PPW Conference Reaction - Day 1

Inadequate. Loser. Incompetent. Failure. Pitiful. Jealous.

What am I doing here anyway?

I have just completed the first night of the Pikes Peak Writers Conference in Colorado Springs, CO. It's my third writers' conference but my first PPWC. I am overwhelmed with information and it's only the first night.

I have a hearing problem which makes it especially difficult to hear people in crowds or if there are other distracting noises around me. This problem doesn't help my feelings of insignificance as I listen to my writer friends schmooze the agents and editors gathered around the bar and in the lobby of the Marriott Hotel. I feel stupid and self-conscious because I'm missing half the conversation, and I can't cup my hands to my ears all night long--people will wonder what the heck my problem is. Not to mention I'll look like weird.

My writer friend Deb has been appointed as next year's conference director. I'm so jealous that I can't see straight. Don't get me wrong: I love her dearly and I'm very happy for her, but I wish it was me. Well, no, not really, but boy, would that designation look awesome on my query letters!

Another writer friend Anita won the VIP package door prize at the Write Brain Session on Tuesday and gets to go to the Staff Mixer with Deb. That leaves me and my self-described "overly-talkative malcontent" friend in the lobby by ourselves, eating tasteless potato chips and listening to the next wannabe best seller brag about his high IQ and his fantastic writing skills that somehow get shot down by everyone in his critique groups and all the agents and editors he talks to. In other words, it can't be that fantastic, especially since he's been working on it for three years and still can't get someone to say, "Send it to me."

I was so excited to be able to attend this conference, especially since a very generous friend paid my way. But now I'm feeling so inadequate that I'm bashing myself, my writing skills, my stupid idea for a book, and convincing myself that I'll never get published so I should just give up right now and go home.

I'm angry that I couldn't hear 80% of the conversations that went on at my dinner table where the agent I'm going to pitch to tomorrow is seated.

I'm angry at all those people who can roll off their log line effortlessly, yet I've revised mine thirty-two times and I'm still not happy with it.

I'm angry at the drunk lady sitting beside me at the dinner table. Not because she's so drunk and the smell of her martini breath is making my stomach churn, but because her slurred speech makes it even more difficult for me to understand her over the din of the other dinner guests.

I'm angry at the romance writer next to the bar who is dominating the conversation with the agent I'm pitching to tomorrow, not that I can hear what they're saying in the first place. And not that I'm brave enough to barge in and take over anyway.

I'm angry at the people who brag about "nailing" their R&C, who did "fabulous" reading their manuscript, or are able to say, "She asked me to send her my first three chapters!" after their pitch appointments.

I quietly excuse myself to the restroom. My ears ring as if I've just gotten home after a heavy metal rock concert. Afterwards, I meander through the lobby, trying to find some people who talk loud enough for me to actually hear what they're saying. I desperately want to fit in and laugh at the appropriate times, add a quip or two, and crack everyone up. Instead, I feel like a middle-schooler and sit at a small table, by myself, and read the schedule for tomorrow.

Tears sting my eyes. I wish I wasn't so introverted, so shy that I can't seem to broach the subject of my memoir, even with other writers who are as panic-stricken as I am. None of my friends seem to have this fear--they're rubbing elbows with the best of them.

I know that being a writer is hard work. I know that words have power. I know I have a message to get out . . . a story to tell.

But it also looks like "bleeding from the forehead" (as James N. Frey described in his keynote speech at dinner tonight) is as far as I'm ever going to get.

I wipe my tears, put my conference literature away, and sneak out of the hotel without saying goodbye to anyone, hoping that tomorrow goes better.

Ten Great Things a Writer Can Get Out of the PPW Conference

Here is the article I wrote for PPW's NewMag newsletter this month. Deb Courtney said, "It was perfect! I didn't have to change a word!" and Mandy Houk said she LOVED it and asked if it was okay to feature as the cover story. Was it okay? Of course! I was blown away and completely flattered! I'll try not to let my head (ego) get big, but they sure are generous with their compliments!

Please leave comments and let me know what you think!

Ten Great Things a Writer Can Get Out of the PPW Conference
by
Stephanie R. Johnson


It’s that time again! The Pikes Peak Writers Conference is being held April 23-26, 2009—have you registered yet? If not, what are you waiting for? Here are ten great things you can get out of attending this fantastic conference:

1. Abbondanza! From mystery to mainstream, suspense to short stories, historical fiction to science fiction, there’s something for everyone. Not only will you discover what your genre is (if you don’t already know), but you’ll be able to talk shop with many others who share your passion. There will be plenty of literary agents, acquiring editors, authors, and specialists to speak on dozens of topics.

2. Brain Pickees. What better brain to pick than someone who “wrote the book” (pun intended) on the questions you have? Whether it’s screenwriting, magazine articles, proposal writing, or plotting, you won’t find better sources anywhere all in one place.

3. Creativity. Staring at a blank screen? You can’t go wrong with workshops that teach writing in a conversational tone to engage your reader, shaping and structuring your story, using a lowlife informant in your mystery novel to get information to your reader, expressing a theme without getting preachy, and much, much more. You can kiss writer’s block goodbye!

4. Do or Die. “I would rather die a slow death than pitch my book to an agent.” The Read & Critique and Speed Pitching sessions are a great way to overcome your fears, tighten your manuscript, and fine-tune your pitch. Don’t worry, you’ll survive just fine, even if you do break out in a cold sweat. You won’t find a safer environment anywhere else.

5. Elbows and Expo. This year features a new Trade Exposition for vendors, companies, and organizations that support the writing community (check the PPW Web site for participants and details). Elbow rubbing can occur at the Booksigning on Saturday, where speakers and PPW authors attending the conference will be more than happy to autograph your purchases.

6. Friendships. Being around like-minded people who live, eat, and breathe writing is what an author needs to be successful. The people I’ve befriended at writers’ conferences have told me about workshops, social events, writers’ groups, and critique sessions, where I made even more networking connections. There’s something to be said about the phrase, “It’s not what you know, but who you know,” and it especially applies to every person you meet at a conference—you just might meet your future agent this way!

7. Guidance. The keynote speakers, agents, and editors aren’t the only ones who want to see you succeed. There are other authors, published and aspiring, who want to see you make the bestseller list too! So if you can benefit from learning the essential elements to writing a novel that editors want to buy, are looking for an accountability partner, have questions about marketing, or haven’t a clue about where to start, someone at this conference can definitely point you in the right direction!

8. “High Attitude Writing: Cut to the Craft” is this year’s theme, and you will enjoy the keynote presentations: “The Most Important Elements of Success…,” “The Trick is to Keep Breathing,” “…A Humorous Look at Becoming a Novelist,” and “Keeping the Magic in Your Writing.” Special add-on workshops on Thursday include “Thinking it Through,” “Fleshing it Out,” and “Giving it Wings.”

9. Invitation. These agents and editors are looking for their next bestseller, so imagine the euphoria you’ll feel when one of them (or more!) extends a personal invitation for you to send them your manuscript. Take my word for it, this is a rare opportunity! Even if your work isn’t quite submissible, they can provide the feedback you need to get it there. Many agents and editors heavily rely on these conferences to find new authors, but you can’t be invited if you don’t attend.

10. Just Do It. Is money holding you back from attending this conference? In this recession, it will be hard for many of us to scrape together the registration fee (PPW members get a discount), but don't forget there's a limited scholarship fund available (deadline is Feb. 28th). Is it time? If you can’t call in sick, then call in dead. Or is it fear? Get over it! My point is, do whatever it takes to go to this conference.

Not only will you get all of this from attending the Pikes Peak Writers Conference, but you’ll also have a great time, get to stay up late to fraternize, and eat fabulous meals with others in the writing industry! It doesn’t get any better than this! Register today at http://www.pikespeakwriters.com/.

Did anyone notice I did the items in "alphabetical order"?

Please note: the scholarship deadline has passed, so don't get too excited. Besides, they had to pull the link early (as noted in my previous post) due to an overwhelming number of applications.

Schedule Conflict Leads to Generous Gift

I’ve been a member of Pikes Peak Writers (PPW) for almost two years now, although I’ve considered myself a writer since the early 80’s when I was Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper and even more so in the 90’s when I wrote my first novel. I had been taking writing classes and attending conferences for over a decade when the PPW Conference arrived last April, but didn't go … mainly because I was a ‘fraidy cat and totally unprepared.

Not wanting to look bad in front of my peers, I blamed my lack of attendance on something more convincing: no money. After all, how could I admit that I was too scared to go, especially since I wasn’t a conference rookie? Was it because I resigned the previous year to work on my newest book and didn’t want to give an agent or editor the opportunity to reject it? To reject me? In addition, I was too chicken to apply for a scholarship, because what would I do if my application was approved? That would require attending the conference and--*gasp*--facing my fears!

By the time the April 2008 Write Brain meeting ended and we had practiced pitching, everyone else’s excitement rubbed off on me; I regretted making excuses, so I determined that next year, come hell or high water I would go.

Interestingly enough, hell didn’t come this year, but high water sure did: My husband Greg got laid off in January, and this time, I really didn’t have the $300 for the registration fees. Our tax refund went toward catching up our mortgage, and because I was still “just a writer” (and a non-published, a/k/a unpaid one at that), I was heartbroken that the 2009 Conference would pass me over once again. At least this year I had a legitimate reason.

Pikes Peak Writers shares space with Cottonwood Artists' School (n/k/a Cottonwood Center for the Arts) in downtown Colorado Springs, and the owners recently purchased a new building a few blocks away from their present location. They solicited PPW for volunteers to help paint and move, so I put my book on hold and showed up to help in any way I could. Two days later, I dragged Greg in with me to help.

The new building is HUGE, which means lots of walls to prime and paint! Because there have been so few volunteers, Greg and I have been there almost every day, putting in 6- to 9-hour days, helping them get ready for their Grand Opening on April 24-25. After all, if we're not working, there's no reason why we can't be volunteering.

Peggy Vicaro is the director at Cottonwood. She's not an artist, but does call herself a "wannabe writer." Getting to know Peggy and owner Kay Jeansonne over the past several weeks has been a privilege, to say the least. I was excited for Peggy when I learned she was going to the PPW Conference, as she's pretty new to the writing scene. I also got better acquainted with Chris Mandeville, Community Ambassador and past President of PPW, as she and her boys painted the new office. When she discovered I wasn't able to go to the conference due to our financial situation, she was disappointed. I optimistically said, “There’s always next year.” Besides, it was my own fault for not applying for a scholarship sooner, regardless that PPW had to pull the link early. It would be a lesson for next year to get online as soon as registration opens so that I won’t miss out.

The next day when Chris arrived to finish painting, she said, "I need to talk to you." Her tone of voice caused my stomach to flip, as I thought I was in trouble for something. I had just written the cover story for this month's NewsMag, so I thought I might've messed up on some details. When she met up with me in the Gallery, she smiled and said, "I have some news for you. You might want to sit down for this." Now her tone had me curious!

I expectantly faced her as she excitedly announced, "You're going to the conference!"

"What! How?" I asked, shocked.

"After I left last night, I was sad that you couldn’t go and there were no more scholarships available, especially since you’ve put in so many hours volunteering here. So I called Ron [Heimbecher, current PPW President], and told him we have to do something! Turns out Peggy can’t go because Cottonwood’s Open House is the same weekend, so she is giving her registration to you!”

Tears of joy immediately stung my eyes as I thanked Chris profusely for pulling some strings. “That is so generous of all of you! Thank you SO much!”

I was flabbergasted (and I don’t use that word often!). Just days before, I had prayed that God would make a way for me to be able to attend, and did He deliver or what? I was totally amazed at the huge sacrifice Peggy was making for me to go, at Chris’s determination to find a way to get me there, and Ron’s willingness to make an exception.

Volunteering is a simple way for me to give back to the community, to put my skills and talents to good use, and to bless others. I don’t volunteer with the expectation to get something in return; I do it out of a heart of serving. However, I have to admit that when it “pays off” like this, I won’t decline the gifts that others want to share with me.

When I went to the old location that Saturday afternoon to have lunch, I saw Peggy sitting on the floor with several other volunteers. I walked over to her, tears welling up again, and said, “I owe you a big thank you and a big hug!” I held out my hand to pull her up, and gave her a big squeeze!

“Oh, it was my pleasure,” she graciously responded.

“No, the pleasure was all mine! You have no idea!” I said.

Now I just gotta’ get my revised proposal done!

The Results Are In!

My meeting to review my book proposal with Karen Linamen a few weeks ago went well.

Sort of.

First of all, I'm glad Karen is not the kind of person to sugarcoat the truth, and even though I realized before leaving that I would have to start my proposal over from scratch, I'm glad she was honest with me in getting me on the right track. After all, she's published over a dozen books now (I own 6) so I think she knows what she's talking about.

Secondly, Karen is a busy person, and before we left, she promised to e-mail me the template she uses for her own and her clients' proposals. It finally arrived today. I hope I'm not overstepping my bounds by having to e-mail her twice to request it, and normally I wouldn't be so pushy, but I am attending the Pikes Peak Writers Conference the weekend of April 24-25 (thanks to a very generous gift which I'll tell you about later), so I really needed the template in order to get started. After all, I didn't want to sign up for a pitch session without having my ducks in a row.

Allow me to share what Karen said about my proposal:

1. It's "unwieldy."

2. It has "too much info."

3. It's "too academic."

4. It "does not reflect my writing style."

After reading (skimming) 18 pages of proposal (12-page Overview and 6-page Synopsis) and 10 pages of sample writing, Karen shared that she didn't really get a sense of what my book was about until she got to my Sample Chapters. She said she kind of got an idea of my style from the Synopsis, but didn't realize how "great of a writer" I was until she read my manuscript. In fact, she was "surprised" at how good my writing was--I was thrilled. (At least some good came out of our meeting!)

Following the sample template in W. Terry Whalin's "Book Proposals That Sell: 21 Secrets to Speed Your Success" wasn't good enough. I thought I scored a jackpot when the agent who requested my proposal in September sent me her guidelines and it was the SAME template Terry used (with two minor changes--the information was already there, I just had to move them to different places). Alas, in making my proposal as complete and thorough as I could possibly get it, I also made it boring. *yawn*

So, in using Karen's sure-fire example to write a proposal, I'm sure that not only will it be cut down by more than half, but it will also grab the agent's/editor's attention much better and faster than my first version did.

Some major/minor changes to start:

OVERVIEW

Part I: CONTENT

1. Change "Log Line" to "Snapshot" and revise in such a way as to grab the reader and slam them to the floor. Well, that "slam" part was me, but I discovered I'm really not as restricted as I thought to 25 words or less, or to what some people call the "Elevator Pitch" (pretend you board an elevator with an agent/editor--you have 30 seconds or less to pitch your story so you better get their attention before the doors to their floor open). There's a bit of leeway, but I shouldn't abuse it. I spelled out my Premise in a three-sentence (albeit long sentences) paragraph, but by combining the two and making it a Snapshot, I can tighten it up and get to the point much quicker.

2. Do not include the Back Cover example. That was my idea, and even though I agonized with revising it several times over many days, it's a space waster.

3. Narrow my USP (Unique Selling Proposition) from 12 to 6 bulleted items.

4. For the Overview, in summarizing Parts I-V, don't include so many bulleted items per section, which include 5-10 items each.

5. The Manuscript section needs to be briefer.

6. List my best three Special Features, not all nine.

Part II: MARKET

1. Age Group is fine as is, but Characteristics and Motivation sections need to be briefer.

2. Sidebars are fine (even earned a compliment).

3. Benefits section can be condensed to one paragraph from four.

4. Affinity Groups is good, maybe remove one or two.

5. For my "Competition" section, I listed nine separate books and their authors, compared each to my own book, spelled out how mine is different, and why mine is better. Karen suggested I change it to, "I researched 17 books on this subject, and my book is different/better because..." and limit it to one paragraph. This change alone will reduce the proposal by three pages. I actually researched more than two dozen books (it was hard to choose nine for the initial proposal), and though this major cut hurts because of all the time I spent on it, I know it's for the better.

6. Endorsements are good.

Part III: Author

1. Condense Background, Previous Writing, Kudos and What Others Are Saying sections (not that there are that many accolades, but be more selective).

2. Play up Personal Marketing (this section can make or break me). I have another "public speaking" engagement to add to my list, but when I look at all my other sections (Public Outreach, Support Groups, Internet, Magazines, Radio/Television), even I get overwhelmed, so I may cut it back to something more manageable.

SYNOPSIS

1. Not many changes. Karen mentioned that she got a much better feel for my writing style after reading the Synopsis, and that somehow, I need to let more of my personality shine through in the Overview.

So, that's the good and bad. I'll take it! It wasn't as bad as I expected, and now with the templates Karen has generously shared with me, I feel I have a much better chance of having a more polished product. Lots of trimming down and condensing needed, but overall it was a productive, helpful meeting. I'm grateful for the time Karen sacrificed to meet with me, and I'm hopeful that the revised version will impress at least one agent/editor enough to the point he/she invites me to send it in.

Now about that writers conference story...I'll save that for another entry.

Do you think there's hope for me? Feel free to leave your thoughts, comments, advice, and critiques.