The 2010 Pacific Northwest Writers Association held their summer conference July 22-25. I wasn't there, but thanks to Twitter and diligent live-tweeting from writer, attendee and #amwriting hashtag creator,Johanna Harness(@johannaharness / @johannalive), I was privy to a wealth of writerly advice, delivered in 140 character (or less) increments.
Of particular interest to me was Johanna's live-tweeting of Bob Mayer's (@Bob_Mayer) session, "The Original Idea – The Heart of Your Story and Key to selling Your Book." With both Johanna's and Bob's permission, I've aggregated the tweets here for anyone interested.
Incidentally, I am aboutbooks on Twitter. Follow me there, and typically (if you're not a robot or trying to sell me something) I'll follow you back.
These are Johanna's tweets from Bob's session:Bob Mayer's workshop is starting. "The Original Idea: The Heart of Your Story." #PNWA
There is no publishing training program. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 24 hours ago via web
Successful writers all have a routine where they write every day. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 24 hours ago
Writers have a 90% failure rate. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 24 hours ago via web
Content and promotion are equally important. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 24 hours ago via web
Anything I say that makes you upset or angry today is the most important thing you've heard. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 24 hours ago via web
You should be able to say what your book's about in 1 sentence. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Write what you read. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
If you don't want to write vampire books, don't write vampire books. You have to have passion abt what you write. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You are an entertainer as a fiction writer. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
This is not normal to want to write a book. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Characters must have a concrete goal to achieve. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Don't withhold information thinking it intrigues people. It doesn't. It pisses them off. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You are selling emotion and logic. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Don't give agents and editors the story. They want the idea first. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You have a platform. It's your life. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You have to listen to what agents are really saying. If you're not where you want to be, you have to change. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
We mirror our climactic scene in our opening scene. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Your last scene is the emotional payoff for your readers. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Every book you read, every movie you watch, you've got to look for the original idea. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
First novels tend to focus on the writer, not the reader. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Idea is not story. Your idea can't change; your story can. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You must understand your goals--both your goals and your book's goals. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Most writers do not sell their first book. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Never say bad things about yourself; let other people do that. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You must have conflict in every single scene. Conflict is the fuel for your story. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Conflict layered on top of conflict makes the scene pop. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
We need interesting characters who have something weird about them. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
What does your protagonist want most? You can only have one protagonist. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
What happens if your protagonist fails? There must be something at stake. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 23 hours ago via web
What does your antagonist want most? The goals of protagonist and antagonist must conflict. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 23 hours ago via web
You have to know what every characters "one thing" is. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 23 hours ago via web
What is stopping your protagonist/antagonist from getting what he/she wants most? -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 23 hours ago via web
Everything you do is research. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
What is the climactic scene everything in your book is driving toward? -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
What's my intent? What tone do I want to achieve in my story? -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 23 hours ago via web
The tone of your novel has to be consistent. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Before you write your book, dissect it. Everything in the story is done for a purpose. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 23 hours ago via web
Dissect plots of movies you like. Dissect plots of books you like. Learn from them. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
You have to introduce your protagonist early. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 23 hours ago via web
Do you have to outline? Genre makes a difference. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 22 hours ago via web
Outlining: get it out of your head. Write it down. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 22 hours ago via web
If I know the purpose and conflict of a scene, I can write a scene. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 22 hours ago via web
Don't info-dump your back story. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 22 hours ago via web
You can't use your opening of the book to set up the book. Need action. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 22 hours ago via web
Flashbacks and memories are not the same. A memory is tainted by what someone wants now. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 22 hours ago via web
Flashback is what happened. Memory is what the character remembers happening. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 22 hours ago via web
Evil is not a motivation. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 22 hours ago via web
You have to show the protagonist before the character is aware of the problem. Show your character in a normal setting. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA about 22 hours ago via web
The smaller the story, the bigger the opening. The bigger the story, the smaller the opening. -Bob Mayer, #PNWA #amwriting about 22 hours ago via web
