We are gawered herwe togewer...
By Brett McLaughlin
Okay, so it's hard to write the accent of that crazy minister in The Princess Bride, but hopefully you get the idea. Anyway, I'm writing from a hotel in Boston. In just about an hour, we'll start one of our semi-annual Head First training sessions. These are onsite three-day events that we hold for authors that have passed the audition phase for a Head First book. It's one of the most exciting times for us here at Head First, because it's really where all of our new books are birthed (yes, I said "birthed," not "born," because birthed implies a lot of pain).
We'll spend three days laughing until we cry, convincing authors that this is incredibly hard, but yes, they can do it, and giving them the tools, tips, and tricks that make great authors into great Head First authors. It's also a blast for me, because it's a chance to really remember what makes this series so engaging: cognitive science, an eye for the learner, rather than the author's ego, scenarios and stories with minimal cognitive overhead, a thorough understanding of beats, boards, and the ONE THING... and that's not even including day three!
Do some of those terms make sense to you? Do none of them make sense to you? It's okay; most of the authors I'm about to meet have little idea about the way we use and implement those terms in our books. Most of them simply hopped over to the audition page, studied the existing books, wrote an audition, and then, a month or so later, they were getting on a plane to Boston.
So what are you waiting for? Does it sound like it might be fun to hang out with 15 or 20 other pre-authors, passionate about Head First, willing to work their tails off to be part of the Head First family? Then jump over to... yes, you got it... our audition page, and try out a topic.
And yes, I realize I linked to that page a whopping three times in this post. Must be important, huh? :-)
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As one of these mythical "pre-authors," I can confidently say that these training session has (thus far) been a phenomenally eye opening experience. Before jumping on the Head First bandwagon, I had written 6 books...and I'm here to tell you that the HF process is like nothing I've ever experienced before. Maybe its the intent focus on why and how people learn (as opposed to what you are writing)...and how you can leverage those ideas to create a book thats better, more engaging, and more satisfying for the learner. Then again, maybe its Brett's girly handwriting and purple shirt (which he adamantly asserts is "mauve."). Whatever the case, I've had (and am having a blast).