WriteOnCon 2013 Day Two: More Inspiration and Learning

I stayed up way too late thinking and commenting on queries and first pages over at WriteOnCon 2013, but it was a great chance to get a peek at different ways to write a pitch and query - lots of great examples to learn from.

For me, some of the other highlights from Day 2 included:

Fostering Sibling Rivalry: On Writing Sibling Relationships by author Jessica Spotswood

I'll be reading and thinking about this post again, for inspiration and insights when writing about families. Most of my MG novels are about family relationships and this article made me think about the interactions between brothers and sisters in different ways.

Middle Grade Writing or Publishing Questions with author Peggy Eddleman

I didn't have a chance to attend this forum chat when it was live, but reading the transcript gives a wealth of information about writing middle grade. I really enjoyed thinking about what makes a middle grade novel work.

Setting the Tone With a Great Query Letter by literary agent Traci Marchini

Great practical advice on making a query letter shine!

Killer Last Lines—How to End a Chapter by author Elsie Chapman

This was something I hadn't thought so much about before, since like many other writers, I concentrate on beginnings. But Elsie points out how chapter endings are so crucial in keeping up the tension and leaving those unanswered questions that keep a reader moving forward.

Day 2 also had lots of live twitter sessions and videos that I will come back to check through later to help me construct my own pitches. I love the online aspect of this conference, because it is really so great to be able to come back and look at all the information again later.

Did you check out any of the posts from WriteOnCon 2013? What was the most important thing you learned?