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.