July Update: Camp NaNo and Short Story Submission

The LFK Writers and I decided to participate in the second session of Camp NaNoWriMo this year. I'd say we've had about as much success this time around as we did in April. That is to say, some of us wrote a lot of words, some of us never even started our projects.

I will probably not reach my goal of 15,000 words, but I should hit around 10,000, and it's allowed me to explore a story idea I might otherwise not have revisited. The idea now has more of a foundation, and has the potential to become something, I think. Maybe something like a throw-away, self-published book I put out under a pseudonym, but also maybe something I can edit into a hot urban fantasy type book. Either way, I'm glad I did this round of Camp NaNo. I definitely got something out of it, even if I didn't reach my word count goal.

All of the LFK Writers have started to have similar feelings about NaNo. Not just Camp, but also NaNo proper. We're all outgrowing it a bit. We all know we can write a given amount of words in a month. We are now, most of us, in a place where we need to write good words in a month, not just any old words to reach an arbitrary word count goal. Having a deadline and the camaraderie for NaNo are still great things, but I think we've all grown past the point where we need NaNo to write.

I have never been so proud of my writing group as I have been this year.

We are all writing short stories every month that are published on our website. We've been going strong for seven months now. Rachel has just started a brand new books series, and she's actually doing really well without her publisher. The LFK Women Writers are beginning to submit stories to various publications. We've actually had a couple be published already. Jack continues to have stories published on a regular basis, and he is taking the GRE this very morning so he can apply to the KU PhD in creative writing program.

And that's just the start. Our group is expanding: we've had a couple of past members become active again. We've recruited several new members who are actually contributing their stories to the Cafe, as well. Several of us are getting close to finishing up full-length novels that we are actually serious about getting published.

It's amazing to be a part of such an amazing group of writers. Watching all of us grow as writers and gain the confidence to put ourselves out there along this journey has been incredible. I fought long and hard to get this group to where it is. And now, I feel like, if for whatever reason I stepped away from them, they would continue on strong. It's not like the days where if I didn't show up, there was no group.

I don't often get possessive or brag about this, but back in the day, with the help of one or two other people, I started this writing group. I had no idea, ten years ago, that we would have such an amazing group of people now. It makes me happy in ways I can't even put into words.

So that's my biggest news, I guess. I have an awesome writing group.

In other news, I finished editing my first full-length novel for R.L. Naquin. I have fourteen stories on submission right now, waiting to hear if anyone wants to buy one. I have written one short story a month for the last seven months. And...if all goes well...I will be starting edits on Monsters of Lawrence next month. Fingers crossed for me, friends. I am terrified about this project. It's so close to finished, but it still needs a ton of work before it's done. I know I can do it. I just need to jump in there and start getting my hands dirty.

Gotta get your hands dirty if you want things to grow. I'd say that goes for writing as much as it does for gardening. I've cultivated a lot of things this summer, from food to fiction. It feels pretty amazing.

June Update: ConQuest Recap

I'm a little late in talking about my ConQuest experience. Most of my cohorts posted blogs a week ago. You can visit Jack Campbell, Jr., Kevin Wohler, and R.L. Naquin to see what they had to say about the convention.

Overall it was a ton of fun. It was crazy-busy. I missed out on doing a lot of the things I wanted to do, but I got to do a lot of things I hadn't prepared for, so it all it all worked out in the end.

I missed out on Story in a Bag, I did not drink with my fellow writers, and I was on panels for a majority of the Brandon Sanderson events. That being said, my fellow LFK Writers defended the Story in a Bag title: Dianne Williams won amateur sci-fi and Christie O. Hall won amateur fantasy. I'm so proud of my ladies! I also went to the Masquerade for the first time, where Dianne also won an Honorable Mention for her cosplay costume. We cheered super loud for her. Also? I went to the late-night panels instead of drinking. We wore pajamas (mine are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and Rachel and I wore tiaras. I'm not even kidding.

I got to spend time with old friends - Sean Demory, Holly Messinger, and James and Anita Young - and made some new friends, too, like Gareth-Michael Skarka and his wife Laura, as well as the brilliant and enthusiastic Sarah Bredeman, who spoke on the NaNo panel with me. My network is ever-expanding, but more importantly, these conventions are becoming like big reunions.

As for Brandon Sanderson? Well, after closing ceremonies, we were standing around chatting, and he ended up right behind us. Bolstered by the buddy system, fellow LFK Writer Eliza Jaquays and I made our way up to him to say hello and get his autograph. The man was well-spoken and kind, and even had book plates in his jacket pocket since our books were already packed. I'm a bigger fan of him now than I was before.

My panels went well, I think. The panel on Working through the Bad Days wasn't entirely what I was expecting, but it turns out I have a lot of knowledge and experience, so I felt like I was able to speak authoritatively and supportively. I'll probably suggest a panel on mental health and art for next year, since it was a well-attended panel and I strongly believe the more we talk about mental illness, the less stigma there is associated with it.

The NaNoWriMo panel was kind of a mess, but it was fun. It was basically the panels on the panel and the panelists' writing groups in the audience. It became more of a "what does NaNo look like in your region" rather than an informative session. I had fun, though. I gave the KC municipal liaison my card, so hopefully we can talk joint write-in sometime this year.

Jack did an amazing job on all of his panels, sold several books, and promoted the heck out of Bottle Cap Publishing and the Confabulator Cafe. The Cafe has had many hits and a potential guest blogger since the convention. It's all very exciting.

Best of all, as always, my convention weekend has lit a creative fire in me. I'm moving ahead with projects and making plans. I'll give an update about those in another week or two. I've innundated you with enough information for now.

Thanks for stopping in! Hope you'll join me and my friends at ConQuesT 47 next year!