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Sunday, April 5, 2015
Thursday, April 2, 2015
A Good Conference Equals Great Energy
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| Chesapeake Writing Workshop from bradrcook on instagram |
A Good
Conference Equals Great Energy
By Brad
R Cook
Over
the weekend I had the pleasure of attending the Chesapeake Writing Workshop and
had such a good time that I want to share my experience with the rest of you.
The
Chesapeake Writing Workshop was a two day, two city event part of a whole
network of conferences going on this year. I attended the second day of the
workshop which was held in Arlington Virginia, just across the Potomac River
from Washington DC. (Friday March 27 or Saturday March 28) Read more here - http://chesapeakewritingworkshops.com/
The workshop
is a one day event with lectures by Chuck Sambuchino of Writers Digest,
including pitch sessions and a first page read handled by several literary
agents. It’s everything a writer needs in a writing conference without taking
up the whole weekend or your entire budget.
In
fact, what I loved about the conference was the compact intensity. Don’t get me
wrong I love running off to a long conference and hanging with my fellow
writers over a series of days, but those can be prohibitively expensive. I know
several of my fellow attendees this weekend were from the area surrounding our
nation’s capital. For them this conference was nothing more than a tank of gas
and the price of the conference. (I’m
not providing the prices, because it depends on if you add pitch sessions or
query critiques and I don’t know if they change for each individual workshop or
not.) All of this information is available on their websites which are provided
in the links below. Or just click here - http://chesapeakewritingworkshops.com/
I chose
the Chesapeake Writing Workshop for several reasons, but it started when I
found Chuck Sambuchino’s blog post about the series of workshops he was
appearing at. I went through the ones that were closest to me, my family, and
friends, but really I was looking at which agents were taking pitches at certain
conferences.
I made
a list, picked my conference, and zipped off to our nation’s capital. If you
haven’t had the opportunity to hear Chuck Sambuchino speak I highly recommend
it. I first heard him at the Writer’s Digest Conference in New York, and then
when I was working on the Missouri Writers Guild Conference in 2014. He has a
way of laying out the job and expectations for writers that is both encouraging
and engaging.
Beyond
the great time I had talking to writers and pitching to a literary agent, the
energy that I am infused with after the event is worth the price of admission
alone. It’s like a shot of writing adrenalin. I write for hours on end with a jazzed up enthusiasm I wish I could bottle. The feeling will last for weeks and I can't recommend enough, if you're a writer and are feeling down - seek out a conference.
Now I have to get back to editing...
Now I have to get back to editing...
Jessica
Bell is the organizer of the writing workshops, and she did a great job managing not just this conference, but several this year. I also have to thank Alexis
Grant of The Write Life www.thewritelife.com
@thewritelife
Interested
in a writers conference? I wrote a post listing several happening in 2015, read
it here. http://www.thewriterslens.com/2015/01/conferences-for-writers-in-2015.html
To find
more of the writing workshops in this series jump over to Chuck Sambuchino’s
blog here. http://thewritelife.com/which-writers-conferences-are-the-best-to-attend/
Learn
more about Chuck Sambuchino here http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents or on Twitter @chucksambuchino
Thank
you to Jessica, Chuck, Alexis, and the other attendees – I had a blast and
would return again.
Brad R.
Cook is the author of the YA Steampunk Series The Iron Chronicles. http://www.amazon.com/Iron-Horsemen-The-Chronicles/dp/0989207951.
He is a contributor to The Writers Lens and Write Pack Radio. He currently
serves as Historian of St. Louis Writers Guild after three and half years as its
President. Learn more about his books and endeavors at www.bradrcook.com or on Twitter @bradrcook https://twitter.com/bradrcook. Follow
my blog Thoughts from Midnight on tumblr http://bradrcook.tumblr.com/
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Psychological thriller latest from award-winning author Amanda Williams
Links to Amanda:
What brings your writing into focus-- the characters, the stories, the love of words? The focus of my writing is the characterisations, narrative style, my love of words, good dialogue and scene setting. I always make sure I really know who my characters are, how thy operate, what their background is etc. I plot and re-plot for the story. I grew up surrounded by books and I love words, so good prose is an essential part of my writing as is good strong dialogue. The trick is to bring it all together into a good novel.
What do you think readers will like about your book? Just Two Weeks is a gripping psychological thriller which will keep you on the edge of your seat. It will take you on a journey where there are unexpected twists and turns. You will feel the presence of the characters and be transformed to the locations.
What’s your favorite writing accessory or reference? I work with the long edition of a Thesaurus by my side.
What's the highest compliment someone could make about your writing? A reviewer said Just Two Weeks is one of the best psychological thrillers she has ever read. Compliments to match this would be great.
If you could meet one of your characters, who would it be and where would you meet? I would like to meet Rob, Jo's (the protagonist's ex-lover) I would like to meet him in a pub for a drink.
JUST TWO WEEKS: Jolene’s two-week break in the sun turns into a
nightmare when she meets Raquel, another holiday maker.How could Jo have known this encounter would bring her past back to haunt her?
What does this woman want from her and is there really anyone she can trust?
After being made
redundant from a seemingly secure job, Jolene Carr takes a two-week break in the
sun. On the first day she meets Raquel, another hotel guest. Little does she
realise how this apparently innocent acquaintance will lead to terrible and
lasting consequences. After a frightening incident, she hits a conspiracy of
silence from the locals and over the rest of the holiday she feels herself
slipping into a vortex of fear. Back home, the nightmare continues and she
realises that Raquel is stalking her. Her hippie mother and her partner Mark
tell her she is imagining it all. All certainties, even about relationships,
become fluid and treacherous as her past begins to unravel. If it wasn't for
Rob, her ex-lover who Jolene thinks has his own agenda, she would be left to
cope on her own. How much fear and betrayal can one person
take?
Amanda’s second novel Just Two Weeks published by Golden Sand Books in 2014 won the IPR
Agents Pick in 2013.
Her first novel, The Eloquence of Desire was published by Sparkling Books in 2010 and has been translated into Turkish. She won an award for this novel in 2007 from the Royal Literary Fund.
Since 2006 when she first started writing, she has had many short stories published, including: Growing Pains by Bridgehouse Publishing, A Mother’s Love by Indigo Mosaic, Two Orchids by Sentinel Literary Quarterly, Unseasonable Weather by Dead Ink Press, The Woman at Number Six by Writing Raw, and many more.
Amanda has an MA in Creative Writing and Authorship from Sussex University and teaches
Creative Writing in Brighton:
www.amandasintonwilliams.co.uk
amandasingtonwilliams.wordpress.com
http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/amanda+sington-williams/just+two+weeks/11430541/
These are the links to her book:
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Broad Universe offers authors access to NetGalley reviews for low rate, per month
Reprinted from the Broad Universe page:
Broad Universe members and non-member authors can have their books posted on NetGalley, which allows reviewers, bloggers, booksellers, and librarians to download a digital review copy. This digital distribution service mimics the legacy process of sending out ARCs, or “galleys” to reviewers. Only it’s cheaper, easier, faster, more accessible, and kinder to the planet.
For only $25 per month for members [of BroadUniverse] or $45 per month for non-members, you can have a book posted to NetGalley. Once the book’s time on NetGalley is completed, you’ll receive a report with the names of reviewers who requested, downloaded, and reviewed your book, so you can track your results.
Info/link to application here: Use NetGalley to Reach Book Reviewers Worldwide | Broad Universe
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Two attorneys discuss “Digital copyright for analog writers” at 4/4 Guild workshop
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| Mike Nepple |
Attorneys Mark Sableman and
Mike Nepple will discuss “Digital
copyright for analog writers: Tips for protecting your creativity, your
contracts, and your skin” at a workshop from 10 a.m. to noon, April 4. It will be held at the Kirkwood
Community Center, 111 S. Geyer Rd, Kirkwood, Mo. Free to St. Louis Writers
Guild members; $5 for nonmembers
Sableman and Nepple of Thompson Coburn LLP will
provide an overview of contemporary copyright concerns, including recent
developments in fair use, use of social media content, and internet
infringement. They will also share practical tips on publishing and agency
contracts.
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| Mark Sableman |
Mike Nepple, also a partner at Thompson Coburn LLP, focuses his
practice in media and intellectual property litigation, and has participated in
a number of major copyright cases in Missouri.
Learn more about the St.
Louis Writers Guild at www.stlwritersguild.org.
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Karl Erickson: Multi-genre author keeps giving his readers something new
What brings your
writing into focus—the characters, the story, the love of words? Can I say all of the above? Well, if I had to
select one, I’d say that this is a character-driven story. One of the
ways I approach writing, in fact, is to complete a broad outline, then let the
characters take it from there. Some of my best dialogue, for instance,
was not really planned in advance, but it was the result of the flowing
interactions between my characters on the page—characters who feel very real to
me. The Blood Cries Out is all about its characters.
What inspired your
latest book? I wanted to write about
a real detective working a case that felt authentic and real
itself. Sense of place was also an important component for me. I
had a recurring image of my character sleuthing about Washington State’s
beautiful San Juan Islands, and I felt this would be a great setting for a
mystery. I wanted to explore a character who appeared to have it all
together on the inside, but who was an emotional wreck underneath.
Would you share a
bit about your next project? I’d
like to continue this series of mysteries, but I haven’t made a formal decision
on that yet. Right now, I’m having fun exploring a new genre: science
fiction horror. I’m trying my hand at writing something with a very
different feel from anything else I’ve written. It’s important,
after all, that people know that I’m more than a children’s author. Making the transition from children’s fiction, though, to an adult
mystery is a challenge, and I think it’s important to show my readers that I can
always write something new! This newest piece is tentatively
entitled “Alcatraz Burning,” and it will be a short story set in the
distant future.
How much fact is in
your fiction? Quite a
bit actually. I see my job as a mystery author to work the creative
within the framework of the real I researched police procedures
extensively for the book, and I personally have walked in virtually every
setting contained within my story. Mystery author and Seattle Police
Commander Neil Low even gave me a tour of the Seattle Police Department, which
was tremendously helpful.
The sixth chapter of the
book also details a family’s personal tragedy relating to a massacre from
the late 1800s. That part is a fictional adaptation of a real event that
happened to a friend and colleague of mine. His family also
found something old and forgotten that implicated the family in a terrible
crime in the deep past. I suppose this element really sparked much of the
rest of the story, since I did actually begin the novel with the sixth chapter.
What’s your favorite
writing accessory or reference? The
question reminds me of a photo I have of me from my late teen years. It
shows me engrossed writing at my desk. In the photo, I was surrounded by
photos, dictionaries, and a Robert Louis Stevenson novel. I think I was
trying to write a scene about ocean waves, and I was trying to get the language
perfectly. Today, I’d say photos and notes are probably the most
important references. I love taking photos, and these are often very
helpful in making descriptions of the settings within my stories.
THE BLOOD
CRIES OUT: Seattle Police Homicide Detective David
Lightholler finds himself on a case unlike any he's faced before. In the
midst of working the darkest double homicide of his career, he unearths violent
secrets of his family’s past that promise to haunt him for many years unless he
can bring redemption and meaning out of the evil of the past—and present.
You can buy THE BLOOD CRIES OUT at:
· http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-blood-cries-out-karl-bjorn-erickson/1119969158?ean=9781939828057
· http://www.powells.com/biblio/61-9781939828057-1
Sunday, March 22, 2015
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