Writing and Playing Cards, They Mix Well

Last week I attended the Ozark Creative Writer’s 50^th-anniversary conference in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. It was a beautiful weekend and a great conference. I pitched my book to five publishers and one agent. Only one publisher declined, and that was because they do not publish historical fiction after 1920. My story ranges from 1939 to 1969. The experience of the whole weekend was golden. This was the first time I’ve ever pitched any of my work, and it felt good to share my characters with publishers. I sent my emails this week to the publishers, and after changing the ending, I will email the agent next week. Writing is a lot of work. However, it is extremely fun to do. I don’t know what will happen, but I would appreciate your good thoughts and well wishes. After all, history doesn’t write itself.

Next week I’ll be indulging in my other passion: collecting playing cards. The annual 52 Plus Joker Playing Card Collectors Club convention will be in Schaumberg, Illinois. I’ll be there surrounded by thousands of decks of cards and a wonderful, and knowledgeable, group of people. Decks can tell so many stories, especially used casino decks. Who held the winning hand with these cards? Who lost everything they had? How many people touched this deck of cards, and how can their stories be extrapolated to a dynamic tale of adventure, or woe, in the keyboard of an author? The same can be said of the really old decks, the one now turning a hundred years old. Who first bought them, and how did they end up on a table for sale in Schaumberg, Illinois? I believe the answer would be difficult to find, but it would be a great journey. After all, history doesn’t write itself.

At the writer’s conference, four of my fellow aspiring author’s were in attendance as well. Between the five of us, we one over fifteen awards. It was fantastic to see each of us being applauded for our work. I placed third in two historical fiction contests and won the “tell a story in all dialogue” contest. All the writing I’ve done, all the workshops I’ve attended, all the critiquing I’ve taken, all the work I’ve done to build my platform, it’s getting me closer to being a published author. It’s a long journey, but well worth it.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. Since my last blog post, I finished reading Carl Hiaasen’s Skin Tight, Pope Benedict XVI’s God is Love encyclical, and Jim Toomey’s Happy as a Clam: The Twenty-First Sherman’s Lagoon Collection. All three are reviewed on GoodReads.com. Currently, I’m reading The Boston Raphael by Belinda Rathbone. If that is not following my own advice, I don’t know what is. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.