Tidbits from Comic Con

I am shamefully late with these golden nuggets from the Comic Con 2014 panels. Here are a few inspirations and tidbits that have stuck with me since last summer. 

Tidbits from – FAIRY TALE REMIX Panel  

Shannon Hale, Cornelia Funke, Marissa Meyer, Danielle Paige, Tony DiTerlizzi, Ben Tripp

Shannon Hale

• Everything is a metaphor.
• If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want your children to be very intelligent, read them more fairy tales. – Albert Einstein
• Writers are the reporters of magic.
• Interesting questions to ask when adapting a fairy tale:

Why are the characters there?

Why do the characters do what they do in the story?

What do the characters do when they are not "live" in the story?

Here's a blog post from Tor with more details on the

 FAIRY TALE REMIX PANEL

Tidbits from Marc Guggenheim Panel 

(Writer of the ARROW TV Series and a billion other things)

• Setbacks precede a big step forward.
• Learn to write wherever and whenever you find snippets of time.
• Switching genres builds writing muscles.
• Develop a voice – not a specialty – writers are hired for their voice. 

Tidbits from the WHAT’S HOT IN YA Panel

Nathan Bransford, Scott Westerfield, Tahereh Mafi, Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl, Kresley Cole, Tessa Grafton, Natalie Parker, C.J. Redwine, Brendan Reichs

• A first draft is idea oriented.
• The story you want to tell will be the story people want to read.
• No one sees the next big thing coming.
• Trilogy? That means four books?
• The YA market is a giant canvas.
• If you wrote a book and it is out there, you are a writer.
• Writers are a tribe.
• Voice is what readers consistently expect from you as a writer.
• Critique relationships are important. 

Tidbits from COMIC CREATOR CONNECTION Panel

This is a program that sets up a “speed dating” scenario between writers and illustrators. Super concept. It’s not just to connect comic/graphic artists to writers. Indie authors have also used this organization to find cover artists. For more information check out their website.

Comic Con 2015 or Bust!!!!