Jul 3, 2011

Gearing up to find an agent blogfest writing questions

For week 1:

Thanks to Deana Barnhardt for hosting this fest!!  I have two burning questions - please pick either one to answer.

1. For unpublished writers: do you have a cut-off point when you'll stop trying to get published and just write for fun?

2. Can you recommend a good critique site for YA writers?

19 comments:

Emily R. King said...

I'll answer question one: My cut-off point is when I can't look at my manuscript anymore. Then I write other things than my book. I blog. I read a lot. I write poems, whatever moves me. But I don't consider that work, it's for fun. When I get back to writing with the intent to be published, it's all work, work, work.

Unknown said...

#1 When it stops being fun.

#2 Have you joined Verla Kay's message boards? A good place to find critique partners. http://www.verlakay.com

Juliana L. Brandt said...

Writing is always for fun. At some point, editing gets very tiresome so I'll switch and write something else until I have a fresh mind for the other work. Yes, I want to be published, but more than that I just want to write and write and write :)

Check out Ready, Aim, Hook me. They have a place where they're putting together critique groups. Otherwise, if you're on Twitter, advertise yourself on there and post you're looking for a crit group. That's what I did and it worked out great.

Melodie Wright said...

Thanks guys! I will definitely check out your suggestions - I am on Twitter so that should be fun.

Lori M. Lee said...

Try YAlitchat.org :D And I like to think I'm still writing for fun even though I'm also trying to get published.

Andrea Mack said...

I don't think I've reached that point yet, so it's hard to say. But mostly I do try to publish what I write, because I think that if my kids and I enjoy it, then others might too.

Theresa Milstein said...

I'll never stop trying. Too many ideas keep coming to me!

Unknown said...

Can't stop! My characters would be quite put out with me. :)

Laura Barnes said...

I will always write for fun. As long as querying is easy (which is with querytracker.net!), I'll keep querying. Why not? What do I have to lose?

Laura
laurabwriter.blogspot.com

Deana said...

At this point I don't see myself stopping anytime soon. I can't foresee the future though, soo...

AS for a critique group, Dave Farlands writing groups are awesome! So is A Writers Block @ Time4mommy (you don't have to be a mom:)

Good luck. Email me if you need help with those sites and thanks for joining in the blogfest! Sorry it took so long to correct your link:(

Unknown said...

Just don't give up, sometimes we all need a break. Good luck

lindy said...

Nope, no cut off point in mind. Good luck with your new blog, so glad to meet you!

A.J. Locke said...

Funny enough I was actually thinking of asking question number one on my blog =) I don't have a cut off point, I told myself long ago that this is what I want to do with my life so I have to make it happen!

Jaye Robin Brown said...

So far no cut-off point for me. I might take breaks in between when life rears up its head, but this dream won't die.

Verla Kay Blue Boards have been a great resource for finding other writers to share with.

Melodie Wright said...

Thanks all - will definitely check out Dave Farland and Verla Kay.

Christina Mercer said...

No cut off points for me on the horizon, though I do take breaks or switch gears to other projects for a bit when I feel like I'm hitting a wall with revisions.

Absolute Write Water Cooler at http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums is a great resource for all types of questions, with many conversations specific to YA.

Unknown said...

The only way you can lose is if you give up. NEVER GIVE UP!

I'm following you now.

Vicky Bruere said...

I'm with Juliana on this one - write for pleasure at all times, and see what comes of it. Anything that you really have to wrestle onto the page is sure to come across forced to the reader too.

Donna K. Weaver said...

I AM just writing for fun. I may query, too, or self publish. Not sure yet. But if it's not fun, why do it?