It's that season again

 No, not pumpkin spice.

via GIPHY

It's writer workshop season! Much like the start of the school year, September is when writing clubs and conferences want me to come and share what I've learned over the years. This year is exciting for a couple of reasons:

1. I get to present "What's the Point? Story, Subtext, and Plot" at the California Writers Club of Long Beach in person. I love this workshop and really enjoy teaching it.

The last time I taught at the CWC of Orange County, we were still Zooming. Long Beach is currently in a hybrid mode, so I'm sure a few folks will be remote, which is fine. If you're a writer in California, I recommend checking out this club--they've got 22 branches around the state. Here's the scoop on Long Beach:

https://www.calwriterslongbeach.org/

2. I'll be teaching two new workshops at the Southern California Writer's Conference in Irvine. In addition to teaching "Something to Talk About: Speaking Publicly About Your Books," I'll also be presenting the spanking-new topics, "Avoiding Stereotypes, Cliches, and the All-Too Common," and "The End is Just the Beginning." I'm both excited and terrified of these new workshops. Developing new material is fun, but can I do it justice? Stay tuned and sign up to find out:

https://writersconference.com/la/

The Writer's Conference does cost to attend, however they have a discount code to help you out. Just use “Scwcsd3622” without the quotes of course,

I hope to see you at one of these events!

Another conference. Done and done.

I've just spent three-and-a-half days in San Diego, at the Southern California Writers' Conference and I'm both exhausted and supercharged. I was up every night until after midnight, and up every morning by seven a.m. and there was copious amounts of sushi and wine and discussion and laughter and hijinks in between. So it was a success.

Here are the highlights:

1. I kept my voice for the entire conference. This is a highlight because, for the past TWO conferences, I have lost my voice on Friday night and had to power through teaching my workshops. I owe this to avoiding all colds and viruses, and beginning every morning with a witches' brew that looks like this:

It's oranges, lemons, honey, ginger and turmeric. I put a hearty tablespoon in hot water and drink it. What a throat soother!

2. I got to hone my pitch/logline for A MORE DEADLY UNION in Jenny and Marla's Pitch Witches workshop. Now when someone asks me what my book is about, I can tell them,

"Peri is a 50-year old private investigator who knows two things: She doesn't want to get married AND she is happy to stick her nose in police business when she's solving a case. Suddenly, her boyfriend Skip is in a coma, and her case is interfering with the police's ability to find his shooter. Now all she knows is, she'll do anything if Skip will wake up--even marry him."

Jennifer Silva Redmond and Marla Miller, taking your calls.

I recommend their sessions highly for cutting through the fat of your pitch or query, and getting to the meat. 

3. Every night ended at the bar and every morning came too early, the sign of a good conference.

4. My workshop went well, so well that we were still talking when Laura Taylor came in to teach hers--oops! My apologies to Laura, and I tried to get out from under her feet as quickly as possible.

5. It was the conference's 30th anniversary and we celebrated!

With cake.

Wes Albers (left), and Michael Steven Gregory, blowing out the candles.

6. I came away with renewed energy, fond memories, and a burning desire to see these people again. What shocks me about this group of people is that we're not actually a group of people. We're not an organization - there is no membership roll, no dues, nothing but two conferences a year. And yet, we are a tribe, a community of writers who love to gather and discuss writing and feel that no one has an agenda, that we are happy for each other's successes, and that we are in safe company.

This particular weekend was about the quality of our writing. Without going into detail that would be unnecessarily painful and harsh, our tribe recently experienced a disturbance in the force. Someone we thought was one of us turned out to be not-so-much. Most of us spent the weekend going through the five stages of grief every half-hour. But it's okay, because it allowed our relationships to be cemented stronger, and to improve our writing even more. 

We will lift our words up until the universe sings our stories. We will aim for excellence and settle for exceptional. And in the meantime, we will write more and suck less.

I can't wait until September. Go here if you can't wait, either- http://writersconference.com/la/

A writer's list for Santa

It's Friday night, and once again, I'm thinking I want to go out, but just can't seem to light a fire under my own tushie to make it happen. This means it will be popcorn and wine for dinner again. In the meantime, I was thinking about Christmas presents, and writing, and this came out:

For those of you with a writer in your house, first of all, thank you for being so supportive. We appreciate all the times you’ve ignored our mumbling about what our imaginary people are doing in their make-believe worlds. We love it when you don’t notice the household chores we haven’t quite completed because we just need to finish this one paragraph. Thank you.

You’re probably wondering what to get us for Christmas this year. Here are some helpful hints, ranging in price from expensive to free, but all priceless to a writer:

1. Books. I know, this sounds weird to you. We write books, why would we want to receive them as presents? The thing is, writers need to read other writers. We need to know what the market out there is doing, what people are buying, and there’s nothing like a well told story to bring us joy and inspire us to do our best. That’s why we write, after all. One caveat: writers like to read books about the craft of writing, but I recommend you let your writer buy those, so they don’t think you lack confidence in their ability. Perhaps you could put a gift card to a bookstore in their stocking.

2. Conferences. As much as we need to read, we need to be in the company of other writers. If you are serious about writing, you are always looking for ways to improve. Workshops about craft, talking about character and plot with other writers, finding a mentor, these are all ways that we get better. Are conferences expensive? They can be. They are also an investment in your writer’s writing. If you don’t know which conference your writer would like to attend, you can start by Googling “writer conference (insert your state here)”, then look at reviews and testimonials. I, of course, recommend the SouthernCalifornia Writers Conference for an example of great workshops, friendly writers, and exceptional mentors.

3. Writing tools. Does your writer need a new computer? A printer? Maybe your writer is old school, meaning journals with lots of blank pages to fill. Timers are good for writing sprints. Pens, pencils, and printer ink make great stocking stuffers. Even a new pair of drugstore reading glasses, or a mug for their favorite inspirational drink.

4. A retreat. This is admittedly a high-end present, but every writer dreams of that weekend spent away from real life, hunkered down and doing nothing but finishing that novel. Maybe it’s a cabin in the mountains, or a place on the beach. It might even be an RV in the desert. As long as there’s plenty of food and drink, and no phone or internet.

5. Uninterrupted time. This costs the least and means the most. Chances are, your writer has to smuggle their minutes of deep-writing time in between work and family. To understand that, and resist the temptation to interrupt their groove, is the meaning of true writerly love.

6. Interest in their work (even if it’s feigned). Another freebie, if done correctly. Interest in their work can include asking them about how the latest story is coming along, and telling them how lucky you are to know such a creative person. More listening than talking is involved. P.S. Asking them if they’re ever going to finish that novel, whether they’ve heard from an agent, or how their sales are going are all forbidden topics. It's like putting a lump of coal in their stockings.

Any one of these gifts will make your writer very happy this Christmas. I know they’d make me happy!

Writer friends, is there anything else you want to add to Santa’s list?

Growing pains

I'm desperately trying to finish the fourth Peri Mystery and it's not going as fast as it needs to go. Sure, I'm down to the last third of the book, but it's like being in that dream where I'm running toward a door and it keeps getting further away. I was blaming a lot of things for the delay, from too much outside interference to illness. 

Then my friend Michael Steven Gregory wrote a blog post for the Southern California Writers Conference titled, "How Good is Good Enough?" You can read it here - http://writersconference.com/sd/sd-group-blog/how-good-is-good-enough-2/ but basically, Michael is asking the question all writers need to ask, and that's "why am I writing?" Depending on your answer, your final product ends up on the sliding scale of quick-read-entertaining vs word-as-art-beauty. 

I commented on the post as follows: 

***
This post makes me wonder where my goal is on this scale of "how good do you want to be." I realize my stories are what publishers call "midlist." To be honest, I'm more interested in my characters and in writing well. A part of me would love to write a literary tome, except I need my books to go somewhere and do something. In the meantime, I want people to enjoy my imaginary people and travel with them on their adventures, and I want to know that each book is better than the last.

***
And there's my problem: "...each book is better than the last." I want each book to be better, and that's good, except that being better means I must grow my writing skills. Growth is hard and it takes time and patience.

In the past, I moved from one scene to the next in my own very natural way. The good news is that my writing hand has a voice, one that people recognize. But now, I want the words to be more right, more lyrical without sounding like writing. I want to tell the story that makes people enjoy both the story and the telling of it.

I thought writing novels would get easier. Turns out, if I want to always improve, the work gets harder. Good thing growth requires persistence. 

I'm going to leave you with this interesting promo for a show I remember liking, even if it lasted barely a season. 



If you'll excuse me, I have to go persist.

Next up: gracious hosts, grateful company.

Did I tell you with the last post that Dale and I drove to Portland? 

I know what some of you are saying. Drive from Orange County to northern Oregon? Were you insane at the time? Who does that?

Well, we do that. First, we took two days to get there, stopping overnight in Santa Nella. Second, having the car meant that while I was doing my thing at Left Coast Crime, Dale could wander off and do stuff because he had wheels. Stuff like visit with his brother, go to the driving range and hit some balls, watch his nephew compete at a track meet.

Third, after LCC was done and over, we could drive south a couple of hours and visit with our friends, Michael Steven Gregory and Chrissie Barnett. I've known this couple for a number of years. Michael (aka MSG) is the director of the Southern California Writers Conference, which I have attended since 2007 or so, and encourage everyone who wants to be a writer to attend. His wife, Chrissie works the behind-the-scenes administrative/technical conference stuff, so she never attends.

So while I've spent many a conference evening at the bar, discussing the art of storytelling with Michael, I don't get a lot of time to talk with him due to the nature of the where we are and what's going on. And although I've communicated with Chrissie via email, Facebook, and phone, I'd never actually met her in person. Until now. 

They live in a resort near Bend, called Sunriver. Beautiful scenery. Quiet beyond measure. Nice homes, most unoccupied due to the season. The houses are either owned by private owners (some of whom live there year-round, some of whom rent them out, and some of whom use them part of the year), or by the resort company. 

It's kind of a perfect place to run away and sequester yourself, retreat and work on that project, the one that keeps getting interrupted by life.

Dale and I had a great time visiting with Michael and Chrissie. They are endlessly fun. Chrissie and I had a lot in common, which is weird when you consider we grew up in different countries. I could tell you all kinds of tales about wonderful food and conversations, of the nearly-enchanted nature of their home, of wandering outside in the cold to look up at the billions of stars and trying to identify them. 

But I'm not going to. For some reason, I feel protective of our visit. It's not that we discussed private matters, or that anything needs to be hidden. I guess it's just that at the conferences, I watch Michael being a very public figure. He spends his time solving problems, trying to stay ahead of any storm that might brew, and making certain that every attendee gets what they paid for. Although Chrissie is not physically at the conferences, I know how hard she is working behind the scenes. They stress over every part of the weekend.

It makes me want to treat their home as a sanctuary. Everyone needs a place where they can relax and not worry about the outside world looking in. I'm no paparazzi. What happens in Sunriver, stays in Sunriver.

One photo, to prove we were there.

We tried to be easy houseguests. To me, that means being as self-sufficient as possible, accepting what's offered graciously, and remembering always that the most important thing is the time spent with my hosts. Oh, and being conscious of Ben Franklin's words: "Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days."

Three days later, it felt like we had to physically tear ourselves from our friends and hit the road for home. We had wanted to be on our way by 9. We pulled out of the drive around noon. 

I was so happy to have that time with Chrissie and Michael. My heart was full - from laughs, insights, connection. It's a memory I can take out and look at with joy whenever I'm feeling a little low. 

Thank you, friends.

So much excitement! So much muchness!

This is a week chock full 'o' fun stuff for me, and I don't know what's more exciting.

First, tonight, I get to see Neil deGrasse Tyson at the Pantages Theater. I have no idea what the program will look like. I mean, it's not like he'll sing and dance - at least I don't think he will. My expectation is that he will talk for a long time about important, scientific, nerd-loving ideas.

I'll try not to scream and faint in the aisle.




Then on Friday, I head down to San Diego for a weekend of writer bonding at the Southern California Writer's Conference. I've extolled their virtues every year, twice a year, ever since I began attending. The past couple of years, I've been teaching workshops. These are my people.

This is my tribe.

I'm teaching a workshop on self-publishing, which I've done before, and leading a read and critique group, which I've also done before. But this year, I'm adding a workshop I've never tried before, about public speaking. So many writers are solitary beings who'd rather not go out to the masses and put on a gregarious face. I used to be one of them. Hopefully, I can share some of my wisdom and let people practice in a safe environment.

In between these two days are riding lessons, writing, and life in general, but I find myself more cheerful with each task when I know there's something fun around the corner.

What's around your corner to get your pulse racing?

Busyness as usual

Although I'd rather sit and revel in my vacation, there are squiggles in my calendar that say I have to do stuff. So it's time I get to it.

First on my list is the Southern California Writers Conference (http://writersconference.com/la/), where I'll be teaching an introductory workshop about self-publishing. The focus of the workshop is for those folks on the fence, wondering whether they should take that step. I can't give anyone a magic formula, you know, "if X is True and Y is False, Then Publish." What I can give people is a list of questions to ask themselves and an accounting of what I've had to do.

My hope is that people come away with the ability to make an informed decision.

I love this conference because I consider it a friendly, working conference. I will confess, I haven't been to a lot of other conferences, but the few others I've been to have not tapped into that desire within me to go home and write. SCWC inspires me, goads me, takes me by the reins and gallops me toward finishing my next project.

If you like lists, here is my list of why I like the Southern California Writers Conference:

1. The people are friendly and supportive. You can walk into any workshop, sit down at a table and make 5 or 6 friends. And most of them are friends who will continue to be your friends, post-conference.

2. The workshops give you useful information, whether about the craft of writing or the business of publishing. And if they don't - they encourage you to try another workshop. The rule is that if you get into a workshop and it's not what you expected, you should go to another workshop. You paid for this weekend. You shouldn't feel like any time was wasted.

3. Their "Read and Critique" and "Rogue Sessions" are fabulous. Both of these workshops work the same way: you read some number of pages of your work and get feedback on your writing. The difference between the two is that the Rogue Sessions occur after the evening speaker, starting around 9 p.m. and go until everyone has read. Sometimes they last until 6 a.m. the next morning! The facilitators ensure that the critiques are controlled and remain positive and focused on the work. They really taught me the correct way to run a critique group. Read their rules (http://writersconference.com/la/faq/) and see if you don't agree.

4. The organizers care about whether your conference experience was a good one. They want you to get your money's worth. They are willing to listen to suggestions for future workshops. Michael and Wes want to give you value for your money and time. Read this as proof:

(From the website) - NOTE: Agents wanting to participate contact Michael Steven Gregory only if you're accepting clients. There are plenty of other conferences that provide reps who have no sincere intent of acquiring new clients with free weekends at nice hotels in desirable locales. The SCWC is not one of them.

Here is my one caveat for attending this conference: if you are a very, very serious writer who is intense about your writing experience and general literary discussions, this may not be your conference. We work hard and we play hard. We joke a lot. We're irreverent sometimes. But if you can take a joke or two, if you can hope to achieve our conference goal of "sucking less than you did before you came" then please join us.

Hope to see you in Newport Beach. If not, they have another one in San Diego in February (http://writersconference.com/sd/).

Hello I must be going.

Okay, you know I can't post that title without giving you this (apologies for all the ads):




On Friday, I head down to Newport Beach to the 10th Annual Southern California Writers Conference, Los Angeles. Wish I could actually get this blog to SAY that in radio announcer's voice. If you haven't been to a working conference, you need to find one and go. If you want to know why, go the the conference website and watch some of the videos on SCWC-TV.

A good conference inspires you, educates you, helps you find your tribe as well as your voice. You come home with itchy fingertips and a brain chock full o' stories. If you live in the southern California area and you're not attending this, I'd say, "neener neener more for me" except I don't believe that. There's plenty of good stuff to go around at these things.

I do wish you'd come. We'd have such a fab time together.

I get home on Sunday, repack my bag, and run down to San Diego for a convention about Special Districts. I need to go learn more about Special Districts because I am a library trustee (at least until the elections in November and then who knows), and our library is a Special District.

Conventions are not like conferences in the least. Conferences are more for a common grouping of people who want to know how to do something better. Conventions can have a wide assortment of types, all looking for information on different things. For example, Bouchercon is a convention for mystery writers AND readers. The readers want to meet their favorite author, find new authors, and talk about books. The writers want to meet their readers and talk about writing books. And maybe have drinks in the bar with Lee Child.

Both are essential.

In between these two, I really SHOULD go to the Sisters in Crime OC meeting on Sunday, especially since I'm the secretary. Tune in later to see how that day worked itself out.

If I've got time today, I'll schedule a few examples of extreme silliness to keep you company while I'm gone. I'm not promising anything, since I also just realized I need to write and schedule a post for next Thursday over at the Crime Fiction Collective.

In the meantime, in honor of Talk Like a Pirate Day, here are five reasons I could never be a pirate:

1. I can't rrroll my Rrrs.
2. My crrrew would get tirrred of my orrrderrring them to "Squab the deck," then laughing maniacally.
3. I have motion sickness and would thrrrow up on the open seas.
4. I rrreally rrrequirrre rrregularrr bathing.
5. I sunburrrn easily.