Today I want to let you all know that WriteOnCon is coming August 16-18. I can’t wait!
In case you don’t know what WriteOnCon is, it’s an online three day conference where you can meet agents, editors and authors who have lots of valuable advice to share. It was founded by our own Casey. She and the other organizers of WriteOnCon created an even more awesome conference this year.
Here’s why I think you don’t want to miss it:
1. It’s free. No, I’m not kidding. I’d love to go to one of the National SCBWI conferences to meet a lot of agents at one time, but I really can’t afford it. I love our local SCBWI chapter, but not many agents come to our conferences. So this is the best way for me to learn what a lot of awesome agents are looking for as I move closer to submitting.
2. There are lots of live chats and discussions on the forums with agents, editors, and authors. Agents participating include Michael Bourret, Mary Kole, Holly Root, Joanna Volpe, Natalie Fischer, Marietta Zacker, and Sara Megibow, Steven Malk, and many more people you’ll want to learn more about.
3. One of the things I love about the live chats is that you really get to know the agents, editors, and authors through the online conversation. And if you’re lucky, your question will be answered.
4. In the forums, there will be question and answer sessions, pitch sessions, and most likely sessions where agents give their gut reactions to submitted queries. And you can post your query for critique by participants and maybe even an agent. If they’re really interested, they may ask you to submit.
5. Don’t have time to attend all the events? There’s nothing to worry about. You can go back and read the transcripts. I know I’ll have to for some of the events because I’ll be at work. But I plan to catch whatever I can.
So what are you waiting for? Go to WriteOnCon to find out all the details.
On Wednesday, I'm doing an interview with debut author Jonathan Auxier--his birthday--and giving away a copy of his book PETER NIMBLE AND HIS FANTASTIC EYES. I wish I could enter the contest because I really want to read his book.
Next Monday, I'll be interviewing a teen in high school for my ASK THE EXPERT SERIES. And on August 22nd, I'm so excited to interview Kelley Armstrong and give away a copy of her book, THE GATHERING.
Hope to see you on Wednesday and next Monday!
Showing posts with label WriteOnCon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WriteOnCon. Show all posts
Live Chat with Pippin!
In case you missed the notice, we have a WriteOnCon Live Chat happening MONDAY with the amazing agents at Pippin Properties, Inc. I'm pasting the deets below. Also, we're looking for a VBulletin-savvy forum manager, if that sounds like you, check out this post.
Hello! Happy New Year from all of us here at WriteOnCon!
We hope you’re ready for WriteOnCon 2011 (come August) and a full year of live events–because we’ve been VERY busy behind the scenes, planning some new awesome. We thought we’d start the year off with a bang and announce our amazingly fabulous January Live event.
Are you ready for this? Got your shiny, new calenders out? Here are the details!
We’re SO excited to announce that we’re bringing in the amazing ladies at Pippin Properties, Inc for a special live chat/panel discussion!!!!!
The chat will go up about 15 minutes to 5:00 here on the homepage, and can also be found under the “live events / chat” tab above.
Hello! Happy New Year from all of us here at WriteOnCon!
We hope you’re ready for WriteOnCon 2011 (come August) and a full year of live events–because we’ve been VERY busy behind the scenes, planning some new awesome. We thought we’d start the year off with a bang and announce our amazingly fabulous January Live event.
Are you ready for this? Got your shiny, new calenders out? Here are the details!
We’re SO excited to announce that we’re bringing in the amazing ladies at Pippin Properties, Inc for a special live chat/panel discussion!!!!!
Holly McGhee, Elena Mechlin, and Joan Slattery of Pippin Properties, Inc. will be joining WriteOnCon to discuss query writing do’s and dont’s and what they’re looking for!
When: Monday, January 24th, 2011 at 5:00 PM EST
Where: http://writeoncon.com/
In case you didn’t notice, the event is scheduled a little earlier than you might be used to, so make sure you make a note of the time and don’t miss out. We knew some people have had a harder time attending our later panels, so we thought we’d have a little variety.
The chat will go up about 15 minutes to 5:00 here on the homepage, and can also be found under the “live events / chat” tab above.
Make sure you come armed with plenty of your most pressing questions about query writing and what Pippin is looking for. We’ll be spending 30 minutes on each. And to help you better figure out what to ask, here’s a little more info about these lovely ladies:
About Holly:
Holly McGhee founded Pippin Properties in 1998, after seven years as an Executive Editor and Associate Publisher at HarperCollins, and four years in adult trade marketing. She still can hardly believe that she gets to work with books every day, and she firmly believes that you can learn just about everything you need to know in life from children’s books. She is honored to have spent more than a decade representing talented authors and artists such as Kate DiCamillo, William Steig, Harry Bliss, David Small, Doreen Cronin, Kathi Appelt, and her very own sister, Alison McGhee, as well as many other amazing people. In her personal life, Holly writes under the pen name Hallie Durand and she likes spending time with her three kids and husband, going bowling, grocery shopping, and taking care of her nineteen year old dinner-plate aurelia tree, the best plant on Earth!
About Elena:
After a few years of bopping around the publishing industry, Elena finally found the perfect position from which to pursue her love of all things children’s literature at Pippin Properties. At Pippin, she loves reading queries and loves the treasure hunt that ensues! A uniquely collaborative agency, Pippin represents publishing greats such as Kate DiCamillo, David Small, Peter H. Reynolds, Kathi Appelt, and Doreen Cronin, among many others. Elena loves funny picture books, is typically averse to rhyming texts, likes goofy middle grade, and is on the hunt for some hot YA! She spends much of her free time enjoying New York City on foot.
About Joan:
Joan Slattery joined Pippin Properties, Inc., as a literary agent in November 2010. Prior to that, she spent nearly twenty years editing fiction and picture books for Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers (Random House). As an editor, she had the pleasure of working with Philip Pullman, Jerry Spinelli, Jane Smiley, Cynthia Voigt, Adele Griffin, Shelley Pearsall, Jen Bryant, Laura McNeal, and Tom McNeal, among many others. She also holds great admiration for librarians (and their sway over the children’s book industry) and received her own Masters in Library Science while working as an editor. Joan lives with her husband and twin five-year-olds in a suburb of New York City.
You can learn more about Pippin and their fabulous clients at www.pippinproperties.com
We’d like to kick 2011 off with pizzazz so please spread the word.
We’ll see you Monday, January 24th!
Winners + WriteOnCon Live Panel
Just drew the winners for my giveaway using Random.org. Thank you, everyone, for entering, spreading the word, and donating to WriteOnCon (if you did). You guys are the best!
The winner of WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON by John Green and David Levithan is...
Joseph Miller!
The winner of EXTRAORDINARY by Nancy Werlin is...
Courtney Barr, The Southern Princess!
Congrats you two! I'm going to try to locate your e-mail addresses and will be in touch for your addresses. If you don't hear from me, however, e-mail me at caseymccormickya (at) gmail (dot) com.
Then, one final reminder that we have a LIVE panel happening tonight at 9 PM EDT at the WriteOnCon site with literary agent Jessica Sinsheimer of Sarah Jane Freymann Literary, literary agent Roseanne Wells of Marianne Strong Literary Agency, associate editor Jocelyn Davies of Razorbill Penguin, and associate editor Kari Sutherland of Harper Collins Children’s Books. We'll be doing a transcript, but I hope you can all make it live! For details, stop by the WriteOnCon site.
See you then!
The winner of WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON by John Green and David Levithan is...
Joseph Miller!
The winner of EXTRAORDINARY by Nancy Werlin is...
Courtney Barr, The Southern Princess!
Congrats you two! I'm going to try to locate your e-mail addresses and will be in touch for your addresses. If you don't hear from me, however, e-mail me at caseymccormickya (at) gmail (dot) com.
Then, one final reminder that we have a LIVE panel happening tonight at 9 PM EDT at the WriteOnCon site with literary agent Jessica Sinsheimer of Sarah Jane Freymann Literary, literary agent Roseanne Wells of Marianne Strong Literary Agency, associate editor Jocelyn Davies of Razorbill Penguin, and associate editor Kari Sutherland of Harper Collins Children’s Books. We'll be doing a transcript, but I hope you can all make it live! For details, stop by the WriteOnCon site.
See you then!
So Many Giveaways!
I trust you've been stalking the WriteOnCon blog this morning? Why wouldn't you be? There are some amazing giveaways happening courtesy of the awesome that is The Elevensies. It's spectacular. ARCS, pre-orders, critiques, swag! Stuff that isn't coming out for months. You can be among the first to get your hands on this stuff. And a post goes up Every. Hour. during today and tomorrow. Details HERE.
But before you run off to see what the latest giveaway is, feel free to enter MY giveaway, which is for an ARC of EXTRAORDINARY by Nancy Werlin and a hardcover of WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON by John Green and David Levithan. There will be two winners, one book to each.
EXTRAORDINARY:
Phoebe finds herself drawn to Mallory, the strange and secretive new kid in school, and the two girls become as close as sisters . . . until Mallory's magnetic older brother, Ryland, shows up during their junior year. Ryland has an immediate, exciting hold on Phoebe but a dangerous hold, for she begins to question her feelings about her best friend and, worse, about herself.
Soon she'll discover the shocking truth about Ryland and Mallory: that these two are visitors from the faerie realm who have come to collect on an age-old debt. Generations ago, the faerie queen promised Pheobe's ancestor five extraordinary sons in exchange for the sacrifice of one ordinary female heir. But in hundreds of years there hasn't been a single ordinary girl in the family, and now the faeries are dying. Could Phoebe be the first ordinary one? Could she save the faeries, or is she special enough to save herself?
WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON:
One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens--both named Will Grayson--are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history's most fabulous high school musical.
Hilarious, poignant, and deeply insightful, John Green and David Levithan's collaborative novel is brimming with a double helping of the heart and humor that have won both them legions of faithful fans.
To enter, please leave a comment on this post by Sunday, September 26 at midnight with a way for me to get in touch (if your contact info isn't easy to find). Please include info/links if you take advantage of the extra-entry opportunities. My particular contest is open to the U.S. and Canada only, but if you're international and want to enter on behalf of my local library, please do!
Extra entries for the following:
+2 for tweeting about this contest
+2 for posting or linking this contest on your blog/website/facebook
+10 for donating to the WriteOnCon website (over on the right side of the WriteOnCon site, down under the follow widget)
Okay, that last one. I know! WriteOnCon is something we designed to be totally and completely free for everyone, so we hate asking for money. Like, at all. But, unfortunately, the only way we can avoid another Error 403 disaster is to have way better web hosting, and sadly, that doesn’t come for free.
So, yes, we have to pay to keep WriteOnCon 2011 EPIC. But we want to make a few things clear:
-You DO NOT have to donate to enter (or win) any of these contests
-You DO NOT have to donate to participate in the live events
-You DO NOT have to donate to attend our next conference
-IF you decide to donate, we’re only recommending something small, like $5.00
So, yes, we have to pay to keep WriteOnCon 2011 EPIC. But we want to make a few things clear:
-You DO NOT have to donate to enter (or win) any of these contests
-You DO NOT have to donate to participate in the live events
-You DO NOT have to donate to attend our next conference
-IF you decide to donate, we’re only recommending something small, like $5.00
So it’s completely up to you if you want to donate. If you can—THANK YOU, and we wanted to reward you with extra contest entries. If you can’t—no worries. Absolutely none!
Let me know if you have any questions and really, truly make sure you stop by the WriteOnCon site to see what's up to win.
WriteOnCon Live Events and an Epic Epic Giveaway
Yes, it's true! WriteOnCon will officially be doing monthly live events. The first one is Monday, September 27th at 9:00* pm EDT with Jessica Sinsheimer of The Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency, Roseanne Wells of The Marianne Strong Literary Agency, and others to be announced.
But that's not all! We're also doing a giant giveaway starting TOMORROW. Check out the WriteOnCon blog for details. That's where the Epic Giveaway of Epic Epicness will happen and it's going to be AWESOME! But make sure to stop by here tomorrow as well. I'll be giving away a copy of WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON by John Green and David Levithan and an ARC of EXTRAORDINARY by Nancy Werlin to two lucky winners. My cohorts, Elana Johnson, Lisa and Laura Roecker, Jamie Harrington, Shannon Messenger, and Jen Stayroot will also be giving away books or critiques on their blogs. Go follow and win!
*We all managed to post the time wrong. The event will be at 9:00 p.m. EDT.
Awesome Peeps, Big Thanks
Writer JD Betts recently e-mailed wanting to know if she could feature my blog on hers, Sit. Desk.Write. I said, "of course!" and here it is. Thanks so much, JD!
I've also been collecting reviews, recaps, and takeaways of WriteOnCon. I haven't had time to thank you all individually, so I wanted to put a big THANK YOU here and share your posts with others.
Kelly Hashway's Blog - WriteOnCon Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
The Bluestocking's Blog - WriteOnCon Recap.
The Saucy Scrivener - Favorites from WriteOnCon.
Get Back, Loretta - Freaky Friday: WriteOnCon Edition.
Something Else to Distract Me - The Best of WriteOnCon.
Steven K. Griffin's Blog - WriteOnCon and Stuff Around the Web.
Northwriter - Friday Photos: WriteOnCon and Weasels.
Routines for Writers - The Method of Finishing.
Seeing Creative - Cool Links Friday.
Layinda's Blog - WriteOnCon - The Gift that Keeps on Giving.
This Mom is Overdunne - Humble Pie and Hard Drive Errors.
Harry Potter for Writers - WriteOnCon -- My Notes.
Adventures in Children's Publishing - WriteOnCon Day 1, Day 2, Day 3.
(W)ords and (W)ardances - Favorite WriteOnCon Posts.
Sparkly Adventures in Writing Right - Shout-Out to the Girls Over at WriteOnCon.
Jay Eckert's Sharpened Pens: What I Learned at WriteOnCon.
Writing Up My Life - Gratitude Smunday 21.
The Graceful Doe's Blog - WriteOnCon Follow Up.
Tess Quins' Blog - Keep Writing!
Cynde's Got the Write Stuff: My Quick Review of the WriteOnCon Conference.
The Open Vein - Fab-Five Friday & A Big Thank You.
Dancing with Dragons is Hard on Your Shoes - WriteOnCon Favorites: ...
Sandy Carlson's Writing Blog - WriteOnCon Part I, Part II, and Part III.
Dancing Down Serendipity Street - I <3 WriteOnCon.
AbsoluteWrite - WriteOnCon.
Christine Fonseca - WriteOnCon is HERE!
The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment - WriteOnCon Query Contest.
Tara McClendon's Blog - Thoughts on WriteOnCon.
An Alleged Author - WriteOnCon!
The Sharp Angel - WriteOnCon 2010 Day One, Day Two, Day Three.
Inky Fresh Press - WriteOnCon & Book Giveaways.
Suzanne Lilly - Do you WriteOnCon?
Writers and Technology - WriteOnCon Post Mortem.
A Heart on a Write - WriteOnCon FTW.
Heather's Odyssey - WriteOnCon Highlights.
Sandra Ulbrich Almazan - WriteOnCon Recap.
Rebecca's Writing Journey - What I Learned from WriteOnCon.
The Writing Room - What I Learned from WriteOnCon about Queries.
Writing. For Real. - WriteOnCon Aftermath.
Shades of Grey - WriteOnCon Recap.
Elizabeth May - Why I am "Trunking the Manuscript"
Day By Day Writer - WriteOnCon.
Chronicles of a Writer's Life - What's Your Weakness.
I know I'm still missing a ton. If you've recapped, reviewed, or blogged about WriteOnCon, please leave a link in the comments and I'll add it to the list!
I've also been collecting reviews, recaps, and takeaways of WriteOnCon. I haven't had time to thank you all individually, so I wanted to put a big THANK YOU here and share your posts with others.
Kelly Hashway's Blog - WriteOnCon Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
The Bluestocking's Blog - WriteOnCon Recap.
The Saucy Scrivener - Favorites from WriteOnCon.
Get Back, Loretta - Freaky Friday: WriteOnCon Edition.
Something Else to Distract Me - The Best of WriteOnCon.
Steven K. Griffin's Blog - WriteOnCon and Stuff Around the Web.
Northwriter - Friday Photos: WriteOnCon and Weasels.
Routines for Writers - The Method of Finishing.
Seeing Creative - Cool Links Friday.
Layinda's Blog - WriteOnCon - The Gift that Keeps on Giving.
This Mom is Overdunne - Humble Pie and Hard Drive Errors.
Harry Potter for Writers - WriteOnCon -- My Notes.
Adventures in Children's Publishing - WriteOnCon Day 1, Day 2, Day 3.
(W)ords and (W)ardances - Favorite WriteOnCon Posts.
Sparkly Adventures in Writing Right - Shout-Out to the Girls Over at WriteOnCon.
Jay Eckert's Sharpened Pens: What I Learned at WriteOnCon.
Writing Up My Life - Gratitude Smunday 21.
The Graceful Doe's Blog - WriteOnCon Follow Up.
Tess Quins' Blog - Keep Writing!
Cynde's Got the Write Stuff: My Quick Review of the WriteOnCon Conference.
The Open Vein - Fab-Five Friday & A Big Thank You.
Dancing with Dragons is Hard on Your Shoes - WriteOnCon Favorites: ...
Sandy Carlson's Writing Blog - WriteOnCon Part I, Part II, and Part III.
Dancing Down Serendipity Street - I <3 WriteOnCon.
AbsoluteWrite - WriteOnCon.
Christine Fonseca - WriteOnCon is HERE!
The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment - WriteOnCon Query Contest.
Tara McClendon's Blog - Thoughts on WriteOnCon.
An Alleged Author - WriteOnCon!
The Sharp Angel - WriteOnCon 2010 Day One, Day Two, Day Three.
Inky Fresh Press - WriteOnCon & Book Giveaways.
Suzanne Lilly - Do you WriteOnCon?
Writers and Technology - WriteOnCon Post Mortem.
A Heart on a Write - WriteOnCon FTW.
Heather's Odyssey - WriteOnCon Highlights.
Sandra Ulbrich Almazan - WriteOnCon Recap.
Rebecca's Writing Journey - What I Learned from WriteOnCon.
The Writing Room - What I Learned from WriteOnCon about Queries.
Writing. For Real. - WriteOnCon Aftermath.
Shades of Grey - WriteOnCon Recap.
Elizabeth May - Why I am "Trunking the Manuscript"
Day By Day Writer - WriteOnCon.
Chronicles of a Writer's Life - What's Your Weakness.
I know I'm still missing a ton. If you've recapped, reviewed, or blogged about WriteOnCon, please leave a link in the comments and I'll add it to the list!
WriteOnCon Farewell and Thanks
I'm guessing you've seen this elsewhere by now, but here is the final 2010 WriteOnCon vlog, our farewell...
Thanks so much EVERYONE for attending, bearing through the Dreaded 403, and generally just being AWESOME. You guys were outstanding in the forum! I mean, we hardly had to moderate at all. You've been amazing.
Please feel free to read back through the archives if you missed anything. The content is going to stay up all year, every year. The forum too, though we will be moving some things around. If you want a chance to have me or one of the other organizers critique your query, we have a contest going on until Sunday at midnight EDT. You can find that here. Make sure you keep an eye on the WriteOnCon blog for upcoming news. I'm afraid you can't rid of us until 2011. We have PLANS.
That said, it's definitely been a CRAZY week and I have to... uh... go pay attention to my kids now.
<3333
Thanks so much EVERYONE for attending, bearing through the Dreaded 403, and generally just being AWESOME. You guys were outstanding in the forum! I mean, we hardly had to moderate at all. You've been amazing.
Please feel free to read back through the archives if you missed anything. The content is going to stay up all year, every year. The forum too, though we will be moving some things around. If you want a chance to have me or one of the other organizers critique your query, we have a contest going on until Sunday at midnight EDT. You can find that here. Make sure you keep an eye on the WriteOnCon blog for upcoming news. I'm afraid you can't rid of us until 2011. We have PLANS.
That said, it's definitely been a CRAZY week and I have to... uh... go pay attention to my kids now.
<3333
WriteOnCon Back Up!
It looks like WriteOnCon is back up for most people. It may take a little longer for the rest of you. Let me know (in the comments) if you're still having trouble. Also, if you've left a comment on my blog for one of the WriteOnCon posts, PLEASE go leave it on the main site, if you have the time. The presenters are more likely to see them there, and I want them to know they're appreciated.
Thank you! After things have settled down, I'm going to boost today's Tip Tuesday back up.
ETA: The website goddess is saying to close and restart your browser. If that doesn't work, maybe try clearing out your cache/cookies. If that doesn't work, just give it some more time. We had to switch servers and it's taking awhile for everything to get smoothed out.
Elana is still posting the content up on her blog here: http://elanajohnson.blogspot.com/
HEY! If you still can't get on to the WriteOnCon site we have a backup chat HERE for tonight's LIVE panel at 9 PM EDT. You'll be able to see and send questions just like the people on the WriteOnCon site!
Thank you! After things have settled down, I'm going to boost today's Tip Tuesday back up.
ETA: The website goddess is saying to close and restart your browser. If that doesn't work, maybe try clearing out your cache/cookies. If that doesn't work, just give it some more time. We had to switch servers and it's taking awhile for everything to get smoothed out.
Elana is still posting the content up on her blog here: http://elanajohnson.blogspot.com/
HEY! If you still can't get on to the WriteOnCon site we have a backup chat HERE for tonight's LIVE panel at 9 PM EDT. You'll be able to see and send questions just like the people on the WriteOnCon site!
WriteOnCon: Bringing the Funny
Site supposed to be up within the hour. Here's the latest post!
Wow. Can you believe we have the amazing Rachel Hawkins here? She's the author of HEX HALL, one of the best YA novels I've read this year. Yes, I might be a little biased. Whatever. She's frawesome! She's here to tell us how to bring the funny to our writing.
I never set out to write funny books. When I first sat down and started on the book that became HEX HALL, I was convinced I was writing a dark mystery full of DEATH and BLOOD SACRIFICE and all sorts of other things that were IN NO WAY COMICAL. Yes, my book would be like if Anne Rice and Flannery O’Conner had a baby (You know. Through science.) I would pose for moody author photos, wearing lots of eyeliner, and maybe some black velvet. Okay, so I hadn’t owned anything black velvet since an unfortunate flirtation with the Goth look in 9th grade, but whatever. The point is, I would write spoooooky books full of Angst and Danger.
Then I sat down to write. In my opening scene, I had a girl, Sophie Mercer, arriving at a creepy boarding school with her mom. It’s August, and the school is located on an island off the coast of Georgia, so the humidity is pretty intense. As they get out of the car, Sophie’s mom asks her what she thinks about the place. Sophie’s reply? “Awesome. I always wondered what it would be like to live in someone’s mouth.”
I stared at that line.
I deleted it.
I wrote it again.
I looked at it some more.
“Okay,” I thought . “So my Super Dark Book O’Death starts with a joke. Big deal. It’s kind of a smart-ass joke, so that’s acceptable. It’s not like The Funny is taking over or anything.”
So I kept writing, finally getting to the end of Chapter 1, where a werewolf attacks Sophie. “Yes!” I thought, fingers flying over the keys. “Werewolf attack! Nothing funny about that!” But as the werewolf charged Sophie, preparing to rip her throat out, did my intrepid heroine scream a four-letter word, or an awesome disemboweling spell? Nope. Sophie opened her mouth, and out came: “BAD DOG!”
This time, I didn’t even bother with the delete button. I closed the whole document and walked away from the computer. For the next few months, I tinkered with HEX HALL, the voice in my head going, “No one wants funny in their paranormal. It’s like the opposite of peanut butter and chocolate. How many funny books featuring the BRUTAL MURDERS OF TEENAGERS have you read, moron?”
But here’s the thing: When I was writing a dark, serious, angsty paranormal, I wasn’t having that much fun. When I was writing about Sophie doing pratfalls, or making an inadvertent dirty joke to her crush, I was grinning at the keyboard. So I gave in. I wrote a Funny Book (that yes, just happened to feature the brutal murders of teenagers.)
Luckily for me, it turned out that people did want funny in their paranormal, and I learned a very important lesson about why it’s so important to be true to your own voice. Of course, it meant I had to return that black velvet ball gown to the store, but that’s neither here nor there.
So if you’re thinking about Bringing The Funny, the best advice I have is: DO IT. I wasted too much time being scared of The Funny!
As for more specific advice:
1) If ALL your test readers think a joke isn’t funny, it probably isn’t. If it’s just one or two, though, keep it in. The Funny is HIGHLY subjective, after all!
2) Make sure The Funny is in keeping with the rest of the book. For example, HEX HALL originally had jokey, faux-fairy tale chapter titles, like, “Wherein Our Heroine Cries Like a Dork, Uncovers a Mystery, and Makes Lifelong Enemies.” Now, I thought this was HILARIOUS, but it didn’t take me long to realize that those chapter titles really, really clashed with the tone of the book.
3) Have fun with all kinds of humor. I love a good witticism as much as the next gal, but then, a well-timed physical gag makes me crack up, too. Remember there are lots of types of funny, both big and small. Use all of ‘em!
Rachel Hawkins is a 30-year-old former teacher who left teaching to take a chance and get serious about finishing that book she’d always wanted to write. Her first book, HEX HALL, was the result of that leap of faith. She’s a graduate of Auburn University in Alabama and lives with her husband and four-year-old son. The second book in the HEX HALL series, DEMONGLASS, comes out March 1, 2011. Rachel is currently hard at work on the final book in the HEX HALL trilogy.
Wow. Can you believe we have the amazing Rachel Hawkins here? She's the author of HEX HALL, one of the best YA novels I've read this year. Yes, I might be a little biased. Whatever. She's frawesome! She's here to tell us how to bring the funny to our writing.
Bringing the Funny
I never set out to write funny books. When I first sat down and started on the book that became HEX HALL, I was convinced I was writing a dark mystery full of DEATH and BLOOD SACRIFICE and all sorts of other things that were IN NO WAY COMICAL. Yes, my book would be like if Anne Rice and Flannery O’Conner had a baby (You know. Through science.) I would pose for moody author photos, wearing lots of eyeliner, and maybe some black velvet. Okay, so I hadn’t owned anything black velvet since an unfortunate flirtation with the Goth look in 9th grade, but whatever. The point is, I would write spoooooky books full of Angst and Danger.
Then I sat down to write. In my opening scene, I had a girl, Sophie Mercer, arriving at a creepy boarding school with her mom. It’s August, and the school is located on an island off the coast of Georgia, so the humidity is pretty intense. As they get out of the car, Sophie’s mom asks her what she thinks about the place. Sophie’s reply? “Awesome. I always wondered what it would be like to live in someone’s mouth.”
I stared at that line.
I deleted it.
I wrote it again.
I looked at it some more.
“Okay,” I thought . “So my Super Dark Book O’Death starts with a joke. Big deal. It’s kind of a smart-ass joke, so that’s acceptable. It’s not like The Funny is taking over or anything.”
So I kept writing, finally getting to the end of Chapter 1, where a werewolf attacks Sophie. “Yes!” I thought, fingers flying over the keys. “Werewolf attack! Nothing funny about that!” But as the werewolf charged Sophie, preparing to rip her throat out, did my intrepid heroine scream a four-letter word, or an awesome disemboweling spell? Nope. Sophie opened her mouth, and out came: “BAD DOG!”
This time, I didn’t even bother with the delete button. I closed the whole document and walked away from the computer. For the next few months, I tinkered with HEX HALL, the voice in my head going, “No one wants funny in their paranormal. It’s like the opposite of peanut butter and chocolate. How many funny books featuring the BRUTAL MURDERS OF TEENAGERS have you read, moron?”
But here’s the thing: When I was writing a dark, serious, angsty paranormal, I wasn’t having that much fun. When I was writing about Sophie doing pratfalls, or making an inadvertent dirty joke to her crush, I was grinning at the keyboard. So I gave in. I wrote a Funny Book (that yes, just happened to feature the brutal murders of teenagers.)
Luckily for me, it turned out that people did want funny in their paranormal, and I learned a very important lesson about why it’s so important to be true to your own voice. Of course, it meant I had to return that black velvet ball gown to the store, but that’s neither here nor there.
So if you’re thinking about Bringing The Funny, the best advice I have is: DO IT. I wasted too much time being scared of The Funny!
As for more specific advice:
1) If ALL your test readers think a joke isn’t funny, it probably isn’t. If it’s just one or two, though, keep it in. The Funny is HIGHLY subjective, after all!
2) Make sure The Funny is in keeping with the rest of the book. For example, HEX HALL originally had jokey, faux-fairy tale chapter titles, like, “Wherein Our Heroine Cries Like a Dork, Uncovers a Mystery, and Makes Lifelong Enemies.” Now, I thought this was HILARIOUS, but it didn’t take me long to realize that those chapter titles really, really clashed with the tone of the book.
3) Have fun with all kinds of humor. I love a good witticism as much as the next gal, but then, a well-timed physical gag makes me crack up, too. Remember there are lots of types of funny, both big and small. Use all of ‘em!
Rachel Hawkins is a 30-year-old former teacher who left teaching to take a chance and get serious about finishing that book she’d always wanted to write. Her first book, HEX HALL, was the result of that leap of faith. She’s a graduate of Auburn University in Alabama and lives with her husband and four-year-old son. The second book in the HEX HALL series, DEMONGLASS, comes out March 1, 2011. Rachel is currently hard at work on the final book in the HEX HALL trilogy.
WriteOnCon: Demystifying Illustration
Still getting the site fixed. Getting closer. Here are the 9:00 am EST posts!
The Illustrators of Studio 5 join us for a three-part series on Demystifying Illustration. First they discuss "Plussing the story."
PART ONE:
PART TWO:
PART THREE:
The Illustrators of Studio 5 join us for a three-part series on Demystifying Illustration. First they discuss "Plussing the story."
PART ONE:
PART TWO:
PART THREE:
WriteOnCon: Myths & Misconceptions!
Hey all - here are the fab vlogs by Holly, Molly, and Martha to keep you happy while we work on the site!
Have you always wondered what agents and editors are REALLY thinking? Tune into this amazing Q&A session with literary agent Holly Root and editors Molly O’Neill and Martha Mihalick. Don't miss this fascinating inside look at publishing!
Please note: We've posted this discussion in two parts due to it's length, but believe me you'll want to watch the entire thing. Enjoy!
P.S. Special thanks to Holly's husband Jon Root for his mad vlog editing/moderating skills.
Have you always wondered what agents and editors are REALLY thinking? Tune into this amazing Q&A session with literary agent Holly Root and editors Molly O’Neill and Martha Mihalick. Don't miss this fascinating inside look at publishing!
Please note: We've posted this discussion in two parts due to it's length, but believe me you'll want to watch the entire thing. Enjoy!
P.S. Special thanks to Holly's husband Jon Root for his mad vlog editing/moderating skills.
Get Ready for WriteOnCon
Hey all! The lovely Shannon Messenger wrote this up and I'm stealing it to share with all of you. I can't beleive WriteOnCon starts tomorrow. Are you ready?!?
As some of you may know (or I hope you do), about three months ago the seven of us teamed up with a bold and slightly daunting goal: to create a totally free online writer’s conference, mainly for kidlit writers–but everyone is welcome. Ever since, we’ve been working like mad to put together the best conference we possibly could, and I have to tell you guys: it is going to be AWESOME.
And it starts tomorrow! I can’t believe it’s finally here!!!!
No one is more stunned than us at how many amazing people we have contributing to the conference. Make sure you check out the unbelievable schedule we have posted:
http://writeoncon.com/about/schedule/
*all times EDT, LIVE events are noted in blue and will take place here. Content will take place on the main WriteOnCon site. Click here for more info about how this will run. Click here for information on the live events.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010:
6:00 AM: Welcome Keynote by author Josh Berk
7:00 AM: Refining Your Craft with Each Book by author Janette Rallison
8:00 AM: Give Yourself Permission by editor Molly O’Neill
9:00 AM: Myths and Misconceptions by literary agent Holly Root, and editors Molly O’Neill and Martha Mihalick
10:00 AM: Illustrating Children’s Books by author/illustrator J.H. Everett and studio (series of 3, posted every 20 minutes)
11:00 AM: Bringing the Funny by author Rachel Hawkins
12:00 PM: Becoming a Career Author by literary agent Catherine Drayton
1:00 PM: Writing Middle Grade by author Jon Lewis
2:00 PM: Voice by literary agent Elana Roth
2:30 PM: Live chat with literary agent Suzie Townsend
3:00 PM: Writing a Query Letter by author Jodi Meadows
3:30: Joanna Volpe’s query critique
4:00 PM: Author Branding by author Shelli Johannes-Wells
5:00 PM: Questions to Ask Yourself Before a Revision by editor Kendra Levin
6:00 PM: Pie in the Face (how characters react to situations) by author Rosemary Clement-Moore
9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals chat LIVE (Elana Roth, Kathleen Ortiz, Martha Mihalick)
10:30 PM: Working with Agents and Editors, a live Workshop with literary agent Mark McVeigh
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
6:00 AM: Romance in YA by author Lisa Schroeder
7:00 AM: Plot and Pacing by author/literary agent Weronika Janczuk
8:00 AM: Using an Independent Publicist by author Lauren Becker
9:00 AM: The Revision Process by author Cynthea Liu (series of 3, posted every 20 minutes)
10:00 AM: Transition From Self-Published to Traditional Publishing by author Jennifer Fosberry
10:30 AM: Joanna Volpe’s query critique
11:00 AM: Live blogging event: Queries with literary agent Natalie Fischer
12:00 PM: Creating Memorable Characters by literary agent/author Mandy Hubbard
1:00 PM: Reaching Out to Schools and Libraries Before You’re Published by author Stasia Ward Kehoe
2:00 PM: Sex in YA: The ABC’s of Hooking Up by author Suzanne Young
Live chat with literary agent Natalie Fischer
3:00 PM: Keynote Address by author Lindsay Eland
3:30 PM: Writing Genre Fiction by author Julia Karr
4:00 PM: Do’s and Don’t’s of Querying by literary agent Kate Testerman
5:00 PM: Authentic/Edgy YA by author Kody Keplinger
6:00 PM: How to Make a Character Collage by author Tera Lynn Childs
7:00 PM: Live chat with literary agent Jennifer Laughran
9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals chat LIVE (Anica Rissi, Joanna Volpe, Suzie Townsend, Mary Kole)
10:30 PM: Building an Online Presence, a live Workshop with author Daisy Whitney
Thursday, August 12, 2010
6:00 AM: Writing With a Real Life by author Lindsey Leavitt
7:00 AM: Writing Advice from PJ Hoover and the Texas Sweethearts
8:00 AM: Writing Realistic, Captivating Dialog by author Tom Leveen
9:00 AM: How to have a Successful Author Event at a Bookstore by Calondra McArthur
10:00 AM: Q&A by literary agent Steven Malk
10:30 AM: Writing a Complete Story Even Though it’s Part of a Trilogy by author Michelle Zink
11:00 AM: From Submission to Acquisition: An Editor’s Choose Your Own Adventure by editor Martha Mihalick
12:00 PM: Transitioning from Adult to YA by author Risa Green
1:00 PM: Rhyme in Picture Books by author Tiffany Strelitz
2:00 PM: The First Five Pages by Kathleen Ortiz
3:00 PM: Writing Thrillers for Young Adults by author Kimberly Derting
3:30 PM: Picture Books and Easy Readers by author Shelley Thomas
4:00 PM: Staying positive in the face of rejections by author Crystal Stranaghan
5:00 PM: Avoiding Character Stereotypes by literary agent Mary Kole
6:00 PM: Creating New Mythologies by author Aprilynne Pike
9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals chat LIVE (Michelle Andelman, Molly O’Neill, Kate Testerman)
10:30 PM: The Revision Process from Both Sides of the Desk, a live Workshop with literary agent/author Regina Brooks
***
I’ve read/watched most of the materials they’ve provided and I promise you, they are fantastic. There is a wealth of information there–you’re going to love it. We’ve also built an awesome critiques forum where you’ll be able to post samples of your work for feedback. Not to mention several agents have been kind enough to donate personalized page critiques that we’ll be giving away throughout the conference like door prizes. Yeah–it’s going to be epic!
Which leads me to the real point of this post. I answer the WriteOnCon email, so I know a lot of you are wondering how it’s going to work, afraid you’re going to miss out. So here’s the general idea, to set your minds at ease:
Everything conference related is going to take place on the conference website:
http://writeoncon.com/
At the scheduled times, we’ll be posting blogs/vlogs from our contributors for you to read/watch at your own convenience. If you miss one, it’ll still be there when you get around to it. You’ll just have to look through the older posts. And you’ll be able to leave any questions you might have in the comments section of the post. We can’t guarantee that our contributors will be able to answer all those questions, but they’re going to try.
All of the live events (which, FYI, are any of the events with blue text in them in the schedule) will be taking place in the chat section of the website:
http://writeoncon.com/chat/
All you have to do is show up at the right time and join the event. To the best of our knowledge there will be no limit on how many people can attend (well, unless we get more than 25,000 people attending, but somehow I don’t think that’s going to happen) and everyone will have a fair chance at having their questions answered.
BUT–in order to keep things organized–all live events are going to be moderated, and here’s what that means. You will type your question into the chat bar and hit send. It will disappear, like it was sent, but it will not show up in the chat. That does not mean you need to send it again. I can assure you–we’ve tested it a million different ways–it went through.
What happened is that it’s in the queue (which only moderators can see), waiting for a moderator to send it to the agent or panel when they’re ready. So please–as someone who will be moderating several of the chats–I am begging you: do not keep sending your question over and over and over. We’re going to do our best to get as many questions answered as we can, and the more you flood the queue, the more it’s going to slow things down.
Want to increase your chances of having your question answered? Here’s some question asking pointers:
- Keep your question general. Remember, hundreds of people will be reading the chat, and their books are different from yours. Stick to questions that everyone will benefit from.
- Keep your question short. If it takes an entire paragraph for your question, it’s probably too in depth for the chat, and it’s just going to slow things down.
- Keep your question polite. All the agents/editors are donating their time and energy to the conference, so be respectful. They’re here to help, even if they rejected you at some point in the past.
We are planning to have transcripts made of all the chats and panels, but there’s a chance something might go wrong, so if at all possible, we highly recommend you be there for the live events, so you don’t miss out.
The final feature of the conference are the forums, which can be found at:
http://writeoncon.com/forums/
You have to be registered and logged in to use the forums, so if you have not already registered, I suggest you do so here:
http://writeoncon.com/forums/ucp.php?mode=register&sid=3979ccc4673e4783fc219bb38c473a79
In the forums you’ll find different threads where you can chat, hang out, enter to win door prizes, and post pieces of your work for critique. And we have a few, no-brainer rules for the forums:
- If you post something for critique, repay the favor by critiquing someone else’s work
- Keep your critiques helpful and constructive
- Do not harass the industry pros with PMs (private messages). They will tell us if you are, and then we’ll have to block that feature for everyone.
- Keep your language clean and always be respectful
-If you see anything untoward going down, please alert a moderator or email us
And that’s really it. We’ve done everything we can to make the conference as simple and user friendly as possible, and we’ll be around to answer questions if any problems arise. We have a huge number of people registered, so we’re looking forward to an awesome event, and we’re so grateful for your enthusiasm and support! Hope to see you tomorrow at WriteOnCon!!!!!
And it starts tomorrow! I can’t believe it’s finally here!!!!
No one is more stunned than us at how many amazing people we have contributing to the conference. Make sure you check out the unbelievable schedule we have posted:
http://writeoncon.com/about/schedule/
*all times EDT, LIVE events are noted in blue and will take place here. Content will take place on the main WriteOnCon site. Click here for more info about how this will run. Click here for information on the live events.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010:
6:00 AM: Welcome Keynote by author Josh Berk
7:00 AM: Refining Your Craft with Each Book by author Janette Rallison
8:00 AM: Give Yourself Permission by editor Molly O’Neill
9:00 AM: Myths and Misconceptions by literary agent Holly Root, and editors Molly O’Neill and Martha Mihalick
10:00 AM: Illustrating Children’s Books by author/illustrator J.H. Everett and studio (series of 3, posted every 20 minutes)
11:00 AM: Bringing the Funny by author Rachel Hawkins
12:00 PM: Becoming a Career Author by literary agent Catherine Drayton
1:00 PM: Writing Middle Grade by author Jon Lewis
2:00 PM: Voice by literary agent Elana Roth
2:30 PM: Live chat with literary agent Suzie Townsend
3:00 PM: Writing a Query Letter by author Jodi Meadows
3:30: Joanna Volpe’s query critique
4:00 PM: Author Branding by author Shelli Johannes-Wells
5:00 PM: Questions to Ask Yourself Before a Revision by editor Kendra Levin
6:00 PM: Pie in the Face (how characters react to situations) by author Rosemary Clement-Moore
9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals chat LIVE (Elana Roth, Kathleen Ortiz, Martha Mihalick)
10:30 PM: Working with Agents and Editors, a live Workshop with literary agent Mark McVeigh
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
6:00 AM: Romance in YA by author Lisa Schroeder
7:00 AM: Plot and Pacing by author/literary agent Weronika Janczuk
8:00 AM: Using an Independent Publicist by author Lauren Becker
9:00 AM: The Revision Process by author Cynthea Liu (series of 3, posted every 20 minutes)
10:00 AM: Transition From Self-Published to Traditional Publishing by author Jennifer Fosberry
10:30 AM: Joanna Volpe’s query critique
11:00 AM: Live blogging event: Queries with literary agent Natalie Fischer
12:00 PM: Creating Memorable Characters by literary agent/author Mandy Hubbard
1:00 PM: Reaching Out to Schools and Libraries Before You’re Published by author Stasia Ward Kehoe
2:00 PM: Sex in YA: The ABC’s of Hooking Up by author Suzanne Young
Live chat with literary agent Natalie Fischer
3:00 PM: Keynote Address by author Lindsay Eland
3:30 PM: Writing Genre Fiction by author Julia Karr
4:00 PM: Do’s and Don’t’s of Querying by literary agent Kate Testerman
5:00 PM: Authentic/Edgy YA by author Kody Keplinger
6:00 PM: How to Make a Character Collage by author Tera Lynn Childs
7:00 PM: Live chat with literary agent Jennifer Laughran
9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals chat LIVE (Anica Rissi, Joanna Volpe, Suzie Townsend, Mary Kole)
10:30 PM: Building an Online Presence, a live Workshop with author Daisy Whitney
Thursday, August 12, 2010
6:00 AM: Writing With a Real Life by author Lindsey Leavitt
7:00 AM: Writing Advice from PJ Hoover and the Texas Sweethearts
8:00 AM: Writing Realistic, Captivating Dialog by author Tom Leveen
9:00 AM: How to have a Successful Author Event at a Bookstore by Calondra McArthur
10:00 AM: Q&A by literary agent Steven Malk
10:30 AM: Writing a Complete Story Even Though it’s Part of a Trilogy by author Michelle Zink
11:00 AM: From Submission to Acquisition: An Editor’s Choose Your Own Adventure by editor Martha Mihalick
12:00 PM: Transitioning from Adult to YA by author Risa Green
1:00 PM: Rhyme in Picture Books by author Tiffany Strelitz
2:00 PM: The First Five Pages by Kathleen Ortiz
3:00 PM: Writing Thrillers for Young Adults by author Kimberly Derting
3:30 PM: Picture Books and Easy Readers by author Shelley Thomas
4:00 PM: Staying positive in the face of rejections by author Crystal Stranaghan
5:00 PM: Avoiding Character Stereotypes by literary agent Mary Kole
6:00 PM: Creating New Mythologies by author Aprilynne Pike
9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals chat LIVE (Michelle Andelman, Molly O’Neill, Kate Testerman)
10:30 PM: The Revision Process from Both Sides of the Desk, a live Workshop with literary agent/author Regina Brooks
***
I’ve read/watched most of the materials they’ve provided and I promise you, they are fantastic. There is a wealth of information there–you’re going to love it. We’ve also built an awesome critiques forum where you’ll be able to post samples of your work for feedback. Not to mention several agents have been kind enough to donate personalized page critiques that we’ll be giving away throughout the conference like door prizes. Yeah–it’s going to be epic!
Which leads me to the real point of this post. I answer the WriteOnCon email, so I know a lot of you are wondering how it’s going to work, afraid you’re going to miss out. So here’s the general idea, to set your minds at ease:
Everything conference related is going to take place on the conference website:
http://writeoncon.com/
At the scheduled times, we’ll be posting blogs/vlogs from our contributors for you to read/watch at your own convenience. If you miss one, it’ll still be there when you get around to it. You’ll just have to look through the older posts. And you’ll be able to leave any questions you might have in the comments section of the post. We can’t guarantee that our contributors will be able to answer all those questions, but they’re going to try.
All of the live events (which, FYI, are any of the events with blue text in them in the schedule) will be taking place in the chat section of the website:
http://writeoncon.com/chat/
All you have to do is show up at the right time and join the event. To the best of our knowledge there will be no limit on how many people can attend (well, unless we get more than 25,000 people attending, but somehow I don’t think that’s going to happen) and everyone will have a fair chance at having their questions answered.
BUT–in order to keep things organized–all live events are going to be moderated, and here’s what that means. You will type your question into the chat bar and hit send. It will disappear, like it was sent, but it will not show up in the chat. That does not mean you need to send it again. I can assure you–we’ve tested it a million different ways–it went through.
What happened is that it’s in the queue (which only moderators can see), waiting for a moderator to send it to the agent or panel when they’re ready. So please–as someone who will be moderating several of the chats–I am begging you: do not keep sending your question over and over and over. We’re going to do our best to get as many questions answered as we can, and the more you flood the queue, the more it’s going to slow things down.
Want to increase your chances of having your question answered? Here’s some question asking pointers:
- Keep your question general. Remember, hundreds of people will be reading the chat, and their books are different from yours. Stick to questions that everyone will benefit from.
- Keep your question short. If it takes an entire paragraph for your question, it’s probably too in depth for the chat, and it’s just going to slow things down.
- Keep your question polite. All the agents/editors are donating their time and energy to the conference, so be respectful. They’re here to help, even if they rejected you at some point in the past.
We are planning to have transcripts made of all the chats and panels, but there’s a chance something might go wrong, so if at all possible, we highly recommend you be there for the live events, so you don’t miss out.
The final feature of the conference are the forums, which can be found at:
http://writeoncon.com/forums/
You have to be registered and logged in to use the forums, so if you have not already registered, I suggest you do so here:
http://writeoncon.com/forums/ucp.php?mode=register&sid=3979ccc4673e4783fc219bb38c473a79
In the forums you’ll find different threads where you can chat, hang out, enter to win door prizes, and post pieces of your work for critique. And we have a few, no-brainer rules for the forums:
- If you post something for critique, repay the favor by critiquing someone else’s work
- Keep your critiques helpful and constructive
- Do not harass the industry pros with PMs (private messages). They will tell us if you are, and then we’ll have to block that feature for everyone.
- Keep your language clean and always be respectful
-If you see anything untoward going down, please alert a moderator or email us
And that’s really it. We’ve done everything we can to make the conference as simple and user friendly as possible, and we’ll be around to answer questions if any problems arise. We have a huge number of people registered, so we’re looking forward to an awesome event, and we’re so grateful for your enthusiasm and support! Hope to see you tomorrow at WriteOnCon!!!!!
WriteOnCon Registration Begins July 1st!
We made a hilarious, somewhat random vlog to promote the registration date for WriteOnCon. It features Shannon Messenger, Lisa and Laura Roecker, Elana Johnson, Jamie Harrington, me, and our fabulous guest star Karsten Knight. Check it out!
Registration is for the site forum. Technically, you can register now but we're still tidying up and getting prepared. Most of the threads will be closed until the conference, but there will be a Practice Critiques forum and a place for chatting as we await the big event. So exciting! I'm hoping the faculty will be updated by tomorrow, too. What do you think so far?
Registration is for the site forum. Technically, you can register now but we're still tidying up and getting prepared. Most of the threads will be closed until the conference, but there will be a Practice Critiques forum and a place for chatting as we await the big event. So exciting! I'm hoping the faculty will be updated by tomorrow, too. What do you think so far?
WriteOnCon - The Big Reveal!
If you follow Elana Johnson, Jamie Harrington, Shannon Messenger, Lisa and Laura Roecker, and/or me on Twitter, you've probably seen tweets about a Secret Project and (oh yes!) a VLOG we've been working on. Well, the day has come to unleash the epic and bring you in on the secret. BEHOLD! virtual embarrassment and revelation!
My first vlog, people! I know! I'm sorry! *DEEP BREATH*
Anyway! to recap for those of you at work, the six of us (linked above) and the website goddess Jen Stayroot are organizing a free online writer's conference for kidlit writers!
We’ve all heard friends and fellow writers remark on their inability to attend writer's conferences for one reason or another, and since we’re all about paying it forward, we decided to create our own and to bring it to YOU using the amazing capabilities of the web. And so, WriteOnCon was born—and rated MC-18 (main characters 18 and under).
When? August 10-12, 2010
Where? http://writeoncon.com/
How? Various forms of social media.
I can't even tell you how amazing it's going to be. No, really! We have a ton of great stuff planned and just look at the names already involved: Catherine Drayton, Steven Malk, Michelle Andelman, Suzie Townsend, Mark McVeigh, Joanna Stampfel-Volpe, Kathleen Ortiz, Lindsay Eland, Dan Ehrenhaft, Mandy Hubbard, Daisy Whitney, Lindsey Leavitt, Josh Berk, Anica Rissi, Jodi Meadows—with more to come!
I know, right?! *swoon*
PLEASE bookmark the website, subscribe to the blog feed, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook! There are some details available on the site but we'll be leaking more as we draw near the big date.
But before you go, let's have a spread-the-word-GIVEAWAY! All you have to do is spread the word someway, somehow (the more ways and hows the better) by Friday at 12 pm EST (leave a link, if possible) and comment on this post with a way to reach you. The prize is a WINNER'S CHOICE kidlit book sent right to his/her doorstep. I know, I know, I'm so lax! But please, spread the word however you prefer and put the widget on your blog, if you can.
I'm very excited to see what you all think! More details will follow, I promise. Registration opens July 1st! And make sure you stop by my fellow organizers' blogs for more contests and giveaway opportunities!
My first vlog, people! I know! I'm sorry! *DEEP BREATH*
Anyway! to recap for those of you at work, the six of us (linked above) and the website goddess Jen Stayroot are organizing a free online writer's conference for kidlit writers!
We’ve all heard friends and fellow writers remark on their inability to attend writer's conferences for one reason or another, and since we’re all about paying it forward, we decided to create our own and to bring it to YOU using the amazing capabilities of the web. And so, WriteOnCon was born—and rated MC-18 (main characters 18 and under).
When? August 10-12, 2010
Where? http://writeoncon.com/
How? Various forms of social media.
I can't even tell you how amazing it's going to be. No, really! We have a ton of great stuff planned and just look at the names already involved: Catherine Drayton, Steven Malk, Michelle Andelman, Suzie Townsend, Mark McVeigh, Joanna Stampfel-Volpe, Kathleen Ortiz, Lindsay Eland, Dan Ehrenhaft, Mandy Hubbard, Daisy Whitney, Lindsey Leavitt, Josh Berk, Anica Rissi, Jodi Meadows—with more to come!
I know, right?! *swoon*
PLEASE bookmark the website, subscribe to the blog feed, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook! There are some details available on the site but we'll be leaking more as we draw near the big date.
But before you go, let's have a spread-the-word-GIVEAWAY! All you have to do is spread the word someway, somehow (the more ways and hows the better) by Friday at 12 pm EST (leave a link, if possible) and comment on this post with a way to reach you. The prize is a WINNER'S CHOICE kidlit book sent right to his/her doorstep. I know, I know, I'm so lax! But please, spread the word however you prefer and put the widget on your blog, if you can.
I'm very excited to see what you all think! More details will follow, I promise. Registration opens July 1st! And make sure you stop by my fellow organizers' blogs for more contests and giveaway opportunities!
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