By
Judith Ashley
 |
| Judith Ashley |
When Sarah Raplee and I came up with this topic, we
thought it fantastic. As I sit down three hours before this post goes live, my
thoughts carom towards “What were we thinking!”
I’m fortunate to be a co-author along with Sarah and
Diana McCollum of the anthology, Love
& Magick and I’ve submitted a short story for inclusion in another
anthology due out in November. So, I do have some perspective on collaborating
on an anthology.
Robin Weaver’s post on critique partners deals with
another aspect of ‘collaboration’ and I encourage you to read it if you haven’t
already. Robin’s sense of humor shines in this piece.
What bubbles up from the “girls in the basement” (a
phrase Barbara Rae Robinson uses) is a different form of ‘collaboration’.
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “Collaborate”
as “to work jointly with others (as in writing a book)” and “to cooperate with
an enemy force that is occupying one’s country”. Neither definition fits so I’m
adding a variation to the first definition:
My
informal network of friends and other writers with whom I’ve shared thoughts
and feelings about writing (characters, plots, turning points, etc.),
difficulties with formatting and other technical aspects of being
self-published, and now that I’m published, the dreaded ‘marketing and
promotion’. Because I have this informal network, I’m able to write the book(s).
I am grateful to the collaboration with
Everyone in the #ftb forum who offers support and
suggestions and cheers me on.
My co-authors Sarah and Diana with whom I’m now learning
LOTS about marketing and promotion after having learned LOTS about
self-publishing.
Windtree Press authors, especially Maggie Lynch and
Paty Jager for more ideas, support, and mentoring.
Then there are my friends who have listened to me
talk about the Sacred Women’s Circle series for over a decade, read some of the
chapters and my VBF who listened to me read the entire Book Three chapter-by-chapter
as I wrote it.
And now a new circle of collaborators of a different
kind who are reading my books and writing reviews.
Each and every person along my path to publishing
has made a difference, has contributed something to my process and the final
products and in that way they have collaborated in writing, finishing,
publishing and marketing my books.
Thank You!
You can learn more about The Sacred Women’s Circle
series by checking out http://judithashleyromance.com
http://windtreepress.com
http://windtreepress.com
Check out the month of June at http://freereadsfromthegenre-istas.blogspot.com
to read a series of short stories, three of which are directly related to the
characters in The Sacred Women’s Circle series. Enjoy!!!
Copyright © 2014 Judith Ashley
3 comments:
Happy Independence Day, Judith! Ironic to be posting about collaborations today, isn't it?
The way I see it, a story is like a plant - it begins with a seed of an idea that is nurtured by a writer or writers, gathers sustenance from the environment, morphs and grows and survives dry spells and floods, sheds the parts it doesn't need and produces amazing fruits.It is an iterative, interactive process led by the writer and limited by the story's inherent potential, with many influences making the whole greater than the sum of its parts.
In other words, I agree with you, LOL!
LOL! You took my 200+ word post and condensed it into 50 or so words. And used a fun analogy in the process.
Thanks for stopping by Sarah!
Great analogy! You put it all in perspective Judith. We have not only our co-authors to thank but all the others along the path to publication. I couldn't, wouldn't have done it with out you and Sarah. And everyone else who answered questions, critiqued and encouraged.
Post a Comment