management, will be reading pitches including the hashtag #WVTP on May 24 from 12PM until 6PM EDT. For more details you can find ze rules on Brenda's blog here.

That's all I got, at least for now. Just wanted to prove I hadn't fallen off the face of the Earth or anything like that. Time to go bury my nose in my work. These submissions aren't going to prepare themselves.

Any good news to share so I can cheer for you, too?

Or rather, guest post alert. My guest post that is! I'm thrilled that the fellas over at The Roundtable Podcast have asked me to do a guest post on TRP's blog. I'm going to take a moment to squeal like a little girl.

YAY!

Okay, big girl pants back on. The past week has been crazy. Between attending a writers conference, and preparing submission packages as a result of successful pitches to agents/editors (omg I'll have to squeal all over again in another post), my poor blog has gone neglected. At least for a few days. I plan on relaying the conference fun after the post announcing my entry over yonder on the TRP website.

Till then, I've got my nose to the grindstone. In the meantime, I'm curious about everyone else's guest blog post thingy experiences.

Have you ever been a guest on another's blog? You enjoy yourself?

Apologies ahead of time, this post is a lil'on the long side, but there's lots to cover and I want to give everyone as much helpful info as possible.

As May 3rd swiftly approaches, my family, friends and coworkers find themselves faced with a delimma: Do they say something about how giddy I'm acting, or do they simply leave it be, knowing it will soon pass. Well, for passerby, or those curious as to why I'm super excited all the time, it's because OWFI is right around the corner! In less than 72 hours, I will be in Oklahoma with my Novel Clique gals for this year's conference. I seriously cannot stop smiling, thinking about all of the fun we had last year, and everything we learned. There was so much information to digest, sessions to attend, notes to take, on and on. That's what this post is all about, the goings on during a writer's conference, or at least what we as writers need to be doing to make the most of these thrilling experience.

To find out what to do before a conference, from deciding if a certain conference is right for you to preparing a pitch for an agent session, head on over to the fabulous Natasha Hanova's blog. In fact, I recommend reading hers before continuing with this one. Really, go ahead, I'll wait.

Do dee doooo.

Finished? Great information, right? Okay, now to pick up where she started off. Once you've decided you're attending, you've packed, you've traveled, you've arrived! Now the fun really begins. With all of your clothing unpacked (if you're like me you've prepared a special pitch outfit, I know, it's crazy, I'm okay with that), and you've settled in with the goodie bag from the welcome and registration desk, the first thing you'll want to do is take a look at the classes/sessions that will be hosted throughout the conference. If you are attending alone, you'll need to choose which sessions will benefit your the most. If you're a beginning writer, aim to attending sessions that will cover the basics and answer those questions to help you get started. For those further along in developing their craft, something a little more specific might be what you're after, and try to avoid sessions that might not be a benefit at all. For example: If you've got a degree in English Lit, and you're something of a Grammar Elitist, you don't need to attend Sentence Structure 101, but the session on Voice might be right up your alley. It's instances like choosing a class that make me glad I attend conferences with a group, with four to six of us there at a time, we can divide and conquer.

Once you've decided which sessions you'll be attending, it's time to get busy. Wake bright and early so you have time to dress for success, business casual for those who are serious about being taken serious in his industry, then get down to breakfast for some needed fuel and networking. As Tasha mentioned in her post, you'll know this if you've read it, take plenty of business cards to hand out to those you meet, and keep them on your person throughout the day since you're going to MAKE IT A POINT to introduce yourself to your fellow writers and the industry professionals whenever the time calls for it. After mingling, and gaining a blogging buddy or two, the sessions begin. Be sure to arrive early to take advantage of the perfect seat. We like to get close without being in the presenter's face, this makes for optimal recording if allowed, as well as being able to see the visual aids if there are any. Make sure you take your laptop with you, if you have one, and definitely paper and something to write with. I highly recommend both. At OWFI, there are tables set up to bust out the computer, but that is not always the case, so a pen and pad work wonders.

Notes! A throwback to schooldays. I wasn't a fabulous notetaker then, and things haven't really changed, that's why I record whenever possible. Some speakers mind, some don't, listen for the rules of engagement before a session begins, or be sure to ask if things aren't clear. We don't want to offend anyone. If you know shorthand, and can pretty much type or write out every word the speaker says without falling behind, I am impressed. I cannot do this, so I save my notes for main bullet points during the lesson, or AHA! moments that I want to take back to my craft specifically. When you pause to take notes, you're momentarily distracted from whatever is said immediately following, so make sure missing it is worth the trouble. And I love it when the speaker passes around handouts. If you are so fortunate, sit back and enjoy while letting the handout do the work. Rinse and repeat from session to session.

Now that we've touched on the basic workings of conference attendance, there is one area I want to emphasize the importance of; etiquette. Remember when you did or said something growing up that earned you the side-eye from your mom and a snappy "this is why I don't take you out in public"? No? Just me? Well, let's avoid that here. This industry is so tightly knit that one small uh-oh can result in consequences on a massive scale, so we need to be on our best behavior. Spill your tea at dinner? You'll live. Accidentally pronounce an agents name wrong? Might not be the end of the world, even if you feel like it. Overheard badmouthing someone or their work? That one will definitely come back to bite you. We're all in this together, and we need to respect one another as colleagues at the very least. While we can really cut loose and be ourselves around likeminded individuals, let's not say or do something we probably wouldn't back home.

And that's what to do and expect while attending a writers conference, in a very broad, very big nutshell. I know, I didn't touch on pitch sessions, because those can very from person to person. Research whomever you're going to be pitching to, and tailor your pitch to that person. Some professionals might actually have blogged about how they'd like pitch sessions to go, and reading what they want will be of greater benefit than reading what I think they want. What I can say is this, maintain good posture and eye contact, speak TO the agent/editor not AT them, practice your pitch at least two-dozen times beforehand, and don't forget to say thank you when you're done. They didn't have to give any of us the time of day, but they're awesome like that.

For what to do after a conference, check out Dawn Allen's post. It gives a rundown on what to do what all you've acquired during your excursion.

And for Twitter updates during this fast approaching conference, follow my feed here along the right side of the page (@Tangynt), watching for the #OWFI tag.  You can also catch the action via the Novel Clique feed at @NovelClique. I wish everyone the best of luck in their conference endeavors!

For the past few weeks, though honestly much longer than that, my writer's group and I have been preparing ourselves, and our work, for the Oklahoma Writer's Federation Inc. conference in Oklahoma city. I'm so excited! We've polished our pitches for agent appointments, purchased new duds for an awards banquette, and hoarded a slew of neat pens for taking notes during sessions. (You're not really a writer until you've developed an "unhealthy" loves of unique pens)

I'm proud of my girls, and myself. We've all worked hard to get to where we are, and we've pushed each other even harder. We know we're ready, we're eager, and we're confident the experience will be well worth it. It helps we've already been once or twice. Love it, can't wait to go again, man I'm pumped. During all of this preparation, we've decided to put together something special to help other writers who are considering, curious about or eager to attend writers conferences: a series of posts that offer advice on deciding if a conference is right for you and your work, tips for getting the both of you ready, and what to expect while in attendance. It'll be informative and fun!

So, stay tuned for updates on the updates!

Have I mentioned how excited I am about all of this? Because I am.

Other than the obvious "books on a shelf" response, the answer would be determination, perseverance, drive, etc. Rejection is part of the game. In those rejections--at least the ones I have received--one statement crops up repeatedly. "Publishing is a very subjective industry". I won't go into that, as I'm sure many of us know what it means, and while we accept it, are still incredibly frustrated by it. I like to look at it is, what hasn't worked for a few dozen agents, only has to work for one.

My agent is out there, I just have to find him or her, and I'll only do that if I keep querying. I file the No's away in a folder, I don't delete them, on my way to the Yes. I swallow the sting, I pull up another agent I've researched and I prepare another submission. I use the revolving door method, when one rejection comes in, I get another packet together to send out. I'm not going to land an agent if I don't try, and that's another statement my rejections have in common; a push to keep at it. It can seem hard, but no one promised us it wouldn't be. The difference between published and unpublished, in the end, is never giving up.

That describes how I'm feeling as of late, which is a good thing. Last week--after a time zone technical difficulty--I recorded my episode of The Roundtable Podcast, which will air Tuesday, April 10th. I had an absolute ball, Dave, Brion and Philippa were hilarious. I actually feel a little bad because I'm rather quiet during most of the episode, because I'm either dying from laughter, or diligently scribbling notes. This was a treat, an experience unlike any other, and I thank both the great guys at RTP and Philippa for their time and the seeds planted that will hopefully grow into a great story. Really, anyone who reads about the RTP, here or anywhere else, if you hear about it in passing, sign up. You won't regret it.

And that was only the beginning of my Expialidocious week. I received two packages in the mail. The first was from the fabulous Chenoa Fawn over at Sibylline Syllables (say that five times fast). The package included cool temporary tattoos, and a beautiful bookmark that is currently tucked between the pages of The Iron King, by Julie Kagawa. Oh yeah, that leads into special delivery number dos. For the full effect of the awesome that is Ms. Kagawa, I must backtrack a bit.

In returning from a recent jaunt out-of-town, I left my copy of the Iron King on the airplane. Long story short, I'm never going to see my precious book again. But, via a series of circumstances completely unrelated to my travel mishaps, Ms. Kagawa sent me all four of her books, autographed. Cloud 9 couldn't get this high. I've been grinning for days, and showing off the addition to my collection to anyone who'll listen to the story. It was an unexpected blessing I cannot adequately express my gratitude for, save with this word:

Super-friggen-califragilisticexpialidocious!

Okay, so I have to clarify something, it having been clarified for me. I will be recording my episode for the podcast this Monday March 19th. The episode itself, however, will not air until Tuesday, April 10th. Many apologies to all who've been adversely affected by this unintended misinformation. Still, I remain completely stoked about the entire ordeal.

And again, for anyone who may be interested in signing up as a guest writer for the show, here is the website, the Facebook page, the Twitter handle, and the iTunes link. Yes, you can find it on iTunes. Awesome, right?

In other fabulous news, my gals over at Novel Clique are cooking up something special in the blogsphere. Stay tuned for updates on our latest social network endeavors. Good times ahead!

I honestly cannot contain myself right now. I've been invited to be a guest on an episode of the Roundtable Podcast! The podcast features writers from all walks and genres of life who sit down with the fabulous hosts, Dave Robinson and Brion Humphrey, and an esteemed guest host from the publishing industry to "workshop...via dialog how to transform raw inspiration into a strong and engaging story". The long and short of it, we take an idea I have for a story and brainstorm until a workable plot emerges.

I'm thrilled to announce that the guest host for my episode, airing Monday March 19th and 8 pm CST (9 pm EST), will be Phillipa Ballantine. I'll pause a moment to let the awesome sink in. As I said, I am super excited! We'll be going over one of my current WIPs (I usually have two so I can go back and forth between them when writers block strikes) wherein Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Alice in Wonderland. I'd give a few more details about the story, but I don't want to spoil it! Just tune in Monday night to hear the creativity flow.

For those who would be interested in possibly being a guess on the Roundtable, just visit the site and click the "Be a GUEST" in the top, right-hand corner on the home page. I'll be back next week to debrief about the show, the process and how much of a blast I'm going to have.

Revision Week was a blast. Gaining insight on the editing process by reading how someone else approaches it, especially a pro, is priceless. If you haven't had a chance to check it out, head on over and read through the archives! As an added bonus, The Editor is going to have a surprise guest interview tomorrow. That's right, one more day, one more interview. Also, enter for a chance to win a full manuscript edit, and sign up to receive word whenever one of The Editors incredibly informative posts is...well, posted.

Today is just a quick blurb of a post.

I'm making good on my word to introduce a few more contests whenever possible. Well, I've got an entire lineup for you. It's Revision Week over at Dear Editor! Every day there is an interview with a wonderful author, and a chance to win free partial edits. How amazing is that? Plus, at the culmination of the entire thing, there is a chance to win a complete full edit from The Editor herself. Anyone else salivating? Maybe that's the Jimmy Johns...

Anywho, slide on over to check out today's interview-ee, Cynthia Leitich Smith and read on for your chance at winning. Good luck to everyone who enters!