How to Network With Other Writers

If you consider yourself a writer, are you keeping to yourself and staying home to write or are you taking the business of writing seriously?

When I started writing for profit in the late 1970s, writers had it easier back then. I had a resume and kept a “stringbook” showing my published clips and photographs. I didn’t work full-time at my writing, but the jobs I had helped put me through college.

These days, writers are their own public relations representatives, and are publicizing themselves long before getting that book contract. We have websites, publish blogs and use social networking like Facebook and Twitter to bring attention to our work. Not only that, we attend writing classes and writers conferences because writing is a learning process which never ends. If we are brave enough to showcase our work, we become part of a critique group or read our work at readings. We attend any event which will benefit our writing. And, we support the publishing industry by buying books, magazines and other products because someday, we hope that our own creations will have a faithful following.

Sometimes, our efforts don’t seem like they’re enough.

When attending an event for writers, are you a participant? Of course, you may be at an event to hear a speaker or learn something like writing for a particular genre. Maybe, you have a publisher or agent as a speaker. Or some lucky writer in the group has agreed to speak about a new book or how they got published.

What are you doing before and after the meetings or when the group has a break or breaks for lunch?

This is no time to be shy. Take this time to circulate the room and talk with other writers. If you need to get enough nerve to talk with other writers, simply start talking with the ones seated around you. Don’t give yourself the chance to sit there, nod and watch others speak. As a writer, remind yourself you always have time to be alone with your work. When you have the chance to be with people, always make it a habit to talk with them. True writers are curious about the world around them, and you never know who may give you some inspiration.

If you are serious about your craft, you’ll already have business cards printed. You will also have them available at all times so you can hand them out to the people you meet. Business cards don’t have to be expensive and fancy. You can make your own or have them done inexpensively by companies likewww.vistaprint.com. Your business cards should have all of the information on them so these people may contact you long after your first meeting.

Writers are an interesting group of people who chose the solitary life which comes with writing. After being around writers in a social situation, as you talk with them, learn how to pick out the ones who have been published. You will learn how to distinguish published writers from those who pretend to be published. There’s a big difference.

Learn to bypass the writers who try to impress you or the ones who clam up when you ask them how the book is doing. When writers are tight-lipped about their project and don’t want to share the writing experience, leave them alone. I have been given business cards during events, only to go home to find a website with an incomplete, poorly written work and an unrelated business connected to it. I’ve listened to people go on and on about their novels when all it took was a sentence to describe the book. Then there are others who had a great story idea, but never got past a few sentences because they suffered from Writer’s Block and gave up.

Seek the writers who have published their work and ask them about their experiences. If you find someone you are comfortable with and who writes in your genre, arrange to have coffee or a meal to discuss writing. Make sure you pick up the tab and be grateful this person is taking the time to meet with you. Treat this person like a teacher or a mentor and learn anything you can.

Writers groups are always looking for people to help run the organization. If you have the time and energy, volunteer to help with event planning. Depending on the situation, this volunteer position could help you meet local speakers, writers and visiting lecturers. Who knows who you’ll meet to help you further your writing career?