Eight great websites for writers

First of all, mad props to anyone who is cranking out 50,000 words this month. I don't ever officially do NaNoWriMo (which I inexplicably pronounced na-no-wree-mo for several years #fail) because I'm more productive if I revise every few chapters. I've definitely churned out 50,000 words in a month before, and although doing so makes me feel like an all-powerful writer goddess, the idea of 50,000 crappy hastily written words to revise makes me want to crawl in a hole and die. So if NaNo is not for you, rest-assured you're in good company...assuming you consider me good company :D

But in the spirit of NaNo (and to give you an excuse to slack off rest your weary fingers), I thought I would share with you some of my favorite writing-related websites. There are a bajillion great blogs and pages for writers, but the following are the ones I frequent heavily for kitten videos advice on craft, motivation, business stuff, and industry news.


1. terribleminds
If you're not comfortable with swear words or occasional frequent gross/graphic metaphors, you should probably stay away from Chuck Wendig's blog. Everyone else should drop by on the regs for hilarious, insightful, and motivational writing advice. Like this, from his NaNo tips post:

Give less of a shit. Relax. Ease off the stress stick, cowpoke. You’re not Superman saving a busload of precious orphans. You’re writing a novel. You can still give a shit — but set aside the baggage and expectations. You’re not Humanity’s Last Chance.

Word. Not only does Chuck provide encouragement in a way that will make you laugh at yourself and then go back to your manuscript energized and hopeful, he also provides such material at an alarming almost-every-day frequency. You scare me a little, Chuck, but I liked to be scared.

2. YA Highway

If you're a writer and you only read one blog post a week, I recommend reading YA Highway's Field Trip Friday. Each Friday, YAH staff (usually the phenomenal Kate Hart) rounds up all of the crucial publishing news, broken down into categories like "Big news", "Writing", "Reading", "Publishing", and "Other stuff." Let's say you spent all week on a deserted island or in a revision cave or even in a freaking coma. FTF will catch you up completely. YA Highway is helmed by an impressive crew of YA writers and also features other great craft and industry-related posts throughout the week.

3. Jennifer Represents

I might be biased since Jennifer Laughran is my fabulous agent-tiger, but her helpful blog makes my list for a couple of reasons. She has a wide knowledge of publishing from multiple angles--she's an agent with an impressive sales record (she sold 4 books this year just for me) and she's also a part-time bookseller. But more importantly, Jenn addresses what she sees are gaps in people's knowledge and she gives it to you straight, often sharing the insider info she's gleaned from years of publishing experience. You might not always like what she's got to say, but you don't have to wonder if she's spinning a nicer version of the truth or just telling you what you want to hear. Jenn = real.

4. Kid Lit

Agent Jenn's former colleague Mary Kole left agenting to be an author and freelance manuscript consultant. Whereas Jennifer generally focuses on the publishing industry, Mary focuses more on writing craft. She's written a fabulous book about writing irresistible kidlit, and her blog is a collection of tips and helpful pointers for writers at all stages of their careers.

5. Intern Spills AKA Hilary T Smith

Before Hilary sold WILD AWAKE, she worked as an editorial intern in NYC. Currently she posts more about her own writing journey, but see those 200 or so archived posts over in the right sidebar? Those are all gold for aspiring authors who want tips for writing and querying or just a bit of inside information on how editors think and do business. I still re-read some of Hilary's craft-related posts like "How Books Work: The Hunger Games" and "The Electric Kool-Aid Conflict Test" when I'm struggling with a revision.

6. Query Shark

I am only going to say this once--EVERYTHING you need to write a solid query can be found on this website. In fact, IMO this is a lot more info than you need. But if you read agent Janet Reid's guidelines and deal-breakers and then read 100 or so queries and her feedback, you will be able to write a decent query. Please keep in mind that the quality of your first 5-10 pages of your manuscript matters more than crafting the world's most perfect query letter. I do query critiques for Manuscript Critique Services and I routinely run across people who think that what is essentially a cover letter for your manuscript matters more than your actual story. No, just no.

7. Writer Unboxed

I honestly just stumbled across Writer Unboxed the other day and what a delightful and informational rabbit hole it is. Sometimes I feel guilty when I get sidetracked while working and sometimes my inability to focus feels like serendipity. Finding WU was one of those latter times. WU includes posts on industry, craft, and inspiration by everyone from pre-published writers to bestsellers.

8. Pub(lishing) Crawl

Pub crawl, despite being alcohol-free, is one of my favorite writerly sites because its contributors are a mix of writers, editors, agents, and sales/marketing people. As you might imagine, people in different corners of the publishing industry have different knowledge and see things a little differently. With Pub Crawl you get the best of all the worlds!

Had enough? If not, here are few more epic writing websites:

The Daily Dahlia

Nathan Bransford

Adventures in YA Publishing

Nelson Agency's Pub Rants

Forever Young Adult (for fun!)

What are your go-to places for writing information and motivation? Share them in the comments :)

Mighty Mississippi Book Blast Recap!

I'm still kind of winding down from the #MMBB tour, having gone directly from a 12-hour driving day, to a full day of airplane travel, to getting back to work on an overdue freelance project the day after I made it back to Portland. #MyGlamorousWritingLife :)

However, non-MMBBers keep asking me how the tour went, so in the interest of not having to repeat myself (AKA general laziness), I give you:

10 THINGS I LEARNED ON THE MMBB TOUR

1. Some people are natural performers and others are not. 

Even though I knew what basic questions I was going to be asked about my book--heck, I even made up some of them--I realized after the first event in Wayzata that I had basically described my book in a rambling and roundabout way that made it sound so unappealing that even *I* wouldn't buy it. Next to me, Philip Siegel was so funny that I probably would have bought his book even if he said it was about how to mix wallpaper paste. I do believe I'm a funny person, but I'm third-draft funny. I'm funny on paper. I'm funny in my comfort zone, surrounded by cats people I know. I am not a natural performer, but that's okay. It just means I should think a little about how I want to present my book before I do it in front of an audience.

Dawn Klehr, Philip, me, and Lindsay on Day One of the #MMBB

2. It's best if I be myself (but with less swearing ;-D)

I don't mean my rambling and roundabout self. I mean if I start out nervous and then try to be funny because everyone else seems to be rip-roaring comedy club hilarious, uh, that doesn't end well. Better to be unfunny but add something else to the mix--thoughtfulness? honesty? encouragement?--than to go for the laughs but come up short. Also, it's also best to dress as myself. Is it a coincidence the two events I felt most uncomfortable at were Iowa and Dallas, the two places where I wore a dress? (Sorry, Mom. I'm just not a dress girl.) If you're doing events for the first time, resist feeling pressured to get fancy. Go in the clothes you feel best represent you...unless those clothes are pajamas...unless your pajamas are really stylish...You see where I'm going with this. People who buy your book because of how you are dressed are probably not readers that you need.

Us in Iowa with bookstore owner, Sue. I look uncomfortable, don't I?

3. Acting silly never stops being fun.

Lindsay Cummings and I played Blair Witch with her phone cam in the bed & breakfast where we stayed in Dubuque, sneaking up to the deserted third floor in the dark. Either the stairs in that place were the creakiest stairs ever or Lindsay and I are really bad ninjas. Anyway, the third floor was deliciously creepy by the light of my cell phone. In one of the rooms we found...FACELESS DOLLS. 

More silliness, in group form. Team Anderson's poses for pix after the event.

4. Doing events gets easier with time and experience.

I'll never look forward to bookstore events because I'm just not an extrovert, but it did get easier throughout the week. Or maybe I was so deliriously tired by the time I got to Houston that I just didn't have the energy to be stressed anymore. Also, I really liked the events that were more about giving writing advice to aspiring authors and less about singing the praises of my books. I love my stories, but it's way less awkward to be my own book cheerleader when I can hide behind the interwebs.

Team Houston, with blogger Sara. Yep, I look pretty tired.

5. Hanging out with other writers is informative and inspirational.

I'll be the first to admit I'm prone to writer jealousy, so you might think that hanging out in groups of authors, many of whom are more successful than me, would be a recipe for disaster. But that's not what happened at all. Part of the reason I even thought I could plan this tour was because I'd heard Victoria Schwab planned tours on her own. I admire so much how she has made a name for herself by being prolific and tenacious. Hearing her and all of the other authors talk about their successes just filled me with this sense of "Hey, I can get to where they are someday, too!" Everyone was so incredibly kind and gracious to each other. Victoria Schwab, Courtney Stevens, and Heather Brewer in particular all shared such wise and thoughtful words that I felt uplifted just being around them.

Memphis was a laid-back event where we spent a lot of time talking about writing craft.

6. Everyone is nervous about the future.

Just like I found inspiration and energy from hearing about other authors' successes, I found comfort in realizing that everyone shares the same fears about their publishing futures. The only way to stay in the industry is to sell more books, and that's never a guarantee until your books have their own theme parks. Hearing authors talk about diversification, hybridization, working with multiple publishers, trying out new genres, etc. made me realize that there are a lot of options when it comes to building a career as an author. 

Dinnertime with Phil, Lindsay, Lydia Kang, and Whitney Miller.
People wearing pink in the back, please :-D

7. Making connections with indie bookstores has a lasting effect.

Setting up a tour like the #MMBB wasn't just about trying to sell a few more copies of our books to a few cities. Unless you are mega-famous, a tour would never pay for itself in that way. For me, it was all about the connections: meeting readers, meeting other authors, and meeting booksellers. When you set up an event with an indie, often times they let you sign stock. Then, after you're gone, your books will continue to sell well because they're signed. And then, maybe the booksellers will remember you and continue to hand sell your books. Maybe they'll be more likely to order your next book. No guarantees, of course, but I sold more than twice as many books in Chicago and St. Louis the week of the tour than I signed on event nights, so I have to partially credit that to the connections made with the bookstores. Indies forever!

Look at all those LAINEYs! Signed copies available throughout the Midwest!

8. St. Louis will always be part of me.

When you spend 35 years in a city, it gets inside of you. As much as I just cannot handle the St. Louis weather anymore, being back in town made me super-nostalgic. I miss my St. Louis author pals like Cole Gibsen, Heather Brewer, and Sarah Bromley. I miss my writer-blogger friends Christina and Jamie. I'm so glad I made the decision to set THE ART OF LAINEY in St. Louis, to highlight the Cardinals and the Arch, Forest Park and Wash U. Sure, some of the places are made up, but many are based on real places where I spent a lot of time--Mississippi Nights? Pi Pizza? Kayaks Cafe? Look hard and you'll find them :) And I'm so glad I got to do this big event with the amazing people at Left Bank Books. They brought me to St. Louis Comic Con, something that will forever be one of my greatest writer experiences. If I ever get famous, I'm signing all the books for Left Bank, no matter where I live at the time. I LOVE YOU GUYS!

Me with Christina from Ensconced in Lit

Me with Jamie from This Isn't Rocket Science

9. Power comes from doing the things that scare you.

A blogger in Houston (hi Nikki!) asked what dystopian world we could survive in and I said I'd be Dauntless in Divergent-land. [Sidebar: Everyone else said they couldn't survive in ANY dystopia and that they'd be killed/eaten first in an apocalypse scenario. This saddened me. Step it up, guys! When the zombie apocalypse comes I want GOOD people for my team :D] I always tell people I'd be Dauntless because even though everything scares me (seriously, everything), I do it anyway. I was scared to plan the tour, scared to go to the events, basically terrified to drive most of the way. I was scared to move to Portland, again terrified to drive there, scared to apply for a new nursing job, scared to quit said nursing job when I sold more books. Going further back, I was scared to live in Korea, scared to pet tigers, scared to ever show my writing to industry professionals. But I did all these things, and now none of them own me. To be honest, I wish I had done most of them sooner. Bravery isn't about not being scared. Bravery is about being scared but doing it anyway! 

Hey! We made the digital sign in Dallas! It doesn't get more powerful than that, right?

10. In the end, it's about the love of books.

Networking and selling copies is great, but in the end a tour should be about celebrating the joy of books with other readers. From Minnesota to Houston, the #MMBB was blessed with good-sized, attentive crowds who were enthusiastic and engaged. I am so grateful to each and every one of you who came out, and to those of you who couldn't make it but still mail-ordered books or spread the word about the events. I say this on basically every Acknowledgments page, but it all comes back to you guys. Without readers, there would be no authors. Thank you for making it possible for us to live our dreams <333

Amazing book cheerleader, blogger, and librarian: Mary from Mary Had a Little Book Blog.
(I swear we're not related. She's just that cool.)

St. Louis had the biggest crowd, but Naperville probably had the most teen attendees.
Thanks for coming to see us! We love you guys!

The Super Terrific Epic Awesome Nano Playlist

I figure by now you Nanobots are either halfway to 50K words or really freaking cranky. Never fear! I have come up with the antidote to all of the usual Nano woes. Just find your particular ailment in the list, listen, and be healed :) [Edited to add direct links to the vids in case the embedded clips bog down your computer].


Problem #1: I'm too tired.
Seventh cup of coffee not quite doing it?

Applause--Lady Gaga

Shipping Up to Boston--Dropkick Murphys

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Problem #2: I suck.
99.71% of all writers write sucky first drafts. And that other .29%? They never get invited to the good parties.

Fighter--Christina Aguilera

Roar--Katy Perry

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Problem #3: I'm angry.
Wanna break stuff?

Break Stuff-Limp Bizkit

My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark--Fall Out Boy

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Problem #4: I. Can't. Even.
Yes. You. Can.

Can't Hold Us--Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (featuring Ray Dalton)

Lose Yourself--Eminem

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Problem #5: I'm too young for this.
No one is too young for anything anymore. Didn't you get the memo?

Royals--Lorde

Youth of the Nation--POD

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Problem #6: I'm too old for this.
I know, right? Kids today! :)

Danger Zone--Kenny Loggins

Beat It--Michael Jackson

I hope I included something that worked for your specific Nano ailment. (I went old old school with those last two!) When in doubt, listen to all twelve. Repeat as needed. And for reals, if you listened to all of those and you still feel crappy, you might need medical attention :) 

All video clips courtesy of artist, director, record label, or Vevo, via youtube.