Experiencing Literary Nirvana

keep-calm-its-only-a-first-draft-1To a writer, the nirvana experience is better than sex… and I’m not joking.

Most writers are looking for a way to pump out their first novel, as quickly as possible. A fast first draft would be a gift, afterwards you can spend a full six months to a year revising it, if you like. Maybe, you already have a novel, shoved in your desk drawer, you’ve spent the past seven years editing or ignoring? Don’t feel too bad; I have approximately fourteen of them pressed into a few binders, nestled nicely on the bottom shelf of my office bookshelf.

Yes, you read that correctly, I said fourteen. Or is it fifteen?

You see, now I’ve lost count. Anyway, with each novel that I have attempted to write, I get a little bit better at figuring out the best way of approaching the creation of a novel. Practice, practice, practice is how you win the big publishing contract, or so I am told. In my opinion, trying to write the first draft of your novel all at one time is definitely the way to go. A deadline. That’s the true secret. You sit down in your chair and you pound the keyboard until time is up.

How do you make that happen?

Read more

10 Reasons to Attend a Writers’ Conference

SAM_0194
Master Class with Wayson Choy ~ OWC 2014 (Photo by Lori Twining)

A Writers’ Conference is a place where writers gather together to celebrate the craft of writing. Writers are inspired, educated and are able to connect with other writers of all levels (beginners to advanced). A conference provides writers with the opportunity to network with other professionals: writers, authors, editors, agents and publishers. It also encourages writers to write, to publish, to promote and sell their own work.

New writers fear attending a writers’ conference.

“I’m not a real writer. Conferences are for real writers, they’re not for me.”

Published writers avoid writers’ conferences.

“I’ve been published already. I could teach every one of those workshops listed on the schedule. I don’t need to go to a conference.”

I disagree. Writers’ Conferences are for ALL writers. There is something beneficial about attending a conference at least once a year. I was lucky enough to attend two writers’ conferences this past year, and one was a newbie conference, so it had it’s issues, but overall, there was something awesome for me at both of them. Read more