Originally posted on February 28, 2011 at 4:47 PM
Just got back from the con last night, and man my head is spinning. Not only did I get my first requests (yes, plural!) for full manuscripts, but I also got requests for partials, met tons of awesome writers and almost a dozen amazing agents, had a blast with my writing BFFs, and learned enough good stuff to turn my brain into mush. So, let’s make your brain mush too!
1. The Gong Show is more entertaining than TV.
2. The Gong Show is also the most educational way to study queries. I learned more about query-writing in that first hour and a half than I have in a lifetime of classes, critiques, and articles. Fabulous.
3. When at a con, agents are pseudo celebrities, but nicer. (You can actually talk to them!)
4. Thanks to a fabulous class by Jessica Sinsheimer: I can put myself in the top percentile of query-ers just by following directions, being intelligent, and putting in the effort.
5. If you wear a hat, you are more memorable. (Jeff Posey’s got it down.)
6. My friends like to sleep with the room extraordinarily cold.
7. Writers’ conferences (or at least this one) are an incredible value and well worth the money.
8. Holding a glass in your hand at a cocktail party makes everything easier, even if you don’t drink from it. (Something to make you look less awkward.)
9. “High concept” is almost impossible to explain, but easy to recognize. Not all books are high concept. This is okay. Thanks, Colleen Lindsay.
10. “Portals happen.” –Amy Boggs
11. If you really want something, it is definitely worth hoping, worth overcoming fear, and worth taking risks. Dude, just go for it.
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