Jessica Bayliss
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It's a Writer Thing #22: Seemingly Inconsequential Events

4/28/2018

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Hello, Wonderful Writers!
 
The author journey is long. Long. It takes forever to get an agent. Even when you sign with one, it can take months to years to sell your book. Then you wait for it to come out. And to get the next book deal. In between, there are a lot of things to wait for: people to read and give you feedback, wait times until reveals and announcements, delays in getting an answer so you can move on to something else.
 
This process takes a LONG time.
 
But, it’s not all an endless, sweaty slog along a dusty trail. I swear. There are many bright spots along the way. Today, I want to talk about something else that happens during the writing journey: a bunch of seemingly inconsequential events that actually are really important.
 
I learned this concept as a psychology pre-doctoral intern, leading a CBT psychotherapy group for people in recovery from addiction. One of our therapy concepts was Seemingly Inconsequential Decision: or, the little, unimportant choices we make daily that keep us stuck in a loop that replays our addiction. The decision to get gas here instead of there (because here just happens to be near the market where we buy our cigarettes or the bar we like to stop at after work). The decision to skip a workout, which leaves more time open, which means we might get bored, which increases the chances that we’ll want to hang out with the wrong crowd. In therapy, by helping clients see how these seemingly unimportant events are actually important, they gain greater insight and more muscle to power forward in their recovery.
 
Right now you’re probably like: 1) what does this even have to do with writing? and 2) I thought this was supposed to be motivational; how is this positive?
 
I’m getting there, I swear!
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So, as writers, this holds true for us in a potentially positive way. Though that journey from first words typed and published book is long, there are always other things that happen along the way that contribute to our success, though we may not know how until later. Here are examples from my journey. I’ll call them “Trail Markers,” because I just love an extended metaphor. (The most important thing to keep in mind is: this looks like such a nice string of lovely things, but at the time, I couldn’t see the string at all. It’s only now, as I look back, that I can see how each event was an important step on the path to my larger success.)
 
Trail Marker 1: I told my dear friend, the one whose quote I use at the end of these posts and who has now passed from cancer, that I was writing. She was ecstatic (no one celebrated others’ successes with as much joy as her), and she was kind enough to put me in touch with a writer friend of hers, the fabulous Abby Sher, author of AMEN, AMEN, AMEN. Abby was willing to look at a sample of my writing and give me some resources! One of them had to do with SCBWI and writers groups.
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Trail Marker 2: I joined a critique group that I located through those materials. That group wasn’t the best fit for me, so I ended up joining another one, which also wasn’t the best fit for me, so I found another one in the summer of 2013. In that group, I noticed an old friend, the wonderful Cristina Dos Santos, who I’d lost touch with maybe seven years prior, but who was apparently writing. I reached out to her, and she invited me into her writers’ group.
 
Trail Marker 3: That group was the right fit. Those ladies are now some of my best friends. Now, I have all these new best friends!
 
Trail Marker 4: One of them told me about a small press looking for stories for an anthology. So I wrote one, and that ended up being my first accepted story. That wasn’t the end of my journey; getting into an anthology wasn’t my end goal, but it was a fabulous success that motivated me and led to more opportunities. One of the authors on that anthology became one of my current CPs; we still trade manuscripts.​​
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Trail Marker 5: Later, I was invited to attend an author workshop with one of those writer group friends (the fabulous Janae Marks, whose book, FROM THE DESK OF ZOE WASHINGTON, comes out next year), and I chose to attend a Middle Grade romance talk; I used what I learned there to write the second short for the small press.
 
Trail Marker 6: And that got accepted. No, it wasn’t an agent offer or a book deal, but it was so cool, and it led to more opportunities. That anthology was all MG horror stories, and one author in particular has a successful MG/YA horror series.
 
Trail Marker 7: Later, when I was working on a MG horror, I had some questions, and so I reached out to that author, Ty Drago, of THE UNDERTAKER SERIES. He was very open to talking to me since we were in the anthology together, and he was super helpful.
 
Trail Marker 8: Later, he came to me and asked if I’d like to help read submissions for his lit mag, Allegory Magazine, and I was like, “Sure!” Becoming an editor on the project wasn’t the end of my road either, but I learned SO much about story by reading those submissions; it helped me get better at writing. I also got to give other authors their yes-moment, and there’s nothing like that.
 
Trail Marker 9: Later, when I had an opportunity to be a mentor for PitchWars, I felt very confident I could help other authors with their books, and my work with Allegory helped there. Being a PitchWars mentor isn’t the end of my journey either, but now, through that, I’ve met SO many other authors, and I’ve learned from them, been supported by them, and helped to support them back. (The thrill I get when I ask authors to send me their full MSs is almost as exciting as when I was the recipient of such emails). And my mentee got an agent!
 
There’s more. I could go on. For example that same small press put out a call for novellas, so I wrote one, and that book, BROKEN CHORDS was published last year. Ty was kind enough to write a blurb for me. Because I wrote that novella, I was invited to Palm Peril in February, and I got to be on a panel and have dinner with R. L. Stine. This string of events never ends. If I come back in three months, I will see how it has grown again.
 
All of these things were little boosts along the way, but none was the ultimate end of my journey. It wasn’t like I started writing saying “Being a Pitch Wars Mentor is my goal,” but all of these things were endpoints in and of themselves anyway. They were all small successes that not only helped buoy me and keep me motivated for the longer hike, they also opened new opportunities that absolutely support my success long term. And, they’ve been hugely fun and rewarding and satisfying. I’ve learned from them. I’m growing every day.
 
So, my points here are: 1) you never know what one opportunity will lead to in the long run. 2) the journey may be long, but there are many, many places to pause and simply enjoy the view along the way. 3) You just have to get a little ways down the path before you’ll be able to see how these things have all been instrumental in your success.
 
What seemingly inconsequential evens have opened new paths for you on your author journey? Leave your stories in the comments. I’d love to hear them.
 
A huge hug to Amber Gregg for having me back on Judging More Than Just The Cover, and until next time, remember: You can do it! You can write!

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It's a Writer Thing: Why I Write

2/24/2018

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I came to writing at a time when I was tired, worn out, burned out. I’d just finished my degree in psychology, which involved many years of classwork, exams, and applying for multiple training positions—many of which required competing against other students for scarce spots. For a decade, I did little for me other than my absolute necessities. I missed sleep, I missed parties, I missed trips. I stayed home when everyone else went and had a good time.

I told myself it was worth it.

And ten, a decade later, I was done, and instead of feeling energized, I was tired. And so I wrote. I wrote not knowing if I’d finish my first book. I wrote not knowing how to write at all, not really, not the way that works for fiction, but I did it anyway. And before that first book was done, I was ready for more and ready to put myself out there. My first queries met with only rejection, which was appropriate—they were terrible—but at that time, I didn’t understand how to make them better. All I knew was that I wasn’t good enough, which was hard. I thought of giving up, but as the stress built—from work, from rejection, from everything else in life—I needed to get it out, and so I wrote.
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​Critique groups are hard. You go to get feedback, critiques, which, by definition, focus on the things you’re doing wrong. All I wanted was to be told, You can do it! You can write! But I got track-changes and properly-paced commas; and I lost filler and filter words. And I lost my voice. I came home one day, frustrated and beaten down, and my husband asked why I kept doing it if it made me unhappy, and I said that I didn’t know. I was done.

But.

The next morning, my chair was waiting, and my coffee was hot, and my computer was charged, and I sat down, and I wrote. My husband was surprised, he thought I quit, but I only shrugged. “What else am I going to do?” And so I wrote.

Eventually, I got that You can do it! You can write! but not from fellow writers. It came from someone who believed in me even though she had zero reason to believe in me. I hadn’t proved a thing to her, but that didn’t matter. She believed, and so I wrote.
​Three years in, I finally found my writer tribe, and they taught me SO much. And then life happened, reminding me that utter ruin is just around the corner. No matter how well you prepare and how hard you work, you can still end up with nothing. Then life took people I loved—including my cheerleader—and bestowed disease on people I can’t bear to lose. And the rejections kept coming, as if everything in my life was okay. As if could handle one more letdown. And I coped with the stress the only way I knew how; I wrote. Until the day I didn’t get a no. That day, four years into my journey, I got a yes. 

My first yes.

My mom still had cancer, and the future was still uncertain, but my story was going to be published in a real book, and it was the most incredible moment of my life. Even to this day. I will never forget what that email was like. I had leveled up. New things were now possible. Everything was possible. I’d done it. And I was more motivated than ever, and so I wrote.

I didn’t sleep for about two weeks after that, because every time I tried, that excitement came back. And it was a good thing, because for the first time in over a year, I was not-sleeping for a good reason. The stories filled my brain, and I woke up, tired but exhilarated, and I wrote them. 

That one yes helped ease the no’s that came right after, but then something amazing happened. Another yes. And then another one. And then, a maybe—from an agent. An agent! My first requests came in, and I was sure it was going to happen. It. I’d be a writer. For real. And so I wrote.

Then the big disappointment. The day the call came, but it wasn’t the real call. It was my lowest point of all. Everything that had happened in the months prior came down on me, and it was like all that potential I’d seen had been smoke and mirrors. I cried. Then I stopped. And the info from the call that wasn’t the call was running through my brain, and before the redness had left my eyes and the stuffiness had left my nose, I wrote. 
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The possibilities and potential weren’t gone. More good things came. The competition, the call that was the call, then the offer. With these things came more excitement than I can capture in words, but they brought stress and uncertainty and self-comparison and not-measuring-up. At times, I realized that, though six years had passed since I typed the first words, I almost felt like I was in the same place. And so I wrote, because nothing eases the stress of being a writer like writing, like the story in my head.

In mere months, my book will be out, and I have no clue what that road will be like. It will definitely be exciting, and I’m sure I’ll have more sleepless nights—the good ones—but I’m sure I’ll have some of the bad, too. But I’ll be okay, because over the eight years since I started this “hobby,” I’ve learned so much, I’ve met incredible people, and I have a fabulous team behind me (including my mom, who’s doing well!). I can’t control what people will think of my book. All I can control is what I do next. The thing I’m most grateful for is that the writing never stopped being fun, exciting, and energizing. It’s still the thing that gets me through. I really hope people love my book, but if they don’t, there will be another book. I don’t know that, not yet, but I know it all the same. And, in the meantime, I’ll write. Because what else am I going to do?

NB: Last month, I wrote a post about my journey, and this is the same story, but not a story of dates and milestones. In some ways, this is the real story. To all the Wonderful Writers out there, if you’re looking for your cheerleader, let me be it. As long as you’re writing, you’re a writer. As long as you don’t quit, you can’t fail. And, never forget: You can do it! You can write!
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It's a Writer Thing Post #20: Looking back

1/8/2018

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​Happy New Year, Wonderful Writers! I took a break from posting during December so I could focus on writing/editing and also enjoy the holidays. I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season and are ready for a new year of writing, reading, and moving forward toward your goals.

The start of a new year is a time when I always stop and think about where I am and how I got here. I often reflect on my path to my first career as a psychologist and all the things I accomplished. My favorite way to do this is to reflect on all the things that I’ve done/achieved or are happening now that weren’t part of my life 1 year ago.
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For writing, for example, one year ago, I didn’t have the book deal for my debut novel, TEN AFTER CLOSING. I sit here writing this post on January 8th, and the offer came the evening of January 9th. It’s hard to put myself back to what it felt like to be in that place, waiting to see if my first experience with submission would go well or end in disappointment. Out of all my writing challenges, the hardest time was the interim between my agent telling me we had very strong interest on my book and the day the offer came. 

When I first started writing, which was late 2010, I started as a hobby. I literally had a conversation with myself about how I needed a new hobby, and I thought it would be fun to see if I could write a novel. I finished my first one about a year later, and I already knew I wanted to pursue a career in writing. (You can read my post about how I queried pretty much as soon as I finished that book, even though it was not even close to ready, right here. LOL!) I didn’t start 
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to really connect with other writers with professional goals until 2012, and I met my writing group in 2013. At that time, because of them (I <3 you, Novelists!!!!), I began to learn a ton about the industry, and it’s around then that I read my first How I Got My Agent/Book Deal posts. I remember reading posts from authors where it took them five years, or a decade, or 5, 7, 10 books to get from start to agent offer, and I was like, “Wow! That’s a long time. I don’t think I can do that. I’d probably give up.”

Shame on me! Now, I know better. ​

​I love writing so much, I’m ready to stick it out as 
long ​as necessary to reach whatever success is waiting for me. But back then, it just felt so daunting. 

​And here I am, ready to do the math. So, how long did it take me? 

- Fall 2010: Started writing November, I think)
- Summer 2011: Told a dear friend I was writing, and she wrote me a note with my favorite inspirational phrase
which will sound familiar if you follow my posts): You can do it! You can write!
- December, 2011: 1) First book done (but not  fully revised; I finished revisions in summer 2015. Starting with book three, my revisions started taking way less time, but my first two books were a hot mess and I still had SO 
much to learn.)  2) First (highly misguided) queries sent.
- January, 2012: Asked a writer, who was a friend of a friend, for some info/resources, and found my first critique
group through SCBWI.
- July, 2013: Connected with my writing group! (YAAAAYYYY!!!!!!!!!)
- November, 2013: Second book done (but not fully revised; I finished revisions in Feb. 2016).
(Here’s where things heat up because I started plotting.)
- August, 2014: wrote first short story. I won’t break down all my stories on this time line, but between then and 
mid-2016, I wrote nine.
- November, 2014: First attempt at NaNo. Third book done.
- December, 2014: 1) First short story accepted AND 2) this is when I began my website and social media presence.
- January, 2015: Actually started getting requests on my queries.
- March, 2015: My first short story was published. (Hooray!)
- April, 2015: BEWARE THE LITTLE WHITE RABBIT is out!
- May, 2015: BREATHLESS IS OUT!
- June, 2015: Fourth book
- July, 2015: Offer from a small press on book number four.
- August, 2015: 1) Fifth book (TEN AFTER CLOSING). 2) Heard an audio book recording of my story for BEWARE THE LITTLE WHITE RABBIT (Happy tears. A lot.)
- September, 2015: Revise and Resubmit! (AHH!) But no offer.
- November, 2015: Sixth book done (BROKEN CHORDS) AND FRIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS is out!
- January, 2016: Seventh book
- February, 2016:  1) Found out Three World Press was closing so bye-bye BREATHLESS and book number 4. (Sad tears. A lot.) 2) Offer on BROKEN CHORDS (Holy moly!!!). 3) Accepted into Pitch2Publication (So much excitement, I thought I might die.).
- May, 2016: I GOT AN OFFER FROM A DREAM AGENT!!!! And we went on submission (GAH!).
- August, 2016: Eighth book
- November, 2016: Ninth book
- January, 2017: We got an offer on TEN AFTER CLOSING (Hooray!!!!!!!)
- February, 2017: Tenth book
- May, 2017: Self-published BREATHLESS.
- July, 2017: Eleventh book
- October, 2017: BROKEN CHORDS is out. (AHH!!!!!!)
- November, 2017: Twelfth book
- June, 2018: TEN AFTER CLOSING will be out.

I’ve never written this out before, and I’m sort of sitting here, letting it sink in. Mind=blown.
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​So, as you can see, between my first words on that first blank page and:

- First ‘yes’ on anything: just over 4 years
- First book contract: 5.5 years, 
- Agent offer: 5.5 years, 7 books, and 9 short stories
- Contract on TEN AFTER CLOSING: 6.5 years, 9 books, and 9 short stories
- The release of my book BROKEN CHORDS: 7 years, 11 books, & 9 short stories
- The release of my book TEN AFTER CLOSING: almost 8 years, 12+ books (I’m not sure what my drafting schedule will be this 
  Year)

If someone had told me, the day I started my first book, that it would take more than 5 years to get an agent and almost 8 for my first official novel to come out, I doubt I would have been like, “Yeah. Sign me up for THAT, please.” I would maybe have curled up into a ball and cried. I might never have started. 
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​BUT, when I think about the ride getting here, it DOESN’T FEEL THAT LONG! 

This has been the most exciting seven years of my life. There were so many milestones along the way. Meeting new people, learning new things, small successes. Yes, there was a lot of stress, waiting, and the challenge of so many rejections. If I put all my rejections into this time line, we’d have AT LEAST 120 additional bullets. AT LEAST. But still, it’s been an amazing seven years. It’s been more fulfilling, rewarding, and FUN than I would have ever imagined. 

I love writing, and I can’t even picture what my life would be like today if I hadn’t had that conversation with myself about needing a new hobby (or if I picked something other than fiction like, say, knitting. Hmm… Yeah. That would have been different, but I’d probably have a lot of cool sweaters and blankets by now.)

So, no matter where you are on your writing journey, I wish you success, but more than anything, I hope you are having FUN! And remember, the only way to fail, is to stop before you reach your goals. 

You can do it! You can write!
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It's a Writer Thing 18: On Plotters & Pantsers

11/2/2017

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Hello, Wonderful Writers!
 
It’s NaNoWriMo time! If you’re a writer and you’re reading this, you probably know what NaNoWriMo is. If not, here goes: November is National Novel Writers’ Month, and each year, all November long, writers all over the world commit to completing the first draft of a manuscript, usually 50-thousand words long, though some of us commit to longer works. The web community around NaNo is super fun, and if you’re a writer who isn’t familiar with it yet, definitely check it out.
 
I’ve been doing NaNo for a few years now, and I spent the last couple weeks of October getting my next WIP all plotted and set up in Scrivener so I was able to jump in and start writing on November 1st. This process, which is something I do for all new MSs, got me thinking about plotting versus pantsing.
 
I know this is one of the hottest debates writers can have, and I’m not here to try to lure anyone over to the side of the Jedis (*cough plotter cough*). Seriously, though, as a die-hard plotter, I wanted to share a perspective that has been on my mind for some time. Plotters are pantsers who do their pantsing before they sit down to start a draft.
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​Yes, you read me right: plotters are pantsers.
 
How can this be? Pantsers understand the beauty of choosing a starting point and maybe a mile marker and then letting the glorious muse lead them there by paths unknown and, sometimes, never before charted; while plotters are rigid, soul-crushed individuals who need order and structure and want to know the end before the beginning is even on the page yet. But seriously, plotters are pantsers.
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Click here to order BROKEN CHORDS.
What do you think us plotters are doing when we’re coming up with our plots?
 
When I’m thinking through my next WIP, I spend a ton of time playing out the story in my head, or in conversation with my hubby who is the BEST plotting partner EVER, letting different ideas emerge and shift and grow and evolve. Before there is a final version all ready to go into my Scrivener file as an outline or a synopsis, there is an unformed story-swirl cavorting in my head. It starts as a tangled knot which I somehow manage to tame into something linear and ordered and lovely—the Virgo in me is cheering right now—but even my order-craving Virgo heart loves the process of untangling that knot.
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I love the thrill of not knowing what will happen. I love how pieces come together, sometimes one decision being the all-important key to some other plot-point a little further down the road. I love the moment when the final piece clicks into place. As I write this, I’m still waiting for that to happen for my current WIP. Yes, I’m a plotter, and I don’t yet know exactly how my book will end, but that’s okay. I’ll figure it out as I go, as any good pantser does.
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So, for my plotting friends out there, next time someone asks you the dreaded question, just tell them you’re both. Because plotters are just pantsers who do the pantsing before they sit down in front of that blank page.
 
Good luck to all of you doing NaNoWriMo 2017. I hope you all “win!” See you on the other side.
 
And, as always, I will end with the motto spoken to me by my dear friend, who has been gone for over four years now (which I actually can’t believe): You can do it! You can write!
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It's a Writer Thing 17: Productivity and Finishing What You Start

9/18/2017

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Happy September, Wonderful Writers! 

Before I get started, a HUGE thanks to Amber Gregg for hosting my  ​It's a Writer Thing series on her lovely site.

It’s been a whirlwind this summer, what with my first time as a Pitch Wars mentor and all the work I’ve been doing on my own books. I finished my second manuscript for the year in August, which was my 11th book in total. Holy moly! But, finishing my latest MS got me thinking about productivity.

I acknowledge that I’m a fast writer, but I owe my productivity to something more important: I practice finishing books.

There's so much to learn.

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​There are a lot of skills to learn to become a professional writer. First off: writing. Like, the actual craft. Then there are query letters and synopses and log lines. What genre is what (and that YA is NOT a genre--grrr.). Another thing we have to learn is how to finish books. We need to build stamina, the stick-to-it-ness, essential to a professional writer operating out there in the big old world.

We’re notoriously good at starting books. Shiny new ideas are the best things ever! So hard to resist, 
​flirting with us from across the coffee house. Keeping us up at night. So how can we be blamed for jumping ship on the current work in progress? I get it. I love all my new ideas, and boy do I have a to-be-written-list burning a hole in my brain. But let’s not forget what comes after the tough middles: the alluring endings! They deserve to be written. We owe it to them not to lose steam halfway through.

But if we let new ideas seduce us, we’ll never learn our process for finishing. I will repeat that and turn it into a statement: All writers need to learn their own process for finishing books. Here’s why.

Think like a marathon runner.

​What do marathon runners do to train? First off, they learn to run. Just the basics: body posture, how to breathe, what to do with their arms. Then they develop stamina, tacking on more miles as they go. They learn to predict their bodies’ rhythms: when the race will get hard, and how hard hard will feel. How do they get through that? They practice different strategies for budgeting their energy, training their breathing, when to take in liquids (and how much). They even eat those little squeezy pouches of sugary electrolytes (which, I sort of want to try). Then they do it again and again. And again.

Pushing through the long slog is just as important as training-up their muscles—more important, perhaps. 
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​And it must be practiced. The preparation is part physical but it’s also hugely mental. As a result of this mental Cross Fit, something very important happens: They learn what to expect. 

Why is that important?

​When they get back out there next time, and when it gets tough, they have figured out what to look out for in their bodies, how to harness their bodies’ power, and how to focus their brains. 

They have a Not-Quitting Process. A Finishing Process. They can say to themselves: This is just like last time, and last time I got it done. I can do that again. 

Writers need that too. 

We need to practice starting, middling (Is middling a verb? Well it is now!), and finishing. And we need to do it with more than one book. Inevitably, the current WIP will start to feel boring. The shine will be off. Maybe we’ll write ourselves into a corner or a whole maze of corners. And, lo and behold, there’s Shiny New Idea winking at us all sultry and pretty. But, like a marathon runner who can predict his rhythms during a race, we need to predict ours when it comes to the marathon of writing a book. 
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And, just like the marathon process, it’s hugely mental. We get so down on ourselves when we get stuck. We beat ourselves up, tell ourselves that we’re not cut out for this. Those thoughts lead to terrible emotions, emotions that lead to the worst thing ever: giving up. And we can’t give up!

​Hopefully this sounds super-logical.​ I mean, if your friend told
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you they were running a marathon today and they’d never trained a day in their life, you’d be like whaaa…? And if they couldn’t do it, you’d be like: “Uh, buddy, you’ve never done this before. Go easy on yourself.” So, why beat yourself up for not finishing a manuscript when that’s a skill that takes learning, too? Don’t beat yourself up; practice.

The learning process, the stamina-building is normal, natural, and necessary. 

Therefore, my biggest motto is: Finish what you start. Everything you start. Then, one day when you’re all successful professional authors and you have deadlines or an editor waiting for an option book, your game will be in place. You’ll be able to say, Yes, I can get that to you INSERT  YOUR DEADLINE DATE HERE. I’ve got a process. I’ve done this before. Deep breath. Here goes.
​And, as always, remember: You can do it! You can write! 
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It's a Writer Thing 16: Revisions - Where the magic happens.

7/25/2017

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Hello, wonderful writers!

I wrote about the Big R—rejection—several months back, but as we get closer to Pitch Wars, I find myself reflecting on the OTHER Big-R: revision. That’s what Pitch Wars is all about, after all. Revision Warriors!

Many authors dislike revisions, but I love the process. And I’ll emphasize that last word: process. So, in order to help inspire everyones’ Revision Warrior Mojo, I thought I’d address some myths about revision.

MYTH 1: The most important part of writing is the drafting process.
A couple years ago, I responded to a poll that asked what authors preferred: drafting or revising. I replied that I liked drafting better, and I meant it, but that was before I wrapped my brain around revisions and the magic that happens during the process. The best parts of my books arise during revisions. I’m a plotter, so I have a strong concept before I start, but revision is where I really see my work for the first time. For that reason, I visualize character and theme in a whole new light. Things emerge that I was too close to see during drafting. Each pass allows me to think about a different aspect of my MS.
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MYTH 2: Revision=editing.
Definitely not. While editing needs to happen, revision is really about taking something that has the rough shape we’re going for and honing it. Revision is where the depth happens. It’s where characters come to life. It’s where theme is uncovered. It’s where those magical layers and details get added. I love author  Susan Denard’s idea of “magic cookies” —the parts of the book you love the most. The parts you can’t wait to write. Maybe even why you wanted to write the book in the first place. 
​Everyone who reads my blog knows I love creative reality TV. So, this time, I’ll draw from cake decorating shows (which I can’t watch too often because, OMG, cake cravings are evil!). You know how they get the cake to a certain point, and it looks really good? The shape is there, the fondant is in place, some detail work has been done. It looks like it’s ready to hand over to the customer. Then the chefs take that foundation and go to town, turning the creation into something truly breathtaking. That’s how I think of revision.

A first draft a cake with the layer of fondant but no detail work. The shape is there and the base color, maybe some embellishment, but that’s nothing compared to what it will be when we’re done.
MYTH 3: If I have to revise my book, that means I didn’t do a good enough job the first time.
Nonononononoooo. Critiques do not equal criticism. If you haven’t read my  mini-series on feedback, you can FIND IT HERE . Getting feedback is never easy. Hell, just knowing someone is reading my book makes me anxious. Even if that person is my mom. (I actually told her that the other day.) That said, feedback is essential. 

Before I move on, I really need to say something. Raise your hand if you wrote a book. Keep it up if you wrote two books. Now three. And four… You get the picture. Writing a book is hard work. Just the fact that you’re at a point where you’ve got an MS that is Pitch Wars-ready (or ready for a critique partner) means you’re doing everything right. 

Competitions like Pitch Wars and critiques from other writers serve as next steps that help us take our work to a higher level. We’re well into the embellishment phase of our cake saga. (I’m talking sugar flowers and candy sculptures and that edible glitter paint stuff.)  
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MYTH 4: Revision=singular.
I usually use the plural because, for me, it’s a multi-step process. I do a pass for big stuff—plot holes, inconsistencies, and scenes I forgot to show. Then there are character passes. Passes for theme, etc. Not to mention the fact that as we really immerse ourselves in revision, we sometimes get the best ideas ever—maybe inspired by something our CP said or from our very own heads. 

Now, this is the part you may not want to hear, but these shiny new ideas often require us to go back and do a major overhaul to our books. But don’t panic, because it’s totally worth it.

My debut novel, TEN PAST CLOSING, is a great example of this latter point. When I was accepted into Pitch2Publication in 2016, my mentor pointed out that some of my chapters weren’t working. Initially, I had many POVs (and I love multi-POV books, don’t get me wrong), but she felt they diluted the story of my two MCs too much. Interestingly, I knew there was a problem with the book; the romance between my MCs wasn’t working. Her input helped me see that I could make better use of that word-count real estate and write in scenes that supported the chemistry between my MCs. This was an exciting revelation for me, because the romance was literally one of my magic cookies. Though it meant swallowing some hard feedback and a commitment to a ton of work, I know that she gave me the input I needed to bring out the best in my book.

MYTH 5: Revision is about finding what isn’t working.
Revision is partly about finding what isn’t working, but it’s also about finding the magic, keeping an open mind and letting the insights wash over you. Remember that beautiful cake that needs all the final detail?

Some people really stress over getting their first draft just right, but I don’t. Though there are stories about authors who plotted so thoroughly they drafted their book in a finished form, this is something that maybe .1% of authors can do. But we don’t need to. (That sounds like an awful way to write a book. I mean, let’s talk about pressure. Right? To aim for perfection right off the bat…) I love knowing I’ll have plenty of shots making my book everything I want it to be. It prevents me from getting too hung up on something that’s not working right at this very minute. I’ll have another chance to nail it, and I trust that the right idea will come to me as I continue to work the process. 

Trust the process. 

It may be messy, but it always gets me there. Even if I’m not having any particular challenges with an MS, I know I’ll be doing a lot of rewrites because I always come up with exciting new ideas once I dig into revisions. Even if I think I’ve just written the best book of all time, and I can’t imagine changing a thing, it happens. Every time. Heck, in my most recently-revised book, I did 3.5 major revisions. So, I start each draft with a mindset of acceptance toward all the extra work I’m going to do, and I don’t sweat it when that work arrives.
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MYTH 6: I need to figure out the whole thing myself.
I had the utmost pleasure of hearing my editor, Alison Weiss of Sky Pony Press, speak at an SCBWI Metro NY workshop this past winter about the beauty of the collaborative relationship. She said that when she’s choosing projects, she specifically looks for ones where she can make a contribution. I love that idea. The incorporation of outside input is an inherent part of the process. It’s supposed to happen. Our editors aren’t cursing the authors whose books need their expert feedback; they want to share in this with us. Once I heard that, I went from being excited to work with her to wanting to jump up and down in the middle of the workshop audience. (I didn’t, though. Dignity remains intact.) And the same thing goes for input from critique partners or workshop leaders or whoever helps you. We need that fresh set of eyes, and it’s fine that they raised questions we never thought of. That’s the whole point; they’re going to see things we didn’t. 

Getting feedback and jumping into revisions is challenging, but it is also the most exciting part of the process. It’s where everything can literally change. It’s where the magic happens. So, whether you’re undertaking the process as part of a competition like Pitch Wars or in response to input from an agent you met at a conference, or a CP, remember: The fact that they came up with stuff you hadn’t thought of doesn’t mean you didn’t do it right the first time. This is a process. It will take several passes to get you there, but that’s just fine. That’s the way it goes. We don’t need to nail it the first time, and we don’t need to do it alone. We shouldn’t go it alone. 

By this time next month, I’ll be elbow deep in MG submissions in Pitch Wars, and I can’t wait.

Until then, remember: You can do it! You can write!
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Stock images by: Laura Ockel, Marcie Douglass, Isaac Chua, & Alice Achterhof on Unsplash. Edited by Jessica Bayliss.
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It's a Writer Thing Post #15: Let's talk about Pitch Wars (don't let unhelpful thoughts derail you)

7/3/2017

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First off, I just want to state for the record (my husband loves to make fun of me because I state many things "for the record,") that I can't believe this post is #15 in the It's a Writer Thing Series! When I first decided to start this, I wasn't sure I'd have enough in my brain to share to keep it going. I know I have at least one more post in me. Next time, I'll be writing about the OTHER r-word: revisions. So check back next month for that.

Secondly, THANK YOU to Amber Gregg for hosting my post on her awesome site about all things reading & writing: Judging More than Just the Cover. She hosts author interviews, posts book reviews, and other articles about writing. It's a great resource.

Now, on to today's post. I will give you a heads-up--it's a longish one this month--but I had 2 goals for this post. 1) to provide inf on the parts of Pitch Wars that people might overlook in the rush to get their submissions ready (e.g., the live calls and the Pimp My Bio) and 2) give some input on participating the competition from someone who's been on the inside.
 
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As a former Pitch2Publication success story, I KNOW what it feels like to be short-listed. I KNOW how amazing it is to read the words: And the next mentee is (YOUR NAME HERE). I want YOU to have that too. So please, do everything you can to help yourself before the submission window begins.
 
Make it impossible for us to not choose your submission.
 
I also know all the negative thoughts that go through the authors’ minds during this process. P2P wasn’t the only competition I entered. I entered several over the years that I was not chosen for, so I know that feeling too. It’s scary to put yourself out there, but I firmly believe that we MUST put ourselves out there, and I also believe the stress is totally worth it.
 
So, in the spirit of combating those negative thoughts now, I’ve listed out the ones that I had back in the day in the hopes that they will help you.
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NEGATIVE THOUGHT #1: I won’t get chosen, so there’s no point in doing ___________ (insert phrase as applicable: writing a synopsis, reading through my manuscript one more time, writing a 35-word pitch, etc.)
 

Get your submission materials ready NOW.

What do you need?: 1) query letter and 2) first chapter (please see Brenda Drake’s blog for more guidelines on short chapters & prologues). You should also prepare: 1) a 1-3 page synopsis and 2) a 35-word short pitch. These are things a mentor may ask for to help with their decision.
 
Yes, synopsis. I know. They’re evil and torture, but they’re the only way to get a feel for the full plot of your book without actually reading the whole book. And I’ll be honest with you, when I entered FicFest, I did not follow this advice. Why didn’t I have a synopsis ready? Because I didn’t think there was any chance in hell that I’d get chosen, and yet one of the mentors loved my submission and wanted to read my synopsis. Oops.
 
YOUR MS SERIOUSLY MIGHT BE CHOSEN.
 
Don’t be like me. Get your materials ready now and you won’t have to frantically throw it together at 11:45PM on a Thursday while trying to scoop frozen cookie dough out of a container. (Don’t judge. I needed something to strengthen me.)
 
NEGATIVE THOUGHT #2: They’re just going to have me revise it anyway.
 
Please be sure your MS is ready. Yes, your whole manuscript. Listen, I know you’re busy. Believe me, I get it. You’ve got lots of obligations, and you may be saying: Why bother killing myself? I won’t get picked. I’ll just get the first few chapters ready to go and call it a day.
 
My response to that, a strangled GAAAAHHHHHH!!!!! The mentors you submit to may want more chapters to help them decide. If your first chapter rocks, but the rest are super rough, they may determine that, though they love your concept, your book as a whole needs too much work to get it ready in time for the Agent Showcase.
 
Not to mention, no one wants to get a request for the first 50 pages and come to realize they never wrote X, Y, or Z pivotal scene. (Clears throat.) That’s a surefire way to find yourself frantically writing away at 11:45PM on a Thursday trying to jam a spoon into a frozen container of cookie dough.
 
So do that work UP FRONT and make it easy for us to pick you.
 
We want to pick YOU.
 
And yes, your mentor will ask you to revise it, but the better a MS is when we start working, the better we can make it by the end. Worst case scenario: your MS isn’t selected, but you have a newly-revised MS that will blow the agents away when you query.

NEGATIVE THOUGHT #3: I don’t need a frozen container of cookie dough because I’ll get all my materials totally set to go. BOO-ya!
 
Listen, cookie dough comes in handy for many life situations. I highly recommend everyone keep some. Just in case. (For example, it’s a great way to celebrate when you get that request for a synopsis.)
 
NEGATIVE THOUGHT #4: I don’t know who to pick as a prospective mentor. There are so many. I can’t do it. Eenie-meenie-miney-mo.
 
Do your research on the mentors. The number of writers who donate their time is astounding (it sort of makes my heart glow &  my eyes get all watery). While they’re all great, there will definitely be some who are better matched for you and your work than others.
 
The Blog Hop starts on July 19th, which gives you two whole weeks to check out all the mentors’ bios, wish lists, and info on their approach to mentoring. Brenda and the other organizers of the competition have made it super easy for you to jump from blog-to-blog. At the bottom of each mentor’s Pitch Wars Bio post, we’ll include links to all the other mentors’ pages (for that age category). They’re numbered with our pictures so it will be easy for you to keep track.
 
Seriously, give your MS the BEST chance of getting chosen by really taking the time to visit each mentors’ blog. Not only that, but come and say hi on Twitter. We want to get to know you. That’s a huge part of the fun. You can join the #PimpMyBio Blog hop and tell us all about yourself. (Do it! It’s fun!) Also, check out the #pitchwars hashtag and look out for the live chats (July 17th through August 1st).
 
NEGATIVE THOUGHT #5: There’s no way THAT AMAZING MENTOR will want to work with ME. 
 
But we do! We do!
 
There are some seriously talented and successful writers in this mix. And, I can tell you from experience getting to know them over the last few months, they’re all wonderful, down-to-earth people. We’re just as excited and nervous as you are.
 
Your submission will literally make our day.
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NEGATIVE THOUGHT #6: If I don’t get chosen, that means I’m not good enough.
 
Not at all! Please don’t self-label. If your MS doesn’t get chosen, that means nothing about YOU. Maybe your MS wasn’t ready, but you—as a person and writer—are good enough. Even if you still have room to grow (and who doesn’t?) as long you keep working, practicing, and getting better, then you ARE good enough.
 
NEGATIVE THOUGHT #7: If I don’t get chosen, that means my MS isn’t good enough.
 
My agent recently did a Twitter Poll, asking the worst news a writer can get from their agent. I selected the option Being Told a MS is Truly Bad. But I’ve been thinking about that, and I’ve changed my mind.
 
No MS is truly bad. Why? Because a MS that’s not ready NOW can always be improved. Some writers go so far as to literally open a new doc or Scrivener file and rewrite the whole thing. (I’m not saying you should do that!) My point is, no MS is beyond hope if an author is committed to their concept and is willing to do the hard work to make it awesome.
 
So, maybe your MS isn’t ready YET, but it still may be “good enough” with more work. It may take longer than we have in this competition to get it ready for the agent showcase, though. Or, the mentor may just not be confident they understand what your MS needs to bring it to the next level.
 
Sometimes manuscripts aren’t chosen for other reasons.
 
It may not be quite right for the mentors you sub’d to. You know, that whole subjectivity thing. Sometimes mentors pass on a submission because they happen to know something about trends in publishing at the moment, and they worry that concept might have a rough time in the Agent Showcase. Trends change all the time, though, so a book that might be a tough sell today can be an easy sell in 6 months. I’ve also seen cases where a mentor feels the book is ready now. Remember, this competition is about mentorship; if your MS can’t be improved upon, then go query.
 
Finally, the mentors you sub to may LOVE your book, but they may love another MS too, and at the end of the day, they can only pick one. (That said, it’s not unheard of for a mentor to be so undecided, they opt to take TWO mentees. I’m not saying it will happen, but you never know...)
 
NEGATIVE THOUGHT #8: If my MS isn’t chosen, there’s no point in keeping up on what’s going on with Pitch Wars.
 
Nope!
 
Submitting to Pitch Wars isn’t just about a chance at nabbing a slot, it’s also about learning and building your community. Even if your MS isn’t selected, you still come away with something from being here.
 
Mentors will post on the #tenqueries hashtag, giving tips and suggestions based on the submissions they receive (anonymous, of course).
 
I met a bunch of authors every time I entered a competition. I followed the mentors even when I wasn’t selected. Connecting with other writers is literally the most important thing that helped me progress. There are so many opportunities I wouldn’t have known about (calls for submissions, competitions, resources to become a better writer). Pitch Wars is also hosting a webinar series with tons of different topics on writing.
 
And, don’t forget, if you aren’t selected for Pitch Wars 2017, you can participate in PitMad, a Twitter pitch party, on September 7th.
 
So, your mission (if you choose to accept it): 
1) Get those materials ready.
2) Create a kick-ass affirmation for this process. Need some help? Here’s one you can use: My MS has just as much chance of being selected as anyone else. I will approach this as if I know my MS will be chosen. Pitch Wars Mentors, here I come!
3) Check out the mentors' bios and wish lists in the Blog Hop starting on July 19th, come say hi on the #pitchwars hashtag, hang with us during the Live Chats, maybe join a webinar or two. And don’t forget the #PimpMyBio Blog Hop!
4) Buy some frozen cookie dough OR make some cookie dough and stick that bad boy in the freezer.
5) Eat said cookie dough.
6) Repeat Steps 4 & 5 as necessary.
7) And HAVE FUN!

And, as always, ​You can do it! You can write!
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Be a fire waiting for the wind.

6/11/2017

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It's all in the way you think...

5/14/2017

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It's a Writer Thing 14: Is THIS why you can't finish that book?

3/7/2017

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Hello, Wonderful Writers! Not too long ago, someone in the Electric 18’s group shared a video by Brene´ Brown, Ph.D. I majorly LOVE this woman’s work. In case you’re not familiar with her, she’s a researcher who focuses on studying shame and vulnerability. If you haven’t read her books, I really recommend them all. She talks about how being vulnerable is one of the most courageous things we can do, that vulnerability comes with great rewards, “because vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, trust, empathy, creativity, and innovation.”
 
That’s right.
 
What she’s discovered through her research is that without vulnerability, we cannot create. If we’re going to make art, or put ourselves in the “arena,” as Teddy Roosevelt called it, then there is “one guarantee. You will get your ass kicked. If courage is a value you hold, this is a consequence. You can’t avoid it.” And who does this ass-kicking she speaks of? The critics. There are many kinds of critics (and I highly recommend you hear her talk or read her books for the full discussion), but today I want to focus on one—the worst critic.
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The worst critic, she tells us, is ourselves.
 
I’ve always loved doing art. Drawing, painting, crafts. You name it. Back in my teen years, I did a lot of sketching. There’s nothing like a perfectly-sharpened pencil and a blank sheet of paper. There’s nothing, alright—nothing scarier. I’d sit there, thinking about what I wanted to draw, the tip of my pencil hovering over the page, and I’d be stuck. What if my drawing was a ginormous failure? What if the image I had in my head didn’t match up with what I achieved on the page? What if my subject was sucky or corny or boring? And of course, even though there was no risk of this happening—like ever, because I was never taking my sketch pad out of the safety of my house—but what if someone saw this sucky, corny, boring hot mess of a drawing? In my head, even if I locked up my pad in a steel safe, I could catastrophize until I ended up at school with the sheet of paper somehow magically glued to my butt, unbeknownst to me, out in the world for all to see.

Yeah. It gets scary in there sometimes.

So, what did I do in response to these “gremlins?” I armored-up. I still put pencil to page, but I didn’t draw my own creations. I copied photos or book covers. Someone else already decided those pictures were worth making, so I played it safe and copied them. Sure, I was practicing my skill, and I got better at drawing, but I wasn’t creating. I wasn’t making art. Thinking back now, it would have been better if I had made a terrible version of the awesomeness in my head, even if the outcome was cringe-worthy. Better because it would have been mine. I would have made art.
 
Now, I’m creating a new kind of art with my stories, and I can’t help but wonder if this is the same process that causes us to get stuck. That causes us to stall partway through a work in progress. Are we so afraid of making a sucky, corny, boring hot mess of a book that we can’t create? Is our fear of vulnerability causing us to armor-up so securely that all we do is cut off the natural flow of our wondrous imagination? And all this even before a single soul has laid eyes upon what we’ve written—all except for ourselves. The worst gremlin of them all. 

So what’s a writer to do?
 
Brene´ Brown tells us that we must expect the critics to be there, including the one inside our heads, and that we must be prepared for what they’ll say about us. What’s the worst thing your internal critic tells you when you’re sitting there, fingers hovering over the keyboard? Find out, then tell that voice that you aren’t interested in his or her feedback. Lock those gremlins up in a closet where they belong. If you need to, find a mantra, like a magic spell, to keep them in there. Then, all that that is left to do is WRITE.

​Because you can do it. You can write!

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LINKS:
 Brene Brown Critics Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-JXOnFOXQk
 
Brene Brown Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.com/Bren%C3%A9-Brown/e/B001JP45BA/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1488889332&sr=1-2-ent
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