Who Says Whining Doesn't Pay Off?

Emerald City Writers Conference - 3rd dose

I cannot beleive I made it to an 8 am class. I must truly be serious about this writing thing. Who knew?

Ann Roth & Alexis Morgan presented Making Your Characters Real, showing us their character charts. Then it was on to Block Busting : Putting the Joy Back in Writing with Laurie Schnebly Campbell. This was a great class. She explained why writers block happens (self-preservation) and why white knuckling it through isn't the best option.

Mary Buckham's Seven Deadly Sins of Synopsis Writing was up next.
The most common stumbling blocks
1. Too many names to track
2. Too many details
3. Making it passive instead of active.
4. Not finishing the synopsis.
5. Not using transitions to change POV, time, or place.
6. Not unfolding the synopsis as the story unfolds.
7. Raising questions in a synopsis.
8. Vagueness.

Yes, there are 8...but the 8 deadly sins just sounds silly. Susan Lyons' Wild Mind workshop played into the writers block one, teaching us to let our mind do its work and get out of the way.

After the workshops were over it was time for lunch...and a moving keynote from Jane Porter which left the room in tears. She not only writes with emotion, she delivers it in person.

For a complete change of tone, there was the raffle for the baskets, proceeds benefiting DAWN. I was at a table with Cherry Adair, who closes the conference each year with her special brand of motivation. She was so excited to get to her presentation, she put her hands on her props and put 'magic' in them.

I beleive in magic...8 of the 10 people at our table won a basket! Gwen won another (called the Brazen Hussy basket, fitting for a 2 basket winner)...and I was up front, hoping with each basket that I was the winner. I didn't want to be the only one at the table without a basket...

My whinig must have been truly pathetic. One of the annoucers of the raffle (who had way too much fun listing what was in Gwen's basket) gave me hers! I kid you not!

Then it was time for Cherry! Each year, she asks politely (Ha!) for all the writers to commit to finishing a book before the next years conference. Those of us that rise to the challenge come up to the front and get certificates...and this year she even made up pins!

And the cherry on top (Ha!)...she gave 3 scholarships to next years conference, AND a scholarship to Nationals! WOWZA!

That is generous and amazing, but the best part was standing up with those who finished their book. Both of the women on either side of me said they wouldn't have finished their book without Cherry's enthusiasm and the fear of not being able to stand up when she asked who finished. How fab is that?

My Cherry book, HER CINDERELLA COMPLEX...comes out in January/October from Samhain.