Follow up on Your Word is My Delight: A Catholic Writers Retreat

I’m still coming down from a spiritual high from our retreat in Michigan. It was so amazing, I am having difficulty finding the words to describe it (tough, for a writer). Ten people attended from many parts of the country, some from as far as Massachusetts, Arizona, and Florida. The majority, of course, were from Michigan. I have to admit I was concerned, at first, at the small group we had. But, as it turned out, that simply made it more intimate and focused.

Here’s the whole retreat gang from left to right: Margaret Realy, Dr. Jean Lee, Patrice Davignon, Gerard Webster, Ann Lewis, Pat Gohn, Michael Diebold, Kathy Schiffer, Helen Hart, Erin McCole-Cupp, Kathleen McGuire, Lillah Olson, Father Charles Irivin, Julie Herridge and Father Tucker Cordani.

CWG Member Pat Gohn was our key presenter who gave us some thoughtful reflections on Psalm 119, the documents of the Church, and our vocations as writers.

Margaret’s good friend David Krajewski also did a great talk on the Joyful Mysteries and “vocation” (I will be posting this soon in our forums for people to read.) The other speakers were fabulous, too. Kathy Schiffer and I conducted critique sessions that were small, inspiring, and effective.

It was a time to pray, write, and reflect in an absolutely gorgeous natural environment. The gardens that Margaret planned and coordinated on the grounds were breathtaking. Here are some photos.

Margaret gave us a tour of her lovely gardens the first day. This is she walking us through one of the several memorial gardens on the property.

This is a shot of the Calvary Garden through the autumn-colored trees:

And this is the bell tower of the monastary that the monks would ring throughout the day, now enhanced by Margaret’s green thumb:

One night, Margaret pointed out a cute little green tree frog to me, and later I could hear one singing outside my window. Tree frogs! I didn’t know they had tree frogs in Michigan, and I grew up there!

By the end of the five days, all of us were great friends, praying, inspiring, supporting, crying, hugging, and singing songs by the campfire.

Because this retreat was so successful, we plan to have another in late April of 2013 – information, costs and exact dates to come. We will only offer retreats every other year so folks can save up to be able to attend both the retreat and our August conference in the same year.

Pray and work, folks. Ora et labora!

All authors need an editor. Self-published authors should not publish a manuscript without hiring a competent editor to improve and polish it.

For the purposes of this article, an editor is someone who suggests changes in overall plot, setting, characters and theme. I am not talking about a copy-editor (although copy-editors are important).

Before I started writing fiction, I had written many non-fiction articles. I mistakenly thought fiction would be easier. The first draft of my debut novel, Emily’s Hope, was so bad that when I gave part of it to my kind (and honest) husband to read, his response was, “You’re not going to let anyone read this, are you?”

Admittedly, I was crushed. I hired an editor and over the next two years, she helped me to take a badly written first draft and transform it into a much better novel. She helped me not only to improve my writing style, but to also create a convincing narrative voice.

Here are a few key points to remember when working with an editor:

Be Humble: If you think your book is going to be a Nobel prize-winning book or that it’s the best book every written…well, it probably isn’t, not yet anyway. It may have the potential of being a great book but, generally speaking, most books need a lot of polishing and editing to get it to the stage of being “great.”

Like many authors, I spend more time polishing and editing than I do writing the first draft.

Consider and Reflect on Each Criticism/Suggestion: It may take hours or days of reflection to realize that most of the editor’s ideas will actually make the book better.

Authors tend to be blind to the defects in our own works. Some of us can be rigid with regard to what we want the story or characters to be. For example, in my second novel (In Name Only, a historical romance), the first draft was entirely from the main female character’s point of view (POV).

The editor said that she understood why I chose that particular POV, but either I needed to include the major male characters’ POVs or find another way for the reader to understand the male characters better.

I initially rejected the idea of including the male characters’ POVs. Then as time passed and I reflected, I admitted that she might be right. As it turned out, writing from a male POV was also great fun. This novel went on to win a Gold medal in the IPPY awards and is currently an Amazon Kindle Top 100 bestseller in Religious Fiction.

Resist the Urge to be Defensive: This is where I have the most trouble. But then again, that’s my personality. Even now, when I read my editor’s suggested changes, I have to resist the urge to be defensive.

You Don’t Have to Agree with Everything: Sometimes, the editor will suggest changes the author is reluctant to make. If, after reflection, you still feel strongly about keeping things the same, talk it over with the editor. I find I usually agree with about 85 percent of the suggested edits and I disregard the rest.

Keep in mind that your editor is not being paid to be nice or to make you feel good; he or she is being paid to make your book a quality book.

Trust Your Editor: If you don’t trust your editor, you should probably find a different editor.

Working with an editor can be a challenging experience. However, if you exercise humility, consider and reflect on each edit, be open to change, resist the urge to be defensive and trust your editor, you will hopefully produce a great quality book.

What are your experiences working with an editor? Can you think of anything to add?

Leave a comment below before Friday, October 14th to be entered to win one of two free Kindle copies of my new book, Stealing Jenny.

Ellen Gable Hrkach is the vice president of the Catholic Writers Guild. She is the award-winning author of In Name Only, a Catholic romance and now an Amazon Kindle bestseller (top 100 Religious Fiction). Her new book is Stealing Jenny which is a contemporary pro-life suspense novel. Her website is www.ellengable.com. She and her husband and five sons live in Pakenham, ON Canada.

As Vice President of the Catholic Writers Guild, it is my responsibility to share board news on the fifth Friday (whenever that occurs).

Last Friday on this blog, in sharing what the CWG Board discussed at our recent Skype meeting, Karina said, “Officer Elections are in November! We discussed it and we will stay on as your officer cadre if you wish (though Karina would like to be committee coordinator and Dave would be secretary). However, that’s if no one else wants to run. Check out the forums for a list of duties and to nominate yourself or others.”

I just want to reiterate that the CWG Board members are willing to continue as members of the Board, if no one else wishes to run. If you are interested in running, please check out the forums to nominate yourself.

One of the great things about the 21st century is that we can participate in a Skype board meeting without leaving the comfort of our homes. We begin and end each meeting with a prayer. As a member of the board, I am able to view the agenda before the meeting and add any topics I think should be discussed. During the meeting, it’s easy to follow along with the Google Wave agenda and see changes which are being recorded in the minutes.

Being part of the CWG Board has been an interesting and worthwhile experience. As Vice President, my duties are not as numerous as some of the other board members, but I enjoy working with Ann, Karina, Anne and Dave.

Ellen Gable Hrkach is the Vice President of the Catholic Writers Guild. She is the award-winning author of “In Name Only,” a Catholic romance and now an Amazon Kindle bestseller (top 100 Religious Fiction). Her new book is Stealing Jenny, which is a contemporary pro-life suspense novel. Her website is www.ellengable.com. She and her husband and five sons live in Pakenham, ON Canada.

It is the end of the month (almost) and I want to dedicate this space to a quick wrap-up of our very successful writers conference in Valley Forge as well as tell you about our upcoming Retreat.

The Catholic Writers Conference LIVE was a smashing success. We had 40 paid attendees plus an uncountable number of CMN attendees who came to our presentations, plus 17 volunteers and 20 presenters who all added up to a power-house event. Our booth was well-represented with many, many terrific books and authors signing them. Our first-ever Catholic Arts and Letters Awards (Lilies) were presented to Michelle Buckman for Rachel’s Contrition and Regina Doman for Alex O’Donnell and the 40 Cyberthieves in front of all the retailers and vendors who attended the trade show breakfast banquet. CWG is tremendously grateful to all our presenters, volunteers, attendees and, most of all, Our Lord for being a part of event. We couldn’t have done it without you. (Meanwhile – we need volunteers to help administrate the CALA for this year – please contact Karina Fabian at karina (at) fabianspace.com if you are interested.)

One very important note on the conference: We need your input!! There’s talk of changing the dates for the Catholic Writers Conference Live next year. Would you take this 3-question survey to help us decide? Follow this link and answer the three questions and it’ll help a great deal!

Our next big event is Your Word is My Delight: Catholic Writers Retreat – October 5-9, 2011 at the St. Francis Retreat Center in DeWitt, Michigan. I did send out a separate e-mailing on this event, so many of you have this information, but I want to reiterate that it looks to be a fantastic experience that is different from our writers conferences. With this retreat, we’ll work on our souls, contemplate God’s calling to us as writers and grow as writers through one-on-one critique sessions. And, because this is a writers retreat, you will be given a lot of time to just write! Please consider coming, and pass on this information to those you think might be interested. Post it on your blogs, twitter and facebook. If we don’t get more registrations for this event quickly, it may have to be canceled and we’d hate for that to happen.

Meanwhile – keep praying for our success, and God bless you all!

Imagine a future where kids don’t have to carry around a heavy backpack for all their books, merely a small thin bag to tote around. Imagine a future where ALL books cost under $10, with many being 2.99 or under and millions available for FREE. Imagine a future where an author can receive 70 percent of the royalties…

That future is NOW!

Making my books available on Amazon Kindle was the single best marketing tool I’ve ever used. Recently, both my new book, Come My Beloved, and my second novel, In Name Only, were in the top 100 in Amazon Kindle Books on the same day!

With tens of thousands of Kindle (and other) e-readers being sold daily, they are fast becoming the wave of the future! The Kindle reader is also available as a free application for PC, iPod, iPad and iPhone, so it’s not necessary to spend money to be able to read a Kindle book.

Amazon currently offers Kindle publishers 70 percent royalty (for most books) and there are virtually no up front costs. Of course, there are other advantages to having your self-published book available on the Amazon Kindle.

Advantage #1: Receive More Exposure
In this recession, many people have become careful with their money. They will not pay $15 for a print book, but they will likely pay 2.99 for a digital book.

The more books you sell on Kindle the more book lists it shows up in.

For example, my Kindle books have been purchased by thousands of people in the last several months. Each individual person has purchased other books. These books have Amazon pages and my books show up on those book pages.

Advantage #2: Receive More Money With No Financial Output
The beauty of e-books is that there are no printing costs. Currently, Amazon US and Amazon Great Britain offer 70 percent royalty option. You just need to make sure you click that option when you register your book for publication. (This is one of the advantages unique to self-published authors. Publishers generally jack up the price for Kindle books. Self-published authors can offer their books for much less and still receive a decent royalty per book.)

Advantage #3: Gain More Fans
I am regularly selling hundreds of Kindle books per month and these figures are increasing by the week. That may not be a big deal for famous authors, but for little ole’ me, it is incredible!

Advantage #4: Sell More Print books by Selling More E-books
Because your book is listed on many more Amazon sites, this gives your print book more exposure as well.

Whether you’re a first-time author or an established writer, there are many advantages of putting your book on Kindle: you can receive more exposure, make more money, sell more books (without the financial costs of printing) and gain more fans. E-books are the future of self-publishing.

Next month: E-Books: The Future of Self-Publishing Part II…Some Practical Considerations

Ellen Gable Hrkach is the vice president of the Catholic Writers Guild. She is the award-winning author of “In Name Only,” a Catholic romance. Her new book is called “Come My Beloved: Inspiring Stories of Catholic Courtship.” Her website is www.ellengable.com She and her husband and five sons live in Pakenham, ON Canada.