Every time I go to a Las Vegas Writer’s Group meeting I take away at least one good idea. Last night was no different. Although the meeting was challenged by the fact that the guest speaker, Chris Epting, was unable to make the journey from Huntington Beach in So Cal because of severe weather between there and here, one piece of his advice is still ringing in my ears.
Chris is a pop culture historian and author of seventeen books, including “The Birthplace Book: A Guide to Birth Sites of Famous People, Places & Things” and “Roadside Baseball” which is on its second edition and was recently named one of the top travel books of the year by the Los Angeles Times.
Mark Sedenquist, the Program Director for the LVWG, gave an overview of what would have been Chris’ presentation based on the notes Chris e-mailed to him. For me, the advice Chris offered about engaging readers is even more memorable than his ten tennis-themed tips for writing. It was, “Engage with your readers and let them know what you do.” As I finally near completion of the novel I’ve been working on (“For Rent Dangerous Paradise”) his advice has struck a chord. The process of writing a novel is hard. This is the first mystery I’ve written and each time I’ve changed a thread in the spider web story of life in Venice that I’ve created, it has been a challenge.
I don’t intend to bore anyone with details, but I think at least one weekly posting here during the final stretch run will be interesting.
(Ask me in a comment below if you’re interested in Chris’ ten tennis-themed tips for writing and I’ll post them. BTW, they apply to more things than just writing and I think they have cross-over appeal for tennis lovers.)