Write-on Writers Conference

Next week I am teaching a workshop at the Write-On Writers Conference in Coshocton, OH called YOU CAN WRITE A NOVEL. If you happen to be in the central Ohio area, it isn't too late to sign up. Cost is only $45 for this one day conference. Classes besides mine include poetry--free and form--self-publishing, children's writing and nonfiction. Come to be inspired.

Preparing for the conference has given my own creativity a shot in the arm. Sitting behind the computer all day can sometimes make a reader wonder if anyone is out there and if anyone cares about what we write.

I have a dry erase board in my office for jotting down ideas and brainstorming among other things. When my grandkids visit, the board is used for hangman and a slew of other projects. The other night while I was fixing dinner, my two-year-old grandson was in my office working on his own writing project. He kept yelling at me, "Nana, I writin' sum'pin. Nana, I writin' sum'pin."

Each exclamation got louder and more insistent. Finally I had to break away from dinner to find out what all the hubbub was about. I found him standing on a stool in front of my dry erase board doodling all over the place, and wanting someone to pay attention. He would make a little scribble, point to it, and tell me what he had written. He was having a blast creating his masterpiece and I had a pretty good time watching.

Sometimes I can relate to Kasey's frustration. I sit in front of my computer, working on a masterpiece that may or may not be a masterpiece to anyone but me, and wonder if anyone is out there. Does anyone care? No one is paying attention to all the labor I've put into my work.

I'm not two-years-old so I can't get away with stomping my feet and demanding attention. But sometimes that's exactly what I want to do.

"Someone look at me. Pay attention to me. Read what I've put so much work into."

Since that isn't going to happen, I need to attract attention some other way. My work is going to have to do my shouting for me. I will keep learning and growing in my craft. I'll work on killer openings, strong storylines, cliffhangers, and satisfying endings. Hopefully it will be enough to draw the masses who didn't hear me crying into my pillow, "Look at me! I'm writin' sum'pin."