Hello my fellow Dream Chasers and welcome to my newsletter! Get comfy, this one is kind of a long one.

Last month was the Writer’s Digest Annual Conference, and I’m still buzzing about it. I had spent so much time psyching myself up about it, and thinking about how amazing the 2018 conference was, that I had started to worry that I was going to be disappointed. How could it possibly live up to the bar that I had set in my head?

Thankfully, my worries were laid to rest the second I walked into the conference. Just being surrounded by fellow writers is wonderful. Add the superb content, and the sparkle of meeting two of my most favorite authors, and once again, this conference was out of this world.

I think I mentioned this in last month’s newsletter, but this year I decided to forego the pitch slam. I didn’t have anything ready to pitch, and while it’s an amazing experience, it wasn’t something I thought would be a good investment for this year. Rather, I spent the extra money and took a full day workshop that took place on Thursday (the conference proper was Friday through Sunday). This all-day intensive workshop was titled How To Write A Page Turner: Mastering the Art of Tension and was led by Jordan Rosenfeld, the person who quite literally wrote the book on writing gripping tales. This workshop was a master class on the art of building tension, and a primer on Ms. Rosenfeld’s book, also titled How To Write A Page Turner.

Opportunistic marketing ploy? I think not. I’ve been writing for a very long time, and the information and techniques provided in this refreshing course helped me not only see how, where, and when I can imbue my work with riveting tension, but also where and how to spot slower passages in my own work. We completed and shared writing exercises and exchanged thoughts on each other’s writing and on the material itself, while also making friends and learning about each other’s works-in-progress, style, and lives in general. It was money exceedingly well-spent, and I’m beyond delighted to have taken the course.

During the conference proper, I was once again met with well-curated courses that covered the gamut from craft to publishing and beyond, and I was quite pleased to find that there were a number of seminars that focused on the short story. Last year, I spent much of my time taking workshops on pitching and querying, all in preparation for the pitch slam that I would be taking part in on that Saturday. This year, I felt free to take whatever I wanted. Standout workshops included Selling Short Stories & Flash Fiction and Editing Your Short Stuff, both taught by Windy Lynn Harris (check out her website right here), as well as Writing Fight Scenes, Battles and Brawls: Everything you Need to Know and FightWrite: From Practical to Tactical, both taught by Carla Hoch (check out FightWrite right here!). Both of these instructors were kind, knowledgeable, and beyond happy to share their expertise.

Of course, every class I took was a wonderful experience, and I could write ten times as much about the content provided at the conference. But that wouldn’t leave any time for me to talk about my absolute favorite part of the conference: the people.

I met so many amazing people this year, just like last year. Writers from far and wide come to this conference to share their work, learn new techniques, commiserate with, and celebrate each other. Making friends at this event is so easy, and I know that, once again, I have made connections with people that will last my whole life.

I was also fortunate to see some familiar faces, one of whom all of you were introduced to last month! My very good friend Kristi Lowe was also in attendance, and we had a wonderful time catching up and talking about everything that’s been going on since last year! It was such a pleasure seeing her again!

The last (well, not the last) part of the conference was the keynote speeches. Each day was capped by a speech given by an established author. The first author to speak was N.K. Jemisen, whose work I am woefully unfamiliar with (a matter I fully intend to rectify). As I was about to enter the room where her speech was taking place, I ran into yet another friend from last year, in fact the very first person I met at last year’s conference, Tom Wingfeld (hi Tom!). We spent time catching up, and before I knew it, Ms. Jemisen’s speech was over. From what I’m told, though, it was a wonderful and inspiring speech. (If you’re somehow reading this, Ms. Jemisen, I promise I won’t miss you speak next time!).

Saturday evening I was delighted to hear one of my most favorite thriller writers speak: Karin Slaughter. She was warm, funny and honest. Her speech talked mostly about her upbringing, speaking hilariously about the blessings and foibles of family and life as a writer. When she was finished, she spent time signing books and meeting with all of us. I’m not at all embarrassed to say that I was such a dork meeting her that I had to talk myself into acting like a normal human being, for fear of being seen as a complete lunatic. Lucky for me, Ms. Slaughter was so kind and welcoming. She signed two books for me and sat for a few photos, and even had a brief conversation that ended with me fangirling out! Good thing the cocktail hour was right after.

Sunday morning started with the keynote speech given by Min Jin Lee. She is a masterful author whose love for the English language is so apparent it’s overwhelming. Her speech detailed her trials and tribulations of becoming a writer and being true to a calling, as well as personal challenges she’s had along the way. Imbued with laughter and advice, her speech was nothing short of inspiring, resulting in a standing ovation. She, too, stayed after her speech to sign books and meet with the writers, and I again stood in line talking myself down, willing the tears of inspiration to back off just long enough for me to have my books signed. She was magnanimous and gracious, and I was so honored to meet her, and proud of myself for getting it together well enough to not look like a fool. It wasn’t until I looked at what she had written inside my book that I truly lost it. She wrote “Kristine, We are family, xo MJL”. Even now I’m starting to tear up.

And then, just as quickly as it started, it was all over. I remember crying last year as I said good bye to my new friends, and needing to just leave because if I didn’t I would have been a complete mess. This year, I was just as sad, but was filled with so much hope and gratitude that I didn’t fall apart. I’m convinced now that each year I attend will be filled with joy and that I will take something different from each experience. I’m looking forward to taking everything I’ve learned and applying it to pieces I’ve already written and everything I will write in the future. And I’m already looking forward to next year’s conference as well.

Updates and Goals:

Get moving on some short stories that I’ve already written. I’m going to edit them and see if I can find a home for them with a literary magazine.

Continue working on The Things We Keep From Others. Work on that has stalled/taken a back seat in light of everything that I’ve learned and all the new ideas I have. Again, if you're interested in beta reading, please let me know right here!

Get back to a regular schedule on reading and reviewing short stories. Between the conference and then a few life-getting-in-the-way setbacks, I’ve really had to put that on the back burner for a few weeks. Check out my reviews over at my website, www.kristinedonahue.com/kristines-brf. If you're interested in haveing a story reviewed, head over to my pinned tweet or submit your story via my website!

Photo for this section courtesy of me! That's me meeting Min Jin Lee and cheesing like a total dork!

This month I am beyond delighted to introduce you all to my very good friend Johnathan Hernandez. I met him (surprise!) at the CLMP Writer’s Conference in NYC last December. Since meeting, John and I have continued our friendship via emails and social media, and I’ve recently had the privilege of beta reading his first novel, One Day As A Lion.

As the younger brother to a voracious reader, and the son of a teacher, John’s appreciation for words and stories started early. He and his family would spend time frightening each other by reading out loud from the book series Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (remember those?) and, on his own, John grew a comprehensive comic book collection. Though not quite the devoted reader that his sister was, John was inspired and consumed by authors such as Neil Gaiman and Isaac Asimov, and by the scientist Carl Sagan, giving him his first introduction into the world of science writing, both fiction and non-fiction.

It wasn’t until John discovered Clive Barker’s Books of Blood that writing truly came alive for him. In high school, though admittedly not the best student, he spent time analyzing and dissecting Barker, trying to emulate his style, and nursing a growing desire to have a writing career. He also rediscovered the classics, coming to an appreciation for the social commentary in books like Animal Farm by George Orwell and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. At this point, with stories in hand, John began in earnest the quest to have his work published, submitting to sci-fi and fantasy magazines, and beginning his education in the language of rejection (don’t we all know it?).

Undergraduate studies at SUNY Purchase and a stint in the Marine Corps occupied the next several years of John’s life. Upon his return to civilian life in 2009, like so many of us, he struggled in the job market and found readjusting to life post-military to be challenging. But learning and practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu helped him purge some "very toxic energy", as he puts it, and regain some peace and perspective. In 2017, using his GI Bill benefits, John returned to school for his Masters in Fine Arts, this time giving himself permission to pursue the calling that had been inside him for so long. He took inspiration from tales of success and continues to heed the warnings of the cautionary tales he heard from the accomplished people by whom he was surrounded. For the first time in his life, John was taking a true leap of faith and allowing the universe to guide him.

I asked John when and how he knew he wanted to be a writer, and he shared this insight with me, “Until you’re published, the dream feels intangible. You start to have doubts and want to quit out of frustration. The dream never dies though. You know that you have a story in you the same way you know you have to sneeze. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned to trust my instincts. The only way I know I want a writing career is because it’s been a constant nagging feeling that I’ve had for most of my life. It fuels and sustains me. I can’t not write – if you’ll excuse a double negative.”

And John knows deeply and truly where this feeling comes from – both the unpublished and the published sides. In August of 2019, John signed a three-book deal with Aethon Books, a science fiction and fantasy publisher. His first book, One Day As A Lion, will spearhead his military sci-fi series, The Gordian Knot.

Military science fiction is John’s primary love, but he certainly isn’t limited to it. He enjoys writing a variety of genres, both fiction and non, saying “[Writing a variety of genres is like] trying on different sets of clothes to see what fits. Science Fiction fits me. It feels familiar and comfortable. I just naturally gravitate towards it. I tried writing literary fiction in grad school because I felt like my peers would snub genre stuff (some people really do look down on it). It was almost painful for me. My work felt hollow and false. I think my peers and instructors sensed it too. I went back to what I know and love and don’t make excuses for it.”

To that end, and in the never-ending pursuit to become and remain a well-rounded writer, John has recently had a very interesting feature published on Tor.com titled Embracing the Impossible Puzzle of Stanislaw Lem’s Solaris. The feature discusses the importance of Lem’s book Solaris to both literature as a whole, and the science fiction genre specifically (and is a book about which I could talk for days).

John’s work will appeal to the wildly varied group of readers who count themselves as fans of science fiction, though his goal is to reach as many readers as possible. He believes, “military [sci-fi] is interesting because its readers have curious intersections with the overall SF community. It appeals to commercial readers, veterans, spouses/family of vets, and people who might not otherwise read science fiction.”

John is currently working with his publisher to perfect One Day As A Lion, as well as grow his author platform. Of this process he says, “I don’t want to exclude anyone that might be outside of the [sci-fi] circle, but at the same time I would like to be involved in the community…I’m still new to this and marketing is not my core competency, so at this stage I’m still not sure where my base will be.” John is also growing his art portfolio, which includes sketch, scan, and digitally painted pieces (his major at SUNY Purchase was drawing and painting), though this passion has taken a step back while writing has been John’s focus. In a statement that I believe resonates with all creatives, John said, “I’ve learned that I have to budget my time and energy and be realistic with my goals.”

While pursuing his dreams, John recalls the words of Calvin Coolidge, “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence…” and keeps in mind the mantra fortune favors the prepared. He’s been given the advice that being in the right place at the time when your dream is in front of you is half the battle, but persistence and preparedness can never be compromised. He says, “I think there’s a lot of truth and wisdom in that. There are many things that are out of our control. We can’t determine what skills we’re born with or how smart we are. We don’t get to pick what opportunities we’ll have in life. The only things I can control are how hard I work and how much I keep at it.”

As I always ask my interview subjects, I asked John what he’s most proud of. Graduating undergrad and obtaining a Masters were of course on the list, as well as serving his country. But I could tell that it was something else that really struck a chord with him, something I think many of us feel. He said, “I’m also proud of finishing my first novel, One Day as A Lion. It took years to finish and will always be my baby. I felt like Sisyphus moving a rock uphill, and now no one can ever take this away from me. I’ve been offered a deal with Aethon Books. I’m almost afraid of jinxing myself and moving very cautiously. After years and years of rejection and feeling unworthy I’m skeptical and guarded as a reflex. It won’t seem real until I sign the contract. If all goes well, it will be the first book of a series and my first published story. I would be proud beyond measure.” (Note: he finished my interview questionnaire before he actually signed with Aethon Books. He has since signed the contract.)

As well he should be. John is an inspiration to me, and hopefully to all of you, and I can personally attest to his remarkable talent, creativity, drive, and kindness. I look forward to what else is in store for him as a growing author. Be on the look out for his first book, One Day As A Lion, updates for which I will pass along to you as John shares them. You can follow John on Twitter @jhernandez13. And make sure you check out his work over at http://www.bsfwriters.com, where John is a contributor, and his article on Tor.com, Embracing the Impossible Puzzle of Stanislaw Lem’s Solaris.

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Last month CNN reported on a very special performance of “Billy Elliot: The Musical”. Why was it so special? Because the show went to the dogs. Literally.

As part of their training, dogs from the K-9 Country Inn Working Service Dogs organization attended a performance of the show at Ontario’s Stratford Festival. The theater event was to expose and acclimate the future service dogs to environments that could include crowds, rapid movements, and unexpected lights and sounds. According to the article, the dogs stayed calm and quiet during the show, and though they’re supposed to stay under the seats or stay laying at their handlers’ feet, a few couldn’t resist sneaking a peek at the performance.

The theater company was delighted to put on a show for such a unique audience, and dogs in the program are welcome back in the future. Check out the full article right here.

Photo for this section courtesy of Hannah Lim via Unsplash. (Note: these were not the dogs in the service dog program.)

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