Last year, I attended my first Comic-Con. Thanks to a short story I published, I was granted a Professional badge. I went all four days, including preview night. At the end, I was exhausted and wondering if I wanted to ever do that craziness again.
This year, I mainly focused on making the most of Comic-Con as a professional. The panels I attended were mostly related to writing. I also allowed myself to relax and try not to do everything. I even took off Friday and didn’t go back on Sunday. As a result, I got more out of my effort this year.
Fiction writing is a lonely art. Most of my time is spent with the characters running around in my head or down some rabbit hole of research. It’s good for the filling of the creative well to get out amongst other creative people. Any time I attend a writers meeting or workshop, I come away reinvigorated and renewed in purpose.
I’m very much the introvert. However, I need to be around other writers from time to time. I need the encouragement and also to the reality check. My advice to all writers is to push yourself to break out of your shell for at least short bursts. Writers need the company of other writers. Only we understand the madness. And to those extroverts among us, please help us out and pull us into the conversation once in a while. We have much to say on the paper. It’s just hard to speak it.
Have a great writing week.