Writing Retreat

What a wonderful eight-day writing retreat in Clearwater Lake, Ontario. No internet or cell phone. Just rainstorms, sunshine and my writing!

My total word count for eight days of writing: 14,652!!! Yes!

Dodging Our Industry's Snakes

When you come across people trying to run you down professionally, the best advice is to keep your head up. If they're being mean-spirited to get a rise out of you, remove yourself from the situation. If they display childish ways accompanied by an unsavory attitude, it's time to leave the business relationship. If you're under a contract, that could get messy. For your sake and legal purposes stick to your part of the contract until there's a resolution.

 

Please remember one thing; remaining professional is key. I understand it's hard, but some things are best left unsaid. Easier said than done, I know. However, our business leaves the majority of  us vulnerable to 'snakes in the grass.'  The kind of snakes that prey on aspiring writers and, believe it or not, some have cornered a seasoned writer or two.

A friend of mine who writes screenplays and has been in this business for over fifteen years became the victim of a scam. He met the person through networking, completed all of his research and wrote the script. Eventually he ended up going to court.

As for myself, I've been in the entertainment business of acting and writing since 2004 and I've experienced both the good and the bad. I'll tell you the good first and save the bad for another time.
When I took up acting I was blessed to have an awesome talent agent, Peter DeAnello, who played by the rules. He didn't charge a fee and worked with us to improve our craft. On the day that Peter signed me, he said, " 'You will have to develop a thick skin. Learn to accept criticism.' "

That same advice applies to us as writers. We all watched what happened when an author recoiled at a bad review and lashed out with rude comments. If you’re not careful that kind of behavior may come back to haunt you.

Our reputation plays an important role, especially, when trying to land a literary agent. I'm still honing my craft and learning the do’s and don'ts of this industry. I recently learned of the percentage of people who WILL NOT get a literary agent. Yikes, I thought.

So when I renew my subscription every year with Writer's Digest, order books or scroll the twitter and facebook feeds, I label it as work. Read, update, and learn your craft, so if you happen to come across that "unhealthy person," hopefully you will have enough information to stand on your own.

Running Away to Learn

Yes, I reminded everyone that I finished my third book three months ago. Do I think I have everything that needs to be in there after setting it aside and plugging away at it with fresh eyes? No. Is there always room for more research? Yes. Should I freak out after realizing I'm on my third draft? Absolutely not.

I can say that I'm happy with it and with each book, I continue to learn something new. So even though I feel my manuscript needs a rewrite,  I've decided to take advantage of this writer's retreat to research and refresh.

Starting out with six books, I already have my eyes glued to two of them that are a must.

March 18th: Leaving for an over due writer's retreat. I will be unplugging from the Internet - twitter, facebook, linked-in, my website and blog. Will pop in throughout the week to network and see if I'm missing anything.

March 20th: It’s absolutely gorgeous here and it hasn’t stopped raining since my arrival. My window faces the river where I can watch the barges move slowly upstream. The sounds of the trains are relaxing, especially in the evening. Started reading Conflict, Action & Suspense.

March 21st: Finished it and reading the 3rd Edition of Formatting and Submitting Your Manuscript.

March 23rd: Taking a break from reading. Went to town in hopes of finding a Starbucks, no such luck. Tinkering around with synopsis.

March 25th: Feeling homesick. I’m going home tomorrow knowing that I did more than just write. I’m taking back with me new and updated information.

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again; acquiring information is important. Even if you feel that you have it mastered, there is nothing wrong with refreshing your memory.

How we carry ourselves in our profession will show others how serious we are.

A Writer's Quandry for Query Round 1

Feb 1: My bed is my office for the moment, with everything stationed around me. This is round two for me... In 2009, I had a nibble when an agent requested a partial and then my heart sank when they said, "No thanks."

I'm thankful for the experience. I've kept my rejection email from that literary agent and posted it on my corkboard to serve as a reminder that I can do this. It helps keep me in line and focused. So I take what I've learned and add it to my research pile.

Feb 2: Had to rewrite my synopsis. I've researched the agents’ information to update my notes. My old notes are from 2009.

Feb 4: I'm beyond stressed and out of my mind. I so need a break from my completed manuscript. I want the editing done like yesterday, but again I really need a break.

Feb 6: For the last two days I took advantage and finished up one of my favorite books that I started a year ago. Now I'm antsy. Maybe I should just take a quick peek at Led By Lies.

Feb 8: I broke down. Looked at my manuscript with a fresh mind and started adding additions.

Feb 9: My mind is not allowing a vacation...Ideas for my next book in this series and notes for my previous seem to be on the front burner. Not to mention the editing and merging of additions are bringing chaos to my world.

Feb 10: Distracted and finding it hard to focus.

Feb 11: Midway through my manuscript and my energy is zapped. A friend of mine, told me to push it to the side and take a day off. I told her that it's not as easy as it sounds. I've set a schedule and have disciplined myself to take my writing very seriously. I think of my writing as work.

Feb 15: Now in my third week of prepping for submissions, with sixty pages left, the anxiety has kicked in. I'm no longer stressed. I got over that in week 2 after telling myself that we need to do this the right way and make it count instead of being sloppy and unprofessional.

Feb 16: I'm done with the additions and editing. It has taken me six weeks to get this far. It’s time for a fresh pair of eyes. My manager will read it in hard copy.

Feb 17: Looking over my query and synopsis...AGAIN. I'm starting to see the words dance before my eyes. I'm not sure about my query. There is something missing. Taking a break.

Feb 21: Hmmm...Well my weekend did not work out as planned. Other priorities demanded my attention. It was bound to happen seeing as I put several things off to finish my book, query and synopsis.

Feb 22: Things have settled down and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I must say that it has definitely been an adventurous two months

Feb 28: I've decided to rewrite my query. After doing more research I felt it was too bland.

March 15: It took two weeks to complete my rewrite. I can assure you it had nothing to do with writer's block. It had more to do with endless research, for which I'm very grateful.

March 18: As I bring this diary entry to a close I want to leave you with this: With all of the research I've done in the last year and a half, I've realized that you can never stop learning. A while back I was told that I should have all of my research done before starting a book. Well for me it doesn't work that way. Something always happens with one of my characters that require me to make sure that I have all of the correct information.

From researching a subject, agents or formatting, to traveling and attending conferences I feel that it is imperative that we use all of the resources at our disposal to hone our craft.

Staying Positive and Focused

For the last several weeks I've been dealing with a situation that tugged heavily on my heart. It shook the core of my business mentality as I sat quietly, waiting for answers to my questions. They never came and I felt a stabbing pain. I went over the, "I knew it," "What was I thinking?" and "I can't believe this."

I felt that I had to stand up for what I believed in and at the same time keep it all business. My frustrations I had to take in strides. Long strides...I'm blessed to say that it finally ended, but if asked if I would do it over again...well, yes. Of course I think of this as a lesson learned with a positive outcome.