The Southeast chapter of Mystery Writers of America
(SEMWA), the Triad chapter of Sisters in Crime (Murder We Write),
and the Writers' Group of the Triad united efforts to sponsor a free,
one-day writers' workshop Saturday 18 October at the Greensboro Central
Library in Greensboro, NC. I drove
over to catch up with what other authors were doing, meet authors and writers
with whom I've corresponded in email, and listen to the excellent presenters.

Beth Sheffield, who heads up the readers' advisory
service for the library, kicked off the day with guidelines for published
authors on preparing a discussion guide for book clubs and reader groups. Her
handout listed generic samples of book discussion questions and the building
blocks for good questions. She suggested that authors also provide an
information packet for facilitators; it differs from the list of discussion
questions in the following ways:

• Accessed primarily by discussion group facilitators
• Cross-references page numbers from the novel with discussion
  questions on the list
• Notes the author's perspective on plot twists and characters

Last fall, I'd developed discussion questions for Paper
Woman based on Read 'Em Their Writes: A Handbook for Mystery and Crime
Fiction Book Discussions, by Gary Warren Niebuhr. Soon as events slow down
a bit for me, I'll create a similar list for The Blacksmith's Daughter
and Camp Follower, create facilitator guides for all three books, and
post these resources on my author web site.

 Karen McCullough, president of SEMWA, based
examples in her session about how to plot a novel on the five-act story
structure. She analyzed the structures of The DaVinci Code and "Star
Wars" to demonstrate the rising action, crisis, and easing of tension in
each act. Her handout on tried-and-true plotting structures included the Mythic
Structure (aka the Hero's Journey).

 After lunch, NY Times best-selling author John
Hart, who won the Edgar award, shared his route to publication and
answered questions from the audience about writing. John has two
"trunk" manuscripts, written while he had a day job. (In other words,
stuff he refuses to sell because of its lack of quality.) When he decided to go
full-time at writing, he'd been employed as an attorney. He'd noticed the
improvement curve between the two unpublished manuscripts, and at the same
time, he couldn't stomach the thought of legally representing a guilty child
molester. Here's some of the wisdom he shared:

• Before the agent, editor, or publisher sees you, they
  see your words upon the page. That's why excellent writing, passion,
  perseverance, and faith impress them more than a "sexy" package.
• A mistake commonly made by beginning writers is querying top
  agents. These agents are way too busy with their seven-digit-advance clients to
  bother with queries from first-time authors. Instead, query agents from halfway
  down the letterhead of established agencies. They'll be hungry.
• If an agent wants your material, s/he'll usually jump on it
  within a day or so. If the agent has had your material for more than three
  months without responding, they likely don't want it.
• Publishers maintain/pay attention to their stables. A first-time
  author is a necessary evil that warrants a little PR on the debut novel, but
  after that, the author is left to sink or swim. A small percentage of
  first-timers will pay off down the road, and that's the main reason why
  publishers sign contracts with them.
• Find a publisher with a marketing budget. It takes a hefty
  dollar commitment from a big publisher to boost an author on top, on the
  "front table" of Barnes & Noble. This means an author has to
  pursue every opportunity to get noticed individually by the publisher, to
  ensure that the publisher's extra commitment will happen. John
  "stalked" a top author until he got a cover blurb from him. That
  boldness caught his publisher's eye and elevated him from a one-page ad to a
  two-page ad in the catalog his publisher sent to booksellers in advance of
  book releases.

My observation on John's strategies: I found his level of
self-promotion, assertion, and initiative typical of how men navigate their
careers in Corporate America. Most women are uncomfortable pursuing careers
with such determination. In particular, women authors retreat from most
marketing challenges.

 Agatha-award winner Chris Roerden, shown here
on the left with sister Guppy Teresa Fannin, spoke from a professional
editor's point of view on voice, craft, and the secret to getting published.
Tips she offered: make endings unexpected, leave backstory out of the first
chapter, rewrite junk (filler) phrases such as "took a breath" and
"shook his head" to make them fresh, and don't hesitate to use
understatement or overstatement appropriately. The attitudes of the protagonist
and the author are great determinants of the elusive "voice." Junk
phrases often smother voice.

A panel, "10 Essentials for Getting and Staying
Published that Writers Don't Want to Believe!" wrapped up the day. Karen,
John, and Chris hit on the following points, more than ten, many of which I've
belabored on discussion lists:

• Editors at publishing houses don't have time to edit and
  will reject a first-timer's manuscript if it isn't very close to publishable.
• Don't try to write like the next _____ (substitute name of
  bestseller author). Don't let someone else dictate what you write or steer you
  into a trend. Trends are elusive and fleeting. You cannot write to trends.
  Write who you are.
• One of the best ways to find voice is to give your
  protagonist stakes that are unique and personal, and make the reader care about
  the resolution of those issues.
• Front-line editors at publishing houses usually won't read
  past the second paragraph of a submission. Your material has to be better,
  not just as good, as what's currently selling well.
• The average number of completed "trunk"
  manuscripts for first-time, published authors is 4.5. You aren't likely to sell
  your first completed manuscript. First manuscripts aren't very good, and most
  agents and editors know this. (During my recent talk with Mary Buckham, she
  mentioned that most first manuscripts are autobiographical and thus
  unpublishable.)
• Don't admit to agents and editors your number of trunk
  manuscripts. Don't admit how long it took you to write your submitted
  manuscript.
• Don't expect to sell the first draft of a manuscript.
  Rewriting is where you make yourself a genius. When you rewrite, make sure that
  every scene advances the story.
• To produce a compelling book, focus on creating a gripping
  plot and set of characters. You don't have to save the world with a contrived,
  outrageous, superhero ending. Make your plots and characters as realistic as
  possible so they resonate with your readership.
• The gamble that publishers take with first-timers is that
  the fan base will grow instead of flat-line. If your sales flat-line, it kills
  your career. This stagnant fan base is what a writer who self-publishes can
  most often expect. You're better off without that kind of history. (In other
  words, if you want a career in writing, resist the impulse to self-publish.)
• Being published two or three times, even with increasing
  sales, doesn't guarantee your next contract.
• In 1998, the average published author made $7000 per year.
  That figure hasn't increased appreciably. This isn't a career at which you're
  likely to get rich. When lightning does strike, a good percentage of it is
  luck.
• Don't send glitter, photos, food, or other gifts when you
  query. What you're trying to impart in a query is that you're professional.
  Gimmicks don't achieve that and, post-9/11, will be discarded.
• For fiction writers, learn how to write the type of book
  proposal used by nonfiction writers. More agents and editors are requesting
  these so they can see whether the prospect is marketing savvy and professional.
• When an agent or editor responds to your query with,
  "This isn't right for us, but send your next manuscript," s/he is not
  saying that they hate your writing. This is one of the most positive responses
  you can get. Yet more than 50% of writers don't send that next manuscript
  because they interpret the statement as negative.
• Expect agents and editors to treat you professionally.
  Approach your interactions with them professionally. What you write is art, but
  the publishing industry is a business. Treat it as business, not as art. Get
  involved, and educate yourself.

Distributed at this event was the first edition of a
bibliography of mystery novels, true crime, and related nonfiction written by
authors who currently live in North Carolina. The bibliography is "offered
for the enjoyment of readers" and "for distribution by NC
libraries." Nancy Gotter Gates, Rebecca Floyd, Chris Roerden, and Beth
Sheffield compiled and printed the initial draft. An electronic copy of the
bibliography is available on Murder We Write's web site.

My Honda provided an unexpected source of humor on this
trip. Halfway to Greensboro, the muffler called it quits, so I roared into the
parking deck near the library sounding like I'd come straight from the 'hood.
When the Skill-Build was over, my Honda bellowed back to Raleigh, surpassed in
volume only by two bull pickup trucks brocaded with Bond-o. But ahhh, to pull
into my driveway and receive such appreciative grins from my teenaged sons:
check out Mom's pimped-out ride! Better than homemade chocolate chip cookies! I
had the muffler replaced today. I always suspected that the reserved exterior
of my Honda hid a savage growl. Kinda like perimenopausal women.

Next up: A panel and booksigning for an afternoon of Carolina Crimes at the New Hanover County Public Library in Wilmington, NC.