Guide to Literary Agents - Guest Columns

Agent Barbara Poelle On: 6 Things Writers Can Do To Make Their September Rock

Chuck — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 03:55:43 GMT

Barbara Poelle is an agent with the Irene Goodman Literary Agency, representing thrillers, literary suspense, historical romances, humorous/platform driven nonfiction, and upmarket fiction.

Barbara’s co-agent, Irene Goodman, offers manuscript critiques on eBay every month, starting on the first day of each month, with all proceeds going to charity. Click on the link for more details on these critiques and charity auctions.

Juxtaposed against the dog days of August, the publishing industry in September is all amped up like a toddler on speed. Many agents have spent the summer digging deep into their slush and attending conferences all in the hopes of plucking those rare jewels of talent to prepare for fall submissions.

Every year I plan on greeting the Tuesday after Labor Day with less than three client e-mails in my inbox and a large vacancy sign hanging over my slush pile. And every year September comes roaring in and I am covered in paper cuts and flop sweat, one hand clutching a Red Bull, and the other raised in victory that I am down to a mere 100 queries and 25 client emails that need a reply.

But I can tell you that for as much as I am hustling on my end, it is necessary that you, the querying author, hustle on yours. Here are some quick tips that I know work for me as far as authors “nudging” me on their solicited material:

1. Let agents who have your work know if other agents also now have it. If you have requests for partials or fulls of your manuscript within the first 2-3 weeks of submission, that is a great time to nudge the agents who have it: “Barbara, I just wanted to keep you in the loop that the partial/full for my novel Thunder Vampires has now been requested by three other additional agents. Looking forward to hearing from you.”

2. Be patient. If you are not getting quick responses on your submission, NO WORRIES!!! Simply mark your calendar for 8-12 weeks out from the date you e-mailed your submission. On that date, send a simple “Barbara, I am circling back to check the status of my requested submission, Thunder Vampires. I look forward to hearing from you.”

3. Use a little shame. If you are following up, send your one-line nudge e-mail as a response to the initial request from materials that the agent sent, so that when I scroll down I can see it. This accomplishes two things: it refreshes my memory on the material, and it shames me when I see the date of request :-)

4. Be patient, again. Generally I send a “Thanks for the nudge! It is working its way up the queue!” e-mail, but don’t panic if I don’t. It really is working its way up the queue.

5. Resist the urge to call. Never call the office and ask to speak to an agent who is reviewing your requested submission. If you get an offer from an agent and want to communicate your next steps, e-mail. Don’t call.

6. Keep working. You should be working on your next novel/proposal while you are nudging on the first, this way you have further materials to offer should someone ask, and it will prevent you from barking and eating hair while you wait to hear on your masterpiece.

Okay September … bring it!

5 Things Television Teaches Writers

Chuck — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:40:14 GMT

We’ve all watched television—dramas, police procedurals, reality shows, newscasts. Although television is a different medium than writing, it provides an abundance of advice wrapped inside the programming that’s relevant to today’s writers.

Guest column by Janice Gable Bashman, co-author
of Wanted Undead or Alive: Vampire Hunters
and Other Kick-Ass Enemies of Evil (Citadel
Press, 2010) and contributing editor of the
Big Thrill (the newsletter of the International
Thriller Writers). She is a regular contributor
to leading publications. See her website here.

1. Jump Right In—Television shows start smack in the middle of the action to grab and hold our attention from the get-go. This method discourages the viewer from flipping the channel to find something more interesting. Once we’re hooked, backstory is revealed. Tune in to any drama or even the news and you’ll see this method in action. Today’s readers expect the same from their books. They want to be hooked after reading that first paragraph, the first page, the first chapter. They want a book so exciting that they can’t put it down, a story that captivates their hearts and souls and fires up their imaginations. They want a story that pulls them into a new world and threatens to hold them there until the very last word. It’s up to writers to hook the readers, to keep them interested enough to keep reading. And it all begins with the first scene. Make it exciting.

2. Use Hooks and Cliffhangers—What keeps us hooked to television shows when the distractions of home, family, friends, work, the Internet, etc. threaten to pull them away? It’s simple really. Good storytelling. But it goes beyond that. Just because it’s good doesn’t mean viewers will stay tuned, especially once a commercial comes on. Television shows tease us when going into a commercial or ending the show. They leave us hooked with an unfinished question or scene that makes the viewer want to know more and makes us wonder what will happen to the characters in the future. This process is a deliberate effort to keep us watching the shows. And it works. For writers, it’s important to begin and end a scene with a hook. It can be an unfinished question, a line of dialogue, or a bit of action—anything that grabs the reader’s attention and make the reader wonder what comes next. The hook compels the reader to turn the page and read more. As readers, we’ve all experienced that book that keeps us up well into the night when we have to get up early the next day. What keeps us reading each page, each chapter, when we know we should really go sleep? It’s simply a good story combined with great hooks.

3. A Break From Writing Is Not a Waste Of Time—We’ve all seen the television character who can’t solve a problem but who is then hit with a great idea while fiddling with the remote, hanging out with friends, playing basketball, or cooking. Some of the best ideas come to us when they’re least expected. Some writers believe that writing is the only way to find new ideas or resolve problems, but sometimes taking a step back from the process yields wonderful results.

4. It’s Not Always Best To Brainstorm Alone—Ideas don’t occur in a vacuum. Television cops don’t work alone, the women on "Army Wives" solve problems together, and the creative group on "Mad Men" is just that—a group of individuals who work together to brainstorm ideas. Many of the ideas are terrible and are rejected, but then a unexpected gem emerges from the give and take among the group members. When stuck for ideas or for solutions to plot problems, writers often stew in their chairs, surf the internet, knock out chores, or play games on the computer with the hopes that the solutions will magically appear. Sometimes it does; sometimes it doesn’t. Shooting an idea past a colleague or brainstorming with a friend can be just the thing to bring freshness and excitement to your work.

5. Diversification Is Key To Success—How many good television shows have gone stale? They show the same twist on an old story line over and over again. As a result, we become bored, abandon the shows, and find new ones to watch. Also, have you noticed how advertisers don’t focus on only one market? They diversify among television, print, radio, and the internet and adjust their advertising to each market to achieve the highest success rate and to reach the widest audience. As writers we must diversify in order to succeed in this ever-changing industry and to ensure our work is constantly in demand. If we focus on only one market and that market becomes stale or fails, we’re out of work. But if we diversify and continually look for new opportunities in untapped markets, the opportunities are endless.

What forms of media have inspired your writing, and how?

Interested in scriptwriting? Check out The 101
Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters, and
read interviews with the writers of Rain Man,
Forrest Gump, Die Hard and more.

Want more on this subject?

See a profile of script agent Garrett Hicks of Will Entertainment.

Is there a difference between literary agents and script managers?

Want a great database of script agents/managers, script contests, conferences and theaters? Buy the 2010 Screenwriter's & Playwright's Market today! An interview with Blake Snyder is in the 2010 guide.

Check out an interview with script manager Marc Manus.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Trends in Publishing: How Our Worlds Are Changing

Chuck — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 18:24:07 GMT

In August 2010, the BlogHer ’10 Conference took place in New York City. A particularly interesting session was called “The Evolving Publishing Ecosystem,” and it was run by the following people:

Kamy Wicoff, founder of the blog “SHE WRITES”
Florinda Pendley Vasquez, who writes for the blog “Reading, ‘Riting, and Randomness”
Penny Sanseveiri, CEO and founder of Author Marketing Experts, Inc. and author of Red Hot Internet Publicity
Carleen Brice, author of Orange Mint and Honey.

They employed their varied perspectives to answer the question, “What have been the biggest changes in publishing in the last 3-5 years?”

Guest column by Theresa Milstein, who is writing
middle grade and YA fantasy novels. She's also
a substitute teacher. Read about her adventures
in writing and subbing on her awesome blog.

THE FUTURE OF SELF-PUBLISHING

Penny believes self-publishing has gone from being considered a last-ditch effort to a more respected enterprise. She brought up Legally Blonde as an early success story of a self-published book. Carleen mentioned J.A. Konrath’s success with e-books that had previously not sold or had gone out of print. Penny cautioned that self-publishing authors homework, and makes sure they publish quality books. She said, “Your book is your resume.”

THE RISE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING

Florinda discussed how the Internet has dominated over traditional media. Book blogs have critical for generating sales. There are also giant online book clubs, book blog tours, and even conventions. These blog authors have a huge influence on their readers. Penny added that traditional media channels like “Good Morning America” and newspaper reviews don’t have the same influence as before.

Carlene agreed with Florinda about social networking being an important tool, noting the advantages authors have when they are able to go directly to their audience and their readers being able to contact their authors through e-mail, blogs, Twitter, and Facebook. But the disadvantage is authors must do much of their own self-promotion. Some publishing houses have shrunk their publicity budgets. And advances have dwindled. This means authors must work hard and lay out their own money to promote their books.

Kamy promoted “SHE WRITES” as a place for authors to find help. She recommended getting to know bloggers in your market, comment, and network. And she encouraged writers to get to know other authors who write what you want to write about because many readers will buy the same type of book. In short, build a platform.

HOW TO START OUT

Novellas and short stories are a good way for writers to start out. There was a small market for these types of books before e-books. People can also publish a chapter to entice readers to buy the whole book. She also recommended making a video to promote your book. If a video becomes popular on YouTube, it can help generate book sales like it did for Kelly Corrigan of The Middle Place.

Penny said to know your market. Do research. She cautioned that if your book doesn’t sell well, publishers will be much less interested in taking on your second book. So you must promote as much as you can for your first one. She acknowledged the memoir market is more forgiving than fiction as a second book option.

Some enlightening statistics:

1,500 books per day get published
The top 5 books sold on iPad are children’s books
Last month, Kindle sales were larger than hardcover sales on Amazon.

All members on the panel agreed that whether authors publish through traditional publishers or self-publish, they must take greater charge of book promotion.

Interested in iPhone apps for something like
your book? Download a comprehensive webinar
from Al Katkowsky, whose book, Question Of
The Day, has been downloaded more than 100,000
times as an iPhone app.

Want more on this subject?

Guest column: How to start a blog.

Guest column: You've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

The Irony of Impossible

Chuck — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 14:53:39 GMT

One of the most daunting things about trying to get published has got to be reading all those odds that say it’s impossible to get published. My emotional self remembers hearing some of these numbers, and they feel like doomsday statistics:

Agents reject 99% of everything they read.
Editors pass on a large majority of what agents send them.
Fiction, especially debut fiction, almost never gets picked up, unless your platform is already incredibly strong. Things that help your chances include: a fan base of 25,000 daily blog readers; a syndicated TV show; your own theme song in the Billboard Top 100; a flag representing your brand in the League of Nations.

Guest column by Kirk Farber, author of
Postcards from a Dead Girl (Harper
Perennial, Feb. 2010) which was an
“Indie Next” selection for March 2010,
and also a Denver local bestseller. He
lives and writes in Colorado, and can
be found online at kirkfarber.com.

But how is an unknown author supposed to achieve this kind of popularity? It’s a Catch-22: you can’t get published unless you’ve already been published. This leads many to believe that the world of publishing is hyper-exclusive—a sort of gated community with a limited number of keys. Or that the industry is actually populated by aliens who can smell your human scent through paper and email and will therefore know to shred or delete your manuscript immediately upon arrival.

All kidding aside, these numbers can be a formidable mental and emotional wall to climb.

HOW TO STAY MOTIVATED

I received the best advice about this particular struggle by listening to a newly published author speak at a book signing. His tactic, and one I also find particularly successful, is to ignore the statistics. Treat writing like any other job, and improve your odds by getting better at your craft. Build your résumé by starting with smaller publications, and consider entering contests while working on your longer work. If you need to focus on a number, make it the number one—it takes one person of influence to see promise in your work. The rest is noise.

The irony I’ve learned about all those “it’s-impossible-to-get-published” numbers out there is that as soon as you do get a manuscript published, a whole new set of numbers defies everything you’ve come to believe. Suddenly you learn that not only do writers get published regularly, but upwards of 500 books get published every day. In fact, there are so many books getting published so often, that chances are your book will be ignored amidst the cacophony of printing machines, shipping trucks, and cash registers.

The new stats present themselves:

Only 10% of first-time authors actually sell through their advance.
Only 8% of published writers make a living through writing alone.
Knock that down to 1% for a comfortable living.

Whew, that’s a lot of math.

The good news is that for many writer types, numbers have always been a lot of noise anyway. Most of us fiction writers love using language and characters to try to make sense of the world through stories. And we nonfiction writers are often driven to share information, increase awareness, or otherwise educate readers.

So whether it’s the wise move of career-minded authors or just plain naiveté, I hope we can all ignore the numbers and continue to work on the words. Ultimately we need to decide what to focus on: fear-inducing statistics, or love of writing?

Need to sharpen the beginning of your novel?
Check out the great resource Hooked, which is
all about writing an excellent Chapter 1.

Want more tips and posts?

Query letter tips.

Five signs a literary is a good match for you.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agents Tell All at RWA National

Chuck — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:21:55 GMT

I spoke at the 30th annual Romance Writers of America conference in Orlando, Fla.—which was chock-full of awesome. The first afternoon of the intense three-day event (attended by over 2,000 people!), I went to the PRO Retreat, which included an all-star lineup of publishing pros.

Here’s a little Q&A from the agent panel, which featured the following reps:

Holly Root of Waxman Literary
Sara Megibow of Nelson Literary Agency
Kevan Lyon of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
Melissa Jeglinski of The Knight Agency
Emmanuelle Morgen (formerly Alspaugh) of Judith Ehrlich Literary

Guest column by Ricki Schultz,
freelance writer and coordinator of
Shenandoah Writers in VA. Visit her blog
or follow her on Twitter.

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR RIGHT NOW?

Emmanuelle: She wants more historical and paranormal submissions. And contemporary, also—the market has opened up a little for small town settings, everywoman/man. It’s open in young adult, too.

Melissa: She wants great historical fiction. She’s not into paranormal or sci-fi/fantasy. She’s looking for women’s fiction, romance (erotic to inspirational), YA (not paranormal YA, but historical YA), and middle-grade. No nonfiction.

Sara: She's actively hunting for new clients—she loves debut authors. Loves romance—yes paranormal, yes erotica—no inspirational.

Kevan: Looking for historical fiction (commercial & romance). She loves contemporary—would love to find a contemporary romance. Is OK with paranormal, but struggles with the almost-sci-fi paranormal. It’s OK, though—if you can pull her into it. Doesn’t want inspirational. Is seeking new authors in a limited and selective way.

Holly Root

WHEN YOU GET A REQUESTED PARTIAL, WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT? AND DO YOU WANT A SYNOPSIS?

Kevan: Doesn’t need a synopsis—she wants to love the story. She says: Sweeten the way in the first and second chapters. She wants to be dying to ask for more. Captivate her.

Melissa: Does want a synopsis. She needs to know spoilers—wants to know how it ends. [She reads the ends of books and all spoilers for TV shows, etc.] Wants to be engaged with the pages.

Emmanuelle: The chapters should get better and better.

Sara Megibow

HOW IMPORTANT IS THE "BRAND" BEFORE YOU SELL? WEB PRESENCE?

Kevan: It’s not an issue for fiction. It’s huge for nonfiction. Novelists should work on the book first—then work on the brand.

Sara: Says she’s the opposite. Your presence should be up—professional—polished—now. You should be involved in social media now. You don’t necessarily need to have it all, but you need to have some.

Melissa: “Just write me a really good book. I won’t Tweet—I’m sorry. I just want a great book.”

Emmanuelle: Wants a great manuscript. However, if you have amazing e-book sales, that can push it along.

Holly: She likes to see a basic, clean, professional website, but it’s not a deal-breaker if you don’t have one. You don’t need to spend a ton of money and energy on creating a brand (necessarily). Don’t dig yourself in before you have to.

Kevan Lyon

CAN A WRITER QUERY A PREVIOUSLY SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK OR E-BOOK?

Melissa: Not a fan.

Kevan: If you’re asking her to sell that book, it’s really difficult for her to do. In terms of self-published books, etc., selling her on you as a client, she says the “big story” is one in a zillion. Unless you’ve sold 25,000-30,000 copies, the numbers are not meaningful to an editor. “Show me your next project.”

Melissa Jeglinski

CAN A BOOK END WITH AN UNHAPPY ENDING?

Melissa: No unhappy endings! She’s a romantic at heart, but it depends. The ending doesn’t have to be “happy happy,” but it needs to be satisfactory.

Emmanuelle: The market prefers a happy ending.

Sara: She can take difficult endings, but they need to have redemption to them. Prefers that it’s happy overall.

Kevan: Wants to feel good about it—that it’s redeeming.

Holly: She’s okay with a bittersweet ending in women’s fiction. “It’s more about the catharsis than it is the wedding bands.”

Emmanuelle Morgen

IF AN AUTHOR WANTS TO CHANGE AGENTS, WHEN SHOULD THEY CONTACT YOU?

Holly: Contact me after you cut ties with your previous agent. Don’t stay with an agent out of fear that you won’t get another—be professional about it. Have the conversation. But don’t contact a new rep until you’ve done this.

Emmanuelle: Bring up your issues with your agent—try to iron it out. If that doesn’t work, part ways, and then shop.

Sara: [If you’ve parted ways with your agent,] it’s helpful to have a list of editors the project may have been submitted to when approaching a new agency. So no one’s time is being wasted.

SOME SAY AGENTS ARE BECOMING THINGS OF THE PAST. IS THE AGENT'S ROLE SHIFTING TO MAKE ROOM FOR E-PUBLISHING?

Sara: Their roles are shifting to include e-publishing and e-awareness.

Kevan: E-publishing opens up all new avenues for authors to reach new readers. Her role is to maximize that potential.

Emmanuelle: It’s tough to negotiate deals for your own work. Agents are irreplaceable. They know the ins and outs (with so many complicated rights, etc.). It’s their job to know that stuff; it’s the author’s job to write.

Writing romance? A must-have resource
full of information is Leigh Michaels's
On Writing Romance.

Want more on this subject?

Word Count Guidelines for Novels and Children's Books.

Check out agent Don Maass's popular book, The Fire in Fiction.

20 Tips on Writing a Query Letter

How Money Works: Book Royalties, Advances and Flat Fees.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Irene Goodman On: How to Write a Thriller

Chuck — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 13:40:25 GMT

Irene Goodman is the founder of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency. She represents memoir, narrative history, music, social issues and commentary, animals, parenting, food, Judaica, Anglophilia, Francophilia, crafts, and lifestyle. Her fiction list includes historical fiction, women's fiction, thrillers, literary fiction, and mysteries.

Irene offers manuscript critiques on eBay every month, starting on the first day of each month, with all proceeds going to charity. Click on the link for more details on these critiques and charity auctions.

What do I look for in a thriller?

1. I look for something that jumps out at me in an original way. So many thriller queries sound the same that they all start to blur. I lean toward things that have a romanticized air to them, such as finding Noah's Ark or chasing down some ancient legend or artifact. But so much of that has been done that you need to be careful. Try for something that is fresh and appealing without being too off the mark.

2. So many thrillers are male-driven. No matter how smartass the obligatory female character may be, if she always needs to be rescued, it's a drag. I would love to see a series starring a female Israeli ace pilot who is an expert in the exclusive and difficult martial art, krav maga, practiced mostly in Israel. This would be interesting and it would be encouraging. One of the foremost practitioners of krav maga in Israel today does happen to be a woman. She's tough and she's beautiful, and you wouldn't want to mess with her. That's my idea of a heroine. I don't mean to suggest that this kind of novel should be political or choose sides or stand on a soapbox. That wouldn't be fun to read. But a kickass woman who can hold her own would be delightful.

3. I look for clear, discernable plots that don't have to be untangled for me to understand them. I want to be fully engaged in a story without having to stop to figure out what's going on.

4. A thriller should be thrilling. It should have a larger-than-life quality, even if it's about regular people in extraordinary circumstances. I want to be scared, excited and hopeful that everything will work out, even if it doesn't.

5. I want to like the characters. Too many thrillers have competent plotlines, but the characters are just pawns being moved through a plot. If I can really care about them, and you put them in jeopardy, that's what it's really all about.

Want more on this subject?

Read an interview with agent Meredith Kaffel (Charlotte Sheedy Literary)

Read an interview with agent Lucienne Diver (The Knight Agency)

What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

What Agents Hate: Even More Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.
Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Some Tips for Writing a Series

Chuck — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 13:49:42 GMT

When you find yourself in the position of planning or being contracted for a series of books—whether for two or twenty-two—it’s important to keep track of the details, and have a final goal in mind for your characters to reach.

Guest column by Jess Haines, author of
Hunted by the Others, the first in an urban
fantasy series. Jess also writes short stories
and screenplays, and has experience in in
technical writing and editing. See her
website here, or find her on Facebook.

First, you have to decide on some basic elements:

How is your series linked? Is it all written from the perspective of or following the same character from start to finish, or does it follow different characters?
What is the major, overarching conflict?
Who is the main character(s) and what do they want to accomplish? What do they have to do with the conflict above? What are some of the major obstacles they will have to overcome?
Who is the main antagonist(s) and what do they want to accomplish? What do they have to do with the conflict above?
Who else is involved? Why?
Which point of view will you be writing this from?
When and where is this set?
If a fantasy, what kind of fantastical elements are involved, and what are the benefits, drawbacks, and restrictions involved?

Based upon the answers to the above, know your limits. Use those questions as a starting point to flesh out your world and make it believable.

PLOT THE TIMELINE

One of the best ways to keep track of the overall story arc is to plot a timeline of significant events. Even if the timeline stretches far beyond what is covered in the books, it helps you keep track of what occurred, when, and why. Even if it is no more than a sentence or two beside a date, it will give you bounds to work within, and a greater sense of purpose as you fill in the details between one major event and the next. You’ll know where your characters are going, which helps you to plot out the answers to the questions of how and why. It also gives you a way to track what occurs between Point A (main character gets pulled into conflict) and Point B (main character puts an end to said conflict).

UP THE ANTE

Remember, your characters have to continually face increasing odds and challenges in a series, so don’t play your trump card in the first book. There should be ripple effects from the characters’ actions, so make sure you take these things into account and plan accordingly. Make note of them. Don’t keep your world static—have the actions and reactions of all the various characters, including behind the scenes, have an effect on each other. Even if you’re using different characters book to book, as long as it’s all set in the same universe, there should be some action/reaction going on at all times. Characters should grow and learn over time, too, so make sure if they’re making mistakes that it’s not the same mistake over and over again.

YOUR "BIBLE" (OR "CHEAT SHEET")

Another tip is to keep a “cheat sheet” of sorts. Use it to keep tabs on things like minor characters, background info that might have bearing on the novels, snippets of statistics or information that you may need to refer to later, etc. You can also keep a database tracking major character attributes (height, weight, skin color, eye color, certain groups they belong to, notable quirks in speech or personality, physical ticks, habits, etc). This can be an invaluable tool to refer to when working across a series where a minor character may only pop up once every few books—and you need to know exactly what they look like so your sharper readers aren’t left wondering why the character had blue eyes in the first book, and brown eyes in the second.

ADDING QUIRKS

Lastly, you should consider keeping a style sheet—a document that tracks “quirks” to your writing style. For example, if you want to insert text messages and emails into your story, but need to show how the text should be formatted differently to separate it from the rest of the novel (e.g., extra indent, justified, font size 12, use Courier New instead of Times New Roman), make a note of it on a separate document. This goes for spelling or grammar quirks, too. This can be a handy tool for you, your agent, your editor, and the copy editor.

What all of the above boils down to is—be organized. Be prepared. Be knowledgeable about your story and your craft. It will make for a far stronger series in the end.

This post is an online exclusive complement
to a spotlight on Jess in the Sept./Oct. 2010
issue of WD. If you don't have a sub to
Writer's Digest, what are you waiting for?
Get one now!

Want more on this topic?

Read Jess Haines's "How I Got My Agent" column

Author Suzanne Young on: How to Write a Series.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

5 Rules for Writing YA

Chuck — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 23:32:22 GMT

1. The life of the story depends on the writer's ability to convince the reader that the protagonist is one of them. Teens despise fakes. You must know kids well enough to channel their voices, thoughts and emotions.

Guest column by Regina Brooks, literary
agent at Serendipity Literary. This text
excerpted from Regina's 2009 book,
Writing Great Books For Young Adults.

2. Don't condescend to your readers. Young people won't abide stories that suggest their turmoil or idealism will pass when they "grow up." Brent Hartinger, author of Geography Club, says, "I'm a big believer that kids are smarter than we think they are ... I think kids can handle complexity and nuances, and the advantage to writing that way is that the book appeals to both teenagers and adults. Don't deal with young people by trying to push them in one direction or another. Deal with them where they're at now.

3. Read, read, read today's YA fiction. A word of caution: Don't emulate your favorite authors, but learn from them,. You'll want to create work that is truly your own. The benefits to reading what's already on the market are phenomenal. It will familiarize you with what's selling, how kids today talk, what they wear, what issues concern them, and so on.

4. Silence your worries over commercial considerations. This allows you to concentrate on your primary objective, which is to tell your story. Keep your artistic integrity—your ideals—ahead of how commercially successful you want your book to be. If you focus on writing the best possible book, commercial success will follow later. The significant rise in the success of YA novels has opened the way for a multiplicity of categories, and just to give you an idea, I've listed some alphabetically: adventure, chick lit, comical, fantasy, fantasy epics, futuristic, gay-themed, historical, multicultural, mystery, religious, romantic, science fiction, sports and urban. If your story doesn't fit into any of these categories, you may have to invent one. Consider it an opportunity.

5. In your new world of YA fiction, erect no concrete barriers, wire fences or one-way signs. Instead, forge new paths. The YA field welcomes innovators. What will your contribution be? Think fresh. Remember that young people are trendsetters—they're always looking to differentiate themselves from others. It's how teens forge their own identities. Don't be afraid to push the boar out as well. Coming up with a fresh idea will set you apart from the pack and might be the thing that sparks an editor's interest in your work.

Want more on children's writing?

Examine Great High-Concept Hooks for Children's Books.

New children's agent seeking submissions.

How to write picture books for kids.

Buy the kids writers' bible: the Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market.

Interview with kids agent Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Read a successful young adult query: "Wake" by Lisa McMann.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

A Day in the Life of a Querier

Chuck — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 04:36:13 GMT

A Day in the Life of a Querier:

8:00 a.m. You're raring to go. You check and re-check your query letter.

8:30 a.m. You look over your list of agents to query and choose one. You double-check their guidelines and press send. You feel pretty darn good about yourself. You are confident she'll love it.

10:00 a.m. By now you've sent off queries to your top dream agents. You feel proud of yourself.

Guest column by Christina Lee, who is
currently querying for her YA novel. She writes
her own column for The Sun News and creates
hand-stamped jewelry for her on-line jewelry
business, Tags-n-Stones. She blogs all about
it on www.write-brained.com.

10:30 a.m. You complete a blog post that says something like "Querying agents isn't so scary after all!"

10:45 a.m. You receive your first form rejection. Basically, it says something along the lines of "While your work shows merit, I was not as drawn to it as I needed to be. I'm sure another agent will feel differently." You feel humbled. A shroud of doubt slowly descends upon you. You reconsider your list of dream agents and wonder if what you thought was a match made in publishing heaven, may have all been one-sided. It's not you, it's me ...

11:00 a.m. - noon. You mope around some more, and then change your blog post to include the title, "Querying Messes with Your Head." You re-read your first ten pages, and question whether you novel is good enough. You decide not to query anymore until you see other responses from agents.

12:30 p.m. You eat gobs of chocolate for lunch and get hopped up on caffeine.

12:45 p.m. You spy another query response in your inbox, and spend an entire minute staring at it before finally taking the plunge. You cringe while reading it and brace yourself for the worst. You receive your first request for a partial and fist pump the air.

1:30 p.m. You read and re-read your partial before hitting send, afraid to make any kind of mistake. You get a second wind to work on other things, like your newest novel.

2:00 p.m. You take a break and stalk the agent who asked for the partial on Twitter. You read what they had for lunch and note that you like Chipotle, too. You participate in Twitter conversations with other authors and marvel at the support of the community. Hearing their publishing successes doesn't make you nearly as green with envy today.

3:00 p.m. You receive another rejection. You focus in on the personalized line that reads "...your writing in the pages below was good, but..." You feel better about this one because the agent made the point to tell you your writing was decent. Which means you must not totally suck.

4:30 p.m. You receive a request for a full in your inbox. Feeling light as air, you dance around the room, considering the endless possibilities of your publishing career.

5:30 p.m. You spend time combing through your entire manuscript making sure you didn't miss any glaring typos.

6:00 p.m. You re-read the e-mail requesting the full and freak out some more.

6:10 p.m. You finally hit send and then cross your fingers and toes.

6:15 p.m. Before closing out your manuscript, you notice that a typo (that was not there five minutes ago) magically appeared on a page. You curse yourself for not noticing.

6:30 p.m. You spend family time preoccupied by that one typo and wonder what else you missed. You pray the agent is human, too.

7 p.m. - 10 p.m. You hit refresh in your e-mail in-box about one zillion times.

11:00 p.m. You fall into bed, exhausted from all of the effort your brain has exerted.

8:00 a.m. the following day. You look in the mirror and notice something brand new. You’re developing a thicker skin!

Writing books for kids or teens? One resource
you need is The Everything Guide to Writing
Children's Books.

Want more on this topic?

Agent Elaine Spencer talks queries.

What should you write in the bio paragraph of a query letter?

How to write a query letter - the three parts.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Back Up Your Blog and Save Content

Chuck — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:59:32 GMT

Blogging is hard work. Once you’re set up, there’s idea generation, writing, proofing, posting, and interacting with your readers, usually two or three times a week. And if you spend at least an hour a post (I spend an average of two), that’s, say three hours of work per week, twelve hours of work per month, and 156 hours per year—or thirteen twelve-hour days. If something happens to your blog, that’s an awful lot of work to lose.

Guest post by Peta Jinnath Andersen,
freelance writer & editor. See her website,
*Insert Literary Blog Name Here*. She also
writes flash fiction and short fiction.

Most people back up their computers, but forget about backing up their blog. If you write all your posts in Word or some other word processor, you might be able to patch things up if your blogging service or ISP throws a hissy fit; if not, you’re kinda sorta screwed. Fortunately, backing up a blog isn’t hard (unless you’re on LiveJournal)—it just requires a few simple clicks.

Backup a WordPress Blog: Login to your site, then scroll down to “tools” on the left hand side. See that neat little export link? Click on it to create an immediate copy of your site (posts, pages, comments, custom fields, categories, and tags), then download it to your computer, or store it in some other safe place (I store back ups on my hard drive, and on a dedicated gmail account). Confused? Check out Chris Penn’s screencap and follow along with the arrows.

Backup a WordPress.org Blog: WordPress Database Backup is a quick and easy to install plugin that lets you set regular backup times and upload the data file to a server, or have it emailed to you. Although the site gives detailed instructions for uploading the plugin to your site, it can be installed directly through the WP plugin interface (scroll down the left hand menu).

Backup a LiveJournal Blog: Backing up with LiveJournal can be a bit tricky. If you’re only looking to backup a month or less worth of entries, it’s simple—log in to your account, then go to livejournal.com/export.bml, and follow the prompts. If you’re looking to backup your entire journal, you’ll need to use an external service, like LJ Archive (creates a searchable database of your journal) or LJ Sec (creates a clone on another account). LJ Archive is easier to use, though possibly not as comprehensive as LJ Sec. You can also try using Google Blog Converters to back your blog up/move to another platform, but it requires more than a bit of tech savvy. (Have a better way to backup LJ? I’d love to hear about it!)

Backup a Blogger Blog: Log in to your account, then click on settings for the blog you want to back up. In the blog tools section (up top), click on “export blog” then follow the prompt to download a back up of everything. Confused? Check out Google’s explanation for screencaps.

Do you back up your blog? Which service to you use? Any tips or tricks?

Want more on this subject?

Peta's first guest post: How to start a blog.

Peta's second guest post: You've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

5 Screenwriting Tips All Writers Can Learn From

Chuck — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 02:04:28 GMT

No. 2: Start late. In individual scenes, don't waste valuable time on unnecessary entrances and hellos. See if a scene can be started in the middle. A writer who is willing to self-edit will often find that a scene is strengthened by cutting the first two, and often last two, lines of dialogue.

These tips excerpted from Neil Landau and Matt
Frederick's 101 Things I Learned in Film School,
(May 2010) one of five books in the
"101 Things" series.

No. 12: A flawed protagonist is more compelling than a perfect protagonist. Inexperienced writers may fail to imbue a protagonist with undesirable traits because they want him or her to appear likable and their cause noble. But a completely capable hero leads an audience to relax its attention: If he can handle anything, why worry? Audiences are usually fascinated by contradictions and shortcomings in a film's characters. The idiosyncrasies and failings we all have are even more compelling in a character that is otherwise heroic.

No. 25: Create memorable entrances. Your protagonist's character, style and behavior must be distinctive from the moment we first lay eyes on him or her. Does she trip on a carpet shag? Did she forget to remove a hair curler? Is he carrying a note-quite-concealed weapon? Is he a debonair smoothie amid a hubbub of confusion and crudity? Is she a lone, effervescent figure in a gray London gloom?

No. 29: Props reveal character. In Se7en, Morgan Freeman's character has a metronome besides his bed. Its ticking rhythm comforted him and helped him drift to sleep. But more significantly, the prop conveyed his desire, as an overworked city police detective, to control one noise in a cacophonous city.

No. 75: Make visual motifs specific. Motifs are visually evocative elements placed strategically throughout a film to amplify theme. They can also act as a structural or pacing device. Themes are broad and universal to human experience, but motifs should be specific to the story and directly relevant to the experiences of the characters.

Want more on this subject?

See a profile of script agent Garrett Hicks of Will Entertainment.

Is there a difference between literary agents and script managers?

Want a great database of script agents/managers, script contests, conferences and theaters? Buy the 2010 Screenwriter's & Playwright's Market today!

Check out an interview with script manager Marc Manus.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

7 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Starting a Writers Group

Chuck — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 17:51:55 GMT

As a professional writer, it is my duty—and my pleasure—to encourage new and emerging writers along the path. A few years ago, I started a writers’ group with the support of our local Women’s Resource Center. I wanted to create a safe space for women to share writing, resources, contacts, and a few laughs … and Wild Women Writing was born.

Since beginning the group, I’ve seen many writers come and go. More importantly, some of them have stayed committed to the group and returned each month to read, critique, discuss topics of interest, and take their writing to the next level. Starting a group can be a lot of fun—it’s also a lot of work. Before deciding to take that step, here are seven questions to ask yourself, to help focus your intent and assess your level of interest.

Molly Anderson-Childers is a writer, artist,
creativity consultant, and photographer in Colorado.
(In fact, this photo is of her hands!)
Her work has appeared locally and nationally in
print publications, and can be found online at
creativity-portal.com and ediblesanjuanmountains.com,
to name a few. She blogs at Addictive Fiction
and Stealing Plums, and is currently working
on a novel. Her e-mail is stealingplums@yahoo.com.

1. What is your vision or intention for this group? Do you want a place to socialize with other writers, get feedback on current projects, or share resources and ideas? Be clear about this from the beginning, and your group will be off to a strong start.

2. What qualifications (if any) are you looking for in prospective group members? You can choose to open membership to emerging and unpublished writers, but be aware that they might not be as committed as professional writers. Again, be clear about what your intention is for the group, and choose your members accordingly.

3. Do you want to focus on a specific genre, or type of writing? This, too, will help narrow the selection of prospective members. It will also ensure that, once the group starts to meet, members will find they have some common ground.

4. How much time can you commit to this group? Ask yourself what you can devote to this new venture—and be realistic. If you only have time to attend meetings once a month, and can’t seem to fit writing into your schedule in the first place, it might be more appropriate for you to join an existing writers’ group, rather than starting your own. It takes time and energy to get a project like this off the ground—don’t commit unless you can follow through.

5. What are you hoping to gain from this experience? If you’re not getting what you need from the group, you’ll lose motivation. For example, if you need a group of beta readers for your novel, don’t start a group for brand-new writers. You’ll be better off with more experienced authors that can give you the feedback you need to take your work to the next level.

6. What are your goals or expectations for the group? Be very clear about this before you begin, and share your expectations with group members right away, to make sure everyone’s on the same page.

7. What processes need to be set in motion so you can begin, maintain, and grow your group? First, find a place to meet regularly, where you can have a bit of privacy and peace and quiet. You may need to advertise for members in a local paper, put up fliers, or make a few calls before you have enough members for a group. Know that this won’t be a good fit for everyone, and that you will lose a few members here and there. In the first six months to a year, you’ll probably see quite a bit of transience among group members—it can take time for a group to really gel. I recommend leaving the group open to new members until you’ve established a strong core of writers who attend consistently.

Once you’ve got a good group, don’t be afraid to delegate some of the administrative aspects of it to others. It’s important to give them some ownership of the group, and to let them help. Maybe you can elect someone to send out group e-mails to remind members of the next meeting, or start a blog for your group. One person might be in charge of finding guest speakers and planning events. Another member could be in charge of scheduling an open mike night with a local coffeeshop to promote your group’s work.

Beginning a writers’ group is a rewarding, challenging, and inspirational experience. I’ve seen women who were afraid to speak at their first meeting slowly blossom into writers, able to share their work and read it aloud in front of an audience. The best part? I was able to help them along this road, as more experienced writers once helped and guided me.

If you are looking for a critique of your
work, come to see WD editors personally
at the next Editors Intensive (Cincinnati,
Sept. 11-12, 2010).

Want more on this subject?

5 articles on making the most of a writers conference.

How to pitch an agent at a conference.

The next Writer's Digest Editors Intensive event is Sept. 11-12, 2010. All attendees receive a critique of 50 pages of their work.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

4 Ways to Overcome Writer's Block and Write from Anywhere

Chuck — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:08:26 GMT

I did my best writing the last year of the 18 months I was homeless. It was the year I learned to dance with my lizard brain and write from anywhere. The lizard brain is an actual thing—a physical part of your brain called the amygdala. It’s the pre-historic lump near the brain stem that is responsible for fear and rage and reproductive drive, procrastination and, of course, writer’s block. It's responsible for why most of us can’t write from just anywhere. The lizard brain has convinced us that we just can’t.

Becky Blanton is a former award-winning
journalist, editor and photojournalist. She
spoke at TED Global 2009 in Oxford, England
about her experience of being one of the
working homeless for more than a year. She
is working on her book, Staying Hungry, about
how people create gourmet lives out of the
crap life sometimes piles on their plates.
See her website here.

The year was 2006 and it was the year the lizard brain kicked my butt. The month after my father died, I quit my job as a newspaper editor to travel, freelance and grieve. What began as an adventure became almost a year and a half of homelessness of living in a 1975 Chevy van with my rottweiler and my cat. It was a year of evading bored cops who liked to bang on the side of my van at 3 a.m. and tell me to “move along.” I worked a minimum wage cubicle monkey kind of temp job and forgot I could write. My lizard brain was in heaven—bathed in fear 24/7. I wasn’t writing anything. I was kicking out excuses like grocery store tabloids kick out new diets and celebrity rumors. It wasn’t until I confronted my inner lizard and kicked back that I began to write again. What being homeless taught me about writing from anywhere is this:

WHY YOU CAN'T WRITE

The lizard brain feeds on fear—your fear. He’s not particularly picky. As long as you’re bathing your brain with fear (adrenaline) like a teenager splashing on cheap cologne for a big date, he’s happy. The problem is, if he’s happy, you’re not writing.

1. IGNORE THE LIZARD'S LIES

You don’t need a computer. You don’t need to feel inspired. You don’t need a muse. You don’t need special software. You don’t need an office. You need a pen, paper and the ability to focus.

2. SIMPLIFY

Stress happens when the demands on you overwhelm your resources. When your resources are overwhelmed your lizard brain responds like rednecks to a new Jeff Foxworthy joke. If you’re stressing, feeling anxious or experiencing writer’s block and you’re working on several things at once —Stop. Work on just one. Don’t think about the entire book. Think about one chapter. If that’s too much, think about one page, one paragraph or simply the next sentence.

3. WORK WHILE THE LIZARD SLEEPS

Unless something life-threatening is happening, the lizard brain takes a few minutes to wake up in the morning. That 10 to 15 minutes you have when you first wake up, before you get out of bed with a novel idea, is a great time to avoid the lizard. Keep a notebook by the bed so you can scribble it down before the lizard realizes what’s happening.

4. GO HIGH-TECH

If you can’t write, talk. Use a digital tape recorder and talk your ideas out. Call a friend and tape the conversation the two of you have about your block, or story or writing. Use freeconferencecall.com and download the call and replay it immediately afterwards to help shake your block. This also works if you’re on location, stumble onto a great story and don’t have a tape recorder. Use your cell phone to call your conference call number to leave notes, or to do an interview.

Location, stuff and technology doesn’t matter as much as you think it does. Attitude and action do. I’ve written in the middle of forest fires, while homeless, on river rafting trips, at fires, while sitting next to dead bodies—anywhere. It’s a mental game—not a physical one. So practice. You can do it.

Want more on this subject?

Word Count Guidelines for Novels and Children's Books.

Check out agent Don Maass's popular book, The Fire in Fiction.

20 Tips on Writing a Query Letter

How Money Works: Book Royalties, Advances and Flat Fees.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Miriam Kriss On: Is There Still Room in Urban Fantasy?

Chuck — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:32:28 GMT

Miriam Kriss is an agent with the Irene Goodman Literary Agency representing commercial fiction and she represents everything from hardcover historical mysteries to all subgenres of romance, from young adult fiction to kick ass urban fantasies, and everything in between.

Miriam’s co-agent, Irene Goodman, offers manuscript critiques on eBay every month, starting on the first day of each month, with all proceeds going to charity. Click on the link for more details on these critiques and charity auctions.

Urban fantasy has become a catchall phrase for contemporary-set fantasy and magical realism. It draws on many traditions of fantasy, horror, hardboiled crime fiction and even romance, blending them together in differing degrees to give us new stories with old tropes. It first really broke out with Laurel K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series in the 90s and has been growing by leaps and bounds ever since, cross-pollinating additional genres as it goes, including of course young adult. By this point, it’s a mature subgenre and very crowded. So can a new author still hope to break out? Of course! Here are a few things to keep in mind as you go about breaking out:

1. Make the tropes your own. The key is to pick up on archetypes that resonate readers and then make them your own. Keri Arthur, for example, put her own stamp on werewolf lore with the mythology in her Riley Jensen series. Her werewolves go into heat every full moon and must make love or risk falling into a mindless killing frenzy.

2. Keep it familiar. This may be counterintuitive, but if you make your world too foreign, you lose a lot of what makes Urban Fantasy so accessible, especially to the casual fantasy reader. For instance, Vicki Pettersson made up the entire mythology for her Zodiac Series a Vegas set battle between good and evil. But she based it on the centuries old zodiac, the familiar star signs her inspiration for her character’s personalities as well as the rules for her world. Likewise, Lilith Saintcrow set her Dante Valentine series in the future, but her place names let us know something of how the geography of her world relates to our own and she gives us hints of the history of how our world turns into hers sprinkled throughout the books.

3. Keep your characters human, even when they’re not. Your characters, especially your hero or heroine, need to be people readers can relate to, with motivations that make sense. A great example of this is Jackie Kessler’s heroine Jezebel in her Hell on Earth series. Jezebel is a succubus, a demoness who’s spent the last few millennia bonking guys to death so their souls will be damned to hell. But her story starts when she falls in love and becomes human. Her struggles to make a life for herself and to figure out just what love is about are things we can all relate to.

4. Nobody’s perfect, at least they shouldn’t be. One danger for authors writing Urban Fantasy to is make sure your hero or heroine doesn’t get too powerful. It’s the old Superman problem. If you’ve got a man of steel, you have to invent kryptonite to just to keep things interesting. And you can only do that so many times before it starts to feel forced, so out of the realm of what we can relate to that you’ve lost your audience. Far better to keep your characters always vulnerable, always human enough that failure seems possible or even probable. Rachel Vincent’s character Faythe Sanders is a great illustration of this. She grows tremendously over the course of the series but not because she gains fantastic new powers. After all she’s an able bodied werecat when the series starts. She’s also a whiny, sheltered recent college graduate who hasn’t really grown up. By the end of the series, she’s still a werecat—but moreover she’s a seasoned fighter and a leader.

5. If you love it, throw it in the pot. One of the great joys of Urban Fantasy is that for all that it’s a mature genre, it isn’t a rigid one. Oh, there are a lot of kick-ass chicks in tight leather but there’s also the smattering of kindergarten teachers (OK, so sometimes they end up wearing motorcycle chaps, but they're not happy about it). There are lots of vamps and weres, witches and demons but there are also aliens, steampunk mad scientists, and voodoo prom queens. Most of it’s set in the here and now but there are a few near futures and Victorians as well. Even the here and now encompasses everything from Australia to China, going the long way around. Bottom line, if it’s fun to read and there are characters who we want to root for, if it has the magic to take us out of our everyday lives, chances are there’s room for it on the Urban Fantasy shelves.

And remember: If you're looking for a professional manuscript critique for a good cause, go to irenegoodman.com for more details.

Want more on this subject?

Read an interview with Irene Goodman.

Advice on writing memoir.

20 Tips on Query Letters.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

The Power of No

Chuck — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 18:06:22 GMT

Super Agent’s phone number pops up on your caller I.D. and before he can even utter “Hello,” you scream, “YES! I’m all yours!”

Your unabashed acceptance is similar to going all the way on a blind date. Sure, it happens, but is it the wisest choice? Desperate writers are so thrilled to have any professional interest in their work that they sometimes sign away years of writing effort with barely a glance at the dotted line. If an agent is offering you the moon, it may turn out to be a useless moon rock.

Guest column by Alison Ashley Formento, author
of the picture book, This Tree Counts! (March 2010;
Albert Whitman & Co.). See her website here.

Take a few wary moments to think before you sign and seal yourself to someone who might not be the best business partner to sell your writing. “No, thank you,” and a quick hang-up might be the best response if you experience any of the following statements during a phone call from a potential agent:

        1. “I love your literary novel in verse, but you’ll need to add in three hot vampire fairies so I can get the editor I have in mind for this.”

Response: You hold back a scream and ask, “Did you actually read my novel?”

        2. “I only rep nonfiction, and while I’m subbing your memoir, I’m sorry, you can’t send out those rhyming picture books. You’ll have to sign an agreement not to submit any outside work for a year, including magazine or e-zine work.”

Response: “Well, signing this will get me out of writing the PTA newsletter.”

        3. “Never phone or e-mail. I’m too busy. I’ll contact you if I hear from an editor about your novel.”

Response: “So if I don't hear from you ever, you're saying that's normal?”

        4. “I’m sponsoring a retreat for potential clients—for those like you, who have the “it” factor. It’s a four-day weekend at the Des Moines Hilton and I’ll choose my new clients from those that attend. Send your $1,500 non-refundable registration fee to my P.O. box. Cash only, please.”

Response: “This sounds fantastic. If only I hadn’t thrown $1,500 down the garbage disposal this morning.”

It’s not easy, but knowing when to say “No” is a powerful asset, especially when choosing the person you want to represent your writing career. And when you get that great phone call and make a connection, you can be ready with the response of “YES!”

If you want to compose books of little ones,
seek out Writing Picture Books by Ann Whitford
Paul, whose own picture books have
won numerous awards.

Want more on children's writing?

Examine Great High-Concept Hooks for Children's Books.

New children's agent seeking submissions.

How to write picture books for kids.

Buy the kids writers' bible: the Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market.

Interview with kids agent Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Read a successful young adult query: "Wake" by Lisa McMann.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

The 5 Stages of Querying

Chuck — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:07:45 GMT

1) Conceit – This is the beginning of the query experience in which you are convinced that any agent would be a fool to turn you down. You know deep in your heart this is the most fantastic book ever written and every agent who reads your query will request a full, (or at least a partial) immediately. And your mother, husband/wife and BFF beta's said so.

Guest column by Anne Gallagher, an aspiring
writer of romance novels living in the Foothills
of the Piedmont. Read her blog here.

#2) Fear – This second emotion is harder to contain as it encompasses a variety of anxieties at the same time: Is the query strong enough to get a request? Is the manuscript good enough? Have I revised enough? Did I find all my typos? Did I say everything I was supposed to say?

#3) Bargaining – This is when you’ll do absolutely anything if an agent requests any part of your manuscript: Spend more time with the kids, your mother-in-law, the PTO. You’ll keep up with the laundry, dishes, dust bunnies. You’ll remember to make breakfast, pay the bills, feed the dog. And you’ll pass up the new shoes you saw last week at the mall … you swear, if you could only get a request.

#4) Depression – This is how far you’ll actually sink before you start climbing up from the pit of despair. Some frequent comments in your head will be—“My query sucked, the agent will hate it. My book sucks. Why am I doing this? I can’t write a book. No one would read it anyway, it will never sell.” At this point, you must remember you do have family and friends who love you and care for you. Step away from the chocolate, get out of your sweats, take a shower and go for a nice long walk. A little fresh air never hurt anyone.

#5) Acceptance – And this last stage is when you realize, the query is out, agents are looking at it, you gave it your 100% best shot and there is nothing more you can do. So relax. And I won't tell you not to check your e-mail account fifteen times a day because I know you will, (I do, too) just try and get it down to three. Breakfast, lunch and before bedtime.

These five stages are not all encompassing or complete. The emotional reactions to querying varies across individuals and largely depends upon their support systems—and how much bourbon is still left in the liquor cabinet.

Here are some guidelines that will help you to manage these Five Stages of Querying and allow you to get on with writing your next book. If you've sent out your book, try these guidelines:

Respond: Try to respond appropriately when someone asks about your book. Incorrect Response: “Oh my God, I sent it out to query like three weeks ago and haven’t heard a word, and it’s like freaking me out, I can’t stand the waiting, it’s killing me because I knew I forgot to fix the typo in the return address and it’s like …” Correct Response: “I’ve sent my book out to query. I should hopefully have more information in a few weeks. Thank you for asking.”
Education & Developing Increased Resourcefulness: Now is the perfect time to stroll through agent blogs and find out what you need to ask them if "The Call" comes. An agent will appreciate you've done your homework instead of babbling incoherently, "I can't believe it, YOU really called me. Oh my GAWD!"
Encourage Your Peers: Pay it Forward. As I’ve said before, many times—we are all in this boat together and if we don’t help and encourage other writers, it’s going to be a nasty voyage. I’d hate to be the one stuck out on the poop deck.
Recognize That a Moderate Level of Anxiety is Acceptable: Of course, you have anxiety—your "baby" which you’ve slaved over is out in front of the world.
Develop a Sense of Control & Efficacy: Clean your office, your workspace, your kitchen. Write your author blurb, dedication, back cover blurb. You’ll have to do it sooner or later and, who knows, if "The Call" does come, you’ll be ready and agents love an efficient and prepared writer. Besides, you won’t have to panic later.

Happy Querying!!

The quickest way to get an agent's attention
is a professional submission. That's why you
need Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript, 3rd. Ed.

It has dozens of query letter examples (novels,
nonfiction, short stories, kids books and more).

Want more on this topic?

Interview with agent Jenny Bent of The Bent Agency.

Interview with agent Scott Eagan of Greyhaus Literary.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Michael Larsen Talks 12 Ways to Excite Pros About Your Novel

Chuck — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:49:45 GMT

A novel has been called a piece of prose that has something wrong with it. Here’s how to ensure your novel has nothing wrong with it: 12 ways to get agents and editors excited about your work.

Michael Larsen and his wife Elizabeth Pomada
founded Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents and
run the Writing for Change Conference (Nov. 13-14,
2010 in San Francisco). Michael is the author or
co-author of How to Write a Book Proposal.
He runs a new agent blog, as well. To see the
nonfiction topics he seeks, click here.

1. Your idea: new, creative, timely, informative, entertaining, transformative, commercial, helpful, aimed at a large, proven market.

2. Your writing: style, tone, humor, drama, inspiration, insights, voice.

3. Your irresistible first page: compels editors to turn the page.

4. Your readers: the community of readers who give you feedback while you’re writing your book and when you’re done.

5. You: your passion, commitment, track record, credentials.

6. Your platform, visibility online and off: blog, short stories, teaching, speaking, a blog, social media, networks.

7. Your test-marketing: a blog, podcast, e-book, self-published edition, serialization, website.

8. Your promotion plan: a list of things you will do, online and off, and how many of them, a budget.

9. Your book’s promotion potential: online and off, reviews, media interviews, endorsements.

10. The markets for your book: consumers, libraries, subsidiary rights, reading groups.

11. Your future books: your book’s series potential, the synopsis for your next book.

12. Your book’s spinoff potential: merchandising products, short stories, music.

There’s a Sipress cartoon in The New Yorker showing a medieval torturer in a dungeon standing in front of a guy being stretched on a rack, and he’s saying: “Don’t talk to me about suffering—in my spare time, I’m a writer.” Using these ideas will lessen your suffering on the road to publication.

(Michael previous guest blogged regarding his best tips for writers and their career. It was a three-part series and Part I is here.)

Michael Larsen's book, How to Write a
Book Proposal (now in its third edition) has
sold more than 100,000 copies and
helped countless writers sell their work.

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Clean Up Your Formatting in a Query

Chuck — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:57:53 GMT

Have you ever received an e-mail from someone that had text cut and paste into it, and the text was all garbled? Maybe apostrophes were now like 18 symbols long? Or m-dashes looked like a firework exploded in the e-mail? That's the danger of cutting and pasting different fonts into an e-mail you send. I remember just last year I received a query that looked like this:

------------------

Dear Mr. Sambuchino:

I have a great idea for the Guide to Literary Agents that I wanted to share just with you.

------------------

You can see the problem here. It's obvious they cut and paste a previous query into their e-mail to me, then changed some details, but the new changes came through with funky formatting. This is the exact stuff you want to avoid when querying agents.

The solution is tedious, but here's what I recommend. (By the way, if you have a different way you want to share, simply do so in the comments.)

STEP 1: WRITE YOUR QUERY

Just write it. This will likely happen in a Microsoft Word doc. Right now, it doesn't matter. Write all of it—from "Dear (Agent)" to "Sincerely, Chuck."

STEP 2: CUT AND PASTE THE QUERY INTO EITHER NOTEPAD (PC) OR TEXT-EDIT (MAC)

These programs are designed to "wipe" all formatting out of your text. For example, if you put text in under 1,000 different fonts, NotePad wipes all that text out. It equalizes everything—so the text is now "clean" for you. By the way, if you use TextEdit for Mac, go under "Format" in the toolbar and make sure you choose "Make Plain Text."

STEP 3: OPEN A NEW E-MAIL

That's right: Open a new e-mail for every agent query. (I would not "reply" to an e-mail and then query.) Then cut and paste the entire query in from TextEdit or Notepad. The query will come through in universal, "clean" font. BUT—since you've made it totally clean, you will have to go back through and italicize and bold what you want. You will also have to manually push the date right, etc. It's tedious, but worth it. As long as you edit only within the text and don't cut and paste more material in from elsewhere, you query will be the same font and come through looking fine.

STEP 4: SEND, AND BECOME A FAMOUS AUTHOR

Self-explanatory. If you're still nervous, perhaps you could test it by sending emails to a few friends or other e-mail accounts.

Tim Beyers, a freelancer who specializes in
technology and business, can teach you all
about using Twitter to make money.
Learn more through the on-demand webinar.

Want more on this subject?

Literary agents talk blogging, Twitter, and more.

How to create a simple writer blog.

So you've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

5 Lies Unpublished Writers Tell Themselves (and the Truths That Can Get Them Published)

Chuck — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 17:06:13 GMT

Writers tend to be creative in many areas of life, so it's no surprise that we can get creative with the truth. Or, as my mother said, "You lie a lot." This is especially tempting when we are debating why we aren't published. Before I was a published author, I embraced a few cherished lies because they blunted the pain of rejection. But the road to publication required discarding these lies and facing reality. Here are five lies I believed before I was published:

Guest column by Matt Mikalatos, freelancer,
and author of the novel "Imaginary Jesus"
(BarnaBooks, April 2010). See his website here.
Matt's publisher is running a contest until July 1, 2010
where the winner gets a Kindle, I-Pod, and
trip to Portland to meet the author.
Find more contest info here!

1. THE RULES DON'T APPLY TO ME.

I write amazing first drafts. If there were a contest for first drafts, mine
would win every time. So I told myself, "Writing is not rewriting." Other
people might have to do multiple drafts, but my first drafts are so solid I
could publish them as-is. For years I believed this.

One day I did three drafts of an article, and it became my first published
article. A solid first draft is not good enough to be published. All those
"rules of writing" that you read in Writer's Digest, on blogs, and in
creative writings classes are rules because they are true most of the time.
So if there are some rules that you think don't apply to you, think again.
It might be the rule preventing you from getting published.

2. AGENTS AND EDITORS HAVE IT IN FOR ME.

Ah, those blood-sucking agents and editors. I'm pretty sure they have meetings in a secret underground lair where they talk about how jealous they are of my writing skills and how they should team up to keep me from being published.

This is a lie that is so prevalent among unpublished writers that editors and agents have to go to psychologists so they can feel good about themselves again. I know one editor who calls herself "Dream Crusher" to assuage her pain. Here's the truth: Editors and agents desperately want you to be good enough. They make a living by writers being publishable. If you're getting rejected it's because you still have work to do. either as a writer or as a marketer.

3. I'M NOT A MARKETER, I'M A WRITER!

Which is exactly why you aren't published yet. You have to do the hard work of writing a spectacular query and proposal. Notice that you have to "write" the query and proposal. You're not being asked to do an interpretive dance or draft blueprints to a rocket ship. It might not be your style, and it might be hard work, but being a published author is hard work, complete with e-mails you don't want to answer, deadlines, accounting and marketing!

4. I SHOULD SPEND A LOT OF TIME FANTASIZING OVER WHERE I WILL BE PUBLISHED NOW THAT I'VE WRITTEN TWO CHAPTERS OF MY NOVEL.

It is way more fun to read Writer's Market over and over—memorizing the publishers and agents—than it is to write your book. And while this is good practice for when your book is ready to shop, if the fantasy-to-writing ratio tips toward fantasy, it's time to get back to writing. Unless you are writing a fantasy, in which case you are probably fine and keep up the good work.

5. I'M A BETTER WRITER THAN MOST PUBLISHED AUTHORS.

If you're like me, you love picking up a book from the "Top 10" rack, flipping it open and cringing at the terrible prose. But this author (who is, keep in mind, a worse writer than you) somehow got a contract, got published and is selling well. I said this most often before I had finished writing the first draft of my first novel. Perhaps it's just that the "hack writers" out there actually finish their books.

Here's an exercise: Find a writer online who is published but far inferior to you as a writer. Look at what magazines they are published in. Then write stories or articles to submit to those magazines. This is a guaranteed way to build your writing resume. Unless—they are actually better writers than you, in which case, it's a good reality check.

These are a few of the lies that I wish someone had confronted me with when I was an unpublished writer. Now, here's one last truth for you: You can do this. Work hard, keep writing, improve your craft and be persistent. We're all waiting to read your masterpiece!

Need to sharpen the beginning of your novel?
Check out the great resource Hooked, which is
all about writing an excellent Chapter 1.

Want more tips and posts?

Query letter tips.

Five signs a literary is a good match for you.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agents Tell All in DC: Paige Wheeler, Shannon O'Neill and Suzie Townsend

Chuck — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 14:53:15 GMT

This weekend, I spoke at the American Independent Writers Conference in Washington, DC. The conference was a great, intense one-day event focused a lot on the business part of writing. One session I attended was the Fiction Agents Roundtable, featuring three literary agents: Paige Wheeler of Folio Literary Management, Shannon O’Neill of the Sagalyn Literary Agency, and Suzie Townsend of FinePrint Literary Management. Here are some of their tips and Q&A.

Paige    Shannon           Suzie
Wheeler                        O'Neill                         Townsend

Once you’ve decided to offer a writer representation, what is the process of how that works?

Shannon: There is no formulaic step-by-step process.

Suzie: Just because you get an offer from an agent doesn’t mean it’s the right match. Big question to ask the agent is: Are you editorially inclined and what edits did you have in mind? What is the vision? Same thing with an editor offering a deal—is the writer comfortable with vision for final product? Should you wait for a different deal?

How effective are conferences for finding agents?

Paige: You can use meeting us here as an “in” for your query. Concerning individual pitch sessions, she recognizes that writers can be nervous during pitches, so she is liberal in what she requests. Also, when your book is sold later, you need to start looking for blurbs. So network now (beforehand)! Befriend published authors at conferences. Come here to meet other writers to form a critique group.

Shannon: Business-related conferences are a great place to be. Craft conferences are a different beast—they are an investment of time and money.

If an agent requests pages from you at a conference, how soon should you send it?

Paige: Just don’t submit it and say “WAAAIT. Here is a better second version.”

Suzie: If stuff is requested, you do not have to respond right away—take several days, but do not wait months.

How can a writer improve the business relationship between himself and his agent?

Shannon: Ask questions. Make sure you’re on the same page. Be responsive—let your agent know if you are going away, or if work life is crazy right now, or if someone dies, so the agent knows you will be busy.

Paige: Be communicative, but not too communicative. She doesn’t want e-mails every week checking in.

Do agents counsel authors with promotional techniques such as using social media?

Suzie: Yes. But none of the agents at FinePrint are publicists. That is the responsibility of the author. The average professional publicist has 40 books and spends time on lead titles. Author must develop presence online and make connections and network and do their own things. Most authors do the bulk of publicity themselves.

Shannon: An author being eager to be a self-promoter is key. The key is energy, not necessarily savvy. If they’re engaged, enthusiastic, out there promoting through channels that they know about or will learn about—that’s what’s important. Be engaged; build a platform.

How many clients are full-time writers vs. day-job authors?

Paige: The number of female authors outweighs men in fiction, and, to guess, 75% of hers are full-time writers

Suzie: Yes: 75%.

Shannon: She handles a lot of men who do nonfiction, and those authors tend not to be stay-at-home, full-time writers.

What percentage of projects that you take on eventually sell?

Paige: Probably 7 of 10.

How do you pitch stories when face to face with agent?

Suzie: Start with introducing yourself. Try to be confident and not nervous because we’re just people. Passion and excitement is contagious. You are giving your pitch paragraph o the agent, not a chapter-by-chapter play-by-play. Who is the main character? What is tough choice they face? Don’t get into the side story? What are the consequences of the choice they make?

When interests and needs have changed, how do you break up with an agent?

Paige: Most often with this scenario, the author's and agent's interest depart. Author decides to go off in new direction and agent doesn’t rep that area. Sometimes, if their career isn’t going well, writers blame agents and editors. A proper step to take is to address that there are problems and perhaps the issues can first be discussed. Start with an e-mail and follow up with a phone call. How the relationship will be dissolved is in the agency retainer. But at the same time, agents talks, so if you approach Agent 2 to sign you, they may contact Agent 1 to inquire about about you.

Suzie: A lot of us know each other, so writers should be careful about how they conduct themselves.

With YA becoming popular, is there room in mainstream adult fiction for coming of age from the POV of a child?

Paige: It’s about the subject matter. Who would read the book? What is the language like?

Suzie: “Looking back” to adolescence usually fits more into adult. Don’t worry about the classification; worst case scenario: send it to both YA and adult and let the agents decide.

Want more on this subject?

5 articles on making the most of a writers conference.

How to pitch an agent at a conference.

The next Writer's Digest Editors Intensive event is Sept. 11-12, 2010. All attendees receive a critique of 50 pages of their work.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

If It Hurts, You're Doing Something Right: 3 Ideas About the Pain of Writing

Chuck — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 13:46:02 GMT

Yes, getting that first book published hurts—like I can’t even tell you. But the good news is that all the hurt is worth it; in fact, it's invaluable. It's the hurt that counts. And if you haven’t been through the pain, then save yourself the postage.

Guest column by Heath Gibson , whose debut
novel Gigged was released in May 2010 (Flux).
He holds an MFA in Children's Literature from
Hollins University and teaches English at a
high school in Atlanta.

1. THE GOAL IS NOT A GOOD STORY; IT'S A GREAT STORY

It's all about getting a story ready to be looked at. In getting Gigged ready for an editor to see, it had been raked over and over. Sixty-five page chunks were hacked, the last thirty pages were rewritten six times. I agonized over lines, phrases, even single word choices. Chapters were shifted, characters reworked. I climbed into dark places that hit me so hard I took showers after writing certain chapters. But it was only afterward that I realized that what I was doing was getting the manuscript in the shape it needed to be in. While it was happening, I was simply in pursuit of authenticity—a story that only I could tell and tell it in a way that only I could do it.

I never wanted Gigged to be just a good story. Lots of good stories are out there. I wanted it to be an experience that would stick with the reader like pine sap—even force them to reread it. I had to get past writing with agents and editors in mind. Doing that, quite frankly, blinded me from the genuineness of my character’s story.

2. A STORY CAN EASILY GET WATERED DOWN

In 2004, an editor at Simon and Schuster’s Aladdin imprint showed some serious interest in a manuscript of mine. She went over the whole thing, wrote notes and comments in the margins. She sent me a long letter with her ideas and suggestions along with the manuscript, expressing her excitement in seeing the revised draft. As you can imagine, I was on the verge of bursting into flames. So, I worked like a crazy person, even calling in sick a couple of days just to work on revisions. I faithfully took all her suggestions into consideration and did everything I thought I needed to do to give her what she wanted. And in the end, I killed the manuscript.

In the pursuit of publication, I had lost the edge and atmosphere you can almost rub between your fingers—those characteristics that make a story worthy, in my opinion. The editor at Aladdin rightly passed.

Yeah, it hurt. But it was an experience I needed to have. It made me a better writer. Without it, I wouldn’t have been ready to write Gigged.

Even before I let an editor see Gigged, the manuscript had been hacked, stripped, dressed-up, set on fire (not really), cleaned and dirtied all over again. I couldn’t care about editors and agents, yet. It had to be just between me and J.T. (the narrator).

I crawled through it all with him, consistently focused on presenting his story in a way that only I would think to do it. It was something in the back of mind on every line. If the line wasn’t accomplishing something, if it didn’t ring true, it got cut. Nothing mattered to me more than doing right by the characters and giving readers what they deserve.

3. WE MUST BELIEVE GOOD WORK WILL FIND A HOME

Do the research. Work on that query letter. Go to conferences. Do all those things you need to do to put yourself in the right position. But all of that will be futile if your story isn’t ready to be looked at. At the end of the first conversation I had with my editor about acquiring Gigged, he asked me if I had anything else he could see. I had a completed manuscript and about fifty pages of something new. I said I’d get back with him.

I read enough of the completed manuscript to know that it wasn’t even close to being in the kind of shape it need to be in. So I worked on the new story. I got to page 130 and decided I had to start over. Ouch. It was the right decision, though. At least I think it was. I’m waiting to hear what my editor thinks.

To emphasize my Southern origins a bit here: Sometimes to get through the door you have to drag yourself through a keyhole. It’s tough but necessary. Your manuscript will be better for it. Someone will notice.

Writing a novel? Literary agent Oscar Collier and
successful freelance writer Frances Spatz Leighton
team up to give you How to Write & Sell Your
First Novel. You'll find 100 expert tips inside its pages.

Want more on this topic?

Get agents to like your characters and keep reading.

6 keys to revising your fiction.

Footnotes: 8 articles on revision.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

6 Keys to Revising Your Fiction

Chuck — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 14:51:35 GMT

The two dirtiest words in this writer’s vocabulary both start with the letter “R”. The first, and worst, is rejection. Having spent more than two years on my agent search, I have loads of experience in the rejection arena. I wrote three manuscripts and sent out over two hundred queries before I landed that first call with an agent. In May of 2008, Alyssa Eisner Henkin of Trident Media Group offered me representation for what would become my debut novel, The Tension of Opposites. During that first call, Alyssa said she loved the voice and premise of the story, but the plot was “messy” and needed a “major overhaul.” Okay, I thought to myself. No problem. Thankfully, I had no idea what lay ahead. What lay ahead was the second dirtiest word in this writer’s vocabulary: revision.

Guest column by Kristina McBride, a former
high-school English teacher who wrote
The Tension of Opposites in response to
the safe return of a child who was kidnapped
while riding his bike to a friend’s house.
The novel (her debut) was released in May
2010. See her website here.

I am a former high school English teacher, so I’m familiar with the importance of revision. For eight years, I drug my students through several drafts of each essay I assigned, harping on them to tighten and sharpen their writing. When I received my first (six page) editorial letter from my agent, I found myself on the other side of the critique for the first time in a long time.

Cut to six months, four drafts, and pounds of M&M’s later, and you’d find me on the phone with Alyssa, cringing as she tells me that the fourth draft just isn’t working. “Should you consider putting this manuscript in a drawer and focusing on something else?” she asked.

“No,” I said, scared that I might lose her brilliant guidance, hating myself that I was such a loser and couldn’t figure out the plot. “I’m giving this one more shot.”

REVISION OR RE-VISION?

After a week of wallowing in depression and scarfing a few gallons of chocolate ice cream, I started to view the manuscript from a different perspective. I had a vision. Or should I say a Re-Vision? Though it pained me, I sat at my desktop and deleted all but five chapters of my terribly messy manuscript.

Let me tell you something about doing this: The freedom I gained was inspirational. It gave me the fresh start I needed to pull the manuscript together. Within five months, Alyssa said my manuscript was ready to pitch to editors. Three weeks later, I had three offers! The Tension of Opposites went to a mini-auction, and it was my turn to dole out rejection (a difficult task, as each editor I spoke with was lovely, and I was honored by the opportunity to work with each of them).

So, how did I do it? One key factor was a book. (In my life, there’s always a book.) Hooked by Les Edgerton guided me beautifully as I started fresh on my manuscript. There were also some important things I learned during my painful almost-year of revisions:

Try not to make things overly complicated. Alyssa once told me to take the plot out of its braid and throw it in a ponytail. Simple, but brilliant. Problem was, when I did this I had quite a mess to comb through.
Don’t be afraid. Of anything. If I can delete nearly my entire manuscript, you can axe a chapter that doesn’t fit.
Brainstorm several ways to reach each plot point. Choose the most unique.
Revision should not impede on your writing time. When you write, just write. Try to keep from listening to your brain’s insults.
When it’s time for revision, whittle away. If you can make a sentence more concise, do it.
Question everything. I often refer to the following questions, which are tacked to a corkboard in my office:

Does the book start with an inciting incident that will force your MC to act, and challenge your MC to grow?

Is there is enough emotion, tension, suspense, etc.? Or too much?

Is something too obvious? Does something come too easy because you need it to advance the plot?

What can you do to make each scene stronger?

How can you weed out your cliched sentences and/or ideas?

Is there a motivation for each event? What about a purpose?

Are you keeping your MC from attaining a goal? This is a must until the ending.

Will your reader wonder about or hope for something pertaining to your MC as they progress through the story?

If you remain open, revision can be your friend. Revision offers you freedom to totally screw up. So, make a deal with yourself that your first draft will be a dreary mess. It’ll give you the opportunity to make progress later, and give you a much needed sense of accomplishment.

Kristina gives a shout-out to Hooked, a resource
on how to start your fiction right and grab readers.

Want more on this subject?

Read an excerpt from Hooked: Agents talk story beginnings.

How many agents should you query?

How to write a query letter: The 3 parts.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

6 Tips on Writing Picture Books (That May Just Warm Your Heart)

Chuck — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 14:14:27 GMT

We all know that it takes courage to write—to persist despite the endless stream of form rejections or the demons of doubt that constantly assail us. I think it helps to remember that the word "courage" comes from the French word La Coeur, meaning "heart." Below you will find a few tips to keep our writers’ hearts brimming with hope and joy—and according to Jane Yolen, hope and joy these are the two most important ingredients of any children’s book.

Guest column by Kathleen Pelley, author of
Magnus Maximus a Marvelous Measurer (May 2010;
illustrated by S.D. Schindler). Kathleen was born
in Scotland, and has written two other picture
books: Inventor McGregor, and The Giant King.
See her website here.

READ ALOUD
For 18 years, I have been reading picture books, mainly fairy tales and folk tales at an inner city elementary school. I have only one rule: I will only read stories that I absolutely love, for it is that love that seeps into the words as I read and enchants the children into another world where hope and joy make their hearts bigger and better and bolder and braver. Read aloud every day poems and stories and words that make your heart pound with delight!

FIND SPACE TO LISTEN TO YOUR INNER VOICE
When Doris Lessing won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2007, she told the reporters that the real question they should pose to any up and coming writer, should not be about how they write—word processor, electric typewriter, pen or quill—but rather, “Have they found the space to write, for that space is a form of listening…” We children’s writers need to ponder this question: Do we give ourselves space—to listen to the inner voice, and do we leave space in our words for the illustrator to paint the pictures that come from his heart?

WONDER
“Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the number of moments that take our breath away.” Every picture book should leave the reader with some glimpse of beauty, some glimmer of truth that lingers long after the last page is turned or final word uttered. What whiff of wonder or bolt of beauty took your breath away today?

TRUST BEYOND YOURSELF
When Michelangelo carved his sculptures, people asked him how he made such beautiful carvings from a block of marble. “I only discovered what was hiding there,” he said. Many great artists and musicians do not take credit for their work; rather, they give credit to the Muse, the Divine, something beyond them. It is a good exercise for the writer’s heart to trust that there is something “beyond” us—it is part of the Mystery of this great creative process.

FIND HEAVEN
“All of earth is crammed with heaven,” said Elizabeth Browning. The best part of being a children’s writer, I think, is rummaging around my day to find a little piece of heaven to write about. That would make any heart sing!

LOVE
“The best way to know God is to love many things,” said Vincent Van Gogh. And I think that the best way to write for children is to love many things, to feast on life and on all the little joys that greet us every day, if only we take time to notice them. I have a little magnet on my fridge that I look at every day before I write. It is the picture of a little boy, his face lit up with joy as he peeps over a window ledge at a bedraggled bird shaking a wet wing. Underneath are the words: “Show me a day when the world wasn’t new.” Love the world they way you did when you were a little child.

Take heart now, and write!

If you want to compose books of little ones,
seek out Writing Picture Books by Ann Whitford
Paul, whose own picture books have
won numerous awards.

Want more on children's writing?

Examine Great High-Concept Hooks for Children's Books.

New children's agent seeking submissions.

How to write picture books for kids.

Buy the kids writers' bible: the Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market.

Interview with kids agent Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Read a successful young adult query: "Wake" by Lisa McMann.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Jon Sternfeld On: 4 Ways to Make Your Query as Professional as Possible

Chuck — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 14:01:24 GMT

Jon Sternfeld is an agent with the Irene Goodman Literary Agency representing literary fiction and narrative nonfiction.

Jon’s co-agent, Irene Goodman, offers manuscript critiques on eBay every month, starting on the first day of each month, with all proceeds going to charity. Click on the link for more details on these critiques and charity auctions.

How do writers distinguish their query
among the thousands of others?

There are lots of dos and don’ts list out there (and I’ve added to that pile), but overall, it’s an approach that agents and agents’ assistants look for:

1. A professional style and format that says, "I am a writer, I take this seriously, I understand that how I write, structure, and format a query letter (shocker!) affects how people view my writing as a whole."

2. Stay formal, specific and direct. Definitely mention why you’re querying this agent/agency (e.g., an interview you read with them, titles they represent) so it shows you’ve done your research and aren’t just sending this into the stratosphere hoping for a reply.

3. Recognize your audience. An agency fields hundreds of these a day. Your premise should be at the top, your synopsis shouldn’t be exhaustive, you should respect the reader’s time and attention span. It’s so easy for an agent to move on to the next one. Give them a reason not to.

4. You want to stick out—not in a cute way, but in a "my talent and professionalism speak for itself" kind of way. Literally, the goal is to make an agent ask for more—so set about creating something that is built with that in mind.

And remember: If you're looking for a professional manuscript critique for a good cause, go to irenegoodman.com for more details.

Want more on this subject?

Read an interview with Irene Goodman.

Advice on writing memoir.

20 Tips on Query Letters.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Write a Hospital Scene in Your Novel

Chuck — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 13:45:37 GMT

As a doctor, I don't like reading books or TV shows about doctors. Not because I'm jaded and think I've heard it all before (quite the contrary) but because often it feels like the writers just haven't done their research. I'm not talking about highly involved medical research—it's the basics that can trip you up.

Guest column by Amitha Knight, former
pediatric resident turned writer of middle
grade and young adult fiction. She's also a
blogger, a book lover, an identical twin,
a Tweeter and a new mom. See her website here.

Here are a few questions to think about when writing a character's hospital scene (please note that some of this is for US hospitals only):

1. IS YOUR CHARACTER ON THE RIGHT FLOOR?

As many people know, hospitals are set up with different patients in different areas of the hospital. There are pediatric floors, adult floors, surgical floors, maternity floors, ICUs, etc. Knowing where your character/patient would be placed in the hospital depends a lot on the type of hospital you've chosen for your story. Is it a small community hospital in a small town? Or a large teaching hospital in a major metropolitan area? The smaller the hospital, the fewer wards there will be (and often the really serious cases would quickly be sent over by ambulance to a bigger hospital). In larger hospitals, the wards will be more specialized so you shouldn't expect to see mixing of patient types (i.e., adult surgery patients in a medical ICU ward).

Why does this matter? It has to do with your setting details. For example: If your character is in the ICU, he/she won't see a lot of patients walking around with IV poles in their hands. And the rooms in a maternity ward have more privacy than in an ICU setting. If your character is the doctor rather than the patient—they won't be wandering around random hospital wards. Your medical intern isn't going to be regularly wandering around the pediatric wards and playing with kids there.

2. WHO WILL BE TAKING CARE OF YOUR CHARACTER/PATIENT?

This can be confusing and again, depends a lot on the type of hospital in your story. Let's say you choose a teaching hospital. Who will be taking care of your character? I'm going to focus on the different types of doctors and doctors-in-training because that's what I know the most about.

Medical students: These are students in medical school. They have not yet earned their MDs so they are not "doctors." Medical students are often allowed to see the patient first and ask questions—but not in an emergency situation. They do not make medical decisions for your patients.

Resident and Interns: These people have graduated from medical school and thus are "doctors." They see their own patients and make some medical decisions, but are still in training and run major decisions by an attending physician (see below). Interns are what residents are called when they are in their first year of residency (in some specialties, residents have to do a separate intern year at a different program before beginning their specialty training so that's why this distinction is made).

Fellows: These are people who have finished their residency but are doing further specialization and are also overseen by an attending physician, though less closely than a resident.

Attending physicians: An "attending" is the doctor who is ultimately in charge of your patient during their hospital stay. All major decisions will have to be run by him or her.

This hierarchy can make a huge difference to the believability of your story. For example—a medical student or an intern will not be in charge of breaking bad news to a patient unless they have forged some strong bond with your patient. This is generally the role of the attending physician. Likewise, the attending physician will not be doing "scut work" (i.e. tedious hospital work, ordering tests) unless they are in a hospital where they don't have interns and residents around.

3. WHICH PATIENTS WILL YOUR DOCTOR CHARACTER SEE?

This is one of the reasons I can't watch Grey's Anatomy. If you are a surgery resident, you will not be delivering babies. If you wanted to do that, you would have done ob/gyn. If you are an ob/gyn resident, you will not be taking care of babies in the neonatal ICU. If you wanted to do that, you would have done pediatrics. And if you are a pediatric resident, you will not be doing surgeries. Please get it right. Your doctor characters really can't do it all! (Sorry for the rant.)

Have medical questions about your story? Direct them at me (amitha[at]amithaknight[dot]com); or send them to H.L. Dyer, a writer and pediatric hospitalist who answers questions over at the QueryTracker blog.

Writing about hospitals and suspense?
Perhaps your character was poisoned?
Do you know your poisons inside/out?
If not, check out the ultimate guide.

Want more tips and posts?

Query letter tips.

Five signs a literary is a good match for you.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2010 Guide to Literary Agents today!

7 Tips on Book Publicity

Chuck — Wed, 26 May 2010 15:00:22 GMT

I recently attended “Publishing Books, Memoirs, and Other Creative Nonfiction,” at Harvard Medical School. Rusty Shelton, managing director of Phenix and Phenix Literary Publicists, gave a great talk on book publicity. Here are seven of my favorite tips.

Guest column by Livia Blackburne, an MIT
neuroscientist by day and a YA writer by night.
In her blog, A Brain Scientist's Take on Writing,
she studies writing from a neuroscientist's
analytical perspective.

1. Media is changing. Before the Internet era, the media landscape was like a classroom. The teacher (i.e., The New York Times or the Washington Post) stood at the podium and disseminated information. Now, with social media, the students are passing notes amongst themselves. Plus, if a note gets very popular, the teacher picks it up and reads it to the class.

2. Your website is not about selling your book. Many authors mistakenly think their website is about selling their book. But in that case, people would have no reason to visit your website except to buy your book. Instead, make your website useful to people so they keep coming back. Keep a blog so there’s always fresh information. Then, you start building up a base of followers who may not only buy this book, but future books as well.

3. It’s more important than ever to write a good book. With the old media landscape, you might have been able to trick people into buying a bad book with advertising or a high-profile review. But now with social media, people are sharing information, and people trust their friends more than they trust professional book reviewers.

4. Don’t be a media snob. There is an urban legend about an author who went to New York City for a book signing. He couldn't book many venues, but he was offered an interview in a small upstate New York radio station. A NY Times reporter was driving through, heard his story, and write a feature story on him. The moral of the story? You never know who’s watching or listening.

5. Not everyone can benefit from a publicist. If you are super niche, a publicist may not be able to help you. The same is true if you’re self-published and your book is only available online. Your book needs to be in stores if you want to benefit from a publicist.

6. On choosing a publicist: Look at their recent media bookings to see what kind of media contacts they have. Also, be wary if the publicist agrees to take you on without even looking at your book. The publicist should be interviewing you the same way an agent does so he can make an educated decision about whether he can help you.

7. The media outlet’s priority during interviews is to entertain and inform their audience, not to sell your book. Don’t be “that guy” who plugs his book every other sentence. It's annoying. Also, research the outlet beforehand so you make your responses relevant to their audience. Remember that if you give a good interview, the reporter might invite you back in the future.

“Publishing Books, Memoirs, and Other Creative Nonfiction” is a three day course covering the entire publishing process from writing to submission, publication, and publicity. For other helpful tidbits from the conference, see Livia's post about it here.

If you need some book
marketing tips, check out
Author 101: Bestselling Book Publicity

Want more on this subject?

How to publicize your book with courage.

The Knight Agency talks book marketing.

Children's agent Sarah Davies talks book marketing.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the most recent edition of Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Get an Agent's Attention

Chuck — Mon, 24 May 2010 04:08:07 GMT

Eleven agents attended the South Carolina Writers Workshop conference and four participated in the panel discussion “What Gets Our Attention.” They didn't mention fun things like serving them mashed potatoes in the buffet line or skywriting your query over lovely Myrtle Beach. Instead, they gave us simple advice, a great reminder that it’s not really rocket science. Here are the best nuggets from the session with agents Jeff Kleinman (Folio Literary), Barbara Poelle (Irene Goodman Agency), Jenny Bent (The Bent Agency), and Scott Eagan (Greyhaus Literary).

Guest column by Lisa Katzenberger, events
coordinator for StoryStudio Chicago. StoryStudio
Chicago is hosting its annual Writers Retreat at
the famous Ragdale Foundation in Lake Forest, Ill.
from July 16-18. Class sessions focus on craft and
getting deeper into characters and stories. There
are accommodations on the site's five acres for
up to 11 “overnighters” and 9 "day trippers." All
meals/materials provided. See the SSC website for all info.

IT'S NOT PERSONAL, IT'S BUSINESS

Just like in The Godfather. At least in the publishing biz, you’re not going to wake up snuggling a horse’s head just because you queried an agent who doesn’t rep your genre. (Probably.) So, keep your business hat on when approaching agents and be professional.

They want to work with someone who understands the business and can represent their agency professionally.
Barbara reminded us that it’s called the publishing industry, not the publishing feelings. Agents understand that there’s a lot of emotion tied to the time and effort an author dedicated to their book. But you have to be able to separate that emotion when querying and see the business side of a decision.
Don’t be funny in a query -- don’t pretend you’re writing as your main character.
A query letter is a business letter – a cover letter to apply for a job. Your resume? Well, that’s the manuscript.

HAVE A UNIQUE STORY

There are no new stories, just different ways to tell them. Make sure you know what’s special about your love story or cozy mystery that makes it stand out from all the rest.

Scott Eagan said he needs a book that’s more than just well-written. He needs a book with a unique twist.
Barbara Poelle encouraged writers to find a unique take on a formula that works.
Jeff Kleinman stressed how no one wants to read a book they’ve read before.
Jenny Bent wants to see your voice in your query letter. She looks for a great opening line and a story that really grabs her.

THE HOOK, THE BOOK, AND THE COOK

Barbara Poelle used this catchy line to describe the three ingredients of your query letter. The hook is a one sentence description of what your book is about. Yes, one sentence. Check Publishers Lunch for examples of great loglines. The book: four or five sentences that give more detail about the story. The cook: brief information about you, the writer.

LOVE IS IN THE AIR

Would you want to marry someone who’s kind of in love with you? Or someone who is head over heels crazy about you and will go to the ends of the earth to make you happy? Don’t be upset when an agent turns down your manuscript because they weren’t fully in love with it. You’re entering a long-term relationship with an agent, and just like a marriage, you want to find the partner who’s crazy about you.

Jeff Kleinman likes to follow this rule of thumb: “Only represent stuff you totally, absolutely love.”
Agents are reading submissions in their free time. They do this job because they love books, just like writers do.
Barbara will reject a book if she doesn’t feel she can be that author’s strongest advocate.
Query agents who represent authors you love to read. Chances are, they’ll dig your type of writing too.

So to get an agent’s attention, be professional in your query and unique with your story. Like a good cook who can rattle a recipe from memory, know your story’s ingredients when selling your book. And if an agent turns you down, don’t get discouraged. Remind yourself that you’re waiting for someone who loves your book as much as you do.

The quickest way to get an agent's attention
is a professional submission. That's why you
need Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript, 3rd. Ed.

It has dozens of query letter examples (novels,
nonfiction, short stories, kids books and more).

Want more on this topic?

Interview with agent Jenny Bent of The Bent Agency.

Interview with agent Scott Eagan of Greyhaus Literary.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Literary Agents Talk Trends in Children's Publishing at NESCBWI

Chuck — Wed, 19 May 2010 14:42:41 GMT

This weekend was the NESCBWI (The New England chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) Conference in Fitchburg, MA. There were informative workshops and inspiring speakers. One particularly informative session was an Agent Panel featuring Ammi-Joan Paquette of Erin Murphy Literary Agency, Sarah Davies of Greenhouse Literary Agency, and Edward Necarsulmer IV of McIntosh and Otis. They gave insider opinions on the state of fiction, picture books, nonfiction, and writing a standalone novel versus a series. In addition, they spoke about writers maintaining an online presence. Keep reading to find out what writers wanted to know and the advice agents gave.

Guest column by Theresa Milstein, who is writing
middle grade and YA fantasy novels. She's also
a substitute teacher. Read about her adventures
in writing and subbing on her awesome blog.

ARE SERIES STILL SELLING OR IS IT BETTER TO QUERY WITH A STANDALONE NOVEL?

Sarah Davies believed whether or not a book will garner interest as a series depends on the premise. If a writer wants to sell it as a series, it needs to have a fantastic hook.

Edward Necarsulmer recommended starting with a standalone. He’s found most books start that way and then if they sell well, will later become a series.

No matter the genre of children’s books, the agents on the panel recommended tight writing and a hook to interest agents and publishers. In addition, even if you have an idea for a series, be willing to promote it as a standalone. And if you’re going to maintain a blog, make sure it’s written to impress potential agents and publishers.

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR WRITERS TO HAVE AN ONLINE PRESENCE?

Ammi-Joan Paquette said if she’s considering a submission, she’ll do a Google search on the writer to see if they have a blog or website. She doesn’t think it’s essential, so it’s not a deciding factor for representation. But if it’s there, it’s a plus.

Sarah Davies warned writers to be aware of who’s reading their blogs. There are scouts looking for hot new talent. If there’s a link at the bottom of a query, she will check the blog. She suggested updating your blog frequently and not to write about rejections.

IS THE PICTURE BOOK MARKET DEAD?

Ammi-Joan Paquette acknowledged that picture books have been pushed down for a while. This genre on the rise, but it’s still a soft market. If you want to sell picture books they need to stand out. Go beyond the story for subtext and depth. Leave room for illustrators to play and imagination of the readers to take off. If there’s lasting value and rich quality, there will always be room for your book.

WHAT IS THE STATUS OF NONFICTION IN THE CHILDREN'S MARKET?

Ammi-Joan Paquette said it’s a challenging market. The book needs to be a compelling, fresh topic that fits into the same categories. You need to find the right project. It has to be a great story, greatly delivered.

Edward Necarsulmer suggested it’s easier to get nonfiction published as a first time author because almost everyone is writing fiction. But you still need to have an interesting topic and a new hook.

SHOULD WRITERS FOCUS ON THE NEXT BIG TREND?

Edward Necarsulmer cautioned against writing for the market. While it would be nice to anticipate trends, there’s a fine line between timely and opportunistic. Besides, if something is in, by the time you write it, the trend is over. Since he’s been in publishing, Edward has been told picture books are dead, YA is dead, and so on. Everything comes around. Dark concepts are a crowded market right now and maybe readers will want a break from it soon. He suggested ignoring marketing and focusing on craft.

Sarah Davies said YA is still dominant and has life left in it, so the biggest deals are still to be found there in the children’s book market. Dystopic books are popular right now so many publishers are looking for big, dark, hard-hitting conceptual stories. Selling light, commercial YA is trickier because it needs to really stand out. Agents and publishers are always on the lookout for something with a different hook they haven’t seen before.

Ammi-Joan Paquette agreed it’s a challenging market in this economy. This is forcing authors to dig deep and hone their craft. Short cuts and quick runs won’t go the distance because agents and editors don’t want to take the time and chance on an interesting concept that’s poorly written.

Writing YA? Novelist K.L Going has tons of
tips for you in Writing & Selling the YA Novel

Want more on children's writing?

Examine Great High-Concept Hooks for Children's Books.

New children's agent seeking submissions.

How to write picture books for kids.

Buy the kids writers' bible: the Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market.

Interview with kids agent Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Read a successful young adult query: "Wake" by Lisa McMann.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? tparisi@martingunn.com

10 Tips For Marketing Your Books Online

Chuck — Mon, 17 May 2010 03:18:30 GMT

Times are tough. Publishers are cutting back on just about everything: coop, author tours, marketing dollars—heck, their staffs. Newspapers are jettisoning their book sections. Magazines are going bankrupt, writing programs are being restructured, conferences are being cancelled. It is undeniably rough out there. So what’s an author to do in the face of all this adversity? Take advantage of the situation at hand, of course. There’s never been a better time to create your niche. The Internet is an overwhelmingly underused resource for authors who want to market themselves. And the best part? It’s free.

JT Ellison is the bestselling author of
the Taylor Jackson series, including
All The Pretty Girls, 14, Judas Kiss and
The Cold Room. Her novels have been
published in 14 countries, and she was
named "Best Mystery/Thriller Writer of
2008" by the Nashville Scene.

We’ve all seen the authors who are simply out there screaming "Me, me me!!!" They’re a big turnoff, right? So how do you go about getting your message out there, getting your book into the hands of loyal readers, without alienating possible friends and readers? Very carefully. Don't just push yourself on people; be a value-add author. Give them something back. Give them something they didn’t know they needed in the first place, and you’ve conquered what marketing is all about. Things to remember about marketing online include:

1. Respect your lists. If you send out too many notifications, people simply tune you out. My newsletter goes out quarterly. Publishing works slowly enough that you don’t need much more than that to get your news out. Everyone’s time is precious: If you treat them with respect, you’ll get respect.

2. What works for one won’t always work for others. As frustrating as this may be, it’s the truth. You can follow in every single step I took online and still not see the benefits. The trick is to be original, be open and willing, and be flexible. You never know where that next opportunity may come from.

3. Don’t compare or compete. Professional jealousy is an occupational hazard. Don’t fall into that trap. Each book, each author, is wildly different. Jealousy causes negative energy, which will trickle out in your attitude. Remember that comparing yourself to another author is like comparing apples and oranges—they don’t measure up properly.

4. Be polite. Always. Don’t engage, don’t be mean and spiteful, don’t gang up on people. Cyber-bullying isn’t just a problem in our schools. And especially don’t put your woes and frustrations online. Limit those conversations to your trusted friends. The Internet is not a giant group psychotherapy session, nor a group hug.

5. Don’t give up. When one door closes, a window opens. Things fall through. Media doesn’t get played, articles don’t get placed, short stories get bumped. Promises, sadly, do sometimes get broken, but if you can keep a healthy perspective on the industry, you’ll do fine.

6. Be open to new experiences. This is a foreign landscape for many people. If you limit yourself from the beginning, you may miss out on things. Read the writing magazines. Pay special attention to the Writer’s Digest segment on debut authors [called "Breaking In"]. Remember that this is your job, maybe even your second, or third. Things that are hard are usually worth it, you know? Very few authors can honestly say that their road to publication is easy, but there is a universal among them—they studied the market before submitting.

7. Be careful what you say online. Everything you say, everything, is recorded in perpetuity. Websites cache their material, which means even if you’ve gone back and deleted something, a version continues to live on. So be careful what you say. Think before you comment. Follow the adage your mom always taught: If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. You never know what sort of impact even the most casual negative comment can have.

8. Don’t ever, ever engage a reviewer over a negative review. Yes, it sucks that you got a one-star on Amazon. That’s one person’s very subjective opinion. Unless the comments are slanderous or libelous (which is rarely the case) you need to let them go.

9. I know some authors feel that being a lightning rod gains them readers. I don’t agree. I think the way you gain a readership is by doing two things: one, writing the absolute best book you can possibly write, and two, being a value-add author.

10. Build momentum (and your platform) by joining organizations. My first manuscript didn’t sell, and my agent suggested I try writing a new book, which I did. During that time, though, I didn’t abandon my online efforts. I kept up with my group crime blog (Murderati), as well as DorothyL, and several other listserves. I continued my weekly book picks on Publishers Marketplace. I started writing short stories and placing them in e-zines, raising my profile even more. And I volunteered to be a book reviewer for an online site, which enabled me to read everything I could get my hands on, knowing that reading is the key to better writing. All of that paid off. When my agent took the second book out onto submission, I now had a solid online platform. I was a crime blogger, a reviewer, a participant. The editors at the houses knew I was plugged in to the crime fiction network, that I had built myself a base of followers even before I sold my first book. And it worked. My first deal was for three books. So was my second. And my third.
Momentum. In this industry, it means a lot.

Now go forth, and conquer!

If you need some book
marketing tips, check out
Author 101: Bestselling Book Publicity

Want more on this subject?

How to publicize your book with courage.

The Knight Agency talks book marketing.

Children's agent Sarah Davies talks book marketing.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for?

What If Multiple Agents Want Your Work?

Chuck — Sat, 08 May 2010 02:55:29 GMT

OK. So you’ve sent out your e-mails, had a few responses, and now it’s down to two or more agents who’ve made you offers. You’ve politely but firmly told them that you have to speak with everyone before making a decision. Now what? E-mail them, say there are several agents interested, and that you’d like to set up a phone meeting. I know, I know, it’s scary. But you will (one hopes) be calling up your agent for years to come—it’s worth it to know what that will be like. And even if you’re a hot mess (or, more likely, an overcaffeinated one) on the phone, they’ll still want your book.

This column by agent Jessica Sinsheimer of
Sarah Jane Freymann Literary is an excerpt
from GET AN AGENT, a 128-page magazine
all about finding an agent. The publication
is in bookstores now, and has info on
queries, synopses, Chapter 1 tips,
proposals, copyright, and much more.

Don’t be nervous; they’ll do most of the talking—they are, after all, auditioning for you. Don’t be afraid to spend a moment on pleasantries—if anything, it’ll calm you down and make you sound more professional and less scared. Try something like: "Hi, how are you, did you have a good holiday? Great, so I was calling to get a better sense of each interested agent …" Prepare a list of questions for each. Here’s a jumping-off point:

What editorial comments do you have? What would you like me to change/expand/cut out?

What do you like about my work? (If they don’t answer this themselves, it’s unusual, but keep asking until you have a good sense as to why.)
What have you sold recently? In this genre? (We’ll assume you’ve done some research before querying this agent, but it’s all right to ask.)
Do you have an idea of the editors you’d send this to?
How soon could you send this out (after the edits are completed)?
What kind of feedback do you give your writers? How much communication would there be? Would I hear about everything as it happens, or would you call and tell me when the deal is done?

Be wary of agents who say, “Your work is perfect! I wouldn’t dare change a comma!” (Some agents minimize the work involved to tempt you.) Or, “This is going to be the biggest bestseller, like, ever!” (No one knows in this market.) Or, “I can promise you’ll have a gold-plated private jet for your international book tour!” (Unrealistic—plus, wouldn’t it be too heavy to fly?) Or, “I’m the only one who can sell this." (Unprofessional on many levels.) They should care about making the work the best it can be—just for the sake of it reaching its full potential. Also, see if they seem like a nice person. You’ll be entrusting them with your work, after all, and will want to feel comfortable seeking their advice in all that’s about to happen.

(See the rest of the article and
so much more inside GET AN AGENT.)

Want more on this subject?

Read the GLA interview with Jessica Sinsheimer here.

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Have an Awesome Time at a Writers Conference

Chuck — Tue, 04 May 2010 13:48:30 GMT

1. BE PREPARED

Conferences are crazy, and you want to be prepared for whatever opportunity an industry pro might throw at you. Yes, polish your pitch; yes, study up on the faculty. But one of most important things you can do is have your work handy at all times. On the off chance that you’re talking to an agent and she asks for some pages, you’d better have them—and I’d suggest having them on your person. Ask FinePrint Literary’s Janet Reid. If you’re the tree-hugger type, stick your work on a thumb drive and carry that with you.

Ricki Schultz is a freelance writer and
will be presenting at the 2010
Southeastern Writers Workshop in
St. Simons Island, Ga., June 20-24.

When I attended last year’s Southeastern Writers Association conference, a last-minute schedule change resulted in an impromptu slush session, which required a query letter and the first two pages of your manuscript. While I didn’t have any hard copies on me, I did have my laptop. I threw those suckers on a flash drive, raced to the copy place down the street, and—bam!—I was ready to get some feedback from an agent.

2. DRESS THE PART

This simple cliché from the business world can help you stand out at writing conferences. As much as we might resist it because we’re writers (and, therefore, averse to anything as cold and unfeeling as the business world), writing is a business. You have to be able to sell your writing—and the first way to do that at a conference is to sell people on you. Your attire won’t get you a book deal, but dressing in professional garb will make you pop against all the schlubs who didn’t.

3. BE VISIBLE

How can agents fall in love with you if they never see you? Participate in as much as you can in terms of contests, pitch sessions, critiques, slush fests, as well as the classes themselves—even though some of these things cost more dough. You’ve already schlepped your way to the conference, so splurge a little on these “extras” because they represent unique opportunities to network, gain feedback—and get noticed. During my first year at SWA, I entered two novel contests. I wasn’t expecting to win either because not only was it my first-ever conference, it was also my first-ever manuscript. However, had I gone with my gut and not entered, I never would have won first place in one of categories, which I did (to my utter surprise!). As well, I signed up for every critique I could—and, in one, I learned I wasn’t writing chick lit, but young adult (a big “aha” moment in my writing).

4. BE OPEN

No one said going to conferences isn’t scary at first, but be open to doing some things that might normally make you cringe (i.e., striking up conversations with complete strangers, sharing your work at an open mic, etc.) because when else are you going to get these chances? If you take risks, others will wish they had the same bravado—and you might just impress some heavy hitters in the process.

Want more on this subject?

5 articles on making the most of a writers conference.

How to pitch an agent at a conference.

The next Writer's Digest Editors Intensive event is Sept. 11-12, 2010. All attendees receive a critique of 50 pages of their work.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Barbara Poelle On: Three Things Debut Authors Should Know When Signing With an Agent

Chuck — Tue, 04 May 2010 01:28:42 GMT

Barbara Poelle is an agent with the Irene Goodman Literary Agency. Barbara's co-agent, Irene Goodman, offers manuscript critiques on eBay every month, starting on the first day of each month, with all proceeds going to charity. Go to irenegoodman.com for more details on these critiques and charity auctions.

Three things debut authors should know
when signing with an agent:

1. Write down questions to ask the agent. Some debut authors are nervous about taking up an agent’s time so they will not communicate concerns or questions upon an offer on representation. After the initial rush and excitement of the offer, there will most definitely be questions, but oftentimes, the mind will go blank when you are actually on the phone. Make sure you take some time to mull over any questions you may have at this step in the process, so that you are prepared when the offer comes in!

2. Make sure the agent has all your info. Make sure, after signing, that the agent has all of your contact information, and also ask what promotional materials they might need for their website (a jpeg of an author photo, the link to your website, etc). And please communicate when you will be traveling, whether professionally or personally, and how to reach you, as you never know when that fabulous offer may come in!

3. Ask and ye shall be informed! Unfortunately, it’s not called the Publishing Are-Everyone’s-Feelings-Okay?, it's called the Publishing Industry. When one goes from a creative endeavor into the actual publishing process, it's a bit daunting and disorienting. Where once you were quietly tapping away on your laptop, now you have a lot of cooks in your kitchen needing you to play the most bizarre game of red-light/green-light in the world. With that in mind, make sure that you feel comfortable asking at each new stage of your career, “What comes next?” for we, as agents, are involved in the belly of the beast daily and will oftentimes forget that new experiences can be unsettling. There is never a worse feeling than when a client is under informed and becomes upset! As a debut author you don’t even know what you don’t know, so make sure you're comfortable asking.

And remember: If you're looking to bid on an awesome manuscript critique with proceeds going to charity, go to irenegoodman.com for more details.

Want more on this subject?

Read an interview with Irene Goodman.

Advice on writing memoir.

20 Tips on Query Letters.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How To Publicize Your Book With Courage

Chuck — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 16:25:55 GMT

When it comes to first-time, do-it-yourself publicity for your book, jumping into the unknown can seem a lot easier said than done. You may find, though, that simply having a great respect and adoration for the book(s) you seek to publicize will enable you to sprout the wings that you need to soar, right off the steep cliff walls of doubt.

Eleanor D. Van Natta founded her own book
publicity service. She is a freelance writer, and
brings to each client and each job over 15
years of sales and marketing experience.
See her website here.

LEAPS OF FAITH

Last fall, an author friend of mine offered me a wonderful opportunity to be her publicist. She was taking a giant leap of faith since I had no publicity experience, no media contacts, and not one clue how to begin. I was just recovering from a string of rejected query letters and didn’t even have a published book of my own. But who says you need to publish your book before learning about the publicity end of things?

What I did have, and I suppose what she saw in me, was an extensive sales background, a love of books, and a powerful drive to promote others. When I accepted her offer and leaped into the great unknown myself, I found that I had wings as well! In two weeks I had this author booked on a show that was her #1 goal as well as the #1 show in her niche. I didn’t have as much at stake or as much invested in her books as she did personally; they were her life’s work. However, I felt so privileged by her faith in me that from the very beginning I treated her books like adopted children of mine, mothering them, nurturing them, and gently raising them up and into the world. I would leave no child behind.

BOOK PUBLICITY TIPS FOR AUTHORS

Getting your book onto a show is like getting that child of yours into the right college and beyond. I have learned a few things over the last several months about sending your babes out into the world:

Target, target, target your shows. Your book must be a good fit to even be considered by the host or the producer.
Hook them quickly. The most important part of your pitch most likely will be your e-mail’s subject line—spend some time and thought on these very few words (“the hook”) that will determine whether the rest of your e-mail/pitch is even read.
Follow up. If you don’t, you may never know if no reply means “no” or simply “didn’t read the e-mail.”
Reveal details about yourself. Don't forget to put somewhere in the pitch where you are located, what time zone you are in, and your availability for interviews (e.g., need advance notice, same-day interviews possible, etc.).
Read, read, read what other people have written about publicity—specifically book publicity, on blogs and in books; you will be amazed at how many great tips and examples are out there—even example pitch letters—mostly free via your local library or the web.
Believe in yourself! The media needs information and guests; why not you?
Start early. its never too early to start learning about publicity and formulating a plan for your book.

DON'T FORGET YOUR PARACHUTE

When you hand over your books—your life’s work, your soul’s dialogue with the world—to a radio or television show, you must believe in them at your very core. I have found that you not only need to love your books as your own children, as beings birthed from your heart and soul, but you need to love yourself even more than your books. Believe in yourself and know that you are valuable, that your books—and what you have to say—are worthy of the publicity. That is your parachute as you leap off the cliffs. No matter how much you read “don’t take it personally,” you will more than likely take it personally when you are “rejected.” If you have sprouted those wings and have a strong belief in yourself and in your book(s), then you will learn to look at those “no’s” as just bringing you closer to the next big “yes.” And the risk you took will all be worth it in the end.

If you need some book
marketing tips, check out
Author 101: Bestselling Book Publicity

Want more on this subject?

The Knight Agency talks book marketing.

Children's agent Sarah Davies talks book marketing.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Michael Larsen on Starting Your Career (Part 3)

Chuck — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 04:22:53 GMT

Anne Lamott begins a chapter of her wonderful book Bird by Bird like this: There’s an old New Yorker cartoon of two men sitting on a couch at a busy cocktail party, having a quiet talk. One man has a beard and looks like a writer. The other seems like a normal person. The writer type is saying to the other: “We’re still pretty far apart. I’m looking for a six-figure advance, and they’re refusing to read the manuscript.” If you find yourself pretty far apart from publishers, perhaps you need to consider using the following building blocks to construct your career as a successful author. (This is Part III of this guest column. Part I is here and Part II is here.)

Michael Larsen and his wife Elizabeth Pomada
founded Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents in
San Francisco. They are AAR members
and have sold books to more than 100
publishers. Michael is the author or co-author
of How to Write a Book Proposal and
Guerrilla Marketing for Writers. He runs
a new agent blog, as well. To see the
nonfiction topics he seeks, click here.

14. Be an authorpreneur: Speaker Sam Horn’s brilliant word which, for me, means:

having the entrepreneurial ability to create something out of nothing: an idea; a book that you can sell in more forms, media and countries than ever ; an international 365/24/7 business; and a career
coming up with ideas that you can sell in as many forms, media, and countries as possible
being responsible for your success
being unique by being creative in writing and promoting your books
being resourceful in meeting challenges
looking at everything you experience and reflexively wondering if there’s a way to use it to enrich your personal or professional life
using speed, creativity and flexibility to compensate for size
embracing and taking advantage of new information, technology, and opportunities created by accelerating change

15. Have courage: Believe in yourself and the value of your books. You will overcome the obstacles that await you.

16. Take the long view: A writing career isn’t one book but ten or twenty, each better and more profitable than the last. So you have to balance and integrate your short- and long-term goals.

17. Grow yourself: You are the most important factor in your success. You have to challenge yourself to improve physically, mentally, spiritually, and professionally. You have to keep learning if you want to keep earning.

You are Needed Now: Creative, resourceful people keep proving that anything is possible, that we are limited only by our ideas and the time and resources we devote to developing them. The world needs all the information, inspiration, help and entertainment you can provide. Enjoy the journey and best of luck!

(This is part three on Michael's thoughts for writers and their career. Part I is here and Part II is here.)

Michael Larsen's book, How to Write a
Book Proposal (now in its third edition) has
sold more than 100,000 copies and
helped countless writers sell their work.

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Be (Slightly) Afraid of Posting Your Work Online

Chuck — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 18:05:53 GMT

My co-worker, Jane Friedman, recently wrote a column for Writer Unboxed titled "Stop Being Afraid of Posting Your Work Online." Her column lists reasons why writers should not be afraid of posting material on websites. The column is in response to my usual advice to writers, which is that posting work online is generally a no-no. Essentially, we disagree on the value of it (a delicious little point-counterpoint). But the truth is: This is not a yes/no answer. Both answers are incorrect, but I still lean toward not putting your work online, and I will try and convince you why here.

NONFICTION VS. FICTION

The first huge point to address is that with nonfiction, yes, posting work online is something I/everybody will usually encourage, versus the opposite for fiction. Look at the site you're reading right now: GLA (nonfiction). I am posting content (instruction, interviews, columns) for free. Maybe you're a blogger. If you write columns of any kind, whether about raising your three kids or your struggling life as an artist, you are posting content online for free. This is all well and good. You're building an audience because you have something to sell, or want to sell something in the future. So Michael Larsen was right when he said "test market." He was talking about nonfiction. Blog-to-book deals? Same thing—it's nonfiction, and all is well and good.

But with fiction? I do not recommend putting stuff on your website/blog. (And by the way, when Jane and I talk to writers at conferences or intensives, I'd say 75-90 percent of the audience is fiction/memoir.) Notice how I said "your website/blog." I'm not against you pasting stuff in a small critique forum where people meet to offer feedback on each other's work. But if you post work on your own website, you need to know that--

FACT: WRITERS STEAL STUFF

Fundamentally, one of my biggest points is that you cannot copyright your ideas or concepts, so by putting stuff online, you are vulnerable. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Agents and editors don't steal stuff; writers steal stuff. So if you post your first chapter on your website, what are the chances some agent will come across your blog and say "Brilliant! I want to sign you!" Slim to none. But who will come across your site? Writers you don't know, and you cannot stop them from pilfering some of your ideas.

Photo from: Pendleton Panther

Granted, they will not cut and paste entire paragraphs of your work, but consider this: Perhaps you start your thriller with a cop walking out of an eye doctor appointment. He has sunglasses on and his pupils are all dilated and he has someone about to drive him home ... then he witnesses a murder in the parking lot, but he can't be sure exactly what he saw. Kind of a fun first chapter idea, right? But I can't protect that idea! (In fact, if you like it, go on—take it. It's yours.) Be careful, especially if your entire book is based on a great idea—one that we would call "high concept" or "a great hook." Which leads me to--

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, PROTECT YOUR HIGH-CONCEPT IDEAS

Let me take you back to a writers conference. I was sitting in a room listening to writers give live pitches to agents while 150 other writers listened in. The writer pitched a project called "The Dude Who Knew Too Much." BAM. Now that is a high-concept idea. We knew from the title alone that it was about a teenager who got involved in spy stuff and was in way over his head. High concept! Funny! $$$$! One of the agents asked, "It is a comedy, right?" Astonishingly, the writer said no. That's when—I kid you not—I heard someone nearby murmur that they were taking that idea. They were going to take the title/concept, but do the story right—making it a fun teen comedy instead of whatever the original writer had in mind. That was my turning point. Since then, I have become an advocate of protecting your ideas and playing it safe.

Let's continue talking about protecting high-concept ideas. Perhaps you have a blog, and in your profile, you want to say that you're a writer. Fine. Maybe you want to mention that you're not just a writer, but a writer of YA paranormal. Fine. But maybe you want to include a one-paragraph pitch of your book (like you would in query letter). So ask yourself: Why? So agents will see it? Agents are busy people; they're not prowling around small writer blogs, of which there are thousands. The people you want to see your idea will not be looking at your blogger profile, so where's the benefit? We already know the downside is theft.

Keep in mind that, once again, this is not a yes/no discussion. Let's say you're writing a YA humor book. If it's like Superbad, the pitch would say it's about "Two best friends that get into wild adventures on one of their last days in high school." This is not a high-concept idea. The charm of that story was all the writing/characters. This pitch is fine to release on the web or fly behind a plane. But what about this new movie coming out called HIGH School, where an honor student tries pot for the first time, only to hear that a drug test for all students is around the corner—so he embarks on a quest to get every student in school to try weed that week, so they all fail the test together. High concept! Protect such an idea, because anyone could simply snatch it right up and beat you to the punch.

WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO GET OUT OF IT?

Jane kinda touched on this, but simply ask yourself: What is your plan? What do you want to get out of it? If you want thoughts on your fiction, pass your work to other readers ("beta readers") in a writers group. Or possibly put some of it online at a critique site. Don't just paste it on your Wordpress blog and hope you get feedback. You may; you may not—but your writing is out there.

If you want an agent, then query, and write an awesome letter. Don't paste work online and hope they'll come round, because they will not. And yes, people are always happy to point out those special exceptions, such as that one writer who had an agent come by his blog and saw his pitch and signed him. But like I've said before regarding word count, we cannot aim to be a 1-in-100 exception.

Ultimately, I do not advise posting fiction excerpts online just to see what happens. I have seen ideas get taken before, and I always advise writers on the safe side. That's just how I roll. Regardless of your decision, as always, I wish you good luck.

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

10 Questions to Ask an Agent Before You Sign

Chuck — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 14:14:00 GMT

You have spent considerable time trying to create the best impression on potential literary agents. You have done so well that an agent has contacted you—congratulations! The tables are now turned. It is time for the agent to impress you. Your objective is to hire an agent you can trust with your money, your work, and your future. It's all part of finding your perfect match.

Felice Prager is a freelance writer and multisensory
educational therapist from Scottsdale, Ariz. Hundreds
of her essays have been published locally, nationally,
and internationally in print and on the Internet. She
is the author of Quiz It: Arizona, from Arthur
McAllister Publishers. See her website here.

Authors are often so excited about finding representation that they sign an agreement without knowing if the agent is an ideal match. In addition to agreement-specific issues regarding money and terms, there are other questions you should ask before you sign anything. These are your interview questions to which there are no "correct" answers. The purpose of the questions is to obtain information that will help you decide whether the agent is a good fit for you and your work.

10 Questions:

1. How long have you been an agent? Tell me about your path to becoming an agent.

2. Are you a writer yourself? (Writing experience can give an agent a better perspective. However, if they're immersed in numerous projects of their own, it can possibly mean that the agent isn't totally focused on getting your book published.)

3. How many other clients do you represent? Will this stay approximately the same? (Some agents have short lists and like to keep it that way so they can focus on each client. Others sign many writers in hopes of placing as many books as possible.)

4. Will you be handling my work, or will there be someone else on your staff with whom I will work?

5. Can you tell me about a few recent sales you've made? (Though an agent's track record is important, new agents can make up for lack of experience through enthusiasm, time, and hard work. Also, keep in mind that you can track agents' sales on sites such as Publishers Marketplace, so you may be able to skip this question.)

6. What publishers do you have in mind for my project?

7. How frequently do you update authors? Do you have a preference for our communication? Will you keep me abreast of where and when my work was submitted—and the outcome? (Don't enter into a relationship with someone whose communication style will leave you frustrated. A good way to determine this is to ask the agent to describe the ideal client. Is this you?)

8. How close is my book to being ready for submission? Do you foresee much editing and rewriting before it's submitted? Will you be working with me on this?

9. What co-agents do you work with for foreign rights, film rights and other subrights? Is there someone in-house who specializes in this? Can you tell me about some recent successes selling subrights of a project?

10. Why do you want to represent me? (This will give you a great sense on what they like about you and the project.)

Want more on this subject?

Word Count Guidelines for Novels and Children's Books.

Check out agent Don Maass's popular book, The Fire in Fiction.

20 Tips on Writing a Query Letter

How Money Works: Book Royalties, Advances and Flat Fees.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Michael Larsen on Starting Your Career (Part 2)

Chuck — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 13:37:39 GMT

7. Build communities: You can’t get your books right or make them succeed by yourself. Get the help you need by helping people and asking them to help you.

8. Develop your craft as a marketer:

Build your platform: your continuing visibility, online and off, with the readers for your books.
Build the communities you need to succeed.
Test-market your work: Maximize the value of your book by proving it will sell before trying to get it published.

9. Promote your work: Whether Random House publishes your books or you do, you will be the person most responsible for promoting them. Regard promotion as an essential part of your mission to spread your message.

10. Be passionate about your books: You want all of the people you meet to be as passionate about your work as you are. You are the well from which they will draw.

11. Make Mistakes: Jame Joyce said that “Mistakes are the portals of discovery.” As long as you learn from your mistakes, you will make fewer of them. Eliminate failure as an option, and success is inevitable.

12. Staying committed to your writing and your career: No one will know or care as much about your books as you do. So you must be relentless but professional about writing and promoting them, and about building your presence in the industry and in your field.

13. Put your life in the service of your readers: The better you serve them, the more they’ll help you achieve your goals. If you want people to keep buying your books, establish and maintain a relationship with them. You have more ways to do that than ever.

(This is part two on Michael's thoughts for writers and their career. More coming soon. Part I is here.)

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Collaborate With a Co-Writer

Chuck — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 22:41:17 GMT

Writing a book can be a chore. Many thousands of words are required, and only so many of them can be "the" or "very." It should come as no surprise that, faced with such a task, an author might decide to share the writing load with another. There are advantages and disadvantages to sharing a book with a co-writer, and we'd like to share some advice that we found useful in hindsight following the completion of our first book together.

Kyle Kurpinski and Terry D. Johnson
co-wrote How to Defeat Your Own Clone,
and Other Tips for Surviving the
Biotech Revolution.

SHOULD YOU WORK WITH A CO-WRITER?

For many, writing provides a unique opportunity to express one's individuality while working in complete solitude. When you write with a co-author, this no longer applies. You can still write bits and pieces on your own, but the final work will be a collaborative effort, and you're going to have to make some compromises along the way. On the plus side, now you've got someone to bring you beer. Before deciding if you want to write with a partner, you should weigh the pros and cons.

Start by asking yourself this question: Have you have ever found yourself passionately engaged in a completely pointless argument with someone who you are not sleeping with? If so, we suggest you avoid writing with another. When considering a potential co-author, imagine that person doing the following:

Finding your third favorite joke in the book completely unfunny, and insisting that it be removed.
Completely losing interest in a nebulous problem that you're obsessing over.
Deciding that the half-chapter you've been editing for the past two weeks "just doesn't flow" and should be scrapped, after insisting two weeks previously that the same half-chapter is essential and needs to be written.

If none of these seems likely to stir you into a murderous rage, co-writing may be for you. Consider a few of the benefits of having a co-author:

An extra set of eyes can help unblock your writer's block.
Free editing (which makes you look even better when you send it to your real editor).
You only have to write half as many words.

HOW CAN TWO PEOPLE WRITE WITH CONSISTENT VOICE?

Depending on the work, the presence of multiple voices may be jarring to the reader. It's best to know something of your would-be co-writer's style before you start and to consider the book's format. Between us, Terry likes to write sentences that look like they were constructed by Escher, and Kyle has a fondness for conversational slang, though we both possess a sort of cheerful cynicism. Since we had similar attitudes, we didn't find it too difficult to mesh our styles.

We met weekly to discuss our progress, often pointing out passages written by one of us that we thought required the services of the other. While a section of the book may have originated with one of us, it went through several back-and-forth edits and rewrites, and through this became something that contained elements both of us. When it works, it's alchemy. When it doesn't, it's usually because one of us was too in love with their own writing to let the other in to play. We also found that using a synchronized editor like Google docs helped keep us coordinated. A brief warning - if you use Google docs, don't bother using most of the fancy text formatting; you'll only have to redo it when you move to Word or another editor.

HOW SHOULD CO-WRITERS HANDLE DISAGREEMENTS?

We suggest a duel at ten paces. With some simple research, you can get your handles on Revolutionary War-era one-shot pistols. Besides that, the easiest way to handle disagreements is to avoid them. Before signing anything, you'll obviously have to agree how the workload and the money will be split. That's the easy part. You should also consider your expectations for how the book will develop. For example, if one of you wants weekly meetings, while the other would prefer setting the book aside for six months and burning the midnight oil for the last three, the former will be constantly anxious at the lack of progress or the latter will feel hectored. Agree on the process before you begin.

Everyone has obligations that could interfere with the writing and promotion of the book. Disclose those obligations to your writing partner, editor, and (eventually) publicist. If you can't travel to promote the book, don't keep it a secret from your cowriter.

You should also decide whose name will appear first on the cover. We suggest picking the author with the most unusual last name. It'll be easier for people to find it online.

In the end, working with a co-writer has a lot of benefits, and as long as you're not the eccentric reclusive type, it can be a lot of fun, too. Just make sure that when you start basking in the limelight, you leave at least half of it for your well-deserving partner, providing you didn't just kill them in a duel.

Kyle Kurpinski and Terry D. Johnson
co-wrote How to Defeat Your Own Clone,
and Other Tips for Surviving the Biotech Revolution.
Kyle (website) works for a biotech company in
the San Francisco Bay Area and spends his free
time thinking about how his projects could be
incorporated into the plot of a sci-fi action movie,
hopefully starring Bruce Willis. Terry (blog) is
currently a lecturer in the bioengineering
department at UC Berkeley.

Agent Michael Larsen on Starting Your Career (Part 1)

Chuck — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 13:33:39 GMT

1. Read: Ernie Gaines, author of the Oprah book club selection, A Lesson Before Dying, believes that you can only write as well as you read. So read what you love to read and write what you love to read. Reading will enable you to establish criteria for your books. Also read about authors you admire to learn how they succeeded.

2. Establish models for your books and your career: Choose those that most inspire you.

3. Understand how publishers and agents work: You want the best editor, publisher, and deal for your books. Having a positive but realistic perspective on the business will help you find the right publisher for you and your book, and an agent if you decide to hire one.

4. Set personal and professional goals: Establish goals that keep you motivated to do all you can to achieve them.

5. Practice nichecraft: You can write any kind of book on any subject. But a faster way to build a career is to come up with an idea for a series of related books that sell each other and that you will be passionate about writing and promoting.

6. Develop your craft as a writer: Make every word count for your readers. Find early readers to help you make sure your work is 100% before submitting it.

(This is part one on Michael's thoughts for writers and their career. More coming soon.)

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Tips on Writing Middle Grade: What Kids Love

Chuck — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 14:24:38 GMT

Once a month, I write a page-long adventure for my youngest daughter’s class that features the kids, a feisty teacher, a goofy principal, a silly dragon and a resurrected lizard. I read my story, then the kids come up with their own ending. If you want to sharpen your storytelling skills, I discovered there's no better laboratory than a live reading in a fourth grade class. Here are some things I've learned about effective storytelling from fourth graders.

Jewel Allen divides her time between being
a wife, mom, a freelance journalist, a musician,
and a novelist aspiring to be published someday
soon. She runs the Pink Ink blog.

Use a familiar setting with a fantastic twist. The new student turns out to be a ghost, a rainstorm sucks the class into the bottom of the sea, or Santa Claus gets stranded outside their class portable.

Introduce a mystery. How did a dead lizard get out of its aquarium? Who threw an eraser at the next-door teacher?

Add a dragon, if at all possible. Dragons come in handy when a fourth grade class needs to fly somewhere quickly. And kids always perk up at the word “dragon.”

Feature memorable, quirky characters. Denny the dragon usually gets in trouble. Mr. Brunsdale, the principal, reluctantly grants them permission to go on outlandish field trips. Mrs. Walker, the teacher, isn’t scared of bopping sharks on the nose. These characters stick out to kids and are easily remembered.

Get the characters in lots of trouble. Sensory details—like how dragon wings feel and look—are important, but nothing engages a fourth grader quicker than a problem that turns from bad to worse. The rain storm turns into a flood … the class gets washed out of their portable … they get sucked into a hole in the soccer field.

Slapstick comedy works. The kids have laughed loudest over an octopus plastered over a teacher’s head, the principal swimming the backstroke in a flood, and the new dragon-student’s wings whopping his seatmate on the head. (This probably explains why, as a fourth grader, I laughed like crazy over The Three Stooges.)

Don’t kill off a sweet character or you won’t hear the end of it. The kids really, really didn’t like the plot twist about the class lizard dying. I had to bring her back to life somehow!

Want more on children's writing?

Examine Great High-Concept Hooks for Children's Books.

New children's agent seeking submissions.

How to write picture books for kids.

Buy the kids writers' bible: the Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market.

Interview with kids agent Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Read a successful young adult query: "Wake" by Lisa McMann.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Write a Book Series

Chuck — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 14:20:57 GMT

It was a strange thing. There I was writing books about teens struggling with alcoholic parents and depression, when an idea for ninja cheerleaders popped into my head. See—strange? Turns out that idea became The Naughty List, my first young adult novel (released in February 2010). But then things got even weirder… it became a series.

To be honest, I didn’t set out to write a series. But along the way, I’ve learned a lot about them. In fact, I have another series coming out next summer. Again—completely by accident! So what made The Naughty List series-worthy? I can only offer guesses, but I’ll give it a shot.

CHARACTERS

I really love a character-driven series. I think a writer needs to create a main character that’s likeable, but original. Relatable, but special. Someone we won’t be completely sick of after one book. For The Naughty List, my main character is a perky cheerleader, but as the book (and the series) goes along, you see different sides of her, sides that everyone has. She becomes vulnerable, and hopefully readers can invest in her. If you have a character that you want readers to join on a journey, make them someone they can root for. And while you’re at it, side characters that we can be friends (or enemies) with in real life add dimension to the story. Give everyone some flesh!

HOOK & PLOT

Every good series needs a hook. Whether it’s a story about a future society that puts the characters in a battle of life or death, or a book about cheerleading spies who catch cheating boyfriends, writers need something that can sustain multiple books. And evolve.

Don’t write the same book over and over again. The theme and characters may remain the same, but each book needs to be whole and complete in itself. You should have conflict and resolution, not just a setup for the next book. Be satisfying—like a strawberry smoothie!

CONTINUITY

One thing I didn’t do when I started (again, because I never planned to write a series) was keep a list of characters with descriptions, settings, motivations, etc. I wish I did. I remember getting back an edit once where the copyeditor wrote, “I’m pretty sure she’s blonde?” It was such a small thing, but I felt embarrassed. Now I have a character bible because it helps me keep my characters straight in my head. I have a lot going on in there!

SOW EARLY, REAP LATER

A fun part about writing multiple books is when you get to plant evidence—little discoveries that’ll come to light in later books. Sometimes they’re on purpose—a narrowed look here, an unanswered question there. Other times they are completely accidental but work great in a new plot line. For example, in book one, there was a character who occasionally showed a darker side. I realized in book two why she was like that, and it ended playing a major roll in the plot. Sometimes, even though you may not envision your book to be a series, you might realize that your characters have so much more to say.

In each new book, I first start out with a quick, not-too-obvious summary of what readers may have missed in the story so far, just in case they’re new to the series. But once I start digging in, I really enjoy visiting with my characters again, their familiar settings. It’s like seeing an old friend from high school—only without all the awkward “we should have kept in touch” moments.

Writing a series is a blast, but I think it’s really important that the first book set up the world. That it’s a stand-alone that can tell a whole story all by itself. And if your editor makes it into a series, that’s fantastic. If you love the characters and the story, you won’t mind spending a little more time with them, and neither will your readers.

Suzanne Young is the author of The Naughty List series—
stories about a group of cheerleaders who investigate
cheating boyfriends. The first book, The Naughty List,
is available now from Razorbill/Penguin. So Many
Boys will be available in June 2010 and A Good
Boy is Hard to Find will be out November 2010.
She is also writing a new series for Balzer and
Bray/Harper Collins. Suzanne lives in Portland, Ore.

Want more on children's writing?

Examine Great High-Concept Hooks for Children's Books.

New children's agent seeking submissions.

How to write picture books for kids.

Buy the kids writers' bible: the Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market.

Interview with kids agent Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Read a successful young adult query: "Wake" by Lisa McMann.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Target Your Submissions to Agents

Chuck — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 01:51:47 GMT

So you feel it in your bones that there’s a perfect individual out there ready to fall all over the slush pile to publish your manuscript. Maybe you’re scouring the planet for an agent to stand behind you when the winds of rejection threaten to blow the knuckle hairs off your writing hand. What’s your plan for targeting and catching that person’s attention?

Laura Manivong's first kids novel is Escaping The Tiger,
a story based off her husband's experiences as
a Lao refugee hoping for a new home. She
lives in Kansas City. See her website here.
She also tweets.

As writers, the most important thing we can do is read, right? But if you’re like me, you can’t remember what flavor rice cake you ate yester morn, much less the details of the 200 books you were supposed to have read last year. Couple that with the oft-heard advice to “do your research” and “target your submissions,” and new writers everywhere can be heard mumbling, “What the denouement does targeting your submissions mean?”

NOTE WHAT YOU'RE READING

For me, targeting submissions means keeping a detailed reading log so you can get a sense of who likes what. Use a fancy-pants excel document if you wish, or use a Big Chief tablet. The point is to make it more than a list of titles and genre. Include the publisher, author, year of publication, intended age group, POV, and a quick description of the plot. That one-sentence library of congress summary on the copyright page works wonders for your paraphrasing pleasure!

Then dig deeper. Check the acknowledgements page to see if an agent or editor is credited for their stunning acumen. Record it on your reading log. Can’t find it? Google it, check the author’s website, join online communities and ask, or get your mother-in-law to call the publisher to inquire who the brilliant editor was behind Title Wunderbar. (Attempt this last one at your own risk!)

DISSECTING WHAT AGENTS LIKE

Now finesse your reading log. Analyze the book and note why you connected with the main character, or, um, why you used the book as kindling for Uncle Irwin’s bonfire. Note how that vast Alaska landscape almost became a character all its own, or how the protagonist’s external problems are beyond her control but she still manages to change her world through tiny acts of rebellion. In other words, get to know what agents and editors like by looking beyond genre. Look for emotional clues that tell you what triggers agents’ and editors’ heartstrings, something to which you can connect your own work. See how what you’ve written compares to other published titles.

SEARCH MARKET GUIDES

And once you’ve done this research, it’s time to grab a market guide and crosscheck your research for current editors or agents and their submission policies. Now instead of saying “I read you accept middle grade contemporary fiction,” you can dazzle those query readers with a truly targeted submission. For example, “My protagonist, like the character in This Other Awesome Book You Represent, finds solace outside her family as she struggles to connect with a disengaged parent. I wonder if you might be interested in my 180,000-word novel?” (Note to self: Write article on word counts that run very long.)

Buy "Escaping the Tiger"

Want more on this subject?

7 reasons agents stop reading your first chapter.

Should you start with plot or character?

Word count for novels and children's books.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2010 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Irene Goodman On: Common Submission Mistakes

Chuck — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 02:16:48 GMT

Irene Goodman has been a top agent for more than 30 years, with many NY Times bestsellers. She offers manuscript critiques on eBay every month, starting on the first day of each month, with all proceeds going to charity. Go to irenegoodman.com for more details on her charity auctions.

What are the most common mistakes
you see writers make in their submissions?

I've been doing a lot of partial manuscript critiques every month on eBay (all proceeds go to charity), and I'm noticing certain patterns that have emerged. A lot of good writers with the best of intentions make the same three crucial errors:

They try to throw too much into the story, thinking it will appeal to more people that way. The opposite is true. I ask them to identify where in the bookstore this book will be shelved. If they can't answer promptly, they've made a mistake. You can't write a mystery/romance/thriller/adventure/soap opera with a dash of science fiction. Simple is better.
They write a thriller that's not--well, thrilling. It may be interesting and well written, but if it's not scary, it doesn't have suspense, there is nothing big at stake, or there isn't much action, it's not much of a thriller.
They pick subjects that are just not commercial. Don't spend three years of your life writing a novel about King Olof Skötkonung of Sweden or a romance novel set in Germany in 1943. Learn what's commercial and what is not.

Want more on this subject?

Read an interview with Irene Goodman.

Advice on writing memoir.

20 Tips on Query Letters.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2010 Guide to Literary Agents today!

''Prosaic," ''Exacerbate,'' and Other Words I Tried to Squeeze Into College Newspaper Articles For My Own Amusement

Chuck — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:13:36 GMT

There were always the same few words that kept popping up in my college research papers. Words like "exacerbate," "maelstrom, "quagmire," "aforementioned," and the deliciously awesome "melange." Words like this were thrown in as an attempt to sound smarter than I was. But it would be senior year, when writing for the college newspaper, when I really started to have fun. As the year continued, I gathered a list of strange and unique words that I was determined to squeeze into newspaper articles somehow. By the way, if you've never tried to squeeze funky words and inside jokes into printed articles/books, you are letting the best in life pass you by.

My friend here at work just said that, in high school, all the newspaper reporters would use the word "plethora" as much as humanly possible in articles. "I'm pretty sure we were misusing it at times," said my fellow editor. In fact, best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell wrote an article where he talks about his time at the Washington Post and his many attempts to get the phrase "perverse and often baffling" in the paper. It took dozens of attempts before it snuck past the copy editor.

For me, writing for my college newspaper was when I really started to just throw crap out there and see if it stuck. I remember one time I used the word "phoenix" as some kind of verb. That was a doozy. Another time, I snuck in the word "fancypants," which I thought was a nice touch. But my greatest achievement was a piece where I managed to squeeze in not one funky word, but actually four. The first three were "caveat," "prosaic" and "doomsayer." But wait! You haven't heard my crown jewel of weird-words-that-I-got-paid-to-write. It was:

Envenomed.

Back up! You heard me right. I used the word "envenomed" in an article that had nothing to do with snakes nor any kind of animal. Beat that! If anyone else has similar amusing stories to tell, I am all ears.

Want more on this subject?

Want to pen a guest column? Write me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Creating the Breakout Blog: A Platform Guide for the Pre-Published Writer

Chuck — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 14:51:52 GMT

I love Donald Maass. Not in a creepy, stalkerish way of course. Just in a the-man-is-brilliant sort of way. Not only is he a top agent, he's written several books on how to write well. One of my favorites by him is Writing the Breakout Novel. In it, he looks at what it takes to catapult writing into something that doesn't just stand out but breakout to become a best-seller. His targeted breakdown of what makes a novel a success is excellent. And it got me thinking: Could the same qualifiers apply to blogging?

Guest blogger Angela Ackerman is a kidlit writer
represented by Jill Corcoran of the Herman Agency.
Her blog, The Bookshelf Muse, is home to several
Descriptive Thesaurus Collections for writers,
including an Emotion Thesaurus, which lists the
physical actions for over 40 different emotions.

Let's face it—there are a bazillion blogs out there targeting writers, and why? Writers need a platform; we need to get our name out there and building an audience for our work for when we do have a book in hand. So what does a Breakout Blog need?

A BREAKOUT PREMISE

Unless you're famous or well connected, you need a premise that will help you stand apart from every other writer's blog. This means one thing really—knowing who your audience is, and what they want. Just like the book business, you should be looking at what's out there and working, and what isn't. Where are the gaps in the writer’s blog market? Find a new idea, slant or need. Be original or creative (but hopefully both).

A SENSE OF TIME AND PLACE

Blog posts should be unified by context. Create an environment that your audience will want to return to time and time again. Not only should it be easy on the eyes, it should contain resources (links to writing aids and industry professionals) and have regular postings. Put up a Follower sign-up widget and a RSS feed, minimize the flashy sidebar stuff and don’t over-spam readers with ads.

PROVIDING GOOD CHARACTER

Show your personality in posts! Humor and wit always stands out. Your posts should contain good advice and information, but also a piece of who you are as well. And when you’re discussing the industry, be professional. Blasting editor or agent X for daring to reject you will not win friends or influence people. And guess what? They read blogs, too.

PLOTS, SUBPLOTS AND VIEWPOINTS

Variety is the spice of life, right? Well, it’s also key in keeping a following strong. Offer posts that look at different viewpoints of your unified theme. Explore topics that haven't been done to death or find a new angle on familiar ones. Shake things up by offering contests, guest posts and relevant linking. Soften posts with pictures, humor, 'Top 5/10' lists and ask questions that invite discussion and participation. Be aware of the pacing—long, cumbersome posts can be a turn-off.

HOW TO BREAK OUT: 5 WAYS

     1. Build a following by being seen. Link your blog in the signature of forum posts and be active in writing communities. Give your knowledge to others freely when it is wanted and you will learn and grow as a writer in return.

     2. Embrace social media. Twitter, Facebook and other social & sharing sites are all opportunities to let people know what you're up to.

     3. Reach out to other blogs and bloggers. If you comment, they will come. And don’t forget to acknowledge those who do stop by and comment.

     4. Ask for (and give) links. Contest promotion and cross-linking in sidebars and posts can be a quick route into getting traffic to your blog.

     5. Enjoy what you do. If blogging feels like a job, reading it will become a job, too. Have fun with it!

Writing the Breakout Novel

Want more on this subject?

Literary agents talk blogging, Twitter, and more.

How to create a simple writer blog.

So you've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Your Fans Are Your Collaborators: A Novelist's Take on Publicity and Networking

Chuck — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:31:44 GMT

When my YA fantasy The Order of Odd-Fish first came out, I had no idea about publicity. "I shall withdraw into a Salinger-esque haze," I muttered to myself at the grocery store. "I will cultivate an air of mystery ... why not? The book is done, what more can I say? Anyway, the very fact I am incommunicado will only make me seem more intriguing!" My fans taught me differently. And it turned out that, far from being completed, the creation of the world of Odd-Fish had only begun.

Guest writer James Kennedy is the
author of The Order of Odd-Fish, a YA fantasy.

I learned that fantasy fans are eager co-creators. Soon they were making and posting online astonishing Odd-Fish fan art. Impressed, I got in touch with these ambitious young artists. I started featuring their art in a special gallery on my website. Then the trickle became a deluge!

APRIL 17 GALLERY SHOW

Artists like these deserve proper recognition. So on April 17, to culminate this creative outpouring, I’m putting on a gallery show in Chicago of all the great Order of Odd-Fish fan art I’ve received. I’m working with Chicago theatre groups Collaboraction and Strange Tree to pull it off. We’re decorating their space to portray scenes from Odd-Fish. Characters from the book will stroll around the gallery, and the evening will climax with a costumed dance party! The week after, we’re bringing in school field trips for author performances, art viewings, and writing workshops. This is not only a great way to honor the fan art, but it’s fun publicity for the book, too.

Jo and Ian with Odd-Fish
Banner" by Diana Todd

It hasn't just been illustrations. Check out this cake by Elise Carlson, which won the “Most Creative” prize at the University of Florida’s Edible Book Contest. It depicts a pivotal scene from Odd-Fish in which a giant fish vomits a building onto a beach:

My editor described it as
“simultaneously the most impressive
and least appetizing cake I’ve ever seen.”

Last year, I noticed that a high school student named Max Pitchkites had posted some impressively original cut-paper Odd-Fish art on Twitter. I was so blown away, I contacted him and asked for more. In the space of just a few months, Max went on to illustrate all twenty-eight chapters of the book. Max is no longer just a reader. He’s now a collaborator and a friend. Click here to see all his amazing work.

When I announced the art show, I went on to the artists' social networking site DeviantArt and invited Odd-Fish fans to submit. The response was tremendous. With every new piece of art, I was thrilled to make a personal connection with my readers. None of these connections would've been possible before the Internet, of course. Our generation of writers is blessed with being able to be in close contact with those who appreciate our work in a way that was impossible before.

"The Belgian Prankster"
by Kathleen Simmons

In short: to be a mysterious, inaccessible mandarin is to miss out on all the fun! How else would I have learned about this homemade beer based on Odd-Fish’s villain? Matt Mayes and Meghan Rutledge of Chicago brewed and bottled this Belgian ale in their basement. Gabe Patti painted the label. They invited me over to try it, and it was delicious! More new friends, and an opportunity to enjoy one of my characters in liquid form. They’re making a keg of it for the art show!

I’m astonished at how creative and generous Odd-Fish fans have been. I think this tendency is unique to fantasy and science fiction. Fantasy fans want to be part of the process of creation of the stories they love. I especially appreciate it when the artist puts their own twist on Odd-Fish, adding elements that aren’t technically in my story but probably should've been—ideas that are quintessentially Oddfishian, and yet uniquely the artists’ own.

The great grand-daddy of the genre, J.R.R. Tolkien, famously likened fantasy to "sub-creation." For me, it has also become an experience in "co-creation." If you are a fantasy author, don’t ignore your co-creators. Collaborate with them. Amazing things will follow.

Want more on this subject?

If fantasy writing is your thing, check out The Writer's Complete Fantasy Reference.

If you want to write sci-fi or fantasy and are looking for some guidance, check out WD's online course on writing for these genres.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Perseverance and Encouragement: The Benefits of Contests

Chuck — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:50:57 GMT

“And the winner is” are four words that inspire anticipation whenever they are uttered. The heart beats a little bit faster, nostrils flare slightly, the eyes widen and pupils dilate as we await the name that follows the fateful phrase. In theory, the winner is the pageant contestant with the most poise, intelligence, talent and beauty; the horse that peaks at the proper moment in the race; the actor whose performance transcends imitation and takes us to a place where we can do more than simply imagine—we can believe. Getting it done at the optimal time seems to be the key to success. But having all the right stuff in place at the proper time can be a delicate process. And “right” can be very subjective—especially in writing.

Guest columnist Pamala Knight, a perennial
writing contest bridesmaid, is busy helping
Chicago North RWA plan Spring Fling 2010,
their upcoming writing conference. Attending
agents include Diana Fox, Laurie McLean,
Joanna Stampfel-Volpe and Paige Wheeler.
Dates are April 23-24.

A good gauge of whether or not your writing has reached the level where all those moving parts (POV, pace, characterizations, plot, etc.) are synchronized like two sixteen-year-olds wearing sequins and performing ballet in a pool, is to enter a writing contest.

CONTESTS = CRITIQUES

Think of the judges as a big group of anonymous critique partners and then consider the benefits of that arrangement—no one who’s married to, involved with or gave birth to you giving the straight scoop on how to get to where you want to be in your writing career. Critiques obtained through contests tell where your writing needs to be tweaked and tightened. All the good information needed before you can send your baby out into the business end of the publishing world.

One of the things I love best about contests (apart from winning, which I haven’t done yet) is that the comments are always so encouraging. No one will say “shred this manuscript at your earliest opportunity, donate that laptop and get back to your day job.” The comments are all about learning to make craft blend in perfectly with your creative abilities. "All inspiration all the time" is how I look at it.

TYPES OF CONTESTS

Contests ranging from RWA’s prestigious RITA’s and Golden Heart to the less-stringent-but-no-less-meaningful chapter contests offer excellent feedback and critique on where the foundation of a manuscript might need a few more yards of concrete before the house is ready to go up. If you’re looking to test the waters with your manuscript, contests are a good way to get advice. If you win, you get affirmation that you’re on the right path. There’s also name recognition, opportunities to have the professionals read your work and maybe even some chocolate. Personally, I check first to see if the winners get chocolate. But, if you don’t win, there’s the advice and encouragement. Bonus items all around, in my opinion.

CHICAGO NORTH RWA

My local RWA chapter, Chicago North, just published the finalists in our 12th annual Fire and Ice contest for unpublished writers. This year, we had a record number of entries. I judged a few entries and put myself into the shoes of each entrant as I formulated my comments. I wanted to give helpful feedback and praise where needed from both the perspective of a writer and as a reader. It’s my dearest wish that my words will supplement an existing desire to make their manuscripts as bright and shiny as possible. Since we’ll announce the winners at Spring Fling 2010, I’m especially excited to meet the writers who will be in attendance. I know I’ll be as breathless to meet them here at the start of their careers as I will be when they’ve been on the New York Times bestsellers list for years.

Want more on this subject?

Writer's Digest has contests all year round. The annual contest, for example, takes the winner to NYC for agent meetings and also gives them $3,000.

Should you start with plot or character?

Ten tips for a successful agent-author relationship.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

New Media Rehab: Opportunities Through Blogs and More

Chuck — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:42:29 GMT

It’s no news that big print media considers new media a kind of onslaught, as though traditional print is the once-lustrous orchard, and bloggers and other independents are each a locust, which, one-at-a-time, are not normally threatening, but jillions of them at once is a different story.

Guest blogger Hollis Gillespie is a humor writer
and columnist for Atlanta magazine. She is also an
NPR commentator and guest on "The Tonight Show
with Jay Leno." Her blog is titled Inappropriate
Conversation. Her third book, Trailer Trashed: My
Dubious Attempts at Upward Mobility, was just
released. She is also the founder of the Shocking
Real-Life Media Continuing Education Academy,
which hosts writing, blogging and new-media workshops.

WRITERS HAVE THE POWER

But the plight of print media does not equal your plight. Because here is the fact: Writers have all the power now. They aren’t waiting to be deemed worthy of a platform by the Big Prints. Instead they are creating their own platforms by blogging, and because of that, advertisers have recognized a grassroots means to reach a massive audience by partnering directly with the writer. In short, advertisers have figured out a way to cut out the middleman. This is problematic for traditional media but not necessarily for you.

In fact, it’s a good thing for many writers, especially those who are still trying to make their mark. Because now you are able to plant your own sapling with a much better chance of seeing it grow. Because now the ground is level, and it’s fertile. Right now is when you need to plant your own tree, and I am talking directly to all of the out-of-work traditional-print writers out there who are wasting time bloviating about how no one’s paying them anymore.

BUILD YOUR IDEA

You need to build your boat right now, and, to do that, you need the basic equipment to compete in the new playing field. I am not even talking about equipment that costs money, I mean resources that are free. You simply need to learn to use them. What you need, in short, is a simple media rehab, the very basics of which consist of these components; a blog, an affiliate marketing account, Twitter and Facebook.

All of these are free to start and maintain. In the most elementary terms, it works like this: Your Twitter and Facebook accounts feed traffic to your blog, this traffic buys products advertised there and you receive a check for a percentage of those purchases. It’s no different from when you worked at a newspaper or magazine, except for all the difference in the world in that you are now your own publisher, and your income is directly related to the volume of the audience you are able to attract. This is freedom, people. Your product—your voice, your expression, your ability to write it—that hasn’t changed at all. That is still exactly where you left it, and there are still droves of people hungry to connect with it. What has changed is that Big Print can’t pay you for it anymore, so they are either taking away their platform or asking you to do it for free (now a depressingly common occurrence for writers).

THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE YOU

Enter your blog. Examples like peopleofwalmart.com should be very encouraging to you. This blog reportedly began garnering $1,000/day in revenue only three months after its inception. Another example is this brand-new twitter account that landed a TV deal just months after its inception, and a novice blog called regretsy.com that landed a book deal almost immediately after the first few posts hit the web. All of these blogs were started by people no different from you; people dealing with downsized income because of the economy so they created their own platforms to showcase their expression and the world responded.

IT'S A NEW WORLD

Writers, you have to stop kicking that dead horse hoping it will cough up another paycheck. And stop worrying about the travails of traditional media. History has proven that whenever a new media is introduced, it weeds out the weaker of the old media, but it doesn’t destroy it altogether. Radio didn’t destroy newspapers. Television didn’t destroy radio. And the internet won’t destroy all of the above. Just because some big trees in the orchard are dying, and making a lot of noise about it, doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing for you as a writer, even if you are one of the leaves that used to be attached to them.

Remember, you are the one with the power. Set up your own online platform and get your money directly from the advertisers who used to pay your former employer who, in turn, used to toss you your check. You are on your own now. Now is not the time to freak out or listen to the deafening (and often false) wailings of the dying meglomedia. You are not a leaf on a dying tree. You are a seed that has been set free.

Trailer Trashed: My Dubious
Attempts at Upward Mobility

Want more on this subject?

Literary agents talk blogging, Twitter, and more.

How to create a simple writer blog.

So you've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Writing Tips From Max Lucado, Best-Selling Author

Chuck — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 22:03:58 GMT

It was his first time attending a writing conference. He is a best-selling author who has written more than 50 books and has sold 65 million copies of his work. Yet it was also his first time speaking at a conference. Although he was on unfamiliar territory, New York Times best-selling Christian author Max Lucado spoke of the tools writers have, at the Writing for the Soul conference in Denver in February 2010. Below, find his best tips on subject, discipline and clarity for writers.

Guest column by Audra Krell, published
freelance writer. Audra is also a vocalist,
and she and her son lead worship in
churches and at conferences across the country.

MAX SAYS: BE PASSIONATE

     • Your subject must be so worthwhile that it keeps you riveted to your chair.
     • Because of your passion, you write without ceasing until it's finished.
     • Strong topics and subjects cause writing to happen from the soul.
     • Desire to work your writing through, so the reader doesn't have to.

MAX SAYS: STEADY IS AS STEADY DOES

     • Make a date night with your notebook. If you sit long enough, you'll find something to write about.
     • With disciplined writing time, you'll grow to appreciate your work.
     • Good words are worth the work.
     • The only thing better than writing is when your words connect with the reader.

MAX SAYS: ON A CLEAR DAY

     • Get your book down to one sentence. Every paragraph must pay homage to that sentence, or it doesn't get to play.
     • Every word must earn its place on the page.
     • Write concise but not shallow.
     • Revise for as long as you can.

Good writing will go where we never can, and reroutes the trajectory of life. It seeps into the farthest corners of the world and the depths of a reader's soul. Readers let authors into their private moments by inviting the author to speak through their story. Although it's a challenging invitation, it's valuable and authors should accept. Clear thinking will deliver your words to their destination. Most places are far away, and require a long, long chair ride. Do not begrudge the hard work of getting it there, this generation needs the best books you can write.

For his final point, Max reminds the writer to let every part of the process work. "Sentences are like just caught fish. Spunky today, stinky tomorrow." Let editing do its job. That way, you will put forth good, passionate writing, which will reach readers where they live.

Want more on this subject?

Interview with Steve Laube, agent who seeks Christian works.

Tips from Cecil Murphey, author of 90 Minutes in Heaven.

Interview with Rachelle Gardner, agent who seeks Christian works.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

A Story of a Second Chance: How One Writer Fought to Have His Memoir Reissued

Chuck — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:45:59 GMT

Bertelsmann didn’t want to return my rights, even though my book, Heartbreaker, had lain dormant for over twenty years. Doubleday, the original publisher, had been swallowed by this German conglomerate, and of course they wanted to hang on to any book in their catalogue, even if it hadn’t sold a copy in years. But Oh, no no, they said, this book isn’t dormant; anyone who wants it can order it through print-on-demand. I finally had to enlist the help of a lawyer and then The Author’s Guild counsel, Kay Murray. Kay told Bertelsmann she would make my book, Heartbreaker, a test case of the issue for any author who wanted his/her rights back, and would pursue it all the way to the Supreme Court. (Go, Kay!) Threatened with this tough talk, Bertelsmann knuckled and sent a letter of release. Now I owned my book and was free to pursue a reissue.

This guest column by John Meyer,
author of Heartbreaker.

I spent a year querying agents. No one wanted it. But I knew I had something salable—a memoir of the time I tried to rescue Judy Garland from her demons, shortly before the end of her life. In 1968, I had been an idealistic young composer who met Garland to show her a song. Meeting her, I was entranced. Foolishly, I undertook to "save" her from her unhealthy lifestyle of pills and liquor. I thought I could succeed where everyone else had despaired. I was blinded with a Messianic fervor, and spent eight excruciating, emotionally draining weeks with her, acting as her manager, booker, escort, chauffeur, general factotum and boyfriend. I wore myself out with the effort and eventually fell, exhausted. But my obsession had granted me an up-close, detailed look at this amazing woman, with all her fascinating idiosyncrasies.

THE FIRST RELEASE

Finally, after years, I felt I’d gained enough objectivity to put down the story in a fashion the general reader would find palatable. In 1983, Lisa Drew, then an editor at Doubleday, snapped up the manuscript. Now, of course, the agents came flocking. It’s not hard to get an agent when you’ve already made the sale. (By the way, this is a good way to go; if you know an editor, you can place the book yourself—then have an agent negotiate terms. You don’t want to accept the publishing house’s first offer). In its initial release, the book sold eleven thousand copies. Not bad.

A SECOND LIFE

Now, in 2005, what made the book re-printable, I thought, was the CD that new technology now allowed to be bundled within the book, inside the back cover. It was a forty-minute rehearsal I’d taped with Judy around the piano, singing and telling stories, unself-conscious, impromptu. But even the promise of this rare window into the life of a legendary entertainer couldn’t convince the current crop of agents. Everyone was running scared—the publishing "climate" was getting more and more difficult to surmount. But I forced myself to remember: To Kill a Mockingbird went through fifty rejections.

After two years, discouraged, I was about to give up and go the self-publishing route. Ironically, this would have amounted virtually to Bertelsmann’s POD method. But an acquaintance offered to introduce me to June Clark, an agent at Peter Rubie (Now FinePrint Literary). June took the book to an editor named Bob Shuman, who was thrilled at the possibility of grabbing the new Heartbreaker for Kensington. He went to bat for the book in an editorial meeting, and Kensington reissued the book in 2006. It came out in a glamorous new edition, with the inclusion not only of the CD, but an eight-page photo section with shots of Sid Luft, Kay Thompson, and ... my parents! So, whaddaya know –a story with a happy ending.

Heartbreaker

Want more on this subject?

Tips on writing memoir.

An author's tale of how his memoir came to be.

"7 Things I've Learned So Far," by a memoir writer.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

So You’ve Set Up a Writer Blog—Now What?

Chuck — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:34:36 GMT

If you read my previous guest post on how to set up a blog, you know how easy the tech stuff can be. Once you’ve found your perfect theme and written up your contact info, there’s just one thing left: the first entry. Faced with the paralyzing task of finding something relevant to say, many new bloggers ditch their blog before they even get started. But blogging isn’t as hard as it seems—you just have to get a feel for it.

Guest post by Peta Jinnath Andersen,
freelance writer & editor. See her website,
*Insert Literary Blog Name Here*. She also
writes flash fiction and short fiction.

THE MISSION STATEMENT

Spend some time working out a sort of "mission statement." Think about why you want a blog, and the general focus (e.g. writing, rejections, book reviews, etc.) and scope. You don't have to stick to what you come up with, but it might help you get your head around the startup process.

Once you're feeling a bit more comfortable, write a little intro post/about page. Tell prospective readers about yourself. If it's easier, pretend you’re being interviewed by your best friend, and write it as a Q&A. Try and stay on topic. If you write animal-related fiction, talk about your dogs—or the time an alligator chased you at the zoo. Include a picture; readers like being able to put a face to the name, and are more likely to read your page if they can relate to you.

IDEAS, IDEAS, IDEAS!

Blogging is about more than writing—it's about reading. The most popular blogs are how-tos, or opinions and reactions to things the authors have read. For writers, there are a few places to get started—an article you read in PW, a post on the GLA blog, a review in The New Yorker, etc. Pick things that make you think, or that you find yourself talking about. One useful trick is to write your blog posts in a Word document (make sure you use the paste from Word tool if you do this) and treat them as articles or letters. Don’t go overboard—if your focus is too broad, you’ll have a hard time keeping readers interested. And remember, if you go the how-to route, make sure you research appropriately!

GETTING BUSY WITH THE BLOGOSPHERE

Bloggers like to talk, network, and generally get to know each other. Look for blog rings and blogfests (a quick Google search will get you started), take part in writing prompts and challenges on other blogs, and get involved in networks (try http://bookblogs.ning.com—book blogs on Ning).

Be honest in what you write, and write about things you're interested in or love. Post links to other pages you like; link posts are a great way to get to know other bloggers. Pull together your top five posts on any topic (top five descriptions of chocolate cake!), and write about why you love them and what the poster did well.

SCHEDULE IT!

Some people have no problem finding things to blog about—the rest of us need to plan ahead. Keep a file of post ideas (or even one file per idea) and paste useful links into it, along with any thoughts. Outlining posts, complete with subtitles and bullet points, can help you get a better idea of what you're trying to say.

KEEP IT APPROPRIATE

There are no hard and fast rules about blogging, but it’s important to remember that whatever hits the Internet stays on the Internet. As long as you don't post anything inappropriate for your line of work—say, you work in a Kosher butcher's shop then blog about how much you love bacon—you can't really go wrong. It takes a while for blogs to find their feet, and that’s okay.

Blogging is a great tool for promoting yourself. More importantly, though, it’s an excellent way to create connections and learn from other people. Now it's time to roll up your sleeves and get to work.

Want more on this subject?

Peta's first guest post: How to start a blog.

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Demystifying Contracts: What Every Writer Should Know

Chuck — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 15:55:54 GMT

At the SCBWI 2010 Winter Conference, agent Edward Necarsulmer IV (of McIntosh & Otis) gave a presentation called "The Real Deal about Contracts." At McIntosh & Otis, Necarsulmer handles his clients’ contracts with publishers. Other agencies have contracts departments. Either way, both agents and authors should understand the ins and outs of contracts and the process of negotiating rights with a publisher.

Donna Gambale blogs at the First Novels
Club and is the author of a mini kit,
Magnetic Kama Sutra. She’s currently
revising her young adult novel, Multiple Choice.

WHAT'S A CONTRACT?

At its most simple definition, a contract is a legal document saying what the publisher is going to say or do, and what you, the author, are going to say or do. It should be fair and clear on both ends.

Oftentimes, a publishing house will offer a basic contract to an author, and it’s the agent’s job to negotiate better (and more specific) terms. The agent explains everything to the author and discusses his/her options before continuing negotiations. With each revision, the agent goes through the contract with line-by-line vigilance, making sure the author has what he/she needs and what the publisher promised.

HOW MONEY WORKS

The most obvious part of a contract involves negotiating author advances and royalties. Of course! Check out this post for complete details.

PRIMARY RIGHTS

Primary rights include the original edition of the book and paperback reprint rights, but they may also cover foreign territories/translation rights. The standard grant of rights is for the publisher to print/publish/sell/distribute your book in the English language. Your agent would probably want to retain foreign rights, but that depends on a cost/benefit analysis. Meaning, is it worthwhile to attempt to sell your book to foreign markets?

SUBSIDIARY RIGHTS

Here's a post breaking down subsidiary rights. Necarsulmer believes that it’s preferable for the agency to retain as many subsidiary rights as possible in-house because then the writer only has to give 15-20% of earnings to the agent instead of also splitting 50% with the publisher.

These rights include the following:

     • Audio rights. Generally an agent also tries to retain these, but it depends on the earning potential for the author of the agency shopping the book versus the publisher.
     • Film/TV/dramatic rights. Should be retained in-house. These rights are important because of the possibilities to help boost the sales of your book.
     • Graphic novel rights. These should be negotiated as something entirely separate from your novel.
     • Commercial/merchandising rights. It’s also best for your agent to retain these rights. These include plush toys for picture books, Edward Cullen dolls, etc.
     • Electronic rights. Because this is ever-changing, Necarsulmer includes a clause to renegotiate the terms of electronic rights in one to three years, to keep it labeled as an ongoing discussion. Plus, he ensures that, as much as possible, he and his clients have the opportunity to approve electronic rights decisions before they’re made.

Other elements of a contract Necarsulmer mentioned include the following:

     • Publication timeframe. There’s also frequently a clause that a publisher must publish your book within a certain timeframe. With picture books, this can be slightly different because authors and illustrators have to be coordinated.
     • Author copies. Lists the number of free copies an author receives, plus discounted pricing for additional copies.
     • Warranty and indemnity clause. This covers the author under the publisher’s insurance (for libel, lawsuits, etc). Another clause under this includes bankruptcy—what happens if the publisher goes out of business?
     • The agency clause. This outlines the author’s and publisher’s relationship with the agent. For example, noting that all sums of money due goes through the agency (the author benefits when the agency’s accounting department double checks payments), or listing what percent of earnings goes to the agent. This clause possibly requires payment to the author from the agency within a certain number of days.

Necarsulmer’s presentation emphasized how an agent is a valuable ally who looks out for the author’s best interests during complex contract negotiations. A skilled agent keeps contracts from becoming intimidating so that the author can focus on what’s really important—writing.

Want more on this subject?

Check out Donna Gambale's other guest column, 7 Things I've Learned So Far.

See a successful nonfiction query here.

Nonfiction words of wisdom from agent Ted Weinstein.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Get Agents to Like Your Characters and Keep Reading

Chuck — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:08:12 GMT

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that one of my favorite books on writing is Save the Cat (and it's not even a WD book, so you know I'm telling the truth). Save the Cat is a modern-day look at structure and story, written by screenwriter Blake Snyder, a wonderful man who passed away recently at the much-too-young age of 52.

So why is the book called Save the Cat? One of Snyder's most basic points is that we (readers) must like the character we're following. If we see the protagonist do something kind or admirable in the first few minutes/pages, then we will like him. And if we like him, we follow his story and root for him to succeed in getting what he wants.

I recently read some pages from a novel-in-progress. I had some typical notes: "This is good ... this doesn't work ... cut, cut, cut." But the big point was that the protagonist was unlikable. When we first meet the main character, they seem annoyed, and in the middle of a frustrating relationship. We cannot be introduced to characters like this, because why would we keep following a character that is constantly agitated and generally unhappy? We need to root for them, and that's what the Save the Cat moment is all about. So let's look at some movies and identify early Save the Cat moments.

Miss Congeniality

Sandra Bullock is on a sting to catch a mobster. When agents ID themselves and hold the mobster at gunpoint, he starts to choke. But is he really choking, or is it a ruse? It's not clear. None of the male agents move, but Sandra scurries in to help the choking man. She cares; she has compassion. That's a perfect Save the Cat moment.

The Hangover

This movie is essentially about three guys trying to find a fourth guy who's lost just before his wedding day. So which one of the three is the main character? The answer: None. The main character is actually Doug, the groom-to-be who's lost. The Save the Cat moment is very early when he invites his new wacky stepbrother, Alan, to Vegas, even though he doesn't have to. This makes us like Doug. And if we like him, then we root for him to succeed. To succeed means to get married. To do that, we root for his friends to find him in time for his wedding. Save the Cat.

Nottingham

A few years ago, a screenwriter re-envisioned the Robin Hood legend as told from the Sheriff of Nottingham's point of view. In this (unproduced) screenplay, the story begins with a battle. Meanwhile, underground, an Army Leader (actually the sheriff: our protagonist) is leading troops through tunnels for some kind of surprise attack. He stops for a moment to address his men, only to see that instead of looking at him, they're all staring at something else. It's the bucket of water he's holding. It's clear that they're parched. He takes off his own helmet and pours some water in it, instructing them to pass the helmet around and take one sip a piece. The whole thing takes about 7 seconds, and it makes us like this man. Save the Cat.

Sea of Love

I've never seen this movie, but this is the film where Blake Snyder identifies a perfect Save the Cat moment. At the beginning, Al Pacino, a cop, is arresting New York criminals who arrive at a location thinking they're going to meet some Yankees. When Pacino sees that the next approaching criminal has his young son in tow, Pacino makes himself visible, showing his badge. The criminal sees this, and tells his son that there's been a change of plans, walking away. Pacino says "... Catch you later." This is great. It shows Pacino is a tough cop but willing to give this criminal a break because of the kid, but the criminal is not off the hook. Save the Cat.

Recognize other Save the Cat moments in film or books? Let me know.

How to Create a Simple Writer Blog

Chuck — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:29:44 GMT

Writing is hard work. First, you have to write the story. Then you have to revise it, workshop it, revise it some more, write a query letter, do query research, then mail your baby out. While many writers think the work ends the moment they sign a contract, pros know otherwise. Being a successful author is an awful lot of work, not the least of which is promotion. A blog is an easy way to get started—all you need is a computer and an Internet connection.

Guest post by Peta Jinnath Andersen,
freelance writer & editor. See her website,
*Insert Literary Blog Name Here*. She also
writes flash fiction and short fiction.

There are lots of great blogging platforms out there, each with good points and bad points. But most die-hard bloggers and social media tweeple swear by Wordpress.

Why Wordpress? Unlike most services, even the free Wordpress.com platform offers users a lot of templates and customization. Although this may seem unimportant, the Internet is blog central—making your blog stand out can help keep you up front in your readers’ minds. (And really, why pick vanilla when you could have mint choc chip with hot fudge sauce?) Another perk: Wordpress can be setup much like a website (more on this below). It’s also easy to move to self-hosting later on.

WHAT DO YOU BLOG ABOUT?

Not sure what to write or blog about? Start with whatever interests you—the book you loved/hated/roasted on a spit, the latest update from Publishers Weekly, things you’re struggling with in your novel. Blogging is a useful way to keep readers updated on your professional life, show off your writing chops, and show agents and publishers that you’re interested in going the extra mile.

Keep it professional, though—it’s easy to fall into the trap of regular personal updates, such as what you ate for breakfast and how many times Baby has spat-up (twice in the last hour, if you’re wondering). Some details are okay—in fact, you’re more likely to connect with readers by giving them some idea of who you are—just don’t go overboard. And remember, if it’s something you’d be embarrassed to talk about down at the local coffee house, don’t put it on the Internet! Ready to get started? Here’s what you need to know.

SETTING UP

1. Head over to Wordpress and sign up. Think carefully about your domain name—you can’t change it later. (Your username and blog title can be changed in settings at any time.)
2. Follow the prompts and update your profile. Don’t just skip the “about yourself” section—take every opportunity to connect with your readers.
3. Check your inbox for the activation e-mail. Give the link a little love. (E-mail didn’t arrive? Check the update profile page to ensure your e-mail addy is correct. Scroll to the bottom of the page to change it.)
4. Log in at the top of the page.
5. Click on “My Dashboard” in the menu bar at the top of the page.

POSTS, PAGES, CATEGORIES & TAGS

Pages: Pages are exactly what they sound like—static pages with your content. You can have as many pages as you like, and they can be called whatever you like—on *Insert Literary Blog Name Here* I have eight pages (Home, About, Upcoming Publications, the NRI, SFWP.org, Books, and Contact). To make a page, scroll to the Pages drop down on the left menu, and click “add.”

Posts: These are blog entries. Let’s say you want to put some writing samples on your new site (a good idea, by the way). Find the posts menu then click “add new.” Type or paste your content into the text box. (Use the "Paste From Word" function if you’re pasting from a word processor.) Don’t forget a title! Scroll down the right menu, and select the categories your post fits—say, writing samples—then hit save (for a draft) or publish to go live. Voila!

Categories: Categories are like folders in a filing cabinet.They give you an easy way to sort posts and, in some theme,s create a handy menu bar. Since I use my website as both a blog and a freelance portfolio, I chose categories that reflect the areas I work in the most. You can use more than one category per post (only posts can be categorized), and create subcategories. Subcategories can be useful if you have a lot of similar content (say writing) but isn’t all directly related.

Tags. This is geek-speak for keywords. Tags are used in site searches, and are often listed somewhere on the post. Many themes also have tag clouds—a quick and easy way to show what you post about most.

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Secrets of Superb Writing: 8 Tips From Cecil Murphey, co-author of 90 Minutes in Heaven

Chuck — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:20:35 GMT

When Cecil Murphey (co-author of the best-seller 90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death and Life) became an author, he promised God two things: that he’d never stop learning, and that he would always give back to other writers. 114 (!) books later, Cec has made good on that promise by offering numerous scholarships to writing conferences, mentoring aspiring writers, and speaking to large groups of writers each year. I recently had the privilege of hearing Cec at the Hill Country Evangelical Free Church in Fredericksburg, Texas, where he led a session called “Secrets of Superb Writing.”

Guest column from Dena Dyer, author, speaker,
and entertainer from Texas. Her fifth book,
Let the Crow's Feet & Laugh Lines Come (Barbour)
will release in June 2010. For more info, visit her
website or her “Mother Inferior” blog.

With humor and honesty, Cecil touched on many mistakes beginning writers make—and gave us tips on how to avoid them.

1. Avoid “purple prose.” This refers to writing in which the author strains to sound dramatic and powerful. Usually, the result is melodramatic and strained. Examples: "When she saw his visage, her heart leaped into her throat. His feet flashed through the stripes of the late afternoon sun. The trees moved their limbs like an abstract artist piecing his design in the sky. Her dad’s mouth slammed shut like a bank vault a minute after closing." Write like you talk, Cecil advised us. That led to his second tip:

2. Be yourself. “People worry about others stealing their stuff,” he said. “But if you really write well and sound like yourself, no one can copy you.”

3. Be revealing. “If you don’t want to be self-revealing, don’t become a writer,” he said. “After all, I’d rather be disliked for who I am than be liked for who I’m not!”

4. Avoid clichés. “If it’s something you’ve heard before, don’t use it.”

5. To write good dialogue, listen to the way people really talk. “We don’t go around using other people’s names all the time,” Cecil explained. “But many writers use their characters’ names repeatedly in dialogue. It’s distracting.” ("CSI: Miami," are you listening? David Caruso needs to quit saying everyone’s name all the time!)

6. Let your sentences average no more than 20 words. “Years ago, short sentences were seen as choppy, but it’s simply the way people read now,” he explained. Similarly, he advised us:

7. Don’t be afraid to change with the times. “Words change and usages change,” Cecil said. “Don’t get hung up on that. It’s okay!”

8. End sentences with your strongest word. Instead of “Richard rattled the bushes with a stick he broke loose from a tree on the way in,” try: “With a stick he had broken loose from a tree on the way in, he rattled the bushes.” Bushes is stronger than the preposition in.

And finally, Cecil encouraged his audience to be true to themselves, follow their calling, be persistent, and keep growing and learning. “If you do these things, you will succeed,” he said. Great stuff, from an icon of the publishing world. For more of Cecil’s writing tips, visit his new blog.

Tax Tips for Writers

Chuck — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 15:12:43 GMT

Working for yourself as a freelance writer can be a nickel-and-dime business, but come tax time, reporting self-employment income means all sorts of things related to your business are eligible for deduction. Consider this: before self-employment deductions, I owed $266; after the deductions, my refund was $238. I consulted H&R Block tax specialist Sharon Burton on how to maximize your savings for 2009 and what to consider in 2010.

Guest column by contributor
Jessica Monday, published freelancer
and aspiring novelist. She lives in Wyoming.
E-mail her at jemonday[at]gmail.com.

HOME OFFICE

Some of the biggest deductions are tied into whether you can claim a home office. The IRS says a home office “is a room or other space in your home” used regularly and exclusively for business. As long as your work area is a separately identifiable space, that portion of the room is deductible even if you don’t use the entire room for your business, Burton said.

The key to this is not so much how much space you use, but rather how you use it. If you consistently write and sell your writing each month, that constitutes "regular use." The trickier part is you must use the area only for business. So if you generally write at the kitchen table (which is not a station used only for business), find a cheap desk at a garage sale, move it into a corner and voilá - you can claim the area as your home office. But remember: No paying bills or letting the kids do their homework in your work space (which is a nice way to create a little solitude for your art too!).

Now you may think, a desk tucked away in a 5,000 square foot house is not going to amount to much—and it’s not. But if you have a large desk in a more modest abode, the savings do add up. For instance, I have a desk, computer and filing cabinets set up in a shared office room with my fiancé. I measured how much of the room they occupied and approximated the total square footage of our apartment. Since my home office equals 5% of my total home, I’m able to claim 5% of the rent (same thing goes for a mortgage), utilities, renter’s (or homeowner’s) insurance and Internet connectivity fees. (If you file your taxes online, the computer will figure the percentage for you given the square footages.)

Tip for 2010: If you're trying to sell your home, deductions on the mortgage for a home office may have tax consequences after the sale. You may still be able to write off a portion of the utilities without a penalty, but be sure to talk with a tax professional before filing your return.

VEHICLE

If you use a personal vehicle for freelance work, a portion of the mileage is deductible. You can choose one of two methods, standard or actual, to report vehicle expenses, but “it’s always better to do standard miles,” Burton advised. “That way you don’t have to keep receipts, you only have to record your mileage.” This year, the IRS gives 55 cents for each business mile you drove, as well as itemized deductions for license plates, registration, interest on a vehicle loan, parking fees and tolls.

Tip for 2010: Keep a small clipboard in your glove box to write down business mileage, as well as the odometer reading on Jan. 1 and Dec. 31.

CELL PHONE

Cell phones and monthly bills are deductible even if their main purpose is for personal calls. Unless you have a separate cell phone used exclusively for your business, Burton advised keeping track of the number of calls rather than adding up minutes. Normally people spend between 10-20% of their minutes on business calls, Burton said.

Tip for 2010: Track your cell phone usage for a month (or one week if you make a lot of calls). Find the average minutes used for business calls and compare the portion to your total monthly minutes. Use your average to figure the percentage use at the end of the year.

HEALTH INSURANCE

If you pay your own health insurance, monthly premiums are deductible. (At least that’s some relief until they figure things out Washington, right?)

BIG, LITTLE THINGS

More costly equipment like a computer, printer and fax are deductible, but don’t forget about office supplies including stamps, pens, printer paper and ink. Small purchases add up after 12 months. Other deductible items include business membership dues, magazine and newspaper subscriptions, conferences fees, hotel rooms and associated meals, and bus and cab fares. Remember, all expenses must be related to your self-employment. If you’re not sure an item qualifies, seek professional advice—and keep all of your receipts. “That’s the big thing, just keep track of everything,” Burton said. “The flow in and flow out.”

Tip for 2010: Start a new file for the year and collect your receipts, tax forms and any other paperwork useful come tax time.

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How I Got My Agent: Mark Lee Gardner

Chuck — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 23:47:40 GMT

"How I Got My Agent" is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. I find it fascinating to see the exact road people took that landed them with a rep. Seeing the things people did right vs. what they did wrong (highs and the lows) can help other scribes who are on the same journey. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings.

To see the previous installments of this column, click here.

If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we'll talk specifics.

Mark Lee Gardner's latest book was released on
Feb. 9. It's called To Hell on a Fast Horse:
Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, and the Epic
Chase to Justice in the Old West.

FINALLY, A LUCKY BREAK

I had been fed so much misinformation about literary agents over the years that it wasn’t funny. To begin with, it seemed like an agent was nearly impossible to get. The very few writers I knew who had agents were not forthcoming about sharing names. No one ever said, “Mark, you should contact my agent. He’s looking for some talented writers.” Getting an agent seemed a lot like winning the lottery. A very few authors somehow just got lucky.

Then one day, ten years ago, the esteemed Western historian and author Robert M. Utley sent me an e-mail encouraging me to contact a relatively new literary agent he had met from Dallas named Jim Donovan. Now this was exciting. Finally, I thought, here was my lucky break. I did contact Jim, and we discussed a couple of ideas of mine, and he felt they had potential. Jim sent me a guideline he had written about putting together a good book proposal.

BRIDGER OVER TROUBLED WATERS

This is where I screwed up. I was used to getting paid for my writing—albeit very modest sums—and here was this agent talking about a multi-page book proposal. At the time, that seemed like an awful lot of work without any guarantee of compensation or even a contract. I had other writing projects that were keeping me busy, and although I promised to write something up for Jim when time permitted, my e-mails to him became less and less frequent until they finally stopped altogether.

Five years passed. My family grew. I needed to make more money. If I was going to continue as a freelance historian and writer, it was obvious that I had to move beyond writing books for university presses and the National Park Service and get a trade book deal. I went back through my old e-mails and got in touch with Jim. Surprisingly, he was still interested in doing something with me, and we subsequently got together at a history conference in South Dakota, where we settled on an idea for a book.

I bit the bullet and, with Jim’s helpful suggestions and encouragement, produced a 40-page proposal for a biography of the famed American mountain man Jim Bridger. It was a very good proposal (well, at least several editors told us it was a good proposal), but it was a complete bust with the New York trade houses. It turns out Jim Bridger was not so famous after all. One New York editor had never heard of him. The other editors thought he was “too small” a subject. So, no trade book deal.

A DUAL BIOGRAPHY

But Jim did not give up on me, and I did not give up on getting a book contract. I perused my library of Western history books for another idea and settled on a biography of Pat Garrett, the lawman who ended Billy the Kid’s outlaw career. When I suggested this to Jim, he thought a more interesting—and salable—book would be a dual biography of Garrett and the Kid. The more I thought about it, the more I liked Jim's suggestion. No one had ever written a dual biography of these two Westerners, and Billy the Kid was an iconic figure whom every New York editor was sure to have heard of.

After considerable research into the topic, I completed yet another big book proposal and titled it To Hell on a Fast Horse. Jim carefully went over the proposal, I made changes, and then he sent it out. This time, the response from the New York editors was like night and day compared to our Bridger foray. Jim had immediate interest from several editors. It came down to two publishers, and I went with William Morrow, mostly because the editor at Morrow, Henry Ferris, took the time to call me and tell me how much he liked my proposal. I signed a contract in January of 2007 and Morrow released To Hell on a Fast Horse on February 9 of this year.

A good agent, I now know, is not just valuable for the contacts he or she has in New York, but for their insights and understanding of what makes a superior proposal, and, in turn, a great book. They are patient, excellent sounding boards, and they are there for you every step of the way. A good agent, then, is also a good friend. And, by the way, Jim Donovan is looking for some talented writers.

Mark Lee Gardner is a historian, writer, and
musician of the Western experience. He
writes for both popular and scholarly audiences,
having published with several university
presses and periodicals such as New Mexico
Magazine and Living History Magazine. See his
personal website or buy To Hell on a Fast Horse here.

Want more on this subject?

I interviewed Mark's agent, Jim Donovan. See the interview here.

Want to write a guest column? Write me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com.

Ann Collette of Helen Rees Lit is looking for good Western fiction.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How To Pitch to an Agent at a Writers Conference

Chuck — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:59:09 GMT

Writers attend conferences for many reasons, but one of the biggest draws is the literary agent pitch sessions. Writers get face-to-face time with those in the industry who often appear unreachable. If done correctly, these three to ten minutes sessions can land an author an agent and eventually a book contract. From my experience as the director of the Northern Colorado Writers Conference for the past 4 years, I’ve had the opportunity to interact with literary agents on a different level. They have shared with me their take on pitch sessions and what they like, don’t like and what drives them crazy.

This guest column by Kerrie Flanagan,
director of Northern Colorado Writers. Register
now for the 5th annual Northern Colorado
Writers Conference (March 26-27 2010)
featuring literary agents as well as
author and producer Stephen Cannell.

ARE YOU READY TO PITCH?

Most agents only want to hear pitches from authors who have a finished product. For fiction (including memoirs), that is a completed novel and for nonfiction, that is a completed book proposal. Agents don’t like it when an author gets them excited about a book and then drops the bomb that it isn’t done yet.

Kristin Nelson with Nelson Literary said, "Writers with ‘ideas’ for a great novel are a dime a dozen. It’s that one-in-a-hundred writer who actually has the perseverance and stamina to sit down and write the entire thing (which is a huge achievement all in itself since the majority of aspiring writers never even make it that far)."

DO YOUR HOMEWORK

Before signing up for a pitch session, read up on each of the agents. What books do they currently represent? Are any similar to yours? Don't waste their time pitching to them if you know your project isn't a good fit. Your goal is to become an expert on this person. Then when you sit down for the pitch session, you will feel like you know the agent. You can break the ice by commenting on something you learned, “I read on your blog that you are re-reading War and Peace. What page are you on?”

GIVE 'EM A ONE-LINER

Every author should be prepared to explain their story in one sentence, whether it is at your pitch session or at the evening mixer. No one wants to hear a 20-minute monologue detailing every twist and turn in your plot. “A lot of authors get too hung up on telling me the synopsis of their book,” said Jessica Regal of Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, “I don't need to know every plot point—and it doesn't make for a very interesting pitch. It should feel more authentic than that, as if you were talking to your best friend.”

“In the end, I know all good writers aren't great speakers,” said Jon Sternfeld, agent with the Irene Goodman Agency, “but an ability to distill information is a part of being a writer and it's usually a turn-off if a writer says way too much (or way too little) about what I need to know about his/her project.”

ELEMENTS OF A GOOD PITCH

Jessica Regel shared what she likes to see in a good pitch, “They need to be able to succinctly tell me what their book is about. What makes it stand out from every other book that's on the market? Who are the characters? What's the conflict? What are the major themes? What other writers/books would they compare themselves to as far as style? If it's nonfiction, why are they the exact person who should write this book? Why is it a topic that I should read about now?"

PRACTICE

The trick to a good pitch is to practice it so you are familiar with the content, but to present it in a way that is more conversational. Practice your pitch with friends, family and your writers group. Get some feedback and try to get rid of that nervousness.

Jon Sternfeld said, “I wish writers would see the agents more as an equal—when there's too much desperation in the writer's eyes, agents tend to de-value them. If a writer is confident, I know that they don't need me so much as we need each other.”

PROFESSIONALISM COUNTS

One agent told me that she wished writers would dress more professionally. She didn't want to see business suits, but she wanted to see clean cut, job-interview type attire. For her, it set the tone—it let her know the writer understands that publishing is a business and is serious about being a professional writer.

GAMETIME: THE PITCH

When you pitch, all you need is confidence and maybe one note card with a few key points on it. You do not need to bring your manuscript. Ken Sherman, with Ken Sherman and Associates said, “Just take a deep breath and get into it and don't worry. If the story and characters are alive and original in approach we'll pick up on it, especially if you're a good storyteller. That's what it's all about.”

After hearing about your book, an agent has to decide if it is a good fit for her. If it is you will be asked to submit chapters, usually via e-mail. If the agent doesn’t think your book is a good fit for her, don’t fret. All agents are different—so try to move on and start thinking about that next pitch.

Want more on this subject?

It's not too late to sign up for WD's Intensive Workshop (March 13-14, 2010). Attendees get pages critiqued and have one-on-one time with editors.

Check out this guest column by Han Vance on Networking at Writers Conferences.

Read more about the dos and don'ts of pitching agents at conferences.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Trim Your Query to 250 Words (or Fewer): Advice from Agent Janet Reid

Chuck — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:56:55 GMT

Agent Janet Reid of FinePrint Literary Management, aka the Query Shark, gave this information at a query workshop for the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group.

This guest post by Donna Gambale and
Frankie Diane Mallis, critique partners
who blog at www.FirstNovelsClub.com
when they’re not writing young adult
novels. (Donna, author of "Magnetic Kama
Sutra," also previously guest blogged here)

Your ability to write a query that does your novel justice can make or break your chances of landing an agent. Reid recommends spending two months perfecting this 250-word marvel.

Your query encompasses three sections:
      1. 100 words answering the question “What is the book about?”
      2. A brief summary of your writing credits, if you have them.
      3. Miscellaneous information on how you found the agent or why you chose him/her.

THINGS TO CUT FROM EACH SECTION

Section One:
     1. Back story.
     2. World building.
     3. Character roll call.
     4. Telling.
     5. A synopsis.

Section Two:
     1. Academia – classes, teachers, degrees, dissertations.
     2. Conferences you’ve attended.
     3. Self-published novels, or traditionally published novels with poor sales.
     4. Personal information.

Section Three:
     1. Begging, flattery.
     2. Arrogance or self-deprecation.
     3. Offer of an exclusive.
     4. Your marketing plan.
     5. Quotes from rejection letters, paid editors, critique groups, your mom.

TWO THINGS TO KEEP

Section One:
     1. Title, genre, word count.
     2. The essentials of your novel. (Every time you think you know, ask yourself “So what? And then?” until you’re left with your main character, conflict, and consequences.)

Section Two:
     1. Published short stories or novels.
     2. Published magazine or newspaper articles.

Section Three:
     1. Why you chose this agent.
     2. A connection you have from a conference/workshop.

Start from the bare bones and build from there. Infuse each section with your book’s personality. Consider every word. Don’t forget your contact information. And close with “Thank you for your time and consideration.” Now get trimming!

Want more tips and posts?

Query letter tips.

10 Query Letter Questions Answered.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Author Platform and the Debut of Your Book

Chuck — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:54:22 GMT

A writer who has ever done any research on her intended occupation has heard the term author platform. Author platform describes all the ways in which you can gain visibility among readers. It refers to your web presence, public speaking and classes taught, media contacts or previous publishing credits such as articles written for magazines, newspapers or websites as well as your networking skills. Your platform is the difference between a reader passing your book up or her giving it a chance by flipping the cover open to read the inside flap.

Guest blog by Lindsey Edwards, writer
of paranormal, fantasy and historical
romance. See her website here.

Going about establishing a platform is different for writers of fiction and nonfiction books. For one, nonfiction authors need to create a trustworthy name for themselves before seeking representation or publication, whereas fiction authors need to focus their efforts more on reaching the masses once they’ve signed a book deal with a publishing house.

NONFICTION PLATFORM TIPS

Create a name for yourself. Before an agent will agree to represent your book, you first need to create a name for yourself. For nonfiction, it’s very important to have testimonials to back you when trying to sell a piece of work you claim to be intimately knowledgeable of.

Target your readers and cater to them. A book is never going to be met with unanimous approval. Meet with your audience by speaking at colleges, libraries, businesses or with whomever else your book could find a home. Even online classes, advertised to the right audience, can bring in potential readers.

Join professional organizations—where you can participate in events and meet with other experts in your field who could later endorse your book.

Write articles—for websites, magazines or newspapers on your topic.

Volunteer. Many friendships or offers are achieved through shared interest and goodwill.

Don’t forget the power of the Internet. Blogs and websites, networking sites and forums are all ways to identify yourself with readers as an expert in your field.

FICTION PLATFORM TIPS

With fiction, agents are more interested in previous publishing credits, but once you sign on the dotted line with a publishing house and have a release date it’s very important to do your share of publicizing yourself and your novel.

Get in touch with the publicity department of your publishing house to see what they will do to help spread the word and strategize a plan offering up ideas of your own. Publishing houses only reserve so much money toward authors, and even fewer dollars are spent on publicizing new novels so you may want to consider putting some of your advance towards the exposure of your novel, it will be well worth it on your next advance if you do this right.

Create a professional looking website with information on yourself, links to any networking sites, a list of your appearances, a guestbook to sign, and perhaps if you have any to share, information on coming attractions.

Obtain a blurb from a well-known author who writes books similar to yours, endorsing your novel.

Locate all the influential book reviewers and make sure they receive an ARC (advanced reading copy) of your novel.

Generate good word of mouth. Now more than ever, word of mouth is done over the Internet. Good news for you because it broadens your circle of readers to those who may tweet to their friends (a Twitter term) good tidings of your book.

Market yourself online so people start to become familiar with your name. When you have a release date for your novel you can do a blog tour where you visit several blogs that compliment the type of book you are marketing and do interviews.

Giveaways. Set aside a few books from the ARCs you receive and use them to create a stir by hosting a giveaway for a signed copy of your book.

Video tape yourself reading an enticing summary or scene excerpt from your book and post it on your networking sites, YouTube and even websites or blogs of friends.

Radio, newspaper and television interviews can help spread the word about a book signing. Remember to have a freebie to hand out to your readers like a bumper sticker, bookmark, postcard, magnet or what have you with your name and the name of your book, along with your web address for further exposure.

Ask for reviews. One more tip for authors of either type of book is to ask anyone who’s said they loved your book to write a review of it on Amazon or on the Barnes & Noble website.

To see how well you’ve done at getting the word out about yourself and your book, sign up for alerts on the search of your name or book. Go to google.com/alerts. Good luck!

Want more on this topic?

What is an author platform?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Writing Erotica (But Were Afraid to Ask)

Chuck — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:34:26 GMT

As an erotica author, I’ve found that many people have preconceived notions about the art of writing erotica and erotic romance. Before I became well versed in writing the genre, I had misconceptions of my own, and that led to much trial and error as I worked to refine my craft and learn how better to please my audience. Following are 10 tips I’ve accrued for those curious about writing erotica:

Lisa Lane is an eclectic writer who works in
multiple genres and formats; she writes
novels, original screenplays, short stories
and essays. Four of her erotica novels and
six erotic romance short stories are published
through Ravenous Romance. She also has one
“sweet” romance published. See her website here.

1. It’s not all about the sex—really. While sex does play a key role in erotica, the sex itself is secondary to the development of the characters and plot. A good erotica writer knows that, no matter how great the sex is, there still needs to be a good, solid story if one wants to hold a reader’s interest.

2. Dynamics sell. Flat characters never go far, but in erotica, you really do have your work cut out for you when it comes to creating believable and entertaining character dynamics. Dashing heroes make for great romance and passionate love-making, but they won’t keep the story going. Think about the characteristics that you find most entertaining, and then brainstorm: Readers like characters who use fun dialog, have a good sense of humor, and make interesting choices. What types of hobbies, beliefs or interests might help to develop your characters--and give them something in common? The hero must be worth pursuing, and the heroine must be worthy of her hero.

3. Perspective is pivotal. Most readers prefer erotica shown from the female perspective, unless the work is written specifically for readers of M/M (man on man). If you have an idea for a heterosexual erotic story with the hero taking full lead, consider ways you might revise it to focus more on the female’s point of view. Some (very limited) authors have found success in shifting through both points of view, and it works well in some circumstances, but many editors will frown on the “head hopping” of internal dialog.

4. Mixed-genre erotica and erotic romance are all the rage. While many readers still enjoy straight erotica, mixed-genre erotica is a great avenue to take for writers looking for their niche. Use your literary interests to your advantage and write what you like, letting the erotic aspects work as an added feature to your work. You’ll have more fun writing, and that will shine through to your readers.

5. Know your target audience and make sure you brand your work accordingly. Are you writing for fans of erotic romance or other subgenres? Make sure that romance is a strong part of your plot if you’re planning on marketing to erotic romance readers, and make sure you’re clear about your subgenres. Let your audience know what they’re in for before they read your work: if you are including kinky or gay/lesbian aspects to your story, or if you are incorporating audience-specific subgenres such as horror, steampunk, or hard science fiction, be clear about those aspects in your marketing. Readers do not respond well to these types of surprises.

Buy "Love in Space" Buy "Lust in Space"

6. Don’t be afraid to take chances. One point that I cannot stress enough is the importance to be innovative and unique in your erotica. There are only so many ways to write a traditional sex scene, and they can become repetitive and boring. Use your subgenres to your advantage. What is it about your characters or their circumstances that you can use to make your erotica different? What limits can you break, without crossing the line?

7. Don’t be too quick to relieve your audience of the romantic and/or sexual tension. Let it build, let it fall, let a heart or two break, and then give the readers what they’ve been waiting for.

8. Great sex doesn’t always have to include love. While erotic romance is a hot market right now, don’t underestimate the power of pure, raw, primal sex. It can be fun and interesting to develop characters that make their moves based on pure attraction, the love/hate dichotomy, and revenge or rebound.

9. Don’t forget the foreplay. Just as it is important to build sexual tension, it is also important to make sure your characters don’t jump into the act of lovemaking too quickly. Foreplay helps to add to the sexual tension you’ve already built between your characters, and it makes that final “climactic” release all the more satisfying.

10. Be tactful about your ending. Like romance, erotica and erotic romance readers tend to expect a “happily ever after” or “happy for now” ending. Don’t let your audience down by offering them a great story, only to leave them hanging or disappointed by the characters’ outcomes. Even cliffhangers in series need to give the readers hope that all is well, if at least for the time being. If the main couple does not end up together, make sure there is a good reason for it, and that they are better off going their separate ways.

Writing erotica can be a fun and rewarding venture, but as with any genre there are rules to which the author must adhere. While rules can sometimes be stretched or even broken, knowing your audience and your market will go a long way in helping you to promote your work. Have fun, write what you like, but make sure that you’re also writing with your target audience in mind. Good luck!

Want more on this topic?

5 Articles on Romance Writing.
Agent Scott Eagan explains the difference between women's fiction and romance.
Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.
Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.
Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

7 Things I've Learned So Far, by Alexis Grant

Chuck — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:08:31 GMT

This is a new recurring column I'm calling "7 Things I've Learned So Far," where writers at any stage of their career can talk about seven things they've learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning. This installment is from Alexis Grant, journalist and memoir writer.

Alexis Grant is a journalist writing her
first book, a travel memoir about backpacking
solo through Africa. See her website here.

1. No story’s about the author. A memoir revolves around the author’s experiences and ideas—and so can fiction and nonfiction. But the story is never really about the author. It’s about something larger than one person, a theme readers can relate to, one that makes them reflect on their own life. My memoir, for example, is my story of backpacking through French-speaking Africa. What’s it really about? Why each of us should take a leap in life, and the value of traveling solo. I’m an important piece of that. But the story’s not solely about me.

2. Artist’s colonies are worth jumping into. I consider myself a journalist, not an artist. But during my first artist’s residency this year, when I spent five weeks in the woods of northern Georgia, I learned that I really do write more and better in a quiet setting with no distractions. I also met other creative types who opened my eyes to new ideas and fed my writing fire. Finding the time—and sometimes the money—to go to a colony can be difficult, but you’ll be glad you did.

3. Writing a memoir is a lot like writing fiction. It’s nonfiction, of course. All my stories are true. But they have to be told with dialogue, description, scene-setting, pace, characters—the same tools I’d use to write a novel. (These skills do not come naturally to someone who has used direct quotes and right-to-the-point leads for most of her writing career.) Writing this way takes practice. It helps sometimes to remind myself that my true story should read like a novel.

4. Exercise has more than physical benefits. Stuck on a scene? Sick of a chapter? Taking a break to go for a run or walk the dog isn’t wasted time. It’s a chance to think about the story without the pressure of having to put words on paper. Your brain is still working but in a different way, which may benefit you and your story in the long run (pun intended). I do my best thinking when I don’t mean to—while running.

5. A problem can be solved by writing through it. Not sure where the story’s going or whether there’s a bigger lesson behind a scene? You’ll never know if you don’t start writing. Put words to paper—any words—and sometimes the muse works her magic, bringing the story to a place you didn’t expect. Other times that scene should go right into the trash. But even knowing where the story’s not going can help. And often the best way to figure that out is to write through it.

6. My favorite parts aren’t necessarily important to the story. I loved watching the sun set over the Niger River—but that memory, however important to me, might not help my book. For every scene, we must ask ourselves: What’s the reason for including it? Does it propel the story forward? How does it benefit the reader? When it comes to your favorite parts, ask yourself these questions twice. Just because it’s good for you doesn’t mean it’s good for the story.

7. If it’s embarrassing, it’s probably a keeper. Details that feel the most revealing tend to be the ones that let the reader into my head and help them understand me as a person—and that’s what memoir is all about. Whenever I’m tempted to cut an embarrassing paragraph,* I remind myself that those are usually the parts my readers enjoy most. Of course, this rule of thumb can be taken too far—a memoir is not, after all, a diary. But most of our face-reddening habits or thoughts serve a vital purpose in our stories: they make us more human. If it helps the reader relate to you, it’s worth keeping.

Want more on this topic?

Want to pen a guest column? Write me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com.

Free tips on writing book-length memoirs.

A great resource for memoir writing is Writing Life Stories.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

10 Questions About the Query Process...

Chuck — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 02:02:21 GMT

I recently did a guest post on the blog of Hartline Literary (called "From the Heart" - talking about "10 Smart Questions About the Query Process." You can see the entire post on the Hartline blog and see a quick excerpt below.

1. Can you re-query an agent after she rejects you?

You can, though I’d say you have about a 50/50 shot of getting your work read. Some agents seem to be more than open to reviewing a work if it’s been overhauled or undergone serious edits. Other agents, meanwhile, believe that a no is a no—period. So, in other words, you really don’t know, so you might as well just query away and hope for the best.

2. Should I mention that my work is copyrighted or has had professional editing?

No. All work is copyrighted the moment you write it down in any medium, so saying something that’s obvious only comes off as amateurish. On the same note, all work should be edited, so saying that the work is edited (even by a professional editor) also comes off as amateurish.

See the entire column on the Hartline blog.

Want more tips and posts?

Query letter tips.

Five signs a literary is a good match for you.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Best of the Quest: One Author's Tale of How His Memoir of Movie-watching Came to Be

Chuck — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:09:12 GMT

It came like a bolt from the blue. I wasn’t looking for it. Didn’t need it. But there it was. Shocking, electric—the question that wouldn’t go away. “What is the worst movie ever made?”

Buy Michael Adams's book "Showgirls,
Teen Wolves & Astro Zombies: A Film Critic's
Year-Long Quest to Find the Worst Movie Ever Made"

LIGHT BULB! ... THEN ACTION

When the “Eureka!” moment happened I was supposed to be concentrating on a lot of other things: getting an American agent interested in my screenplays; working as a full-time film critic and doing freelance on the side to help pay the rent; being a good partner to Clare and a dad to our 14-month-old daughter Ava. But once I saw an egregious little tween comedy called Material Girls and then discovered it was at that very moment the user-voted “worst movie ever” on the Internet Movie Database, the question wouldn’t let me be: What really was the worst movie ever made?

Material Girls sucked, definitely, but I’d seen worse—hell, I’d sat through Santa With Muscles starring Hulk Hogan just in the course of doing my day job. The question then that spurred my quest felt right. It was something I had some experience in and was passionate about but one I couldn’t readily answer. Above all, it was an answer I had to have. No doubt you have a bunch of such questions that relate to where you’ve been and what you’ve done, or what you’ve read and thought and wondered. Imagine one of ‘em grabbing you and not letting go.

But you have to rise to the call. Here’s the thing: rather than just think on it, I acted. I jumped in the deep end—buying hundreds of bad movies on DVD and VHS so I could spend a year watching one really terrible film a day until I found the worst one. Financially committed, I couldn’t back out. I don’t suggest you need to go as far or spend as much, much less on crappy videos, but making it real to yourself—committing—means you can’t then dismiss it as a flight of fancy and back out. I’m thankful I didn’t. Setting a date and doing it pegs the mind, heart and soul on something external. It becomes a narrative, a spine to which you attach experiences and recollections.

CRAFTING THE ONE-YEAR MEMOIR STORY

It’s a segmented memoir—you don’t need to trace your grandparents’ hometown—and a prism through which you view and record events as the quest continues. This memoir form bridges the disciplines of journalism, investigation and analysis while allowing you to present a portrait of yourself in a specific time. In our post-modern culture, it also allows for a lot of jokes and references and subversive asides as you traipse your merry way to quest fulfillment.

Happily, it’ll never be a field of pretenders because you have to be genuinely passionate and curious about your question, but also realistic for yourself and your readers. Can you really become a brain surgeon? Is your struggle not to eat chocolate for a week really that harrowing? But if you decide to build a house with your bare hands or volunteer at the local thrift shop or climb the fourth-highest mountain on each continent, then you might have a bit of fun.

As you progress, take notes. You’re not going to remember all of this stuff and the beauty of such a memoir is in the details. The passengers on the bus, the song on the radio, the color of the sky, the comment your other half made last night and how you feel about this in relation to your quest: this is what will make your memoir vivid. You’ll be writing this backwards to some extent later but you’ll be surprised how much of the first-draft thoughts matter. And make it to the printed page.
The thing is, and I can’t emphasize this enough: Get started.

IS YOUR IDEA/QUEST BOOK-WORTHY?

The ultimate test of whether what you want to do is worthy of a quest memoir is this: Is it something you really want to do and, moreover, something you’d read about? If the answer to both of those is yes, then do it. Once you’ve done it, of course, comes the really tough bit—writing your quest into book form, finding an agent and getting published. If you think your quest is hard, whether it’s hugging 100 dolphins or becoming the world champion at rock-paper-scissors, be prepared for a secondary slog that’s equally challenging.

I was lucky enough to get a recommendation from an Australian friend which landed me with Hannah Brown Gordon of Foundry Literary + Media in New York City. She loved my idea, liked the two rambling chapters I’d written and saw something in the similarly discursive pitch I’d cobbled together. She and the Foundry team helped me hone those chapters and craft a proposal that was also a chapter-by-chapter plan.

Your quest will be your own journey. But just as you’ll need family and friends as your support team along the way, you’ll need a terrific agent and editor to help you turn your experiences into a book. But that’s for down the road. Maybe four weeks from now. Maybe four months. Of four years.
For now, getting started is where you begin. As my novelist friend Mic Looby told me twenty years ago: “Don’t agonize.” It’s possibly the best writing advice I’ve ever heard. Think about it, talk about it but most of all, get on with it. Get on with your wonderful, tiring, frustrating, rewarding and illuminating journey. All else will follow from that first step.

This is guest blogger Michael Adams on set
of George A. Romero’s Survival Of The Dead,
"playing"—what else?—a zombie. Besides
writing a book on finding the worst movie
ever made, Michael is a magazine contributor
to publications such as Empire and Rolling
Stone. And, for a brief shining moment, he
was co-host of The Movie Show.

Want more on this subject?

Want to pen a guest column? Write me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com

Writing memoir? Check out tips on writing and selling the book-length memoir.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Tips for Writing and Selling the Book-Length Memoir (Part 2 of 2)

Chuck — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 02:51:00 GMT

"Is my life fascinating enough?" That's the question raised today in a special guest column by journalist and memoir writer Ethan Gilsdorf, author of Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks. (This column is Part 2 of 2. See Part 1 here.) If you're interested in writing life stories and memoir, check out Ethan's Boston-based, eight-week intensive memoir class (next class begins Jan 26, 2010).

Ethan Gilsdorf is a memoir writer, journalist, critic,
editor and teacher. He has contributed to The New
York Times, Boston Globe, National Geographic
Traveler, Psychology Today and more. Win a copy of
his book online, see check out his >personal website.

2. Start small -- master the essay, the article, the chapter before you take on the entire book. Think of chapters as potential articles first. Strategize to turn a series of related articles into a full-fledged book idea.

3. Publish widely to establish a track record as proven writer and prove you have the writing chops. Agents are more likely to take chance on you if you’ve already published on topic in magazines, newspapers. If you haven’t published short pieces yet, get to work!

4. Document as you experience – make a record of dialogue and thoughts (and keep receipts for tax purposes). If you can’t remember your life or experiences, is it OK to make stuff up? Remember to be truthful to the spirit of the scene in any recreations. In addition to memory, use your reporting skills: interviewing, researching, field work.

5. Pitching the proposal: Take classes, read books, seek expertise on writing a book proposal. Understand what a nonfiction book proposal contains: synopsis; methodology, style and approach; target audiences; promotion and marketing strategies; similar books;
format and delivery; chapter outline; author bio.

6. Network, go to conferences, to gauge interest in your idea, meet editors and agents.

Want more on this subject?

See all the posted stories of writers finding agents.
Do you have a good story about how you found your agent? E-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we'll start a dialogue.
Check out my tips on writing memoir: Part I, and also Part II.

Everything You Would’ve Asked About Steampunk, Had You Known It Existed

Chuck — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:19:54 GMT

Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that, as the name suggests, comes from the idea that technology never developed beyond steampunk. The science can deviate a bit from there, but that’s generally where it all starts. It’s a look into what could have happened had science and industry taken a different turn, but didn’t.

Guest column by Matt Betts, spec fiction
writer and poet. He runs a critique group
and has a website here.

It can take place in the “modern” year or back when steam power was, in fact, the most important source of energy at the time. Many early steampunk stories were set in Victorian England, which may be the reason for the lasting use of Victorian sensibilities in the stories. More and more of the tales are now set in other countries and even other worlds, with the style of the late 19th century remaining, right down the bowlers, brass fittings and waistcoats.

Author Cherie Priest, whose steampunk novel Boneshaker made it on Publishers Weekly’s best of 2009 list, suggests that one of the tough parts about writing steampunk is keeping that world straight for both yourself and the reader. “Steampunk is almost by necessity (but not exclusively so) an exercise in alternate history, so the question becomes one of which events to tweak, how to present them, and how to extrapolate their consequences," she says. "It's a fine line to walk—you want to change history in a credible way that makes sense; but you can't be afraid to break the timeline and really make a mess of things.”

WHERE DID STEAMPUNK COME FROM?

At its core, steampunk uses steam power as the jumping off point to attempt to create some of the advances we have today through various means. Computers, rocket ships and robots have made appearances in their steam-driven or alternative-technology forms at various times and there’s always room for more inspired adaptations.

Some of the literary inspiration for steampunk comes from early authors like Jules Verne and his fabulous tales of the submarine Nautilus, the Time Machine from H.G. Wells, Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Alan Moore would later take these ideas (and some of the characters) and use them in his graphic novels about The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

DO AGENTS SEEK STEAMPUNK?

Joanna Stampfel-Volpe of Nancy Coffey Literary & Media Representation says she enjoys steampunk for the ideas it presents: “It's not just magic with things just appearing out of thin air, but it's people inventing things—even if these steam-powered/clockwork run machines are ultimately too fantastical to ever actually exist in real life, it feels like...well maybe they really can. That's probably the kid in me wishing for that, but who cares, right? Stories are supposed to make you feel like anything's possible!” Having said that, Stampfel-Volpe says not a lot of the subgenre comes her way.

Nathan Bransford of Curtis Brown Ltd. is one agent who doesn't expressly seek out steampunk novels or make a huge announcement for submissions, but he's willing to consider the category. "If it’s good it’s good!" he says. "I’m sure some publishers want it at the moment and some don’t, but I’m always on the lookout for a great story, and that includes steampunk."

Stampfel-Volpe agrees that the quality of the story is what matters most, even when delving into the world of steampunk. "I don't feel it's any harder or easier to sell than regular fantasy," she says. "As long as the voice and plot are captivating, it doesn't really make a difference that it's considered steampunk."

GLOSSARY OF COMMON STEAMPUNK TERMS

     Analog Computer: A common example of the “What if” or alternate nature of things that happen in steampunk.
     Automotan: Steampunk term for a robot or mechanical man. The word construct can also refer to an automotan.
     Clockpunk: A similar subgenre based on the technology that runs watches: springs, gears, cogs, etc.
     Corset: Item of clothing that makes frequent appearances in steampunk stories. Usually worn by women.
     Cyberpunk: Another subgenre that deals more with the super high-tech world, as opposed to the more low-tech one in steampunk.
     Goggles: You’d think they would fog up, what with all the steam, but people wear goggles quite a bit in steampunk stories.
     Victorian Era: Common setting and source for steampunk stories.
     Zeppelins: These airships are a staple of steampunk travel. Also referred to as airships or dirigibles.

Want more on this subject?

If fantasy writing is your thing, check out The Writer's Complete Fantasy Reference.

If you want to write sci-fi or fantasy and are looking for some guidance, check out WD's online course on writing for these genres.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Tips for Writing and Selling the Book-Length Memoir (Part 1 of 2)

Chuck — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 18:28:40 GMT

"Is my life fascinating enough?" That's the question raised today in a special guest column by journalist and memoir writer Ethan Gilsdorf, author of Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks. (This column is Part 1 of 2. See Part II here.) If you're interested in writing life stories and memoir, check out Ethan's Boston-based, eight-week intensive memoir class (next class begins Jan 26, 2010).

Many memoirs plumb the depths of childhood, coming of age, trauma and family. But what if your life story alone doesn't seem all that memorable? You can still write a book-length "not all me" memoir (or series of connected essays) that combines the personal with travel, pop culture, some quirky interest, passion or quest. Here are some considerations the tips that will help you adapt your personal history and life experiences in memoir, establish your expertise and turn articles into a full-fledged book idea, and shape a raw idea into a real story and find a structure for telling the story. (And by the way, a thank you to Emily Franklin for her contributions to these lists.)

1. Think of what kind of memoir yours might be -- triumph over personal tragedy? Cool thing I did for a year? Once you know, see how it fits in with current memoirs being published today. Does it aim for the Bill Bryson or David Sedaris target audience? Is yours Eat Pray Love for men? Liar's Club meets Running with Scissors? Is it sincere, funny, harrowing or inspirational? Try to encapsulate the idea in a thirty-second elevator pitch.

2. Is my life fascinating enough? How do I find the heart of an interesting story? A memoir is a story -- you have to tell a story. You need to find the narrative and your unique voice. It can’t be just be the random and disorganized (or chronologically-arranged) events of an interesting life. The book needs a focus, a theme and an angle.

3. You need a framework for your idea, even if you are an expert. This could be a timeframe (one month of projects, two years in the Deep South, etc) or it could be project-related (my time in the Peace Corps).

(Note: Some memoirs cross genres. For example, one can be overcoming a Crystal Meth addiction and also be an expert in that field. You can even write a memoir of someone else’s problems! But you have to make them your own in some way. If it's memoir, it has to be about you.)

4. What sets you apart from others who do what you do? (For example, "I’m a mom who cooks." So what? Lots of parents cook. What makes you different?) Get to know the competition; research how your book differs from others similar to it on the market. Make sure yours brings a new angle/twist to the subject area.

5. Be an expert in your field or legitimize your experiences. Create a platform (articles, blogs, speaking engagements, etc) to establish expertise in your area: New Zealand backpacking, parenting autistic children, Tuscan cuisine. A platform and established audience are also attractive to agents and publishers.

6. Strike a chord! Think of a group who would be your built-in book-buying audience (dog lovers, gamers, foodies, Italy-groupies, parents who had drug-addicted kids, parents who are glad they didn’t have drug-addicted kids, slutty girls, girls slutty who weren’t slutty but wished they were, moms who pray their daughters won’t be, etc.).

Want more on this subject?

See all the posted stories of writers finding agents.
Do you have a good story about how you found your agent? E-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we'll start a dialogue.
Check out my tips on writing memoir: Part I, and also Part II.

Never Giving Up: My Tale of One Novel, Two Agents and Three Continents

Chuck — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:22:06 GMT

There’s no greater fun than being born excitable. That’s me. You can never get me down. I get excited even with failure and I try, and I try, even at the cost of being laughed at. No worries; jump around, I say, and time will come when you will see yourself out of that godforsaken slushpit.

Guest blog by Abhijit Dasgupta, executive editor
of India Today magazine, the subcontinent's
biggest English weekly. See his blog here.
He is repped by Patricia Moosbrugger.

To begin with (how many times do you have to say this to make your opening line work, I wonder), I have, I think, a good tale to tell you about agent hunting. I wrote my two-book 110,000-word Indian reincarnation-romance-historical novel, Three, in 2006 and went shopping for a literary agent in London. I found a big-time rep almost immediately. She was enthusiastic; nay, ecstatic with the ms. I felt like an author and started behaving like one. Even when I was signing sundry cheques, I was looking around for a copy of my published book to hand over along with them.

"HANG IN THERE, MATE"

She submitted to editors and I carried on being an author, smug in the confidence that she couldn’t fail. Middle 2008: I had finished Book 2 and she wanted revisions on Book 1. No worries; they all wanted revisions, said Google. But spirits were high - she was still most enthused (not ecstatic any longer, though). Months went by, and from ecstatic, she had slowly moved to being enthusiastic and finally, she was clearly egg-on-the-face. E-mails remained unanswered and it was obvious: She could not sell my book.

No, I did not press the panic button. I merely jumped. This was jumping done bad, jumping slowly going berserk. Eyesight blurred. Getting glasses changed and stuff like that. My peers told me that with what was happening in the West, India and China were soon to be world publishing powers. I found a few literary agents who had, I guess, upon similar foresight, opened shop. I mailed. They replied. Out went the attachments. I still haven’t heard from them. I thought again about how my London agent had been entranced, so I shot her e-mail after e-mail, asking what to do. There was just one reply to all of them, “Hang in there, mate … we are in bad times." I was upside down without a clue to what would happen next, so I decided to sack her. In retrospect, I feel sad; traumatized is the word, that I could have acted in the way I did. She was the One who had believed in the ms turning from frog to prince. But why wasn’t she replying to my emails and how long would I have to wait?

STARTING ALL OVER

I Googled three words: historical, multicultural, romance. And sent the same query letter at random to agents whose names were thrown up by Google first and the various other online databases later. If there was one agent who matched even one of the criteria, she or he would be queried. That was a promise I made to myself and I delivered spot on. Between October and November, I do not remember anything else. Things became so hectic that even when I was supposed to be enjoying the next best thing to the sheer pleasure of living itself, I was hunting for the Send button to let go.

33 of them requested partials and fulls. I was overwhelmed! These were big names in the US and UK. Some had rejected me years before; others remembered me from previously submitting. Why the new interest? The revisions, I told myself; all of them wanted to see what London had suggested and whether it was any better this time. And something else dawned on me. This talk of the Downturn in the West was exaggerated. Agents were, as they came, happy to read.

THE MIDNIGHT KNOCK ON THE DOOR

Then one night (always late, very late night, or early morning … I live in India, you see), there was a knock at the computer door. The midnight knock, as we call it . You guessed it right. It was an offer of representation. Date? December 15. Time when it hit my computer? 3:32 am, Indian time. Sent from? London. Me doing what at that precise moment in history? Sending.

Following that mail, I got three more offers, two from the US and one more from the UK. There was so much of the sun at the top of the well now. I actually hummed Lennon. Finally, I fell for Patricia - Patricia Moosbrugger from Colorado. Someone who allows me to jump as much as I want to. Best, she loves historicals, my genre. Also, Google and all those trackers tell you she does not accept e-mail queries. She does. She accepted mine and is now “thrilled” to represent my magnum so-many-times-rejected opus.

So let me tell you: Yes, make querying an addiction. Break the goddamned rules. Send a lot of queries. One will stick. Or at least, if you are pretty unlucky with a problem of plenty, four will.

Want more on this topic?

Want to pen a guest column? Write me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com.

See all posted stories of writers finding their agents.

Agent Janet Reid provides 20 Query Letter Tips.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

New Adult: What Is It?

Chuck — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 15:15:35 GMT

“Home” is such a simple word, at least on the surface. But where is home to a modern 24 year old? Is it the tiny apartment that she lovingly decorated with IKEA furniture and inexpensive trinkets from Target? Is it the two-story Victorian that he grew up in, where his parents still welcome him with open arms (and wallets)? Or is it that fuzzy future house he and she keep thinking about? The one they’re going to buy together a few years from now, with a big backyard for the Beagle they recently adopted and the little boy they both want someday.

Guest column by Kristan Hoffman,
freelance writer and designer. She's a
published columnist and aspiring YA
novelist. See her website here.

These are the kinds of questions my friends and I are wrestling with as we transition out of school and into the Real World. It’s a strange time, because we’re technically adults, but most of us feel more like overgrown kids.

And that’s exactly the unique life period that New Adult fiction is intended to address.

“New Adult” is a term coined by Dan Weiss and his editorial assistant S. Jae-Jones (known as JJ). They are on a mission to discover and develop New Adult voices for St. Martin’s Press. To that end, they recently ran a contest for writers of New Adult fiction and ended up selecting 18 winners. Now they are reading partials of those 18 manuscripts, and one of them, happily, is mine.

While I calmly (hah!) sit and wait to find out if the St. Martin’s team is interested in reading more of my work, I find myself searching for the best way to explain New Adults and our fiction. It’s more difficult than I would have expected. In the end, I decided that the clearest explanation might be a composite. Here are a few quotes about the nuances of “New Adult,” accompanied by my thoughts as a New Adult person writing New Adult fiction.

THE CONCEPT

In the words of JJ at St. Martin’s, “New Adult is about young adulthood, when you are an adult but have not established your life as one (career, family, what-have-you).”

So, it’s about transition. The transformation from child to adult doesn’t happen overnight—just ask as anyone who is or has been (or is a parent to) a teenager. But the transition from teen to adult doesn’t happen overnight either. There’s a period of time where adulthood feels like a new pair of shoes. The expectations of independence and self-sufficiency are still new, still being broken in. New Adults are the people who have just begun to walk in those shoes; New Adult fiction is about their blisters and aches.

THE PROTAGONISTS

Writer and actress Adrienne Kress describes New Adult as “work that isn't quite adult and isn't really YA”—i.e., “college-age stories, or stories with individuals just out of high school.”

That puts New Adult protagonists in the range of 18 to 26 years old. (Earlier in history, adulthood may have started as early as 15 or 16, but I think you get the idea.) College, first jobs, first relationships, or marriage… There’s a lot that can happen when you’re 18-26, but the fact is, those same events feel very different at that age than they do at 12 or at 40. Because kids and teens focus on the present, while adults draw on their past experience to inform their present and future decisions. New Adults are somewhere in between. As the saying goes: old enough to know better, but still too young to care. That distinction might seem subtle, but it comes through loud and clear in the voice of New Adult fiction.

Now, obviously there have been protagonists aged 18-26 before. New Adult as a concept is not new, but recognizing and promoting it as a separate category is.

THE READERS

Agent Kristin Nelson explains that New Adult stories “will speak to older teens and twenty-somethings.” But then “where [do we] put these books so they can be found by the target audience. Does it go in the teen section or in the general fiction?”

The answer is that there is no answer yet. In an ideal world, New Adult fiction would go on a New Adult shelf, but that doesn’t exist in mainstream bookstores yet. Part of St. Martin’s mission is to help interested readers find these books, regardless of where they end up. The fact that these interested readers might hail from all different age groups makes the task more challenging, but perhaps also more rewarding.

St. Martin’s Weiss is an industry veteran, responsible for successful ventures such as the Sweet Valley High series and SparkNotes. He’s got a knack for understanding what niches are not being filled, which consumers aren’t being satisfied. If he believes New Adult fiction will have an audience, then I’m inclined to agree.

Especially since New Adult could offer a variety of “flavors.” Sci-fi, fantasy, romance, historical, thriller, literary … Just like the Young Adult umbrella, New Adult can (and probably will) cover all these genres and more.

THE BIG PICTURE

Finally, and my personal favorite, St. Martin’s Press VP Matthew Shear sums up New Adults—both its readers and protagonists—as “emerging adults who are navigating career, love and family in a 24/7 connected world.”

Exactly. In fact, that’s what I had in mind while writing Twenty-Somewhere, my New Adult manuscript currently under consideration by St. Martin’s. In Twenty-Somewhere, three best friends (Sophie, MJ, and Claudia) graduate from college, scatter across the globe, and begin their own careers and relationships. Despite their great differences and even greater distances, all three struggle through similar issues, and they struggle through them together. Because in this day and age, being close doesn’t require being nearby.

That brings us back to my original question: Where is home? For New Adults like me, I think the answer is again a composite. Home is the new apartment, the childhood residence, and the future house. For New Adult fiction, the only home right now is St. Martin’s Press. But if Weiss and JJ are successful, it’s only a matter of time before other publishing houses follow their lead. And when they do, I have no doubt that New Adult will find a home on a bookshelf of its very own.

Want more on this topic?

5 Signs a Literary Agent is a Good Match For You.

See examples of Successful Queries that agents liked.

Check out The Writer's Digest Guide to Query Letters.

How to Write a Synopsis for a Novel.

Facebook, Twitter and Literary Agents.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Scott Eagan on Romance vs. Women's Fiction

Chuck — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:52:38 GMT

When I first opened Greyhaus Literary Agency in 2003, I decided to focus simply on romance and women’s fiction. Since that time, I honestly don’t know how many times I have been asked “What is the difference between romance and women’s fiction?” It seems that, in my humble opinion, the line has really been blurred between these two genres. There is fiction with romantic elements. There is literary fiction told from a female perspective … the list goes on and on. Considering Greyhaus focuses exclusively on romance and women’s fiction, I felt it was necessary to really define the two genres and make it clear to both myself, as I looked at new proposals, and to the readers that submit to me.

This guest column by agent
Scott Eagan of Greyhaus Literary

I do have to say, however, that I have received a lot of criticism from writers that claim you really can’t categorize writing. Often, I am electronically screamed at by writers who claim writing can’t be categorized like this. I laugh at this comment. My undergraduate work was in Literature and anyone who remembers anything from any literature class they took will remember that we do indeed divide writing into stylistic differences. There is a huge difference between the writings of Coleridge and Wordsworth and the writings of Locke and Jefferson. One is from the romantic period and one is from the Age of Reason. In both cases, the writing met certain criteria, other than simply being written during a time period. There are stylistic elements.

For those of you that might not be on board with literature, let’s try music? Baroque, Classical, Romantic? Get the idea. I could go on an on with this but I think you understand where I am coming from. Writing is going to do the same thing.

LET'S BEGIN WITH ROMANCE

At Greyhaus, I really like to stick to a traditional definition of the romance genre. In this genre, the writing will have two key traditional elements.

• The relationship is the central plot arc of the story.
• There is a happily-ever-after.

In romance, a writer needs to see the growing relationship of the hero and the heroine. There may be other elements going on in the story but the romance is still the central focus of the story. We want to see the two characters come together through whatever adventures they may be dealing with. Romance, of course, can be written in a variety of sub-genres (paranormal, historical, suspense and mystery) but the relationship has to be the central focus of the story. This is easy to spot. If you tell someone what your story is about, and the focus is only on the characters and their growing attraction toward one another, then you are likely in that romance. Please understand that if your story doesn’t revolve around that, it does not necessarily mean that you have women’s fiction. We will get to that later. This genre also has a second element. There is a happily-ever-after. And yes, the same rule applies here as did with the prior point. If a story doesn’t have that happily-ever-after, it does not mean it's suddenly women’s fiction.

Remember that the goal of romance is to show a growing and developing relationship. We want that “fantasy” world. While the real world may have pain and hardship, we want to escape to that “better” world every now and then. We can have tears, anger and pain along the way, but the readers want to know, that when they close the book in the end, we know the characters are going on with their lives, happy and content.

I do get a lot of writers that say their story is really set during a romantic period, or they have added a romance to the story, but I think you can see that doesn’t quite meet the genre. Yes, it is a fine line, but there is still a line.

BUT WHAT ABOUT WOMEN'S FICTION?

In women's fiction, is there no happily-ever-after? Does this mean there is no romance? No. Women’s fiction is about something much more. I have always tried to define this genre as a story that shows the female journey. The goal and the intent of this genre is to be able to relate to the character and understand her own life. We want to know what it is to be a woman. Like romance, this can occur in any time period, but the goal is still the same – to understand the female psyche. The story can be multicultural, like Amy Tan, or historical, like Philippa Gregory. It really doesn’t matter other than making the heroine the central focus of the story. It may be contemporary. One of my favorite stories that I believe fits this the best is A Summer All Her Own by Rosanne Keller.

I often think about these stories as the type women will sit around and talk about. The stories that allow women to say, “Hey, I’ve gone through that.” Readers are learning they are not alone, and hopefully, through that story, they can learn new ways to cope with struggles that seep to be daunting at the present time.

For those of you submitting to Greyhaus, you can now see where I am coming from when dealing with submissions. I'm accepting queries again, so check my website for exact submission guidelines.

Want more on this subject?

Previously I interviewed Scott on the blog.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Interested in romance? Dorchester editor Leah Hultenschmidt gace a great interview on this blog. See Part I and Part II.

Writing for Love, Writing for Money, and What Superman IV Has To Do With Being a Professional Writer

Chuck — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 06:22:58 GMT

You ever see Superman IV? It was the one where Lex Luthor creates a "Nuclear Man" who fights with Superman. Mariel Hemingway is in it and she's awful. The plot is awful. The whole thing is just a terrible drive down Awful Street.

But as awful as it is, I think it has a connection to the world of writing. Let me explain. Perhaps you remember Superman III with Richard Pryor? That one was awful, too. Richard Pryor had no business being in that movie, yet there he was - squeezed into the plot in an attempt to attract box office dollars. Anyway, after the disappointment of Superman III, actor Christopher Reeve wasn't interested in another Superman film. Producers came to him and talked about a fourth installment, but he wasn't biting. Why? Because he knew it would suck (and suck it did). So if he knew Superman IV would suck, and he didn't want to do it in the first place, how on Earth did that movie ever get made?

Two words: Street Smart.

Street Smart was a nice little drama script that Reeve had been trying to get off the ground for years. He loved the project but nobody would finance the picture. The producers who owned the Superman movie rights told Reeve they would bankroll any picture of his choosing in exchange for doing Superman IV. He couldn't resist, and he signed the papers. Street Smart was released in 1987 and kinda came and went without much hurrah. Morgan Freeman played a nasty pimp in it and got his first Oscar nomination. You can see clips of him online, being the man. He totally stole that whole movie. But the point here is not to praise Morgan Freeman and his soothing voice. The point is to show that, like Christopher Reeve in the mid-80s, we writers sometimes do things for love and sometimes we do things for money. And that's normal; that's perfectly fine.

David Morrell, the thriller writer, once told me that only about 250 people in the country make their living soling writing novels. All the other writers must do other writerly tasks to bring in money. They teach; they write press releases; they write radio copy; they pen articles. Think about the movie Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, when Matt Damon and Ben Affleck (playing themselves) talk to one another about alternating with "a safe movie" and then "an arthouse movie."

And they're pretty much right (in my mind, at least). You have to take on some projects for love - projects that might fail. This usually refers to fiction. And you will need to take on writing that doesn't inspire you but pays the bills. Perhaps that's travel articles for the local paper or running a newsletter of some kind. Just know that it's normal, and we're all doing the same thing.

Should You Start With Plot or Character(s)?

Chuck — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 19:59:45 GMT

Whether plot or character comes first when composing a novel is sort of like the chicken and egg thing. It greatly depends on the author’s point of view. Plot and character are so entwined that it’s often hard to even separate the two. Like all elements of a novel-dialogue, exposition, description, pacing-plot and character are woven throughout. I think writing can be compared to weaving, where the threads are blurred within the composition of the overall pattern.

Guest blog by Kathryne Kennedy, author of the
Relics of Merlin series; she is best known
for her historical paranormal romances. She
has also written a fantasy romance and
a new Victorian historical romance,
titled My Unfair Lady.

After several books I’ve found that, although there are guidelines to writing, there are no hard and fast rules. That’s why the best authors appear to break them. So I would hesitate to give a definitive answer to that question, and can only offer what I personally do as a writer when starting a new novel.

I start with plot. I’m probably breaking the romance guidelines, as romances are known for their character driven stories. But then again, most of my books are a mix of fantasy and romance, so they’re a bit different anyway.

For me, I have to know where I’m going before I create my characters, even if it’s only a general idea of the plot. Once I have my external conflict (plot) I can then create the characters who would suffer the worst internal conflict within the story. So, if I have a storyline where the heroine must leave her village to find her missing father, who is tangled up in all sorts of political intrigue, I will create a character who is not an adventuress at heart. She’d prefer a cozy, quiet life of knitting and cooking and raising babies. The last thing she would want is to leave her peaceful home and go wandering about the dangerous countryside, eventually becoming tangled up in the same intrigues that cost her father his life. Her internal conflict will be so much greater than creating a character who longs for adventure and excitement. And her growth would be much more rewarding and life-altering.

And then this is where it gets interesting. Because once I create the characters, and plunk them into the story, they will take over, sometimes changing the plot drastically from what I’d first envisioned. And I let them. Because isn’t that the magic of writing, when the words aren’t coming from you, but the characters that you’ve created?

My upcoming release, My Unfair Lady, is a Victorian romance, and probably more character driven than any other book I’ve written. Inspired by Shaw’s Pygmalion, I knew the plot would involve a brash American who comes to London and hires an impoverished duke to turn her into a lady. I knew that someone would be trying to kill the duke, and why. And then I created the characters. The heroine’s reasons for wanting her transformation seemed obvious at first, but then I gave her a secret, one that made her want the things she did, without knowing why, at least at first. When I created my hero I gave him a superficially glamorous life, and a boredom with it that would make my heroine seem like a breath of fresh air-that would make his desire to change her conflict with his growing attraction for her just the way she was. And then the magic happened. The internal conflict became so pronounced that it overwhelmed the external conflict, and I let them loose to figure out each other’s secrets. However, the external plot continued to throw them together time and again to give them a chance to do so. And it was pure joy to watch these two characters discover the truth about themselves, and fall in love with each other while doing so.

So should you start with plot or character? That’s all up to you, and the story you envision writing. But if you’re not quite sure, try starting with a general plot outline or idea, and create characters who would hate to be put into the situation you’ve created. And see where the magic takes you.

My Unfair Lady by Kathryne Kennedy,
a Library Journal Editors pick, and
a Starred Review from Publishers Weekly.

Want more on this topic?

5 Signs a Literary Agent is a Good Match For You.

See examples of Successful Queries that agents liked.

Check out The Writer's Digest Guide to Query Letters.

How to Write a Synopsis for a Novel.

Facebook, Twitter and Literary Agents.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agents at a Conference Talk Queries, Short Stories, the State of the Industry & More

Chuck — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 19:07:49 GMT

This is a "Blast From the

Past" post. To celebrate the

GLA Blog's 2nd birthday, I am

re-posting some of the best

"older" content that writers

likely missed.

------

In 2009, I presented at Muse & the Marketplace, which is a writers' conference held in downtown Boston. The event seemed to be a big success and I gave two presentations—one on query letters to agents, and another on nonfiction book proposals.

Also—I sat in on an agent panel and listened to four agents share all kinds of good tips and secrets. The four reps were:

      1. Mollie Glick of Foundry Literary + Media
      2. Rob McQuilkin of Lippencott Massie McQuilkin
      3. Elisabeth Weed of Weed Literary
      4. Lane Zachary of Zachary Shuster Harmsworth

Here is what they shared. Everything
below is paraphrased.

ON SUBMISSIONS & QUERIES:

MG: When you contact an agent with a query, if you can mention other books that the agent has repped (for example, because you repped X, I think you will like my Y).

LZ: Mentioning that you have an MFA is impressive and can help, but doesn’t make too much of a difference in the long run, because it’s all a matter of whether the writer can write.

MG: When looking at a query, agents are looking for something that helps them pull your letter out of the pile and say “This person has some legitimacy.”

LZ: The query letter is “a couple of sparkling paragraphs about what you’re writing.” She often sees query letters with superfluous detail in them—namely about the author’s life (“I ski … I hunt.”) If she sees superfluous detail in the letter, she assumes that the manuscript will have too much fat on it, as well.

RM: Simultaneous submissions are normal and assumed. In other words, it is safe and healthy to submit your work to several agents at once.

MG: Submitting to agents and editors at the same time is counter productive because if you were to get an agent, she won’t know who you’ve submitted to and received rejections from. This makes her job harder.

LZ: If she passes on an idea but thinks another agent at the agency will find it interesting, she will always pass it on.

ON SHORT STORIES:

RM: One of the best and most common ways to sell a collection of short stories is to repurpose them into a novel, or sell the collection as one part of a two-part deal, with the second book being an actual novel.

LZ: Short story collections do sell, but they do so very rarely.

ON CHOOSING AN AGENT:

RM: There are distinct benefits to working with a young & hungry agent. Namely, they will be able to spend more time helping you polish your work before it gets sent out. A younger agent may have more time to help you.

EW: It makes no difference whether you go with a big or small agency. She’s worked at both, and finds very little difference. It's all about the agent's ability, not the size of the agency.

ON OTHER TOPICS:

MG: The state of the publishing industry has meant that the market is surprising. By that, she means that she will have an expectation regarding what a publisher will pay for a book, but the publisher is usually not offering the expected number. They’re either offering higher or lowering than first expected. In other words, the down economy is throwing things into a shift, but it's not always bad.

LZ: Agents are always on the hunt for new great writers and they read lots of publications. They read literary journals to find amazing talent. But they also ready magazines. She recently took on an author after reading a piece by the writer in Backpacker Magazine. The lesson here is that building credits is a good idea.

MG: She handles more clients than people may think. It’s because fiction takes so long to write and polish that it’s often 2-3 years between projects. It’s her job to keep track of what’s in progress, what needs a little more work before making the editor rounds, and what is good to go out right now.

MG: Finding an agent is like looking for a job. Writers should be professional. Both sides should ask questions of one another before contracts are signed.

Editor's Note: The agents were asked if they read Scribd, a site where people can post their writing. (Questions about these sites can up now and again at conferences.) All four agents said no, and then seemed to have somewhat negative opinions of posting stuff online. Rob said he doesn’t want to find secondhand material. Mollie said she is wary of anyone who has posted too much of the work online.

Me teaching at the conference. I gave
two presentations - one on queries to
agents, and another on nonfiction
book proposals.

Want more on this subject?

Word Count Guidelines for Novels and Children's Books.

Check out agent Don Maass's popular book, The Fire in Fiction.

20 Tips on Writing a Query Letter

How Money Works: Book Royalties, Advances and Flat Fees.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

10 Tips on Writing Picture Books

Chuck — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 20:18:44 GMT

And now: a great guest column from picture book writer Jean Reidy, and her thoughts on the Top 10 Picture Book Takeaways from the Rocky Mountain SCBWI Conference. The panel she's writing about was led by kids book editor Allyn Johnston and kids book illustrator Marla Frazee.

Jean Reidy is a freelance writer and
children's author. Her first children's
book, Too Purpley! comes out in Jan.
2010 (Bloomsbury) and will be followed
by Too Pickley! and two other books.

10. Beware of dialogue-heavy picture book manuscripts.

9. The only beef editors and agents have against rhyming picture books is that they're so often poorly written.

8. Manuscripts need to be more perfect than ever before they're ready for submission.

7. While marketing yourself is certainly important, a writer's most important job is to make his/her book amazing.

6. Perfect picture books are like a dance between text and illustrations.

5. Adding just one word - the perfect word - to a picture book text, can carry layers of emotion like wistfulness, uncertainty or imperfection.

4. Picture book pacing is a combination of text on the page, text-free pages, punctuation, page turns, timing and breathing.

3. Even humorous picture books carry an emotional truth and strike an emotional and harmonic chord at the end.

2. Picture book endings should disarm us. They must have a touch of mystery, a touch of magic, and space for the reader to fill in the ending or ponder it.

1. If you ever have a chance to see Allyn Johnston and Marla Frazee present together, don't miss it. You'll leave with inspiration (and laughter!) for a lifetime.

Buy "Too Purpley!"

Want more on this topic?

How I Got My Agent: Picture book writer Kristyn Crow.

Interview: Kids agent Mary Kole.

5 articles on writing picture books.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Page 1: How to Start Your Romance Novel

Chuck — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:16:46 GMT

Here on the blog, I don't spend too much time talking about craft, simply because it's a huge subject I can't really do justice to; however, I do like to talk about how best to start your story right and have a compelling Page 1 and Chapter 1, and that's where this guest column comes in, from romance writer Leigh Michaels.

STARTING TO WRITE YOUR STORY

Figuring out where to start telling your story is one of the bigger challenges you face. You have limited time and space—a few pages, at most—to seize your readers' interest. If you start too slowly and include too much of the characters' history, readers may get tired of waiting for the interesting stuff to start. If you start too fast, with too much action, they may get confused. Either miscalculation can make a reader put the book down and never pick it up again.

This column excerpted from
On Writing Romance by
Leigh Michaels.

Page One: Where to Start

You should be able to convincingly answer the question, Why does page one pick up the story at the moment it does? The best beginnings show—within the first few pages or even paragraphs—the main characters under pressure and facing a challenge, a change in circumstances, or a threat that will significantly alter the rest of her life.

There are no hard and fast rules for exactly how to begin your book, but certain starting setups have proven successful over time. When you're deciding where and when to begin, keep the following options in mind:

1. Start with one of your two main characters. Readers expect the first character they meet in the story to be either the hero or the heroine (and most often it is the heroine), and they're immediately prepared to care about this person. In this opening paragraph from her historical novella, The Rake's Bride, Nicola Cornick introduces her hero and gives us a pretty good idea why we'll be rooting for this war veteran to find love: as a reward for the hell he's been through:

     The April sunlight was as blinding as a flash of gunpowder and the rattle of the bed curtains sounded like distant artillery fire. For a moment, Jack, Marquis of Merlin, wondered if he had gone to hell and ended back in the Peninsula War.

2. Start with action. A good option is to show the main character at the
point when that character's life is disrupted by some kind of danger or
threat. The danger doesn't have to be life-threatening, and it's better if
it isn't complex and doesn't require lengthy explanation. Starting with
action is particularly effective when the situation is easily understood or
the peril is something the readers can relate to—as in this example from
Liz Fielding's sweet traditional, The Billionaire Takes a Bride:

     This was a mistake ... Every cell in Ginny's body was slamming on the brakes, digging in its heels, trying to claw its way back behind the safety of the rain-soaked hedge that divided her roof top terrace from the raked perfection of Richard Mallory's Japanese garden ...
     Her boots left deep impressions in the damp gravel. So much for stealth.
     She was not cut out for burglary.

3. Start with an attention-getting statement. When the readers are presented with something they don't expect, as in Maureen Child's single title Some Kind of Wonderful, they will read on to find out what the heck's happening:

     Baby Jesus moved.
     Carol Baker blinked and shook her head. "Okay, Carol. When you start
seeing statues move, it's either a miracle or you've got problems." She
stared hard at the brightly-lit, life-sized Nativity scene that filled one
corner of the town square ...
     "Okay, Baby Jesus is definitely moving."

Within a few paragraphs, we find out that "Baby Jesus" is actually an
abandoned infant, and the heroine finds her life taking a dramatic turn.

Want more on this subject?

Buy Leigh's book: On Writing Romance.

Check out an interview with romance expert and Dorchester editor Leah Hultenschmidt.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

When Can You Query Agents? How Do You Know if Your Project is Ready?

Chuck — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:55:42 GMT

I just saw a great post on this over on the KidLit blog (run by agent Mary Kole) and wanted to address the question: "How Do You Know if Your Project is Ready to Send Out?"

The common answer is something about how each project is different and it all depends, yadda yadda yadda—but that answer doesn't help you. The next thing people say is that you don't want to send it out before it's ready, meaning that it's much better to work on it longer and refine it rather than send it out too early just because you're sick of looking at it. (As one playwriting agent once said: "No play ever got produced too late.") This is damn good advice—one of the most important tips you can heed—but it still doesn't answer the question as specific to your manuscript.

The best answer I can give on the subject is this: If you think the story has a problem, it does. When I have edited full-length manuscripts in the past (some for SCBWI friends and others on a freelance editor basis), a lot of time, when I am addressing a problem in the book, the writer will nod before I even finish the sentence. What this means is that they knew about the problem and I just confirmed what they already knew.

For example, some typical concerns were stuff like this:

"This part where he gets beat up—it doesn't seem believable that so many kids just took off school like that."
"If the main character is so stealth, then how come he gets caught by the bad guys here?"
"It starts too slow."

These are garden variety problems with a manuscript, and writers all seem to know many of their problematic issues before anyone even tells them. So this all brings me back to Point #1: If you think your work has a problem, then it more than likely does—and any manuscript with a problem is not ready for agent eyes.

This shows the importance of beta readers—friends who will review the work once it's written. They will come back to you with concerns, both big and small. You address the concerns in a revision and send the work to more readers. Once readers stop coming back with concerns, you're starting to get somewhere. If you think you have issues, or multiple critiquers agree on a problem, then you're not ready for Querytime. If you're not sure the beginning starts fast enough, it probably doesn't. When you and your readers can look at a book and say that all concerns are adequately addressed, then you're ready.

Want more on this subject?

Have some questions on your road to landing a literary agent? Ask me! Join me for my "How to Get a Literary Agent" webinar on Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009 - and learn about queries, proposals, synopses, submissions, research and much more.

Google Alerts and Agents.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

7 Reasons Agents Stop Reading Your First Chapter

Chuck — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:24:51 GMT

I recently attended the Writer Idol Event at Boston Book Fest. It was not for the faint of heart, but for those willing to brave public ridicule, it was a great way to get helpful feedback.

This is how it worked: An actress picked manuscripts at random and read the first 250 words out loud for the panel and the audience. If at any point a panelist felt he would stop reading, he raised his hand. The actress read until two or more panelists raised their hands, at which point the panel discussed the reasons they stopped, or in cases where the actress read to the end, they discussed what worked. Helene Atwan (Director of Beacon Press) and agents Esmond Harmsworth, Eve Bridburg, and Janet Silver (all from Zachary Shuster Harmsworth) served on the panel.

This guest column by Livia Blackburne.
Livia is a graduate student at MIT.
She describes her blog as "A Brain Scientist's
Take on Creative Writing."

These panelists were tough! I'd say less than 25% made it to the end of the passage. Here are some of the common reasons panelists stopped reading.

1. Generic beginnings: Stories that opened with the date or the weather didn’t really inspire interest. According to Harmsworth, you are only allowed to start with the weather if you're writing a book about meteorologists. Otherwise, pick something more creative.

2. Slow beginnings: Some manuscripts started with too much pedestrian detail (characters washing dishes, etc) or unnecessary background information.

3. Trying too hard: Sometimes it seemed like a writer was using big words or flowery prose in an attempt to sound more sophisticated. In several cases, the writer used big words incorrectly. Awkward or forced imagery was also a turnoff. At one point, the panelists raised their hands when a character's eyes were described as “little lubricated balls moving back and forth.”

4. TMI (Too Much Information): Overly detailed description of bodily functions or medical examinations had the panelists begging for mercy.

5. Clichés: "The buildings were ramrod straight." "The morning air was raw." "Character X blossomed into Y." "A young woman looks into the mirror and tells us what she sees." Clichés are hard to avoid, but when you revise, go through and try to remove them.

6. Loss of Focus: Some manuscripts didn't have a clear narrative and hopped disjointedly from one theme to the next.

7. Unrealistic internal narrative: Make sure a character's internal narrative—what the character is thinking or feeling—matches up with reality. For example, you wouldn't want a long eloquent narration of what getting strangled feels like—the character would be too busy gasping for breath and passing out. Also, avoid having the character think about things just for the sake of letting the reader know about them.

Hope these tips are helpful. Do you see any of these mistakes in your writing?

Want more on this subject?

Want to write a guest column? E-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com.

How can you improve your query letter?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Three Ways to Identify the Literary Agent of Any Book

Chuck — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:24:17 GMT

If you want to know who agented a particular book, there are a variety of ways how to discover the individual literary rep who made the deal. Here are three ideas for starters:

1. Simply check the book's acknowledgements. Sometimes, it will be as simple as a writer saying, "And a special thanks to my agent, Randy Masterson."

2. Use search engines. Try Googling the book's title (or author) and the word "agent," and see what you come up with.
Also, lots of times, authors will have their representation listed online. So if you want to know who the agent was for Joe Smith's book, The Neptune Paradox, find Joe Smith's official Web site. Check the bottom of the home page, and then the "Contact" page. The site may say, "Joe is represented by Randy Masterson Literary Agency, 245 Manhattan Road, New York, NY."

3. Worse case scenario, you can call the publisher. If you see that Knopf published the book, for example, call Knopf's main line and speak to the operator. Ask for the editorial department; better yet, if you can, explain your goal and request to speak with the editor who worked on The Neptune Paradox. The operator will say, "Oh, that's Judy Smith. I'll transfer you." You won't talk to Judy, but rather her assistant. No matter. Ask the assistant if Judy did indeed edit The Neptune Paradox. When the assistant confirms Judy's involvement, kindly request to know who the book's acting literary agent was. She'll be happy to tell you.

Want more on this subject?

Word count guidelines for novels and children's books.

Networking at writers' conferences.

20 Tips on Query Letters.

Need some help finding the best literary agent for your work? Sign up for my webinar, "How to Land a Literary Agent," on Dec. 17, 2009. You can ask questions and hear me discuss queries, proposals, submissions, copyright and more.

Agent Paige Wheeler on Her 10 Pieces of Advice for a Successful Agent-Author Relationship

Chuck — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:55:18 GMT

A little while ago, I received an invitation to the graduation of one of my author’s daughters. This author has been with me for eleven years when her daughter was only seven years old. It’s amazing how time flies. It’s even more amazing the relationship that I’ve developed not only with my author, but with her family as well. We have shared personal ups and downs over the years, I’ve watched her family grow and I’ve guided her career as well.

It’s the same for the majority of my clients. They start off as clients but they become friends. It’s important to nurture this relationship from both sides, because it is going to be a long term relationship. Once the agent sells the book, you’re working with that agent for the life of the book contract. Even if the two of you part ways, royalties still have be paid out, correspondence exchanged, and foreign rights have to be sold. It behooves both sides to follow some simple guidelines to ensure good communication between agent and author. I’m going to outline some of them below.

This guest column by
agent Paige Wheeler
of Folio Literary Management.

1. Make sure both of you agree how you like to communicate. If it’s by e-mail, confirm that you have the best address (many people have multiple addresses). If you change your e-mail address, make sure this is communicated as well. Also, keep your agent updated on all of your points of contact. That means your phone number, e-mail, and mailing address. This is even true once you part ways. Your agent must continue to send you royalty statements, 1099s, and other important information for the life of the book contract.

2. You may want to casually inquire how frequently you should expect to be in contact. You can expect to be in fairly close contact when your agent is giving feed back on revisions, shopping your material around and negotiating the deal. Once she has sold your book and the contract has been signed, she may leave you alone to actually write the darn thing.

3. Both the author and the agent should be attuned to how the other likes to communicate, whether it is informal and chatty or strictly down to business. This will vary depending on demands on both parties, but pay attention to cues in how communication is exchanged and respond accordingly.

4. How long is too long to wait for hear back from your agent? Or better yet, when should you start to panic? This, too, will vary. But before you panic, realize that e-mails go astray, computers crash, people get sick, messages get erased, and calls made from a cell phone may be too distorted to comprehend. If you haven’t heard back try again and then a third time. After the third time, then you may want to get concerned about the lack of response.

5. If you’re going on vacation, let people know. This is true for both sides. For authors, leave contact information so that your agent can reach you. Agents who are leaving on an extended trip usually inform their clients and indicate a person to contact in case of an emergency.

6. Show appreciation for each other. Remember each other at the holidays and, if possible, birthdays (although, I admit, I’m horrible at remembering birthdays).

7. Realize that you’re not going to agree on everything all the time. Your agent probably won’t love everything you write. If she’s good, she’ll let you know that it’s not your best work. That’s her job.

8. Make sure you both understand your goals. Do you want to write a book a year? Make a bestseller list? Reach a certain print run? Move to another publishing house?

9. If things aren’t going well, don’t dwell on it by discussing it only with your writing buddies but not your agent. If there is a problem it should be addressed directly. This is true for both sides. If the agent has issues, she should bring them up as well.

10. Realize that this is a small industry and gossip travels quickly (for example, on Galleycat). Above all, practice courtesy and be professional. Treat your agent the way you’d like to be treated and she should do the same.

Bottom line: keep the lines of communication open, don’t hesitate to bring up any concerns, and make sure you both have a clear understanding of your goals and responsibilities.

Paige Wheeler is an agent with Folio Literary Management. View her complete submission guidelines here. Paige is a founding partner of Folio; before that, she founded Creative Media Agency (CMA) in 1997 and served as its president for nine years until she merged CMA into her new company, Folio, in 2006. She seeks: "upscale commercial fiction and nonfiction books, women's fiction, romance (all types), mystery, thrillers, and psychological suspense. I enjoy both historical fiction as well as contemporary fiction, so do keep that in mind. I'm looking for both narrative nonfiction and prescriptive nonfiction. I'm looking for books where the author has a huge platform and something new to say in a particular area. Some of the areas that she likes are lifestyle, relationship, parenting, business, popular/trendy reference projects and women's issues."

Want more on this subject?

Interview with Folio agent Michelle Brower.

Advice on writing memoir.

20 Tips on Query Letters.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

5 Tips on Maximizing a Writers' Conference

Chuck — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:33:36 GMT

This guest column by Jessica Monday,
freelancer and aspiring novelist.

So you’re planning to attend a writing conference? Read these five tips to ensure an experience you’ll savor long after you’ve left the hotel lobby. After all, you paid for it, right?

1. Choose sessions you find interesting

It's no secret you need to know how to write a sparkling query, but you’re intrigued to find out how journaling can release your creative muse. Go for the muse. Hundreds of websites will be waiting at home to tell you how to write a query letter. Whenever I attend a lecture or reading, I never know what I’ll take away. That’s the beauty of being open to whatever information the speaker decides to bring. View a conference as a mini-vacation, not something to stress about or execute perfectly.
     Also, don’t become a guest speaker groupie. Sample as many different speakers as possible because you’ll learn something new from each one.

2. Resist taking copious notes.

You’ll retain more when you are focused on listening, not rushing to take down every word leaving the speaker’s mouth. If your type-A personality insists, bring the notepad with you and jot down inspiring bullet points you can hang above your desk. If you waste time taking a ton of notes, more likely you’ll miss the most important things being said and lose an opportunity to engage in the moment.

3. Mingle.

Walk around and talk with people between sessions. Find out what other writers are working on and get inspired by their imagination. If you already know some of the other conference attendees, meet new people and introduce your friends. During meals, sit at a table where you don’t know anyone or, if obligation demands you sit with your friends, invite someone you don’t know to sit at your table too. This is your chance to exchange ideas with other artists, so don’t be shy.

4. Talk less, listen more, and ask concise questions.

Please don’t be “that guy” at the conference who is always in the midst of a twenty-minute story outline. Don’t worry about impressing people. You’re here to ingest expert knowledge, not disseminate yours. When you have finished your graphic novel, poetry anthology, etc. and are invited to be a guest speaker, then is the time for you to talk about your process ad nauseam. Until then, your job is to listen.
       On the other hand, now is the time for questions. Ask the panel of experts who have been assembled for this purpose and don’t be afraid to share your question during a session. Caveat: If your question is particular to your work rather than general, wait until after the session to ask the speaker one-on-one (which is a great way to engage them personally as well!).

5. Bring at least one piece of your work.

Most conferences have open mic during the evening hours. Choose short pieces - again don’t be “that guy” reading three chapters from a rough draft. Shoot for 1,000 words in length or something that can be read comfortably in less than five minutes. It should be polished enough for public presentation, but be sure to bring something even if you write it specifically for the conference. Reading your work out loud builds self-confidence and helps transcend the fear of exposure common to so many of us writers.
     Above all, remember the conference is the easy part.
     Writing is the real work that will be waiting when you return home. So enjoy yourself and let the conference energize your creative spirit; it will follow through in your writing.

Want more on this subject?

Check out this guest column by Han Vance on Networking at Writers Conferences.

Read more about the dos and don'ts of pitching agents at conferences.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Literary Agents Talk Blogging, Twitter and More

Chuck — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:19:58 GMT

Outside, it was a warm Friday afternoon at Myrtle Beach. Inside, eager, nervous writers filled a windowless room at the South Carolina Writers Workshop, hoping to learn how to do the “social networking” thing that we keep hearing is no longer optional. We awaited the arrival of Janet Reid, FinePrint Literary agent extraordinaire, her inimitable minion and fellow fabulous FinePrint agent Suzie Townsend, and the amazing Joanna Stampfel-Volpe of Nancy Coffey Literary Management, to teach us.

Guest Blogger Michelle Hodkin
writes for young adults, tweets
(MichelleHodkin) and blogs
(www.lovesandloathes.blogspot.com).

What is this Twitter thing, anyhow? And how does one accomplish this blogging they speak of? Must we have a website? What about Facebook?

These, ladies and gentlemen, were the big questions.

Twitter, for those of you who don't know, is a free social networking site that enables users to “micro-blog” in short bursts of text not exceeding 140 characters. Still with me? No? Okay, let’s rewind.

THERE'S THIS THING CALLED "BLOGGING"

The term “blog” is short for weblog. If you’re reading this, you probably get that a blog is a site maintained by an individual person or company that features regular entries - like a journal, only public. And if you’re a writer, you should probably have one, along with your website that should, at minimum, have your contact information listed so people can find you. You can set up your own blog, free of charge, using Blogger.com, Wordpress.com, LiveJournal.com or Typepad.com. Each of these sites has helpful guides to getting your blog up and running.

But what, we asked eagerly, do we write about?

Ms. Reid was undeterred by the open-endedness of this question. While there are no hard and fast rules, she warned us not to constantly talk about ourselves and our writing. That gets boring And annoying. You can narrow your content to focus on a specific area (such as Nathan Bransford’s blog), or you can blog about a veritable cornucopia of topics (cue Janet Reid). Here are some additional tips on How To Be Interesting:

Just as we all have our own voices when we write, that should shine through on our blogs.
Maintain a schedule so your readers know when they can expect new content. Try to keep your posts to 250 words.
Ask questions of your readers to entice them to participate via the comments section.
Join or form a group blog that focuses on your genre and rotates between writers, like YA Highway and Hey, There’s a Dead Guy In My Living Room.
Write about other books and authors à la Suzie Townsend’s blog. This has the additional benefit of letting those authors know that they’re being discussed in a (hopefully) flattering way, by virtue of Google Alerts. Google Alerts is a service that allows you to set up an Internet filter that notifies you when a name, phrase, or string of words is mentioned on the Internet.

If this sounds hard, that’s because it is. And if you don’t think you can do it well, Ms. Reid warned, you may be better off not doing it at all. So what then?

WHEN IN DOUBT, COMMENT

Agents notice when people comment regularly, as do authors. Ms. Stampfel-Volpe elaborated on the right and wrong ways to do so at the session.

If you are respectful and witty, commenting will help you make virtual friends.
If you are sycophantic and/or belligerent, well, don’t be.
Each comment you make should add something to the discussion.

As with blogging, commenting done poorly is worse than not commenting at all.

AND IF NONE OF THIS SUITS YOUR FANCY, THERE'S TWITTER

Twitter allows you to make friends and influence people. Well, maybe not influence people. But make friends, certainly.

Ms. Townsend showed us how to “follow” literary agents like herself and Ms. Reid and see what they have to say; often, they post indispensable advice to authors.
You can follow other authors and celebrities and friends, too.
You can compose “tweets” yourself, short updates letting your followers (friends, enemies, aliens, whoever) know what you’re up to, what music you’re listening to, what your cats are doing RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE.
You can tweet at other people, engaging them in conversation by using the @ symbol before their twitter username.
And you can do all this from your cell phone in the grocery store or from a Restaurant At The End Of The Universe. It’s like magic. Just make sure you “unprotect” your tweets so that other people can follow you without approval.

ALL OF THESE THINGS WORK. BUT WHAT DOESN'T WORK?

Facebook. Why? Because people have to take the extra step to “friend” you if they want to learn more about you. And you don’t want to make your future fans work any harder than they have to. Also, Facebook is not searchable. And you want to be searchable, writers. Indeed you do.

IN THE END?

Blog your little writerly hearts out, aspiring authors. Unprotect your tweets and let the public in. Start commenting on blog posts by your favorite industry folk. And for the love of all that is holy, remember that the internet is public and behave accordingly.

Want more on this topic?

Another SCWW column: 20 Query Letter Tips.

Another SCWW column: How to Get an Agent's Attention.

They're called Google Alerts, and yes we have them.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

'20 Tips on Query Letters,' as Told by Agent Janet Reid

Chuck — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:27:23 GMT

Guest Blog by

contributor Ricki Schultz.

Agent Janet Reid of FinePrint Literary Management gave an intensive workshop on queries at the South Carolina Writers Workshop. Here are 20 tips to writing an effective query, according to the Query Shark herself.

FOR STARTERS

• Be professional. It’s a business letter—not a personal letter.

Regarding salutation and tone, err on the side of caution because formality is never out of place.
“Dear Agent” or “To Whom It May Concern,” however, is too impersonal.
Pet peeve: If you’re querying an agent’s direct e-mail (i.e. “janet@” and you address the query “Dear Agent,” you don’t come across as being too smart.

• Be comfortable with computers. Publishing is moving toward the electronic age, so move with it.

Have an e-mail address with your name in it (e.g., SuziWriter@gmail.com). This shows her you are professional. How is she to take you seriously if your e-mail is cutiepiehoneyface@aol.com?
Have your own e-mail account—not one you share with a spouse.
Have a Gmail or Earthlink account. She says AOL is bad for queries because its spam filters sometimes eat e-mails without your knowledge, and you could be missing a reply.
Also, add the agents to your “safe senders” lists to ensure you receive their replies.

• Use a referral. Agents always move referrals to the top of the stack if someone they know vouches for the writer.

Do not, however, quote your rejection letters, friends, critique partners, paid editors, or conference critiques. These comments are not the same as referrals.

THE NITTY GRITTY

Don’t start with a rhetorical question. You’re talking to really sardonic people in New York City, and they’re not going to answer the question how you expect.
Get right to the main character—by name.
Tell who he/she is, and do it in as few words as possible.
Tell what happens to him or her—the initial point of conflict in the book.
Show two choices the main character faces as well as the consequences of those choices. The stakes must be high.

SUREFIRE QUERY KILLERS

“Fiction novel.” A novel is fiction, so when someone writes “fiction novel,” not only is it redundant, it makes the writer sound ignorant.
“Surefire bestseller.” Let the agent be the one to decide that. Declaring your work to be the next best thing shows you know little about the industry—and that you’re probably too arrogant for the agent to want to work with you.
“Film potential.” Janet says, “First of all, you don’t know shit.” (See arrogance comment above) Also, she’s not a film agent. She just wants to know what the book is about.

KEEP IT OUT

Inspiration. You only have 250 words, so don’t waste them. Stick to showing her what the book is about because how you came up with the idea does not interest agents in the query. “It’s the equivalent of making sausages,” she says. “I do not want to see you do it.”
Personal information. It doesn’t matter to agents where you live or how many cats you have.
Sometimes work information is relevant to you being the only person able to write a particular book; however, sometimes the worst people to write certain types of books are those who actually do those occupations (e.g., cops hate cop shows, doctors criticize medical dramas). They know the reality of the job too deeply, and it doesn’t make for good fiction.

TAKEAWAY

A query letter is the foundation upon which your publishing career rests, so remember: You can query too soon; you cannot query too late.

Janet Reid's publishing background includes 15 years in book publicity with clients both famous and infamous. She specializes in compelling fiction, particularly crime fiction, and narrative non-fiction, and she keeps a blog about agenting as well as a query critique blog.

Want more on this topic?

Agent Elaine Spencer talks queries.

What should you write in the bio paragraph of a query letter?

How to write a query letter - the three parts.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Get an Agent’s Attention (SCWW Guest Post)

Chuck — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:59:58 GMT

This is a guest post from Lisa Katzenberger,
on an agent panel at the
South Carolina Writers Workshop.

Eleven agents attended the SCWW conference and four participated in the panel discussion “What Gets Our Attention.” They didn't mention fun things like serving them mashed potatoes in the buffet line or skywriting your query over lovely Myrtle Beach. Instead, they gave us simple advice, a great reminder that it’s not really rocket science. Here are the best nuggets from the session with agents Jeff Kleinman (Folio Literary), Barbara Poelle (Irene Goodman Agency), Jenny Bent (The Bent Agency), and Scott Eagan (Greyhaus Literary).

It’s Not Personal, It’s Business

Just like in The Godfather. At least in the publishing biz, you’re not going to wake up snuggling a horse’s head just because you queried an agent who doesn’t rep your genre. (Probably.) So, keep your business hat on when approaching agents and be professional.

They want to work with someone who understands the business and can represent their agency professionally.
Barbara reminded us that it’s called the publishing industry, not the publishing feelings. Agents understand that there’s a lot of emotion tied to the time and effort an author dedicated to their book. But you have to be able to separate that emotion when querying and see the business side of a decision.
Don’t be funny in a query -- don’t pretend you’re writing as your main character.
A query letter is a business letter – a cover letter to apply for a job. Your resume? Well, that’s the manuscript.

Have a Unique Story

There are no new stories, just different ways to tell them. Make sure you know what’s special about your love story or cozy mystery that makes it stand out from all the rest.

Scott Eagan said he needs a book that’s more than just well-written. He needs a book with a unique twist.
Barbara Poelle encouraged writers to find a unique take on a formula that works.
Jeff Kleinman stressed how no one wants to read a book they’ve read before.
Jenny Bent wants to see your voice in your query letter. She looks for a great opening line and a story that really grabs her.

The Hook, The Book, and The Cook

Barbara Poelle used this catchy line to describe the three ingredients of your query letter. The hook is a one sentence description of what your book is about. Yes, one sentence. Check Publishers Lunch for examples of great loglines. The book: four or five sentences that give more detail about the story. The cook: brief information about you, the writer.

Love Is in the Air

Would you want to marry someone who’s kind of in love with you? Or someone who is head over heels crazy about you and will go to the ends of the earth to make you happy? Don’t be upset when an agent turns down your manuscript because they weren’t fully in love with it. You’re entering a long-term relationship with an agent, and just like a marriage, you want to find the partner who’s crazy about you.

Jeff Kleinman likes to follow this rule of thumb: “Only represent stuff you totally, absolutely love.”
Agents are reading submissions in their free time. They do this job because they love books, just like writers do.
Barbara will reject a book if she doesn’t feel she can be that author’s strongest advocate.
Query agents who represent authors you love to read. Chances are, they’ll dig your type of writing too.

Guest blogger Lisa Katzenberger
runs the Fiction City Blog and
is also on Twitter.

Want more on this topic?

Interview with agent Jenny Bent of The Bent Agency.

Interview with agent Scott Eagan of Greyhaus Literary.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

They're Called GOOGLE ALERTS, and Yes We Have Them

Chuck — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:39:09 GMT

This is a "Blast From the

Past" post. To celebrate the

GLA Blog's 2nd birthday, I am

re-posting some of the best

"older" content that writers

likely missed.

------

If you've never heard of Google Alerts, they're just about the best thing ever. You tell Google a word or phrase, and Google will alert you daily when that phrase is used on the Internet. For example, whenever someone writes the words "Chuck Sambuchino" on a page or blog, Google will tell me.

Agents have these, too, so when you're praising an agent online, or badmouthing them, or simply discussing them - an agent may very well know. Check out this story from Jenn Nixon, a blogger and agent-seeking writer:

"Well, the weirdest thing happened to me yesterday.

I logged onto my website email account, which I hardly use because it's ALL spam. There was one email in it. A real one. So I read it. It was from a literary agent. Apparently her google alerts told her I wrote her name down. She read my blog about agents who didn't respond, and asked me to resubmit.

Shocked?

Yeah, so was I. She actually took the time to write me so I'd take her off my list! Wow. Okay, so I sent her the submission again.

She didn't like it so much.

But she did say "You've got skill, I'll give you that."

I've heard that so many times before. *sigh*

I took her name off, I'll add her to the rejection list. Ah well. It's still an interesting story, huh?"

Crazy story. So the agent found her and asked her to resubmit the work for a yes/no answer. Ultimately, this paid off for Jen - and gave her a second chance (although that second chance didn't pan out).

Let this be your warning: Google Alerts exist, so be careful what you're saying on the Internet. You never know who's listening.

Want more on this subject?

Facebook, Twitter and Agents.

One story? You need 5 versions.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Why Your Manuscript Can Get Rejected (Part II)

Chuck — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 03:13:39 GMT

At Killer Nashville, a trio of extremely knowledgeable publishing pros held a panel on the most common reasons why a manuscript is rejected by an agent. Below you'll find part two of this post series. (The first installment was with Hallie Ephron.)

Keep in mind that the panelists were discussing why a manuscript will be rejected, not a novel synopsis or query letter. They were talking about problems within the writing.

Panelist No. 2: Donna Bagdasarian

Donna's top reasons why your manuscript can be rejected:

1. Problems with basic writing skills—grammar, syntax, defining who the protagonist is. To be successful, aspiring writers must learn how to write—well.

2. Bad dialogue. Write like people speak.

3. Too much plot. Writers may read a variety of books by bestselling mystery authors and then try to take plot elements from several of these books, combining those elements into one convoluted tale. Write one book, not eight books crammed into one.

4. Not having the protagonist involved in the climax.

5. Spending too much time at the beginning of a story on a character who seems to be the protagonist, but isn't.

6. Supplanting quality for a gimmick. Take a moment and examine certain gimmicks, such as the following:
- Writing in the second person

      - Having many points of view
      - Having your book be very, very dark in nature
      - Having scenes in a backwards order

- Hopscotch (where you can jump around anywhere and the story still makes sense)

These gimmicks are unique, and can produce an extraordinary book, but they can only be pulled off by the most superior of writers—and most writers are not superior writers. Therefore, writers should pass on all such gimmicks and just try to tell a good story.

7. Excessive and salacious material. When your manuscript is complete and a peer/editor says "It needs more violence/sex/action/dialogue," they may be right, but inserting these aspects in the book must make sense. There can’t just be violence or sex in a story simply to have it. Make it work.

8. Know how much is too much. If you can cut a scene and the story still works, you must cut it. Ask of the scene: "Why is it here? What does it do to further the plot?"

9. Purple prose—writing where the reader is conscious that these are the author’s thoughts, not the character's. This is prose where the language is excessively flowery and/or lyrical.

Want more on this subject?

The first of this three-part series was with mystery writer Hallie Ephron.

The third of this three-part series was with editor Maryglenn McCombs.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

What Should You Write in the Bio Paragraph of a Query Letter?

Chuck — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:36:58 GMT

As I mentioned before, a good query letter is broken down into three parts - the quick intro, the pitch, and the bio. Strangely enough, the third part is where I get the most questions. In fact, at this past weekend's Writer's Digest editors' intensive, there were a ton of questions about the bio paragraph - "Should I include this?" "How should I work that?" Etc.

So with all that in mind, I have tried to cobble together some notes on what to include and what not to include in a query letter at the end when you're talking about yourself and your writing.

Before you read on, I must warn you that you should not underestimate the value of just saying little and moving on. If you don't have anything notable to say, there is nothing wrong with simply saying that the manuscript is complete, and "Can I send you (pages/the full manuscript)?"

YES: INCLUDE THESE ELEMENTS

Prior writing credits. Obviously, this is a big one. Feel free to skip titles and just list publications. For example, feel free to say, "I've written articles for several magazines and newspapers, including the Cincinnati Enquirer and Louisville Magazine." Notice how the article titles weren't included and the writer could explain more, but this gets the job done. Brevity is appreciated here.
       Short story credits are good here; articles are good. If you got paid for writing, you can mention it here - just do so humbly and quickly. Poetry is probably the least impressive note. If you were paid to get your poetry published, that may help a little.
       Obviously, past credits within the category at hand are of the most value, but any and all credits are good. For example, if you are query a nonfiction project, your history of published articles is more impressive than a short story being published. However, mentioning the short story is not a bad thing.

Contests and awards. For instance, if your story was a finalist in the adult romance category contest at a writers' conference, say so.

If you have an MFA somewhere. (Saying you majored in English really won't do much, nor will mentioning your continuing online education.)

If you are part of a large, recognized, nationwide writing organization - such as the Romance Writers of America (RWA), the Mystery Writers of America (MWA), the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), the American Medical Writers, etc.

Platform and publicity - but mainly for nonfiction. If you're writing nonfiction, suddenly the bio paragraph becomes the most important part of the letter. You must explain your credits, bio and platform - making a case that you are the best person to write this book and you have some means in place to sell it. If you're writing fiction, this can still help, but it matters less so.

NO: SKIP THESE ELEMENTS

Your writing influences.

That you are part of a local writers group or online group. Unless it's a large nationwide group, skip it.

The fact that you're a parent and have X number of children, which, you believe, helps make a case for you as a kids writer.

How long it took you to write it.

That this is your first novel.

The fact that it's been edited by peers or even a professional editor. Stuff is supposed to be edited; agents assume it is. Stating what they already assume helps nothing.

That the story is copyrighted with the U.S. Copyright Office. Or that you own all rights to the story.

That you are also writing the screenplay adaptation of the work. Another subject completely, not to be discussed in a query.

Anything about pen names. You're thinking too far ahead.

That your family and friends loved it.

That the story is fiction but based off truth and/or your life. All fiction is based off truth and/or a life, so this is, again, telling agents what they already know.

That the book has been rejected before.

Which draft of the novel this is.

BUT WHAT ABOUT?

But what about my career, Chuck?
        This is tricky. First of all, if you mention this, mention it quickly. If you get paid to write during the day, tell us. For example, if you get paid to write technical copy during the day, by all means say so. If you work in children's bookstore, that's probably OK, too. But if the main character is an electrician or computer programmer, and you yourself are an electrician or computer programmer, I say skip it. It really doesn't matter that much. People like to include this fact anyway.
       Over the weekend, a gentleman asked about this very thing and if he should say he served in the Marines since his protagonist was a Marine. I said yes, because I think that could serve as a notable publicity angle down the road.

But what about my connection and research to the subject matter at hand, Chuck?
        If you look at the Successful Queries posted on this blog, you see one where an agent compliments a writer who said she studied belly dancing and the book is about belly dancing. Another compliments the writer for saying she has been to and researched Amish country and the book is about Amish country. Once again, these comments are made quickly by the author - just like they should be.
       There are subtle things here. Let's say your book is about Sioux Indians. If you spent six months in the library researching Sioux life, that is not worth mentioning. However, if you spent two months living among the Sioux people on such-and-such reservation, then that is more interesting and worth a mention.

But what about marketing and PR, Chuck?
       Again, tricky. If you're writing nonfiction, your background and skills in these areas is very, very important. However, if you are writing fiction, this matters less so. Your writing credits and awards will be more important. I would lean against mentioning these skills in a fiction query.

Want more on this subject?

Agent Michelle Andelman's tips on query writing.

Should you mention your age in a book query?

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Word Count for Novels and Children's Books: The Definitive Post

Chuck — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 23:22:58 GMT

Word count is something I don't think about too often until I travel to a writers' conference, and then someone asks a simple, innocent question and a firestorm follows. With that in mind, I've tried to put together the definitive post on word count for fiction (novels, young adult, middle grade and even memoir).

The most important thing here is to realize that there are always exceptions to these rules. And man, people love to point out exceptions—and they always will. However, if there is one thing I remember from when my wife dragged me kicking and screaming to He's Just Not That Into You, it's that you cannot count on being the exception; you must count on being the rule. Aiming to be the exception is setting yourself up for disappointment. What writers fail to see is that for every successful exception to the rule (e.g., a first-time 150,000-word novel), there are at least 100 failures if not 300.

Almost always, high word count means that the writer simply did not edit their work down enough. Or—it means they have two or more books combined into one.

"But what about JK Rowling???" asks that man in the back of the room, putting his palms up the air. Well—remember the first Harry Potter book? It wasn't that long. After JK made the publishing house oodles and oodles of money, she could do whatever she wanted. And since most writers haven't earned oodles, they need to stick to the rules and make sure they work gets read. The other thing that will make you an exception is if your writing is absolutely brilliant. But let's face it. Most of our work does not classify as "absolutely brilliant" or we'd all have 16 novels at this point.

ADULT NOVELS: COMMERCIAL & LITERARY

Between 80,000 and 89,999 words is a good range you should be aiming for. This is a 100% safe range for literary, romance, mystery, suspense, thriller and horror. Anything in this word count won't scare off any agent anywhere.

Now, speaking broadly, you can have as few as 71,000 words and as many as 109,000 words. That is the total range. When it dips below 80K, it might be perceived as too short—not giving the reader enough. It seems as though going over 100K is all right, but not by much. I suggest stopping at 109K because just the mental hurdle to jump concerning 110K is just another thing you don't want going against you. And, as agent Rachelle Gardner pointed out when discussing word count, over 110K is defined as "epic or saga." Chances are your cozy mystery or literary novel is not an epic. Rachelle also mentions that passing 100K in word count means it's a more expensive book to produce—hence agents' and editors' aversion to such lengths.

In short:
      80,000 - 89,999:       Totally cool
      90,000 - 99,999:       Generally safe
      70,000 - 79,999:       Might be too short; probably all right
      100,000 - 109,999:    Might be too long; probably all right
      Below 70,000:           Too short
      110,000 or above       Too long

Chick lit falls into this realm, but chick lit books tend to be a bit shorter and faster. 70-75K is not bad at all.

SCI-FI AND FANTASY

Science fiction and fantasy are the big exceptions because these categories tend to run long. It has to do with all the descriptions and world-building in the writing.

With these genres, I would say 100,000 - 115,000 is an excellent range. It's six-figures long, but not real long. The thing is: Writers tend to know that these categories run long so they make them run really long and hurt their chances. There's nothing wrong with keeping it short (say, 105K) in these areas. It shows that you can whittle your work down.

Outside of that, I would say 90K-100K is most likely all right, and 115-124K is probably all right, too. That said, try to keep it in the ideal range.

MIDDLE GRADE

Middle grade is from 20,000 - 45,000, depending on the subject matter and age range. When writing a longer book that is aimed at 12-year-olds (and could maybe be considered "tween"), using the term "upper middle grade" is advisable. With upper middle grade, you can aim for 32,000 - 40,000 words. These are books that resemble young adult in matter and storytelling, but still tend to stick to MG themes and avoid hot-button, YA-acceptable themes such as sex, drugs and rock & roll. You can stray a little over here but not much.

With a simpler middle grade idea (Football Hero or Jenny Jones and the Cupcake Mystery), aim lower. Shoot for 20,000 - 30,000 words.

YOUNG ADULT

Perhaps more than any other, YA is the one category where word count is very flexible.

For starters, 55,000 - 69,999 is a great range.

The word round the agent blogosphere is that these books tend to trending longer, saying that you can top in the 80Ks. However, this progression is still in motion and, personally, I'm not sure about this. I would say you're playing with fire the higher you go. When it gets into the 70s, you may be all right—but you have to have a reason for going that high. Again, higher word counts usually mean that the writer does not know how to edit themselves.

A good reason to have a longer YA novel that tops out at the high end of the scale is if it's science fiction or fantasy. Once again, these categories are expected to be a little longer because of the world-building.

Concerning the low end, below 55K could be all right but I wouldn't drop much below about 47K.

PICTURE BOOKS

The standard is text for 32 pages. That might mean one line per page, or more. 500-600 words is a good number to aim for. When it gets closer to 1,000, editors and agents may shy away.

WESTERNS

I remember reading some Westerns in high school and, if I recall correctly, they weren't terribly long. There wasn't a whole about this on agent and editor sites, but from what I found, these can be anywhere from 50K to 80K. 60,000 is a solid number to aim for.

MEMOIR

Memoir is the same as a novel and that means you're aiming for 80,000-89,999. However, keep in mind when we talked about how people don't know how to edit their work. This is specially true in memoir, I've found, because people tend to write everything about their life—because it all really happened.

Coming in a bit low (70-79K) is not a terrible thing, as it shows you know how to focus on the most interesting parts of your life and avoid a Bill-Clinton-esque tome-length book. At the same time, you may want to consider the high end of memoir at 99,999. Again, it's a mental thing seeing a six-figure length memoir.

SOME THOUGHTS

You have agents like Nathan Bransford and Kristin Nelson who say that you shouldn't think about word count, but rather you should think about pacing and telling the best story possible—and don't worry about the length. Yes, they're right, but the fact is: Not every agent feels that way and is willing to give a 129,000-word novel a shot. Agents have so many queries that they are looking for reasons to say no. They are looking for mistakes, chinks in the armor, to cut their query stack down by one. And if you adopt the mentality that your book has to be long, then you are giving them ammunition to reject you. Take your chances and hope that excellent writing will see your baby through no matter (and I hope it does indeed break through).

But I believe that we cannot count on being the exception; we must count on being the rule. That's the best way to give yourself your best shot at succeeding.

Want more tips and posts?

Query letter tips.

Five signs a literary is a good match for you.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

10 Hidden Gifts of Rejection Letters

Chuck — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 18:49:57 GMT

This is a "Blast From the

Past" post. To celebrate the

GLA Blog's 2nd birthday, I am

re-posting some of the best

"older" content that writers

likely missed.

1. Rejection letters take you out of submission limbo.
        Familiar with that hell whose name is Waiting? Is the agent reading your submission? Chortling with her cronies over it? Using it as a doorstop or drink coaster? With that rejection letter in hand, you now know where you stand. No more wondering. No more worry. Of course no more hope either. Time to move on. Next.

2. All it takes is one rejection letter to make you an instant life member of a club whose luminaries include Walt Whitman, J.K. Rowling and Dr. Seuss.
        What published writer has never received a rejection letter? These are our badges of determination. Of striving. And on bad days, of lunacy. Take heart. No one’s, and I mean no one’s, first query snags an agent and a book contract. Unless of course you are Madonna, Jamie Lee Curtis or Fergie.

3. Rejection letters strengthen you, build courage, determination and belief in your work.
        Where would you be if you didn’t rail at your most recent rejection letter: “Agent Babe, you are WRONG! I will NOT make my overweight heroine svelte, my gay character straight or turn my borzoi into a chihuahua!”? Rejection letters give you practice taking a hit and moving on. Are you going to let one agent’s (or one dozen’s) opinion make you give up your intention to publish your book? Hell, no.

4. Rejection letters can be stockpiled for future use: wallpaper; bonfire kindling; shredded for an environmentally sound substitute for Styrofoam peanuts.
        Personally, I’m going to turn them into a necklace. My other creative outlet is beaded jewelry. I’ve just found a way to roll paper strips into beads. I plan to make a necklace from paper strips cut from my rejection letters and wear it to my book signings, the National Book Awards Ceremony and Dinner, and the Academy Awards. OK, OK, I’ll start with the signings and take it from there.

5. The good ones (offering constructive criticism) help you develop as a writer.
        And you will get some good ones in amongst the ones who used your manuscript as coffee coasters and doorstops. Thoughtful rejection letters, in addition to being a balm to your weary writer’s soul, afford the opportunity to revisit your work, to consider it through another’s lens. Such letters may lead you in a new direction.Or you might just add them to your stack of kindling. Good rejection letters are a clue that you are on the right track and getting closer. Take heart.

6. Get a few rejection letters beneath your belt and you can blog authoritatively on sites such as absolutewrite.com's Water Cooler.
        There are more web-based communities devoted to the world of submissions than you can shake a keyboard at. At the abovementioned Water Cooler, bloggers share their agent experiences. Which ones don’t follow through? Which ones are reputable? Which ones should be drawn and quartered for asking for a full and then never getting back to you? Rejection letter in hand, you can add your voice to the fray.

7. All it takes is one good one to renew your faith in agents.
        Number Seven is a corrolary to Number Five. There are good agents out there - human beings who love books as much as you do. Why else would they be in the business of trying to link their authors with publishers? Or take home reams of manuscripts to read over the weekend when they could be training for the New York City Marathon instead? A good rejection letter, whose tone is sincere and offers advice, can revive your flagging spirit.

8. Rejection letters keep the USPS in business.
        The Internet has taken a huge toll on the USPS. Mail carriers may go the way of the Maytag man. And then what will happen to the stamp designers? To the workers who assemble all those annoying circulars that come thru the slot as fourth class mail? To the Neiman-Marcus Christmas catalog? Rejection letters might mean you can’t quit your day job but they do help others keep theirs.

9. Rejection letters let you know who your true allies are.
        Are your loved ones sympathetic when a dreaded rejection letter falls through the slot? Do they bring flowers or send sweet e-mails of encouragement? Or do they chide you and say, “NOW will you get serious and put this silliness away?” Rejection letters let you know who you want on your team in this endeavor.

10. The number of rejection letters you receive is proportional to the euphoria that will envelop you when you do get The Call.
        Think about it. If an agent signs you up three queries into your search, you’ll be ecstatic. And perhaps kind of blase. But get that call after slugging it out for a year or so and man will success be sweet. So sweet you can taste it even now, can’t you?

This guest column by
Journalist and essayist Debra Darvick,
author of This Jewish Life: Stories of Discovery,
Connection and Joy. Her book, I Love
Jewish Faces (a children's picture book
celebrating Jewish diversity) was
published by the URJ Press in May '09.
Visit her blog at debradarvick.wordpress.com.

Want more on this topic?

Want to write a guest column? E-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we'll talk.

Query Letter Tips, by agent Michelle Andelman (Franklin & Siegal).

10 Query Letter Tips.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

5 Quick Tips for Writer/Agent Negotiations

Chuck — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 14:28:08 GMT

Guest column
by Howard G. Zaharoff

Just because you're excited someone wants to represent you doesn't mean you should let them take advantage of you. Beware of these red flags when negotiating contracts with agents.

        1. Watch for red flags. Reputable agents don’t charge reading fees or require other upfront payments, they don’t sell (or at least, don’t brag about sales) to vanity presses, and they will readily identify other authors and projects they’ve represented.
        2. Beware of excessive commissions. The norm is now 15 percent for book sales, though it can be up to 20–25 percent for foreign sales (for which the agent works with a subagent) and 10–20 percent for movie, TV and theatrical sales.
        3. Avoid commissions on speaking fees. Most reputable agents will not try to horn in on these, and they really aren’t entitled to, unless they were directly responsible for getting you the engagement.
        4. Keep control over expenses. Ideally your agent will not charge for onesie-twosie copies or standard postage, but only for unusual expenses—long-distance charges, major copying, courier services—and will work within spending limits (nothing over a fixed amount, say $100–$250, without your approval).
        5. Insist on timely payment. Ideally, you’ll get paid your 85 percent directly by the publisher, though many agents insist on collecting the entire amount first. (This is fairly standard but poses risks, especially if the agent goes bankrupt—so some writers push for “split accounting,” which requires the publisher to pay them directly.) Although most publishers still report and pay royalties semi-annually, typically within three months after the semi-annual period ends (so the royalty for a book sold in January arrives in late September!), your agent should pay you promptly upon receiving the funds—ideally within 10 days, but no longer than 30.

This guest column about agents was
pulled from the current issue of Writer's
Digest (Sept. 2009) Order it online
to see more queries as well as our exclusive
list of 24 Agents Who Want Your Work.

What Agents Hate: Part II (Author 101 Series)

Chuck — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 17:32:27 GMT

See Part I of this series here.

When writers try to get an agent, they are asked to run a difficult course, and run it under a microscope. Although the level of scrutiny that writers receive is huge, it is definitely surmountable. Read the following items that agents dislike and alter your approaches accordingly. Agents hate the following items:

5. Not telling agents a project's history.

Some authors don't reveal that the book has already gone to twenty publishers. In these cases, an agent may spend time reading, editing, or developing the project and then unknowingly submit it to editors who have already passed on it.
Don't be afraid to tell an agent that your book has been rejected. Agents frequently take on projects that have been shopped. They may work on them editorially, fixing them up. Writers should also inform their agents about all changes or revisions they've made since the book was rejected.

These tips excerpted from
Author 101: Bestselling
Secrets from Top Agents,
by Rick Frishman and Robyn
Freedman Spizman.

6. Writers who don't contact their agents when problems arise.

Frequently, when problems crop up, writers become frustratred and dissatisfied. However, had they contacted their agent, the agent might have explained the situation and helped them find ways to resolve it. Agents can provide creative second opinions. They usually have extensive experience in publishing, and frequently they are accomplished editors. They can also be a writer's best advisor.

7. Writers who say, "There is no competition for this book."

Rarely does a book have no competition. It's okay to say, "There is no product in the market precisely like this," and then point out how your book differs from its competition. List the closest or most analogous books and state how yours differs and is better. When writers claim that their books are without competitors, it tells agents that the writers didn't do the hard, basic research to identify and distinguish the closest books. It also makes them think that the writers won't do the necessary research to write a solid book.

8. Writers who call their agent too much.

Agents are busy; if you call them constantly, you'll drive them crazy. So limit your calls, create an agenda for the calls you make, and while it's nice to schmooze and talk now and then, keep in mind that they are running busy operations.
Many agents who are sole proprietors don't have staffs, so they do most office tasks themselves. Find out when it will be convenient for them to speak with you, and schedule a phone conference at a time that will work for you both.

Want more on this subject?

See part I of this excerpt series here.

What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

What Agents Hate: Even More Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Do You Need a Conservative Literary Agent For Conservative Books? A Liberal Literary Agent for Liberal Books?

Chuck — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 01:44:49 GMT

Someone found my GLA blog searching for "conservative literary agents." So, I started to wonder about the question, "Do you need a conservative literary agent to publish a conservative-minded book?"—such as, let's say, Why Liberals Will Ruin This Country or whatever. Would an agent need their beliefs to line up with the book's message? Or is an agent partisan-blind to a nonfiction book that fulfills the big three: 1) has a good idea, 2) proves that markets exist for the book, and 3) has a platform and credentials?

Well, I had no idea what the answer was, so I enlisted three pros: Ted Weinstein, founder of Ted Weinstein Literary; Sharlene Martin, founder of Martin Literary Management and author of Publish Your Nonfiction Book; and John Willig, founder of Literary Services, Inc. Here is what they had to say:

Ted Weinstein Says:

"That's an interesting question, and one without a single answer. I suspect many agents prefer to work only with political authors whose views are at least in the same quadrant as their own. Some, though, including myself, are open to and enjoy the chance to work with clients whose views challenge us and are no less effective at selling those books to the right editor and publisher. I have represented a number of liberal, conservative and libertarian authors writing on a range of interesting topics, and sold their books to a mix of publishers.
"As always, the best way for an author to see if an agent might be right for them, regardless of their political views, is to read the good directories/guides to agents (including your own) and then visit any prospective agent's website to get a more thorough understanding of their work with other clients."

Sharlene Martin Says:

"I believe that in order to be 100% committed and passionate about selling my clients’ work, it’s important for me to be aligned philosophically with their book. It’s so much easier to fight for a sale for something you truly believe in than something you don’t. So, to answer your question, without giving up my political affliations (*smile*), my answer is yes—I personally need to embrace the viewpoint of my client’s work. It makes it easier for me."

John Willig Says:

"As is so often the case in publishing, there really is not a definitive answer. It can certainly vary from one agent to the next especially considering the topic. There's a broader and critical issue at work here and that is whether your agent (regardless of interests/religious or political persuasions) can effectively reach and knows the editors for your topic and presentation. While he/she may not entirely agree with your perspective, they still could be your best advocate to publishers in that specific genre. So again it can really vary from agent to agent on taking on the topic but it is the writer who must be assured that the agent can effectively represent the project to publishers; thus, they should be doing their homework regarding the agent's expertise in specific categories.
"Sure it's a big plus if the agent is 'aligned' with your topic and passion and if he/she has the knowledge of the market, publishers and editors then the writer is working (initially) in the best of worlds."

No matter what kind of agent you're aiming
for, the best all-around database is
Guide to Literary Agents. Buy it here.

Want more on this subject?

Interview with nonfiction agent Ted Weinstein.

Interview with nonfiction agent John Willig.

Nonfiction words of wisdom.

What is an author platform?

Author Billy Coffey discusses how platform led him to sign with an agent.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

7 Reasons Why Your Work May Be Rejected, by Hallie Ephron

Chuck — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:19:18 GMT

At Killer Nashville, a trio of extremely knowledgeable publishing pros held a panel on the most common reasons why a manuscript is rejected by an agent. Below you'll find part one of this post series.

Keep in mind that the panelists were discussing why a manuscript will be rejected, not a novel synopsis or query letter. They were talking about problems within the writing.

Writer Hallie Ephron

Author of several mystery novels
Book reviewer for the Boston Globe
Author: Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel (WD Books)
www.hallieephron.com

Hallie's 7 reasons why your
manuscript can be rejected:

1. Profligate use of adverbs. For instance, saying "She looked at me and smiled happily." That's telling, not showing. Instead of using adverbs, use action to show the characters' feelings and emotions.

2. Predictability—using the same plot as others. For example, a cliche mystery plot opening hook is this: A P.I. picks up his office phone and his ex-wife is on the line. She's in trouble, but can’t say why. They agree to meet later at a bar or parking lot, but she never shows because she’s been murdered.
"I want twists. Surprise me in the first chapter and I'll keep reading."

3. Too many killers. A recent manuscript she read revealed six people were actually complicit in the book's murder. It’s convoluted, confusing, and shows that the author had to pull six rabbits out of a hat at the end to wow us. This problem is likely because of earlier problems in Act II—a.k.a "the muddy middle."

4. Point of view that’s out of control. If you’re in a character’s head, stay there until the scene is over.

5. Prologues that don’t work—where writers have a boring opening, so they simply pluck out an exciting scene from the middle, put it at the beginning, and call it the prologue.

6. A plot with no spine. When the scenes seem to jump around—you’re here, you’re there, now you’re there—the book has no backbone. "You have to get me to care about the main plot for me to keep reading."

7. Getting stuck to an outline. "Don’t let your plot trap your characters." If you write an outline and, in the middle of the story, the protagonist is supposed to run into a burning building, that’s fine. But as you begin the flesh out your protagonist and write the book, you may craft a character who wouldn’t realistically run into a burning building—perhaps he’s too smart, or too cowardly or whatever.

Her final tips: "Surprise me. Make me laugh. Make me care about your characters. Don’t let the frustration get you down. We all go through the 'It’s a piece of sh*t' stage."

Hallie Ephron's
Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel.

Want more on this subject?

Agents tell how to start a story right.

10 Query Letter Tips.

Check out Hallie's book, Writing and Selling the Mystery Novel.

I'm hosting a webinar on "How to Land a Literary Agent," Oct. 8, 2009.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

What Agents Hate (Author 101 Series)

Chuck — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:41:21 GMT

1. Inquiries that show writers have not done their homework.

This complaint usually fell into two categories: 1) submissions that are not the type of books an agency accepts, and 2) submissions that are not specifically addressed.
      Do your homework. Save everyone time and effort by checking the guidebooks and agents' websites to learn what types of books they represent.
      Submissions that are not specifically addressed are generally sent to "Dear Agent," the agency, or "To Whom it May Concern." These submissions look like form letters. Address all correspondence to a particular individual and make sure thay you spell that person's and the agency's name correctly.

2. Authors who insist that they receive unrealistically high advances.

Agents are experts at evaluating what books are worth, and since they receive a percentage of the proceeds, they try to squeeze out top dollar. Coming with demands of a "minimum advance figure" is a clear signal that you will be difficult to work with.

These tips excerpted from
Author 101: Bestselling
Secrets from Top Agents,
by Rick Frishman and Robyn
Freedman Spizman.

3. Authors who try to be all things to all people.

Agents and editors prefer tightly focused books. They told us that a writer's audience actually expands the tighter the focus of the book is. An author cannot be all things to all people. For instance, a writer may think that the market for her children's book is ages four to 14, but four-year-olds want different books than 14-year-olds do. A diet book aimed at young adults, for example, could sell better that a book that tries to appeal to all ages of dieters.

4. Control freaks

Agents do not like to work with clients who are not willing to change proposals, manuscripts or strategies that can improve a book or its ability to sell. The best authors are those who are willing to listen and are open to their agents' advice. Although agents aren't the end all and be all, they are knowledgable professionals, and selling books is their business. They have experience and can bring a certain perspective to a project that authors may not have.

Want more on this subject?

Want more on"What Agents Hate"? See a list of their pet peeves here, with Part I and Part II blog posts.

See 10 Things NOT to Do in a Query.

Check out the book Author 101: Bestselling Secrets from Top Agents.

See an example of a Mind-Boggling Horrible Query Letter.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Five Signs a Literary Agent is a Good Match For You

Chuck — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:37:34 GMT

This guest column
by Rose Jensen. She
welcomes your feedback at
Rose.Jensen28(at)yahoo.com.
Read her article on Essential Tips
and Tools for Writers of the Future.

So you’ve got a great book and you want to get it published. You could try to simply market it, sell it and negotiate it on your own, but many new to the business simply don’t feel comfortable doing that on their own. That means that it’s time to find an agent but you don’t just want any agent, you want the right one. How can you know if a literary agent is really a good fit for you and the kind of work that you produce? Here are a five signs that things will work out between the two of you.

Photo from The Pena Picasan

      1. He or she commonly works with books like yours. Finding someone who is actually interested in the kind of work that you’re producing is essential. If you’ve managed to get an agent that commonly works with material in your genre, then you’re on the right track. He or she will have more enthusiasm and know more about what it takes to get your work in the spotlight than someone who doesn’t really focus on the type of work that you do.
      2. He or she pushes you. The best agents shouldn’t just let you be lazy and do what you want. While there should be a balance of power, they should push you to work harder, get more done and actively market your work if you’re not already doing that on your own. There should be a great give and take between the two of you, allowing you to maximize your potential.
      3. He or she is excited about your work. Someone who is not really excited about the things that you’re creating isn’t likely to do too much to make sure that they ever see the light of day. In fact, they may languish on a desk somewhere for months. If your agent seems genuinely enthusiastic about finding a publisher and marketing your book, then you’ve found a keeper.
      4. He or she is there when you need them. If you’re new to the game, you likely have numerous questions about how the whole process works, what you need to do and the kind of deals you should be willing to make. Your agent should be there to help guide you through the process, though hand-holding can’t always be expected. Find an agent who isn’t always mysteriously “out of the office” when you call and you might have a long future of working together.
      5. You actually get along. It might seem pretty basic, but some people assume that because it is a business relationship that they don’t need to actually like their agent. While it isn’t a necessity, this person is someone who is going to be representing your work and who will be tied to it for years to come—it’s much better to have that be someone you actually like and want around rather than someone you merely tolerate.

Want more on this subject?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agents Tell How To Start a Story Right

Chuck — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:00:47 GMT

Les Edgerton, an author and pretty cool guy, talked to a lot of literary agents when writing his book Hooked, which is all about grabbing readers on page one and never letting them go. Les has shared some of the agent advice below for us!

Hooked

"Strong beginnings start in the middle of the story. You can fill in backstory later. I like to see the protagonist in action at the start so that I get a feel for who the character is right off the bat. We often get submissions with cover letters that begin: 'I know you asked for the first 50 pages, but the story really gets going on page 57, so I included more.' If the story really gets going at 57, you probably need to cut the first 56."

        - Mike Farris, Farris Literary Agency

"Action. Danger. Conflict. Crisis. Consider this from Jeff Somers's The Electric Church: 'You fucked up, Mr. Cates.' Do we know who Mr. Cates is? No. Do we know what he looks like or where he is? No, but we will. What we know now is that he's in trouble. Of course I want to read on."

        - Janet Reid, FinePrint Literary Management

"Never open with scenery! Novels are about people and the human condition. That is why we read them. Yet writer after writer starts off with descriptions of cities, towns, streets, forests, mountains, oceans, etc. Of course I know why. They've learned how to describe landscapes in language that seems literary, and hope we'll be impressed. We are not. We are looking for life.
        "Also, never open with the villain if you're doing mysteries, thrillers, suspense, horror, science fiction, or fantasy genres. Nothing is more important to us than the voice of the protagonist. That is what drives a novel. So give us the protagonist up front. And, yes, I know many best-selling authors open with the villain doing his ghastly deed. Once you're a bestseller, you can do pretty much whatever you want until readers stop buying your books. The other thing is: These authors are usually writing a series, so the reader is already acquainted with the protagonist. You [a new writer] don't have any of this going for you."

       - Jodie Rhodes, Jodie Rhodes Literary Agency

"A story must begin with an immediate hook. Go to some of the classics to see how to begin, namely, A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens; Offshore, by Penelope Fitzgerald; Pride & Prejudice, by Jane Austen; Madame Bovary, by Gustave Flaubert. That first sentence and paragraph immediately draws one into the story and makes it impossible for the reader not to read on."

       - Julie Castiglia, Castiglia Literary Agency

Want more on this subject?

See my article on WritersDigest.com all about chapter 1 cliches and What Agents Hate.
If you're interested in agent Janet Reid, I interviewed her on the blog.
Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.
Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.
Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Don Maass Explains Your Tools for Character Building

Chuck — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 03:19:45 GMT

Finding a Protagonist's Strength

      Step 1: Is your protagonist an ordinary person? Find in him any kind of strength.

      Step 2: Work out a way for that strength to be demonstrated within your protagonist's first five pages.

      Step 3: Revise your character's introduction to your readers.

Without a quality of strength on display, your readers will not bond with
your protagonist. Why should they? No one wants to spend four minutes, let alone four hundred pages, with a miserable excuse for a human being or even a plain old average Joe. So, what is strength? It can be as simple as caring about someone, self-awareness, a longing for change, or hope. Any small positive quality will signal to your readers that your ordinary protagonist is worth their time.

Literary Agent Don Maass

Finding a Hero's Flaws

      Step 1: Is your protagonist a hero - that is, someone who is already strong? Finding in him something conflicted, fallible, humbling or human.

      Step 2: Work out a way for that flaw to be demonstrated within your protagonist's first five pages.

      Step 3: Revise your character's introduction to your readers. Be sure to soften the flaw with self-awareness or self-depreicating humor.

Heroes who are nothing but good, noble, unswerving, honest, courageous, and kind to their mothers will make your readers want to gag. To make heroes real enough to be likable, it's necessary to make them a little bit flawed. What is a flaw that will not also prove fatal? A personal problem, a bad habit, a hot button, a blind spot, or anything that makes your hero a real human being will work. However, this flaw cannot be overwhelming. That is the reason for adding wise self-awareness or a rueful sense of humor.

The Impact of Greatness

      Step 1: Does your story have a character who is supposed to be great? Choose a character (your protagonist or another) who is, has been, or will be affected by that great character.

      Step 2: Note the impact on your point-of-view character. In what ways is she changed by the great character? How specifically is her self-regard for actual life different? Is destiny involved? Detail the effect.

      Step 3: Write out that impact in a paragraph. It can be backward looking (a flashback frame) or a present moment of exposition.

      Step 4: Add that paragraph to your manuscript.

Greatness is not always about esteem. Those affected by great people may be ambivalent. Whatever the case in your story, see if you can shade the effect of your great character to make it specific and captured nuances. The effect of one character upon another is as particular as the characters themselves.

Excerpted from The Fire in Fiction
(2009, Writer's Digest Books). You can
find the book in the F+W Bookstore here.
Donald Maass runs his own agency
in New York City.

Want more on this subject?

Donald Maass shares advice through Writer Unboxed.

Agent Stacia Decker moves to Donald Maass Literary.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Jennifer Laughran Talks Juvenile Writing

Chuck — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 04:57:16 GMT

This is a "Blast From the

Past" post. To celebrate the

GLA Blog's 2nd birthday, I am

re-posting some of the best

"older" content that writers

likely missed.

Since I hope to one day write juvenile fiction, I sat in on a session at the San Francisco WC where agent Jennifer Laughran of Andrea Brown Literary and Wendy Lichtman, author of Secrets, Lies & Algebra, talked tips and advice on writing for teenagers and pre-teens.

Here are some great points they made:

Kids are very media savvy these days, of course, and that should be reflected in your story.
You can’t talk down to kids. Jennifer brought up Octavian Nothing, noting that she first believed the book was way too smart for kids. But the truth, she said, is that kids are actually smarter than we think, where as adults are the lazy ones. Kids feel an intense connection with books and will take the time to tackle a book. They consider a "smart book" to be a great challenge.
Wendy said she sat in on a high school class for three months to pick up kids' patterns of speech, lingo and cadence.
You will indeed come across morality vs. reality dilemmas. For example, if teenagers use the word “retard” constantly in a derogatory fashion, should you include it as such? Wendy refused. And yes, thirteen-year-olds do have sex in today’s world, but is that really proper to include in a middle grade work?
Publishers are constantly trying to push the boundaries in terms of sex in these books. Anything is fair game, but a lot depends on how the crucial horrific moments are dealt with. For example, if a teenage girl narrator is telling of a scene where someone is murdered, she doesn’t have to provide the graphic details. It’s the difference between “He slit her throat and blood sprayed everywhere” and “Her body went limp and the carpet became red.”
If you want to go with heavy sexual stuff, that’s OK, but understand that the book is always facing gatekeepers (librarians, booksellers, agents, editors, teachers) who can opt not to carry a certain book because of what they deem inappropriate content.
Don’t start your book off with something terribly graphic and horrific. It may scare off booksellers. Wendy said that her book, at first, began with a suicide. She moved the suicide to chapter 2 so that those who picked up the book weren't immediately confronted with something so morose that didn't define the rest of the book.
You can cross genres. In adult fiction, things are often pressured to be classified. "Is it a mystery? Is it women's fiction?" Juvenile fiction has less of that problem.
The joy of novels for kids is the incidental learning. Kids don’t want to be lectured. They want to learn while being entertained.

Want more on this subject?

5 articles on making the most of a writers conference.

How to pitch an agent at a conference.

The next Writer's Digest Editors Intensive event is Sept. 11-12, 2010. All attendees receive a critique of 50 pages of their work.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How to Write a Novel Synopsis

Chuck — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:08:44 GMT

This is a "Blast From the

Past" post. To celebrate the

GLA Blog's 2nd birthday, I am

re-posting some of the best

"older" content that writers

likely missed.

If you write a novel and want to sell it, you'll need a good synopsis to hook a literary agent. A synopsis, simply put, is a long summary of your fictional story, detailing the events and characters.

At a recent writers' conference, I critiqued several synopses from amateur writers. When I met with the writers, I found myself repeating the same things over and over regarding formatting, content and length. I'll try and relay some tips in this post, so writers don't follow in their footsteps.

First of all, synopses have a specific format. They begin on a new page and should have all your contact information in the upper left corner of the first page. Just below your contact info, centered, should be the book's title, its genre and your name.
The body of the synopsis is double-spaced.
Use dialogue sparingly, if at all.
You can get to the point, meaning you can say if a character is "a hopeless romantic."
Starting on the second page, there should be a header at the top of all pages, looking like this: Author/TITLE/Synopsis. That should be pushed left while the page number should be pushed right.
Things must be explained. You can't say a character has "psychic powers" or "finds a surprise around the corner" without saying what these things mean. I find that writers, when questioned about confusing details, will often say, "Well that's explained in the book." Then I say, "OK ... but an agent won't read the book if they're confused by the synopsis. Make sense?
Try to stick with main plot points and characters. This will help cut down on confusion. Ideally, an agent won't get any name/character confusion because the synopsis doesn't detail needless subplots or minor characters.
When characters are mentioned for the first time, CAPITALIZE their name.
I read somewhere that a synopsis should read like you've summarizing a story for a 12-year-old. This is good advice. To practice, read a novel. Then explain the plot and characters of the story to a child as if it were a bedtime story. Tell the tale from beginning to end in 5-10 minutes. That's a synopsis.
Remember that queries and synopses are different things. You would never find a synopsis in a query. A query is a one-page letter that explains what you've written, who you are, and why the agent should represent you. In a query letter will be a pitch, which is a explanation of your story in 3-8 sentences. It's like the text you see on the back of a DVD box. It's designed to pique your interest. A pitch, like the back of a book or DVD, will not spill the beans regarding the ending.
I recommend having TWO versions of your synopsis - a "long synopsis" and a "short synopsis." Let me explain. In past years, there used to be a fairly universal system regarding synopses. For every 35 or so pages of text you had, you would have one page of synopsis explanation. So if your book was 245 pages, double-spaced, your synopsis would be seven pages approximately. This was fairly standard, and allowed writers a decent amount of space to explain their story. I recommend doing this first. This will be your "long synopsis." The problem is: Sometime in the past few years, agents started to get really busy and they want to hear your story now now now. They started asking for synopses of no more than two pages. Many agents today request specifically just that - two pages max. Some may even say one page, but two pages is generally acceptable. You have to draft a new, more concise synopsis - the "short synopsis." So which one do you submit? Good question. If you think your short synopsis (1-2 pages) is tight and effective, always use that. However, if you think the long synopsis is much more effective, then you will sometimes submit one and sometimes submit the other. If an agent requests two pages max, send the short one (because, naturally, you've been instructed to). If they just say "Send a synopsis," and you feel your longer synopsis is far superior, and your long synopsis isn't more than eight pages, I say just submit the long one.

Want more on this subject?

Read a great synopsis: Starman.

8 articles on synopsis writing.

One story? You need 5 versions.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Three Reasons You Need an Agent, as Explained by Mollie Glick

Chuck — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:52:12 GMT

At the recent Southeastern Writers Workshop, the agent in attendance was Mollie Glick of Foundry Literary + Media. Mollie and I hit up a lot of the conference circuit together and attendees love her cause she's so nice. It's rare that I actually get to sit in on one of her sessions. Fortunately, that's just what I did Monday night. Mollie spoke for 90 minutes on a variety of different subjects.

Below you will find the three reasons she gave concerning why having an agent is a good thing.

Why Having an Agent is a Good Thing
As Explained by Mollie Glick

1. Publishers don’t often handle unsolicited works - at least big publishers, that is. There are too many manuscripts for editors to look through every one.
In addition, it’s a copyright issue. She said Hyperion, which is owned by Disney, will not even look at an unsolicited ms because of the fear of being sued. They will only deal with agents.

2. Agents have “intense relationships” with editors—that’s their job. Agents track where editors go, take note of what they like, know where they grew up, if they have kids, etc. Agents realize that fiction is a very subjective thing so they try to get to know not only editors’ tastes, but also them as people. She has lunch three times a week with editors.

3. Agents can help negotiate a bigger deal. The contracts that publishers use are not easy to understand. This is for a reason. She also added that some publisher royalty statements are “almost incomprehensible” - again, no coincidence.
Agents are a step removed. They can play “bad cop” with an editor or house if need be. If the editor wants to change the book’s title, for example, and you (the writer) hate the decision, Mollie will step in and play bad cop. It allows you to stay removed from the argument so you can keep on good, editing-only terms with the editor.

Want more on this subject?

7 reasons agents stop reading your first chapter.

Should you start with plot or character?

Word count for novels and children's books.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

What Are the BEST Writers' Conferences in the Country?

Chuck — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:35:52 GMT

I get this question quite often, strangely enough. I'm guessing that people decide they're "going to do this right," so they save up money to travel to one conference wherever they want, and they are just trying to make sure that they get some serious bang for their buck.

Now, to answer the question at hand, let's examine two things: 1) the different kinds of writers' conferences, and 2) what you want to get out of the event.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF
WRITERS' CONFERENCES:

1. General conferences
       These are just what you think they are - writers' conferences that are general in nature and geared toward all categories and levels of writers. There are hundreds of these nationwide every year, and most of the biggest fall under this category.

2. Conferences with a specialized focus.
       There are plenty of these, too. These gatherings have a unique focus to them - and that usually means they are all about romance writing, or Christian writing, or children's/juvenile writing, or screenwriting (& TV), or mystery/thriller writing.

3. Writing retreats
       Retreats are unique in that the focus is about craft and actually sitting down to write. There are usually no agents present, because that is not the purpose of the whole thing. You find a serene location somewhere and just try to focus and write. Lots of MFA profs, etc., teach these things, and there are even several overseas.

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO
GET OUT OF THE EXPERIENCE?

This question, obviously, is key. Perhaps if you want to just sit down and write - maybe finally start that novel - then maybe an intensive retreat is just what you need.

We're circling back to the original point here. People ask me about the "best" writing conferences, but, truthfully, it doesn't work that way. It all depends. If by "best," you are talking size and number of agents in attendance, off the top of my head I'm thinking our own writers' conference in conjunction with BEA, the San Francisco Writers Conference, Willamette in Portland, the Agents and Editors conference in Austin, Muse & the Marketplace in Boston, the Honolulu Writers Conference, and the Las Vegas Writers' Conference, among others.

"Big" speciality conferences include SCBWI's two national conferences (winter in NYC, summer in LA), the Romance Writers of America national conference (this year in DC), the Screenwriting Expo in LA, and the big mystery conferences (such as Bouchercon and Thrillerfest).

But why is size such a big deal? More agents = good, yes, but you're competing against more people and paying more money. Let's say you're writing literary fiction, and there is a smallish conference nearby that has three agents coming and two of them handle your genre. That's not bad at all. It's probably cheaper and closer than "the biggies."

Are you not ready to pitch yet? Do you just want to sit in on some seminars, take notes, meet people and recharge your batteries? Well then that opens it up a lot more. Take a real close look at the conference schedule and what presentations will take place.

I know that these Writer's Digest intensive conferences we put on seem to do well because people love the critiques. We invite people to send in a decent chunk of their manuscript and get it evaluated by a WD staff editor. The writer then meets with us one-on-one to hear our thoughts.

WHERE CAN YOU FIND A
LIST OF CONFERENCES?

The three best sources are:
        1. Google. Search "writers conference" and "(month year)" or "(location)".
        2. Specialty websites. For example, look at the Mystery Writers of America website to find their regional conferences.
         3. Guide to Literary Agents, of course! You can start by signing up for my free biweekly newsletter at www.guidetoliteraryagents.com. At the end of every newsletter, I list 5-15 upcoming conferences and link to them.

Want more on this subject?

Check out this guest column on Networking at Writers Conferences.

Read more about the dos and don'ts of pitching agents at conferences.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Nonfiction Words of Wisdom from Agent Ted Weinstein

Chuck — Sat, 30 May 2009 18:19:16 GMT

On Wednesday, Ted Weinstein was one of the four literary agents who participated in our "Ask the Agents" panel at the conference. Ted, who specializes in nonfiction books, was full of wisdom on the panel. Below you can find four especially nice tidibits from him.

Four Tips on Submitting Nonfiction

By Ted Weinstein

1. Platform is the first thing he looks for when evaluating a nonfiction book proposal. On the subject of platform, Ted advises that nonfiction writers should "assume they are self-publishing." By that, he means that you should not count on any help from the publisher in selling the book. They will distribute it, yes, but once it hits the shelves, you have to make sure it gets off the shelves. If you expect no backing from the publisher to do this, you are, essentially, self-publishing in a way, and will make sure that you have a platform.
On this topic, he added that writers will sometimes come along and say "If my book gets published, I'll be famous!" Then Ted quips back, "No, if you get famous, they'll publish your book!"

2. You must submit one or a few sample chapters with a nonfiction book proposal. Concerning what chapter(s) to submit, do not submit the introduction if you are only submitting one sample chapter. Instead submit the actual Chapter 1, not merely the introduction itself.

3. When comparing your book to other titles in the marketplace, he advises two things. First of all, use the term "comparable titles" rather than "competitive titles." Second, try to prove how your book is like the Olympic rings. Show all these different rings exist - all these different types of books. But no book can link them together like yours!

4. He said he rarely asks for an exclusive look at a book proposal, but on the rare occasions that he does, he asks for no more than one week. That timeframe, he says, is more than enough for any agent to be exclusively reviewing a proposal.

Want more on this subject?

7 reasons agents stop reading your first chapter.

Should you start with plot or character?

Word count for novels and children's books.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Literary Agents Tell All at Boston Conference

Chuck — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 00:28:35 GMT

I just returned from Muse & the Marketplace, which is a writers' conference held in downtown Boston. The event seemed to be a big success and I gave two presentations - one on query letters to agents, and another on nonfiction book proposals.

ALSO - I sat in on an agent panel and listened to four agents share all kinds of good tips and secrets. The four reps were:

      1. Mollie Glick of Foundry Literary + Media
      2. Rob McQuilkin of Lippencott Massie McQuilkin
      3. Elisabeth Weed of Weed Literary
      4. Lane Zachary of Zachary Shuster Harmsworth

Here is what they shared. Everything
below is paraphrased.

ON SUBMISSIONS & QUERIES:

MG: When you contact an agent with a query, if you can mention other books that the agent has repped (for example, because you repped X, I think you will like my Y), that still really works.

LZ: Mentioning that you have an MFA is impressive and can help, but doesn’t make too much of a difference in the long run, because it’s all a matter of whether the writer can write.

MG: When looking at a query, agents are looking for something that helps them pull your letter out of the pile and say “This person has some legitimacy.”

RM: Simultaneous submissions are normal and assumed. In other words, it is safe and healthy to submit your work to several agents at once.

LZ: If she passes on an idea but thinks another agent at the agency will find it interesting, she will always pass it on.

ON SHORT STORIES:

LZ: Short story collections do sell, but they do so very rarely.

Editor's Note: The thing that I noticed about short story collection success tales were that they all came around in strange ways. For example, the first success story an agent related was how a woman traveled all the way from India to attend an American writers’ conference and met an agent personally. The other success story told of an intern that worked at an agency where the intern said “Hey, I’ve got some short stories.” What to notice here is that neither one of these two examples came about through a cold query submission.
I found it odd to hear two success stories like that when almost no agents accept queries for short story collections. So it was not surprising to hear that neither were through queries. They were both somewhat special circumstances.

ON CHOOSING AN AGENT:

EW: It makes no difference whether you go with a big or small agency. She’s worked at both, and finds very little difference. It's all about the agent's ability, not the size of the agency.

MG: Finding an agent is like looking for a job. Writers should be professional. Both sides should ask questions of one another before contracts are signed.

Me (Chuck Sambuchino) teaching at the conference. I gave
two presentations - one on queries to
agents, and another on nonfiction
book proposals.

Want more on this subject?

Word Count Guidelines for Novels and Children's Books.

Check out agent Don Maass's popular book, The Fire in Fiction.

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How Money Works: Book Royalties, Advances and Flat Fees.

What are the BEST writers' conferences in the country?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Protocol and Expectations When Contacting and Befriending Literary Agents on Social Networking Sites Like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter

Chuck — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 20:13:40 GMT

Let's say you're interested in submitting to a few specific agents. Would you look them up on Facebook to learn more about them as a person? Many of you probably already have. What about MySpace? Twitter? LinkedIn?
But then questions arise: Would they agree to befriend you on sites like Facebook? Are they open to messages, pitches and/or conversation through such a site? What's the procedure and protocol here?
Well, my coworker Alice Pope, editor of Children's & Illustrator's Market, really wanted to know how agents interact with writers on such sites, so I decided to ask a few and find out.

WHAT I LEARNED

Here's the deal. I contacted six agents (I'll leave their names out of it because it really doesn't matter) and asked them about their experiences with writers on such social networking sites. They were all on Facebook, but only some were on MySpace, Twitter or LinkedIn. It was very varied. Here are some things I learned:

On Meeting Writers at Conferences:

If you're a writer who meets an agent at a conference, they probably still won't accept you as a friend on Facebook, because they want to keep "that life" separate from their professional one. An agent said this: "I'm trying to keep Facebook for friends only, and for a few professional contacts, like other agents or my already signed authors."

On LinkedIn:

Several agents were on this site, but the common caveat was that they don't check it or update it often at all.

On Twitter:

First of all, Twitter is the big exception, because it's a network for writers to FOLLOW agents, rather than interact and message them, so no agents had any problems or stories about tweeting.
As one agent said: "The reason Twitter works is that all those people can follow me and I don't have to do anything. I can only talk to and see the tweets of the people I want to follow."

On Querying:

If you query an agent through Facebook, you know that your message will avoid the slush pile and stand out from the crowd; problem is - that's a bad thing in this case. One agent said this: "I rarely get writer inquiries via Facebook, but when they do come in, they are way too casual and so not professional. The first few I directed to my agency Web site, but lately I've been deleting/ignoring them. Same with LinkedIn. Very few and I ignore."
       The lesson here is simply not to query through a social networking site. I realize the temptation to do so, especially after you haven't heard back from someone or have been turned down by 50 agents, but this will not help. It's not the correct avenue.

Writers vs. Publishing Professionals - The Difference

When you're a writer, it's in your best interest to be plugged into many social groups. It's called networking, and it allows you to have a lot of friends, a lot of contacts, a lot of people who will buy your book. As an author myself, I completely understand this. But agents, on the other hand, have no motivation to simply befriend everybody. That's probably the biggest reason they will quickly turn down a friend request from someone they don't know.
       As one agent said: "For authors, it's easy: everyone is your friend, the more the merrier. This is not true for agents."

Well ... if agents and editors don't want to interact and befriend writers on social networking sites, who DO they want to meet?

Industry pros! They want to keep in contact not only with their friends & relatives, but with other agents, editors and authors. Note how I said authors, not writers. They keep in contact with their OWN authors (their clients) and other writers who have already made it and can be of value in networking. That's what's in THEIR best interest.

Sending a Friend Request

If you try to befriend an agent, you may want to add a little message of some kind along with it. This may help; it may not. One thing's for certain. If you write to an agent or other pro and say "So nice to meet you in Florida at the conference!", and put in a friend request, but they DON'T accept it, then you SHOULDN'T ask them a second time, or a third time...
       They said no for a reason. Repeated requests for friendship will only come off as pestering.

If an Agent DOES Befriend You...

Let's say you want to query an agent, so you find her on Facebook and ask to be her friend. She accepts your request. You've succeeded. Just remember the basic rule here: You now have the ability to learn more about the agent in the hopes that it will help your query & pitch. However, that is not an invitation to chat or converse with them. Interaction through a networking site is a bad thing (unless it's invited, naturally).

Want more on this subject?

Literary agents talk blogging, Twitter, and more.

How to create a simple writer blog.

So you've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

They're Called GOOGLE ALERTS, and Yes We Have Them

Chuck — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 18:42:35 GMT

"Well, the weirdest thing happened to me yesterday.

I logged onto my website email account, which I hardly use because it's ALL spam. There was one email in it. A real one. So I read it. It was from a literary agent. Apparently her google alerts told her I wrote her name down. She read my blog about agents who didn't respond, and asked me to resubmit.

Shocked?

Yeah, so was I. She actually took the time to write me so I'd take her off my list! Wow. Okay, so I sent her the submission again.

She didn't like it so much.

But she did say "You've got skill, I'll give you that."

I've heard that so many times before. *sigh*

I took her name off, I'll add her to the rejection list. Ah well. It's still an interesting story, huh?"

------

Crazy story. So the agent found her and asked her to resubmit the work for a yes/no answer. Ultimately, this paid off for Jen - and gave her a second chance (although that second chance didn't pan out). Let this be your warning: Google Alerts exist, so be careful what you're saying on the Internet. You never know who's listening.

Want more on this subject?

Literary agents talk blogging, Twitter, and more.

How to create a simple writer blog.

So you've set up a blog - now what?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

A Pitch vs. A Synopsis: The Difference and Definitions (and 'What is a Good Synopsis Length?')

Chuck — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 15:30:11 GMT

Q. In a query, should the synopsis tell the whole story in a short form or should it leave mystery to the story like on the back of the book?

A. Queries and synopses are different things. You would never find a synopsis in a query.
        A query is a one-page letter that explains what you've written, who you are, and why the agent should represent you. In a query letter will be a pitch, which is a explanation of your story in 3-8 sentences. It's like the text you see on the back of a DVD box. It's designed to pique your interest. A pitch, like the back of a book or DVD, will not spill the beans regarding the ending.
       A synopsis is a front-to-back telling of what happens in your story. It's like sitting down with a 12-year-old and explaining your entire story in about five minutes. You explain who the characters are, what the conflict is, the three acts, and finally, what happens at the end (e.g., the villain dies). So, in a synopsis, you do indeed give away the ending. You would not do so in a pitch, and a pitch is what appears in a query.

FOLLOW-UP QUESTION FROM ANN:

Q. What length is a good synopsis? I recently sent out a query & synopsis. I managed to reduce the synopsis to one page, but now I'm wondering if it was too short for a multivoiced novel.

A. I recommend having TWO versions of your synopsis - a "long synopsis" and a "short synopsis." Let me explain.
       In past years, there used to be a fairly universal system regarding synopses. For every 35 or so pages of text you had, you would have one page of synopsis explanation. So if your book was 245 pages, double-spaced, your synopsis would be seven pages approximately. This was fairly standard, and allowed writers a decent amount of space to explain their story. I recommend doing this first. This will be your "long synopsis."
       The problem is: Sometime in the past few years, agents started to get really busy and they want to hear your story now now now. They started asking for synopses of no more than two pages. Many agents today request specifically just that - two pages max. Some may even say one page, but two pages is generally acceptable. You have to draft a new, more concise synopsis - the "short synopsis."
       So which one do you submit? Good question. If you think your short synopsis (1-2 pages) is tight and effective, always use that. However, if you think the long synopsis is much more effective, then you will sometimes submit one and sometimes submit the other. If an agent requests two pages max, send the short one (because, naturally, you've been instructed to). If they just say "Send a synopsis," and you feel your longer synopsis is far superior, and your long synopsis isn't more than eight pages, I say just submit the long one.
       Long answer. Hope it helps.

Example of a Mind-Boggling Horrible Query

Chuck — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 21:24:04 GMT

Guest blogger Ric Klass shows writers just about everything you SHOULDN'T do in a query letter. The hilarious result is below. Enjoy.

Guest blog column
by Ric Klass

December 17, 2008

Ms. Agent
William Morris Agency
1825 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10012

Hi Mr. Agent,

You’ve finally got a good book to represent. MINE. The word is out that you're the best agent in the world. Now’s your chance to prove it. I’m thinking of calling my book Gone With The Wind II. Pretty sweet, huh? I’m using the same characters, Rhett Butler and all that. My understanding is that the publisher will have no problem getting the approval to do that from the family’s state. But here’s the catch ... Tara will be in outer space this time!!!! Whoa! I bet this is the best idea you’ve heard in weeks or maybe ever. A bestseller for sure. By the way, I’m wrote the book on my lunch breaks (more on that later).

I’ve contacted about two hundred other agents and saved the best for last ---- YOU. They’re crazy not to have leaped at this ONCE IN A LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY. I warn you, Mr. Agent, you may not get another chance like this one. Even though I read you only represent nonfiction, this is your chance to get into the fiction game where more interesting stories can be told.

I’ve discussed my ideas for the book with several of my friends at CVS where I work and they all LOVE IT! Obviously, dumdum, you will too. Right now I’m just stocking the shelves, but I think the manager might promote me to cash register. After all I worked there for nearly eight years and hardly took any time off except for the time I spend in prison fighting a false arrest for attacking one the agents I contacted who wouldn’t answer even one of my hundreds of phone calls--- the dirty bastard. But I’ll get even with him. I know you're not that kind of guy. From what I’ve read, you're a straight shooter.

The book is nearly done. I’ve almost finished page 12. Once begun is half done as they say. You should know that I need at least a $100,000 advance. And I need it NOW. You can’t believe how expensive lawyers are. (Don’t worry I won’t sue you, too!) From what I’ve read, you agents usually get 10 or 15 percent off the top. I’m willing to double it if you can send me at least $25,000 NOW. Since my idea is a sure thing, you should have no problem with this deal. You should also know I don’t suffer welchers if you no what I mean. You had better not tell my great idea to some other writer and going around me!!!! By the way, although your Web site said to include a synopsis, I thought I wouldn’t waste my time since you're sure to take on my book anyway. Instead (as I’m sure you noticed) enclosed in this giant box you just opened is a case of my favorite Skippy peanut butter just to let you know I’m no piker (in the case that I find another agent first before we sine on the dotted line, please send me $30 (in cash) to cover my expenses and the postage).

Right now the water drops you see on this page are real tears. I really need and DESERVE to have my book published. I’ve taken the liberty of following you to your home in Rye, NY, so I can deliver the manuscript any time you say directly to your place and hand it to one of your cute kids if you're not there (By the way, your wife is good looking too. NICE GOING! but she should keep the curtains closed - there are so wackos out there, ya know ... never can be too sure). But like I said, I’ll need a few days to finish the book. If for some reason I don’t hear from you in a day or so, you can expect to see me on your doorstep. (I’m sure it would have just slipped your mind. Ha Ha Ha Ha.!!!) Or you can except my offer by mail. I’ve enclosed an envelope for your secretary to address. She can stamp it too. Rich agents like you don’t need me to save them chump change, right? Right.

Affectionately,

Joe Writer

914-555-2054 (My girlfriend's number cause my phone is disconnected due to a bill miscommunication. Don’t even think of fuggin trying to hit on her or else!)

P.S. BTW, if you do hit on her, send money today and I’ll forgot the whole thing (and not tell your wife!).

Ric Klass is the author of Man Overboard: Confessions
of a Novice Math Teacher in the Bronx, a narrative
nonfiction book published late 2006. The New York Times
selected Man Overboard for its “Great Read In The Park”
book fair. The book was chosen for The National Press
Club's 29th Annual Book Fair and Authors' Night.

Agent Smackdown: East Coast vs. West Coast. Which is Better?

Chuck — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:31:18 GMT

Guest blog column
by Tom Bentley

The world of literary agents seems divided into sub-worlds: there is New York, there is California, and there is a smattering of boroughs and burgs in between. For better or worse, New York literary agents have often been stereotyped as aggressive, pushy and relentless. Underlying that notion is another: New York agents are the ones that will move your book along, get it in front of the right editors and get it into print. Of course, that implies another consideration: If you ain't got a New York agent, you ain't got squat. Is the West Coast counterpart of an NYC agent mushy, touch-feely and emotive? Is there a bagel/vegan muffin divide? And what about agents smack in the middle of the country—are they just waifs in publishing's prairie winds?

To find out if there's any substance to the pigeonholing, the only people to ask are the agents themselves, who were happy to let their own words reveal how they feel about their stateside rivals.

EAST VS. WEST

Stephen Barbara, an agent and contract manager at the Donald Maass Agency in New York offered connectivity, not attitude, as the East Coast advantage: “Most of the top agencies are here, most of the major trade houses are here, not to mention the great writing community and a wonderful city with tons of culture and a great social scene which connects publishing folks regularly over lunch, drinks, book parties, award ceremonies, and the like. The energy here is really incredible. That’s not to disparage out-of-town agents, and the world is flat, of course, but we do feel it is advantageous to be in the thick of things here.” Barbara did add that there are great agencies on the West Coast, and in Boston and DC (though he didn't say anything about how good their lunches might be).

Sandra Dijkstra of the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency in Del Mar, Calif., offers that it's not all location, location, location: “Where an agent is based is much less important than how well-viewed and how well-connected that agent is, to both the publishing community and to the specific author’s work," she says. "Proximity to the NY pub world can also be a disadvantage, because agents need to remember for whom they work—the author—and playing volleyball with publishers in the Hamptons, traveling up and down elevators with them in NYC, etc., can also lead agents, like the White House press corps at times, to dangerous confusion on this front. Distance from NYC, on the other hand, can afford agents a vital perspective on the mad world of publishing, and beyond it too. In any case, in the Age of the Internet, we are sometimes all too connected.”

Though it is hard to slight connections (and once again, there are those lunches), Daniel Lazar, of the New York–based Writers House agency, takes a broad view: “I think for a new, young agent starting out, there is an advantage to being in New York. There are lunches and mixers and parties where young editors and agents are meeting. Getting to know editors personally is an important part of this business. Matching up a project with an editor usually involves a personal chemistry you can’t replicate entirely on the phone. However, for an agent with some kind of experience, whether they used to be an editor or a publicist or an assistant to an agent or a sales rep somewhere, all they need is a computer and a phone. You can do that from Times Square or from the Grand Canyon or wherever.”

AND THE MIDDLE

And from a perspective that can look both East and West (and talk about lunch on her own terms), let’s listen to Kristin Nelson of Nelson Literary Agency in Denver, Colo.: “NYC agents have the advantage of being able to go out to lunch more often with the editors, but is that a tangible benefit? In other words, does lunching more often make one a better agent? I've talked with many editors about my being located in Denver. Not one of them has ever cared where the agency was based. What they cared most about was my reputation and whether I send good projects their way. Interestingly enough, many editors have told me that they thought my location was an added benefit. I'm not New York-centric, and, in their eyes, that can be a huge plus. There are many terrific agents in New York (several of which are personal friends) and there are many terrific agents outside of NYC. An agency’s reputation is far more important than its location.”

BURYING THE (IMAGINARY?) HATCHET

As for a certain New York state of mind (or mood): Daniel Lazar summed it up in a tone that reflected the sentiments of many of the agents. “I know some very sweet and mild agents here in the city," he says, "and some formidable agents based miles and states away.”

East Coast, West Coast, Middle-of-the-Country Coast ... let’s call the alleged feud off—and then let’s have lunch.

Tom Bentley is a freelance writer,
editor and copywriter. He's published articles in
Writer’s Digest, the Los Angeles Times, Wired,
the San Francisco Chronicle, Traveler's Tales
and many others. He is also the winner of
multiple short story contests.

10 Hidden Gifts of Rejection Letters

Chuck — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:33:34 GMT

Guest blog column
by Debra Darvick

Journalist and essayist Debra Darvick
is the author of This Jewish Life:
Stories of Discovery, Connection and Joy.
Her book, I Love Jewish Faces (a children's
picture book celebrating Jewish diversity) will
be published by the URJ Press in May '09.
Visit her blog at debradarvick.wordpress.com.

Want more on this subject?

7 reasons agents stop reading your first chapter.

Should you start with plot or character?

Word count for novels and children's books.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Networking at Writers' Conferences

Chuck — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 20:12:00 GMT

Guest Blog Column
by Hanish "Han" Vance

Many fledgling writers understand the value of manuscript reviews and taking classes at a professional writers’ conference, but few understand the true potential impact of networking outside of the traditional formats. If you have a big salesperson personality and tend to meet people easily, networking will be a natural for you. If you're a bit shy and reserved, think of outward communication as part of your job: Bite the bullet and take the initiative to speak to those around you. The majority of those in attendance are aspiring writers like yourself; who more perfect to understand you? A few established writers and industry professionals will be sprinkled in amongst the masses. Guess what? They are normal people with some time to spare and valuable information to willingly dispense. Do not limit this special career opportunity by staying in your shell.
        Study the conference presenter roster beforehand for an overview of who’s who in attendance in the professional ranks. Breaks are a regularly scheduled part of the conference routine. Instead of hanging around your hotel room or quietly reading by yourself during breaks, think of yourself as on the clock. You are working to promote your future products. Have copies of your manuscript synopsis ready to distribute and be yourself, albeit a version of yourself who is visibly willing to make contacts by meeting new people. Position yourself in a well-traveled area and start introducing yourself.
        At my first writers’ conference (the amazing Harriette Austin Writers’ Conference in Athens, Ga.), I made sure that I was a visible presence in the atrium during all breaks and ended up meeting several key contacts there. As a result, I was able to choose between a select few of those contacts for the best possible professional editor for my memoir manuscript. I wanted to meet various lecturers from my classes, so I was regularly in the atrium where I knew they would pass through. I met everyone on my list and a few new writer colleagues along the way. It was a matter of location, location, location.
        At my second writers’ conference, many of the industry professionals I had briefly met or taken classes from the previous year were again in attendance. I may have learned more from hanging around those folks on breaks then I did from all my classes and my manuscript review. They welcomed me as a fellow smoker in the outside smoking section, and I asked questions and took notes. I don't really smoke, but that day I did. After realizing the value of the information I was getting for free on the first break, I walked to the convenience store and purchased some mini-cigars, which I smoked without inhaling on the rest of the breaks. My throat hurt a little, but it was well worth it. The point being: You need to be where speakers and attendees are. That's what you're there for. If the night is wrapping up and you're exhausted from a long day, you'd still be a fool to turn down an invitation to go out to a bar for drinks with other writers and professionals. Deals are made in the literary word over drinks in the bar around the corner.
        A break in the conference schedule before dinner was a chance for me to informally bond with the agent who had reviewed my manuscript. The lunch and dinner allowed me to connect with fellow writers, including a special writer friend who for a time called herself my muse. And finally, the late night poetry slam allowed me to showcase my versatility in the world of words while again making a lasting impression on contacts.
        Do not expect long interactions with any individual. Instead, spread yourself around as much as possible and collect the gems of industry wisdom as they come, and remember to write them down. Save and re-read your notes once you are back in the lab trying to create and sell that masterpiece. Above all, get contact information from any key individuals and keep it for when the time is right to use it. In any industry, networking can be the key to ultimate success.

       - Hanish "Han" Vance is a Georgia-based writer and blogger.

Breaking Down the Query Letter

Chuck — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:23:31 GMT

I talk to a lot of writers about how to compose a good query letter. Make no mistake - it's no easy task, and it will take a lot of work. But what I can tell you right off the bat is that a good query has a distinct structure, and I can show you it right here below.

Think of a query as a three-part monster, broken down into three paragraphs. At the top of the page, you will have your contact info, as well as the mailing address info for the agency and the date. After that, you have your three paragraphs:

Paragraph One:

        1. Explain what the work is. So - what are you writing? What is the genre? The length? The title? Is it complete? State all the basic info upfront so the agent will immediately know if this is a type of work that she represents.

        2. Explain why you're contacting this agent. Did you meet them at a conference? Were they recommended by a friend? Did you see an interview online where they said they were looking for steamy romances and you're writing one such steamy romance? Show them why you picked them out of the big pile, so they have a reason to pick you out of a big pile.

Paragraph Two:

        1. Pitch Your Work. This is the most difficult part. You have to boil your book down to about 3-6 sentences and explain what makes the story interesting. You've got to get to the hook. What is the irony - the catch - that makes this story interesting? If your story is simply about a police officer who retires and adjusts to a new lifestyle, that has no hook. But if you say that this newly retired police officer decides to get a sex change, and finds that the police union wants to cancel his pension, and his old friends won't speak to him - then you've got a hook. You've got a unique, interesting idea for a story.

Paragraph Three:

        1. Explain who you are and why you're qualified to write this work. Do you have publishing credits? Are you a journalist? Have you won any awards? Have you had short stories published? If you're pitching nonfiction, this becomes the most important section of the query because you will have to prove that you are the ideal person to write this particular book.
       Keep in mind that if you don't have anything to say or brag about, you can just keep this section short. Tout your accomplishments quickly and humbly. You want to say "I'm not brand new and I take writing seriously." You don't want to say "Yoo-hoo! Look at my accolades! I'm the man, if you didn't know it, sucka."

        2. Thank them. Thank the agent for considering your project. Ask them if you can send more. "Can I send you the first few chapters or some pages?" "Can I send you the full book proposal?"

Want more on this subject?

Should you mention your age in a book query?

20 tips on query letters, from agent Janet Reid

Check out the Writer's Digest Guide to Query Letters

What should you write in the bio of your query?

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Barbara Poelle Wants to Hear About Your Favorite 7 Books

Chuck — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:49:40 GMT

Guide to Literary Agents welcomes
guest blogger Barbara Poelle, literary
agent for Irene Goodman Literary
in Manhattan.

The topic: Her favorite books on the bookshelf and why they excite her as a reader. Read on to hear more and then share your "top 7" in the comments section of this post.

"Even as a wee Barbara I was a voracious reader, and my love affair with narratives and plotlines and settings and characters has only deepened and turned more maniacal the older I get. However there are only 7 dog-eared, cover worn, Doritos-stained books that I consider my dearest loves, who truly pulled off something outstanding in their genre. The kind of books I would get into a bar fight with, sing drunken karaoke for, or bat my eyes shyly at over a candlit table for two. These titles make me wish I could sustain some sort of head injury and forget their plot points after reading so I could read them for the first time all over again. As it is, I mostly rotate them through every two years so that I can lose myself in their brilliance without needing to throw myself through a plate glass window in order to etch-a-sketch their themes. And they are, in no particular order:

Watchers by Dean Koontz:
The characters in this book are phenomenal. They stray just enough into the field of archetypes so you know what you are getting into without being cookie cutter. And the idea was so unique, so captivating, that it almost didn’t matter what happened as long as you got to watch these characters do it. Who didn’t want Einstein to be their dog? And if you didn’t cry when the Other died you hate Christmas and babies and chocolate. Is it any wonder I married a guy named Travis?

Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald
The narrative execution in this is so unbelievable that you will find yourself reading portions out loud even if you are being held at gunpoint during a bank heist. The phrasing and the expert use of perspective lend to a haunting, continuous read, like chewing warm taffy through the entire book. I would lend you mine but entire portions are now scotch taped in and I’m fairly certain that that is peanut butter on page 198.

The Stand by Stephen King
Multiple character plotlines are nearly impossible to pull off, yet this one does it perfectly. These kind of characterizations are unparalleled in any genre, besides perhaps something Russian and heavy. I don’t really need to say anything more about this except m-o-o-n spells brilliant.

Operating Instructions by Anne Lamott
I judge people as friends by whether or not they have read Anne Lamott and this one is my favorite. Memoir is so difficult sometimes, and the ones who keep it the most honest, the most raw are the true masters of the genre. Lamott carries off her exploration of motherhood with charm, charisma, humor, and true emotion from the first page to the last. The only reason I will have children is so I can enjoy this from a new level.

Ahab’s Wife; or the Stargazer by Sena Jeter Naslund
Historical fiction is just so tough these days unless your last name is Gregory. (She’s pretty fabulous). The market is crowded with concubines, traitors, and waltzes on foreign shores, but this evocative, multifaceted work can stand unique among the Tudors and Howards. I am a huge fan of first lines. HUGE FAN. This one leaves “Call me Ishmeal” in the dust. Do yourself a favor, call in sick tomorrow and read this book. You can thank me for it later.

Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss
I laughed. I cried. I dangled my participle. If you love language, you’ll love this book. A must for anyone in the industry to read.

Guardian Angel by Julie Garwood
Ohh, what? You think I was too hoity-toity to get in a bar fight over a romance novel? This was the first Garwood I read and still is my favorite romance of all time. I mean, come on! The heroine is the hero! Strong women that do things they have to not because they want to, no sniveling, no cowering, women with a job to do and the biscuits to do it. That’s my kind of lady. And the love scenes are hot enough to make me clutch my pearls and yell, “Well, I do declare!”

Now, I bet if you and I were clinking mojitos at Havana Central off Union Square, you could come up with 5 or 6 more titles that I would say yeah yeah, that one too! (Time Traveler’s Wife. Staggeringly unique. The kind of rapier swift plotting that’s as edgy as it is accessible. She’s Come Undone. Are we sure Wally is a man? How can he write his female protagonist with such depth? She is a great character. White Oleander. Ingrid is burned into my mind as one of the truly great antagonists, she didn’t even have to be in the scene for me to know she was the puppetmaster behind it.)

But these 7 above are my true loves, some for decades, some for years, but all forever.

So … who would make up your magnificent 7?"

Barbara Poelle is an agent at Irene Goodman Literary Agency representing a wide range of fiction and non-fiction titles. She is currently accepting queries directed to her attention at queries@irenegoodman.com

MORE Agent Chapter 1 Pet Peeves and Writing Cliches

Chuck — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:13:37 GMT

Note: This is part II of
the discussion on Chapter 1
no-no's. See part I here!

The current issue of Writer's Digest magazine (Sept/Oct 08) has a piece in it that I wrote on literary agents' chapter 1 pet peeves. For it, I basically just contacted a whole bunch of agents - new and experienced, fiction and nonfiction, Christian and not, juvenile and adult - and asked them all what they hate to see in chapter 1.

They gave a lot of great feedback - real good practical stuff touching on cliches and pet peeves and overused beginnings. Here is some of the responses that we put in the printed article:

Agents Chapter 1 Pet Peeves:

"Most agents hate prologues. Just make the first chapter relevant and well written."
       - Andrea Brown, Andrea Brown Literary Agency

"Slow writing with a lot of description puts me off very quickly. I like a first chapter that moves quickly and draws me in so I'm immediately hooked."
       - Andrea Hurst, Andrea Hurst Literary Management

"Avoid any description of the weather."
       - Denise Marcil, Denise Marcil Literary Agency

"I don't like it when the main character dies at the end of Chapter 1. Why did I just spend all this time with this character? I feel cheated."
       - Cricket Freeman, August Agency

"A cheesy hook drives me nuts. They say 'Open with a hook!' to grab the reader. That's true, but there's a fine line between an intriguing hook and one that's just silly. An example of a silly hook would be opening with a line of overtly sexual dialogue. Or opening with a hook that's just too convoluted to be truly interesting."
       - Daniel Lazar, Writers House

" 'The Weather' is always a problem - the author feels he has to set up the scene and tell us who the characters are, etc. I like starting a story in media res."
       - Elizabeth Pomada, Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents

Agents' Chapter 1 Pet Peeves!

Chuck — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:38:06 GMT

Note: This is part I of
the discussion on Chapter 1
no-no's. See part II here!

The forthcoming issue of Writer's Digest magazine (Sept/Oct 08) has a piece in it that I wrote on literary agents' chapter 1 pet peeves. For it, I basically just contacted a whole bunch of agents - new and experienced, fiction and nonfiction, Christian and not, juvenile and adult - and asked them all what they hate to see in chapter 1.

They gave a lot of great feedback - real good practical stuff touching on cliches and pet peeves and overused beginnings. The article will be online in several weeks, so you can see a lot of great advice soon.

Although we saved plenty of juicy parts for the WD article, in the meantime, enjoy all this great feedback that didn't make the final cut for space purposes!

Agents Chapter 1 Pet Peeves:

"Anything cliché such as ‘It was a dark and stormy night’ will turn me off. I hate when a narrator or author addresses the reader (e.g., 'Gentle reader')."
        - Jennie Dunham, Dunham Literary

"Sometimes a reasonably good writer will create an interesting character and describe him in a compelling way, but then he’ll turn out to be some unimportant bit player. Other annoying, unoriginal things I see too often: some young person going home to a small town for a funeral, someone getting a phone call about a death, a description of a psycho lurking in the shadows, or a terrorist planting a bomb."
        - Ellen Pepus, Signature Literary Agency (formerly Ellen Pepus Literary)

"I’m really turned off by a protagonist named Isabelle who goes by 'Izzy.' No. Really. I am."
        - Stephany Evans, FinePrint Literary Management

"I dislike opening scenes that you think are real (I rep adult genre fiction), then the protagonist wakes up. It makes me feel cheated. And so many writers use this hackneyed device. I dislike lengthy paragraphs of world building and scene setting up front. I usually crave action close to the beginning of the book (and so do readers)."
        - Laurie McLean, Larsen/Pomada Literary Agents

"I do in fact hate it when someone wakes up from a dream in Chapter 1, and I dislike an overly long prologue. The worst thing that you can do is let that crucial chapter be boring - that’s the chapter that has to grab my interest!"
        - Michelle Brower, Folio Literary Management (formerly Wendy Sherman Associates)

"I don't like an opening line that's 'My name is...,' introducing the narrator to the reader so blatantly. I might be prompted to groan before reading on a bit further to see if the narration gets any less stale. There are far better ways in Chapter 1 to establish an instant connection between narrator and reader. I’m also usually not a fan of prologues, preferring to find myself in the midst of a moving plot on page 1 rather than being kept outside of it, or eased into it."
        - Michelle Andelman, Lynn C. Franklin Associates (formerly Andrea Brown Literary Agency)

"I hate seeing a 'run-down list:' Names, hair color, eye color, height, even weight sometimes. Other things that bother me is over-describing the scenery or area where the story starts. Usually a manuscript can lose the first 3-5 chapters and start there. Besides the run-down list preaching to me about a subject, I don't like having a character immediately tell me how much he/she hates the world for whatever reason. In other words, tell me your issues on politics, the environment, etc. through your character. That is a real turn off to me."
        - Miriam Hees (editor), Blooming Tree Press

"Perhaps my biggest pet peeve with an opening chapter is when an author features too much exposition - when they go beyond what is necessary for simply 'setting the scene.' I want to feel as if I'm in the hands of a master storyteller, and starting a story with long, flowery, overly-descriptive sentences (kind of like this one) makes the writer seem amateurish and the story contrived. Of course, an equally jarring beginning can be nearly as off-putting, and I hesitate to read on if I'm feeling disoriented by the fifth page. I enjoy when writers can find a good balance between exposition and mystery. Too much accounting always ruins the mystery of a novel, and the unknown is what propels us to read further. It is what keeps me up at night saying 'just one more chapter, then I'll go to sleep.' If everything is explained away in the first chapter; I'm probably putting the book down and going to sleep."
       - Peter Miller, Peter Miller Literary

"1. Squinting into the sunlight with a hangover in a crime novel. Good grief -- been done a million times. 2. A sci-fi novel that spends the first two pages describing the strange landscape. 3. A trite statement ("Get with the program" or "Houston, we have a problem" or "You go girl" or "Earth to Michael" or "Are we all on the same page?"), said by a weenie sales guy, usually in the opening paragraph. 4. A rape scene in a Christian novel, especially in the first chapter. 5. 'Years later, Monica would look back and laugh...' 6. "The [adjective] [adjective] sun rose in the [adjective] [adjective] sky, shedding its [adjective] light across the [adjective] [adjective] [adjective] land."
       - Chip MacGregor, MacGregor Literary

"Here are things I can't stand: Cliché openings in Fantasy can include an opening scene set in a battle (and my peeve is that I don't know any of the characters yet so why should I care about this battle) or with a pastoral scene where the protagonist is gathering herbs (I didn't realize how common this is). Opening chapters where a main protagonist is in the middle of a bodily function (jerking off, vomiting, peeing, or what have you) is usually a firm NO right from the get-go. Gross. Long prologues that often don't have anything to do with the story. So common in Fantasy again. Opening scenes that our all dialogue without any context. I could probably go on..."
       - Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary

"I recently read a ms when the second line was something like, 'Let me tell you this, Dear Reader...' What do you think of that?"
        - Sheree Bykofsky, Sheree Bykofsky Literary

"I know this may sound obvious, but too much 'telling' vs. 'showing' in the first chapter is a definite warning sign for me – the first chapter should present a compelling scene, not a road map for the rest of the book. The goal is to make the reader curious about your characters, fill their heads with questions that must be answered, not fill them in on exactly where, when, who and how. Don’t ever describe eye color either..."
        - Emily Sylvan Kim, Prospect Agency

"Characters that are moving around doing little things, but essentially nothing. Washing dishes & thinking, staring out the window & thinking, tying shoes, thinking ... Authors often do this to transmit information, but the result is action in a literal sense but no real energy in a narrative sense. The best rule of thumb is always to start the story where the story starts."
        - Dan Lazar, Writers House

"I hate reading purple prose, taking the time to set up-- to describe something so beautifully and that has nothing to do with the actual story. I also hate when an author starts something and then says '(the main character) would find out later.' I hate gratuitous sex and violence anywhere in the manuscript. If it is not crucial to the story then I don't want to see it in there, in any chapters."
        - Cherry Weiner, Cherry Weiner Literary

Want more on this subject?

7 reasons agents stop reading your first chapter.

Should you start with plot or character?

Word count for novels and children's books.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How I Met One of the '20 Worst Agents'

Chuck — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 19:50:47 GMT

After every conference I attend and present at, I usually blog about the happenings of the weekend - such as the people I met and the things I saw, etc. If you've read the blog long enough, you'd know I go to a lot of writers' conferences. And the first one I ever attended may have been the wackiest. It's when I met an infamous unscrupulous "agent" who was deemed one of the 20 Worst by Write Beware.

First: The Conference

I'm not gonna go into specifics (names/places), but let me just entertain you for a second...

So I fly to a location in the Midwest and it's my first writers' conference ever. I show up the following morning to a Holiday Inn. I enter the main room and see that the entire audience is comprised of about 9 people. It turns out that the "conference" is actually just a small writers' group. So I'm like "OK, Chuck. Just give your speech and get this done."

After the speech, I start to meet with writers and have those little one-on-one sessions where I just answer any questions a writer may have. Then one of the attendees comes up to me and shows me her self-published book, asking how to market it and get an agent. I look at the cover. It's called "Uncle Jerry and the Bad Touch." NOT A JOKE!! Priceless!!

So I stammer for about 10 seconds, then scratch my head, then clear my throat. "I'm no expert on picture books, but I think this is kind of an odd subject for a book like this," I said.

Second: Meeting One of the "20 Worst"

I get introduced to the only literary agent in attendance. Upon hearing I work for Writer's Digest magazine (I did at that time), she immediately blasts my magazine, saying a recent article was inaccurate, etc. (Whatever!) She introduced herself and quickly brought up that she was on the "20 Worst" list, trying to discredit the list's rationale.

During her speech to the crowd, she revealed why she is one of the most reviled agents in America. She charges her clients an upfront fee of like $3,000! Insane again! When someone asked her about recent sales, she alluded to some private sales to big companies and basically gave no specifics of any kind. This smooth talking was too slick to be unrehearsed.

There was one especially nice tale she told. Expounding on why she charges thousands of bucks upfront, she addressed how a lot of people hate her, and even brought up one occassion where a disgruntled writer sent in a "special" package to her office in the Midwest. This package was rigged to spray dead animal parts and blood all over the office when opened. It was opened, and some assistant got the surprise of her young life, while this agent got a crazy bill from the EPA after clean-up.

How pissed do you have to be to rig a dead animal bomb? Doesn't a sick, elaborate thing like that have to clue this bad agent in on something?

Insane.

Anyway, check out the list of the 20 Worst again just to refresh yourself with those who should be avoided.

Barbara Poelle's '10 For 10 Rule'

Chuck — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 16:44:08 GMT

Agent Barbara Poelle of Irene Goodman Literary is here in Texas with me at the Northeast Texas Writers' Conference. (More on what East Texas is like and the proper protocol with dealing with fire ants later...) This morning, Barbara gave some great advice to the crowd on breaking down the query letter, with plenty of "do" and "don't" information for writers.

Of note was the speech finale: Her "10 for 10 Rule: 10 Questions Writers Should Ask Themselves Regarding Their Query if They Have Received 10 Rejections from Agents."

      1. Are you thoroughly researching the agencies you are sending to?
      2. Does the specific agent you are querying represent your genre?
      3. Does your query have any of the "Don'ts" on it? (I do not have this list of "don'ts" here, but I presume it includes many gimmicky mistakes, such as scented paper, weird fonts, sending pictures of your kids, etc.)
      4. Do you have any spelling or grammatical errors in your chapter selections?
      5. Are there too many competitive titles currently crowding the genre? If the market is flooded with vampire and werewolf romance, for instance, even a good book with the same basic subject matter may never see the light of day.
      6. Could it be called "chick lit" by someone in a meeting? The terrible, sad truth: This alone can kill a book these days.
      7. Is your word count too low? (Below 50K?)
      8. Is your word count too high? (Above 120K?)
      9. Are you straddling too many genres to be appropriately sold into one?
      10. Is this your strongest possible draft of the novel?

Barbara Poelle

Want more on this topic?

5 Signs a Literary Agent is a Good Match For You.

See examples of Successful Queries that agents liked.

Check out The Writer's Digest Guide to Query Letters.

How to Write a Synopsis for a Novel.

Facebook, Twitter and Literary Agents.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Anatomy of a Bad Query Letter: When a Good Idea Gets Buried and Good Intentions Go Wrong

Chuck — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 01:45:56 GMT

Agent Nathan Bransford has his "Anatomy of a Great Query Letter" posts. So, on my blog, for educational purposes only, I present "Anatomy of a Bad Query Letter" (Part 1).

Obviously, I've changed names and places to protect this writer.

Check out the original letter and then I'll dissect it below...

-----------------

Awesome Writer
123 Main St.
Address

Date, Year

Dear Agent,

I am seeking representation to market a collection of my original short stories, entitled XXXX. My goal is publication to a mass audience, not only to English-speaking readers, but globally, to have translations of my work available in several languages.

I hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Studies from the University of XXXX. I wrote my first story in January 2006, and I have since begun to also write a body of poetry. My short stories are science-fiction adventures with an ecological angle. Teenagers and young adults comprise my target audience. In a perfect world, I feel I could best get my message across in a television series adapted from the stories. That would be my long-range goal. However, unlike current popular TV programs and films of intergalactic warfare, my work stresses the interconnectedness of all life and the sacredness of Earth’s wilderness.

Publication in New Age and ecological magazines would be a logical first step for me. With the collection of I am submitting here, I welcome your input. What follows here is what I could see as possible back cover endorsements/promotions of the collection:

     - "Awesome Writer’s collection of stories has a more than sufficient number of surprises and compelling plot twists to engage the 12-25 set, with a skillful juxtaposition of science- fiction and spirituality."

     - "XXXX demonstrates the discerning and thoughtful intelligence of an author who personally survived a traumatic childhood event, and then spent nearly ten years as a teen and young adult on a spiritual healing quest. Write rshares this learning and experience in an authentic way, through his delightful characters, both human and alien."

     - "XXXX crosses a frontier familiar to many teen and young adults in the science- fiction/magic adventure genre, but differentiates itself in a message of hope for humanity and the planet, without preaching. The stories evoke the Arthurian legends in their mysticism and magic, but instead of knights, wizards and kings, benevolent aliens team up with humans. These stories could possibly become as loved by the new generation of youth as the film E.T. was thirty years ago."

Thanks in advance for your time and consideration.

Sincerely yours,

Awesome Writer
E-mail: awesomewriter@yahoo.net

----------------

OK, here we go...

I am seeking representation to market a collection of my original short stories, entitled XXXX. I like the straightforward approach to begin, but note how your collection is "titled," not "entitled." My goal is publication to a mass audience, not only to English-speaking readers, but globally, to have translations of my work available in several languages. This is what another blogged called "Thinking Too Far Ahead Syndrome" (TTFAS). Stick to pitching your work.

I hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Studies from the University of XXXX. I wrote my first story in January 2006, and I have since begun to also write a body of poetry. Awesome!! Wait - why does this matter? My short stories are science-fiction adventures with an ecological angle. Teenagers and young adults comprise my target audience. Kind of cool. Will voracious YA readers gobble up a short story collection? They just might, but this cool note is not expounded and buried in mistakes. Pity. In a perfect world, I feel I could best get my message across in a television series adapted from the stories. That would be my long-range goal. Way too much TTFAS! However, unlike current popular TV programs and films of intergalactic warfare, my work stresses the interconnectedness of all life and the sacredness of Earth’s wilderness.

Publication in New Age and ecological magazines would be a logical first step for me. Probably - so go do it! With the collection of I am submitting here, I welcome your input. Input as to what? How to begin? An agent wants to sell your work and make money, not give you career advice for free. What follows here is what I could see as possible back cover endorsements/promotions of the collection: This doesn't bode well...

     - "Awesome Writer’s collection of stories has a more than sufficient number of surprises and compelling plot twists to engage the 12-25 set, with a skillful juxtaposition of science- fiction and spirituality."

     - "XXXX demonstrates the discerning and thoughtful intelligence of an author who personally survived a traumatic childhood event, and then spent nearly ten years as a teen and young adult on a spiritual healing quest. Writer shares this learning and experience in an authentic way, through his delightful characters, both human and alien."

     - "XXXX crosses a frontier familiar to many teen and young adults in the science- fiction/magic adventure genre, but differentiates itself in a message of hope for humanity and the planet, without preaching. The stories evoke the Arthurian legends in their mysticism and magic, but instead of knights, wizards and kings, benevolent aliens team up with humans. These stories could possibly become as loved by the new generation of youth as the film E.T. was thirty years ago."

Ohhh-kay. I get the gist. Maybe this is a unique take on the pitch, as you want to "pitch through blurbs," but it doesn't work. Conjuring up fake praise comes off as not only amateurish, but a bit egotistical. Meanwhile, the cool idea of sci-fi short stories for teenagers is never explained well, even to the point where the interconnecting themes are not identified.

Furthermore, agents will usually not pick up a short story collection from a new writer. The best way to get such a collection published is to write novels, gather a readership, and then publish it. If you are an amateur and want to get them sold, I highly suggest getting some awards and honors for a few of them.

Thanks in advance for your time and consideration.

Sincerely yours,

What about just "sincerely"? Isn't that good enough anymore? I've seen "sincerely yours" a lot recently. This sounds kinda flirty ... maybe it's just me.

Want more on this subject?

How many agents should you query?

How to write a query letter: The 3 parts

Interview with "Query Queen" Wendy Burt-Thomas

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Literary Agent Straight Talk at NCWC - Featuring Rachelle Gardner, Kristin Nelson and Jessica Regel

Chuck — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 00:24:22 GMT

Three agents were here with me at the Northern Colorado Writers' Conference:

      - Kristen Nelson of Nelson Literary
      - Jessica Regel of Jean V. Naggar Literary
      - Rachelle Gardner of Wordserve Literary

Here's some of what they had to say:

Gardner: In-your-face spiritualism doesn't have to be a part of Christian writing anymore. Today's Christian and inspirational books have subtle faith-based themes such as redemption and soul searching. The stories are still "clean," though, as they lean away from profanity, detailed sex scenes, or gruesome horror stuff.
Regel: The "hook" is crucial for a YA book. Echoing what Michelle Andelman said in March, Jessica confirmed that a book with decent writing (say a B-) can still get published if the hook is awesome enough.
Nelson: When trying to compose the pitch paragraph of a query letter, go to the bookstore beforehand and read the back paragraph on books in your genre. That is essentially what you are aiming to write.
Regel: Bio credits can push you over the hump. Let's say that your pitch is not good or bad but rather just OK. What can push you over the hump and get an agent to request more writing? Bio credits! That is the advantage to starting small and getting short stories and magazine articles published.
Nelson: Don't call your novel Second Chances. Everyone else has the same name. In fact, Google your title to see what comes up.
Regel: She said she is actively looking for both narrative nonfiction and middle grade works. However, concerning middle grade, she brought up some concerns about titles, as well. Her advice is to avoid the standard "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" template for a title. For example, stay away from titles like "Timmy Tom and the Friendly Squirrel."
Gardner: Don't explain your whole story in a pitch. Pique the agent's interest and let them request more.
Nelson: She said she is actively looking for fiction that blends literary and commercial elements, such as The 13th Tale and Snow Falling on Cedars.

Check out Kristin Nelson's
Pub Rants blog here.

Want more on this subject?

How to Write a Query Letter.

What Should You Write in the "Bio Paragraph" of a Query Letter.

Why Your Manuscript Can Get Rejected, by Hallie Ephron.

10 Hidden Gifts of Rejection Letters.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Agent Advice: Phil Lang of Reece Halsey North

Chuck — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 15:19:35 GMT

Agent interview by
blog contributor Robin Mizell:

"Agent Advice" is a series of quick interviews with literary and script agents who talk with Guide to Literary Agents about their thoughts on writing, publishing, and just about anything else.

This installment features Phil Lang, the newest literary agent at Reece Halsey North in Tiburon, Calif.

GLA: You're a new agent, which can be an advantage to authors seeking representation. Tell us a little about how you got started in the business.

PL: I was attending the MFA Creative Writing Program at the University of San Francisco with Elizabeth Evans, an agent at Reece Halsey North. She had interned for Kimberley Cameron and asked if I'd be interested in reading for them a few times a week. That invitation opened me up to a side of the writing equation that I had never even considered.
I knew on the first day that I had stumbled upon a special situation. You don't find places like Reece Halsey North just anywhere, and you rarely find a mentor as wonderful as Kimberley Cameron. I started going through the submissions as an unpaid intern. Before long, I was asked to look at work from existing clients. One thing you can count on in this business is that there will always be something to read, which to an intern means there will always be opportunities to show your worth.
After some time, Ms. Cameron asked if I saw myself making a career out of this. Absolutely, I told her. She offered me a job, and I took it on the spot. Not many people get the chance in this business right out of graduate school. I know how fortunate I am to be in the position I'm in, and I'm hellbent on making the best of it.

GLA: The Reece Halsey North Web site indicates you're seeking literary and commercial fiction, including mysteries and thrillers, as well as nonfiction in the areas of biography, history, current events, music, and sports. Would you consider any other submissions?

PL: When people ask what genres I'm interested in, my answer is always the same: I'm interested in the great writing genre. I'm not seeking fantasy or YA, but if it—whatever it is—is great, then I'm interested.
There is also another aspect to this question that people often overlook. I seek out the genres listed above because those are the genres where I am most confident in my assessment of talent. Asking me to represent fantasy would be like someone asking me to represent his or her punk band. I would like to think that I could hear some undiscovered Ramones and identify them as a great band, but I'm not in that scene, and I am not familiar with the nuances of quality punk music.
Greatness is apparent to most anyone, but it's the separation of everything that falls below the fantasy equivalent of the Ramones where I would have a hard time distinguishing the very good from the everyday.

GLA: What kinds of credentials do you look for when you receive a query?

PL: It depends on the genre. Fiction and nonfiction are entirely different beasts. Platform plays a big role in nonfiction, whereas I'm much less concerned with that on the fiction side of things. Now, I'm not saying a publication credit in The New Yorker means nothing to me, but there's more leeway in fiction. Thank God.

GLA: How do you prefer to be contacted by writers seeking representation?

PL: E-mail. It's the lifeline of the office. It may take a little while for me to respond, and on rare occasions queries are lost in the junk file, but it's without question the best way for someone to get a hold of me. We've phased out mail submissions in the office, and our response time has been cut in half.

GLA: If a writer submits a promising query that happens to be outside your specific areas of interest, would you pass it along to one of your colleagues at Reece Halsey North?

PL: Of course. I do every day. This is a small office, and the three of us (Kimberley Cameron, Elizabeth Evans, and I) are very tight. We each have a hand in every project that goes out the door, and we all are responsible for every query that lands here. What's good for the agency is good for me. I've heard horror stories of highly competitive agencies, and they always befuddle me.

GLA: How can writers get to know your particular tastes and preferences?

PL: Believe it or not, I labored over writing my bio on our Web site. It's a bit embarrassing, but what the hell. It took me a few days to write that damn paragraph! The reason for that is because I knew it would be the best place for people to get an idea of the writing I seek.

GLA: What's your defining personality trait?

PL: Persistence. I'm about as easygoing as they come, but I quietly go after what I want until I get it. (Is there any way to answer this question without coming off self-indulgent?)

GLA: Good point. It’s not always easy to describe yourself. How would you describe your ideal client?

PL: One whose books sell. I kid, but it's the truth. The ideal client is a person who understands that publishing a book is a collaborative process. This may sound obvious, but publishing a book takes time, many minds, and almost always involves more than a couple rejections. An ideal client, like a veteran ballplayer, never gets too high and never sinks too low. The ideal client knows that we're in this together and no one wants to sell the manuscript more than I do.

GLA: Tell us about your band.

PL: I started Bloomsday Rising with a fellow MFA student a little over a year ago. (What? You didn't think I was going let this prime opportunity for a plug slip away, did you?) It's a no-frills rock ‘n roll band, and it's the most fun I've had since Little League.

GLA: Will you be attending any conferences or events in the future where writers can meet you?

PL: The Santa Barbara Writers Conference (June 23-24); the Willamette Writers Conference in Portland, Ore. (August 1-3); the Book Passage Travel Writers & Photographers Conference in Corte Madera, Calif. (August 14-17); and the North Coast Redwoods Writers’ Conference (TBA).

GLA: Can you tell us about your own writing?

PL: I've spent the last few years working on my novel Home, Approximately. Like everyone and their dog, it's more or less completed, but I'm still making some final adjustments. The basic premise is that a young painter, five miles from a new life in New York City, is called back to the farm when his parents are killed in an accident. He spends the summer tending to his father's crops, stuck in the place and life he's wanted to leave since he was a boy. His greatest inspiration for his paintings is his hometown, Maple Valley, and the images of his father at work. His greatest fear is that he will become his father and never leave Maple Valley. Mix in a love interest, a young priest questioning his faith, and an ominous augur, and you have Home, Approximately.

GLA: To a writer looking for an agent, can you offer any advice about something we haven't discussed?

PL: Above all, remember the following:
      1. You will be rejected.
      2. You will be rejected.
      3. When you're at the stage of catching an agent's eye, your query letter is as important as anything. Polish that baby!
      4. Your first 10 pages hold your fate. Forward momentum is critical. It's not fair, but you have to give an agent a reason to turn the page. Know that you are one of 100 queries he or she will read that day. You don't have the luxury to meander.
      5. Give them exactly what they ask for. If they ask for a one-page synopsis, don't give them a page and a half. If they ask for the submission to be sent as a Microsoft Word attachment, don't send a submission in the body of the e-mail. I know that agents seem like a disgruntled bunch with classic Napoleon complexes, but I assure you that we are diehard fans of writing who want to contribute to the world of books.
      6. Do not call if you haven't heard back from an agent after a week, or even a month. I wish it weren't true, but it takes time to get through submissions. If you haven't heard back in a few months, then drop a polite e-mail, but after that, you have to let it go, which is why...
      7. You should send out simultaneous submissions. There is no reason you should be expected to wait on an agent before you send your work to other agents. It's simply not fair. Do not hesitate to send out submissions to as many agents as possible. What's the worst that could happen? More than one agent is interested in your work. Call me crazy and unethical, but I am willing to bet this is a problem any writer without representation would welcome.
      8. Your writing is worthwhile. Do not listen to the skeptics. They are just jealous because you've found something in this world that you're passionate about.
      9. Oh yeah, you will be rejected.

The Reece Halsey Agency, established in 1957 by Dorris Halsey, represented clients such as Aldous Huxley, William Faulkner, Upton Sinclair, and Henry Miller. In 1993, Kimberley Cameron became a partner in the agency and shortly thereafter founded Reece Halsey North and Reece Halsey Paris. Phil Lang joined Reece Halsey North in 2006 and is actively seeking new clients with “distinct voices and original perspectives.” The agency does not handle screenplays or teleplays. Additional submission guidelines are listed on its Web site.

Some Query Letter Tips: Part 1

Chuck — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:08:58 GMT

Unless you're meeting an agent in person at a writers' conference, a query is your first method of contact with an agent - so it better be good. A query letter, simply put, is a one-page letter that you send to an agent (or editor) that details: 1) What are the details of the work? 2) What is the story? 3) Who are you?

Writing a good query is a crucial step to snagging an agent. With that in mind, here are some Tuesday morning query writing tips for everyone:

Queries are single-spaced. The paragraphs are pushed left and separated by a blank line.
Keep the font simple, such as Arial or Times New Roman.
Always personalize your query. No "Dear Agent" stuff.
Stick to the basics. You don't need to throw in personal information about yourself, such as your age, the writers you admire, or your history as a dirt bike racer.
Always include your contact information. Typically, you can put everything at the top of the page, centered.
Be professional and humble.
Don't promise anything outside your capability. If you write a nonfiction query and throw in tidbits concerning how you will publicize the book, don't mention you can get on MSNBC if you have no means to do so.
Avoid saying "My novel is..."
Don't mention how long it took you to write the novel, or how many other agents you've queried, or that the story takes place in your hometown of Pleasesignme, Ohio.
Always include the basic info early. Here's a sample line: "I think you would be a great literary representative for my completed 90,000-word thriller, Dead Cat Bounce." Notice that, in one simple sentence, I told the agent the title, the word count, the genre, and the fact that it's completed.

Want more on this subject?

How many agents should you query?

How to write a query letter: The 3 parts

Interview with "Query Queen" Wendy Burt-Thomas

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

How Royalties and Advances Work

Chuck — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 19:25:38 GMT

If you're going to wheel and deal with agents and editors, you'll end up spending more time than you'd like discussing rights, contracts, advances, royalties and a whole lot of other ~~boring~~ important stuff. That said, I want to address a recent question that came in over e-mail regarding how advances and royalties work. In other words, how does the payment process work when you sell a book?

For this example, I'll keep it real simple (for my own sake and well as yours). Let's say you acquire an agent and sell a novel. The publishing house offers you royalties of $3 per book sold.
It's probable that you'll be given money in advance - more specifically: an advance against royalties. What this means is that they give you a lump sum of money before the book comes out as payment that's yours to keep - say, $60,000. However, the money is not in addition to royalties, but rather part of royalties - meaning they've given you royalties for the first 20,000 books (times $3/book) upfront. Since they've already paid you the royalties of the first 20,000 books, you will not starting actually making $3/book until you sell the copy 20,001.

Think of it like this. When you get hired at a new job, you ask for several months pay upfront and the boss agrees. It's not a separate signing bonus you're getting - it's your hard-earned money paid to you early. You get the lump sum quickly, but then you don't get paid again till the regular checks start months later.

Many things to consider:

Royalties per book vary greatly. If you get $3/book, that's pretty darn good. If you write a typical nonfiction book, you may just get $1/book.
Advances against royalties are a pretty sweet deal. You get a lump sum upfront, which you get to keep even if the book fairs poorly. (Repeat: The advance is yours. Period.) But if the book takes off, you will start getting royalties down the road.
Reality check: Be aware that the money amount promised will hit your bank account as a lot less than expected, as Uncle Sam will take a big cut and your agent takes 15%.
You may run into a "flat fee" situation, where a publishing company pays you one sum of money upfront with no talk of royalties. This is legitimate - just make sure it's what you want.
It's common for a house to break up the advance. They may give you $30,000 when you sign the contract and then $30,000 upon completion of an acceptable manuscript. On this note, make sure you turn in an "acceptable manuscript," so that you get to not only receive the second payment, but also keep the first one, and not have a publisher demand it back.
Read your contract thoroughly. It's all spelled out.

Why Your Manuscript Can Get Rejected (Part 2)

Chuck — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 20:19:57 GMT

Keep in mind that the panelists were discussing why a manuscript will be rejected, not a novel synopsis or query letter. They were talking about problems within the writing.

Panelist No. 2: Donna Bagdasarian

Agent at Maria Carvainis Agency, Inc.
Formerly at William Morris
http://www.authorsontheweb.com/features/0105-literary-agent/carvainis.asp

Donna's top reasons why your manuscript can be rejected:

1. Problems with basic writing skills—grammar, syntax, defining who the protagonist is. To be successful, aspiring writers must learn how to write—well.

2. Bad dialogue. Write like people speak.

4. Not having the protagonist involved in the climax.

5. Spending too much time at the beginning of a story on a character who seems to be the protagonist, but isn't.

6. Supplanting quality for a gimmick. Take a moment and examine certain gimmicks, such as the following:
- Writing in the second person

      - Having many points of view
      - Having your book be very, very dark in nature
      - Having scenes in a backwards order

- Hopscotch (where you can jump around anywhere and the story still makes sense)

8. Know how much is too much. If you can cut a scene and the story still works, you must cut it. Ask of the scene: "Why is it here? What does it do to further the plot?"

9. Purple prose—writing where the reader is conscious that these are the author’s thoughts, not the character's. This is prose where the language is excessively flowery and/or lyrical.

Reasons Why Your Manuscript Can Get Rejected (Part 1)

Chuck — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 14:22:57 GMT

Keep in mind that the panelists were discussing why a manuscript will be rejected, not a novel synopsis or query letter. They were talking about problems within the writing.

Panelist No. 1: Hallie Ephron

Author of several mystery novels
Book reviewer for the Boston Globe
Author: Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel (WD Books)
www.hallieephron.com

Hallie's top reasons why your manuscript can be rejected:

2. Predictability—using the same plot as others. For example, a cliche mystery plot opening hook is this: A P.I. picks up his office phone and his ex-wife is on the line. She's in trouble, but can’t say why. They agree to meet later at a bar or parking lot, but she never shows because she’s been murdered.
"I want twists. Surprise me in the first chapter and I'll keep reading."

3. Too many killers. A recent manuscript she read revealed six people were actually complicit in the book's murder. It’s convoluted, confusing, and shows that the author had to pull six rabbits out of a hat at the end to wow us. This problem is likely because of earlier problems in Act II—a.k.a "the muddy middle."

4. Point of view that’s out of control. If you’re in a character’s head, stay there until the scene is over.

5. Prologues that don’t work—where writers have a boring opening, so they simply pluck out an exciting scene from the middle, put it at the beginning, and call it the prologue.

6. A plot with no spine. When the scenes seem to jump around—you’re here, you’re there, now you’re there—the book has no backbone. "You have to get me to care about the main plot for me to keep reading."

7. Getting stuck to an outline. "Don’t let your plot trap your characters." If you write an outline and, in the middle of the story, the protagonist is supposed to run into a burning building, that’s fine. But as you begin the flesh out your protagonist and write the book, you may craft a character who wouldn’t realistically run into a burning building—perhaps he’s too smart, or too cowardly or whatever.

Her final tips: "Surprise me. Make me laugh. Make me care about your characters. Don’t let the frustration get you down. We all go through the 'It’s a piece of sh*t' stage."

Concerning Literary Agents and Self-Publishing: Part 2

Chuck — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 17:32:06 GMT

Note: This is an ongoing series about both self-publishing and literary agents. See the first post here.

This past weekend at a writers' conference, I heard a lot of good information from fellow presenters regarding why many books are self-published, as well as the realities about how self-published books that tell a writer's personal story almost never get picked up by big houses.

Both writer Bob Mayer and literary agent Chip MacGregor said that writers' first books are often about their personal stories. Many people draw upon unusual or "rough" aspects of their life: their father was a traveling inventor, they have a loveless marriage, they were abused as children, they dealt with a parent who was addicted to drugs, they went to 16 different schools as a child because their mother was paranoid of alien abductors, etc. These writers then take their personal stories and make them into books—either nonfiction accounts of their life, or as novels, with the characters based on real people.

The problem with these stories is: There are way too many of them. It's not to say that your story doesn't matter and isn't tremendous, it's just that there are too many personal stories out there for yours to stand out. I know that, to you the writer, it's demoralizing to think that your life story is one of countless others flooding the self-published book pool. Writers believe their story will be of interest to many; that's why they self-publish. The feeling is, as Jack said in Sideways: "Publish it yourself. Just get it out there; get it reviewed. Let the public decide." But the reality is that almost no publications review self-published books. There are just too many. Following the book's printing, writers may try to get an agent to take on representing the book and selling it to a large publisher. This is a difficult task.

First of all, remember that many, many people self-publish their personal stories—so the world is full of such books. Also, it makes little difference to an agent whether your story is told through so-so writing versus those that are told through good writing. The reason: "Personal story is dead," says MacGregor.

According to MacGregor, the best (only?) way to deal with a powerful personal story book is through BOR sales—"back of the room" sales. If you have the opportunity to speak to various groups of people and give a presentation that relates to your personal story, you can sell your books at such events. "The fact is, it probably works better as a self-published book that's sold 'BOR' than it is at a regular royalty publisher, because without you there, the book won't sell," MacGregor says. "They are buying you and a piece of you, and consequently, those books are better self-published."

If you're writing a book about (or based on) your personal story, ask yourself: Who is the target audience? Friends and family? College students? Can you reach the target audience yourself? If you can, you're in business. If you can't, and your goal is to get it reviewed (and noticed!), then you're fighting a tough battle. Very, very few self-published books are picked up by agents because very, very few self-published books will sell well in the general market.

Agree? Disagree?

Words of Wisdom: Author Bob Mayer

Chuck — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:44:34 GMT

Searching for some fiction writing advice? Look no further than Bob Mayer, a man with many accomplishments. Mayer has written more than 35 novels, has been on just about every bestseller list out there, and is now with his fourth literary agent.

He presented at the HAWC this past weekend; here are some of his precious nuggets of wisdom for fiction writers:

If you're writing genre material, it's probably best to "frontload" the work, meaning you can outline heavily before delving into the work.
Don't start your query letter with "I've just written a novel..." The agent realizes this.
Know the difference between lecturing the reader and entertaining. "As fiction writers, we are entertainers," he says.
Writers often don't sell their first novel because the story is about the writer's life and problems. "First novels tend to be blood-lettings," he says, "and they're focused on you, not the reader."
Agents look for solid characters in fiction work. To demonstrate this point, Mayer brought up the TV show, "The Closer," which is essentially just one of countless cop shows, but succeeds because of great characters.
The protagonist must be reluctant to get involved. They should also be likeable and interesting, but also different and flawed.
Give your work high stakes. What will happen if the protagonist fails?

Bob Mayer (right) speaking with
an attendee at the HAWC.

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

One Story? You Need 5 Versions

Chuck — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 15:31:41 GMT

I've seen a lot of novel synopses recently, and thought I should post some information on how writers need many versions of their one tale.

OK, so you've written a novel and had it edited by peers or a professional. Now you need a literary agent. Along the road to an agent, you'll constantly be asked for shorter versions of your story. Here are five versions of your work that you should have on hand.

1. The pitch line: This is a one-sentence pitch of your work. (In films, this is called a "log line.") Example: A treasure hunter travels to the Himalayas to find a fabled artifact. Writers can put this pitch line at the beginning of their full synopsis, so agents immediately get the gist.

2. The pitch: This is a one- to two-paragraph explanation of your manuscript. You will include the pitch on your query letter to agents, and you'll essentially say the pitch out loud when talking with agents in person. The pitch is commonly called "an elevator pitch," because you must keep it short enough so that an agent can hear your idea while traveling in an elevator. Appropriate length: 3 to 6 sentences.

3. The synopsis: A long description of what happens in the book (i.e., a summary). I will post more on writing a synopsis soon. For now, know that synopses are usually 2-12 pages in length and introduce all the major characters, as well as their backgrounds and motivations. The average synopsis should be double-spaced and approximately 6-7 pages.

4. The short synopsis: All agents have their specific requests for what they like to see in a submission. Some agents will request a 1-page or 2-page synopsis. Now your challenge lies in taking your long synopsis and cutting it down as much as possible—just in case an overly particular agent wants a super-short plot summary of your work.

5. The full manuscript: Naturally!

Defining Book Proposals, Outlines and Synopses

Chuck — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 18:18:24 GMT

Q: When submitting to agents, 1) Do sample chapters need to be consecutive or should they be random? 2) What is a proposal package? 3) Why send a synopsis and bio since both are in the query letter?
- Randy L.

A: Sample chapters do not have to be sequential unless you want them to be or the agent requests this. In fact, some agents will specifically ask for your book's first chapter, a chapter from the middle of the book, and then the last chapter. They do this to see if your writing quality is consistent throughout the first, second and third acts. Bottom line: It's up to you.

A proposal package (or a "proposal/outline") is a full book proposal—sent in place of a nonfiction manuscript. If you want to write a nonfiction book, you don't have to write the manuscript before querying an agent. (Seriously.)
A novel is sold on the quality of the writing, which is why the entire book has to be completed and polished before querying an agent. Nonfiction books, on the other hand, are usually sold on 1) the book's concept/idea, 2) its place in the market, and 3) the author's platform and promotional abilities. With that in mind, a nonfiction book does not need to be complete when you pitch the idea.
What's sent in place of the manuscript is a book proposal, which essentially details what the book is, why it should be written, how it will be structured, and all the means the author has to reach prospective markets/audiences. Proposals can be lengthy (say, 20-25 pages on average) and they are difficult to write, but plenty of resources exist to help you through them. The new 2008 GLA has an article on writing a proposal; also check out Bulletproof Book Proposals by Pam Brodowsky and Eric Neuhaus.

      Next, and very importantly: A synopsis is not a pitch. In your query letter, you will have 1-2 paragraphs to summarize your story for the agent. This is called "a pitch."
      A "synopsis" is a long, detailed explanation of what happens in a novel. They are anywhere from 2-12 pages usually. The synopsis allows you to take the agent/editor through the story from beginning to end, introducing all the major characters, their backgrounds and motivations, as well as the twists and turns. The ending is fully revealed and all is laid out on the table. The synopsis immediately lets an agent know what the entire story is, who the characters are, and how it ends. If that gets them intrigued, your writing will have to carry you past the finish line.
      Synopses have very specific formats, so make sure you read up on them before writing one. (In the near future, I'll post much more on how to write a book synopsis. I'm critiquing several now.)

Lastly, the bio. Although you will have some space on the query letter to write a bio, you will likely need to have a separate section within the book proposal called "About the Author," where you detail who you are, your accomplishments, and your credentials that allow you to be the best author to propose this book. For example, in the query, you may mention that you're an "award-winning short story writer." In the true "bio," you will list all your short story accolades—the publications names, the dates, the specific stories, and the exact awards.

Bulletproof Book Proposals

Identify the Literary Agent of Any Book

Chuck — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:28:01 GMT

If you want to know who agented a particular book, there are a variety of ways how to discover the individual literary rep who made the deal. Here are three ideas for starters:

1. Simply check the book's acknowledgements. Sometimes, it will be as simple as a writer saying, "And a special thanks to my agent, Randy Masterson."

Want more on this subject?

How royalties and advances (money) work.

Don't put all your eggs in one basket with just one book.

You have a contract but no literary agent - what to do.

Confused about formatting? Check out Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript.

Read about What Agents Hate: Chapter 1 Pet Peeves.

Want the most complete database of agents and what genres they're looking for? Buy the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents today!

Keep it Secret. Keep It Safe

Chuck — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 14:52:22 GMT

In a recent conversation with a writer, we were discussing the Internet, and the writer mentioned how he was posting some of his unpublished book manuscript online for people to read. This was not the first time I'd talked to a writer who had this idea.

Though something like this may seem like a good plan—especially if you're actively looking for advice and/or feedback—posting material from an unpublished book on the Internet is a big no-no if you still want to sell the book.

First of all, as detailed in a previous post on copyrights, you're inviting other writers to steal your idea. Secondly, posting material online makes it less valuable to publishers, and therefore, less attractive to agents. Material that's available online for free is less probable to sell, hence agents' hesitancy taking on such projects.

Perhaps your goal is to put good material online in the hopes that someone such as an agent or editor will come across the site and contact you. Unfortunately, the odds of this are very, very low. If you really are looking to get your work noticed by agents without going through the traditional submission process, my best advice is to get short stories published in prominent journals, or get your nonfiction articles published in prominent magazines. Agents read those publications, and they sometimes contact writers out of the blue and say something along the lines of, "I enjoyed your article in Prominent Magazine. Do you have representation? Have you ever considered writing a book-length manuscript?"

And that's when you say, "Well ... funny you mention it, because..."

Concerning Literary Agents and Self-Publishing: Part 1

Chuck — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 19:14:32 GMT

At conferences, attendees always (always) ask about self-publishing, and they ask a lot of questions—which is why I'm titling this post "Part 1," because more will follow. These attendees, some of which have already self-published, invariably inquire about whether or not agents will consider representing an author's book even if that author has already self-published said book.

So will they? The answer's complicated, but usually leans toward "No."

First of all, if you self-publish a book, it has to sell well to get the attention of an agent. How many copies, you ask? I've heard some agents say 8,000, while others say 30,000. Let's compromise at 15,000. That's no easy task, my friends. You're selling every copy yourself, peddling your wares every day. Yes, you may get distribution in a few local bookstores, but then again, that's just a few local bookstores.
Also, good sales can actually be a deterrent to a publisher if your book is very regional. Let's say you self-publish a book called Oklahoma's Rodeo Champions and tour the state, selling it at small events and out of your car trunk. Maybe you sell 9,500 copies—a notable feat. Then, when you present your work to an agent or a traditional publisher, they may think that everyone who will likely buy the book has already bought the book.

Agents want to find undiscovered gems. If your book is self-published and, perhaps, some of it is available online for free, an agent will likely pass on your work. The basic thinking is: If the book was so good, why self-publish in the first place? Why not just sign with an agent and sell the book to a traditional publisher?

There are success stories concerning this. At a recent conference in Tennessee, I met motivational speaker Tama J. Kieves, author of This Time I Dance: Creating the Work You Love. Her self-published book was of much higher quality than most self-published works, and word-of-mouth praise boosted sales enough for her to sign a deal with Tarcher/Penguin-Putnam for them to publish/distribute the book. Now, she's a successful author with another book on the way. So: It can happen, but you have to sell a lot of copies, and that's extremely difficult.

More to come on agents and self-publishing...

How to Start a Writing Group

Chuck — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 14:23:16 GMT

Before you query an agent with that book you've spent so much time writing, it needs an edit. And then some rewriting. And some revisions. Then another edit. Maybe a polishing too...

Since you only have one chance to make a great first impression with an agent, make sure your submission is perfect, or as close to perfect as you can get it. To ensure your submission is ready, others will have to critique it. Concerning these "others," writers have two options:

You can spend the money and hire a freelance editor. There are plenty of editors in the world who will critique your manuscript for a certain amount of money per page reviewed. Good editors will provide you with good work, but they'll also charge you an arm and a leg - $3 or $4 per page, depending on the individual. This is a dangerous area for writers because scammers pretending to be professional editors prey on new scribes. If you take this route, get a personal referral from a friend. If you see an editor you'd like to hire, request their credentials and ask if they will do a sample critique (three to five pages of your work) for free, so you can gauge how they operate.

Or, you can join a writing group. If such a group doesn't exist in your hometown, you may have to start it from scratch - something that's in no way simple. Luckily for us, Sally Richards can give some good tips to get the ball rolling. Sally, a former contributor to Writer’s Digest, and all-around successful author, talked with Guide to Literary Agents at BookExpo America. She recently moved to a suburb of San Diego and had an “interesting” experience trying to form a writing group where one did not currently exist. Here are some important points she passed on to GLA:

Qualify the writers. Make sure they're peers capable of reviewing your work and providing solid feedback.
Call it a "writing group," rather than a "writers’ group." Do this so people see writing as what it is: a verb. After all, anyone can declare that they're a writer then just show up to schmooze about movies while drinking coffee.
Aim for 4-5 members, no more. Ask for a 10-page sample of a person's writing for consideration before making a decision about them.
If you seek out group members on Craig's List, be prepared to deal with crazy stalkers.
Get a new e-mail address to use specifically for dealing with potential members.
Utilize Media Bistro and Meetup.com to find members.
Build the group with chemistry in mind. Also, look for people who will work hard. If group members are writing 4,000-5,000 words per week, that’s a lot of time spent editing other people’s work.
Make sure that group members are not only passionate about succeeding, but also passionate about seeing fellow members succeed.

Sally Richards has authored several books, ghostwritten numerous others and taught university-level courses. Learn more about her at www.sallyrichards.com.