Networking IS my superpower...as others have also said this week, not the kind where you attend functions and hand out business cards, but the everyday interaction with people, conversations, helping someone out, receiving assistance, just getting to know who to call or message to ask a question...I love the "people part" of any job or pastime.
About two years in on the old day job at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab I got assigned a desk in the Acquisition Division providing a contracted service which literally every area of the Lab utilized at that time. It was crazy busy and nonstop. The first day I counted 300+ phone calls and went home with a blazing migraine. The next day I came in with a plan and got organized. I got to know people on all the Projects and in every Division, at all levels. I helped them, they helped me, we all had a common purpose to support NASA. I became an expert on the subjects involved in that contracting area and served on committees and special projects where I met more people, acquired new skills and had more fun. (NOTE: JPL is a pretty exciting place to work in general, cool stuff happens there daily.) That job became the foundation for the rest of my career at the Lab, doing a lot of other things, and it didn't hurt that no matter what the question or issue was, I knew who to call. (No, not the Ghostbusters...). Maybe I wouldn't know the ultimate authority or decision maker but I guarantee you I'd know where to start the chain of calls or e mails and I would get the answer.
I'm having similar fun in the author world - although not supporting NASA directly any more LOL. (Will always be a NASA geek.) My latest project (yes, now we're seguing to the cover reveal) is a really fun anthology involving science fiction romance, with pets thrown into the mix as part of the plots. Pauline B. Jones and I, who met through the Science Fiction Romance Brigade (which our SFF7 Jeffe told me about in the first place and Marcella invited me to join once Jeffe introduced us - networking at work, TYVM, ladies!). Pauline and I became fast friends in recent years - our devious minds work alike mwahahaha - put the anthology together and invited seven other authors we knew, who we thought might enjoy the challenge, added a very worthy charity and voila!
Here's the press release!
Pets in Space
Out October 11th, 2016
Even an alien needs a pet...
Join the adventure as nine pet loving sci-fi romance authors take you out of this world and pull you into their action-packed stories filled with suspense, laughter, and romance. The alien pets have an agenda that will capture the hearts of those they touch. Follow along as they work side by side to help stop a genetically-engineered creature from destroying the Earth to finding a lost dragon; life is never the same after their pets decide to get involved. Can the animals win the day or will the stars shine just a little less brightly?
New York Times, USA TODAY, Award Winning, and Bestselling authors have nine original, never-released stories that will capture your imagination and help a worthy charity. Come join us as we take you on nine amazing adventures that will change the way you look at your pet!
10% of profits from the first month go to Hero-Dogs.org. Hero Dogs raises and trains service dogs and places them free of charge with US Veterans to improve quality of life and restore independence.
A MATE FOR MATRIX: CYBORG PROTECTION UNIT
By S.E. Smith (New York Times/USA TODAY Bestselling Author)
Matrix Roma is a member of the elite Zion military Cyborg Protection Unit. Matrix gets more than he bargains for when his cyborg partner, a hybrid Wolfhound named K-Nine, goes missing and ends up finding a mate for Matrix in the middle of a deadly mission on an unknown planet called Earth.
STRAY
By Susan Grant (New York Times/USA Today Bestselling, and RITA Award Winning Author)
Interplanetary Marine Lt. Lukas Frank has a lot in common with a street dog named Bang-Bang; they both started off as scrappy orphans fighting to survive—and beat the odds. Things change when Bang-Bang leads Lukas to starpilot Capt. Carlynn Riga. The tough war hero learns what it means to surrender — his heart. Lukas’s struggles with PTSD threaten to tear the three of them apart, but nothing threatens them more than when Carlynn goes missing on a mission. Can a scarred marine and his unlikely canine partner find Carlynn and bring her home, or will he lose everything he’s finally found worth fighting for?
SPARK OF ATTRACTION
By Cara Bristol (USA TODAY Bestselling Author)
Memory: intact. Cognitive function: enhanced. Emotion: erased. After becoming a cyborg, Captain Dante Stone didn’t think he’d ever feel again, until a traumatized young woman and a ball of synthetic fur named Sparky helped him to love.
STAR CRUISE: STOWAWAY
By Veronica Scott
Cargo Master Owen Embersson is shocked when the Nebula Zephyr’s ship’s cat and her alien sidekick, Midorri, alert him to the presence of a stowaway. He has no idea of the dangerous complications to come – nor does he anticipate falling hard for the woman whose life he now holds in his hands. Life aboard the Nebula Zephyr has just become more interesting – and deadly.
THE REAL DRAGON
By Pauline Baird Jones
Emma Standish didn’t think her day could get any worse. Her dad is marrying his boss, her dragon suddenly came back talking and typing, and it’s her fault the Earth, or at least ten square miles of Texas, is going to be destroyed. That’s what happens when you forget something very, very important. Luckily for her, she’s got the love of her life that she can’t remember and her dragon by her side. Who needs to worry when you’re having a day like this?
STARDOG
By Laurie A. Green
Navigator Taro Shall has a mission no one wants – find a way to eradicate snakes on a starship. He never expects to find the answer to his problem in a charming street vendor named Adini. His already unusual mission becomes more complicated when he suddenly acquires an adorable StarDog that soon sweeps him and Adini into the maw of a brewing insurrection.
SPIKE
By Alexis Glynn Latner
Young Roboticist Ten Jaxdown has to deploy, and possibly sacrifice, the swarm of investigative robots that he has invented and cares about more than anything else in the star system. It may be the only hope for those depending on him and his robots to save them. Yet, even as frantic preparations for the unprecedented deep-space rescue mission are set in motion, it could all be threatened by sabotage.
Anastasia Steed is an intrepid young mission designer. She steps forward with an idea that can improve the odds of the mission. Neither she nor Ten expect the assistance they receive from a very unusual pet. A pet that will bring together two alienated human beings who didn’t realize they needed each other. Can Ten and Anastasia discover who is behind the sabotage, save the mission, and discover what is evolving between them? With a little bit of unusual help, anything is possible.
SPACE RANGER
By Lea Kirk
Graig Roble is the Senior Commander of security for the Guardian Fleet. His expertise as a weapons specialist and combat master is his world, what he was born to do – or so he thought until he finds his resolve and focus inexplicably wavering. Even returning to his position aboard the Atlantis can’t save him; if anything, it has left him questioning his own motives. He never thought that could happen until he met Simone Campbell.
Simone's focus is on her home world - Earth. She thought her life was full with her research as a botanist.....Graig's gift of a puppy to keep her company does more than that, it keeps him in her dreams. How can such a simple gift bring her comfort and make her long for more? Graig and Simone are about to find out that sometimes love can blossom from the smallest, furriest ties.
ESCAPE RUN
By Carysa Locke
Teegan’s job as a hunter is to track down the Talented, those driven insane by their gifts. She and Ember, her psychically gifted fox, have tracked dozens of people for Cole, the man who works to rehabilitate and recover these troubled souls. When one of Cole’s most dangerous patients escapes, Teegan and Ember are on a hunt that could prove fatal if she doesn’t keep her focus on her mission. Unfortunately, Cole is proving one distraction that might make this her last hunt if she can’t do that.
Can Teegan keep her heart and mind in the game long enough to save an entire planet’s population, or will her distraction lead to heartache – and possibly death for everyone?
Networking. You already know it's good. You already know you need to be doing it. However. It is also true that money doesn't grow on trees. If, like me, you cannot get to conferences to do your networking in person (which is the ideal) all is not lost!
This is why Al Gore invented the internet.
Online memberships are networking opportunities. Any email list or group you belong to - networking. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Tumblr, your social media du jour - all networking ops.
Even though this is a great 'spot the dork' photo, even class reunions can be networking opportunities:
A few of my fellow Cornish grads. When I finally manage to produce an audiobook, I'll have several perfect choices for voice actors.
What does networking mean anyway? Cultivating relationships. Bet you thought I was going to run on longer than that. Nope. It's supposed to be a simple task, but it is as fraught as your first date was - all that fear of rejection! And of wondering what they'll think of you!
Here's a trick for handling networking (wish I could tell you it was fool proof, but networking queen I am not) - networking is NOT the place to talk about you. It's for finding out what everyone else does. Likes. Thinks. Believes. Values. You DO get to talk about you, but that blend should be at least 60 them/40 you. You network by having something to offer someone else. Whether that be time, talent, or knowledge. Offer. When someone asks questions on social media and you can answer, give it a shot. You may not get responses initially. Eventually you will. And when you need something, ask! This is part of your 40% - other people feel good when they get to help someone.
A true story as case in point: I'm in the middle of a draft. The research is destroying me because Civil War. Let me explain the level of available detail. O_o Anyway, I needed to know whether scent hounds could track someone who was inside a vehicle. Many long, frustrating hours trying to figure that out and I stumble across a blog written by a woman who trains bloodhounds for police work. She had incredible content and detail. So I emailed her cold, asking my question. But in return for her reply, I made darned sure to offer what tiny little bit I had to offer: mention in the acknowledgements and a link to her site. A day later, I had the most amazing and generous encyclopedic answer. Short answer: Yep. Those dogs CAN track someone who's inside a car. Kat Albrecht is her name. The scent hound website. And her newest venture: producing live mystery events.
This week my blog-compatriots have nailed everything I could
have hoped to say about the topic of networking. So rather than reiterate their
valid points, allow me to squee about the re-release of mine…
Many of you have messaged me to tell me that the short story
prequel to my Persephone Alcmedi series Marlboros and Magic was unavailable on
Amazon. I discovered that they had kept it from purchase because “Marlboro” is
a trademarked name and it is against their policy to allow. (Though it had been
allowed to sell for over a year…) So, I’ve finally got a modified cover,
re-edited the text for a few minor rough spots, and re-uploaded it for Kindle.
It’s the story of how Nana got evicted from Woodhaven Retirement Community.
Here’s the link:
Persephone Alcmedi leaned
against the brick wall of the covered entry to Woodhaven Retirement Community.
“You know why I’m here.”
“Yep.”
Demeter Alcmedi, or rather ‘Nana,’ leaned against the opposite side tapping the
toe of her untied tennis shoe—untied because her feet were swollen. She dug the
cigarette case from the pocket of her white Capri pants, opened it and put a
cigarette to her lips. As she flicked the lighter the stern expression on her wrinkled
face dared her granddaughter to admonish her.
Seph
crossed her arms and fixed Nana with a hard stare. Those little tubes of
tobacco were the whole reason Seph was visiting on this late-September
afternoon.
She looked Nana up and down. A
silver bee-hive hairdo crowned her. As she mimicked Seph’s pose, her shoulders
sank lower creating secondary rounded shape. Her hips swelled in a generous
third curve, producing an undeniable snowman shape. The plus-size tunic with
big red cabbage roses couldn’t hope to hide it.
Nana’s
icy practicality and arctic wit combined with her resourcefulness made her a
fierce polar bear of an old woman. Therefore, it stood to reason that the heat
from the chain-smoked cigarettes was the only thing preventing her from freezing
solid.
But the rules were the rules.
“Do you
need me to buy you some of those smoking cessation patches?” Seph asked.
“No.”
“Nicotine
gum?”
“No,”
Nana repeated belligerently.
“Should
I hire a hypnotist?”
Nana’s
arms dropped to her sides in exasperation. “Now shit, Persephone.”
“What?”
“‘What’
yourself.”
“You
could stop any time you want.” Seph made a decidedly magical hand gesture.
“Cast a spell.”
With a
defiant lift of her chin, Nana looked away.
Seph
knew what button to push. “The addiction tougher than you are?”
Nana
stamped her foot. “I. Want. To. Smoke.” She took another hit, blew the gray
results into the air. “I like it. I like what it does. And since I’m paying
mightily for the privilege of living in this dressed-up nursing home—”
“It’s not a nursing home!” They’d had this
discussion a dozen times four months ago when Nana moved into Woodhaven.
Nana
harumpfed. “Polish a turd, it’s still…a…turd.” She punctuated the last few
words by pointing her cigarette for each. “I should be allowed to smoke whenever and wherever I want.”
“You
knew the rules when you moved in here. You agreed. You signed a paper.”
Nana
smirked. “That’s exactly what Mr. Loudcrier said to me yesterday.” She mimicked
a puppet talking with her free hand. “Blah blah blah.”
Persephone
recognized the name of Woodhaven’s CEO. She hadn’t been impressed by the
self-aggrandizing ass, but he was in charge and it was his job to enforce the
rules. “They have the right to evict you if you don’t stop, and trust me, he will. Then where are you going to
go?”
Nana gaped at her.
Feeling like she’d won by
implying that Nana wasn’t going to live with her, Seph pushed away from the
wall. “You better think about that before you light up again.” She left Nana
with that thought and walked to her car without looking back.
Is networking valuable? Absolutely. Is it easy? Not for everyone. Is it necessary even in the world of self-publishing? You betcha. Hell, I'd wager it's more necessary in self-publishing.
It's necessary that you establish relationships beyond the bubble of authors, agents, and house editors. You need the dev editors, the copy editors, and the proofreaders. You need the artists, the designers, and the formatters. You need contacts at the distributors for when gremlins strike. You need the reviewers who deign to support self-published authors. You need narrators, ad designers, video developers, and tax folks.
You need to know who's good, who's reliable, who's flexible, and who's affordable.
That's everything you need. What do you give? Introductions. Guidance. Respect. Credit for jobs well done. Gratitude--never underestimate the value of a Thank You.
Always, always, always provide professional responses.
Personal restraint and decorum are the underlying differences between fostering relationships in a professional network versus expanding a group of friends. With friends, you can let your hair down. You say what you think, what you feel, all with minimal (if any) censorship. Not true about professional networks. No snarky asides about people in your community. No sniveling or sniping just because you weren't included in an anthology call. No bad-mouthing the work then trying to soften your rebuke with, "but he's a nice guy." And for gods' sakes, no laying your burdens at everyone else's feet and expecting them to resolve your issues.
It is very easy to say very nice things about people with whom we enjoy working. It's not as easy to discourage people from dealing with incompetent buffoons while remaining on the high road. There is an art to it: the art of Respect, Redirect, & Recommend. If you don't like the work an artist did for you, you don't disparage their talent. You respect the individual by noting something good they did then redirect the conversation and recommend an artist with whom do you like working. If you don't believe the quality of edits provided by a particular dev editor was up to par, you respect the person by pointing out a strength, then redirect and recommend to a dev editor whose work you value. If you're asked about a known predator, the respect shifts to the people who have done the vetting and verification that allow you to redirect the inquiry to a valid source and recommend an alternative service provider. If you don't know an answer or a contact, it's okay to say so. It's no shade on you.
There's a difference between providing recommendations/cautions and spreading gossip. A classic example, "Well, I heard that Pimpy's Promos totally screwed up the order and ruined Ethel's signing." Professional caution or gossip? Depends on whether or not you have personally verified the story with all parties involved. Do you know if there was any effort on Pimpy's part to rectify the situation? Do know if Pimpy provided exactly what Ethel requested, but Ethel's the one who made the mistake? You might share the unverified gossip with your friend, but you shouldn't say it to a professional contact.
Always be aware that the community of freelancers is well connected--for better and for worse. As James said yesterday, don't be THAT GUY.
You might not be courting gatekeepers, but you are building your own pre and post-production publishing team along with building your reputation as an author among peers and providers. Be the client with whom you'd like to work. Remember to give and take when networking. Remember that the contacts you make while networking are not your confidants or your cronies. They are your professional peers.
Networking is all about Respect with a healthy dose of Redirect & Recommend.
Once again I find myself in the unenviable position of following Jeffe in a post.
it's unenviable because, frankly, she's really quite right in most cases and she's good at making her point So now I have to find a way to say the same thing differently enough that I sound even a little wise.
Fair enough. Networking is GIGANTIC. It's one of the greatest skills you can learn. And Jeffe is right. It's about having friends and acquaintances and makings are that people think of you favorably.
Want to know what it's not about? It's not about being an ass. It's not about being THAT GUY at conventions. Which guy? The one that whines about how well everyone else is doing. The one who, at panels, as a member of the audience, waits until the questions start to make a fifteen minute long declarative statement that is A) Not relevant to the discussion, b) not a question and/or C) designed solely to inflate said speaker's ego in an attempt to make the panelists look unprofessional. THAT GUY.
It's not about getting drunk and grabby. I once had two separate editors point out to me that the thing I did better than several of the writers at a convention I was attending, was NOT get drunk, NOT get grabby and NOT try to pitch my novels while doing the same.
Networking is not talking smack about other writers, or trying to make them look small in an effort to look better.
I have one writer/editor who, at every convention or social event where we cross paths, likes to tell me publicly about numerous health issues, who likes to DOMINATE conversations that often have nothing at all to do with said individual's wheelhouse of experience, and who on several occasions has suggested that I should recommend their editorial services, despite the fact that I have never employed those very skills.
It's not just me. Several others have made comments. Here's a hint: A polite "How are you?" is not meant as an invitation to let the world hear your woes in a professional setting. You aren't doing yourself any favors in those situations.
Put another way, networking isn't about what you can get out of a situation. Networking is getting to know your peers and, yes, it's about friendship.
I have many friends in the field. I do not expect anything from them. They do not expect anything from me. Sometimes I've collaborated with them. Sometimes I've let someone know about a "closed" anthology, or had an editor on an anthology ask for suggestions as to who might fit within the parameters of same. Sometimes the favor has been returned.
Sometimes I've made introductions between writers and editors and sometimes others have done the same for me.
The introductions allow something amazing: a chance to not be left in a slush pile. A chance to show an unknown editor what you an do, especially if the editor is friends with or trusts the opinion of the friend who introduces us.
It's about being friendly, professional and courteous. You'd be amazed how being a decent person can come back to you.
You'd be amazed how long it takes people to get past the reputation being THAT GUY can get you, too.
Every time I hear the term "networking" I get a particular image in my mind.
I see a guy - yes, always a guy - in a cheap suit, standing in a hotel bar and handing out cards. He manages this complex multi-handed tango of holding a half-full lowball glass with clinking ice cubes, shaking hands and palming those cards. "Call me," he says with a bleached-tooth smile. "Let's do lunch. Have your people call my people."
I have no idea where I got this image. Probably it's some conglomeration of scenes from movies and TV shows of the seventies. That cheap suit has a distinctly seventies flair, so that's quite possible.
At any rate, knowing this about me, it should come as no surprise to any of you that I never had a good feeling about "networking." I so did not want to be that guy in the cheap suit with the melting ice cubes and the car-salesman smile.
More... I couldn't be.
I'm no good at being anyone but who I am.
Thus, the short and surface answer to this week's topic, "The Net Worth of Networking," is that it's a big fat zero to me. No - less than that! Negative values there.
HOWEVER,
(and this is a big "however," fully justifying the all caps),
I was totally wrong in this image, wherever it came from.
I finally, through a number of experiences I could probably fill a book with, figured out that I had the concept of networking all backwards. Once I figured out what it's really about, I discovered that networking is a skill beyond price. It's brought value to my life - both professional and personal - that is so high I could never place anything as crass as a dollar value to it.
What is networking really about?
Making friends.
That's it. No business cards needed, no fake smiles and multi-armed handshakes. It's about connecting with other people who are interested in the same things that you are. It's being friendly with people in your profession - being generous with offering them help and being willing to ask for help when we need it.
Here's a little story for you.
When I was at a conference recently, I talked on the phone with a writer friend who hadn't been able to attend. We'll call her Writer Wanda. Wanda had heard from another writer friend that an agent at her agency was interested in representing Writer Wanda. Now, Wanda was uncertain about this step. She'd had some bad experiences with traditional publishing, wasn't sure she wanted an agent in general or this one in particular, etc. We talked pros and cons, then inspiration hit and I checked to see if the agent in question, Agent Annie, let's say, was at the conference. She was, so I offered to stalk Annie and find out what she's like.
Lemme tell you - it was super fun to stalk an agent for someone else!
Plus, I'd signed with an agent a few years before, and had pretty much retired those skills, so I also enjoyed polishing them up again.
Now, like "networking," "agent stalking" can be misinterpreted. This is about making contact, not being creepy.
See the parallels here?
So, I started by asking around. In the hotel bar. Hey - many fictions are rooted in reality. I'd looked up Agent Annie's Twitter bio - and followed her in case she posted that she was hanging out - but it's not always easy to find a real life person from a profile photo. It was lunchtime in the bar, so I wandered about, looking for a likely face. Along the way, I saw many friends I've made over the years. I stopped here and there to chat, asking if anyone knew this agent b+6y sight. None of my friends did, but one was eating with an industry gal who knew her. She described Agent Annie for me and verified she wasn't in sight.
I kept looking in this way throughout the day, but finally caught up with Agent Annie at the Harlequin party that night. (I asked the guardian intern dragons at the door if she was on the invite list and they told me yes, and that she'd already arrived.) At the party, I spotted her thanks to that description, and introduced myself. She said, "Oh, you followed me on Twitter today." I told her my mission, and she suggested we sit to eat cupcakes, have a glass of champagne, and chat.
When I reported back to Writer Wanda, she told me, "Networking is totally your superpower."
I normally write either 40K, 80K or 120K. The determining factor seems to be how much mythology and mysticism I'm including. A story from me set in ancient Egypt will run longer by its very nature, as will a science fiction adventure set on a planet with room to include mysterious powers, deities and happenings. If I'm 'just' giving you a tight disaster adventure, like Star Cruise: Marooned, the story will probably move pretty fast.
That being said I do occasionally like to write something shorter as a palate cleanser, especially if it's for an anthology. The first one I ever tackled was capped at 5000 words and they were serious about that, to the point I felt almost like I do when I'm trying to make a long tweet fit the 140 characters. I had such a great story to tell and not enough words. The people doing the anthology were zealous about editing. I think I had five different people edit me and it got to the point where each was telling me to pull or put back something one of the others had requested me to delete or add. Never again, said I! 5000 words isn't enough for me or my muse. No more short stories.
But then I had a chance to be in an anthology with some folks I was really excited to join so of course I dove into the challenge. That one that was supposed to be 10K and came in at 13K (different folks, different anthology). I could work with that. We did have a rough limit there because even though it was an indie book, it was print only. And no longer available - sorry!
Then there was Healer of the Nile, which came in at 23,478 words. I forget what the goal was there -
15K maybe? It was first published in the Here Be Magic box set.
And Star Cruise: Rescue for the Romancing the Stars anthology, due in at 5K, came out to be 8800K.
And I just did one for a sekrit project we're not announcing yet (darn because this is the perfect opportunity) but which was supposed to be 10K and I hit 22,272 words. Yes, give me an inch and I take 10K words LOL. That's the nice thing about indie ebooks - they can be as long or as short as you need them to be. That story really could have been a full blown Star Cruise novel as it turned out. Lots of plot I had to omit...
I probably should mention in my own defense that in the cases where I went over, the other authors in the book were aware and most of them exceeded the target word count as well.
I've been thinking about putting together a book of my science fiction romance short stories as I get the various rights back, and maybe writing a few more to fill it out. We'll see!
I'd love to be invited to write a short story set in Andre Norton's Witch World but I'm afraid that boat has sailed. Or Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling world...or our Jeffe Kennedy's Twelve Kingdoms. For any of them I'd make myself hit the word count, I promise.
When we here at SFF7 do flash fiction, I just have to tell myself I'm only giving a snippet of the bigger story, not trying to tell all of it.
And clearly I'd suck at doing those "SF stories in 6 words" memes that pop up from time to time on twitter!
My Amazon Author Page, should any of this discussion have piqued your interest....
