Wow! Women on Writing

Seven Ways to Increase Your Writer-to-Writer Contact During A Lonely Season
By Christina Katz

When your livelihood involves the ergonomic challenge of sitting at a desk all day, staring at a glowing screen, tapping on little plastic keys, and zapping your prose around the globe with little to no physical exertion – the day may come when you yearn for the contact of real-live other writers. Before loneliness settles in like a winter frost, you may want to consult this list:

1. Find a writing mentor

A writing mentor is accomplishing or has accomplished all the things you just put on your list of goals for 2005. Don't expect your writing mentor to do any work for you, but check in with them once in awhile, share your goals and ask if you're on the right track. It might hurt your pride, but it won't kill you to ask for some advice that may save you a lot of trial and error.

2. Ditto a weekly goal pal

Pick two days each week. One for setting your goals and one for assessing how you did. A WGP is great at cheering you along and encouraging you to persevere when your needle gets stuck. And you'll probably get a lot more done on that annual to-do list if you meet your weekly goals.

3. Make a monthly portfolio date

Meet another writer for tea or coffee and compare portfolios. What better opportunity to tell all your tales of caffeine-fueled deadlines met, overzealous editors confronted, elusive scoops professionally snared. And while you're at it, actually look at each other's portfolios page-by-page. Who knows how many ideas and contacts you can share that will boost both of your careers.

4. Form a writing circle with like-minded souls

Support groups are not merely for giving and receiving critical feedback. They can be helpful for moral support or for practicing your presentation skills so you'll be ready when Good Morning America calls. Think I'm kidding? I'm not, it happened to me. And if it can happen to me, it can happen to you too.

5. Join a professional writer's association

Like, perhaps…the National Writer's Union ($99.00/year and up @ http://www.nwu.org/). How would it feel to say, "[your name here] is a member of the National Writers Union." If it feels good, why not give it a whirl?

6. Join a regional writer's association

I just joined Willamette Writers in Portland , Oregon (http://www.willamettewriters.com/) and was intoxicated at my first meeting with the Old Church , the wonderful woman I chatted with over caramel apple pie and the creative camaraderie of writers inspiring writers. Good stuff.

7. Plan to attend a 2005 writer's conference

The difference between considering and committing is plopping down a deposit or purchasing a plane ticket. Start at Shaw Guides (http://writing.shawguides.com/) but do not pass go and collect the increased self-esteem until you actually go. Why not meet a friend and turn it into a working vacation?

The stimulating company of other creative types is one of the benefits of the writing life. If you've gotten into deprivation mode, as I so often do, you may have forgotten. The good news is, it only takes about an hour per month to schedule these pleasant tasks into your 2005 calendar. So what are we waiting for? Writing is a lifelong journey--let's share it with each other.

Christina Katz is the author of Writer Mama, How To Raise A Writing Career Alongside Your Kids (February, 2007, Writer's Digest Books). She has been doing just that for the past five years and has published over 200 articles in magazines, newspapers, and online publications. She teaches eight nonfiction-writing classes a year and is publisher and editor of the online monthly zine, Writers On The Rise, voted by Writer's Digest as one of the “101 Top Web Sites” for writers. Christina is a graduate of Dartmouth College and has an MFA in Fiction from Columbia College, Chicago. Visit www.writersontherise.com or www.christinakatz.com or www.thewritermama.com for the latest about Christina.