I knew it was coming. Life had gotten more complicated and left me precious little room to write. I took up valuable space in my agent's hard drive, I suppose, because I certainly didn't bug him in any way. In fact, I avoided contacting him since our conversations always ended with his asking, "How's that next novel coming?". It wasn't. So in 2011 my agent cut me loose. Without him, I suddenly needed to know which editors have moved where, what they're looking for, and whether or not they accept un-agented manuscripts. And that's not all. While I lolligagged in Agentville, a whole new set of requirements developed involving the other fact of life I had avoided: technological savvy.
Like Dave Amaditz wrote in his blog Weather Woes=Less Motivation??, I've looked at these things for the past year as hills in my way. So, for 2012, I've turned them around, transformed them into learning opportunities. (I'm reading Daniel Amen's Making a Good Brain Great. One of his suggestions for doing so is to learn new things. It doesn't count to keep doing the things you're already decent at). Therefore, in the interest of my brain, holding onto my lovely writer's group, and getting this novel published, I'm relearning the marketplace. I've also signed up for Apple's One-to-One learning sessions. Book trailers are coming up on our group's agenda. I'll have my notebook and my Macbook ready. Bring it on.
submitted by Fran McDowell
Way to go, Fran. I think we all need better brains... And like you, technology is one of those areas I need to continue to focus on.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Fran! We're all in this together. Can't wait to check out that book or borrow it when you're done. Thanks for the powerful post and recommendation!
ReplyDeleteNice post. I think learning Twitter might be my New Year's resolution. I've put it off for too long!
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