Bliss

Have you ever read or heard something that you felt was somehow written just for you to help you through something? I just read a post on another blog about writing that spoke to me on so many levels. Of course I know that post wasn’t actually written for me but still I felt like the author was in my head, reading my thoughts and giving me her opinion. It was a tiny bit creepy but cool at the same time.

I mentioned about ten days ago that I am going to my first writer’s conference at the end of March. At the conference I am supposed to have the opportunity to pitch my writing. The thing that hasn’t been clear to me as of yet is whether I can pitch more than one book. I’m hoping to find out really soon because this is an important detail to me. The reason being, I have two books that I feel are really strong contenders at this time. They still need a little bit of polishing and I am currently working on that. If I can pitch both of them then no problem. Well, there is the detail about needing to have them both as perfect as possible and ready to go but that definitely is not a bad thing. What I have been in my head about – and mentally driving myself a bit crazy as I go back and forth and back again – is which manuscript do I take along if I can only pitch one story? The thing is I love both of them. I mean I seriously LOVE both of them and am really amazed that both of these books came from me. I followed my heart and I went with my personal bliss in writing these books. So if I can only take one I have a feeling I’m going to feel bad about not taking the other. It’s kind of silly, I know, but it’s still true.

One book, and the one I wrote first, is set in a small town and has a lot of the quirks and somewhat eccentric characters you might expect in such a story. This is the book that kick started my series. I’ve written before about never intending to write a serial but this first book had secondary characters who wanted their own stories and I felt the need to write them. I am nearly done with the revision process of this book and still adore these characters as much as I did when I first wrote them. I may even like this book more now.

The second book I really want to take along to the conference with me is a story about a married couple and their family. I love romance stories. I must since that is mainly what I write. However, I often find myself wanting more once the couple has figured out they do indeed want a lifetime together. I want to know what happens after the ‘happily ever after’. I know for a fact that this is part of why I love J.D. Robb’s In Death series so much. I get to read a little bit about Eve and Roarke’s ‘ever after’ with each installment in the series. Anyway, my book is about a couple who have been married for some time but they’ve drifted apart a bit and there are some problems that need addressing but neither wants to bring them up. They know they need to in order to stay strong but how do they do that? I’m incredibly proud of this book, too.

I follow my bliss every day when I write. I followed my bliss with these two books by writing what I would like to read. I’m proud of these stories and would like to share them with others that would like them, as well. Hopefully I can take both books with me to the conference. I’ll let you know how this turns out.

Writer's Conference

I have wanted to go to a writer’s conference for quite some time. However, the conferences that I have been interested in have been too far away or at the wrong time for us financially. Today I was looking up information for the annual Romance Writers of America conference. It always takes place the last weekend in July. This year it is happening in New York City. I would LOVE to go this year but it just is not possible. However, I am definitely going in 2016. For one thing, I have almost a year-and-a-half to plan. Also, it’s happening in San Diego which is much closer to home and therefore makes it doable from a financial prospect.

While I was perusing the RWA site I clicked on information about local chapters (more on this to come in a later post). While on the local website I found information on another writer’s conference that is happening right near home at the end of March. The more I read about the conference the more I wanted to go. Then, I swear, everything just seemed to line up. So, I’m going to my first writer’s conference at the end of March and I am incredibly excited! I’m nervous, too.

There will be agents and editors at this conference. There will also be workshops galore. I’ll have the opportunity to pitch my manuscripts and possibly even have some critiqued. As I said, I am nervous but so, so excited. I will definitely be sharing more about this as I learn more details. Of course after the conference I’m certain I’ll have even more to share. I have a lot to polish up in order to be prepared for this conference but I’m going to do it. I have nearly seven weeks to get all my ducks in a row but I’m confident I can make the best use of my time.

Have you ever been to a writer’s conference? Do you have any tips or advice to share about attending? I’d love to hear about it!