The Write Direction

SE Portland Write Direction – September 2015

Date/Time
Date(s) - 09/26/2015
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Location
Woodstock Library
6008 SE 49th Ave - Portland, OR 97206

Making Your Way Through Social Media

 

As a writer it's hard to carve out time to write, read and edit, and then take the time to learn all the tips, tricks and hints to social media. The SCBWI and Mary Elizabeth Summer plan to make that all easier. Together they are teaming up to teach writers how to use social media.

 

Come Saturday, September 26, 2015, to a one-hour presentation on Technology for Writers and learn why and how you should be using social media to help you in the publishing world.

 

Contact: Victoria 503 988 5389

Portland Writers - Mark Your Calendars for 9.19

The Next Level returns on September 19^th  (talk description below) and there's a great line-up of speakers on board.

The full schedule will be posted to SCBWI's website soon. The topics include everything from HarperCollins editor Abby Ranger talking about editor-writer-artist relationships with a writer and illustrator, to craft sessions on both world building and character development. And more!

Season passes are $35 for members. Individual session will be $8 if you pre-register and $10 at the door for members. For non-members, it will be $10 pre-registration, $12 at the door, and $50 for a season pass.

Here’s the scoop on September’s talk:

Topic: Pitch, Logline, Synopsis: How to write effective promo pieces for your book

A hands on workshop for writers with a story to pitch covering everything from the one sentence logline to the full pages synopsis using low stress examples from familiar stories, and practical exercises for talking about your work to a range of potential readers.

Rosanne Parry is the author of the award winning novels Heart of a Shepherd, Second Fiddle and Written in Stone and the upcoming novel The Turn of the Tide. She has taught writing at schools, conferences, Saturday Academy, an educational non-profits, and on line at the Loft Literary Center. She lives with her family in an old farmhouse in Portland, and writes in a tree house in her back yard.

The talks will be held at Taborspace again this year. All talks are on the third Saturday of the month and doors open at 2 PM. 

HELPFUL WRITER TIPS

HELPFUL LINKS FOR WRITERS

QUERY TRACKER: A great site where you can look up agents, the genres they represent, the time it takes for them to respond, and even track your queries.

AGENT QUERY: Another great site like Query Tracker.

AGENTS’ MANUSCRIPT WISH LISTS: This is a place to go to see what agents and editors are looking for.

TWITTER: #MSWL - The Twitter link to "real time" hints, tips and wishlists of agents and editors - BUT PLEASE do not pitch your story on this twitter site.

PREDITORS AND EDITORS: A place to check and see if an agent or editor is reputable.

MANUSCRIPT WORD COUNTS: The perfect place to see if your word count is in the right ballpark. 

WRITER’S DIGEST GUIDE TO LITERARY AGENTS: A treasure trove of information about agents and more...

PUBTIPS ON TWITTER:Tips about publishing.

TWITTER COMMUNITY WRITER LINK: An on-line community where you can share the trials and tribulations of being a writer, and get support, encouragement and inspiration.

COMMUNITY CHATBOARD (TOADHALL ON YAHOO): A chatboard about all things for Kid lit writers

SCBWI: The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators website

BRENDA DRAKE: A fount of information with contests that help you get published, find an agent or simply help you perfect your craft.

The Great Critique

It was another busy Saturday morning for me. The day was filled with donuts from VooDoo and coffee brought in from Starbucks. But on top of that there were awe...mazing mentors sitting at each table to help show writers how to critique other works and how to share suggestions in a positive, inspiring way.

This event had a record breaking 57 attendees show up. And The Great Critique went from 9:30 a.m. to after noon. And some people didn't want to leave even after we started turning out the lights. It was just so much fun no one wanted to have it end.

So if you get a chance any time soon to attend one of the SCBWI events like this, don't miss it. You'll find that your time will be well spent and you won't just learn a thing or two, you might even make more than a few friends.

FOUR....

It was my first golf lesson ever. And when the instructor said, "Okay, pull out your putters..."

I had to turn to my S.I.L. and say, "Which one's a putter?"

Yeah, we all gotta start somewhere..."write"?

Well, golfing is a lot like writing...or so I'm thinking.

We all start somewhere, and each of us come to the task with different backgrounds, different training and different experiences.

So, one good way to make progress is to hook up with other more experienced golfers, or writers.

That way, you can ask questions, learn a little and sometimes a lot along the way. And you might even catch a few tips, tricks and hints simply by being near people who have the same interest...like golfing, or writing.

Another great thing to do is to link up with a network or community that can help you along the way. One great writers group, is the SCBWI. They'll be happy to help you along the path to publication. And, even if that's not your ultimate goal, you'll definitely make a few friends along the journey.

SCBWI Spring Conference 2014

It was a weekend filled with fun and inspiration. Judi and Sue worked really hard to put it all together and make it a fun weekend.

There were plenty of local authors who shared their words of wisdom:

And agents and editors shared information about the wonderful world of writing and publishing.

The SCBWI has plenty of events all year long, including the Great Critique Session that is scheduled for July 26th. There is also a fall retreat that's already planned.

I would recommend any of these great events for any writers.

Writer's Groups

We all like to talk with people who share our interests, whether it's the same book, the same music, or the same movie. But, if you're a writer, there are a few groups you might want to look into joining.

One is the SCBWI or the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators

or the RWA or the Romance Writers of America

or Willamette Writers

and there are many more. If you write in a certain genre, just google it and you'll probably come up with some great groups you can join. And, if you do, you'll most likely meet more than other writers...you'll probably make a few friends. So, what do you have to lose?

THE GREAT CRITIQUE - THIS SATURDAY

START THE NEW YEAR “WRITE”!

WITH ANOTHER GREAT CRITIQUE

Another chance for writers to be mentored and critiqued by a professional and their peers. 

We’ve done this before and it was so successful that attendees asked for a repeat, so here it is!

When:        January 11, 2014 from 9:30 to Noon

Location:   The Dining Room, TaborSpace, 5441 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97215

Time:         9:30 to noon. First half hour networking, with coffee and donuts, and then from 10:00 to 12:00 critique session.

Never been in a critique group? Wish you could be critiqued by someone who is ahead of you in the publishing game? Want to strengthen your work? Need a fresh set of eyes and ears on that oft-revised piece? Want to have your manuscript ready for the May conference? This is your chance. A published writer will lead each small group and critique your manuscript. You'll also hear others' work and get feedback from those writers too. Plus you'll learn from the comments by the critique leader about the work of others.

Cost:

SCBWI members - $10.00 (That's less than the price of a Friday night movie!)

Nonmembers - $15.00 (If you bought any refreshments, your movie night would cost way more!)

The Next Level SCBWI Professional Series

The SCBWI is offering free seminars for children's book writers and illustrators.

The third Saturday of each month at TaborSpace on 5441 SE Belmont...you can take your writing to the next level. Doors open at 2:00 and speakers start at 2:30 p.m.

The first session launches in September so mark your calendars for September 21, 2013 and keep watching here for more information or pop on over to the SCBWI website and check it out.

SCBWI The Great Critique

It was a wonderful morning, filled with inspiration, words of wisdom and new friendships.

It all began at 9:00 a.m. at the TaborSpace in Mt. Tabor. Over 30 writers got together to share their work and have other writers critique their pages.

Oh and it started off with donuts...of course, from VooDoo Donuts (another of course). So with coffee cup in hand and pages all around I sat down to listen to writers read their first five pages.

It was so much fun to see what other people are interested in and hear what they all had to say. It was a great time of sharing, caring and further preparing...because writers are never "finished" with their story. It goes on and on, writing, rewriting--or revising--and then reading and then going through the process all over again.

I think everyone had a good time and we all learned a thing or two.

So until the next Great Critique session...I'll be at my computer clicking away.

The Great Critique

Another chance for writers to be mentored and critiqued by a professional and their peers. We did this in January and it was so successful that attendees asked for a repeat, so here it is!
Location: The Dining Room, TaborSpace, 5441 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97215
Time: 9:00 to noon.

Never been in a critique group? Wish you could be critiqued by someone who is ahead of you in the publishing game? Want to strengthen your work? Need a fresh set of eyes and ears on that oft-revised piece? Want to have your manuscript ready for the May conference? This is your chance. A published writer will lead each small group and critique your manuscript. You'll also hear others' work and get feedback from those writers too. Plus you'll learn from the comments by the critique leader about the work of others.

Cost:

SCBWI members - $10.00 (That's less than the price of a Friday night movie!)

Nonmembers - $15.00 (If you bought any refreshments, your movie night would cost way more!)

How it will work:

1. Sign up now with the kind of manuscript you'll be bringing. You may bring a maximum of five double-spaced pages or 1200 words. DO NOT bring more. Use standard manuscript format, which means your first page will not be a full page. For picture books, we suggest you bring no more than 750 words.
2. We will do our best to place you in a group of 5 or 6 peers who write in the same genre and with a published author who writes in that genre.
3. We'll let you know how many copies of your manuscript to bring to the meeting.
4. We'll also send you some basic critique group guidelines.
5. At the meeting each of you will have a chance to pass your work around to your group and read it aloud.
6. Each person in the group will make notes on your manuscript as you read. They'll write down what they like, mark errors they see, indicate where they are confused or what doesn't work for them.
7. The professional writer will verbally critique your work. If time, other participants may comment.
8. You'll receive your copies with written comments from each one in your group. Take them home and let the ideas simmer.
9. You might even make some new friends or find those to form a critique group.
   

"Can’t imagine sitting with a group of strangers and reading your manuscript aloud? It should be harder to imagine sending an untried, unedited, unrevised bit of your soul out on submission!" – Jenn Bailey, children's writer and social media expert

PAL AUTHORS CRITIQUING include Carolyn Conahan, Cat Winters, Emily Whitman, Mike Thaler,Susan Hill Long and Suz Blackaby.

SCBWI - Prepare Yourself for the Conference

Saturday morning I went to the workshop to Prepare Myself for the May SCBWI conference.

Nicole Marie Schreiber was the speaker and she gave a lot of great pointers, tips and hints to first-time conference attendees.

Some of her important tips about getting a professional critique, in my opinion, were:

1) Follow the proper manuscript format;
2) Have a critique partner or beta reader read your manuscript; and,
3) Follow the guidelines of submitting your manuscript.

These are all really important things to remember.

She also said to remember the following self-editing tips:

1) Check your spelling and grammar;
2) Show/don't tell;
3) Run through your point of view and verb tenses to make sure you stay consistent;
4) Watch out for adverbs (and cut them out whenever possible) (all "ly" words should get a second look - like she ran quick"ly". You don't really need the quickly.
5) Try to make sure you know who the main character is and that you have a good amount of conflict.

There were lots of other tips but those are the ones that stick out in my head.

Nicole also recommended reading some good books on self-editing. My favorite is Stephen King's book, On Writing.

And one of the great things about this workshop is the way the community gathers around to help each other become better writers.

It was a fun morning, filled with great tips, hints and new friendships :D