I joined the SFWA (Science Fiction& Fantasy Writers of America) on Friday, something I’ve wanted to do since I started down this path of becoming a writer. However, like many organizations out there, sometimes you can’t just sign up simply because you want to. In this case, you have to be a published author in order to join. Since I’ve officially sold, I qualify and they were very happy to take me in. (And now I can rub shoulders with George R. R. Martin. Well, not really, but I can pretend, anyway.) It’s an interesting problem, especially for aspiring authors. You want to join professional writing groups to prove that you’re taking this venture seriously…but you can’t, because you haven’t proved yourself yet. (Just like finding a job, eh?) And hey, even getting pubbed isn’t always enough – for example, I can’t join Novelists Inc yet, because I actually have… Read more