can't help telling stories
At nearly every session with the editors and agents at Love Is Murder*, somebody said, “This is business.” Well, it’s business if you want to make money from your writing. If you do, you may be able to use some of these tips when you market yourself and your work.
A Glimpse Behind the Cogs of a Strategic Marketing Plan | Eliza Koch | LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/glimpse-behind-cogs-strategic-marketing-plan-eliza-koch
*mystery writers conference in Chicago
First let me say that going to conferences is great because the panels and conversations really get your mind moving. I love those “light bulb” moments. (And I’ll probably be full of post-conference enthusiasm for at least another week.)
Among the things we talked about in a great panel on ebook publishing was using short stories to help build an audience, to introduce characters, and to keep readers interested between novels. The last reason is also on this list of 10 reasons to write short stories.
Ten Reasons to Write Short Stories Even Though the Pay is Peanuts – SFWA
http://www.sfwa.org/2015/02/ten-reasons-write-short-stories-even-though-pay-peanuts/
When it comes to poetry, I tend to write at long intervals. It is the one form for which I await inspiration before I begin. That’s a clear sign of a dabbler, I think. Here are some suggestions for more serious poets. Or writers of prose who want to bring something lyrical to their work.
The Work of Inspiration: Five Pieces about Poetry | Longreads Blog
http://blog.longreads.com/2015/02/08/the-work-of-inspiration-five-pieces-about-poetry/
Having just got home from my first Love Is Murder conference in Chicago, I heartily recommend it to anyone writing (or reading) mysteries or thrillers of any type. I plan to go again. Check it out at http://www.loveismurder.net/. And be aware the are offering a great discount through Feb.14 on next year’s LIMCON.
I’m at the Love Is Murder conference in Chicago this weekend. Yesterday we had a Skype session with the prolific and generous Anne Perry, who was in Great Britain. We also watched one of her two new “Put Your Heart on the Page” videos. (I took the photo from my seat while we watched.) You can get a copy from Amazon or on her website http://www.anneperry.co.uk/ You’ll hear even more of her writing advice on the videos than we heard in our master class.
One of my favorite bits of her advice about backstory is to “drip, drip, drip” it into the plot so the reader learns it as she reads, but by the end of the book it makes sense of the whole story. It provides the motive for a character’s action and the engine for the plot.
sharon p. lynn 