Humor, Nobility, And Following the Rules

My sister and many of her friends and/or acquaintances went to the P31 She Speaks Conference this past weekend. It looks like they came back with a wealth of information, writing tips, knowledge ect. Obviously I don't know anything about professional writing and or publishing but I do know that if they want to one day be published , that there are guidelines and rules they must follow. I just hope that they don't get too caught up in the "correct" way of writing and lose the personal style we have all come to love. I read a few different blogs from some of the women that attended. When I read the blog I can hear them personally speaking to me. So, even though sometimes they will need to change things they have written for publishing sake, I hope that I don't lose part of the story because they have to delete 3 of the adjectives or cut out half of a paragraph to keep it under 300 words.

For many writing is a hobby (myself included) but for others there is that hope of one day publishing your work. I KNOW you will need to make changes, edit, write and rewrite but I DO hope you don't get too caught up in the logistics of it all and lose that special flare that makes your writing so special.

Different publishers, hopefully, have different rules and expect different things. If a publisher wants you to change more of your story than you feel comfortable with.....wait a bit before you make all those changes. Someone else might love it exactly as it is.

I like to write humor. I didn't even plan on writing humor. I just sat down and starting writing the first thing off the top of my head.....maybe that's why I refer to my hair so often. Of course, it's easy for me. No Pressure. I have no rules, regulations, or deadlines. If I don't feel like writing...I don't (and I haven't heard from my "#1 Fan" stalker since I put out the restraining order). I can ramble and ramble and carry on about anything or nothing. No pressure. I don't need to impress anyone. No Pressure (of course I'm sure you all ARE impressed...)Also my huge following of hundreds is really probably about 8.....(but you 8 are loyal and I love each and every one of you....except the #1 fan....but that's another story) My blogs don't even need to make any sense.......as you have all learned. No Pressure.

I know there is a huge difference from writing for fun and writing to be published but what I am trying to say (after all this rambling) is I hope your writing doesn't change too too much. You're very talented and I love reading your work. It HAS to be hard to say what you want to say and still follow all the rules. Can you even imagine me trying to even introduce myself in 300 words or less. It could never happen.

And just to show you that you don't always have to follow ALL the rules, read this:

"Humor is not a postscript or an incidental afterthought. It is a serious and weighty part of the world's economy. One feels increasingly the height of the faculty in which it arises, the nobility of things associated with it, and the greatness of the services it renders."
Oscar W Firkins
1864-1932
Memoirs & Letters

I had no idea that my hair getting caught in the bathtub drain or my trip to the dentist would effect the world's economy or even the nobility of things associated with it. Talk about pressure. Lucky for me, all I'm trying to do is get rid of all the rambleing thoughts swirling around in my head and maybe put a smile on your face at the same time.

All of this could have been said in one sentence "Try to follow the rules but PLEASE PLEASE keep it personal too."

See, that was easy. Why didn't you just say that in the first place?

th th th th that's all folks.