Conferences are tough for me because I'm so shy. I'd really rather be home with a book or a notepad and pen than hanging out with a large crowd of strangers. Despite this, I always try to attend at least one conference every year. No matter where you are in your career, you'll always learn something new—or be reminded about something you've forgotten.
As you might expect, at this year's Northern Colorado Writers conference I picked up a ton of great writing tips about finding an agent, developing believable characters for novels, and choosing strong verbs for sentences. But I also learned some tips that apply to any artist:
1. It's subjective.
At one session, two agents read through the slush pile of opening pages submitted by writers. Sometimes one agent would love a submission and the other wouldn't. It's a good reminder that if you're sending your work out into the world that not everyone will love it. That does not mean that your work isn't good, it just means that you need to . . .
2. Be persistent.
The award for persistence at this conference should go to the keynote speaker, Jim Davidson, author of The Ledge. Not only did he persist in digging himself out of a frightening life-and-death situation, but he also kept working on his writing until he could tell his story. To improve, he had to . . .
3. Create lots of junk.
Wouldn't it be nice it you could create a masterpiece the first time you picked up a pen or paintbrush? More than one author admitting to writing a first book or story that didn't sell, but that helped them to build their skills enough to sell the next project. But don't just write any old junk. Instead . . .
More than one presenter cautioned against jumping on the bandwagon of whatever is popular: vampires, post-apocalyptic science fiction stories, wizards. By the time you publish your book, the trend will be over. More importantly, the book probably won't be your best work, since you're not invested in the subject.
This pair of copper heart earrings with the word "books" stamped on it (pictured on this page) was one of the first items I sold at the conference. The combination of the heart shape and the word "books" represent my love of the written word. Whenever I make or write something that I strongly believe in, something with heart, other people always respond. The same is true for you. If you're unsure which direction your art should follow, listen to your heart.