IE #3: Networking

I'll be addressing the topic of networking often for this Information Exchange column in order to stress how networking can lead to paid writing jobs.

For example, two weeks ago I was talking to my writing friend, Suzy, during a holiday party. She mentioned she recently got a job to write a how-to article for an anthology geared toward women who write poetry. That book is one of three in a series of anthologies being put together by a group of editors. Suzy noted my interest and sent me an email along with a note that I should move quickly to send queries so I could get my pick of subjects. I sent a query for an essay and one for an article. Both ideas were accepted within two days.

And how did Suzy learn about the project? By talking to people and joining professional writing organizations. The common thread between her success and mine is that we both learned of opportunities by talking to people, otherwise known as networking.

I used to be horrible at networking. I thought this activity involved pumping people for information that could help me. I thought the process was about getting information. I've since learned the opposite, that it's by taking a true interest in other people — who they are, where they came from, what they're looking for — and doing your best to help them succeed that leads to friendships. Friendships are more long-lived and satisfying than just business contacts, because when you're interested in someone else's well-being, so he or she is interested in yours. Similar principles are espoused in Dale Carnegie's famous book, How to Win Friends and Influence People. Though published in 1936, the advice given in the book is still relevant today.

Need a few more resources? Have at it. And if you have any networking stories of your own, let me know.

How to Network: For Introverts

How to Win Friends and Influence People

Women Into the Network

CQ #3: "They All Sound Alike"

I've run a critique group for about 13 years now, and one of the most oft repeated complaint is, "Your characters all sound alike."

I found this gripe, when spoken about my characters, to be highly annoying, because all my characters were very different. They dressed differently, they acted differently, they had different backgrounds and aspirations. How could they sound alike?

When writing Growing Great Characters, I went back to my journalistic roots. When quoting people, the emphasis is on accuracy, which means you're expected to write down exactly what people say. When you're forced to record dialog as such, rather than clean up obvious grammatical errors, which we do almost automatically, you begin to see patterns that are individual to one person or part of a regional dialect.

My favorite example of the former is my husband's great uncle, who is fond of prefacing sentences with, "I'll tell you what, he's got another thing coming," "I'll tell you what, that's not going to happen."

An example of the latter would be that young adults in England don't apply to a university, they apply to university. And they don't go on vacation, they go on holiday.

In order to make your characters sound unique, consider developing an ear for the vast differences in the types of words used and the pattern in which they're spoken by listening to a conversation and writing exactly what you hear.

For many more examples, as well as ways to vary a character's speech, consider the following sources:

Growing Great Characters Remember that you're welcome to write a review on amazon. The process is anonymous, so you can be honest as you like.

Writing Realistic Dialogue and Flash Fiction

Writing Dialogue

BTQP #3: The Right Tone

My 13-year-old son was looking over my shoulder while I wrote yesterday's post. He said, "You sound like a teacher. That is totally not cool."

After thinking about his comment, I realized that sounding like a teacher wouldn't be cool if I didn't want to come off like a teacher. But what if I did? Then I would have succeeded.

So my Big Question to be Pondered is this:

When you write, do you succeed in conveying the tone you aim for? If so, how often (rarely, occasionally, almost always)? If not, what do you think you're missing?

If you need help, here are a few good resources:

Writing Effective E-Mail


The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing

Setting the Right Tone: Formal and Informal Writing

WW #3: Too Much Holiday?

Hopefully you've been able to sleep late and indulge in a special breakfast like that of homemade scones and raspberry jam. Now that you're awake, here's a writing exercise that fits the season and won't tax your brain too much:

List all the words you can think of to describe your holiday break. I assume this list will be: long, somewhat serious, somewhat funny, reflective of your ethnic background and childhood.

Need a few holiday jokes to tell at parties this season? Try these web sites.

Holiday Jokes