Reading another author’s blog last week about using speaking engagements to support books beyond the initial launch, I noticed a couple of pre published authors asked about how an author figures out what to talk about, and how fiction authors secure  invitations to speak. Here’s how I built my speaking credits over a 20 year career and what I talk about.

Start small and network.  As a newly- published author of a novel for young readers, I approached my next door neighbor, a teacher in the local schools. I showed him the book and offered to speak to the fifth graders at his school free of charge. I visited our local bookseller and set up a book signing for the Saturday following my talk at the school. On the day of my talk, I took the quilt that had inspired the story and some pictures of the real-life people who had cameo appearances in the novel. I read a brief excerpt from the book, led the students in a brief writing exercise, and handed out a brochure with my photo, the book jacket, and info about the signing.  I left my contact information with the school librarian, the teachers,and with the bookseller.  Within a month, I had five invitations to speak at surrounding schools, and three of those offered a modest honorarium. Some were able to host book sales thorough a local bookseller or parents’ organization.

Contact organizations that have some connection to your book and offer to speak. In my case, I contacted the state writers organization for young people’s literature, and was invited to speak at a regional conference. In attendance at that regional conference was someone who booked speakers at the national level. It took several more years of sending in proposals but eventually I was invited to speak at the national conference for which I was paid, in addition to having my hotel, airfare, and conference registration paid. This conference like most others, hosted a huge book signing for me and for the other speakers on the program.

Take a look at what your main characters do, and see if there is an organization that might be interested. For instance,  if your character is a quilter, check out local quilting clubs, guilds, or organizations.  If he’s a horse trainer, look for local equestrian organizations.

Contact  local college and university programs. Offer to speak to their students of creative writing. It might turn into a permanent gig that will help pay the bills between books.

Sign up for speakers bureaus. Many organizations maintain a free database of people who are available to speak. After you have published a few books and established a track record, contact writers’ groups, conference coordinators, and workshop directors and ask to be considered for places on their programs.

I started small, at the local level, and over several years, built a reputation for offering programs that are fun, interactive, and helpful. By the time I had written my twelfth book, I had accumulated speaking credits at more than a hundred venues, speaking to groups as small as 20 and as large as two thousand.

Check into getting on the program at book fairs and festivals. Chances are if your book is selected for the festival, you will have to pay all your own expenses to get there. But most of the big festivals  draw thousands of readers, and the potential for exposure is great. Even if you don’t sell many books when it’s your turn in the signing tent, your name and your book will be printed in the program.

No matter how small the group, solicit an endorsement from the person who booked you. Consider putting endorsements on your website, and/or in the printed material you send to prospective venues.

What I Talk About:   Depends on the audience. Obviously, for writers conferences and workshops, I focus on some aspect of craft. Last year at the South Carolina Writers Workshop, I talked about self editing, and gave a second workshop on writing for teens. At the 2010 ACFW workshop, I talked about writing historical novels. This is also my topic when I speak at the national Romantic Times convention in Chicago next April. In March I’m speaking to a group in Houston about getting and working with an agent.  Over the years I’ve spoken on crafting strong beginnings, avoiding sagging middles, developing a plot skeleton, and building three dimensional characters. But I’ve also spoken on how I conduct research, what online resources I love, and once, on the funniest things that have happened to me on the road to publication.

The important thing is to choose topics you feel comfortable teaching. Always provide a “take away” for your audience. Be generous with your information and your printed materials. You never know when one of them will wind up in the hands of a national conference director.

Next week I’ll share some tips on how to craft and deliver a dynamite speech.

The Christmas catalogs are arriving at my house in a flurry. The other day I noticed a page in one of them devoted to writers. The gift suggestions included an oversized coffee mug, a gift card to an office supply store, a box of chocolates, a tee shirt with the message: Ask Me About My Novel. Here’s what I think most writers, myself included, would love to find in those stockings this year:

The Gift of Time. Many writers must  fit writing time around the demands of another job. Most women writers I know must also take care of grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning,  laundry, childcare, bill paying, toilet scrubbing, dealing with sick kids and sick dogs…..it never stops. Wouldn’t it be nice if a spouse, friend, or older child took over even one of those chores on a regular basis? Even an hour a week adds up to 52 extra hours of writing time  in a year.

The Gift of Encouragement. Some writers are lucky enough to be surrounded by spouses, friends, and children who do support their writing. Others, not so much. Even one person who “gets” you, who rejoices when you succeed and comforts you when you fail can make a big difference.Is there someone you can seek out who will be an encourager for you?

The Gift of Expertise. I’m lucky that my husband understands computers. I rely upon him to trouble shoot, install and update software and keep all my electronics in good working order. What I’d love now is someone who could manage my reader database, make trips to UPS, keep my website current, and help with email. A gift of office expertise would be welcome at my house this year.

What about you? Are you getting the time, encouragement and expertise you need to realize your writing goals? What’s on your wish list this year?

After a 20 year career in the secular market, I’m no stranger to reviews. Over the years I’ve taken some  lumps along with the laurels. And I’ve noticed that reviewers fall into three broad  categories: those who are thoughtful and helpful and tactful,  those who are mean spirited and have a personal ax to grind,  and those who are careless and lazy and write reviews that do a disservice to the reader.

I have no problem with a thoughtful reviewer who points out where I might have done a better job. In fact, I welcome it. For example: “While the author obviously did her homework on the historical details, I would have preferred  more action.”  Okay! Good point. I’ll try to incorporate more action  next time. Or: “The main character was very well drawn, but knowing more of her backstory would have helped me identify with her.”   More insights into my characters. Got it.  Thanks! Unfortunately, this kind of review is rare.

More common is the reviewer who disses a cat for being a cat. A cat has pointy ears,  four paws, and a tail. You can’t  fault him for being what he is.  Likewise, genre novels are expected to have a certain set of characteristics. A murder mystery has a victim, a perpetrator, a detective determined to solve the case despite red herrings, witnesses who stonewall, and other complications. Eventually, a piece of physical evidence, a new witness or a brilliant piece of deductive reasoning brings the criminal to justice and the mystery is solved. Similarly, a romance novel features an attractive heroine who meets and falls in love with the Perfect Man…only they both are burdened  by internal and external forces that threaten to keep them apart. A romance reader buys the book in order to identify with  the heroine, fall in love with the PM right along with her, and find out how these two people will overcome their problems to find the promise of happiness.

I have never read a review of a murder mystery in which the reviewer said, “I didn’t like this book because  the case was solved in the end.”   I have however, seen many reviews for romances  that say, “This was a typical  romance–the hero and heroine argue and then fall in love and get married. ”

Of course as writers we should look for ways to make the tried and true formula as fresh as possible–an unusual setting, an atypical hero, for example, but just as a murder mystery requires a killer and a victim, so a romance novel requires two people who find love despite the obstacles standing in  the way. A review that disses a romance for being a romance is not helpful to anyone.

Worst of all  is the smug, snarky reviewer who for whatever reason gives a book only a superficial read, makes false assumptions based upon a skimming of the book, and then proceeds to criticize the author based upon the false assumption. Over the years I’ve had reviewers who got the names of my main characters wrong, the setting wrong, the period wrong with never a thought to how misinformation does the writer a grave disservice and can mislead readers and cause them to bypass a book they might have enjoyed.

Not too long ago, someone online criticized author Ann Patchett for writing about a vaccine for malaria and said that because “there is no such thing as a malaria vaccine” Patchett’s entire book failed, and asked what happened to “writing what you know.”  The trouble is, there is indeed an effective vaccine for malaria, a fact that took  all of five minutes of online research to confirm.

As authors we can’t respond to reviews without being accused of being thin skinned and defensive. Never apologize, never explain—so goes the conventional wisdom. I don’t think it’s being thin skinned to stand up for a book that took years to research and write when the review in question is just plain wrong or when it results from an ignorance of even the most basic tenets of storytelling.  But all we  can do  is to hold true to our creative vision, glean what we can from those thoughtful reviewers who understand the elements of story, and let the rest go. Oh, and chew a handful of Tums. How about you? How do you handle those stomach-churning reviews?

I’m skeptical of books that promise instant happiness; I figure the only person who is happier as a result of one of those books is the author who rakes in bazillions in sales (remember Ronda Byrne’s book THE SECRET?) But the other day, a book by Richard Wiseman called 59 SECONDS: CHANGE YOUR LIFE IN UNDER A MINUTE caught my eye because he debunks a number of  widely quoted “studies” of human happiness that he says never even happened.  He explains why “positive thinking” often fails, and suggests that we can all become happier by doing what he calls “affectionate writing”, by performing small acts of kindness and by cultivating an attitude of gratitude.

What is affectionate writing and how does it promote happiness? He cites a study conducted at Arizona State University in which a group of volunteers was asked to spend 20 minutes writing about someone they loved and about why this person meant so much to them. A second group was asked to write about something that had happened to them during the past week. Each group repeated the exercise three times over the course of five weeks. At the end of that time, the “affectionate writing” group showed marked increases in happiness and reductions in stress  ( he does not say how this was measured, though) and  a significant increase in cholesterol levels. This actually does make sense since our bodies produce elevated levels of cortisol when we are stressed.

Wiseman suggests that by consistently practicing thanksgiving, by focusing on pleasant events from the past,  by anticipating future successes and by writing a short letter to someone who is dear to us, we can feel more content with present circumstances and more positive about the future.

With Thanksgiving coming up on Thursday, this might be a good time to give Wiseman’s strategy a try. Certainly can’t hurt. Might help.

What things do you do on a consistent basis that helps you stay positive, focused, and motivated?

My better half is taking a few days off next week for some “reconnecting” time after two November 1 deadlines rendered me incommunicado for a couple of weeks, so I’m not posting here next week. From our home to yours, have a blessed Thanksgiving.