Tag Archives: Writers Resources

Authors Showcase, Gathering of writers

Local Authors Showcase: Showing your ware

Leave a comment

In my county there are a few times during the year that they hold what they call Author Showcases. It is designed for authors in the area to meet for the public to interact with. Sometimes they are successful while others not so much. I been doing these for a few years now and while inside I am full of butterflies once it starts it is just a lot of fun. The last one we had the show was moved to a Sunday afternoon. To help it be more successful we had a thunderstorm along with lightning and thunder to accompany us.

Upon arriving the crew that showed up only filled up a bit of the room. What I liked however was how I knew about 80 percent of the authors there. So while the day was not very successful I was able to hang out with authors and friends at the same time. Plus I made some new friends to boot. This is always a win for me.

What was funny was how my friend Joanna who was a table next to me said how every time she turned around to talk there was something sitting down talking to me. For an introvert such as myself I had to chuckle. Maybe I should have done like Lucy and charge 5 cents for each visitor. 🙂 Another plus was how authors gave me free books with no strings attached. I will definitely read and review as my way of saying thank you, even though they didn’t ask me for anything.

All and all the three house went by super fast. In a few months we will be doing another one and the venue will be bigger so I won’t get a chance like this one to mingle and talk to the other people. In a way I am glad it happened the way it did. I made new contacts, saw different and unique ways to set up one’s table and learned about options to expand my brand. The outcome was just as fun.

Finding ideas to write about, what's the topic?

How many ideas do you have to write about?

Leave a comment

 

 

Do you ever take a break from writing or is it with you constantly? I ask for one simple reason. My friend Adrianne said that I am always looking at objects, people and so on for possible story ideas. The funny thing is I had not noticed I did that until she brought it up. I so do this.

One member of one of my writing group made this statement. “I only have this idea the book I am working on.” That floored me and honestly the whole group. I personally have a few notebooks with pages and pages of ideas, summaries or plot scenes for potential novels. If I stopped adding ideas to this book and finished each one I would have to live another 100-200 years. And yet I add more ideas. It’s insane that I do this.

With me being a photographer as well I am always looking for “the shot” to capture so between these two fields it’ not surprising that my brain goes into this mode.

Is this something you do? Or do you work on one project, finish it and move on to another? Do you work on more than one project at a time? I know I do. Do you have ideas for multiple genres or primarily the one you work in? It keeps the mind active and ongoing which helps as we get older.

Maybe I need to write one of those prompt books that we see and use my ideas for that. Maybe someone could work on the idea further then I have. Nay. I just need to live for a very long time. 🙂

Hanging out with other writers, The shop talking of writing

Hanging out with fellow writers: Do you?

Leave a comment

Do you ever hang out with people and talk about the craft of writing? I started a new writing group in town and it will be kept it small so we can really dive into writing or talking about writing. I met with member Carl last Thursday to write. However his daycare couldn’t take his daughter in so he brought her along. So instead of writing we talked about it. It was marvelous.

Talking about the craft to my family will only get me so far before they lost interest. I get that. So when the chance arrives to talk about it with someone who is as passionate bout it as me good times ensures. It’s not about our writings or books, it is about plots, cCharacter development, pacing, dialogue, target audience, structure, writer’s block and so much more. This can happen in a one on one interaction, a group setting or conference. Where else can you get this electric vibe being a writer?

If you are not part of a group, form one. Since I started writing I have formed three different groups. The need to be with like-minded people is the driving force. If you can’t start one for whatever reason go online to a writer’s forum.There are enough out there. The exchange of ideas, the excitement of learning something new or finding a way to fix what you are working on is so worth it.

So even if it just one on one to a room full of writers the situation remains the same, talking about writing with another writer is amazing for they get what you are doing, they get what is so exciting about it and they won’t pish posh you.