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Monday, 28 September 2015

5 Quotes from the RWA Get Fresh Conference 2015




with Marilyn Forsyth


It’s just over a month since the RWA ‘Get Fresh’ Conference, and would you believe it, I’m still digesting all the wonderful advice from so many fantastic speakers. I’m sure everyone who attended would have had their light bulb moments. Here are mine: five quotes (some paraphrased) that struck a chord with me.


‘Romance writers are makers of reader delight.’ C. S. Pacat.


Image courtesy of Giphy
What a lovely way to put it, C. S. (and great speech, by the way). The topic of ‘Love’ has been inspiring writers since…well, forever! And there’s a reason why Romance is the leading genre in fiction sales: its readers know the comfort and pure joy that a happy ending can bring. We owe it to our readers to write heart-warming, empowering stories with strong heroines whose self-worth is enriched by falling in love with the right man. Long live love!



 ‘Every secondary character thinks they’re the lead in their own story.’ Rachel Bailey.
 

Stereotypes are fine for cartoons but not for novels.
Thank you, Rachel, for such an important reminder. By ensuring all our characters are well-rounded, we create truly believable stories; stories readers will become invested in because they’re about ‘real’ people—people as genuine as their own friends and family, with the same motivations, the same flaws and the same desires. I have a tendency to let my secondary characters either fade into the background (usually because they’re not firmly fixed in my mind) or go on to steal a starring role (because they’re non-stereotypical and completely fascinating, dammit!). Achieving a balance with those secondary characters has just become my current aim in my wip.


‘If you must write, put writing first.’ Patricia McLinn.
 

My heatmap: Day one
Oh, Patricia, how right you are. So many distractions to stop us from writing! Day jobs, social media, family commitments, must-not-miss television series, the Internet, that spare room you’ve been meaning to declutter since Nanna disappeared in there last week, and on it goes. The thing is, all those distractions do need to be dealt with (especially finding Nan :)).

Once again I believe it’s a matter of balance. I have a family and an everyday life to be lived, but my writing time must also be sacrosanct. According to my Productivity Heatmap (see below for a link), I’m an afternoon person, so writing between 12 - 4 pm will leave my mornings free to do all the other real-world stuff. I’ll let you know how I go.







 ‘Find your true audience. Connect and engage through conversations, by asking questions, by contributing ideas, by sharing content i.e. provide entertainment and only promote occasionally.’ Angela Ackerman.

Angela went on to give some fabulous suggestions on how to find readers, which I will definitely be following up on. What I liked about this quote was the importance Angela placed on making a genuine connection with potential readers, rather than being just a ‘buy my book’ author. Great advice from a hugely successful author.


‘You’ll go home tomorrow and collapse like roadkill.’ Mary Jo Putney.

 
I’m including this because it made me laugh (and it was true). Love ya, Mary Jo!

 

So, what were your light bulb moments from the Conference? I’d love to hear what you learned.
 
Love to Love Sue Brockhoff, Annabel Blay and Kate James of Harlequin Mira for making me feel so welcome.


Love to Laugh at photos of animals caught by surprise. For more click on this link.





Love to Learn how to be more productive. Go to www.productiveflourishing.com click on ‘free planners’ and you’ll find a Productive Heatmap. Basically, over a week or so, you colour-code your productivity from hour to hour. Supposedly it helps you find your best time to write. (Hope it works!)

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18 comments:

  1. Marilyn Forsyth28 September 2015 at 08:20

    Good morning everyone! It's a gorgeous spring day here; hope you are as lucky! I'd love to hear of any light bulb moments you had at the conference (or anywhere else for that matter :) ). xx

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  2. Angela Ackerman28 September 2015 at 11:21

    It's hard to believe the conference was just over a month ago...what a terrific time I had, and what a pleasure to hang out with Aussie writers. Thanks so much for the snippet from my talk. :)

    One session I enjoyed was C.S. Pacat's Narrative Traction. Very good session, and a different take from "tension on every page."

    Happy writing, Marilyn!

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  3. Marilyn Forsyth28 September 2015 at 12:22

    Hi Angela! How lovely to see you here. What I loved about your session was that it was so damn practical. My debut book with Harlequin MIRA comes out early next year and I've been putting into practice a lot of your ideas to target my ideal audience (without becoming a ''buy my book'' author).
    Like you, I enjoyed C. S. Pacat's session and took copious notes to help with current wip.
    Writers Helping Writers is one of my favourite sites, full of exceptional resources. And good luck with One Stop for Writers, too, which goes 'live' next week, I believe (not that you'll need it :) ).

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  4. Cassandra Samuels28 September 2015 at 15:41

    I enjoyed many of the conference talks an workshops at conference, but I went to a lot of marketing and social media workshops but one of the workshops that gave me so much info was the Dark Art of the blurb by Kate Cuthbert and Ainslie Paton. The lightbulb moment I got from this session is that I need to think differently when writing a blurb. It's marketing and has to be treated as such.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth28 September 2015 at 15:58

      Aah, crafting the blurb. It's such an art, isn't it - enticing the reader by tantalising them with questions they can only find the answers to by buying and reading your book? And all within 10-20 seconds (or so I've read). I didn't go to that session but it definitely sounds worthwhile. Good luck with your future blurb-writing, Cassandra!

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  5. Enisa28 September 2015 at 21:57

    Hi Marilyn. I love our conferences. The talks, workshops, pitch sessions and getting together with writer friends give me an extra 'buzz' and I'm all excited about writing when I get home. That's always a plus when you sit by the computer to work on your story. I'll have to say my personal light bulb moment came some years back. Knowing how important emotion is in romance novels, I always ensured I had plenty in my stories. NOT a good thing, as author Fiona Brand informed me. Add too much emotion and you're hitting the reader over the head with it and the emotion then loses its impact. It's advice I always remember as I write.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth29 September 2015 at 08:09

      Hi Enisa! I hear what you're saying. Too much emotion and it can become 'overload'; just the right amount and you can have your reader feeling everything your character feels. Great advice from Fiona Brand! Thanks for sharing.

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  6. Malvina29 September 2015 at 06:23

    I love the inspirational quote from Nora Roberts which says you can't fix a blank page...or words to that effect. Love the RWA conferences, they are such fun. There's something for everyone there.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth29 September 2015 at 08:14

      That's a great quote, isn't it, Malvina? And so true! Life is intervening in my writing at the moment so any chance I get I write a few lines. It all adds up eventually. :)

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  7. Sharon Bryant29 September 2015 at 08:31

    Hi Maryiln,
    The following quote from William Faulkner rings true for me in the romances I love to read, the way I try to write, and in life generally. I think it sums up something of the essential essence of an inspiring romantic novel. "You don't love because: you love despite; not for the virtues, but despite the faults."

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  8. Marilyn Forsyth29 September 2015 at 08:56

    Hi Sharon! I haven't heard that quote before but it perfectly describes the type of romance I love. Thanks so much for sharing.

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  9. Mary Jo Putney29 September 2015 at 11:35

    It was a great conference, wasn't it Marilyn? And wasn't I write about feeling like roadkill? *G* There is so much stimulation, so much to learn, so many great people--pretty overwhelming for us introverts. And worth every road flattened moment. *G*

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth29 September 2015 at 14:56

      Hi Mary Jo! We felt so privileged to have you attend the conference this year and it was wonderful to meet you. You summed up two full days of sessions, lunches, dinners, socialising and dancing so well with the roadkill statement, which is why I wanted to end my post with it. Thanks so much for dropping by.

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  10. Unknown30 September 2015 at 06:51

    Hi Marilyn, great post. I laughed at the road kill comment as well... I can really relate to having to put writing first. Easier said than done sometimes and finding that balance is something I struggle with all the time. Once I start writing I don't want to stop and everything else - housework especially - gets put second. I am now trying to write between certain times, or for so many hours and then do something else... Balance. If only books didn't take so long to write...

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth30 September 2015 at 08:43

      Hi Karen, thanks for dropping by. My sentiments exactly.
      Here's another quote you might enjoy: ''Writing a book is easy; just ask anyone who hasn't done it.'' :)

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  11. Rachel Bailey30 September 2015 at 18:12

    Hi Marilyn! Wasn't it a great conference? I always get heaps out of them.
    So glad you enjoyed the characters workshop, though I can't claim that quote - it's one that's been around a while that I just repeated. It's a good one!

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth1 October 2015 at 09:55

      Thanks so much for dropping in, Rachel! I have to say I got a lot more from your workshop than just the quote I used, but even though I'd heard similar sayings before, your words resonated with me at the time because I'd been struggling with a secondary character who I couldn't make come to life. I went back and gave him a history and a lot of things fell into place. So I owe you a big thank you! And good luck with the release of The Finn Factor!

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    2. Rachel Bailey12 October 2015 at 13:49

      So glad it helped, Marilyn! Sometimes it's just a matter of the right words at the right time. :)

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