Sorry I haven’t written for a couple of days, but I’ve been busy busy at the conference. It’s been a very positive experience, and here are some of the things I’ve learned:
- A lot of the people here write science fiction and fantasy. And the stories are all very different from each other.
- Character may be more important than plot in hooking an agent in.
- My work is good — I was told by one editor that my work was “going places.” I hope so.
- The same editor told me I need to back off on the novels (high effort) and start writing some short stories to submit to journals. I have 5-6 novels, none sold yet. He is probably right.
- The same editor teased me about my character padding her calves to look like a man, saying that several females he knew had more muscular calves than he did. Well, shit.
- Comp titles (“Twilight meets Hunger Games”) really exist for a reason.
- I made a friend who’s about my age who introduced me to Broad Universe, a writing space for women (love the pun) and might get me into a critique group if there’s a space.
- I made another friend in Kansas City (about my age) who writes stuff with similar worldview quirk (turning mythologies on their head).
- I need to put the fact that I was a runner-up in Cook Publishing’s Short Story contest in my query letter.
- I need a business plan
- I need a marketing plan (this blog is part of it)
- I need to quit using so many dashes — and ellipses …
- The conference has coffee service ALL DAY.
That’s probably not everything, but the experience has been affirming and I’m a little giddy thinking about it. I’m sure the impostor syndrome will take hold tomorrow, but for now, I feel like a writer.
Words Like Me 