WriteOnCon.com http://writeoncon.com WriteOnCon is an Online Children’s Writers Conference created by writers, for writers. Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:30:45 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 The Success Keeps Spreading!!!! http://writeoncon.com/2011/11/the-success-keeps-spreading/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/11/the-success-keeps-spreading/#comments Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:30:45 +0000 Shannon Messenger http://writeoncon.com/?p=2911 Eek–where has the year gone???

We PROMISE we haven’t forgotten about you guys! We really are going to get back on track with some events and exciting things. We’ve just been a bit buried with things like WRITING and REVISING and DEADLINES (it’s almost like we’re writers or something… :D ). And since we’re now in the prime of the holiday season, we’re going to wait till the new year before we organize anything officially. So make sure you check back then!

In the meantime though, we wanted to share two more AMAZING WriteOnCon success stories with you, ones we especially enjoyed because they really showed us that you NEVER know what can lead you to success. And this time I’m going to let the writers tell their stories themselves.

First up, Elizabeth May:

 I wanted to share my own WriteOnCon success story, because you organizers are amazing!

 During the first year of WriteOnCon (2010), I posted a query for THE FALCONER, my YA novel-in-progress, in the WriteOnCon forums.  I got some excellent feedback that really helped shape the letter into something more concise and fitting for the manuscript. 

 The revised query went on to win Joanna Volpe’s query contest that year, and she critiqued the first 30 pages of the manuscript for me.  Her critique was so insightful, spot-on, and encouraging that I rewrote the novel — twice.

 In mid-July of this year, I decided the manuscript was ready, and I began querying agents.  A mere 13 days after I began querying, I had my first offer.  In early August, I signed with Russell Galen of Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary based on a very similar query to the one that won Joanna’s contest. 

In October, THE FALCONER (indeed, the whole proposed trilogy!) went on to sell in pre-empts in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and Brazil, and has since sold in the United States and Portugal.

 I wanted to e-mail you and tell you, because I’m not sure I would have had the same success had it not been for the events during WriteOnCon.  The feedback I earned for the query, and from Joanna’s contest, were invaluable.  I can’t adequately express how grateful I am to the organizers and participants of this amazing online conference.  Thank you, thank you!

 Amazing, right? HUGE CONGRATULATIONS, Elizabeth–we can’t wait to read your book!

Equally awesome is Jessica Love’s story:

Back in March when WriteOnCon announced their 2011 dates, they had a little contest with query critiques from some fabulous agents. I entered, because I enter pretty much every giveaway I can find, and I didn’t really expect to win. But I did! I won a query critique from Jill Corcoran!

I had been actively working on my query at the time, so I decided to send it along to Jill for critique, just to make sure it was ready to go. I figured she would give me a few suggestions on things to polish and then I would have a perfect query to send out when I was finally done with my ms.

Well, after I sent my query to Jill, I sort of forgot about it. And in the meantime I became very frustrated with my ms and sort of gave up on it, deciding to put it away, call it a learning experience, and start something new. A week or so after I made that decision, and I was hard at work outlining my next thing, I got a reply from Jill. But it wasn’t a critique. She liked my query as-is, and she wanted to see the full ms. 

EEK! My very first query and I had a full request! But…I had just labeled that ms unfixable and put it away. I couldn’t let a full request pass me by, so I pulled it back out and worked and worked and worked on finishing it. I ran into Jill at a local writing event and told her what was up. Luckily she told me to take my time and finish. So I did. I finally sent her my full ms six months after she requested it, and within three days I had an offer of representation from her. 

I can’t thank WriteOnCon enough for having that query contest, and I want to hug whichever one of you drew my name. Without the inspiration of a full request from Jill I would have put this ms away and I would be toiling away at something new. Instead I pushed myself harder than I ever thought I could in order to finish and perfect the thing I thought I couldn’t fix.

And I will say this to anyone else who wins a query critique from an agent…don’t assume that they will just critique and call it a day. They might actually want your ms, so make sure it’s ready to go! You never know! That could be your future agent, and you don’t want to keep her waiting. 

 

So incredibly exciting, Jessica! We can’t wait to hear about all the exciting things that will come from this happy partnership!

Thank you both for sharing your success stories with us–we LOVE hearing the many different ways we’ve been able to help people along their journey. And if any of you have had any WriteOnCon success stories, please, drop us an email at writeoncon (at) gmail (dot) com. We NEVER get tired of hearing them.

See you guys next year!!!!

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/11/the-success-keeps-spreading/feed/ 6 We Haven’t Forgotten About You! http://writeoncon.com/2011/10/we-havent-forgotten-about-you/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/10/we-havent-forgotten-about-you/#comments Fri, 14 Oct 2011 13:53:38 +0000 Elana Johnson http://writeoncon.com/?p=2904 So… it’s been All Quiet On The WriteOnCon Front these last couple of months–but that doesn’t mean we’ve forgotten about you!

We’ve all just been a little slammed catching up on all the things we fell a bit behind on during the summer conference. But we have some exciting things we’ve been meaning to share.

First, we want to thank you guys again for making WriteOnCon 2011 a WAY bigger success than we EVER imagined. Here’s a few secret statistics we thought we’d share to give you guys some idea of the EPIC levels you helped us reach:

Average Daily Attendees: 15,500 

Total Web Traffic for the entire week: Almost 10,000,000 unique hits 

And no–that’s not a typo. Trust us, we all had a hard time wrapping our head around that too, but those are the REAL numbers. Which is absolutely AMAZING. Seriously you guys, we can’t thank you enough for your amazing support!

We’ve also gotten wind of our first official Summer Conference Success Story! Huge congrats to Isaiah Campbell for signing with the lovely and incredible Marietta Zacker with Nancy Gallt Literary after connecting with her through WriteOnCon!

*tosses confetti*

We LOVE hearing those kind of success stories–it’s seriously why we do this. So if any of you have any good news that’s come from our Conference, please let us know! Drop us an email at WriteOnCon (at) gmail (dot) com and we’ll celebrate with you!!!

And speaking of success stories, one of our very own Organizers shared some epic news of her own. Shannon Messenger announced her deal with Liesa Abrams at Simon & Schuster Aladdin for 3 books in a new middle grade series launching in Fall 2012. You can read the deal’s write-up in Publishers Weekly HERE. And you can find Shannon’s post about the news HERE.

*more confetti*

So yes, lots of exciting things going on here at WriteOnCon. And we promise we have many more to come. We WILL be hosting special live events again–we’re in the process of getting some organized–so keep an eye out for announcements about that.

And in the meantime, if you’re looking to seriously improve your craft, there is an amazing live-and-in-person Writer’s Conference coming up in December that you may want to consider attending. The Andrea Brown Literary Agency–which has had MANY of their fabulous agents participate as WriteOnCon faculty–hosts the Big Sur Children’s Writer’s Workshop twice a year. It’s not a free conference, but the price is more than fair considering how much you get (two of the WriteOnCon Organizers–Shannon and Jamie–have attended in the past and loved it!). So if you have a work in progress that you would like to get in-depth round table critiques on from industry professionals, we highly recommend you consider attending. But don’t wait too long to decide–their remaining slots are filling up quick! Go HERE for more info.

And… that’s all for now. But we promise we have more to come soon. Thank you guys again for all your love and support!

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/10/we-havent-forgotten-about-you/feed/ 4 WINNER, WINNER!!!!! http://writeoncon.com/2011/09/winner-winner/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/09/winner-winner/#comments Thu, 08 Sep 2011 18:59:48 +0000 Lisa and Laura Roecker http://writeoncon.com/?p=2895 Thank you to the hundreds of aspiring authors who submitted their work for consideration in The Reading Room/WriteOnCon Aspiring Authors Contest. The competition was “fierce” (to quote fellow YA author Tyra Banks) and it was extremely difficult to narrow the entries to the top five.

Congratulations to our top five deserving contestants who made the judges’ final decision very difficult. For those who didn’t get the chance to read these five entries you can still access them until the end of September by visiting http://www.thereadingroom.com/writeoncons/competition.  

And now, without further ado… 

Please put your hands together for Linda Jackson and her novel A PLACE TO CALL HOME.

Linda, you will receive $1,000 with compliments from TheReadingRoom.com, and can spend your $1000 on icecream or an iPad, pencils or a pile of books–whatever your heart desires. You’ve also landed yourself an author profile page on The Reading Room, the best place to connect with like-minded readers and share your passion for books.

And now we must leave everyone with two very important words. WRITE. ON.

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/09/winner-winner/feed/ 12 Prizes, Prizes, Prizes – and Winners too! http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/prizes-prizes-prizes-oh-and-winners/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/prizes-prizes-prizes-oh-and-winners/#comments Tue, 23 Aug 2011 10:00:32 +0000 Casey McCormick http://writeoncon.com/?p=2857 We know you’ve been dying to see if you’ve won one of the fantastic prizes donated by our generous faculty for WriteOnCon.  Thank you for sticking it out through the weekend.  We wish we could give you all a prize for being such amazing attendees, but what we do have is pretty darn impressive.  We’ve sorted and random.orged and counted ourselves dizzy to bring you these winners….

Donation Giveaways:

Query critiques (2) from literary agent Jim McCarthy:  Kathryn Powers, and Janina R. Williams.

Query critiques (3)  from literary agent Sara Crowe:  Irene Rawlings, Chris Karim, and Rachael Harrie.

10-page MG or YA critiques (3) from Alyssa Eisner Henkin:  Jennifer McAndrew, M. G. King, and Nora Coon.

10-page critique from literary agent Roseanne Wells:  Leigh Ann Kopans.

First page or query critique from literary agent Caryn Wiseman: Marci Giebels-Birchenough.

First page or query critique from literary agent Kelly Sonnack: Shari Bird

Secret prize, including some exclusive DIVERGENT faction tattoos from literary agent Joanna Volpe: Melissa Hurst.

Watcha Reading Now? YA prize pack: Sarah Wedgbrow.

Watch Reading Now? MG prize pack: Stephanie Ruble.

30-page critique from author and WriteOnCon organizer Elana Johnson: Cait Peterson.

10-page MG or YA critique from agent intern and WriteOnCon organizer Casey McCormick: Tamara.

10-page MG or YA critique from authors and WriteOnCon organizers Lisa and Laura Roecker: Kerry O’Malley Cerra

Query or 1-page YA or MG critique from author and WriteOnCon organizer Shannon Messenger:  Heather Reid.

General Giveaways:

A COLD WINTER’S GOOD KNIGHT by/from author Shelley Moore Thomas: JenniferGriffith.

Picture book critique from author Sarah Frances Hardy: Latoya Alloway.

10-page critique from literary agent Suzie Townsend: su kopil.

Signed Australian editions (2) of IMAGINARY GIRLS by/from author Nova Ren Suma: Angela Russell and KimberlyFDR.

Stages on Pages author prizes (5) -

  • 25-page critique from author Sara Bennett Wealer:   Jessie.
  • 25-page critique from author Jessica Martinez:  Jodell Sadler.
  • 30-minute marketing brainstorming phone call with Stasia Ward Kehoe:  Tori Scott.

Picture book critique from Corey Rosen Schwartz: Myrna Foster.

Picture book critique from Tiffany Strelitz Haber: Stephanie Shaw.

Picture book critique from Corey AND Tiffany for calling them “Meter Maids”: Cathy Mealey.

Signed hardcover of MOSTLY MONSTERLY by/from author Tammi Sauer:  Tina Cho.

Signed DELIRIUM t-shirt from author Lauren Oliver: Colleen Rowan Kosinsk.

Prize package of books from editor Kendra Levin: Regina.

15-page critique from the YA Muses: Stacey.

30-page MG or YA critique from literary agent Carlie Webber:  KC Held.

30-minute marketing phone call (no pitch/critique) with literary agent Diana Fox:  Emily Rittel-King.

ARC of THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER by Michelle Hodkin from literary agent Diana Fox:  Tricia Clasen.

Signed copy of OyMG! by/from author Amy Fellner Dominy: Eisen.

Signed copy of THE SECRET WAR by/from author Matt Myklusch: Maureen.

First chapter critique from author Tara Hudson: Matt.

Query critique OR 15-minute phone call from literary agent Tina Wexler:  SuzeW.

Prize pack of books from literary agent Tina Wexler:  Ally Cowee.

Swag Pack from the Class of 2k12:  Joan Stradling.

10-page critique from literary agent Natalie Fischer:  Wendy.

10-page critiques (2) from literary agent Alyssa Eisner Henkin -

If you’ve won one of the above prizes, please e-mail us within one week at writeoncon(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize and receive submission instructions (if applicable).  If we do not hear from you by Sunday, August 28th at midnight we’ll draw a new winner for your prize.  If for some reason you’re not really interested in the prize you’ve won, please consider letting us draw a new winner. Thank you and enjoy!

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/prizes-prizes-prizes-oh-and-winners/feed/ 24 From the WriteOnCon Underbelly http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/from-the-writeoncon-underbelly/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/from-the-writeoncon-underbelly/#comments Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:13:53 +0000 Elana Johnson http://writeoncon.com/?p=2853 Okay, you asked for it… Behind the scenes footage of what it’s really like on the organizing side, aka the Underbelly, of WriteOnCon. My favorite part happens about 4:45. I think we almost crashed Skype too…

Our contest winners will be announced tomorrow, so keep your eyes here for another day.

Also, if you missed anything from WriteOnCon 2011, you can find it all here. See you in 2012!!

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/from-the-writeoncon-underbelly/feed/ 18 Thursday Night Recap http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/thursday-night-recap/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/thursday-night-recap/#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 03:50:13 +0000 Elana Johnson http://writeoncon.com/?p=2581 Wow, we are honored and excited so many of you have stuck with us through this three-day conference. We sincerely hope that many, many of you have found success in the forums. Or read something in a blog that resonated with you. Or watched a vlog that made you cry. Or heard something in a panel chat that you can take and incorporate into your writing, into your authorly career.

We are thrilled you chose to spend your time with us.

Reminders:
1. Support our authors by buying their books.
2. Show your love to WriteOnCon by donating.
3. Enter all the giveaways! (Links at bottom.)

Here’s what happened today:

Thursday, August 18, 2011

6:00 AM: Ask A Bookbuyer by bookbuyers Faith Hochhalter and Brandi Stewart
7:00 AM: Visual Storytelling by illustrator Eric Wright
7:30 AM: How/When I Know A Manuscript Is Right For Me by editor Annette Pollert
8:00 AM: 10 Traits of an Author by author Amy Dominy
8:30 AM: Moments That Matter by author Matt Myklusch
9:00 AM: Writing A Great Query by literary agent Jim McCarthy
9:30 AM: Respect by author Kiersten White
10:00 AM: Live 250-word Pitch Event with literary agent Alyssa Eisner Henkin
11:00 AM: Successful Marketing/Promo/School Visits by author Jon S. Lewis
11:30 AM: Pacing by author Tara Hudson
12:00 PM: Live chat with literary agents Marietta Zacker, Joan Paquette, and Michael Bourret
1:00 PM: Revision by author Carrie Ryan
2:00 PM: An Editor’s Perspective on What Authors Should and Should Not Talk About Online by editor Liesa Abrams
3:00 PM: Traditional vs. Self-Publishing Live Chat with literary agent Sara Megibow
4:00 PM: Dialogue by literary agent Tina Wexler (blog)
5:00 PM: Live YA Query Letter Event with literary agent Roseanne Wells
5:30 PM: Class of 2K12 Vlog
6:00 PM: Answers to Questions by literary agent Steven Malk
6:30 PM: The Reading Room  TOP 5

9:00 PM: Panel of Professionals (Natalie Fischer, Anica Rissi, Kathleen Ortiz)

10:30 PM: AB Lit Chat (Jen Rofe, Kelly Sonnack, Jennifer Laughran, Caryn Wiseman)

Be sure to enter today’s giveaways! These prizes require only a comment; no monetary donation required.

Other giveaways can be found in the Wednesday Night Recap and the Tuesday Night Recap.

Again, THANK YOU! WriteOnCon wouldn’t exist without the attendees.

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/thursday-night-recap/feed/ 28 Live Andrea Brown Literary Agent Chat with Jen Rofe, Kelly Sonnack, Jennifer Laughran & Caryn Wiseman http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/live-andrea-brown-literary-agent-chat-with-jen-rofe-kelly-sonnack-jennifer-laughran-caryn-wiseman/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/live-andrea-brown-literary-agent-chat-with-jen-rofe-kelly-sonnack-jennifer-laughran-caryn-wiseman/#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 02:15:33 +0000 Jamie Harrington http://writeoncon.com/?p=2457

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/live-andrea-brown-literary-agent-chat-with-jen-rofe-kelly-sonnack-jennifer-laughran-caryn-wiseman/feed/ 12 Door Prize Compliments of Natalie Fischer http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/door-prize-compliments-of-natalie-fischer/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/door-prize-compliments-of-natalie-fischer/#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 02:15:24 +0000 Lisa and Laura Roecker http://writeoncon.com/?p=2708 Natalie Fischer, literary agent with Bradford Literary, has generously donated a 10-page critique to one lucky winner because she rocks like that. Leave a comment to qualify!

 

*You DO NOT have to donate to WriteOnCon to win this prize.

 

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/door-prize-compliments-of-natalie-fischer/feed/ 212 Live Panel of Professionals: Natalie Fischer, Anica Rissi, Kathleen Ortiz http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/live-panel-of-professionals-natalie-fischer-anica-rissi-kathleen-ortiz-joan-paquette/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/live-panel-of-professionals-natalie-fischer-anica-rissi-kathleen-ortiz-joan-paquette/#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 00:45:48 +0000 Jamie Harrington http://writeoncon.com/?p=2454

]]> http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/live-panel-of-professionals-natalie-fischer-anica-rissi-kathleen-ortiz-joan-paquette/feed/ 11 The Reading Room Who We Are and TOP 5!!!! http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/the-reading-room-who-we-are-and-top-5/ http://writeoncon.com/2011/08/the-reading-room-who-we-are-and-top-5/#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 00:40:30 +0000 Lisa and Laura Roecker http://writeoncon.com/?p=2497 Please welcome the incredible people over at The Reading Room to the WriteOnCon corner.

Getting together with friends to talk about books is always enjoyable.

 Why?

 You love spending time with your friends.

You trust their book recommendations.

You love discovering new authors.

And most of all you love discussing books.

 Now with TheReadingRoom.com your world of friends and readers just got larger.

Do Americans like British writers? Is Stieg Larsson the only Swedish writer to make it big in the US? What do Australians think about him? With 6 million books in our database and counting, there are so many ways for ReadingRoomers to discover new books and authors, reread the classics and tick off all those award winners you’ve been meaning to read.   

Best of all TheReadingRoom.com includes expert reviews from the New York Times and many other considered reviewers, so you and your friends can discover new books together.

It’s so easy to start connecting with friends, like-minded readers and authors. Just set up your profile, add the titles of books you’ve read to your bookshelf, and you are on your way.

Join one of hundreds of book clubs. You can also start your own and invite other ReadingRoomers to join.  If you want to discover all the latest in YA, join the fabulous Bookanistas, a group of first-time authors supporting new young adult fiction writers. Feeling a little more socially responsible these days? Then join the Room to Read bookclub and support the education of young girls in developing nations. Or just hang out with the super sleuths in the Crime Club

Want to see what’s on the best sellers list? Check out all the latest up-to-the-minute best sellers from The New York Times bestseller lists, watch videos from award winning authors and purchase through a range of affiliated booksellers, including the majors.

And that’s just the beginning. You can also follow your favorite authors, write your own reviews, preview books online, watch book trailers and author interviews. So join now or follow TheReadingRoom.com on Facebook and Twitter.

It’s free! See you at TheReadingRoom.com.

***********************************************************************************************************

And now, what you’ve all been waiting for…the TOP 5 Entrants in The Reading Room/WriteOnCon Aspiring Kidlit Authors Contest! CONGRATULATIONS final five!

CLICK HERE TO VOTE!!!!!!

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