Festival Fever – #SWF19

I have long wanted to attend a writer’s conference, retreat, or festival, but scheduling conflicts and family obligations have always gotten in the way.  Little did I know there was already such an event in my own city!  In 2017, the

Stockholm Writer’s Festival (SWF) was established as a non-profit organization to help writers hone their craft, provide them with the tools necessary to navigate the world of publishing, and foster a sense of community.  Catherine Petterson, SWF’s founder, describes it as a way for writers to find “their path to published.”  The event launched in 2018 and was a huge success, proving there was a need for a forum of this kind to educate, inspire, and network.

I was so excited when Catherine and her colleague, Sandra Carpenter, asked me to participate in SWF19 as a faculty member.  I had caught their attention through a mutual friend’s Facebook post about my Book Club Sneak Peek for Lagging Indicators.  They became curious about my move from traditional to indie publishing and wanted me to discuss why I had made the transition.  Not only had I never been to a writer’s gathering before–and it would be nerve-racking enough communicating with these savvy wordsmiths–I was now going to co-lead a panel about my indie experience with Jessica Lourey.  Luckily, I would have several months to think about what I wanted to say!

The unofficial start of SWF19 kicked off with an informal cocktail mingle for contributors and participants at a hotel near the festival location.  Nibbling on cheese and crackers, we chatted about our expat lives (if applicable) and writing interests.  I met so many nice people, many of whom are part of the Stockholm Writers Group.

I got up bright and early the next day to make it to Finlandshuset, the large and fully-equipped SWF19 venue.  It buzzed with the activity of introductions, registration, and a bubbling creative energy and anticipation.  I was a bit nervous since I was all by myself, but once I entered the packed Sibelius Room, I saw many familiar faces, including an old friend who had signed up for SWF because of my Instagram posts. The crowd was very diverse in terms of age and gender.  Many had completed manuscripts and were curious about next steps.  We were all at SWF for the same purpose and it was easy to connect.

Jane Friedman’s workshops were extremely illuminating.  Friedman is an expert on the publishing industry and on the reality for us writers in a rapidly changing landscape.  She broke down the Big 5 publishing houses; explained what a writer’s expectations from an agent should be; compared advances vs. royalties; advised on crafting query letters, non-fiction proposals, book blurbs, and backcover copy; addressed the topic of manageable book length (80,000-100,000 words); analyzed different forms of self-publishing (a service vs. DIY); and weighed in on artistic patronage in the modern age (Patreon).

Although I had made an informed decision when deciding to pursue the indie publishing route, Friedman’s presentation significantly increased my knowledge about the business and confirmed some of my theories.  For example, having a platform and built-in audience helps a prospect get noticed and bolsters the chances of a book deal.  Publishing houses offer very little support for most authors in marketing and promotions.  Rarely does a self-published work become traditionally published.  Friedman also spent time on the “business” of writing and the benefits of employing a business mindset to the post-publication process (marketing, promotions, events).  In spite of pressure to be well-versed on both the commercial and creative sides, Friedman stressed that the quality of the writing and story still matter!

Being surrounded by so many passionate writers was incredibly inspiring.  I applauded the winners of the First Pages Prizes and listened intently as they read the opening sentences of their work.  It took a lot of guts to share those lines with a room full of people!

My nervousness grew as the day for my panel discussion approached.  Jessica Lourey is a teacher, prolific writer, and accomplished speaker; I was an amateur in comparison.  I wanted to make the session worthwhile for the participants and didn’t want them to feel disappointed.  My best defense against performance anxiety has always been intense preparation, so I skipped the Saturday night mingle and stayed home to polish and study my notes.

My first session on Sunday was a 3 x 10 minute speed dating exercise where 4-5 participants asked me specific questions about the mechanics of publishing independently.  I was very frank about cost, the importance of putting out the most professional product within one’s budget, and the advantages of utilizing an indie publishing service. I then did a breakout session with Lourey that attracted 30 people.  I started by reading from my index cards, but soon found the confidence to let the words flow naturally.  I described the highs of getting a traditional book deal for Uptown & Down in 2004, and then the lows of trying to find my way back into the publishing world after a ten-year hiatus.  I was very open about my disappointment and sense of powerlessness–until I decided to become an indie author.  My goal was to demystify and democratize the publishing process.  There are so many good stories waiting to see the light of day.  They shouldn’t die for lack of a traditional publishing deal.

What did I learn from my first writer’s festival?

SWF19 reinforced that I’m in the right profession. I loved being surrounded by other enthusiasts and was hungry to absorb as much information as I could.  I did have moments when I wondered: Are people in this room more talented and productive than I am?  Who will get a book deal or be the next big-name author?  Can I write another book?  Depending on the speaker, I alternated from a sense of empowerment (workshop on indie publishing) to discouragement (panel with literary agents).  On the practical side, I discovered the broad reach of platforms such as BookBub, Facebook ads, giveaways, and audio books.  The feedback from my indie publishing sessions was very positive.  I enjoyed pepping writers and giving out tips.  As a result, I experienced a burning motivation to focus on my next project.  I also sold a dozen more copies of Lagging Indicators which wasn’t too bad either!

I was very honored and grateful to be included as a faculty member at SWF19 and took pride in the appropriateness of such an event happening in Sweden, a country with a long literay tradition and the Nobel Prize in Literature.  I want to commend and thank the organizers and volunteers for the amazing job they did.  Most of all, SWF19 exposed me to a thriving writer community and I have no doubt we will continue to boost and support each other!

SWEDE-ish

Kungliga Djurgården/Royal Djurgården

I first came to Stockholm as a bright-eyed, nineteen-year-old New Yorker with my Swedish boyfriend.  We married nine years later and I’ve lived here since 1997, minus a 5-year spell when we were back in the US for my husband’s job.  Living this expat life has been exciting, interesting, and inspiring–as well as frustrating, confusing, and conflicting.  However, I wouldn’t trade it for anything else and am so grateful my husband coaxed me out of my comfort zone.  As the daughter of Haitian immigrants, I’m familiar with the challenges of combining two different cultures and have built up a strong reservoir of resilience and adaptability.  I choose to focus on the positives and the potential for growth in every situation.  That’s not to say I don’t have issues; my husband and kids can certainly attest to my Swedish pet peeves and #shakingmyhead moments!

Nevertheless, I’ve been reluctant to explore the expat experience in my own fiction.  I think this stems from my preferred strategy of staying positive, both as a coping mechanism and an awareness my life as a foreigner in Sweden is removed from a great deal of the stresses and stigmas many newcomers face.  However, I can still relate.  Half a century ago, my Haitian parents endured prejudice in America and my upbringing was tainted by racist incidents and the burden of constantly having to prove myself.  Thanks to their hard work and sacrifices, I came to Sweden with an American passport, a college degree, and the facility for learning a new language.  My Swedish fiancé had already paved the road and my arrival was greeted with acceptance, not suspicion.

I feel a sense of loyalty towards Sweden out of love for my husband, respect for the country where he was born and raised, and an obligation to the place where we have chosen to bring up our dual-nationality, bi-racial, multi-cultural kids.  Stockholm has been too close to home, both physically and psychologically.  But I’ve come to wonder if this approach prevents critical thinking and objectivity?  Sweden–like a character in any book–should be multi-dimensional, imbued with virtues and flaws.  A blemished character is much more complex and realistic than a spotless one.  Denying that complexity is disingenuous and minimizes the impact.  Many Swedish friends have urged me to write about my observations and interactions.  However, I’ve always feared borrowing too heavily from real-life would be predictable and might unintentionally offend. A roman à clef has never been my style and I doubt I can write one as skillfully–and scandalously–as Lauren Weisberger’s The Devil Wears Prada or Truman Capote’s unfinished Answered Prayers.

My daughter will start college in the US this fall and I’ve been thinking back to my journey from New York to Stockholm.  Those first few years were tough: the long, dark winters; short, dicey summers; sporadic loneliness; professional malaise; homesickness… Yet, I persevered and built a supportive network of close friends.  I’ve also tried to raise my kids with the American, Haitian, and Swedish values I hold dear.  Through it, my husband’s love and encouragement have been steadfast.  He backed my desire to write whole-heartedly and is my biggest cheerleader.

Being an expat has occasionally forced me to turn inwards as a strategy to handle bouts of alienation and reboot after adversity.  I was uncomfortable revisiting those struggles in my writing.  But after 20+ years, I’ve finally gained a hard-earned perspective and inner strength; I feel ready to make Sweden the backdrop for my next book.  I’m hoping to weave the expat framework in an intriguing way while still touching on the intersectionality of being an American woman-of-color in a European country.  I read Nella Larsen’s Quicksand in college and connected with the novel’s cross-cultural and interracial themes, along with Larsen’s courage for writing so close to her own life as the offspring of a Danish mother and African-American father.  My next book is NOT semi-autobiographical, but contemplating the characters and scenes has triggered many memories.

Spring has finally arrived in Stockholm; city parks and streets are abloom with cherry blossoms and magnolias.  Restaurants and cafés are full of outdoor patrons enjoying the season’s first glass of rosé.  The sun shines high in the sky as the hours edge towards Midsummer when it will never fully set.  Stockholm is buzzing and the drawn-out, gloomy winter has become a distant memory.  I think that’s the secret to living in Sweden: the possibility of a bright day makes up for all the gray ones.

Brainstorming a New Novel

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When Lagging Indicators came out on July 2, 2018, I was creatively drained.  I only wanted to focus on launching and promoting the novel.  I didn’t even think about new story ideas for the next book. Fast forward eight months later: the flurry of activity has settled down and I find myself analyzing everything as a potential storyline.

Since there were thirteen years between the release of my first novel, Uptown & Down (2005), and Lagging Indicators (2018), I understand that I may have missed a key window to build my career as a novelist. Yet, I’m so energized by the opportunities becoming an indie author has afforded me and take nothing for granted.  So, it’s time to get back to writing!  The beauty of publishing independently is that I retain creative control and can set my own publication date rather than follow a traditional publisher’s schedule, which can range from 12-18 months from manuscript submission.  If all goes according to plan, a new novel will hit the cybershelves by August or September 2020.  However, one crucial element remains ambiguous: What will the new book be about?

I underwent a creative drought for about five years after Uptown & Down was published and chalked it up to “writer’s block.”  I do believe a writer can struggle with producing new work and have an artistic slowdown but in my case, the real culprit was procrastination.  Aside from taking care of my family, I preferred doing everything except write: volunteering, cleaning, organizing, driving around, working out, traveling, shopping, decorating, lunching with friends… Quite simply, I wasn’t willing to invest the time and effort it takes to write.

Arguably, many of those experiences and encounters informed Lagging Indicators, but I think I missed out on that book-in-between because I was a little bit lazy and a lot afraid.  I feared my next book wouldn’t achieve the high standards of depth and resonance I had set for myself.  I’m a perfectionist and was terrified of a “sophomore slump.”  Writing is often about timing and the 2008 financial crisis finally triggered thoughts that eventually led to Lagging Indicators.  I had a premise and constantly asked “What if?” in order to create drama and suspense.

After studying other writers’ processes, I finally understand that you can summon the muse.  You can find a story idea, outline those chapters, and craft that scene if you’re not afraid to make mistakes.  Striving for perfection from the outset can be debilitating.  Allowing yourself to go in all sorts of directions is paramount to unleashing creativity.  Revisions will help you polish that story, but you need the raw material first.

For Book #3, I began by asking: What do I want to write about?  I knew that I wanted the story to take place in my adopted country of Sweden, but how would I incorporate that into an interesting plot?  Next, I wondered:  What kind of books do I enjoy?  What do I know?  How do I want to challenge myself the next time around?  Once I had rough answers to those questions, an idea began to take shape, but I didn’t love it. It felt a bit uninspiring, but I figured I could make it work.  Nevertheless, something nagged at me and the storyline didn’t generate the same passion as I’d had with my first two novels.  I stayed awake thinking about it one night when–out of the blue–a new tale appeared in my mind.  It was as though it had been waiting in the shadows, daring me to pay attention.  I got so excited that I wrote the backcover copy the next morning as a starting point.

As of this writing, I’ve completed the pivotal Chapter One, or about 5,000 words, with approximately 80,000 more to go.  I’ve also done preliminary character sketches and an outline.  However, so many scenes and dialogue popped up while outlining that I decided to just write and get that first draft up and running.  I’m cautiously optimistic about where this story will go.  I think it has potential, but who knows?  Most importantly, I’m fired up and that’s a wonderful place to be.

While it felt like an epiphany when the new novel idea surfaced, I did follow a few conscious steps to get my creative juices flowing.  I think it’s important to be in the right mindset and let go of self-imposed limitations.  Here are some methods I used to free my inner muse:

Reading:

When I can’t write, I read.  Each book, whether literary or commercial fiction, teaches me something important about pacing, character development, etc.  I reread Animal Farm by George Orwell (1945) with my son last week and was floored by how intuitive and relevant that book still is today. The straightforward writing style and satirical narrative were a refreshing break from the works of popular fiction I’ve been reading lately.

Podcasts:

My favorites are author interviews and I enjoy the in-depth profiles of Author Stories with Hank Garner; Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books with Zibby Owens; and The Literary Life with Mitchell Kaplan.  Hearing about new books, how writers got their big break, and the creative process motivates and inspires!

Writer Blogs:

Jane Friedman is so helpful when it comes to writing tips and navigating the publishing world.  I’m so excited that she’ll be a faculty member at the Stockholm Writers Festival in May, where I will also be on a discussion panel about transitioning from traditional to indie publishing.  Julia Cameron and her Morning Pages are a great way to start the day and release unihibited thoughts.  Since I’m focused on a current story at the moment, I haven’t been following this method religiously but I appreciate her inspirational quotes and teachings.  I subscribe to Writer’s Digest and while they tend to bombard my Inbox with special offers for classes, there are at least 1-2 emails per week that tackle an element of craft that is relevant to what I’m working on.  

Exercise & Yoga:

In addition to my cardio and weight training, I’ve finally succumbed to the yoga bug. After sitting in front of the computer for hours on end, my shoulders and back ached so much, the only relief was stretching my stiff limbs.  I also wanted to feel more centered and present.  I’ve taken a couple of yinyoga classes and holding positions for several minutes challenges me to breath deeply and focus.  Eventually, my mind begins to clear and I’m less anxious.  I expand and release whatever’s been holding me back.

That sounds a lot like writing.