Friday, May 20, 2011

May-June 2011 Newsletter

MAY/JUNE 2011 Newsletter


May/June's Theme:
Recapping the LDStorymakers Conference
The AI Mix & Mingle at this year's Storymakers

Contents

A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.
~attributed to Bernard Meltzer, or a Danish proverb


From the Executive Director
~by Christine Bryant

A Month of Change

This past month has been filled with change for Authors Incognito—the first one being the new Executive Committee. After consulting with friends and family (and after much prayer) I accepted the position offered me as Executive Director.  This is a huge undertaking, one that shouldn’t rest on the shoulders of one person, so I set out in search of the best of the best to fill a variety of positions.  It wasn’t easy, but I found them. 

Meet your new Executive Committee.
from left to right
Ali Cross – Media Director
Jordan McCollum – Education Director
Christine Bryant – Executive Director
Danyelle Ferguson – Activities Director

I am still looking to fill one or two more positions over the next year, so be watching for that announcement.

We have a lot of new and exciting things in store for Authors Incognito—quarterly activities, blogfests, contests, drawings, lessons on writing, blogging and all things writerly and media related—so don’t miss out on all the fun. 

We’ve also just returned from the LDStorymakers Writers Conference and brought a whole slew of friends with us. A big huge WELCOME to all the new members of Authors Incognito. We’re so glad to have you join us.


Three Things I Learned at Storymakers
by RaShelle Workman
Recently, I attended the Storymakers conference in SLC, Utah. So amazing. Incredible. Fantastic. There was so much to learn this year, but if I had to list the top three, they’d be:  If you aren’t sure, cut it (regarding manuscript editing). Writing is a business and must be treated as such. Don’t send peculiar little tidbits with your manuscript, if you mail to an agent or publisher.  

            If you aren’t sure, cut it.  Bootcamp happened on Thursday. Six hours of intense critique therapy. Elana Johnson (author of POSSESSION) led our group. The girl’s fabulurrssss! Quirky. Funny. And amazing with the “red pen.”  I learned so much from her and the other girls in my group. It was awesomesauce to read aloud and receive feedback. Love. Love. LOVE.

            David Farland (Wolverton), author of a kazillion novels in science fiction and fantasy, taught a class on preparing to be an author. He explained that, as a writer, we should: write every day, take care of our bodies and attend conferences—that we need to continue to hone our craft.

            Agent Sara Crowe, with the Harvey Klinger agency, gave a class on queries and pitching. Her class was a lot of fun. She had examples of query letters that worked and the reasons why. It’s important to feature our novel—let it shine. We shouldn’t bog down our query with “stuff” about ourselves. Make it short, succinct and interesting to read. Also, there’s no need to send weird items related to our novels, as a gimmick. An example she shared with us was a person sent their manuscript and included a letter opener stained with a red substance (supposedly blood). That sort of thing doesn’t encourage an agent to represent us. Completely the opposite. 

            My one sentence pitch for Storymakers 2011: WRITE AND SHINE!

 RaShelle Workman is a member of Authors Incognito. Her first novel, Distorted, will be released in June 2011 by Canonbridge, LLC. You can read RaShelle Workman's blog here.



Author’s Incognito Bulletin Board
(We heard it through the grape vine: A place to post warm-fuzzies on the cyber-fridge.)
~by Wendy Swore
Authors Incognito was on fire this month! We have so much good news to share!
Marsha Ward’s third book of The Owen Family Saga, Trail of Storms, is available at Smashwords, as well as a collection of short stories and poetry, No More Strangers, and two stand-alone short stories: the never-before-been-published "War Party," and "The Usual Game," which is included in No More Strangers. She plans to publish more short stories soon so check her Author page  for the complete list.

Happy dances all around for Elizabeth Mueller’s Darkspell, a YA paranormal romance, which was picked up by Treasure Line Publishers.
After critiques by her awesome Critter's critique group, OnWords, Cathy Witbeck’s story, "A Big Wind and A Small Voice," was accepted by the Friend. Wuhoo!
Tamara Hart Heiner’s YA novel, WHITE AS SNOW, is a semi-finalist in the ABNA contest. Swe-e-et!
Laura Bingham reports that the second book of the Alvor series, WINGS OF LIGHT, was released April 8. Isn’t that cover gorgeous?
Sixteen-year-old Erin and her twin brother, Bain, have recently become immortal elves—but the search for their mother has just begun. With new information that their mother may be alive, Erin desperately seeks to bring her back home. But when old enemies threaten her quest, Erin must turn to new friends for help and learn that some magic is better left unexplored.

An article Danyelle wrote for the Ensign has been scheduled to be printed in both the Ensign and Liahona. It’s an article for primary teachers with tips for teaching kids with special needs. All hail the internationally published Danyelle Ferguson!
Blank Slate, Heather Justesen’s newest release, is out on ebook on Amazon, Smashwords, and Barnes and Noble. Hard copies should be available for purchase through Amazon by May 10th, and signed copies are through her website!  

Laura looked up when the woman seated next to Adrianna turned the light off over their seats. Her gaze was drawn out the window when something large and dark flipped in front of a pair of headlights, and she felt her fingers grasp tightly to the wallet in her hand as the bus driver called out for everyone to brace themselves. She clenched her eyes as a large white vehicle that had been heading north-bound on the other side of the freeway slammed into the charter bus.
DOUBLE DECEIT by Stephanie Humphreys came out in May. 
Someone is watching . . .  As  a young widow, all Elaina Bryant wants is a fresh start. Determined to put ten painful years behind her, she returns to her hometown and despite her reluctance to become romantically involved with anyone, she is drawn to Ryan and finds herself falling in love. But someone isn’t happy with Elaina’s new life and is watching her every move. Her tormenter seems determined to destroy her sanity and her future, but Elaina can’t convince anyone the threat is real.  But how can she protect those she loves when she doesn’t know whom to trust?" 
Angie Lofthouse reports that a publisher wants to publish her novel, Defenders of the Covenant, possibly as soon as August! Congratulations Angie!
Melanie Marks sold another story to Chicken Soup for the Soul! (Just for Preteens.) Way to go Melanie! You deserve it!

Jordan McCollum’s first three chapters and synopsis of her MS Façade are a finalist in the 2011 Sandy Contest held by the Crested Butte Writers. Woo!
Betsy Love’s very first published novel IDENTITY, comes out the end of this month. In celebration she’s doing a short story contest on her blog. Congrats Betsy! Send us a picture and we'll show it next month.
Cindy Hogan reports that her book is coming out next month. WATCHED is being launched on June 6th at Barnes and Noble in Layton Utah at 6:30. Other local authors will also be there to sign books like Josi Kilpack, Julie Wright, Frank Cole, and Kristyn Crow. There will be contests, prizes, games and readings. It will be a family night of fun with authors.
A teen reader said, "I loved the entire book! Quickly after reading it, I became obsessed! I found myself wide awake and still reading at midnight. I took it everywhere; I read it in bed, at the table while eating breakfast, even during during biology I was constantly wondering what would happen next. The plot was thick and juicy and the characters, to die for. I definitely think there should be a second book!"
If you'd like to win a copy of WATCHED, be sure to check out Cindy's contest!

Tristi Pinkston hosted a very fun and  successful writers' marathon Saturday, May 14th. The marathoners were so inspired that Karen Hoover spearheaded a Sprint Writers' Central blog. Anyone who is "sprinting" (writing as fast as you can for a set amount of time) is welcome to pop by the blog and participate in the chat room, any time.

And finally, the Query bug has bitten us hard! Many of us have gotten positive responses on our pitches and queries, with multiple requests for partials and fulls. So cross your fingers that next month we’ll have even better news to share!

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DRUM ROLL PLEASE! Here are the winners of the Storymakers 1st Chapter Contest!
Grand Prize: “Malach” by Cory Webb
Special Recognition Award: “S.U.P.E.R.” by Kimberly VanderHorst

Romance/Women’s Fiction
1st: “Brenna” by Lisa Turner
2nd: “Hunky and the Beast” by Amy Dahlke
3rd: “Fallen Angel” by Lisa Swinton

Mystery/Suspense
1st: “Façade” by Jordan McCollum
2nd: “Conspiracy” by Nicole Trionfo
3rd: “Running Scared” by Kristine Parkin

Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Speculative for adults
1st: “Last Dispensation Space” by Randy Lindsay
2nd: “Dark Mist” by Mark Greer
3rd: “Banished” by Lisa Swinton
3rd: “Windows” by Debra Erfert
3rd: “Uriel” by Devon Dorrity

Youth Fantasy
1st: “New Sight” by Jo Ann Schneider
2nd: “Independence Day” by Christine Bryant
3rd: “Colorless” by Wendy Swore
4th: “Second Death” by Lana Jordan

Youth Fiction (all other genres besides fantasy)
1st: “Southern Cross” by Yamile Mendez
2nd: “A Blind Eye” by Julie Daines
3rd: “She Came From the Hill” by Janice Sperry
4th: “Red Dirt Road” by Shari Bird
5th: “Landslide” by Cory Webb

Non-fiction
1st: “The Utah Gold Rush” by Darvell Hunt
2nd: “Surviving the Detour of Divorce” by Sheri Johnson

General Fiction
1st: “A Starlit Road” by Curtis Moser
2nd: “Going, Going, Gone” by Kim Karras
3rd: “Three Promises to the Dying Lady” by Sharee Campbell

Historical Fiction
1st: “The Seventh City” by Renae Mackley
2nd: “Heartstrings and Towerstones” by Scott Lockwood

Congratulations everyone!

On a more somber note, our good friend, Bill Tandy, is battling cancer right now. He cannot type or read much but we’re sure a card or encouraging word would be appreciated. Bill is off list for now, so you can contact his son, Matt, if you’d like to send something. God bless, Bill. We hope you feel better soon.

 
New AI Members' Blogs
We're so excited for all of our new members. Make them feel welcome by adding their blogs to your lists!

And a few updates from our AI vets:

Member blogs will be moving from the sidebar to their own page/tab in the top navigation before the next newsletter. Click here to visit the new page and subscribe to all AI members' blogs!

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Three Takeaway Lessons from Storymakers
by Lisa Turner

I thought long and hard about this and here’s what I came up with....
  1. Takeaway #1:  In person NOBODY looks like their online picture. Well, except for David West. He looks exactly the same. At the conference I sat directly across from people I have met online but for some reason the font they used on the name badges didn’t register in my taxed mind and I didn’t even realize I knew them! So my takeaway from this is that next year we all need to wear badges with the picture we use online or else the header for our blog. Maybe that way it will be easier to identify online buddies among the sea of new faces.
     
  2. Takeaway #2: It takes time to process everything from the conference. Seriously, my head ached for about five days, from the first day of the conference until about Tuesday. I was so overwhelmed by the new experience and the stress of socializing (which I usually try to avoid) and all the amazing information I learned. I was so worried I wouldn’t be able to retain or use what I acquired. But, with a week of perspective I can’t begin to express how much attending the conference has helped not just my writing but my motivation to write. It was money and time well spent!
     
  3. Takeaway #3:  The world of LDS writers is amazing. Every published writer I met was so down-to-earth and so knowledgeable. I felt like each class I attended was being taught by an author who not only knew the craft well, but cared about the success of each writer in the room. Who could ask for a better group of mentors? I am so glad this conference is there to unite us and provide us with the resources we need to find success. Isn’t it nice to know we’re not alone--there are other people out there with voices in their head!

Lisa Turner is new to Authors Incognito. Her chapter won first place in the LDStorymakers Contest, Romance category. Visit Lisa Turner's blog here.

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Member Spotlights

Shari Bird
Shari Bird lives in the Utah desert with her husband, three teenagers and one pre-teen. Don’t scoff. Living in the Utah desert has its perks—it’s acceptable to put rocks in her front yard instead of grass, there’s no humidity to flatten her hair, and if she want to see some trees, there are mountains close by.

When she isn’t attending one of her children’s events or driving them somewhere, she likes to run and spin (not with thread, with a spinning cycle). She writes YA contemporary fiction and reads almost anything she can get her hands on.

Shari's first chapter of Red Dirt Road won an award in the Storymakers first chapter contest this year. You can get to know Shari better by reading her blog here.

Mary Greathouse
Hi,   My name is Mary Greathouse.   I was named after my grandmother who didn’t like her name and called herself Mayme and my mother who used her middle name.   So was I really named after them?     My last name sounds Native American but is really Anglicized German.
  
    I was born two years before the end of Truman’s run......the president, not the movie, so I might be older than some of you.  In fact some of my kids are probably older than some of you.   I have a same number of kids as Snow White had dwarfs, except that my kids, at birth,  were probably as big as the dwarfs were full grown.

    I live close to the middle of nowhere, Outer  Lynndyl, Utah.  (Near Delta)   Population 100 (I wrote a 300 page book about that little town....a lot of history, just not many people now.)    The next house to ours to the north is about 35 miles away but, Provo is just an hour and a half away so we are not too culture/shopping deprived.   I can see the Little Sahara Sand Dunes outside my window and  all through my house after the winds blows, which is always.   We raise cattle and feed crops so there is often more than just sand in the house. 

    I’ve been a member of AI since the second year and feel like I have a lot of friends here who keep me trying.   I write mostly non-fiction histories (well somewhat non-fiction because I believe there is an element of fiction to all history) and record keepers.   I get excited for everyone who has any success, from being published to just plain finding the time to write.  Congratulations to you all.  

Mary is the author of the Family Record Keeper.

Writer's Conferences/Workshops/Contests
~Tobyn DeGraw
Conferences, Workshops and Contests will be moving to a page/tab in the top navigation next month: Events!

Radisson Hotel - Downtown Salt Lake City, Utah
May 27-29, 2011
Author Guest of Honor - Tamora Pierce
* * * * *


David Farland's Professional Writers’ Workshop.

June 6-11 2011
Ramada Inn
1440 East George Blvd.
Saint George, UT

* * * * *
Writers @ Work 2011 Conference at the Alta Lodge
June 9-12, 2011 at Alta Lodge, Utah

* * * * *
Week-long workshop with breakout sessions
June 13-17, 2011
Waterford School, Sandy, UT
* * * * *
With editors and agents including Stephen Barr, Helen Breitwieser, Marisa Corvisiero, Holly Blanck, & Mike Braff
Crested Butte, CO (between Aspen and Gunnison)
June 17-19, 2011
* * * * *
The league of Utah Writers Annual Fall Roundup
September 16-17 2011
Riverwoods Conference Center
Logan, Ut
* * * * *

Heart of the West

Romance Writers of America Utah Chapter  

The art of Craft

October 7-8 2011 

At The Canyons

* * * * *

The Utah Division of Arts & Museums presents
2011 Original Writing Competion
Deadline Thursday June, 30, 2011 5pm
* * * * *
The League of Utah Writers 2011 Writiing Contest
* * * * *
Betsy Love's Short Story Contest
You can find a long list of contests at the Poets and Writers Magazine website:


Top Three Picks from LDStorymakers
by Melissa J. Cunningham

My three favorite classes from the conference were easy picks. Right at the top was Elana Johnson's Killer Query class. Hands down. For those of you who have never taken that class or have never met Elana, you are seriously missing out. Not only is she a blast to hang with, but she keep you laughing the whole time.

I'd thought my query was fantastic before her class. She set me straight. After her class, I sent my newly improved query to three different agencies. The next day I got a request for my full manuscript and two days later, a request for the first thirty pages from a different agency. Yeah. She's smart.

My second favorite would be Dave Farland's class on what great writers do to be great. The thing I liked most was when he spoke about biorhythms, and how you need to figure out when the best time is to write—when your right brain is really firing. Then you need to figure out when you edit best, which is mostly left brain function. He didn't leave out the importance of exercise either. He works out twice a day. It's something we need to really focus on as writers. If we sit in a chair all day staring at the computer, we're going to physically fall apart.

The third thing I loved at the conference was boot camp. I know it wasn't an official part of the actual conference but I would be lying if I didn't add it. I sometimes we forget that we need critiquing. I keep thinking of Stephen King and how someone mentioned at the conference that there is a clause in his contract that no one can edit his work. Please kill me if I ever become that arrogant. We all need improvement. We can all learn more. Never believe you are so awesome that you can do it on your own.

Melissa J. Cunningham, an award-winning writer, is a member of Authors Incognito. You can visit Melissa J. Cunningham's blog here.

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Tech Corner
~James Blevins

In the tech world, we have a saying about computer hard drives. There are only two kinds--those that have failed and those that will fail.

So if you are sitting at your computer reading this, I have good news and bad news for you. The bad news is that your hard drive is going to die at some point in the future. It may be five minutes from now, or it may be five years from now. The good news is that there are steps you can take to protect yourself against that eventuality.

If you care at all about any of your data, you will back it up religiously. I'm not talking about once every Christmas and Easter kind of religion, or even once every Sunday. I mean the everyday kind of religion we're all familiar with.

Ideally, you would purchase an external USB hard drive with built-in software for backing up your computer on a daily basis. That's for Windows computers. For Macs, you don't need any special software, as it's built in as part of the operating system. Any drive can be configured as a time capsule.

While having an extra hard drive for performing backups is a great idea, it's not the be-all end-all protection you need for your most important documents--your manuscripts and works in progress. For them, a higher level of paranoia is warranted.

Enter the realm of cloud-based storage. What is that? Basically, cloud-based storage is storing your data on an secure server accessible over the internet. Data stored in the cloud is accessible from any device with an internet connection. Why would you want that level of protection? That's actually a pretty easy question to answer.

Suppose the unthinkable happens and you experience some sort of catastrophic disaster, such as a fire, flood, lightning strike, tornado, or earthquake. These sort of things are the kinds of disasters that can not only destroy your computer, but your backups as well. That would be devastating, to say the least.

If you have backed up your most important documents to an online backup service and the unthinkable happens, and you completely lose your computer and all your local backups, you still have everything and can retrieve it online at your leisure after insurance pays for a new computer.

While there are many online backup services out there, let me tell you about the one I use. It's called Dropbox. The way it works is it creates a special folder on your computer. Any files you save or copy to that folder get instantly backed up to their servers. If you save your manuscripts in your Dropbox folder, they are backed up the instant you click the Save button. No more e-mailing documents to yourself to back them up--Dropbox takes care of it all automatically for you.

If that weren't cool enough, Dropbox saves each new version of your document as a separate, recoverable file. Suppose you decide to do some heavy editing of your manuscript while on NyQuil. The next day you get up and realize that you shouldn't have been anywhere near your computer. If you had been saving and editing the document in your Dropbox folder, you could easily retrieve the version you had before your ill-advised edits.

It gets better. You can access the items in your Dropbox folder from any internet-enabled device. This includes your iPhone, Droid, Blackberry, iPad, etc. If you have a laptop and a desktop, and one goes on the fritz, if you're using Dropbox, you can switch to the other and work on your manuscript without missing a beat.

Lastly, but not as importantly, you can share folders within your Dropbox folder with others. I'm sure there's a use for that for us writers somewhere, but I can't think of one off the top of my head.

Now for the important details: Dropbox starts with a free level of service that gives you 2 GB worth of storage. If you want or need more than that, you're welcome to pay for it. If you only use it to keep your writing safe, you will never come close to using that up. Since it's free, what do you have to lose, right?

To sign up for Dropbox, simply go here, sign up, and install their client software. That's all there is to it. 

RECIPE
Blonde Brownies
~ Karen Dupaix
2/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips

Cream butter, brown sugar and eggs. add the rest of the ingredients except chocolate chips, and mix well. Spread in a 9 x 13-inch pan and sprinkle with the chocolate chips. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. These are extra good with a cup of chopped pecans added.


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The AI Mix & Mingle at this year's Storymakers—in our natural state: chaos

What did you learn from the conference?

Thanks to the newsletter staff: Wendy Swore, Tobyn DeGraw, James Blevins, Karen Dupaix and Jordan McCollum
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Friday, May 13, 2011

We Are Who We Are

This...is us. Past and present. Awaiting, ever awaiting, the future.

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Wednesday, May 11, 2011

2011 Storymaker Conference Video

Note: This is the super-special, ultra-fixed, after conference version. (Translation, Ali's name is NOT left off the rolling credits, and the "join now" info has been removed.) Enjoy!  ~Nichole

 
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