Is Your Inability to Accept Feedback Holding You Back from Your Writing Dreams?

Details

Written by: Administrator

Category: Network News

Published: 18 October 2021

RALEIGH—At the North Carolina Writers' Network 2021 Fall Conference, November 19-21, at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Durham/RTP, Karin Wiberg of Clear Sight Books will lead the session "For Love and Money: Business Professionalism for Writers."

Conference registration is open.

Karin Wiberg is owner of Clear Sight Books, where she helps seasoned business leaders write nonfiction books. Whether she ghostwrites, edits, or coaches, her clients develop a clear message and compelling voice; and for those who choose to self-publish, she turns manuscripts into books. Karin’s professional experience ranges from the Fortune 500 and association management to small businesses and nonprofits. She’s served on grant panels for the City of Raleigh Arts Commission and the NC Arts Council and judged writing contests for Writer’s Digest and the Jane Austen Society of North America. Karin holds an MBA from the University of Iowa and a business coaching certificate from North Carolina State University. Her poetry has been published in Stirring, Petrichor Review, riverSedge, Two Hawks Quarterly, and elsewhere, and she is the author of Chicken Haiku, an illustrated book of poems. Find Karin online at www.clearsightbooks.com.

This year, NCWN is asking authors for "one good piece of advice," either something they were once told that they never forgot, or something they wished they could go back and tell their younger selves. This is what Karin has to offer:

"Learn to love feedback.

"In creative writing workshops, many new writers bristle at feedback. It’s okay to feel a little protective of your work; that’s natural. But take some space and consider the feedback objectively. Feedback is how we learn and progress.

"Consider this: Babies can’t walk right away, and they don’t get embarrassed when they tip over while learning; they just figure out how to regain their balance and try again. As writers, we shouldn’t be afraid to 'tip over' in our writing. We will not write masterfully from the start, and we will never do it 'perfectly.' Feedback helps us regain our balance and speed up our learning. You don’t have to accept every suggestion or incorporate every bit of feedback, but listen closely to 1) patterns that arise and 2) what the more seasoned and insightful readers offer. (Not all opinions are created equal!)

"If you have trouble accepting feedback or making mistakes, read Mindset by Carol Dweck. Speaking as a perfectionist, I’ll tell you this book was a gamechanger for me in how I view attempts, mistakes, and feedback on everything I do. It helped take the pressure off—and it helped me learn to love feedback."

If Karin Wiberg ruled the world, writers would be able to write all day and not worry about money . . . Sigh. But most of us have to pay attention to business as well as craft, so let’s make it as easeful as possible. In "For Love and Money: Business Professionalism for Writers," we’ll cover the foundations of being a writing professional—things like bookkeeping (aargh!), client contracts (hmm), getting paid (yay!), and processes and tools for looking like a pro. We’ll also explore some of the issues writers tend to struggle with (pricing, anyone?) and ideas for moving past the struggle. You’ll walk away with a checklist of priorities and tips for implementation. Whether you’re trying to get a book deal or land a client, showing up as a professional pays dividends.

Fall Conference attracts hundreds of writers from around the country and provides a weekend full of activities that include lunch and dinner banquets with readings, keynotes, tracks in several genres, open mic sessions, and the opportunity for one-on-one manuscript critiques with editors or agents. North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green will give the Keynote Address. Other sessions that address the business side of writing include "How to Get Paid without Anyone Getting Hurt" with Alice Osborn: Author/Book Coach/Editor; "Nerd Cool 101: Making Your Book Shine Online" with Ellen C. Bush and Phillip Loken of UNC Press; and "Pathways to Publishing: Know ALL Your Options" with Tracy Crow of Tracy Crow Literary Agency.

Register here.

The nonprofit North Carolina Writers’ Network is the state’s oldest and largest literary arts services organization devoted to all writers, in all genres, at all stages of development. For additional information, visit www.ncwriters.org.

 

Online Options for Manuscript Mart Available this Year

Details

Written by: Administrator

Category: Network News

Published: 15 October 2021

For the first time, the North Carolina Writers’ Network will make its popular Manuscript Mart available to those virtually attending the NCWN 2021 Fall Conference, November 19-21 in Durham/RTP.

Two literary agents, Kim Lindman of Stonesong and Cassie Mannes Murray of Howland Literary, now are available only for online appointments.

That means that they can meet with registrants whether they’re attending the 2021 Fall Conference in person or through Zoom.

“Though Kim and Cassie won’t be joining us in person, they’ll be available for the same in-depth half-hour discussions as any other Manuscript Mart participant,” said NCWN Executive Director Ed Southern. “They’ll be able to hear your pitch and give you their feedback, just through a screen rather than across a table.”

In addition to online appointments with Lindman and Murray, this year’s Manuscript Mart offers in-person appointments with Maggie Cooper of Aevitas Creative and Tracy Crow of Tracy Crow Literary Agency.

Manuscript Mart provides writers with the opportunity to submit their manuscripts and get feedback from an editor or agent with a leading publisher or literary agency. A one-on-one, thirty-minute session will be scheduled for you, to take place on Saturday, November 20, sometime between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm, or on Sunday, November 21, between 9:00 am and 12:30 pm.

A Manuscript Mart session can lead directly to publication—but don’t expect it to do so. Think of it, instead, as a learning opportunity, and you’ll get more out of it.

Manuscript Mart sessions are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Manuscript Mart registration is open until Friday, November 5, or until all the available slots are filled. Writers must be registered for the Fall Conference to take part in the Manuscript Mart.

Registration for the NCWN 2021 Fall Conference is open.