Biting the Bullet

Well, I've gone and done it. I submitted my most current WIP in a contest. I've bitten that bullet very, very hard! But I know I need some more feedback on that WIP, and hopefully I'll get more good than bad.

So this blog post is two-fold. First, do you think about submitting to contests? At all? Once in a while? I hadn't really thought about it that much, the main reason being I'm so new at this writing business and I still have a lot to learn. Then I told myself that I've already learned a lot.

I finally started paying attention to all those contests posts I send through to the chapter all the time. I found one that I thought would would be beneficial to me. It's the Missiouri Romance Writers Gateway to the Best. They guarantee three experienced judges will look at each entry, with the grand prize winner having her mss looked at and critiqued in full by a published author and the final judges being editors from major publishers like Avon, Grand Central, and Harlequin, as examples.

Now, though I do hold a smidgen of hope and confidence that I could win, I'm just darned happy to get the feedback from one or more of these judges. What a wealth of help that would be!

Of course, it's our own Sarah who got me thinking about entering contests at all. Her enthusiasm over her entries, even despite a rough and mean-spirited-like critique from one judge, was definitely catching. And when she shared her good news that she'd actually finaled, well, who could resist that??

So, Sarah, thanks for all that wonderful exuberance! You know we're all pulling for you!

Second, how do you feel about contests as a whole? Even if you've never entered your work in one, do you think they're worth the time and the money? Is that worth getting any feedback on your story? Is it worth maybe getting negative feedback?

And if you did get negative feedback, what then? If it's only one judge, pfffft to them and go on? If three judges for whatever reason give you feedback you'd hoped to never get, would that be enough for you to finally say well, I knew writing wasn't for me, so there's the end of that dream? Or would it just straighten your spine a little more and push you back to the drawing board?

Of course, the converse is worth talking about. What if??? What if you got wonderful feedback, they really liked your work, you need to do a little extra editing and revising and maybe you can win next time! What if you actually won this time around??? There's always the possibility, so why not take the chance?

Is it fear of what someone will say about your work that keeps you from entering a contest? It's a 50-50 toss-up on which way it could go. Have you been sitting on the fence for a while, trying to decide if you should enter?

I finally decided that I need to know. Know something at least. Whether I really have the knack and talent to write. Whether I'm going in the right direction with my story if I do have the knack. Do I have enough in my story, enough emotion, enough conflict, enough of a dark moment, enough whatever it takes to keep it going. I want to to know some or even all of that and whatever else the judges give me.

I've decided it's all worth the risk. How much risk are you willing to take?

What's Your Tagline?

I just updated our website with information for our newest published member, C.C. Wiley, and I really like her tagline. Passion and adventure worth fighting for. That got me to thinking about what our other authors' taglines are and if any of our pre-published members have thought about taglines. How important is a tagline to an author?

Our authors write in a variety of genres. C.C. is an historical author, so her tagline does her justice. The title of her first book is Knight Dreams, and I'm sure there will more such titles in her future. Stacey is an historical author but she focuses on westerns. Take a wild ride is perfect for her and her books. And in her video trailer she uses Unleash the West!, another terrific tagline. Our Melissa's tagline is Romance full of snark, which if you know Melissa, there's not a better fit for her stories.

How difficult was it for you to come up with your tagline? Was it a process that took months? Or did you just get lucky and it came to you out of the blue? Did you come up with several to choose from and that made it hard to pick one? Or was there no question when you found the right one, no further searching was necessary?

For those of you out there still working toward publication and if you have thought about a tagline, have you done research to make sure it's not used by someone else? Did you think it through as far as down the road if you consider writing in a different genre, will it still work for you then? Or is a tagline all that important to you now? Or even later when you are published?

I also noticed that several of our published authors do not have a tagline. Did you choose not have to have one? Or still thinking about it maybe? There's time to find one later? If you've chosen not to have a tagline, what was your reasoning at the time for that decision? Is it something you might rethink down the line? Or you just feel one isn't needed? Are you just undecided, still trying to figure out what the best tagline is for you?

Lastly, what's your opinion about how effective taglines are? Do they work? It's branding. If a reader, agent, editor, whoever sees it enough, will it stick so that they will remember you and buy your book the next time they see one in the bookstore, ask for your full manuscript when a partial or your query letter comes across their desk? Is it worth the headache going to all the trouble to figure one out?

Personally I like taglines. When it's the right tagline for the right author, I think they work. It's just an added extra something that makes up the complete package when it comes to your books. But that's just me. What about you?

Sandy

What's Your Routine?

I'm one of the really new newbies to the writing world. Not even twos years yet from the date I made the decision to do try my hand.

My first attempt at writing was done on the typical old yellow legal pad - in the car on the way to an RWA chapter meeting, no less. Then I graduated to the computer. On my own that's all the forward movement I've had.

In collaborating with a friend, we did sit down together and brainstorm - storyline, characters, etc., etc. I enjoyed that quite a bit. Haven't really done it since then, however.

Chapter meetings are always a learning experience and eagerly anticipated. I've learned to storyboard and critique, just to name a couple of things. And I know there will much more learning to come.

But sometimes I say to myself, "There has to be more." "There has to be a better way." "How do others do it?"

So that is my question to all of you today. "How do you do it?"

Do you have a ritual when you write?

Do have a certain procedure that never changes when you write?

Do you have a designated area where you write?

Do you have certain items in your writing area that you utilize now and then during writing?

Do you have a favorite resource you keep handy when you write?

What do you do when you get stumped while writing?

Do you do anything special to become motivated to start writing?

How do you keep distractions to a minimum?

Or is all you need your computer?

I'm not sure why the answers to the questions may or may not help me in my endeavor. Especially since I know there's probably a million questions I didn't think of to ask. I think writing would go better if there is some type of routine, but I haven't found anything that works yet.

Did any of you start out feeling this way? Or is writing one those things that just seems to come easy to you? If not, how did you remedy your situation to make things more conducive to continue your craft?

So tell me, what's your routine?


Sandy

Love Those Little Movies?

Since we've been talking about video trailers the last couple of days, I'm curious about everyone's opinion concerning these little movies.

Do you usually view them when you're at an author's site, promo site, bookstore site like Amazon.com, or anywhere else on the net?

Or do you only check out those of your favorite authors'?

Has a trailer piqued your interest enough that you've actually bought the book? Or do you just think you might and don't really make the effort to head to the bookstore?

Does it make you look at a genre differently, one you normally don't read but now think you might based on a trailer?

Do you even like the video trailers at all? Are they a waste of time for you? You can take'em or leave'em?

As an aspiring author, do you think you'll invest in one when you become published?

Published authors, have you found your trailer to be effective for you? Do you get good feedback on them, letting you know they're working as far as sales? Would you do it again on your next book?

Do you think other means of advertising are more effective? Less effective?

Take a look at Stacey's video again:



If you were to think about having a trailer created for your current WIP, how would you want it to be seen? Do you even think about that at this point?

Have you checked into video trailers at all to know more about them? Talked to an author to find out if they're worth the time and effort?

What's your favorite video trailer? Once you read the book, did the trailer represent the book to your satisfaction?

Did you know that the term "book trailer" is copyrighted? Yep. You can't use that lovely term willy-nilly. COS Productions holds that copyright.

Enough questions? Or have you thought of something I didn't ask? Give it to me!

Sandy

The Learning Curve by Sarah Simas

I’ve been a new wife, a new mom and now a new writer. Each time, I had the bone-headed idea learning curves didn‘t apply to me.

Although my days as a “new” wife are long gone, my husband won’t let me forget the horrid Three Mustard Chicken I cooked our dog even refused to eat. Lucky for me, he didn’t channel the male species’ innate sense of self-preservation. Had he declared me the next Paula Deen, I wouldn’t have forced myself to open Betty Crocker’s Bridal Edition Cookbook.

Obviously, Betty knew husbands were out there starving to death.

Now I can cook most anything. I’ve yet to see him take a bite and go running for the sink with his hand over his mouth!

When I had kids … well, let’s just say I’m flabbergasted the nurse let me leave the hospital, much less, waved as I drove off with a defenseless baby. I’m sure every time I called the pediatrician, his nurses fought over who’d have to take the “Crazy Lady’s” call. Yet after three years, I feel confident, safe even, being locked inside a house ALONE with three toddlers.

Then I decided to write a romance novel. I’ve read the darn books for years, which is the same as experience, right? I even practiced my signature in preparation for my future book signings. Wanting an adoring fan club, I joined a writer’s group, knowing I’d be hailed a literary genius.

I’m fairly certain my face mirrored the same look of shocked horror I wore when I saw my hubby gagging on his mustard chicken. Yikes! My pages bled! I was afraid I’d leave a trail of red ink out the door.

Was I shocked? Yes.

Did my disappointment keep me from moving forward? No.

Instead, I refused to give up. I asked questions and took notes. I latched on like a barnacle to writers who were willing to show me the ropes. Now seven months later, I no longer write with my head in the clouds or in the 1980s.

I’ve learned things like the importance of word choice and sentence structure. By not giving in to my fears, I’m a lot closer to achieving my goals. I belong to two writers' groups and can’t believe how much my writing has improved. My continued progress keeps me motivated. I’m going to savor the feeling of writing “The End” as much as the day I got my son to sleep through the night.

So join a group! Get out there!

I’ll be just as grateful to the woman who told me my son’s desire to eat dirt was just a phase as I’ll be to the people who said stop worrying and just write the book. Yes, I’m still learning, but I’m enjoying the ride a lot more, because I’m surrounded by people who have the same desires.

The only way I can fail is if I were to throw in the towel. I didn’t then and I won’t now.

So ask yourself, how bad do you want to succeed and what are you willing to do to achieve your goals?

For me, it was simple: I took a chance. Will you?

Sarah

Second Times's a Charm?

Or so I'm hoping. I took June's advice and checked out Blogger. So right, June, this is soooo much easier! Easier to get it up and running, easier to post, easier to read, Stacey, and easier to comment, Ginny.

LOL, I know someone's not going to like something I've set up, but, well, you can't please everyone and that's life. We're up and running and we're staying exactly like we are!

Now, you do have to register with Blogger to participate, but, as I said, they're easy, so everyone please do sign up, even if you choose not to participate right now. I believe I've set it up that only members can comment, so even to do that, you must be a member of Blogger too.

I've reposted the two bloggings I've done since January, so if you'd like to still comment on those, especially the one from the beginning of the year, please do so.

We do have the option of hosting this blog somewhere other than Blogger, so that's something I'll have to see if we can do with our particular host. I don't know that what Blogger means is every other host on the internet, but I'll be looking into it. If not, we'll just link it from our site to Blogger.

Enjoy!

A New Year Begins

Previously Posted January 1, 2009 by SandyM.

On this first day of the new year of 2009, some of us mayhap have made those resolutions that we’re either very good at keeping or very good at not keeping. Myself, I’m not so good at it. Goals are mostly elusive for me too. I do even procrastinate to a point, but then when push comes to shove, I knuckle down and get the job done. Maybe it’s my choice of career for the last 20-some years that’s made me one who can reasonably deal with pressure. Maybe I just let the old water flow off my back and keep looking forward after the stress has been eliminated. Even though I may procrastinate, I’m fairly optmistic. So I do see the bright side, the silver lining, the light at the end of the tunnel in most situations. Guess maybe I’m a contrasting work in progress.

Since our January meeting will consist of creating writing goals for the next year, I thought our first blog of 2009 could go hand in hand with that meeting. What would you like to see happen with, at, for YRW over the next twelve months? We had our first big change when we introduced the structure of our monthly meetings after much discussion among our members. We know we are going to grow and continue to change not only throughout 2009 but also well into the future. So. Is there something specific you’d like to see happen? A particular program to implement that you think might work for us? A different way of doing something that will benefit the Chapter as a whole?

Suggestions, ideas, discussions, advice, plans, proposal, heck even extortion will work if it’s beneficial and they’re all welcome! We’d love to hear what you think, what you’ve seen, what you’ve heard, what you want. I can’t guarantee that what you share with us will be, can be, should be implemented or carried out, but I can guarantee that we’ll listen, consider, discuss, scrutinize, contemplate whatever passes through our hallowed halls, figuratively speaking of course.

I propose our first goal for our members is continuing our Blog. We have a terrific and varied membership that even if you’re skittish about talking about yourself, your life, your writing, your kids, your job, whatever, blogging here every couple of months should help you get over that phobia and eventually make it fun for you, as well as the rest of us! I mean, it will be just like talking to your girlfriends over a glass of wine or like those nostalgic slumber parties we all remember back when we were teens. We learn from one another, support one another, and cheer womankind on. (Okay, Bob, I realize you don’t have those experiences in your past, but look at all this as a way to get those female characters down perfect!)

Advice is welcome, secrets are sacred and safe, fun is to be had, ideas are fruitful, support is demanded, and sisterhood is sweet. Let’s revel in what we’re thankful to have, happy to share, and loquacious in what we want and need.

So wanna turn blogging? I’ll start a schedule. You give me a month.