Wednesday Writer Workout Tip: Wee Steps

That's right, wee. Not Wii. As in baby. Baby steps. Baby steps on the bus. 10 points if you know what movie that's from!

But seriously. There are those days when baby steps are the equivalent of leaps and bounds. Like when the workout, or the words, just won't happen. Notice I didn't say can't. Can't implies that the workout/words are out of our control, and they are not. But some days are definitely harder than others.

Right now, I just can't, um, I mean won't, pick up another Wii remote or play one more game of tennis. Or even look at a treadmill. Or an exercise bike. Or yoga video. Get the picture?

I also won't open one more note book or type another consonant or vowel, let alone string them together to form an entire word.

This is where the baby steps come in.

The quantity isn't always the goal, workout or writing. These days, for me, it's not even the quality. It simply is the doing. The baby steps.

So my baby steps for working out are donning my spiffy new Shape Up shoes
and parking in the furthest spot at the Wally World. Or the grocery story. Or the library. Getting the picture again?

My baby steps for words: letter writing. Connecting with friends I haven't written in a while, electronic or otherwise. That way my words don't have to be perfect, or even correct. They can just be.

And you know the funny thing about baby steps? They grow.

So take a baby step with whatever you're struggling to do. You never know where you'll end up.

¡Buen Provecho!

And Now for Something Completely Different

Me at the Happiest Place on Earth with my Nightmare Before Christmas Mickey ears and a white chocolate and caramel apple Jack. I may not eat for a week.

 
And now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Agents Revealed!

This week, Ms. Snark revealed the agents for her annual Baker's Dozen Auction. And what a list it is! If you have a finished MS, you must get involved with this. It's an opportunity akin to a writer's conference without the travel and expense. I can't wait!!

The 2nd Annual Baker's Dozen All-Star Line-up!

Posted: 03 Oct 2011 05:00 AM PDT

Our list is official, and I'm pleased to announce this year's sparkling array of agents.

The 2011 Baker's Dozen Agent Auction participating agents:

1. Jenny Bent (Bent Agency)
2. Laura Bradford (Bradford Literary)
3. Danielle Chiotti (Upstart Crow)
4. Sarah Davies (Greenhouse Literary)
5. Josh Getzler (Hannigan Salky Getzler)
6. Weronika Janczuk (Franklin and Siegal)
7. Melissa Jeglinski (Knight Agency)
8. Sarah LaPolla (Curtis Brown)
9. Jennifer Laughran (Andrea Brown)
10. Lauren MacLeod (Strothman Agency)
11. Victoria Marini (Gelfman Schneider)
12. Ammi-Joan Paquette (Erin Murphy)
13. Tamar Rydzinski (Laura Dail)
14. Kari Stuart (ICM Talent)
15. Danielle Svetcov (Levine Greenberg)
16. Michelle Wolfson (Wolfson Literary)

In addition to being on the auction block, all 60 entries will receive critique from an editor and a published author.

The Editors:

Gabrielle Harbowy of Dragon Moon Press, adult

Sarah Shumway of Katherine Tegen Books (Harper Collins), YA/MG

The Authors:

Nancy Bilyeau, author of THE CROWN, a historical thriller set in Tudor England, to be published by Simon and Schuster's Touchstone in January 2012, and six foreign countries. adult


Amanda Sun, author of INK WASH, the first in a YA paranormal series set in Japan, debuting in late 2012 by Harlequin Teen. YA/MG

And of course all the entries will also be open to critique by our entire blog community as well.

Let's have a huge round applause for this magnificent collection of talent and energy!


Next week is October break, which means a house full of kids and a sky full of autumn. Yes, we do have autumn here in Phoenix. It's that special time of year marked by the changing of colors of licence plates. So, stay tuned for something completely different.

¡Buen Provecho!