The Value of Writer’s Groups/Writing Communities

Over on AgentQueryConnect, where I am a moderator, I had a new member ask me why I hang out at AQC, and what I get out of it. This member had been wondering where to post files for the agents to see and I had explained that we were a writing community that prepped writers about the business of publishing and got them ready for that moment when their work makes it in front of an agent. (Side note: For those seeking an agent–there is no easy, magic bullet. There is no wonderful hidden website where all the agents go and all you have to do is place your work there and you’ll have an agent and a book deal within the week. Agents are much too busy for that–go through the regular querying channels. And yes, WEbook has a submit to agents area on their website, but personally, I had less luck using that free service than sending a regular email query to agents.)

Let’s start at the beginning. First of all, what is a writing community/writer’s group? And is there a difference between the two? Generally speaking, a writer’s group usually meets at a ‘real’ place and in ‘real’ time. A writing community is usually something you find online. AQC is a writing community, but you could also call it a writer’s group. Basically, the two groups have the same goal–to be a place for writers to meet, gab about the craft, the business, maybe offer some critiques, share their work, share their woes, ask questions, answer questions, and basically, feel as though you are a part of a group that ‘gets’ you and what you are trying to accomplish and gain help as well as support. You can also network in these groups.

Image from The Gaping Void. You may also remember the review I did for Hugh’s book Ignore Everybody.

So, why join a group? Well, that depends a bit on your personality and goals. For me, an online writing community was a safe place to come out of the writer’s closet and talk about writing, share my writing (when ready) and learn a whole lot more about the craft, etc, in a group of people who wouldn’t ask me every week, “So, are you published yet? No? Why not?” (And hence, making me feel like a complete failure and inadvertently apply crazy pressure, which in turn, would cramp my creativity in a tight little vice, helping me get nowhere except Quitsville.)

Generally, the people you will find in a writer’s group/writing community are dedicated and understand that the road to publication is a long journey. It’s full of moments where you are sure your hair just brushed the clouds and other moments where you’re sure your toes just got singed by the devil’s very own fires. These fellow writers listen. They empathize. And when you are ready, they might just hand you a tip or resource that leads to immense improvement.

Some folks are lucky in that they live in an area that is rife with folks who want to write and get published through regular, ‘traditional’ channels. And then there are areas where the local writer’s group is a bunch of old ladies putting together their personal memoirs to give to their children as a Christmas gift. And there is nothing wrong with either avenue, as I mentioned, it all depends upon your goals. What may work perfectly for one, may not work for another. That’s the sweetness of online groups–you can find one that fits you and suits your needs.

So, the big question–what have I received from my writing community? Oh lordy! How much time do you have? I can credit AQC with so much. I have gone from so wet behind the ears that frogs were croaking back there to being agented. In the span of about three or four years. I have met many fabulous critique partners on AQC who have challenged me and urged me to improve my skills through their insightful and constructive comments. I have met others who are on the same journey as I am and we have shared agonies and triumphs–and very importantly, ‘gotten’ what agonies and triumphs they are. I have also learned an INCREDIBLE amount about the craft of writing as well as the business of publishing. And most recently, I had my critique partner slide a door open a ways for me–landing me a literary agent.

A little note: You get back what you put in. I’ve put a huge amount into the writing community and in turn, have received a huge amount back. Join for the camaraderie, stay for the insights.

So, there you have it. Writer’s Groups/Writing Communities in a nutshell.

Do you/have you belonged to one? More than one? What do you get out of them? What don’t you get out of them?

AgentQuery Connect Moves

If you haven’t heard the news, the ‘connect’ part of AgentQuery has moved to a new location! (The connect part is where all the aspiring writers hang out and talk writing. It’s also where we have online chats with agents and authors from time to time.)

Here’s the new link: www.agentqueryconnect.com

The old site www.agentquery.com with that wonderful literary agent database is still there at its old address, it’s just the discussion boards that have moved.

If you have been thinking of joining us, but haven’t, now’s the time!

More On Twitter

I suppose I should mention that I am on Twitter too, eh? It’s not just for fictional characters, it’s for real humans too!

You can look for me under my username: jeanoram. I try to update it daily, but it doesn’t always quite work out that way.

As well, there are a pile of agents twittering (or is it tweeting) over there too. If you’d like to see a list, AQ Crew on Agent Query has started a nice list. It’s another way to put your ear to the ground in the publishing world.

Twitter: Another Way to Break Your Characters Out of the Book

Twitter, it’s free.

Twitter, make it work for you, honey!

Twitter, if you know what you’re doing, it can be a BLAST.

Seriously though, the other day I had a brainwave. I’d put Allie on Twitter. Who is Allie? What is Twitter?

Let’s start with Twitter. Here’s a brief rundown on Twitter. Twitter is a social network site. That means you make a free account and begin tweeting. That means, you post a short (140 characters) sentence or two updating your status. That’s all. No wall. No pesky invites. All you do is convey information. You can also use it to start an informative, interesting trend like some agents did with a ‘query fail’ game. Basically, post something interesting.

Who is Allie? Allie is the main character of my chick lit/romantic comedy story (The 15 Date Rule) that is currently seeking representation. Allie’s a 32-year-old astrophysicist who has a slight issue with putting her foot in her mouth and is a general, all-round dating disaster. (We’re talking boyfriends hire other guys to break up with her. Ouch.)

Why put Allie on Twitter? Many reasons. One: it’s fun. Two: it’s a great way for a writer to get to know a character better.  Three: it could possibly build an audience for your character which could help with marketing down the line. Four: it’s fun. Five: it is covering the backstory for the novel in an interesting way. Six: it’s a great writing exercise. Seven: it’s free. And Eight: did I mention it’s a blast?

Anyway, check out Allie. You can ‘follow’ her on Twitter, which means her schenanigan updates will show up on your Twitter page so you don’t have to search for her each time. Or you can rss feed her. Or you can also check her out in the handy gadget I made for my website’s mainpage.

Either way, enjoy!

Authonomy

Some interesting things are happening over at HarperCollins. Specifically on their new website ‘Authonomy‘.

I was curious about this new online community site and signed up for them to let me know when it was ready. The other day I got an invite to try their beta version. I registered, uploaded my picture and snooped around a bit.

Authonomy, in case you haven’t heard much about it, is a site where writers can upload their work. They ask for a minimum of 10,000 words and prefer the WHOLE manuscript. You retain the rights to it as the author, but yes of course there is nothing stopping someone from snatching your work. Anyway, anyone can read what is posted (agents, publishers, editors, dude next door, other writers, thieves, etc). If you are registered, you can comment on the work and add it to your bookshelf. The works that are the most popular among the site’s readers will then get read by some people at HarperCollins. The janitor. Kidding. Sort of.

Anyway, I suppose it is a free way to get your work out there and possibly get discovered.

The thing is…

It feels wrong.

I don’t know why, but my gut reaction is, ‘No.’ And I tend to be a somewhat early adopter of new fangled tech stuff.

I guess it is the fact that they want me to put my WHOLE work up there for free. Which is fine, I guess. Except that I want to make money with this work. I want people to buy it. Now I do understand that as a business person, you sometimes have to give things away. So, sure, I will give some copies away when it is in print. I will. Even if I have to buy them from the publisher myself. But I won’t give away shares in my company. Know what I am saying? This feels like giving away shares. And for what? In hopes that some conglomerate sees me and buys me out?

I won’t even get into the whole it could get stolen, plagiarized and all that nasty line of thought stuff.

The other thing is that you are putting it up on the HarperCollins website. What if I find an agent for this piece and a publisher that is NOT HarperCollins wants to publish it? How are they going to feel about the fact that I previously GAVE IT AWAY on the COMPETETORS website? Personally, if I were them, I would be like, ‘uh, NO!’

Am I crazy? Am I skipping out on the biggest thing since that damned sliced bread?

As an aside, while I was looking for a pic of sliced bread, I came across this (which in my opinion is waaaaaay cooler than sliced bread could ever be):

Later Note: I emailed an agent about this and they were kind enough to take the time to email me back. The advice was, post a chapter or two, but not the whole manuscript as a traditional publisher may then consider the electronic rights to be compromised due to the posting of it in its entirety.

Twilight Zone, Serendipity and what’s that other word…

To bring the eight pound laptop or not…<sigh>…I probably will since I am hoping to hear from some agents. Anyway…

On Facebook, I just found two more people from high school. And they remember me. I always figure people won’t remember me or that they won’t want to get in touch. Not that I was awful or anything…just a minor complex, I suppose. I did find another cousin on there today too. It’s been a big day on Facebook. I’ve taken all my photos and personal info off (or at least the stuff I actually put on there). I think it makes it hard for people to know if they have the real ‘me’ though.

I wonder how big Facebook is growing. I mean, per day. Those would be interesting figures. I mean, I haven’t been on there for that long and people I looked up a few weeks ago are now on. I have a friend who is being pressured to join up and another who actually had some friends create a fan club for him where his friends post pictures and stories about him, trying to get him to sign up. I assume someone must be showing him the club. So far, he is holding out. I guess he just isn’t that cool. Or our peer pressure just isn’t measuring up.

Cool, cool, cool. My hubby just came home from a class and his prof showed him graphs on Facebook’s growth. Apparently there are 8.9 or 89 million (he can’t recall which) people blogging. That is 18 million more than a couple of months ago. Anyway, that is a bit freaky, since I was blogging about Facebook and its growth and he comes home and talks about that first thing. [Insert twilight zone music here.]

More on Facebook

So, pretty much everyone is on Facebook. Apparently even Jack Layton is on Facebook. (NDP leader up here in Canada.)

Interesting tidbit though. I was listening to DNTO (Definitely Not the Opera) on CBC this morning and they were yakking about Facebook. Interesting thing is that Facebook (aka Crackbook and Fbook) holds the status of being the worst for its privacy policy on the worldwide web. Not exactly something that you strive to achieve. How exactly they came up with that ‘fact’ I am unsure.

If you do a search on the Internet, you find lots of rants and accusations against Facebook. And that makes me wonder, is it simply because Facebook has gotten incredibly popular and is growing exponentially every day? Or is it for real? When I signed up, I was very hesitant. There are very few ads on the site and there are lots of places to put in piles of personal information. Some of it is theoretically only accessible to your ‘friends’, but still. People can print your photos that you put up there (again only your ‘friends’). But, still. There is a part of me that doesn’t trust the whole thing. How are they making their money? Everything is for sale on the Internet these days and nothing is truly for free.

And Facebook prompts you all the time to scan through your email for friends. Basically, you let Facebook into your email account–you give them the password (for a one-time shot)–and they index your address book and pester all your contacts to join Facebook.

So what is the truth about Facebook? Maybe I’ll go see if Jack will be my friend. Maybe he has some answers.
Facebook Update:

This is weird. I went looking for Jack Layton on Facebook and who the heck knows? There are a bunch of global groups that you can pop into that are about Jack Layton, but I don’t know if any of them are really Jack’s. Do you know what I mean? Like is he on there himself? Or is he just pretending to be hip and cool? I looked on his website and the youth area doesn’t scream out, ‘hey I’m on Facebook, look me up’. So what is the deal? I don’t know. I thought it would be cool to be ‘friends’ with Jack Layton. I thought maybe he’d do a little blog thing on his wall and so I could get to know a bit more about him and his political platform. So, I guess I am a little disappointed. Maybe I missed something. I’m still new to this Facebook thing and all its little nuances.

Still

Facebook is crazy. It is a great tool for getting in touch with old acquaintances or friends that you have lost touch with–provided that they are on Facebook. But it is also just another place to have to check for messages from friends, etc. Assuming that they send you replies.

Which brings me to my I-Have-No-Self-Esteem Moment of the month. First of all, I need to ask you this: do you fit in? Do you fit in wherever you go? For me, those questions are moot because I don’t think I have ever really, truly felt like I fit in. (With the exception of my immediate family.) School, work, social networks, I’ve never truly felt like I fit in or ‘click’. Sure, I have friends. It’s not like I am socially incompetent or something, I just am one-of-those-things-that’s-not-like-the-others.

Not too long ago, I went to a party where people were talking about stuff that I ‘see’ or ‘think’ or ‘believe’ or is ‘up my alley’ and I was like, WOAH! This is friggin’ great. Unfortunately, I don’t really know the people and will likely never see them again and I think in some ways, they thought I was the ‘mainstreamer’ in the group. Which is so heart wrenching, because, yes, in some ways, I am, but at heart, I’m not. For example, it didn’t matter where their quirky conversations turned, I was right there with them. And not just nodding my head and B.S.ing like a wannabe. I could out alternative them in three sentences of life background, if I was so inclined. But I guess I’m not.

I’m just different.

So, basically, I’m feeling sorry for myself today. It has been a few weeks (months) of trying to expand my social network and I feel like I just can’t find people like me. I have never really fit in anywhere, so shouldn’t I be used to it by now? Answer: yes, and does it really matter whether I fit in or not?

Oh yeah, I was making a point about Facebook, wasn’t I? You see, I finally signed up. I’m not part of any networks, I haven’t let Facebook into my e-mail to badger my friends, I don’t have photos of me (evidently, I am the photographer in the family), but I have hooked up with some old friends, which is nice. I was so pumped when I ‘made friends’ with some old buddies. They won’t turn their backs! It will be like old times full of laughs and backhanded compliments and pointed barbs.

Maybe I am just needy, but my ‘friends’ just don’t seem to care about being anything more than having me listed as a ‘friend’ on Facebook. It’s like they are collecting ‘friends’, but don’t want to actually get reacquainted or take an actual, genuine interest. And no, it’s not like I asked them to come straight over to my house and stay a week so we could get reacquainted. I sent simple, nice, hey-how-are-you e-mails and not-much-is-new-here-with-the-exception-of-x-y-and-z, and no reply. I wrote little notes on their walls, made kind and I-connect-with-you comments on their photos. Did I come across wrong? Is it me? Is it? Is it? (Okay, that’s me being all needy.)

So, does that mean that I don’t even fit in on Facebook? I mean, if I don’t even fit in in the cyber world…

This is where I suck it up and go to bed. G’night.