Jen's Writing Journey

We all know that there is no magic formula for success. It comes down to hard work and good timing. You can’t control timing, but you can control how hard–and smart–you work.

1. Research
If you want to write for a particular magazine, subscribe to it and visit the local library to catch up on some back issues. You’ll get a sense for which topics are cyclical and which are one-offs. It will also give you a feel for the tone–mirror that tone in your query letter to make it clear to the editor that you understand his or her magazine. And reading the magazine regularly will make sure you know who to send your query to because you will become familiar with who is in charge of each section and topic.

If you want to write books, read that genre of books so that you know what works and what doesn’t. This will also help you make sure you put an original spin on your idea. When I started my current WIP, I had all of these great ideas that I thought were so original for the vampire genre. Then I read some more books, and I realized that Sherrilyn Kenyon had already thought of them. So I reshaped my concept to better play on my own strengths and put my own spin on a well-travelled mythical character.

2. Focus on Your Skill Level
Good ideas and good research won’t get you anywhere unless you have the writing chops to back them up. I would guess that most book and article queries are rejected not because the idea is poor but because the execution is weak.

Read writing books. Write a lot. Use writing prompts to broaden your range as a writer. Work with an editor to get a better handle on correct grammar and usage. Practice proofreading and editing other people’s work–photocopy a few pages of a book you like and go over it with a fine-tooth comb. Then print your own writing and go over it with that same attitude. Look for repeated words, awkward phrasing, common typos. See what your personal weaknesses are and address them.

3. Connect with Other Writers
Both virtual and face-to-face connections are equally valuable.

I use Twitter to connect with other freelancers and romance writers and readers, and I follow a lot of blogs written by agents and fellow writers in various stages of their careers.

I also found a critique partner through the Harlequin forums–we’re both working on paranormal romances, and it has been very instructive to see how she is crafting her story and to hear her feedback on mine.

I joined my local writers’ organization, Willamette Writers, and I attend the meetings on a semi-regular basis. I will be volunteering at the conference next month. I also attend Christina Katz’s Northwest Author Series presentations when the topic speaks to me. I have also attended ED2010 meetings in the local area, although I haven’t seen any of those in quite a while.

I get solid information that helps me write better, I get ideas that help me query better, but most important, I get personal interaction that helps keep me on track and focused on building my career.

If you are a Twitter user, find one author in your field to follow. Or add their blog to your RSS reader or bookmarks and sign up for their newsletter. See how they conduct their personal and professional conversations online, and see what you can learn from that.

4. Take Yourself Out of the Equation
Writing is an intensely personal experience, especially fiction writing. You pour your innermost thoughts and dreams on the page and hope that someone else will be moved by them. Because of that, it can be so hard to take criticism–it feels as if the reader is criticizing you. But once those words are put onto paper, they are a separate entity. They are no longer you.

Once you can remove that emotion from your written work, you will be able to better handle criticism and rejection. You will be able to learn from those experiences and use them to make yourself a better writer.

When I was in college, I took a course called The Magazine Editor. One of our assignments was to create a magazine from scratch and escribe it fully, from audience to subscription model. My magazine was called Now!, and it was heavily informed by Sassy! (I loved Sassy! when I was a teen. Jane Pratt was my hero.) When my teacher, Tom Wheeler, returned my paper, it was so marked up I could barely read it. But I still got an A-. That was the first time I remember not being upset at being heavily edited. The marks were all questions and comments that would make my proposal much stronger, and they were not a rejection of my idea or of me. As I moved into my job writing for the magazine I used to work for, I got very used to seeing red, blue, and green marks on my articles. (We used a different ink color for each editor–I was purple.) Because of those experiences, it doesn’t hurt my feelings when people critique my fiction. I was afraid it would kill me, but thankfully, my nonfiction experience helped me better prepare for fiction writing.

What are you doing to ensure that your work will be well received by the agents or editors of your choosing? Are you taking a class? Hiring an editor? Reading agent blogs?

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