My First Writer's Conference
Mary Alt, Contributing Editor
Mary Alt, Contributing Editor
For several years, my husband has been encouraging me to get out to conferences to network and meet other writers. I resisted for a long time until Opal Mae Dailey showed me a large postcard for a writer’s conference called West Coast Christian Writers Conference in Fremont, California. I’ve never been to a writer’s conference before, let alone a Christian writer’s conference. Here is what I learned at their conference in late February.
Fiction
Adina Senft of Seton Hill University, Pennsylvania
She asked us “where is home for your character(s)?” Usually a typical house or apartment. Maybe an alternate planet, middle earth, or a farm in Kansas. Think about what kind of environment they’re in so the character can grow. Culture of location will effect character throughout life. Think about ways to help them adapt. They learn to handle life. Home reveals something about him or her. What triggers move them from order to an adventure world? Have them kill a droid or sentence them to a prison camp. This will put your character in a different world.
How do you create a world? Choose a different element. It effects details of the world, which will in turn affect your character. If writing a religious novel, it may not have as much to do about the character but shows restraints of perhaps an Amish world. What’s considered normal? Show what is valued in their world. A female in a short skirt is normal for most people, but the Amish would consider her the next thing to a hooker.
Marketing and Platform Building
Keri Wyatt Kent
Another session I sat in on was about building a platform for your book. Agents, editors, and publishers want writers to do a lot of the promotional work themselves. This involves blogging, creating your own website, and participating actively on social media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr. Facebook has an author’s page and can be linked with Twitter and vice versa. Social media is your city or neighborhood and your website is home.
If you’ve never blogged before, start by reading other blogs. Maybe you can write for others, then start a blog of your own. Tim Fall (state attorney, Tim Fall.wordpress.com) was invited to give his perspective on blogging. He started by reading other blogs, then started his own blog. When asked what he blogs, whether on legal matters or politics, he said he blogs about life and faith.
Finding interested readers is just a mouse-click away. Invite them to your home base by finding them in the city. You can use Facebook to direct them to your blog or website. A website is a medium of communication. It helps identify your reader. What sites do they visit? What are their problems? Are they lonely, bored, sad, or trying to escape from the real world?
Also try to decide which media works for you. If you’re writing for the young adult reader, Instagram is very popular among young people because they often contain images or pictures of something that will interest them.
If you don’t have any pictures of your own to promote your book, check the website www.lightstock.com. I visited this site and its images are all faith-based. There is a small fee to use their images.
How often should you use social media? Everyday. By staying active, you’re helping to promote your work and it can also help promote other people’s work. You can invite other people to join the conversation.
So don’t be shy or intimidated to use social media. It’s out there for everyone’s use and we should all take advantage of it.
Fiction
Adina Senft of Seton Hill University, Pennsylvania
She asked us “where is home for your character(s)?” Usually a typical house or apartment. Maybe an alternate planet, middle earth, or a farm in Kansas. Think about what kind of environment they’re in so the character can grow. Culture of location will effect character throughout life. Think about ways to help them adapt. They learn to handle life. Home reveals something about him or her. What triggers move them from order to an adventure world? Have them kill a droid or sentence them to a prison camp. This will put your character in a different world.
How do you create a world? Choose a different element. It effects details of the world, which will in turn affect your character. If writing a religious novel, it may not have as much to do about the character but shows restraints of perhaps an Amish world. What’s considered normal? Show what is valued in their world. A female in a short skirt is normal for most people, but the Amish would consider her the next thing to a hooker.
Marketing and Platform Building
Keri Wyatt Kent
Another session I sat in on was about building a platform for your book. Agents, editors, and publishers want writers to do a lot of the promotional work themselves. This involves blogging, creating your own website, and participating actively on social media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr. Facebook has an author’s page and can be linked with Twitter and vice versa. Social media is your city or neighborhood and your website is home.
If you’ve never blogged before, start by reading other blogs. Maybe you can write for others, then start a blog of your own. Tim Fall (state attorney, Tim Fall.wordpress.com) was invited to give his perspective on blogging. He started by reading other blogs, then started his own blog. When asked what he blogs, whether on legal matters or politics, he said he blogs about life and faith.
Finding interested readers is just a mouse-click away. Invite them to your home base by finding them in the city. You can use Facebook to direct them to your blog or website. A website is a medium of communication. It helps identify your reader. What sites do they visit? What are their problems? Are they lonely, bored, sad, or trying to escape from the real world?
Also try to decide which media works for you. If you’re writing for the young adult reader, Instagram is very popular among young people because they often contain images or pictures of something that will interest them.
If you don’t have any pictures of your own to promote your book, check the website www.lightstock.com. I visited this site and its images are all faith-based. There is a small fee to use their images.
How often should you use social media? Everyday. By staying active, you’re helping to promote your work and it can also help promote other people’s work. You can invite other people to join the conversation.
So don’t be shy or intimidated to use social media. It’s out there for everyone’s use and we should all take advantage of it.
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