Author Brandon Tietz: On Writing Communities

I've always been of the strong opinion that a successful writer does not develop in a vacuum. From my experience, the best writers, those who experience the greatest amount of success, are quite active within some brand of writing community, whether it's local or online, MFA program or independent workshops developed by like-minded writers. Any opportunity a writer can take advantage of to connect with other writers, learn more about the craft and industry and get valuable feedback can be a very fruitful step toward success and a potentially worthwhile investment. 

Author Brandon Tietz is here to share his experience in such a writing community. While his experience is focused on what he learned through chuckpalahniuk.net, I encourage you to find a writing community that's right for you and your work. 

It was May 2009 when I came to The Cult—specifically, the Chuck Palahniuk Writers’ Workshop, in which I had hoped to get my work in front of the author, and perhaps earn myself a little credibility in the process by way of an anthology contest that was being run.  At that point, I had no published work other than a novel I took through a vanity press, which, if you’re familiar at all with the industry meant two things:

   

     

I had paid to see my work in print.

Because I had paid for my work to be printed, this was considered a huge faux pas.

It’s not that I wasn’t confident in my abilities as a writer, but when it came to the industry of publishing, I was lacking a lot of key information other than “you need to get an agent.”  As most aspiring authors know, querying an agent with no credentials is rather futile, and that was much the case with me.  I also had no MFA or formal declaration on paper saying that I could write.  Essentially, the will was there—had been there for some years, actually, but the method on how to get into print remained foggy.  The Cult changed all of that.

Not only was I able to correspond with other writers and authors, finding out the methods that worked regarding craft, marketing, and publishing, but I was also getting the critical eye that my work had long been missing.  My missteps were identified and amended.  The things I was doing right, I learned to do better.  It was an opportune time in which both my writing and publishing IQ skyrocketed just by taking advantage of the resources workshop and community offered me, and it wasn’t without positive residuals.

After getting back-to-back nominations for my June and July stories, my August submission about conflict diamonds was selected as a finalist to go in front of Chuck Palahniuk.  Two more would make finalist after that, and although I don’t know if any of these pieces will make the final cut for his anthology, it doesn’t seem to matter as much anymore.

My vanity press novel got a re-release through a traditional publisher.  I learned how to get my work in print, and have been doing so in the form of lit mags and anthologies.  And I got a literary agent who is currently pitching my next book to places like Viking, Random House, and Doubleday.  This all happened within the last couple of years, and even though I don’t I think I’ve technically “made it” just yet, I can’t deny that I’m on the right path to do it.  I’ve always had the ambition, but The Cult taught me how to capitalize on it. 

LitReactor will continue to do that with other writers, and I’m quite honored to be a part of what’s sure to be a staple in the literary community.

TLC: A word about self-publishing: a self-published book is not a turn-off for me in the slightest. In fact one of my favorite novels, Strip Cuts, is a self-published literary novel that received a very positive review from Publishers Weekly and was favorably compared to Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio. If you decide to self-pub, you must approach it like a business and make sure every effort to print and promote your work is polished and professional. It's a great option for the right author. 

TLC

Introducing, LitReactor!

I don’t remember how I found Chuck Palahniuk’s website die-hard fans call The Cult or why, but I do remember when I discovered it, I was a hungry agent looking for fiction with a strong, beating heart and a voice to match. Chuck was already long spoken for, but his fans were writing. Not only that, they were organized about it. And serious. Real serious.They organized their efforts to develop their craft in the writing workshops supported by the site. I was further surprised to learn that Chuck oftentimes led some of these writers’ workshops, leaving behind him an impressive trail of craft essays and lessons showing writers how they could develop and strengthen their craft as he had.

A major, bestselling author supporting writers in this workshop format online was extraordinary back in 2005, when I was introduced to The Cult. In 2011, it’s still extraordinary. Sure, more major authors are blogging, tweeting and otherwise reaching out to their readers and readers who want to learn to write more than ever before, but throughout the past 6 years, few bestselling authors outside an established MFA program have rolled up their sleeves and gotten down in the trenches alongside aspiring writers.

The workshop proved successful; so successful, the creative team behind The Cult, Dennis Widmyer, Kirk Clawes and Mark Vanderpool made the decision to move the workshop from its original home to a new literary website, boasting a vibrant magazine with articles, book reviews, industry news, all around book geekery and more as well as the writers’ workshop with an impressive lineup of instructors ready to launch October 1^st.

It’s called LitReactor.

Founding Partners Dennis Widmyer, Editor in Chief, and Kirk Clawes, Technical Lead, are here to shed some light on what LitReactor is, who it’s for and what this new, potentially revolutionary website aims to accomplish in the literary world. (Director of Education, Mark Vanderpool will be here Friday to share more about the workshops).

What Does LitReactor mean?

Dennis: At its fundamental meaning, the name conjures up a 'lit' reactor.  Something that is on. Breathing. Alive. Functioning. The dictionary defines a portion of the word as:

Any of several devices in which a chain reaction is initiated...

To us, this is how we see our Writers’ Workshop, which is one of the core features we offer on the site. It's a place to come and be motivated. To get results.  

The other side of this meaning reflects our Magazine. And here, the name could simply mean A reaction to literature.

All that aside, we just think it sounds cool.  

What's the philosophy behind the site?

Dennis: Writers tend to exist in a vacuum most of the time. They have no one to share their work with. Network among. And get real feedback from. And all of that leads to what we call the “stall” - pushing off your hopes and dreams because you feel like you're getting nowhere. We wanted to provide a home for these people to link up with like-minded people, workshop their material, and take ground-breaking classes on par (if not exceeding) the lessons you'd get in a 20K+ MFA program.

Kirk: We wanted to create a home for writers to hang out, meet each other, improve their skills and to geek out about the thing we hope they all love - BOOKS!

How does LitReactor fill a gap in the writer's market?

Dennis: At LitReactor, every name has a face and a personality. Our classes are developed and taught by actual published authors and established professionals in the literary industry.

Beyond that, we are aiming to build a solid community of people who share similar goals and in addition to wanting to grow as writers; they want to help others grow as well. We hope to do whatever is possible to help facilitate those relationships.

What breed of writer will be most drawn to LitReactor?

Kirk: Without a doubt writers who consider themselves to be: hip, edgy, loud, experimental, opinionated. I could toss a dozen or so buzz-words here but in the end you always end up sounding cheesy. You'll notice I only used 5 buzz-words, which has scientifically been proven to not sound cheesy (not intended to be taken as a factual statement). 

Dennis: We live in a generation right now where social networking has given people a platform to express themselves whether it’s in 140 characters or a three page blog.  What this has done is light a match under a lot of people's butts.  It's made them feel creative again. Hungry. Authors like Chuck Palahniuk, a writer who didn't pick up the craft until his mid-thirties (and learned through workshops!), seem accessible and give inspiration.  At the risk of sounding cheesy... writing the great American novel (if that's your poison) seems manageable suddenly.  And this is the frame of mind that makes LitReactor an unparalleled advantage for a writer looking to hone their voice.

When you began to create chuckpalahniuk.net, AKA The Cult, as a fan site, did you think such a serious, close knit writing community would be borne from a love of Palahniuk's work?

Kirk: I can't speak to this as well as Dennis as I haven't been around as long as he has - I began working with The Cult around 2002 in varying technical capacities. However, during my time I have seen some amazing things come out of the community. And though I started working with Dennis as a fan of Chuck's, what really kept me interested was the community of writers who were determined to see each other succeed.

Dennis: To be honest, I started the site really as just an archive, to collect every piece of media on Chuck Palahniuk I could find online. Then, when Chuck endorsed us and the publisher's started linking to us, we soon found that a ravenous community was forming, and that Chuck's love for mentoring, had a very key role to play. In 2005 the first incarnation of our Writers’ Workshop sprung up, through a joint idea between Chuck and I. It soon grew into our online classes which then soon grew to define a major arm of the site. By the time 2009 rolled around, we were already discussing plans to one day form a stand-alone site for this specific community of readers... readers who wanted to write.

What do you see happening in LitReactor's future?

Kirk: Primarily, I would like for us to be known as the place where interesting writers are developed. Kind of like what Second City in Chicago is to comedy. If all goes according to plan, we will continue offering top-notch classes and engaging content while growing a community of writers. I want it to be the place where when two writers meet they immediately exchange their LitReactor screen-names. There are also a lot of "big idea" things I would love to see happen, but those should probably stay under my hat for now. 

TLC: Writers, what I know is this: I’ve been working with the LitReactor team for months and I’ve never met a more professional, passionate, and supremely talented group of individuals ready to deliver such a feast to a portion of the literary world that have been malnourished for some time.

I’m stoked.

Join us for LitReactor’s launch on October 1^st, won’t you? 

TLC

Building Literary Community with author Timothy Schaffert

I'm willing to bet my morning cup of dark roast you've probably heard a little something about writers like you joining online writing communities and doing everything from sharing their blog posts to getting feedback on their latest query letters to workshopping chapters from a novel they hope to find representation for (no doubt there are groups who will support them/you in this endeavor, too). And it's all very lovely. Ten years ago this large scale opportunity for writers to connect didn't exist. There's no doubt in my mind all this online getting-to-know-you has helped writers conceptualize, craft and sell their work.

And yet, as we shift toward an ever more E-centric (no pun intended, honestly) method of "connecting" via social media and friending, something is missing. That something is real face time with the literary comrades in our own back yard. The opportunity to connect with one author or a roomful over coffee or a glass (or two!) of wine is what the writing life is all about - sharing the collective experience and having a few real laughs out loud.

I asked one of my literary neighbors, Timothy Schaffert, author of The Coffins of Little Hope and founder of (downtown) omaha lit fest, to share with us how he began to shape Omaha's literary community through this annual event.

Here's what Timothy had to say:

"Writing is a famously solitary act - and for many writers (and for the classical "portrait of the writer") solitude is a necessary habit. Whatever our routines, herbal tea at 4 a.m., or a gin martini at happy hour, or midnight bouts of insomnia fueled by nothing but anxious sleeplessness - we tend to summon a creative trance in

hopes of dropping not just from society but from all the trappings of self. Readers thrive on solitude, as well, perhaps even more famously so. (Even the public acts of reading in Andre Kertesz's series of photos "On Reading" depict people untethered from their surroundings by clinging to a book.)

Nonetheless, we still often seek community among the like-minded. It's from this contradictory impulse - gathering to discuss acts of solitude and reflection - that the (downtown) omaha lit fest evolved. Though people often refer to it as The Omaha Literary Festival, I made the name all lowercase and diminutive in an effort to lower expectations. The event is meant as an informal and idiosyncratic opportunity for readers to meet writers and vice versa. And its themes - which have included "Depraved Women Writers," "The Sordid Acts of The Cheap Paperback," and "Plagiarism, Fraud, and Other Literary Inspirations," - tend toward the obscure.

Despite my intentions, attaching the city's name to the project has implied a civic endeavor, and the use of the word "fest" has suggested festivities. And we do what we can - we have an opening night party with wine and nosh, and we partner with arts organizations that focus on disciplines other than literature, in an effort to provoke a general curiosity about contemporary fiction writers, poets, and memoirists, and the writer's life. We have literary inspired art exhibits and

performances in addition to more prosaic presentations on poetry and prose. I feel less like a curator than a nervous host at a party where all the guests may prove "too interesting."

Yet, we endure. I invite you to join us for our seventh annual event (the date is TBA; "like" us on Facebook, please), with a theme focused on "mechanics" - not just the mechanics and techniques of process (to include authors dissecting their own books for "anatomy of the novel" sessions) but the very machinery of production: typewriters, letterpress, bookmaking."

Having attended last year's lit fest, I can tell you Timothy is being modest when he speaks about "enduring." Last year's emphasis on the roots and role of the fairy tale in classic and modern literature was timely and involved two rock star authors within the genre, Kate Bernheimer (editor of My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me) and Melanie Benjamin (Alice I Have Been). Until I stepped out to attend this event, I had seriously questioned if the town I just recently left L.A. for had a literary heart. Schaffert made it clear in all caps that indeed it did.

Your Action: Explore the literary events in or near your city this week. Make it a point to attend at least one and learn from the experience. Meet someone new, connect. No lit events to attend? Attend the next best thing - whatever that is - an art show, a music festival - just GO! You never know where inspiration will come from or who you'll meet. The writing life is about living and creating through experience. Login not required.

Have fun this week, writers! Build your community.

TLC

About the Contributor:

Timothy Schaffert is the author of four novels: The Phantom Limbs of the Rollow Sisters (winner of the Nebraska Book Award); The Singing and Dancing Daughters of God (a Barnes and Nobel Discover Great New Writers selection), Devils in the Sugar Shop (a New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice), and The Coffins of Little Hope (starred review from Publishers Weekly), all from Unbridled Books. In addition to directing the (downtown) lit fest, he teaches in the English department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and serves as the director of the Nebraska Summer Writers Conference and Web Editor of Prairie Schooner, a literary journal.

Next on The Lit Coach's Guide

Join me next week in welcoming author of the about to be released novel, Coffins of Little Hope (Unbridled Books, 2011), Timothy Schaffert to TLCG. Timothy will be discussing the hows and whys of (downtown) omaha lit fest and its role in Omaha's literary community...as we wrap up this month's focus, Getting to Know Your Literary Neighbors.

...and by the way, big congratulations to Timothy for the starred review in Publisher's Weekly for Coffins of Little Hope - the novel comes out next month.

Also next week, I'll highlight a new blog for Blogs That Work and answer reader questions with another round of Q&A with The Lit Coach.

Wishing you a fruitful, creative weekend!

TLC