The Next BIG Thing

"A hero knows it takes hard work and a long time to get published; a fool thinks it should happen immediately, because he thinks he's a hero already.

A hero learns the craft; a fool doesn't think there's much to learn.

A hero keeps growing all his writing life; a fool thinks he's fully grown already.

A hero fights to make his writing worthy, even when no one's noticing; a fool demands to be noticed all the time, even if his writing stinks.

A hero is persistent and a professional; a fool is insistent and annoying.

A hero gets knocked down and quietly regroups to write again; a fool gets knocked down and whines about it ever after.

A hero makes his luck; a fool cries about how unlucky he is.

A hero recognizes the worth in others; a fool can't believe others are worth more than he.

A hero keeps writing, no matter what, knowing effort is its own reward; a fool eventually quits and complains that the world is unfair.

Be a hero." -James Scott Bell, The Art of War for Writers

Gilmore Girls

NaNoWriMo is upon us. For many that means plucking away with a group of like-minded individuals, in whatever space of time we can manage to free up to hit that 50,000 word goal. Many published novels have come from NaNo origins. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern for one. I don't know about you, but when I go into NaNo, I wonder just what I'll write. I'm not a plotter, so most of the writing I do during NaNo is pantsing. I enjoy envisioning a character and letting the words fly. Is it harder to clean up the words afterward? Sometimes. But at least the words are down.

Recently, I've heard a lot of discouraging chatter from one of my writers groups. Some wonder how the effort will ever be worth it if they don't come out the next big thing. THE NEXT BIG THING. They want to be the next JK Rowling, the next Stephenie Meyer, the next Stephen King. That's the only goal that they can see.

They won't be The Next Big Thing. I won't be The Next Big Thing.

Okay, never say never. They could. I could. It's always a possibility. The problem with their kind of thinking is that it's discouraging. Big Things happen because they were at the right place in the market at the right time in the market with the right agent and editor. Do you realize how many stars have to align for something like that to happen?

Lindsey Stirling, Stars Align

My son is nine years old, and the oldest. He was born 5 weeks early and was only 3lbs 3oz. I had to have an emergency c-section because I would have contractions and sleep through them, but his heart rate would drop from 160 to 90 every time. We were blessed. He didn't have any health problems other than needing a feeding tube for several weeks. He is small. He will be small until that one growth spurt hits and he shoots up to the stars. The other day I caught him and his 6-year-old sister trying to see who was taller with the help of their 5-year-old sister.

The inevitable happened. His sister has grown taller than he is. We knew this would happen. His pediatrician informed us the first time he saw our 3lb bundle of joy. Preemies struggle to catch up sometimes and one day he will shoot up. The Dr. has seen it happen a million times. Both of his sister's were born at 6 lbs 13 oz and 6lbs 8oz. They had a better chance of being bigger faster than he did. My son was upset. Why is his sister taller than he is? Why is she stronger than he is? I sat him down. I asked him what he thought the world would be like if everyone were the same height and strength? He said everyone would be like daddy. I asked him what he could do that his sister couldn't. He told me that he could build portals in Minecraft (yes, our world currently revolves around Minecraft).

So, I put things in Minecraft terms. I asked him,  "What if no one could build portals? What if they could only build houses?"

He thought on this for a few minutes. I don't know the importance of portals in Minecraft, I've never played, but this seemed to be a big deal to him. He replied, "That would be boring. No one would be able to create anything."

I told him to continue to be a creator. Height and strength would come later, but creativity could never be replaced. He's since taken to drawing and creating more things on Minecraft. Apparently kissing cats creates babies. Who knew.

There will never be another writer like you. Stop trying to be The Next Big Thing. Focus on your writing, your style. Read what you love, write what you love and do your best to learn and grow. Learn from those authors you adore. Cultivate a career. Suzanne Collins had published the Underland Chronicles before The Hunger Games came out. Not every book your write is going to be a Big Thing. But every book you write could be a career. Continue to write because every time you do, your skills improve.

Be a squire struggling to prove himself a knight.

Heath Ledger, A Knight's Tale

Run with velociraptors.

Jurassic World

Be a hobbit struggling to make their way to Mount Doom. Be you. No one will ever know the formula for a Big Thing. No one can predict what will take off and earn millions. It isn't possible. But you can focus your energy on writing the best novel you possibly can. And who knows. Maybe the stars will align.

Galadriel, The Lord of the Rings

    

Fighting the Great Depression

When I first thought about writing this blog post, I was going to focus on everyone else. I've been helping with #Nestpitch and getting the next round selection ready for the final posts that the agents can request off of. I thought about the people who already looked at the blogs and realized their names weren't on the list. I know what it feels like. I've been there. I'm still there. It was that moment that I realized that maybe this post is more for me than it will be for the rest of you.

Rejections are hard and constant rejection is like having someone kick you in the face while you repeatedly beg them for more. We put ourselves through this with hopes that something great waits on the other end. And even when we reach that something great, getting signed by an agent or a contract with a publisher, we're still open to those rejections. The many back and forth edits to make your manuscript better, the various competitions we enter, or our books are nominated for, and comments from reviewers that can almost hurt more than an actual rejection letter itself.

Getting a lot of rejections or rewrites can lead to a funk. How do you combat that funk? I'm still there. I've surrounded myself with a writer's group that won't let me wallow in the funk. I have a best friend that won't let me disappear. Surround yourself with people who will pump you up when you're feeling down. Remember that everything is subjective, which is so cliche and often heard in this industry, but I'm going to say it anyway because it's true.

And when all else fails, surround yourself with inspirational quotes.

Remember, if writing were an easy profession, everyone would be doing it. Surround yourself with a group of people who won't allow you to quit or give up. And above all, believe that your words, the story that you've written, is needed in the world. You wouldn't have been inspired to write it otherwise.

GATHERING OTHER WRITING PEEPS - HOW TO START A (SUCCESSFUL) WRITERS GROUP by Janice M. Wilson

HATEFUL MAN! I will write a book about him!

Some have asked me: What inspired you to start a writers group?

As the legend goes, after some life changes, I had gone through a long bout of writer’s block.  I have a daughter who inspired (still does) a lot of what I write, and she’s my biggest fan and my best source of encouragement.   She asked me one day why I stopped.

Good question!

With my daughter’s encouragement to start again, I had characters in my head that kept stalking me.  But I needed like-minded friends to support and motivate me to write out their stories. With fingers crossed and a prayer, I went into the nearby bookstore to see if they had a group already. They didn’t.

I heard crickets.

That was like me in 2006, this infamously quiet one who would turn white and almost pass out at the very thought of giving a speech, purposefully walking into Barnes & Noble one night in May with a couple ideas and a need to brainstorm with other writers in the area.  I knew what I wanted and it had to be done!  I was invited to come back and talk to the Manager once I had a plan.

I officially started the group in July 2006 with a core group of local writers and writer wanna-bees - all talented, inquisitive, and excited as I was for companions, all full of expectations and questions. 

Now, far down the road after doing this and watching the growth and maturity of fellow writers, I am firmly convinced that the understanding of other artists help to motivate, guide, and shape us into better writers, more committed to actually doing the work.

Besides simply writing (and reading), I strongly suggest joining one or even starting your own. 

Here’s how:

Have a plan

Is the universe big enough to roll out our plans?

Dismayed by not finding a group in the area, I wrote down a few issues and questions I had about the art of publication.  I walked back into the bookstore and pitched it to the District Manager. Just at that time they were looking for a leader. 

I started with the topic I struggled with most and knew something about – the writer’s block. A blurb for the store’s newsletter, and a prayer later were a few more topics that I suggested that all writers deal with and needed to be explored (rejection, editing, criticism, where to publish) and the Manager was sold.  I was now that leader.

It hit a cord with all of the 12 newcomers who started with me and we never looked back. Within 3 years, our group could not fit into that store and we had to make some decisions.

To most folks, it would seem like one of those perfectly timed meant-to-be kind of things. To me, I shook my head that night and asked myself – WHAT DID I JUST DO?

Advertise

I know - that’s lame.  Well, it lights up at night....

SEE ?!?

Within a month we had an agreement, a laid out lecture plan (again, is that me doing this?) and an announcement in the store’s calendar. 

Within eight years we needed the resources and assistance of others within the group with diverse talents to help run the group with over 200 members on the Meetup roster, writers’ conferences, open-mic nights, a Kickstarter campaign, an anthology, invites to other writers, parties, book fairs, tee shirts, a logo, a blog and other social media and guest speakers (some are quite well known!). 

Get out there and get your name KNOWN.

Have a purpose

Lets start a literary REVOLUTION!

Our focus was a need for learning, brainstorming and shaping up what we wrote by encouragement and constructive criticism of ideas with like-minded writers in the area.

In the last eight years, I have learned a great deal more from the other writers than what they learned from me, including what I am capable of doing and achieving.  The support of our writers has been a tremendous blessing and help for me.

We always learn from each other, and we cheer each other through every little step, good or bad.

Our simple philosophy was - and still is – keep writing, then worry about editing, read it out loud, and stick by the rules to point out the terrific strengths in the story followed by suggestions to make the rest even better.   We had celebrated acceptances and contest winners with yearly champagne toasts and cookie swaps. We even cheered on every submittal as well, even if their handiwork earned them a rejection slip, knowing the more of the good and bad correspondence we get from editors or agents is a step closer to reaching our dreams! 

Have a TEAM!

“We are the knights who say, “Na-No-Wri-Mo”

I started the whole odyssey, yes, but I didn’t do all this by myself.  The basic truth that I found - out there are a whole bunch of like-minded and diversely talented writers who would LOVE someone to take the reign and start a group, and add their own perspectives and ideas to create a yummy alphabet soup in literary adventures.  Open up the floor and let the ideas flourish! Try something new, let others take the floor.  You need a leader, but growth takes a whole team of thinkers.

This is where the next item comes in…

Have rules

Set them in stone – in modern languages!

With so many brilliant minds and ideas, I had to establish some basic rules down in …(ehem)……stone.  How do I want my criticism?  How much of it do I want?  Would I want to share my work with others as I read out loud?  Who may share and who may edit?

We still keep it simple.  Here are a few suggestions to stay the course:

“There you will wait for further instructions!”

·     There must be a topic to discuss and center on.  Otherwise it became difficult to finish the topic unless there was some facilitation within the group (usually from me in the beginning).  I had to eventually ask that their questions be held at the end of the notes, unless we had a hands-on exercise. 

·    Only invited critiques are allowed and we made an agreement to point out the good things about the written piece and THEN suggest (NEVER insult) a few ways to make it even better.

“You give your opinion so decidedly for a younger person.”

·     Keep an open mind.  Even if a member didn’t like a particular genre or lifestyle of the writer, we agreed to pay attention to the quality of writing used to portray the subject/plot. 

·     For reading out loud, it depended on how much time we had left to share, and divide the time between who volunteered.  Soon it was apparent that we only each had time to read 1 chapter aloud or up to 5 pages of double-spaced typed pages. 

·     If you say you’re going to be there, be there.  Seats were quickly filling up in the corner of the bookstore and then in a coffee shop.

·      All curious seekers were allowed to listen in and join (early on).  Now, we allow guests to come with members for a trial, then we had to add a yearly members’ fee because we are big enough to require rented space – and that we have to pay for.

·   Leave room for new ideas.  This is very important in an ever-changing publishing industry.  The talent and needs continue to flow and so does growth within and outside the regular meeting.  This includes guest published writers and publishers, retreats, contests, yearly parties, social network experts, writing conference attendees, off-shoot small groups, write-ins, NaNoWriMo contests and our own workshops.

Have FUN – Dang it!

The most famous party animal!

Without this, don’t count on growth or willing readers and writers to join. If you run it like a profitable business – well, good luck with that. 

Keep an open mind that you are growing too.  This task will take time, sweat, tears, and some money, but it is an empowering investment for inner-growth and understanding.

Success!

Celebrate all your successes!

Are these tips worthy of respect and trying?  I KNOW SO! Within the last eight years, we outgrew the bookstore, two coffee shops, and now we have to rent a hall at a local VFW Hall for the space and use of technical props.  Now we are in the process of becoming Non-profit, planning MORE anthologies, building exposure through blogs, on-line forums, Facebook pages, Twitter, and front page newspaper articles featuring our events and talented writers!  Some of these writers are even getting their private collections and novellas published as well!

I feel the enormous pride and satisfaction that I had done well to follow my gut and step outside myself to start something so great and right!  The writers in our group are serious about their craft and it shows in their struggles, their resolve to be published and have a following, their perseverance to work through the drafts and learn from constructive suggestions, and their commitment to the group.  But even better than that, we’ve become a family!

I have been inspired and encouraged to finish some novels and get a few stories published, have an on-going blog, be more confident at having something worthy to say and being heard (or read!).

Yes, keep writing my friends!  If you seek other company in the craft, start a group!  If I can do it – so can you!

Our 5 year celebration cake!  Yes – celebrate!

Are You a Loner or a Groupie?

Writing, for me, has always been a solitary practice, one fiercely guarded. Other authors may argue this point, but Stephen King concurs and that was enough for me to feel good about avoiding writers’ groups like the plague. The thought of sharing my work in a room full of people made me twitchy.

 

Then in late October, in order to jumpstart Book Two of a trilogy, I decided to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). I’d done it in 2012 and reached 19K words. But this time I wanted to go the distance, to reach the 50K-word goal for the win. So, taking a last-minute shot, I registered at the NaNo website, scribbled out a rough table of contents - chapter titles to point me in the right direction as the story developed – and announced on Facebook that I was IN.

Soon after, I saw a post by Margaret Bail calling for NaNo’ers interested in forming a Facebook group. It piqued my interest, but remember, I’m a loner, so I agonized for a bit before deciding to give it a try, and then with the caveat (to myself) that if it hindered rather than helped, I would bow out and go it alone.

 

 

In the beginning, I hung back when the other group members “sprinted”, thirty-minute bursts of flat-out writing, but their word counts (and banter) kept appearing in my Facebook feed, and one day when struggling to keep my butt in the chair, I decided to join in. And voila. It worked. On the first sprint I wrote about 380 words, but by the second I hit my stride (540ish) and was hooked.

Photo Courtesy of redorbit.com
 

The group challenged, supported and encouraged me to keep up with the daily word count (the key to winning NaNo). I can’t tell you how many times I woke up in the morning, to see Andrew or Anna’s posts from the other side of the globe (where the day was ending), or signed on in the evening to see the east coaster’s sprinting, and thought, “They did it. They’re doing it. I can do it too.”

And I did. When I reached the pinnacle, the coveted 50K words on November 30th, my group members celebrated out-loud, making the victory not just mine, but theirs. Imagine the feeling of accomplishment at reaching your goal (and writing the first-half of your next novel) multiplied by twenty-three!

Thank you, thank you, to each and every member of our NaNoWriMo2014 Facebook group. You got me to my goal AND changed my mind about groups. I owe you.

Of course, writing, for me, is still a personal experience, but I learned a valuable lesson: the two are not mutually exclusive. I can write alone and share tidbits with others, ask for advice, work out character and plot issues, give my input on theirs, and generally be a part of something bigger that gathers momentum and draws me along with it.

Nothing wrong with that!

~ Olivia J. Herrell

P.S. Happy Groundhog Day! Here's a teaser/trailer from one of my favorite movies "Groundhog Day". Enjoy!