Category Archives: Reflection

I love the topic of this month’s Fictorian posts. Community is so important to writers. I started writing almost ten years ago, and approached it like many of us do: huddled over a keyboard in a quiet little corner. Just me, my computer, and my story.

Alone.

There’s a better way. Yes, as writers, we need to spend a bunch of time alone getting the work done, but we don’t have to BE alone. There are many resources and people out there to help make the journey more efficient and more enjoyable. And everyone I’ve ever met has lots to offer in return.

When I first started attending writing classes and conferences, I was looking for things I needed to help me get my stories off the ground, to learn the craft, to understand the business. I found so much more than that.

I was amazed to find that authors, more than almost any other group I’ve known, are friendly and open to helping each other. Over and over, authors who paused to extend a helping hand to me shrugged off my thanks, saying, “Someone took the time to help me. I’m just passing it on.”

That resonates strongly with me, as it ties in with how I try to live my life. In writing, as in other businesses, personal pursuits, religious beliefs, and family, the concepts are similar:

Give more than you take.

Smile.

Encourage more than you criticize.

Take a moment to help someone. It makes you feel good, and means more to them than you probably know.

How you treat others always comes back around on you. Those who are too self-absorbed, mean-spirited, or even just inattentive to the needs of those around them usually end up as alone as we all feared we’d be as writers.

The rest of us build a community. The more I try to help, the more I offer feedback, suggestions, or encouragement, the more the floodgates open and I find friends ready to help me out when I need it. I don’t help others with the intention of getting something in return. The rebound happens all on its own.

So every day, look for a way to give.

If you then need to receive, the help will come, and that’s such a better way to live.

Author Frank Morin

Frank Morin loves good stories in every form. When not writing or trying to keep up with his active family, he’s often found hiking, camping, Scuba diving, or enjoying other outdoor activities. For updates on his popular YA fantasy novel, Set in Stone, or his other scheduled book releases, check his website: www.frankmorin.org

Post 1000: How on Earth Did We Get Here?

August 11, 2015

Evan Braun

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As near as I can recall, the Fictorian blog was birthed—at least in idea form—on March 20, 2010 in the lounge of the Westin Hotel in Pasadena. (See photo to pinpoint more or less the exact spot.) A group of writers had assembled for the first annual Superstars Writing Seminar to learn about the ins and outs of the publishing business. We were a big group of strangers with a whole lot of high-flying ideals.

I’d like to think those ideals haven’t gone anywhere, but that big group of strangers doesn’t exist anymore. Alas, we are currently a big group of friends and trusted colleagues.

Of course, none of us went home from that seminar ready to start blogging. It took just over a year to get organized. Our first blog post, “The Benefits of Holding Hands,” went live on March 30, 2011—and it goes like this, courtesy of Fictorian alumnus Nancy DiMauro:

Writers help you stay motivated and hold you accountable. It’s like having an exercise or diet buddy. After all, who can understand the ups and downs of writing better? Writers need to network, commiserate and, well, get honest feedback about what they write from others who are wrestling with the same questions…

I don’t know if Nancy set out to write a mission statement, but this one would certainly do the trick. Four and a half years later, and one thousand posts, it still holds true. The Fictorians is about writers holding other writers accountable, keeping them motivated during the many and varied troughs of the writing life, and helping them to network.

All of these years later, the names and faces have changed, but none of the original Fictorians are at the same place in their writing careers than when they started. Without question, this blog has helped us to grow and stay connected with our tribe.

So, one thousand posts. Four digits. A really big part of me can’t believe we’re here. I’ve read somewhere that the average blog lasts two years or less. If that’s true, we’re beating the odds—and that’s largely due to the fact that we’re doing it together. Holding hands, so to speak. It’s not easy to keep an online presence going day after grueling day. With the Fictorians, it’s pretty effortless. When everyone makes a small commitment (one post month, loosely), it’s not hard to fill up the calendar with great content.

Well, perhaps you’ve noticed that we’re really very extremely excited about our 1000th post. It’s a big deal, a big milestone, so we figured, why not throw a little party? That’s why we’ve been giving away books all month. Seven last week, seven this week (it’s actually thirteen, since one of the prizes this week is a seven-book bundle), and fourteen more as the month rolls on. These are books we’ve written, books that our friends and guest bloggers have written, and even books that our mentors have written. There’s a lot of good stuff. For more details, click here, or simply log in to the Rafflecopter interface to your right.

Our celebration isn’t all about the giveaways, though. For over a year, we’ve been working behind the scenes to bring you this upgraded site interface. It was ready just in time for this month, the most pivotal of months. We hope you’re enjoying it so far!

If you’re a writer and you’re looking for a tribe, consider us in your corner. Read and comment on our articles. Get in touch with us. And if you’re really serious about doubling down on your writing career (and we’re all hoping the answer is yes), then consider signing up for the Superstars Writing Seminar. That’s right; the Fictorians are still around, and so is Superstars, going strong into its sixth year. There’s no better place to fulfill the above mission statement.

Evan Braun is an author and editor who has been writing books for more than ten years. He is the author of The Watchers Chronicle, whose third volume, The Law of Radiance, has just been released. He specializes in both hard and soft science fiction and lives in the vicinity of Winnipeg, Manitoba.

My Peeps. My Tribe.

August 6, 2015

fictorians

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A guest post by Sherry Peters.

There is nothing like finding a group of people you can be yourself with. You know, the people with whom you can drop your filters, let out your weirdness and have those bizarre conversations that with anyone else would raise eyebrows—if not arrest warrants. They’re also the people who will support you at your readings, and sympathize when the rejections come. They understand what it means to be a writer, and what writing means to you. They are your peeps, your tribe.

I will never forget finding my tribe.

I’d been writing for several years, and I’d connected some with local writers, and while I felt more comfortable with them than I did with other people, I still wasn’t truly myself.

In the summer of 2005, I attended the Odyssey Writing Workshop. I’d been writing for years, but I’d only been writing fantasy for two years. I was still wary of the whole crowd. I expected to be on the outside, because I was always on the outside. What I found was a group of people who understood me like no one ever had. My weirdness fit with theirs. I knew I could be myself, and it was okay. It was the first time I had ever truly felt fully accepted for who I am.

But Odyssey was in New Hampshire and my classmates were from all over the U.S. Only a couple of us were from Canada. The internet is amazing, because thanks to e-mail we all stay in touch, and not just with my class, but all Odyssey alumni.

I grew my tribe when I attended Seton Hill University to get my M.A. in Writing Popular Fiction. Having my peeps from Odyssey helped me. I already felt more comfortable, and I instantly connected with more people who understood me, and whom I understood.

That was great, and e-mail and the internet is awesome, but once again, it was all long-distance.

I admit, it was difficult to find my tribe back home. In part, it might have been because I have my writing friends from Odyssey and Seton Hill. In part, it was because I am an introvert and tend to have difficulty going out and meeting new people. Mostly it was because I had not yet met any local writers I had anything in common with.

That all changed in May 2008. First it was one local writer, and soon it was another, and then another. And sometimes I met local writers through my friends in other cities who knew people in my home town that I didn’t.

I have ended up with a great group of writing friends, my own local writing community. My peeps. My tribe.

I have a group of writers I connect with at readings and at dinners. We talk about writing. We geek-out at the movies. We get together several times a year for writing retreats and at our homes, spending the weekend quietly writing and noisily talking about writing, our works-in-progress, and our struggles and triumphs in the publishing industry.

We share resources. Calls for submissions, but also research resources. We all have our own areas of expertise and we know we can contact any other person in the group if we need to tap into that expertise.

Without my local writing community, I would not continue to write and pursue this madness we call publishing.

Most importantly, at least for myself, I have found a place to belong. I am accepted for who I am. And that means everything to me.

Guest Writer Bio: Sherry Peters is a Certified Life Coach who works with writers at all stages of their writing careers looking to increase their productivity through pushing past the self-doubt holding them back. Sherry graduated from the Odyssey Writing Workshop and earned her M.A. in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. Her debut novel, Mabel the Lovelorn Dwarf, placed 1st in the 2014 Writer’s Digest Self-Published e-Book Awards in the YA category. It has also been nominated for a 2015 Aurora Award. For more information on Sherry or her workshops, visit her website at www.sherrypeters.com.

We All Live in Community

August 2, 2015

Evan Braun

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After a while, I think I start to sound like a broken record, returning to certain themes over and over again. These themes really motivate me and speak to me as a writer and as a person. One of them is the reality that we all exist in communities. Writing communities, yes, but also families large and small, towns and cities, countries, work environments, and professional groups. And these communities are important ingredients in shaping who we are—and we become. Though it may seem at times like we’re alone, cast adrift on the lonely frontiers of human experience, that’s usually not indicative of our reality.

Writing can feel especially lonely—and that’s one of the reasons we first started this blog four and a half years ago. Has it really been four and a half years? Sometimes it’s hard to believe. In fact, our blog is approaching a big milestone—next week!—which is why I’ve found myself ruminating on the theme of community once again (as I mentioned, I’ve done it before). The milestone in question? Our 1000th post. That’s right, folks. We’ve gone four digits, and there’s no looking back.

There’s going to be a lot going on this month. As you’ve noticed, we’ve got ourselves a new and improved website to make your Fictorians experience more enjoyable—and yes, hopefully more practical. And as usual, we’re going to bring you a wide range of bloggers, all with different perspectives and stories relating to the community theme.

But we’ve got something a little extra to bring you this month, and that’s free stuff. Lots and lots and lots of free stuff. In fact, we have seven prizes to give away every week. You read that correctly. More on that tomorrow, so hurry back for all those juicy details.

Check back all month to hear from the usual suspects as well as guests bloggers like Rachel Anne Nunes (believe me; she’s got a story to tell!), Sherry Peters, and Petra Klarbrunn. Together, our message will be clear: we’re not alone—and neither are you. Stick around, be inspired, and win some prizes. Does it get any better than this?