David Farland's Professional Writer's Conference

Or, How Dave Ruined Movies as Entertainment, Too.

Last week, my sister and watched "Second-hand Lions," a coming-of-age story about a young man,Walter's, attempts to find a place in this world after his mother drops him off with his wacko uncles (Best line in the movie is when Walter and his mom first arrive and Uncle Hutch asks the other brother "Did you call for a hooker?") Great movie.

I couldn't help pointing out Walter's first try-fail cycle as he begs his mom not to leave him and she drives off anyway. Later I pointed out how Uncle Hutch is a classic hero- impetuous, brave to the point of foolishness, loves only one woman his whole life, and brings a sword for his enemy to fight him with, because as we all know, a real hero would never take advantage.

At which point she told me to go away. I held my tongue after that, but oh, the plot points I dissected and the tropes I picked out. I can see how it might get really annoying. Dave suggested that we study movies when studying plot because it's so much faster than reading a book. Interesting, right? But it works.



Our class. Dave is standing behind Kevin (guy with gray hair), wearing a black shirt. I'm in the black and white shirt. 

 I can't cram a whole week's worth of classes into a blog post, even a week's worth of posts, but here are a few nuggets:

1. Editing isn't about subraction. It's about making what you've written better so that it works. Not that you'll never have to cut anything, but if you cut the things that aren't working and forget to replace them with something better, you get an over-edited story with no life.

2. If you ever get a chance to seel rights to Hollywood, don't fall for taking money on the back end. Movies NEVER make money, the money just changes pockets.

3. It's fun to laugh. I've never really gotten to know a group of writers in person before, and everybody was so funny and quick. It was awesome to be around people who can zing your funny bone with a one-liner. We seriously laughed more than we did anything else.

If you have a chance to go to an intensive workshop like this, I highly recommend it. The instant feedback from the group was great. I was a little nervous (haha- shaking in my boots is more like it), but everybody had positive and helpful things to say. Not that you can listen to everybody's advice about how to improve your story, but it's really good to get a range of reactions so you can understand how your story is hitting people.

I made some new friends, some of whom I expect to be around a long time. Dave himself was amazingly generous with his time, and I could feel how much he wants his students to succeed.

And he's hysterical. For instance, early in the week he talked about what twisted advice Hemingway gave, like telling a woman that he always writes standing up. Painters do that, but you can't write like that for long.

Dave gave his opinion that Hemingway said that to thin out the writers that were dumb enough to believe it. Dave said that Hemingway learned to write in the trenches as a war reporter, and possibly felt that if someone couldn't learn to write in the comfort of their nice safe home, then they had no business writing.

On the last day, Dave opened the floor for questions, and expressed disappointment that none of us had asked him what sort of desk he wrote at. His eyes twinkled, and he said that the real secret was to write standing on your head because all of the blood rushing to your brain would really improve the writing. Good times. 

On our two movie nights, we watched "Avatar" and the new "Star Trek" and Dave gave commentary on the movies, explaining the hero's journey and plot elements- like the reveals in Star Trek- "Surprise! It's Captain Kirk! Surprise! It's Spock! Surprise! It's Bones!" Tons of fun.

Dave isn't doing any classes for the next few years, but if he starts them up again, I highly recommend heading out to St. George. Plan for an extra few days so you can see Zion National Park and the dinosaur run.


There were writers from all over- North and South Carolina, Alaska, Idaho, Texas, California, Connecticut, Utah, Montana. I could be missing some, but you get the point. Ages ranged from 19 to about 60 years. Almost everybody was fantasy or sci-fi, and there were people literally from all walks of life. Several people who'd worked in Hollywood as writers or producing plays, some teachers, some stay-at-home moms and even a S-A-H dad. Some were already involved in self-publishing online. Some dreamt of holding their books in their hands and nothing else was even tempting.

I'm going to post a few of the "wowsers" comments that Dave made on Wednesday. I hope Summer is going well for you guys! Happy Writing!
Glutton for Punishment?

Pitch with Katherine Fausset of Curtis Brown

I drove over to the Atlanta Writer's Conference on Sat and pitched "Ways to Fall" to Katherine Fausset. She's as beautiful in person as on her twitter page, and one of those lovely women who glows during pregnancy. I was her last pitch of the day, so I watched person after person come out of the room smiling and gushing about how nice she is. Then it was my turn. The good news is I wasn't nearly as nervous as I'd been the previous year. Bad news is Katherine Fausset doesn't rep my genre. Ouch.

I'd googled "represented by Katherine Fausset" and found Cynthia Hand, who wrote "Unearthly," which I thought was a decent comparison to my book (although I haven't read it yet, and I realize now it's YA. I requested it from the library, but it came in too late for me to read it pre-pitch. It sounds awesome, though, and I love Cynthia's blog.) I wish I'd had my wits about me and mentioned the book, but I was having trouble thinking of the title, so I didn't. Anyway, if she says she doesn't rep paranormal romance, then she doesn't, and it would be silly to argue with her, right? She did say that the genre is hot right now, stronger than either paranormal or romance alone. 

Regardless, Ms. Fausset was very nice and listened to my pitch. I hate talking about my book because of all the world building and no matter how long I practice, the 3 minute version comes out jumbled and long, and people invariably ask "why" questions, and then I have to go back to some worldbuilding that I'd tried to gloss over. Sigh.

Whatever the shortcomings of my spiel, Ms. Fausset seemed to follow it okay and said it sounded very original. Then she suggested that I contact another agent at Curtis Brown, which she said she hardly ever does (Thanks for that encouragement, Ms.Fausset!) and that she would tell her to expect my query, then paused, and I assured her that I had been waiting to query anyone else at CB until after my pitch. At least I did something right!

I was joking with another writer before my pitch that it would be funny to come out of the pitch sobbing just to freak out the people after me, but as I said, I was last in line. Maybe next year:)

Any tips for how I can do this better? I made up some talking points to help me get through the pitch, but I can't seem to stay on track, even after talking to myself in the car for hours.

Happy Writing!
Glutton for Punishment?

Possibilities

Last night, I told my six year old to hold both sides of his plate.
"Wouldn't it be cool," he asked, "if our plates could float? And then we would have to hold them?"
That's a cool idea, isn't it? There's not a huge lesson here, but it was a nice reminder to me to look beyond what is, to what could be.

In "Character and Viewpoint," Orson Scott Card shares a writing exercise that he's done when visiting schools to show how easy it is to develop an idea by asking questions.

Do you want the story to be about a boy or a girl?
-A boy! No, a girl!

Ok, then, we won't decide yet. How old is this person?'
-Ten! No, Twelve!

Twelve? Why Twelve? What happens when you're twelve?
-You can stay up later.

Oh? And what do you do when you stay up later?
-Watch TV!
-The good shows!
-Scary shows!

What else can you do?
-Stay up late!

He continues with this exercise until they have a kid who is babysititng and the baby won't stop crying (What can go wrong when you're babysitting?) and he ends up calling an ambulance, which gets there right as the parents get home. Pretty good for fourth graders!

The point is, you keep asking questions. Even ten drafts in, writers should be asking questions. How can these characters have more tension between them? What's the craziest thing that could happen?

How do you develop your ideas? Is it different in rough draft vs. polishing? Do you have a favorite question you ask your story?
Glutton for Punishment?

Craft Time

27 days until I go to Dave Farland's professional (that's me! lol) writer's camp. I'm hoping we do some macrame, or take some popsicle sticks and cast off yarn, and voila! We'll have "gods' eyes." (You guys are familiar w that craft project, right? Here's a picture for those of you who never went to summer camp, poor souls.)

Perhaps that's not what is meant by "honing your craft?"

Anyhow, I'm starting to get nervous. Camp runs the 6-11th of June, but because of differences in air fare and a little side trip to see my sister, I'll be gone the 4-14th. Ten days away from my kids and husband. I'm really looking forward to all that writing, but I wonder if I'm capable of standing alone anymore, ya know? Maybe capable isn't the right word, maybe comfortable?

I'd hoped to be done with my rough draft of Book of Breathings before I leave, but that's not going to happen. Well, it might if I get up every morning at 5, but that hasn't been going so well. And I'm okay with that. Because sleep is my friend that helps me not to yell at my kids, who I love dearly:)

Re: querying, I've decided to wait until I get back from camp to send out any more queries. A round of rejections right before I leave would be a bit of a downer. (Not that I've become a pessimist.) I've still got about fifteen queries out there, and one full request. After a few rejections on requests, I've learned not to hold my breath. (Well, maybe I'm a little pessimistic. But not defeated! Never defeated!) And the Atlanta Writer's Conference is next weekend, and I have a pitch with Katherine Fausset of Curtis Brown. I'll let you know how it goes--hopefully not as awkward as last year's pitch:)

Oh, and guess what one of the required reading books prior to camp is? "Story" by Robert McKee.

Done. I told you it was an amazing book that everybody should read;) (The other book is the one on characterization by Orson Scott Card.)

Any happy summer camp memories to share? Tips for making the most of a writing retreat? Whatever!
Happy Writing!
Glutton for Punishment?

Crazy Town, Query Stats, The Plan

Kids are home from school. Yesterday I banned them from videogames of any kind for the rest of spring break. It's like the DSIs turn them into banshees, and I can't have that. Not when I'm this hyped up on queries.

Last night the hook on my bathroom wall that holds my hairdryer fell, so I woke up to a loud crash, in a panic. With all that adrenalin, I still might have been okay if I hadn't thought about the queries I've sent this week. Some agent, on the night after Passover, might have sent an email to me at three o'clock in the morning. The thought was killing me.

I fought and fought against getting up, and then my head got really involved in possible fixes in my WIP, Breathings, which project I am excited about again after writing a blurb (per an agent's request about other projects I'm working on!) that makes it sound really... exciting. To me, anyway. It seems like I laid there for hours, just thinking. I finally started counting. Not sheep, or anything, really. Just counting. It worked.

And speaking of counting...
Query stats on WAYS TO FALL-
42 queries sent
15 rejections
7 partial/full requests
2 partials and 1 full out there, possibly being read RIGHT THIS MINUTE

I've gotten one request (for a full!) off of my new query, which I put into circulation last week. I'm starting to query widely and hope to have 70-80 queries out there by the end of the month, and then I'm shifting focus back to finishing the first draft of Breathings. That's the plan anyway. My query finally has that special something it was missing, my first few chapters have been seen by an editor and declared worthy, so I'm not holding back anymore.

I also realized I'd made a few email address mistakes last round. I was going to close out some queries as no response, but I checked the comments on Query Tracker, and it looked like people were getting auto-responder emails that their query had been received. As a result, I checked my sent emails and found that for one query, I'd recorded it but apparently not sent, plus one I'd sent to the wrong address. Point being: it doesn't hurt to doublecheck before marking someone as a no response.

And the partial I've had out there to Ms. Big-time for six months? She just got a new assistant, so I emailed the new assistant, explained I've done revisions and that I'd never heard back, and could I resend my partial? No response yet, but I'm sure that with the pacing problems I've since fixed, it would have been a rejection if they'd gotten to it. *shrugs* We'll see if anything comes of it.

And I'm critting a friend's manuscript, and it's really good. I love that.
Thanks for the support, guys!

What are you up to? Are your kids home from school, too? Pull up a chair and tell me all about it.
Glutton for Punishment?

Enclave (Razorland #1) by Ann Aguirre

I loved this book- a great YA dystopian that fans of the Hunger Games will love, plus it didn't feel as hopeless as THG.

Deuce lives in the Enclave, an underground community divided into three groups- Builders, Breeders, and Hunters. And Deuce has always wanted to be a Huntress and go out into the tunnels, fight the zombie-like Freaks (think of the zombies in "The Day After Tomorrow") and hunt food (not described precisely, but I think their main meat source was rats!) Her hunting partner is Fade, a hunter whose always been on the edge of the group because he was born topside and doesn't conform perfectly to the community's group think.

The community leaders set up one of Deuce's friends as a warning to her to stay in line, but Deuce claims responsibility for his supposed crime and is exiled in his place. She thinks she's been given a death sentence, what with the Freaks out to eat her toes, but Fade pleads guilty too, and they are exiled together. Fade leads them topside, where they have to deal with gangs, ever-learning freaks and a post-apocalyptic nightmare. Good thing they're both so handy with their knives.

I LOVED this book. Thanks to "Around the World Blog Tours" for the chance to read the ARC. It's being published in June, so definately check it out.

PS- I also enjoyed comparing how Ann Aguirre wrote Deuce's perceptions of the strange new world topside to a similar situation in my book. Very interesting how familiar it felt.
Glutton for Punishment?

LDS Writer Blogfest: The Atonement Covers all Pain

Welcome to the second annual LDS Writers Blogfest!

This year, I and other LDS writers are sharing our favorite talk (think sermon) from our recent General Conference, a semiannual meeting where members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gather either in Salt Lake City in person (or in front of their computers/TVs) to listen to inspired words.

Watching Conference at Granna's house with our kids plus some cousins.

I chose Kent L. Richards' talk "The Atonement Covers All Pain", and I'd like to share my impressions on this talk and how the atonement has operated in my life.

Regarding his experiences as a surgeon, Elder Richards said:

I have pondered about the purpose of pain. None of us is immune from experiencing pain. I have seen people cope with it very differently. Some turn away from God in anger, and others allow their suffering to bring them closer to God.

Can suffering really bring us closer to God? Doesn't that sound a little perverse? Why can't He just be close to us without pain?

I think it's because we are prone to get stuck in the day-to-day, to focus on all of the things we have to do, instead of who we want to become. We get busy.

I'm not saying that God causes pain, but that He uses all the circumstances of our lives, good and bad, to reach out to us.

Our oldest son, Isaac, broke his leg when he was almost two--a spiral fracture of his femur that was extremely painful (When I write about the sound of bones grinding, I know what I'm talking about!) As I write this, eight years later, the memory of picking him up and laying him on the couch, calling my husband to come home from work, driving to the hospital while Nathan held our crying child in his arms still brings me to tears. There was nothing I could say to a two year old that would make him understand that this would end, that eventually he would heal. We cried with him. It passed. 

I don't say that that was an enjoyable experience, or one I want to repeat, but it has brought me to a deeper understanding of the Savior's love for us, because for the first time, I really got how deeply the Savior loves us to take our suffering upon himself.

Isaac has grown into a boy with a kind heart, one with enormous empathy for other's feelings, and I believe much of that empathy is a result of this and other experiences in his young childhood.

(Did I mention he was accident prone as a toddler? He broke his arm 5 days after getting the body cast off. Leg muscles had atrophied, so that wasn't entirely his fault. And there was the time he broke his collar bone by rolling off the bed to escape the Tickle Monster. He sure showed Daddy how fast he was.)

Would I ever wish for similar situations? No. But would I give back these traumas if it meant losing these sweet blessings, the tender heart that my son has developed, and my deeper understanding of the Atonement? No. I wouldn't.

Keep in mind, there are many sources of pain. Elder Richards said:

Much of our suffering is not necessarily our fault. Unexpected events, contradicting or disappointing circumstances, interrupting illness, and even death surround us and penetrate our mortal experience. Additionally, we may suffer afflictions because of the actions of others.

And if you're like me, and miss beloved relatives who have died, this account may be one of the most comforting parts of the Elder Richards' talk:

Thirteen-year-old Sherrie underwent a 14-hour operation for a tumor on her spinal cord. As she regained consciousness in the intensive care unit, she said: “Daddy, Aunt Cheryl is here, … and … Grandpa Norman … and Grandma Brown … are here. And Daddy, who is that standing beside you? … He looks like you, only taller. … He says he’s your brother, Jimmy.” Her uncle Jimmy had died at age 13 of cystic fibrosis.

“For nearly an hour, Sherrie … described her visitors, all deceased family members. Exhausted, she then fell asleep.”

Later she told her father, “Daddy, all of the children here in the intensive care unit have angels helping them.”

Perhaps some of you have had similar experiences. Death is not a one way street, it's more like stepping to the other side of a one-way mirror.

I am so grateful to the Savior for fulfilling Heavenly Father's beautiful plan of salvation and peace. Thank you for reading, and you're welcome to ask questions, etc. I'll do my best to answer. Please check out the other posts:

Annette Lyon: “Desire”
Annie Cechini: “The Spirit of Revelation”
Ben Spendlove: “The Atonement Covers All Pain”
Chantele Sedgwick: “LDS Women Are Incredible!”
Charity Bradford: “LDS Women Are Incredible!”
Jackee Alston: “The Eternal Blessings of Marriage”
Jenilyn Tolley: “What Manner of Men and Women Ought Ye to Be?”
Jennifer McFadden: “Establishing a Christ-Centered Home”
Jessie Oliveros: “Establishing a Christ-Centered Home”
Jolene Perry: “It’s Conference Once Again”
Jordan McCollum: “What Manner of Men and Women Ought Ye to Be?”
Kasey Tross: “Guided by the Holy Spirit”
Kayeleen Hamblin: “Become as a Little Child”
Kelly Bryson: “The Atonement Covers All Pain”
Krista Van Dolzer: “Opportunities to Do Good”
Melanie Stanford: “What Manner of Men and Women Ought Ye to Be?”
Michelle Merrill: “The Eternal Blessings of Marriage”
Myrna Foster: “Opportunities to Do Good”
Nisa Swineford: “Desire”
Sallee Mathews: “The Eternal Blessings of Marriage”
Sierra Gardner: “The Atonement Covers All Pain”
Tamara Hart Heiner: “Waiting on the Road to Damascus”
The Writing Lair: “Waiting on the Road to Damascus”

Glutton for Punishment?