Meeting Mull

On Saturday of October 23rd 2010, I went to a conference where Brandon Mull and Brandon Dorman were the key-note speakers.
I walked into the Hinckley building and saw Mendigo on display, I sat on the front row and excitedly waited for the conference to begin. I didn't have to wait long till Brandon Mull started his speech. I will now copy the notes from my notebook onto this blog.
Brandon Mull starts with saying "I am a professional liar, one who weaves elaborate lies." Or Illusionist, you could also say professional crazy person. crazy murdering hobo, due to being crazy enough to write, killing off characters, and being a hobo while waiting for it to be time to speak. he spins straw into gold, Brandon also believes photos can sum up people.
I write because I'm a huge day dreamer. I wasn't a reader until I read Narnia. Write what you know, what most people don't get is some people actually run and fly with the centaurs and dragons. In a book you feel like you're inside the story. I write what I love. There is a broad level of what is fantasy, the flat out breaking the worlds rules of reality creates fantasy. A good fantasy has to be obedient to its own rules. The young readers (YR) are built for everyone to enjoy. I write for my 35 year old self and my 10 year old self. Keep you audience in mind. I want people to feel awesome when they read my stories. Good writers are good observers, the details that you fill your book with. You need a healthy relationship with your imagination is a good thing. We reveal ourselves while we write. I wasn't built for the normal education system. I can guess things about writers by reading their books. Imagination can take you places, break the rules pay the price. You'd be surprised how many people harbor secret creative skills.
My way of outlining is daydreaming. I want to get better as a writer, the only way way to become a better writer is to write a better book. To me, imagination isn't evil, it's the opposite.
There are five basic principles:
1. Character: If we don't care about the characters, we don't care about the book.
2. Relationships: Family, friends, friendimies, enemies, mentor, rival. As they matter more to each other, they matter more to the reader.
3. Trouble: betrayal, war, save world/ kingdom, fears, obstacles, goals. if you want a good story, get lots of trouble.
4. Decision: What they say, do, feel, think. Its how you get to know the character. By understanding the decisions, the reader is involved.
5. Consequences: If the consequences of the story isn't authentic, it breaks the story. The story sometimes requires death.
I have a few different modes. Touring mode, outgoing. Writer mode, hermit. It depends on the day with how much you write. Being a writer gives things I mostly enjoy, finding someone to publish your first book is probably the hardest thing, I write cause I like to.
If you have a marketable premise, it is good. You need someone to sell to, different from other books. In a query letter you should be able to describe your book in one sentence that hooks. Fablehaven is about a secret magical park for mythical beings.
If a character is boring, they shouldn't be in the book. The agents happened by default, Orson Scott Card helped Brandon Mull with the agents. Wikipedia is a great thing for fantasy writers. A lot of fantasy research is reading fiction. I had a hard time trying to find out who I was, when teachers found things that engaged me, they let me do it. The book industry is by word of mouth.

These are my notes of Brandon Mull, I will leave it to you to figure out my spelling and confusing notes. I felt like I am a lot like Brandon Mull. He talked about teachers not understanding him, and I know teachers have the hardest time figuring out my mind. Brandon Mull is very friendly, I had the opportunity to listen to him for most of the conference. I got a copy of The Candy Shop War and got it signed by both Brandons (Mull and Dorman). I also got a picture of me and Brandon Mull. Hope you like the post!

My First Rejection

July 12, 2010

Dear J.M. Milius

Thank you for sending a copy of your manuscript entitled The Lava Throne to Shadow
Mountain for our review.

We are always pleased to see new ideas, and we have now completed our review of this material. It is obvious you have invested a considerable amount of time and energy into this project. Our publishing schedule is quite competitive, however, and as we look carefully at all the issues involved in publication, we are forced to be extremely selective in our publishing decisions. I am sorry to inform we are not in a position to pursue this project with you. Unfortunatly, the demands of our editorial workload prevent us from sending detailed comments about your work.

We appreciate your thinking of us and giving us the opportunity to review your work.

Sincerely,

Jamie Barrett
Acquisitions Assistant
Shadow Mountain Publishing

Dear Readers,
On Friday, July 16th, Trina called me, having received a letter from Shadow Mountain. Earlier that day, I had prayed for an answer. This letter told me that they loved the creativity of the story, but that the time was not right to publish my book. They thanked me for considering them as a possible publisher, simply, they polity turned me down.
My emotions surprised me though, I was not upset at all. I was relieved that I'd gotten a letter from them, happy to have the answer I'd waited two months and two weeks to get. I will simply refine the book and send the whole story of The Lava Throne back to them, the letter encouraged me to keep trying. After all, chicken soup was declined 100 times before they found their lucky publisher. J. M. Milius will be a name to be read along with C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolken, Brandon Mull, Eion Colfer, Rick Riordan, Shakspear, Brandon Sanderson, and all the other great authors.
~J. M. Milius (zdragonwriter12)

How To Train Your Dragon Widget

waiting

On May 12th, 2010 I sent my first two chapters of one of my books to Shadow Mountain Publishing. It arrived there three days later on the 15th. Their reply is supposed to arrive around my oldest sister's wedding. In some ways that's a long time, in others not enough. I'm anxious to get my reply, right now all I can do is write and hope. I addressed the return address to the Cedar City house, so I'll have to find out over the phone. The waiting is the hardest part, I don't like how I ask so many questions to myself, I hate not being able to satisfy my curiosity immediately. I'm an impatient kind of person.
well, that's all for dragonwriter12 right now.