JRWC12 Tidbit #3 - The Value of Critiques & Self-Editing

When looking back at my choices of what panels to attend at the 2012 James River Writers Conference, I began to see patterns and one of them was on editing/critique.

My first session selection - Don't Fight the Feedback: Making the Most of Critiques and Self-Editing - made that point clear. The panel consisted of Cherise Fisher (The Scribe's Window), Lana Krumwiede (author, Freakling), and J.M. Tyree (writer), and moderated by JRW's own Constance Costas.

Wield Thoughtfully The Powerful Red Pen

Critiques are like advice--easy to give, hard to accept. However, when you receive a honest, insightful, and constructive critique, it would be foolish to ignore. The trick to giving and receiving critiques is to remember to be CONSTRUCTIVE. These pages/words were labored over by the author and are as dear as a beloved child. Treat them and the writer with respect, giving them your best in both content and delivery.

The panel offered so much valuable advice that I'm certain to have missed many points, but these made it onto paper:

• Don't self-edit while composing that first draft. Pour it all out and then go back to edit
• Be a developmental editor - evaluating character, pacing, plot, and voice - not just grammar
• Don't skimp on the fact checking (was there really a full moon on January 6, 1995?) and don't rely strictly on the web (unvetted and notoriously unreliable). Librarians are priceless resources.
• When considering a professional editor, especially for those going the route of self-publishing, carefully vet your choice. Some resources suggested: The Editorial Freelancers Association and Professional Editors Network

Sadly, I had to leave before the session was finished (hosting duties), but I was very happy I sat in on this one for as long as I could. Those editor association links alone will be invaluable IMHO.

MONDAY FORTUNE COOKIE, 10/22/12

Romance is likely; strike up a conversation!

SNARKY REPONSE: Just hope no one decides to strike you back! Fresh!

Romance is likely; strike up a conversation!

In a way, that's exactly what I've been doing all week-end at the James River Writers Writing Conference. This three-day event was held at the Richmond Convention Center and featured a diverse cast of talented speakers on a plethora of informative panels. And everyone from feature speakers to first-time attendees are in the throes of a serious romance with the written word in all her glorious forms.

From the welcome session to the closing 10th Anniversary Celebration, I was surrounded by writers seeking better ways to woo their chosen muse. Conversations always included the key question: "What do you write?" offering everyone the opportunity to share their love affair with writing openly with others who could understand and share the attraction.

View of the Conference Marketplace

Some of my takeaways were:

• Poetry Warm Up provided by author and performance poet, Allan Wolf, challenged us to consider where we were going to place our "pea of truth"
• Our First Page HAS to set place, person, and plot
• Resist the urge to edit while writing that "shitty first draft" - something that's often easier said than done
• Your blog should be the home page of your website to provide fresh renewed content for visitors with suggested updates of once a week at least, though daily (a concept that boggled my mind) would possibly annoy your readers - as Sabrina tells Linus in one my favorite movie quotes "sometimes more is just more"
• Your website "Contact Me" should not be a form but an actual "professional" email address - visitors are put off by the impersonal form
• Successful agent/editor queries are based on careful research - know who they are and why your book would fit their niche

While there were many wonderful pieces to the event, I felt it was beautifully book-ended by the Saturday First Pages critique, an always insightful though oft painful reading & critique of anonymous first pages and the Sunday Pitchapalooza where we listened to brave souls give a one-minute pitch in front of the entire assembly for critique by The Book Doctors and Alec Shane, agent.

If you've never been to the JRW Writers Conference, please be sure to put it on your short list for 2013.

MONDAY FORTUNE COOKIE, 9/1/12

Infinite patience produces immediate results.

SNARKY RESPONSE: Talk about an oxymoron! Infinite patience produces immediate results? Patience infers passage of time. And Immediate, well, now, I'm hearing that old joke about someone shouting at their microwave – Hurry!

Infinite patience produces immediate results.

Attempting a career of any kind requires a huge helping of patience. No one becomes successful alone. It takes time to build a groundswell of any size. Not to mention the patience it takes to produce a finished product like, say, a book.

To my knowledge, no successful writer has ever written a publishable book in one sitting. Certainly, there have been instances where a completed manuscript is highly satisfactory, but it is far from polished. After the story has been set down, there is editing for grammar and plot, fine-tuning of continuity and dialogue, filling in setting and character, to name a few. These steps are crucial and must not be skimped on if you hope to produce a polished work. Of course, if you're not interested in craft and just want to see you name in print in a self-published book, you might skip those steps, but skip them at your own peril.

Like words spoken in haste, a reader's experience with your book is something you can't erase.

Make sure that you've gone over every chapter/paragraph/word to make sure it was necessary, succinct, and factually/grammatically correct. Readers have enough books stacked up on their TBR pile that if they become disillusioned with your book for any reason, they can just shunt you aside for someone who did the work. Don't be That Writer.

All that work and patience may not result in immediate results, but it will guarantee consistent results—positive reviews and most importantly, Sales!

My enovella, The Festival of The Flowers: The Courtesan and The Scholar, took several years to finish and polish to the point where I could actually submit it to publishers. It found a home at The Wild Rose Press. And I'd like to think that all my work and then the work I did with my TWRP editor comes through to the reader.

Now, my second enovella, Collector's Item, is in the final stages of edits with my editor at The Wild Rose Press and once more I am glad that I have taken the time and practiced the patience required to produce what I hope will be a quality result.

As they say, anything worth being done is worth being done well! Or at least to the best of your ability. Short cuts only cut you short. Be patient with yourself, your writing, and your career and you will see positive results. I'm certain of it.

Following Through Can Win The Prize!

Any writer who has attended a writing conference has heard about pitch sessions and most have participated. In most cases, writers who have targeted the correct editor or agent for their type of writing will receive a request for submissions: a query letter, a synopsis, a chapter or two and sometimes a full manuscript.

Do Not Drop The Ball On This Opportunity!

This request is golden for writers aspiring to publication because it moves you out of the "unrequested" slush pile, into the "requested" pile, and that much farther up the line to being considered for publication. Of course, there are no guarantees regarding acceptance, but anything that ups your odds is a good thing.

As a result of this process, I'm thrilled to announce that my novella, Collector's Item, has found a home with The Wild Rose Press. Wow, that sounds so cut and dried. I'm actually loop-de-looping the moon and making noises that no woman of my age should make in public.

This all came about thanks to the Virginia Romance Writers For the Love of Writing Conference last May. There, I had the opportunity to pitch my novella to several agents and editors. I sent out my submission documents as requested and The Wild Rose Press requested the full manuscript.

I had been fortunate to make my first novella sale to them with The Festival of The Flowers: The Courtesan and The Scholar. Would lightning strike twice?

With a pounding heart, I sent Collector's Item to the Senior Editor of the Black Rose Line - their paranormal line. And after some discussion about and revision of my manuscript, they offered, and I accepted, a contract to have Collector's Item published as an enovella.

Major celebrations continue to be held, believe me! I've resigned myself to sounding like a teenager who just sighted the latest heart-throb. It would be embarrassing if I wasn't just so darned excited!

Now the hard work of polishing my novella for publication begins. Working with The Wild Rose Press on final edits, marketing information to be created, a cover to be designed, and a publication date to be set. But it's the kind of hard work we writers dream of while we craft our current Works In Progress.

May you have the same good fortune, if you haven't already. Just remember, Follow Through!