Saturday, June 25, 2011

T minus 2 days...

In the midst of all the crap I've had to do with organizing our move - which, both fortunately and unfortunately, might be getting more complicated - I've neglected this poor blog.

In between living a life where my iPhone should probably be renamed to earPhone it's up there so much (sorry for the terrible joke, my brain is fried), I've been organizing my trip to the RWA 2011 conference which takes place in New York City.  I'm leaving on Monday, flying to meet my lovely critique partner, Shelley, and then we will take the train into NYC.

This is me right now  ----------->

Why?

Because I've never met Shelley in person.  And I've never been to a writer's conference.  And I haven't been to NYC since I was in college.  Needless to say, I'm all sorts of excited right about now.

As a writer who doesn't quite have a finished product ready to query yet, I know I'll learn a lot from going to the conference.  I've decided to make a short list of goals so that I will be able to keep things in perspective, because I'm sure the sheer amount of information will make my head want to explode.  

So, first of all, my goal is to make friends.  WHAT?  Yeah, you heard right.  Friends.  You know, people with whom you share common interests...perhaps like writing?  I'm going to be nice to everyone.  Even if someone near me is very quiet, they're probably not snobby or stuck-up.  They're likely just shy.

That brings me to another goal: I'm not going to over-do it.

Great, now I see you looking at me like this and asking, "But, Sarah, you just said you wanted to get as much out of the conference as possible!  How can you do that if you're taking an afternoon nap?"

Well, let me put it this way.  If I don't have an afternoon nap or some downtime, I'll go crazy or fall asleep in a workshop and drool on an agent.  I don't think agents like being drooled on, though that would make one hell of a conversation starter.  Let me clarify.  I'm an introvert.  Let me clarify even further: an introvert, according to my psychology classes I took over six years ago, isn't someone who would rather hide in a corner or not interact with others, but someone who gets and takes most of their energy from INSIDE themselves.  They simply process a lot of things internally, and being in big groups and around lots of people can be incredibly draining.  It's not that I won't enjoy myself; I won't be anywhere near having a panic attack in the middle of a workshop, and as an author, I'm actually looking forward to a time when I get to do book signings or group discussions, but if I don't have that private time to recharge my batteries, I get grouchy and exhausted.  And because I know you're curious, extroverts are people who get their energy from outside...as in, other people.  They feed off of that energy, and thrive on it.  However, I'd be hard-pressed to say that there are a ton of extrovert authors given the amount of time we spend dwelling in our own heads.

I also have a goal to learn something new about writing.  At least one thing; maybe it will be about the business aspects, or characterization, or querying...I have no idea.  But I'm excited to find out.

Ideally, I'd also like to meet an agent or editor, strike up a nice conversation and have them fall in love with my stories, but my expectations are realistic.  I'd be happy just to meet one at this point.

Another goal: To give out a lot of business cards.  I had some great ones made up for the conference, and I can't wait to give my first ones out.  It's a great way to get your name out there to someone who's interested.  If I get one from other people, I will write where I met them on it, like, "elevator," or something similar, so that I'll remember them.  You never know who you might meet.

So, that's about it for now.  Hopefully, I will get some of my sanity back when this whole move thing is said and done, but for now, I will enjoy putting my "badass writer" hat on for a week.

I will definitely fill you in how it went, that's for sure!

xoxo Sarah

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Better late than never....

In my excitement for setting up a new blog and the feverish blogging during the A-Z Challenge, I completely forgot to say "thank you" to Deirdra with A Storybook World for giving me a Powerful Woman Writer award!

 

So, THANK YOU!  I appreciate it, especially as a new blogger.

xoxo Sarah

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Crappy timing and learning...

Whoops.  I guess the Friday before Memorial Day weekend was the worst time ever to make a new post.  Frankly, I understand.  I'd rather be on the beach or out with the family than stuck at the computer reading blogs, too.  Ironically, I was going to schedule it for this past Monday, but that would probably have been just as bad.  I'll blame that terrible decision on the reverse jet lag from my trip.  Go read it if you have a chance, then come back here.  Don't worry, I'll wait.

I just got back from visiting my husband in Albuquerque (he's out there for training...less than two months to go, hopefully!), and I figured that the long weekend would be perfect for a visit.  What a great city!  And the dry heat...yeah.  I could get used to that.

Anyway, I'm back in the armpit that is Arkansas (feels like 95 degrees out, with 60% humidity and climbing).  "Real life" has kept me busy lately, posing things to consider like, "To rent out our house or not rent out our house, that is the question," and, "When is a good time to have the movers come and essentially make me homeless?"

So, it was a welcome distraction to find this little gem on Twitter today.  The timing was apt, because, as I've mentioned, I'm going to the RWA 2011 conference in New York City at the end of the month, and I'd love to be able to (nicely) corner an agent without making them fear for their life.  I'm a visual learner, too, so watching this video helped me a lot.


Yeah, some of the skits are exaggerated, but that's the idea.  I can easily see myself spewing word vomit all over some poor, trapped agent or editor, so methinks I need to step up my game.

I will be ready, I will be ready...

Thoughts on elevator pitches?  Have you had to use one?  How did it go?  If not, do you have one ready, just in case?

xoxo Sarah