Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Never Give Up, Never Surrender!

Writeoncon is just about the only writing conference an expat mother of three like myself can attend without major funds and planning.  So OF COURSE I’m going to milk it for all it’s worth.

And it is worth so much. 

Since Monday, I’ve gotten fantastic feedback on my query letter and first pages of KISSING FOR COFFEE.  I’ve also been able to stretch my critiquing muscles and read some really awesome material in so many different genres. 

When twitter tips us off that a Ninja Agent is making an appearance in the forums, it’s a mad rush to recheck your material and keep your eyes peeled.   The vlogs are chuck-full of information and personality- really bringing to whole process down to a human level.

But it’s the vlog by Beth Revis that has touched me the most so far.  Beth’s vlog was on failure.  She showed all the manuscripts she’d written that weren’t ‘the one’.  She shared how every time, she treated each as though it was- revised, edited, worked HARD on every single one and how discouraging and disappointing it was to look at all that hard work and think ‘FAIL’.

She showed us that behind one book that makes it, there are several drafts.  Hours of work.  And three feet of unpublished material that helped her obtain the right level of craft she needed to get there.

In the end, her vlog wasn’t really about failure at all.  It was about never giving up and always moving forward, as difficult as it often is.

Her message couldn’t have come at a better time for me and I could totally relate to everything she said.  Every writer who’s been out there in the query trenches for awhile should definitely see this.

Thanks so much Beth and WriteOnCon!

19 comments:

Sarah said...

That sounds awesome, and I'm so glad you got that message when you needed it! Hooray for useful feedback! I hope you feel like you have your momentum back!

Gina Ciocca said...

I so wish I could share your enthusiasm! I registered for WriteOnCon not realizing there was no forum for so-called "adult" literature (and I say it that way because I still don't see how college girls are adult lit). I posted my stuff in the forum called "Other", and it's turned out to be No Man's Land. Neither agent nor attendee has dropped by to offer feedback or encouragement. I'm so lonely over there! :(

Cristina said...

that's so awesome! thanks for sharing

Creepy Query Girl said...

awe Gina! I'm so sorry- that stinks! I've heard about a discussion going on about 'new adult' lit- which sounds like something that might concern you.

Old Kitty said...

Yay for your feedback!! Glad you are having a great time at the WriteOn Con!!

I'll have to get back home from work to see the vlog - sounds amazing!! Take care
x

Shain Brown said...

I saw her vlog and it was amazing. The time, the work, and the care in making sure each project was the absolute best.

One manuscript a year for ten years and then publication. Wow, is all I can say. Beth you are awesome.

And Gina, I am there with you. I write adult, but I have many YA friends and read YA blogs. I look anywhere I can to find things that will make me a better write. Good Luck.

Christine Danek said...

Beth's post was great. I really loved it. It's true you must keep at it, and each draft may not amount to anything other than a lessoned learned, but you did it.

Jamie Grey said...

I haven't had a chance to watch Beth's vlog yet, but it's on my list! I will say Lindsey Leavitt's vlog this morning made me all teary eyed - she's just so cute!

And good luck with the feedback on your query! I've gotten some good stuff on mine too - I think it'll really help :)

Yay for WriteOnCon!

Dianne K. Salerni said...

You had me when you quoted Galaxy Quest. :D

I'll have to check out Beth's vlog to see the story of failure behind her success. Of course, she is totally right.

And about all those manuscripts that weren't "the one" -- I still think there's something to be said about tearing them apart and re-envisioning them until they are "the one."

Karen Lange said...

I've heard great things about the conference. Haven't been able to get there yet, but hoping to stop by today.

April Plummer said...

I wish I hadn't missed out on it, but since we just got back from vacation, I didn't have time to join in...which figures since, like you, it's likely the only writer's conference possible for me to attend!

JEM said...

I love Beth! I haven't had a chance to check out WriteOnCon (I know, I KNOW), but I'm looking forward to peeking over there today!

Heather said...

I did WriteOnCon last year and it rocked, seriously rocked! It is such an amazing opportunity. Thanks for the heads up on the query trenches post. I'm off to check it out! And best of luck to you during the conference!

Kelly Polark said...

Writeoncon has been amazing! And I love when writers like Beth give us this support and encouragement to KEEP GOING!
See you over at the forums and chats!! :)

Johanna Garth said...

Kudos to Beth for putting that out there. I always find it so interesting when you hear people talk about their debut novel because you know that anyone with a "debut" novel has three others sitting at home unpublished on their hard drive.

Anonymous said...

I'm going to stop by the conference after it's over to catch up with everything. I read a post now and then.

I couldn't resist the link. It's about failure, yet absolutely inspiring.

Anonymous said...

Awesome. Post.

:D

Nicole L Rivera said...

Congrats Katie!!!

Matthew MacNish said...

I didn't have as much time for WOC this year as I did last year, but it was still awesome.

Also: Beth rules!

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