Is there life after a query that strikes out with agents? My awesome client Jim Duncan, whose debut novel DEADWORLD will be published by Kensington next April, shares his experience. Make sure to catch the exciting contest on Jim's blog at the end of the post.
By: Jim Duncan
As you might guess from the title, I am not what one would call a good query writer. Mediocre at best. My wife (romance author Tracy Madison) whole-heartedly agrees with this assessment.
There are a couple of reasons for this. First, I will admit to not being a very good editor. It's very difficult for me to assess my own writing, and thus, I don't like doing it. Second, when it comes to certain aspects of the publishing process, I have little patience. When my book was done, I wanted to send out queries that moment.
Back in the old days of 2007, when I completed my novel for the first time, I had queries going out the next day. I made about half a dozen attempts, picked the one I liked the best and sent it out. I had done my research, making sure the agents wanted my genre, whether they took email or snail mail, getting their name correct, etc. I followed agent blogs like Nathan's, Miss Snark, Kristin Nelson, and others (there are a lot of good blogs for writers out there), to glean as much knowledge as I could about the process and how to make that query stand out. I failed. I received one of Nathan's polite form rejections.
What feedback I received (off of a roughly 90% rejection rate) did not like the multiple first person p.o.v.'s I used. Was I deterred? Of course not! I decided to rewrite the book in third person, because I felt very strongly about this story. Whether it was written well enough was another matter.
So, I wrote a new query, several versions in fact, and though I was not happy with any of them, I picked what I thought was the best of the lot and sent it out. There's that whole patience thing again. The results were marginally better, but still no real interest.
Knowing I can't write queries for shit, I figured that might be my biggest problem, so I wrote yet another and tried again a few months later. I sent it out to a couple of publishers who are open to submissions, and like all good writers should do, I began to work on my next book (can't stress this enough: keep writing!)
In the meantime, I had become a regular responder on Nathan's blog. I'd sent a couple of emails to him, suggestions for topics and such. Then, one fine day, I came up with a contest suggestion that became my 15 seconds of blog fame. Those of you who were around a year and a half ago may remember the Agent for a Day contest. At the time it generated the most hits ever on Nathan's blog (about 70k, and 15k comments). Through my willingness to participate and make suggestions, good or otherwise, I had cemented my name in Nathan's mind. We didn't become BFF's. It was some fortunate networking that happened out of interest as opposed to direct effort.
Then, I got the call. Kensington Publishing offered me a three book deal for my novel, Deadworld. Super excited? You bet. What struck me though, was the fact that they were buying my story as an urban fantasy. This entire time, I had been submitting it as a suspense/thriller. Head smack! What would have happened had I realized what genre my story was best suited for? Another good point learned well after the fact. Understand the market for your story!
With offer in hand, I really wanted to find an agent. I had no desire to do this on my own. I picked about a dozen agents that I had queried before and asked them if they would be interested in a second look because of the offer I had on the table. In hindsight, I didn't give them enough time, which was five days. I probably lost some potential agents with that. In the end, it came down to two.
Nathan, whom I'd already
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Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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By: Livia Blackburne
You could say that fiction is about pain. When you boil them down, stories describe characters taking hits and trying to emerge as unscathed as possible. Neighborhood under attack by zombies? Run hard and hope you have some painkillers on hand if they catch you. Or what if it’s actually a friendly, attractive zombie who loves you? In that case, it’s all good -- until you realize that mortals and undead can never be together. Oh the agonies of unfulfilled love!
So stories and torment come hand in hand. As a reader, you’re with the characters, empathizing with their struggles and hoping for a happy ending. How does this work? What is it in our brains that lets us understand other people’s pain? Well I'm glad you asked, because neuroscientists have made some progress on this question.
How do you study empathy and pain? One current technique involves electric shocks and people who love each other.
Neuroscientist Tania Singer came up with a clever experiment. She recruited women with their significant others. Singer put the woman inside an fMRI brain scanner while the significant other sat outside. Both participants were connected to electrodes capable of administering a painful shock. (Now before my fellow neuroscientists accuse me of ruining our reputations, I should emphasize that these participants were paid handsomely and had the option to stop the experiment at any time.)
Throughout the experiment both the woman and her partner received shocks, and a computer screen indicated who was getting the painful treatment. Singer found that a certain network of brain regions in the woman’s brain activated when she was in pain. But what happened when the significant other was shocked instead? The same network lit up when the woman knew that her partner was getting shocked. It turns out that we process other people's pain with the same brain regions that we use to process our own.
This kind of makes sense. Think about the last time you read a passage about a painful experience. Depending on how engaging the writer was, you might have felt like you were suffering alongside the character. But that's not the whole story. Many people suffer in stories, but we’re not always upset about it. What happens if the person in pain is someone we don't like?
Singer and colleagues did another study asking that question. This time, they had participants play a game before the brain scan. Unbeknownst to the participants, some players in the game were actually actors working with the scientists. One actor's job was to play the game fairly, while the other actor’s job was to play in an obviously unfair way. You can guess which actor was more popular.
Then it was off to the scanner again. The real participant went inside the scanner, while the two actors sat outside. Again, shocks were delivered, and the computer screen indicated who was receiving the shock.
This time, the results depended on whether the participant was a man or a woman. Both genders had empathy-related brain activation when the fair player was in pain. However, the men had less empathy- related activation when the unfair player was shocked. What’s more, they had increased activation in reward-related brain areas when the unfair player got shocked. The men actually enjoyed it when the unfair player was in pain (“Bastard had it coming!”). After the experiment, Singer asked the men to rate their desire for revenge toward the unfair player. It turns out that amount of reward-related brain activation in men correlated with their desire for revenge. In guys at least, it seems that the response to someone else's pain depends on whether or not that person deserved it.
Now as with all studies, we should remember that this is only one data set and it needs to be replicated. Also, note this study does not distingui
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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By: T.H. Mafi
LUST
there you are, just staring at your computer or eating your carnival corndog or spacing out in the middle of a conversation when it hits you. A SHINY NEW IDEA. it’s beautiful and original and nothing like the rest of them and for a perfect moment you can already see your future together. you know you have to have it before someone else does and your next move is going to be critical. luckily, enough people commented on your blog today that you’re feeling confident. extra-attractive. you decide to make it yours.
SQUEEEEEEEEEEE
everything is surreal. you can’t stop thinking about it no matter how hard you try and let’s be honest – you don’t really want to. you’re convinced that this time everything is going to be different. this is The One. the one that’s going to make agents cry over you, editors throw money at you, bestseller lists around the world make room for you at the top. maybe you have a title already? maybe you’ve even written a really excellent first paragraph? you don’t care. none of that matters. the only thing that really matters is Oprah is going off the air. she has no idea how much you were looking forward to that interview.
ANTICIPATION
things are still pretty good. you’ve told Facebook and Twitter and the only five friends you know in the real world that you’re writing a new book and people seem moderately interested which is already better than last time. you haven’t really started writing yet, but you will. in fact, you’ve already got the first chapter written! and the more you read it, the more you’re convinced you’ve never written anything quite as incredible. you can’t wait to dive into the story! SERIOUSLY. you can just feeeeeel how amazing this is going to be. maybe you should buy a new outfit to celebrate.
PROCRASTINATION
well! you've written a few chapters! but GOSH you are just so BUSY these days and the kids are so CRAZY and work is just HECTIC and you've discovered all these really awesome websites recently and it's now become a "thing" of yours to refresh your email and update your Twitter and "Like" at least five things on Facebook before you open up that Word Document. but it's not like you're avoiding it or anything! it's just -- you're having a bit of a rough patch! but you'll work through it! you'll figure out this plot twist! well, first you'll figure out a plot but then! then things will work out! you just need to find a way to communicate your needs! relationships are ALL ABOUT DIALOGUE!
EXPLETIVE
WELL MAYBE IF YOU WEREN’T SO DAMN NEEDY I WOULD PAY MORE ATTENTION TO YOU! DID YOU EVER THINK OF THAT? DID YOU EVER THINK THAT MAYBE I HAVE TO PAY THE BILLS AROUND HERE AND MAYBE I CAN’T SPEND EVERY FREE MOMENT OF MY LIFE STROKING YOUR FREAKING EGO AND MAYBE YOU SHOULD JUST WRITE YOURSELF ALREADY I’M SO SICK AND TIRED OF THIS CRAP I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHO YOU ARE ANYMORE WITH YOUR UGLY ADVERBS AND THOSE STUPID DANGLING PARTICIPLES YOU THINK MAKE YOU SOUND LIKE SHAKESPEARE GOD YOU'VE CHANGED INTO SOMETHING I CAN'T EVEN RECOGNIZE MAYBE WE SHOULD REALLY STOP FOOLING OURSELVES ABOUT THIS WHEN CLEARLY I'M THE ONLY ONE TRYING TO MAKE THIS WORK I HATE YOU SOOOO MUCHHHHHHHHH
INFIDELITY
you didn't even see it coming! I MEAN GOSH THINGS WERE GOING SO WELL! but there it was. sitting on the outskirts of your imagination the whole time, teasing you with promises of what could be. ANOTHER SHINY IDEA! it was wearing a flippy skirt and red lipstick and it sounded so intelligent you couldn't help but fall for its false proclamations. but you were too dazzled to realize that this new SNI was only a distraction. it was fleeting. unfulfilling. a concept with no tangible form. a cheap thrill with no literary value. you feel cheated. you feel dirty. YOU'RE SO ASHAMED.
GROVELING
you messed up. you never meant t
Blog: Kristi Helvig YA Author (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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If you're looking for something to read today, Valerie is the guest post on agent Nathan Bransford's blog today!
Check out her post on the All Important First Chapter!
Blog: Cinda Williams Chima (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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I'm guest blogging over at NovelNovice.
We each did a brief reading. I chose a scene in which the former streetlord Han Alister is attacked by a rival gang. During the Q&A, one reader raised her hand and asked me, “Is there any…ah…romance in your books?”
Oh, yes. Romance. Had I thought it through, I would have chosen a love scene.
The Seven Realms quartet is, at its heart, a story of love and betrayal, played out against a backdrop of civil war, political intrigue, and magical disasters.
Princess Raisa ana’Marianna descends from the Gray Wolf Line, a dynasty of queens known for making poor choices in love. Raisa’s ancestor, Queen Hanalea, was ensnared by the wizard, Alger Waterlow, now known as the Demon King. Hanalea was forced to kill Waterlow when he nearly destroyed the world. That’s what you call a bad ending to a relationship.
A thousand years later, Raisa herself is the mixed-blood product of a troubled political marriage. Although she knows that she’s unlikely to marry for love, she can’t help hoping for it. In the meantime, she intends to find love where she can—whether with the Demonai warrior, Reid Nightwalker, or with her best friend, Amon Byrne, a corporal in her guard. She even steals away to be with the darkly handsome wizard Micah Bayar–although, these days, queens are forbidden to fraternize with wizards.
Raisa knows she’s playing with fire, but she’s also inherited Hanalea’s headstrong ways.
Han Alister is a former streetgang leader who is trying to leave the life. It isn’t easy. As a streetlord, he was feared and respected throughout the Ragmarket and Southbridge slums. He could take his pick of girlies—and he did, knowing he had little chance of growing old.
Now that Han’s gone straight, his family is close to starvation, and the Queen’s Guard is hunting him for murders he didn’t commit. The only thing of value he has is something he cannot sell—the silver cuffs he’s worn all his life and can’t get off. His mother says he’s demon-cursed, and sometimes he thinks she’s right.
When Raisa ventures into the Southbridge slum in disguise, chance brings her and Han together. They’re instantly attracted to each other, despite the social barriers and secrets between them. But they soon find out that there’s a price to be paid for a relationship built on a lie.
When writing about love triangles (quadrangles?) I want the reader to experience the jealousy, desire, angst and indecision right along with the viewpoint characters. And so each oppositional character has to be as real, as layered, as complex as possible. There are no black-and-white decisions, no easy choices to be made. Each character is imprisoned by history.
Born into a family of ruthless wizards, Micah Bayar has few scruples about doing whatever it takes to get what he wants. But, in his way, he loves Raisa, and just when you think he is despicable, he will surprise you.
Amon Byrne ha
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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By Brodi Ashton
In 2008, with my first finished manuscript in hand, I was ready to query. To find that special someone who would take my story to the top. You know, to find THE ONE.
My sister-in-law (also a writer) devised a contest: first person to reach 100 rejections wins. We crafted our queries, did our research, and by the end of four months I won the race. I’d received 100 rejections. But I also won an agent. Everything’s downhill from there, right?
The agent submitted my book and after three months, we had 2 positive rejections (you know, the kind where they’re all, “I like it, but how would I sell it?”) and about 7 no-responses. Not the reaction we had expected.
Meanwhile, I wasn’t going to be one of those writers who put all of her flowers in one bouquet. I decided to write another book, so that when we had exhausted all possible avenues for book #1, I’d have something ready to go. My 13-year old niece read Book #2 in 24 hours; that had to be a good sign, right? (side note: warranted use of semi-colon, check.)
With your first book, you’re guaranteed the agent loves it, because he/she offered representation on it. But with your second, you never know. I gave my agent book #2 in January 2010. Three and a half months later, he was “still reading.”
Just like a clueless girlfriend, I made excuses for him. So what if my niece had taken 24 hours to read it? She’s really fast. So what if this second book was 20,000 words shorter than my first? I probably used bigger words. The story makes the reader want to savor it, not finish it. He probably doesn’t want it to end. (Agreed, that was the stupidest excuse.)
Determined to be proactive, I sent him a list of editors who had mentioned on blogs that they were looking for my type of book.
He responded with a resounding, “Um, let’s talk on the phone.”
That did not sound good. I’m sure you all know how frakkin’ hard it is to get an agent in the first place. My family and friends knew. Their advice before the dreaded phone call was, “Say what you have to say to keep him.”
But here’s what only a phone call could show: the passion was gone. He liked book #2 okay, but he didn’t love it. It was polished, but it wouldn’t make a splash. It didn’t need that much work as far as revisions went, but he probably couldn’t get to it for a few months. Maybe after the holidays. (That would’ve been 9 months later).
So, he wasn’t going to dump me. I could’ve kept him. But one thing was perfectly clear: there was no way he would be able to muster the passion necessary to make a sale, especially a debut sale, especially in today’s tight market. It wasn’t his fault. This business is subjective.
I knew we couldn’t go on like that. But was I really ready to dive into the query pool again? Could I face a hundred new rejections? Would I really be stupid enough to leave an agent? LEAVE an agent?
But the passion was gone. There was no way around it. He just wasn’t that into me anymore. As our phone conversation started wrapping up, I blurted out that this wasn’t going to work. He didn’t put up a fight, and we parted ways amicably.
I started querying the next day. (Yeah, I had a query written. I’m sort of a cup-half-empty type person.) Within a month, I had nine offers from wonderful agents who were passionate about book #2. And three weeks ago, I sold my debut trilogy to Balzer and Bray, Harper Collins in a pre-empt, after 48 hours on submission. All of this happened five months before my first agent would’ve even submitted it.
I don’t blame agent #1 for not loving my book, just as I don’t blame my high school boyfriend, who fell in love with someone else right before the Christmas Dance. (I totally blame the other girl, though, but I digress).
Point is, even though it hurts, you can’t help
Blog: Kristi Helvig YA Author (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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This Sunday, Valerie will be guest posting at author/agent Nathan Bransford's blog. Don't miss it!
Blog: Kristi Helvig YA Author (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Next week, Thursday October 14th, we will have a special guest post from Andrew Jacobson, co-author of THE FAMILIARS. Andrew and Adam are floating around the blogosphere this month for their Haunted Blog Tour, and Sisters in Scribe is lucky enough to be one of their stops! They're including a Familiars themed scavenger hunt and clues will be left at each stop. Now's the time to grab a copy of the book and start reading to play along! We'll also be giving away a copy of the book to one follower of Sisters in Scribe!
Running to save his life, Aldwyn, the street-wise orphan cat, ducks into a strange store. Moments later Jack, a young wizard-in-training, comes in to pick out his familiar – a magical animal companion. Aldwyn’s always been clever. But magical? Apparently Jack thinks so—and Aldwyn is happy to play along. Anything to get out of town!
Once home with Jack in Stone Runlet, Aldwyn thinks that he’s got it made—a life of ease with a boy who loves him. He just has to convince the other familiars—the know-it-all blue jay Skylar and the friendly tree frog Gilbert--that he’s the telekinetic cat he claims to be.
Then, after the sky lights up with an omen, the unthinkable happens. Jack and the other young wizards are captured by the evil queen of Vastia. Together Aldwyn, Skylar and Gilbert must save them—but how?
On their thrilling quest across the land, the familiars will face dangerous foes, unearth a shocking centuries old secret, and discover a mysterious destiny that will change them all forever.
ADAM JAY EPSTEIN spent his childhood in Great Neck, New York, while ANDREW JACOBSON grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but the two met in a parking garage out in Los Angeles. They have been writing for film and television together ever since. This is their first book.
One day, Adam asked Andrew, “Are you familiar with what a familiar is?” And from that simple question, Vastia was born, a fantastical world filled with the authors’ shared love of animals and magic. They wrote every word, sentence, and page together, sitting opposite each other.
Adam Jay Epstein lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Jane, their daughters, Penny and Olive, and a black-and-white alley cat who hangs out in their backyard. Andrew Jacobson lives with his wife, Ashley, and their dog, Elvis, four traffic lights away.
Blog: Cinda Williams Chima (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Blog: Cinda Williams Chima (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Today I'm guesting over on Fantasy and Sci-Fi-Lovin' Girl's Blog here.
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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I'm busy trying not to melt in the New York City heat this week, and Bryan Rusell/Ink was kind enough to step in with this terrific post on revision. Bryan is Sheriff of the Forums, and blogs at The Alchemy of Writing. Enjoy!
A story is a house. We use words for bricks and wood, sentences to build and frame. Rhythm gives us a roof, diction a style. Plot gives us shape and form. We hammer and nail and build. We get drywall dust in our hair, blisters on our fingers.
And yet even when we’re done… we’re not done. We finish a house, maybe we even live in it awhile. But there always comes a time for revision.
We paint over poor choices and design flaws, whitewash those plotholes. We spruce it up. Drapes, a good color scheme. A nice polish on the hardwood floor. Clean windows. Who doesn’t like a good view?
And yet these are surface things. We cut those adverbs, trim the weasel words that always sneak into the first draft. We turn the wrench, tighten down each sentence. Cut those dialogue tags, add a beat here and there. Copyedit, copyedit, copyedit.
But paint can only do so much. Sometimes stories need more. Sometimes they need deep revisions. That is, a re-visioning, a re-seeing of the story itself. We have to step inside and see a new house in the old one.
Yet we can’t always just tear it down and build it from scratch. We’ve invested too much, we’re running out of funds, and the parlor is really quite nice, and the brick fireplace, yes, it’s quite divine. And the view from the sunroom? Who wouldn’t want to keep that?
But there are problems. People tend to get lost. Hallways seem to go in the wrong direction. One of them ends inside a broom closet without a light, an albino raccoon hissing at you feverishly in the dimness. Where did that come from? It seemed so inspirational at the time.
Time to get out the sledge hammer. We have to break things down and rebuild. But what do we hit? Some walls can come down and some can’t. There are load-bearing walls, not to mention pipes, heating vents and electrical wiring. And the furnace is a cantankerous old thing.
We have to wind a new structure through the old. We have to see two things at once. What was, and what might be…
And what might be… and what might be… and what might be…
For there is no end, really. There are a thousand possible shapes, a million possible forms. A first version is built. We like it, but of course it’s never done. We change things one way. We change things another. The beginning is shifted forward, and then forward again, and again, and then back, and then forward. We add in one character and remove three. Plotlines diverge and remerge. They twist and then straighten and then twist again.
What we have is different stories. None ever ceases to exist, even if the original is lost to everything except memory. We are all masters of parallel universes. Masters not only of what did happen but what might happen. We can pick alternate paths through time in these strange houses we build, walking through different series of events. Timelines diverge and remerge. We have the blueprints for infinity.
They exist in our heads, the story and all the shadows of the story, the options once taken and discarded, or perhaps never taken and merely dreamed. We can see them all, transparencies laid one over another. We see the old cupboards at the same time as the new. We see the climactic scene with John cracking jokes and we see the climactic scene without John, for in this timeline John has ceased to exist. He never did exist, except in that parallel universe of the first draft, or the seventh, or the twelfth, and walks through the halls now only as a ghost.
And yet how do we find the right path, the right version? We hold to a v
Blog: Nathan Bransford (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Keep those entries coming! Please remember to post in the official contest thread, which will be open until 4:00 PM Pacific Time today. Meanwhile, here's Lisa on the writing (and revision!) process that went into ROCK PAPER TIGER.
Ian Rankin, he of the best-selling Inspector Rebus mystery series, once said, and I am wildly paraphrasing here, “If I knew what was going to happen, why write the book?”
That’s pretty much how I work. I can’t actually think of a story if I try to outline one. I don’t know what’s going to happen, and I want to find out. So I write it.
The downside of working this way is that I frequently write in a state of vague panic, because I have no idea if the story is going to work until I type “End,” and sometimes not even then.
The process through which I came up with Rock Paper Tiger was typically messy.
I’d decided that I wanted to write a book set primarily in contemporary China. I’d lived in China years ago, been traveling there regularly for the past 10 years, and I speak some Chinese.
As a writer, I tend to be inspired by place. In another life, I would have been a journalist, I think. I like to observe in close detail, to anchor my work in an environment, real or imagined, that has concrete specificity. Today’s China is a setting that I know pretty well, that I felt I could handle with some authority, and that not many Western writers had used, at least not effectively.
I am also often inspired by current events. There was something that one of the soldiers implicated in the Abu Ghraib scandal said that had stuck in my head. It went, roughly: “I’m a good Christian. I teach Sunday School. But there’s a part of me that likes to see a grown man piss himself in fear.”
Well, I needed to know what that was about.
I’m a news junkie and for many years was a researcher by profession. When I am writing, I do seek out specific details that I need for a story, but I also cast a wide net and obsessively soak up as much information as I can. In the case of RPT, I knew that I wanted to deal with Iraq and the War on Terror, but I didn’t necessarily know what it was that I needed to know. By immersing myself in the subject, reading far too many articles about the war and how it was conducted on a macro level by the policy-makers, and also, on a micro level, about the daily life of troops serving in country, I had a better idea of what was important, what was relevant—what the story needed to be about.
I also had this notion that I wanted there to be a conspiracy of some sort, and given China, that maybe it should have something to do with online gaming, which is hugely popular there. I’d also wanted there to be airships, because I’m obsessed with them, but ultimately I had to throw the blimps out (Dammit).
The challenge then became how to take these disparate elements and craft them into a cohesive narrative.
I wrote Rock Paper Tiger when I was working full-time in a pretty demanding job, so basically I wrote from about 10 PM – well, that’s when I’d start thinking about writing, but generally I didn’t really dig into it till clo
Blog: Scribblings (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Another day, another guest blogger. I am delighted today to welcome Janeen Brian to my blog to share what it is she likes about chidlren's poetry. Welcome Janeen. Congratulations, Sally! Looking forward to reading Toppling. I never knew I’d end up as a writer. Or a poet. Lots of us didn’t. I liked spare or pared down writing. I liked reading it and I liked writing it, which wasn’t as often
Hola amigos, as I'm still busy at the fabulous San Miguel Writer's Conference and pushing my enchilada consumption count past a dozen, Curtis Brown agent Mitchell Waters was kind enough to step in with a tribute to longtime Curtis Brown client Louis Auchincloss, who recently passed away at age 92 after an incredibly prolific career, including the novel LAST OF THE OLD GUARD, which came out when he was 90, and his memoir A VOICE FROM OLD NEW YORK, which will be published this Fall.
CATCHING THE LAST ACT
Several weeks ago I accompanied Susannah Carson on an afternoon visit to my venerable 92 year-old client Louis Auchincloss. She was here on tour for the anthology A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen, for which Louis had contributed an old essay, "Jane Austen and the Good Life."
We took the elevator up to his Park Avenue penthouse, where the front door was left ajar so that we could enter the large vestibule without requiring him to walk to the door. Louis was fully ambulatory, but moved more tentatively since a fall and hip replacement surgery. Louis invited us into the living room where he was seated in his favorite chair and we sat on the nearby couch. Susannah had brought Louis an inscribed copy of the anthology as well as one she hoped he'd sign.
I asked Louis if I might show Susannah some of the first editions in Louis' vast library.
"What's that?" asked Louis.
"Can we see your first editions of Jane Austen?" I shouted.
"Oh yes, yes, of course..." He waved a hand behind him to the bookshelves.
Louis admired Austen as much as he did any writer. I'd once asked him for a recommendation of the best criticism on Austen. Apparently, Louis felt that criticism of Austen was almost impertinent. Reading the author again was the only recommendation I received.
I took down volumes of Pride and Prejudice and Susannah and I sat there reading the first few pages, pretending we had just brought them home, unwrapped them, and were among the first eyes to read those famous opening lines. Louis got up to show us more from the seemingly endless rows of beautiful volumes as well as the complete leather bound collection of his own books (more than sixty, in all). Though I'd experienced this privilege before, I still felt like a kid in a very expensive candy shop, trying to get a taste of as many of these rare treats as possible in the time allowed, and still managing to savor each.
"Oh my god, I'm holding a first edition of Wuthering Heights," I said, while Susannah read Jane Eyre. There were extensive collections of Wharton and James, Proust and Trollope. Where else could one find such a personal collection. And then to be able to handle the books -- without gloves! Louis would sometimes replace or duplicate a valuable first edition, in order to have one that he would feel was sturdy enough to be comfortable reading. This was no musty museum exhibition, but rather the living room library of a truly great lover of books. The apartment itself was a kind of library and Louis had more to show us in his office.
"Quick," I thought, "it should be just about here -- and there it was: "Nelly, I am Heathcliff!""
Well, as close as I'm ever going to be and I handed Louis back the volume and we continued our tour. Who knew when the shop would close?
I became Louis Stanton Auchincloss' agent nearly ten years ago, after he'd already had a long and distinguished career, both as a lawyer and author of nearly sixty books by then. It certainly was the most anxious I've ever been about a new client, both because of the imposing literary figure
Blog: PJ Reece - The Meaning of Life (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Tomorrow, Feb. 21, 2010, I hope you’ll visit a web site called Teens Read Too, where I’m the guest blogger of the day. In addition to my typically profound post, you have the chance to peer even deeper into my brain as I try to answer a daunting list of questions posed by the site’s moderator. It’s been fun! And I’m going pursue one or more of the questions — such as ‘why are teens so compelled by the paranormal?’ — in future blogs.
If you happen to be reading this after Feb 21, 2010, you can still click on Teens Read Too and find my guest blog by scrolling down to Feb. 21.
We’ll talk later.
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As I said earlier in the day, the release of Toppling is fast approaching, and it's time for me to start thinking about ways to celebrate. Having had three blog tours last year to celebrate my new releases, I thought I’d do something different this time. Instead of asking people to interview me, and have them try to come up with new and different questions for me, I thought this time I would
Anne R. Allen is a freelance journalist living on the Central Coast of California. She has published two novels in the UK with maverick indie publishers Babash-Ryan: Food of Love (2003) and The Best Revenge (2005.) Babash has, alas, shuffled off this mortal coil, so she is out of print and scrambling down in the slush pile with everybody else. She writes a blog that she hopes will help new writers benefit from from her prodigious collection of publishing mistakes at http://annerallen.blogspot.com
A few months ago, Nathan posed a question on this blog: “How Do You Deal with the ‘Am-I-Crazies’?”
Those are the blues that can overwhelm the unpublished/underpublished novelist as we slog away, year after year, with nothing to show for our life’s work but a mini-Kilimanjaro of rejection slips.
The truth is, most fiction writers spend our lives sitting alone in a room generating a product that has zero chance of ever making a penny—or even being seen by a person outside our immediate circle of friends, relations and/or personal stalkers.
So—not surprisingly—we occasionally ask ourselves that big, existential question: WHAT ARE WE—NUTS?
Trying to answer can plunge a writer into despair. So how do we cope?
Most of the over 250 respondents to Nathan’s post answered with variations on the following advice:
1) Embrace the crazy and accept that we are, most of us, deeply and certifiably Looneytunes.
2) Chocolate helps.
3) Ditto booze and caffeine.
4) Ditto sunrises, music, and long walks.
5) Ditto the company/blogs/tweets of other lunatic writers.
6) And reading good books.
7) Or crap books, because we know we can do better than THAT.
8) Funny, nobody mentioned sex,
9) But denial is good. Really good.
10) And keep writing, even if it’s just for ourselves, or the one person who reads our blog, or the dog, or whoever…because: WE CAN’T STOP OURSELVES.
And why is that?
Well, I have a theory: It’s the Tralfamadorians. If you’ve read your Vonnegut (and what business do you have calling yourself a writer if you haven’t read Vonnegut?) you know about Tralfamadore. It’s a planet where a super-race of toilet plungers exist in all times simultaneously. The name of their planet means both “all of us” and “the number 541,” and they control all aspects of human life including social affairs and politics.
Since these beings have infinite time on their hands, I figure they’ve got a lot of leisure to fill up with reading. And how do they get their books? Of course! They compel earthlings to write novels. Hundreds of thousands of them. Way more than earthbound publishers and readers can handle. But on Tralfamadore—hey, they’re consumed like Skittles.
In fact, the Tralfamadorians are so eager for new material, they’ve figured out how to transmit stories right from our brainwaves to their TralfamaKindles the minute you type “the end” on that final draft.
And it could be that right now, as we speak, your first novel—the one that has been sitting in the bottom of a drawer along with its 350 rejection letters and the restraining order from that editor at Tor—could be at the top of the New Tralfamadore Times bestseller list.
Think about it. You could be the Dan Brown of that whole part of the galaxy, where readers are desperate—pining, pleading and panting—for your next book.
And that voice in your head telling you to pound away, day after day, trying to finish that opus, even though everybody, even your girlfriend—and your MOM for god’s sake—says it sux? That’s a transmission from the Doubleday Company o
A novel and short story writer, Jon Gibbs blogs at An Englishman in New Jersey. He's in the process of launching FindAWritingGroup.com, a free to join/free to use 'database' for writers from all around the world who want to find or set up writing groups near where they live.
He can usually be found hunched over the laptop in his kitchen. One day he hopes to figure out how to switch it on.
Never shy about giving people the benefit of her opinion (whether it was asked for or not) my old gran was always telling someone their ‘but’ was too big.
On the face of it, that seems a little rude, even for my old gran, but she wasn’t talking about pants’ sizes. She was referring to those built-in excuses we like to keep handy, in case our sub-conscious starts prompting us to chase our dreams.
“But I’m too young/too old.”
“But he/she’s out of my league.”
“But people might laugh at me.” [Not a problem if your dream is to do standup comedy]
Writers’ buts.
Writers too, have built-in ‘buts’ as it were:
“I’d love to write, but I just don’t have the time.”
“I’d love to write, but I don’t know anything about grammar.”
“I’d love to write, but there’s no writing group where I live.”
If you ask me, none of those ‘buts’ matter. They’re all just a way of avoiding the real problem, the biggest ‘but’ of them all:
“But I might fail.”
The fear of failure can stop a person from even trying. Have you ever almost pitched a story to a high-paying magazine, almost sat down to write a novel, or almost entered a writing contest? If so, then join the club. I imagine just about every writer has had that experience at some point or other.
I’ll bet there are thousands of great (or potentially great) storytellers out there who’ll never get published. I suspect for most, it’s because they let their ‘but’ get between themselves and the chance of success. You’ve probably met some of them.
Be wary of such people. Many of them carry a virus, Excusitis, a mental affliction which can kill writing dreams by causing the person suffering from it to doubt themselves and their ability. Symptoms include excessive use of the phrases like ‘I wanted to be a writer, but…’, ‘I’ve always thought I had a book in me, but…’, ‘I love writing, but…’
While not always contagious, many sufferers become bitter, unable to wish other folks success in endeavors which they themselves once dreamed of pursuing. Instead of support they offer mockery, instead of encouragement they try to plant seeds of doubt in your head.
Avoid these people at all costs or risk becoming infected yourself.
So what’s the difference between writers who go on to achieve their writing dream and those who don’t?
I don’t believe it’s talent – though it would be naïve to think that talent isn’t a vital part of the equation.
It certainly isn’t luck – that’s just a silly excuse used by folks who think there’s an easy path to success.
I believe the difference is simple.
Successful writers refuse to allow their ‘buts’ to get in the way. They see a ‘but’ as an obstacle which must be overcome rather than an excuse to quit... at least that’s what I’m hoping.
Me, I’m nearer fifty than forty; between leaving school at sixteen (with a poor academic record) and my 42nd birthday, I’d never written a
Suzannah Windsor Freeman is a writer and blogger at her site, Write It Sideways.
I recently came across this amusing post on Humorous Reminders of Common Writing Mistakes, which made me ask myself this very question.
Reading through the list of writing faux pas, I kept vacillating between, “Oh, I would never do that!” and, “Uh oh, I do that all the time.” Once, I would have referred to myself as a definite Word Nerd (because I must admit to the guilty pleasure of reading the dictionary).
Today, I’m not so sure.
So I stopped to consider what separates Word Nerds from Grammar Rebels, and what unites them in their love of language. This is what I came up with:
Word Nerds are well-educated in the technical aspects of language and believe we should obey its rules.
Grammar Rebels are also well-educated in the technical aspects of language, but they believe it’s okay (and sometimes necessary) to break certain rules.
So, what’s the one thing Nerds and Rebels can still agree on?
There are certain language rules that must never be broken. Ever. (Well, except if you’re writing dialogue and your characters can’t speak English properly.)
Here’s a list of rules that both groups of writers agree shouldn’t be broken:
* Spelling: Unless you’re talking about the difference between American and British English, spelling is not a matter of preference.
* Double Negatives: Say, “I don’t have any cash,” not “I don’t have no cash.” If you ‘don’t have no cash,’ you actually do have cash.
* Semicolons: Semicolons separate two clauses that are related to one another, but which could be used on their own. Alternatively, they can separate items in a list. Don’t use them for any other reason.
* Apostrophes: There’s no juggling these little guys. Use them only to show possession or in a contraction.
* Commas: Commas should only be used when necessary and they must be put in the right spot.
* Redundancy: Snow can just be snow–-not ‘cold snow’ or ‘white snow.’ All snow is cold and white.
* Quotation marks: There are hard and fast rules about how to use quotation marks. Learn them and use them correctly.
* Punctuation: Periods, question marks and exclamations should only be used where they’re meant to be used. No swapping allowed.
* Formal writing: If you’re writing a business letter, an formal essay or a work document, adhere to the commonly accepted rules of grammar.
Can you think of any others?
Now, for the rules Grammar Rebels routinely break:
* Split infinitives: It’s okay to say, “I’m going to pick Johnny up from school,” instead of the proper “I’m going to pick up Johnny from school.”
* Run-on sentences: I’ve seen this done in fiction to produce a stream-of-consciousness type feel.
* Sentence fragments: Your sentences don’t always have to be complete with subject and predicate. Like this.
* Beginning sentences with conjunctions: You can start sentences with and, but and or for emphasis. But don’t do it all the time or it gets annoying.
*
80 Comments on Guest Blog Week: Are You a Word Nerd or a Grammar Rebel?, last added: 1/21/2010
Bryan Russell (aka Ink) blogs at Alchemy of Writing. He is moderator/sheriff in the Forums and has my vote for Prime Minister of Canada
I had a very clear image, when I was young, of the path I was going to take. The Writer’s Journey. More specifically, the writer’s journey I would take, carefully laid out, 1, 2, 3, 4. It was a neat little trip. Very orderly. Very tidy. In high school, once I knew that yes telling stories is what I wanted to do, I decided to major in Creative Writing at University. Thus, The Plan: 1) Study Creative Writing. 2) Write A Book. 3) Get An Agent. 4) Get Book Published. (Yes, everything on the list was capitalized. This is Important Stuff)
And note the neatness! The tidiness! Note the lack of anything implanting itself between the end of University and the Glories of Publication!
I had a plan. It was very comforting, that plan. So I went to school, got good grades, wrote a few short stories, won some academic awards. 1… check. In fact, number 1 was so fun that I added 1b: Grad School. A Masters Degree and a chance to write a novel! I could squoosh 2 into 1b! Bonus marks for me. So Grad school and a novel.
Yet, somewhere along this path, I learned that writing was hard, getting an agent harder, and getting published even more so. But this was an abstract knowledge. Getting published was very hard, yes. You know, for other people. I had a plan, you see. It was right there on the list, number 4: Get Book Published. See? No problem. Obviously the whole idea of difficulty did not apply to me.
But, just to be safe, just to uphold the proper hardworking image, I got a degree in Education. A job! A career! But it was okay because I had my book. In fact, I had a few books. Peachy! Ahead of schedule. Here I was, just out of school, and I had books!
So I sent one of these books off to an agent and they said yes. This was good, and all according to The Plan. See? Right there, number 3) Get An Agent.
1, 2, 3. Neat and tidy. And then something funny happened, something… messy. We’ll call it 5) Life. And 5, let me tell you, was pushy. It would not stay in line. It had to jump in there ahead of 4.
There were lots of parts to number 5) Life, lots of addendums, provisos and postscripts.
I developed a disease, Colitis. And then my father died suddenly and everything went a little dark. There were shadows I had never noticed before, the weight of light shrugged off and forgotten. In these shadows it seemed hard to find words, to gather them in and set them down in neat little rows, the tidy rows I had always loved so much. And then my agent died, cancer stealing her away just when she was about to start submitting my novel.
5) Life.
Yet I had just gotten married. I bought a house, started a family, left one career and started another, having decided to open a little bookshop. There were lights in the darkness. And I remembered, always, a winter day just after my father died. Snow on the ground, the air sharp as a pine needle on cold skin. And the light, this slanted light coming down and refracting off the snow, a clean glow rising like mist and lingering in the air. So beautiful it ached, a permanent visual echo lodged in my memories… and I knew this was something important. Even here, on the far side of loss, there was beauty and light.
I began to write again, thinking of that halo of light over the snow. I put the old novel away. It wasn’t ready yet, anyway, agent or no agent. I’d rewrite it some day, but now I needed something new.
New books, new family, new store. New life, in a way, though forever tethered to the old. And now the process continues. I’m back at 3) Get An Agent. The list, now, is dirty, wrinkled, old. Well worn. I laugh at the Capitals. I know a little more about 5) Life. And, what’s more, I know a little more about writing. T
Myrlin A. Hermes is the author of THE LUNATIC, THE LOVER, AND THE POET, which will be published on January 26th by HarperCollins
Book trailers are all the rage these days, but it can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars to have one professionally made—an expense your publisher will probably be reluctant to shoulder unless yours is a genuine blockbuster. And most of them, quite frankly, still end up looking generic, cheap, and dull. But it’s not that hard to put together your own book trailer for next to nothing; and many of the same creative issues we deal with as writers--such as establishing tone and setting, creating vivid characters, pacing, and remembering to edit--are also applicable to creating an effective video.
You don't need fancy equipment, either--I put together mine using Windows Movie Maker on a tiny 10" MSI Wind netbook. Just a disclaimer: I am not endorsing any product--of course, if you have Photoshop and professional video editing software, or even a Mac with iMovie 2, the mechanics will be easier. Nor am I claiming any particular expertise--in fact, I had never done any video editing before--but I'm willing to share what I learned through trial-and-error as I put together the trailer for my novel The Lunatic, the Lover, and the Poet. It took me about four days to make--in retrospect, I would recommend scheduling a bit more time for the project, especially if your plans also include eating or sleeping!
First, you'll want to select your background music. This can be very helpful for establishing the tone and genre of your book, but it's important that your selection be royalty-free, so you don't run into rights issues. Kevin MacLeod's site Incompetech has a very good selection of music clips searchable by both genre (examples: African, Electronica, Silent Film Score) and feel (Driving, Eerie, Uplifting). These are all available for use royalty-free: he requests only credit on YouTube (or wherever the final piece is uploaded) and a $5 donation per clip used. I was so happy with the short piece I found for my book trailer, I donated $25. Still a bargain compared to hiring a professional!
Once you've chosen your music, it's time to pick out your images. This is where you as the author have a real advantage over the professional video-editor, who may not have even read the book. Take some time to "cast" your characters and choose images that resonate with your themes and settings. Again, you'll want to make sure that these images are in the public domain or that you've secured the rights to use them. There are stock image and video sites on the web where you can pay a flat fee per image or clip, but I was able to find everything I needed for free on Wikimedia Commons. To edit and resize my pictures and add the text, I used the open-source GNU Image Manipulation Program, or GIMP.
Don't get too wordy or complicated with your text--a few phrases about the premise and characters are fine; repeating the entire jacket copy on plodding powerpoint slides, as so many book trailers seem to do, is a sure way to cause eyes to glaze over and browsers to click shut. Yes, your target audience is readers--but remember--this is a visual medium. Let the words support the images.
Windows Movie Maker allows you to drop photos and movie clips onto a storyboard, cut between them using several different transitions, and apply a variety
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Deidre's participating in an awesome online scavenger hunt! Today she's blogging about her favorite Christmas traditions on EditorTera's Blog. Check her out and also take a minute to find out how you can win a Kindle this holiday season! http://editortera.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/kindle-contest-day-14-deidre-knight/
Blog: Deidre Knight's Blog (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Blog: Deidre Knight's Blog (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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By: Rick Daley
Rick's blogs:
The Public Query Slushpile
My Daley Rant
Writing a novel is a lonely task. Sure, our characters keep us company, but after numerous readings and revisions they transform into red-headed step-children and we want them to leave us alone. That’s when it’s time to ship them off to boarding school, where they are subject to the critiques of our friends and family. Not all of them graduate.
As writers, we yearn for feedback. Aside from the chosen few who produce flawless prose on the first draft (and can’t ever fathom why the query for their masterpiece was rejected by those ungrateful agents), we understand that hearing the honest opinions of readers is crucial to perfecting our work. However, opening our souls to criticism can be daunting…
Giving a Critique
I recommend the sandwich approach, where you start with a positive point, give an honest opinion of what doesn’t work for you (may be multiple points), and then end with another positive point or words of encouragement. I’ve found that the sandwich approach helps put recipients at ease (especially if they are hungry). It makes people more receptive to constructive criticism and keeps them from getting overly defensive. If you are taking the time to provide the feedback, you should want the person to actually do something with it.
Be careful if you re-write something as an example, especially in a query critique. A short clause or sentence is one thing, but if you start re-writing paragraphs you are providing more than advice – you are providing voice.
What Not to Do When Giving a Critique
- Don’t be overly apologetic or you will undermine your own opinions.
- Don’t hunt for things just because you feel you have to suggest something. Sometimes the work we review is really good. However…
- Don’t limit your feedback to praise just because you are afraid to hurt someone’s feelings. Paula Abdul has cornered that market.
- Don’t be a ruthless jerk. Simon Cowell has cornered that market.
Receiving a Critique
Rule # 1: Don’t pout if you hear something negative. Remember that you asked for the feedback in the first place.
Rule # 2: Wait until all the feedback is in before you seriously contemplate your changes.
Rule # 3: Seriously contemplate your changes. Take time. Work through it. You never microwave a roast. Slow cooking always turns out better. (NOTE: what’s with all the food references?)
Rule # 4: Look for common threads in the feedback and start there. The advice of the many outweighs the advice of the few.
Rule # 5: Re-write. If someone provides a re-write as an example, don’t just copy it. Try to understand why they suggested those changes. Otherwise you may dilute your own voice and you miss the opportunity to learn something.
Rule # 6: Ask for clarification if you don’t understand something. (NOTE: Please remember that this is in regard to critiques, not form rejections. Agents are not critique partners. No matter how much we want them to be.)
Rule # 7: Thank the people who took the time to offer their feedback, and pay it forward by offering a critique to someone else.
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Hi, Jim,
Congratulations on your three-book deal from Kensington, and for signing with Nathan as an agent! I’m planning to print out your Blog post today. It’s incredibly inspiring and full of hope for those of us who suck at writing queries.
I have the same kind of tenacity for writing the actual novel as you do. Right now, I’m basically rewriting my entire science fiction novel based on an extensive critique from Alan Rinzler. I’m finding this a complete joy. I definitely understand your willingness to rewrite your entire novel from a different perspective while still balking at the idea of crafting fine-tuned query letters.
Oh my God, your contest sounds awesome! Chuckle...what a great idea!
Your suggestion to keep writing is such a good one. Even though you might connect with an agent, it doesn't necessarily mean your agent will sell your first book. It might be your second or even your third one that finally sells. All the more reason to choose your agent carefully.
Congrats on your success!
Interesting story. When I wrote my first novel, I queried immediately as well. Big mistake. Now I take longer, but still haven't landed an agent yet. Queries stress me more than writing the entire manuscript.
I'll check out your contest.
Thanks for the post! It was very encouraging and very amusing! I love query stories with bad starts and happy endings -so congratulations!
And I think the contest on your blog sounds awesome...I will for sure try to enter.
Know your story. Submitting to the right agents is the first key to success.
Finding the right agents has little to do with your story. Even your book, Jim, was queried in the wrong subgenre. But you knew the agents through socializing and diligent research. 'Know the agents' is much better advice.
But not everyone can do that because...
Network. Be social.
That's all well and good if you have a scintillating personality. I'm a nice guy and a hell of a writer, but I have the personality of an arthritic porcupine. Every time I post on an agent's blog, I worry that I'm just getting myself added to another blacklist.
It bothers me that for authors, social skills are at least as important as writing skills. I can live with it and hopefully thrive in it, but it bothers me.
Always encouraging to read a success story that basically boiled down to a lot of hard work! Thanks for sharing!
That was fun to write!
Jim, I'm so happy for you and your success. I'm excited to hear about your upcoming book debut. Congratulations! I remember when you first got Nathan as your agent, and it's exciting to see you transform into a published author! Very cool! :)
Your story is interesting, because it talks about the query process as an organic process. You learned more about your work throughout. This makes sense because outside feedback can help clarify our work in our minds. I like that you didn't give up, too. I think there are times when revisiting a dream agent makes sense.
In terms of networking and helping an agent know your name, specifically Nathan, that's a really good point. I'm going to get right on that.
So, again, congratulations Jim. I hope it goes wonderfully for both you and Nathan.
Remus - I think what's important in Jim's story is not that he charmed Nathan - he had a good idea and then won a contest which helped him come to Nathan's attention.
I also think that writing a good book alone is plenty. Not all doors will open, but if you have a good book, many will.
A three-book deal! Congratulations, Jim.
And a very inspiring and reassuring post, to boot!
It's great to know that there is hope, even after sending the lousiest query ever - to Nathan, of all people - which I did, not knowing a thing about the American query system. Since, I have honed and polished, I had my SCBWI-mates check the query, I have researched agents, and I even got a recommendation from a senior editor of one of The Big Six.
One day I will get through, I know I will. I just have to be patient - the last thing on the list that I have to master...
Until that time I will keep writing.
Great post.
It rang a bell with me about genre. My critique group was working on my 2009 National Novel Writing Month manuscript. And one of them announced 'this is a YA novel'.
Not what I'd planned, but it made me happy to hear I could write YA.
Congratulations, Jim! I’ve noticed your comments on Nathan’s Blog, and always thought you stood out as a talented writer. To tell you the truth, I never understood why Nathan didn’t contact you, in order to offer to consider your work for publication.
I agree with Remus. It bothers me that agents let so many great authors and books slip by, waiting until the social aspect of their relationship with the writer feels right or the book already has a publishing deal. Many of the greatest writers have had reputations for being huge pains in the ass, but agents used to seek them out for their intelligent insights and the quality of their work. It might have made the agents’ lives more difficult, but that was part of their job. Agents have accused authors of having a sense of entitlement, but I think many agents have that – the desire for great success without too much trouble. As a result, the market has been flooded with lots of romance and YA books written by friendly, sociable people. Books with all different levels of writing skill are published in those genres, including those written in extremely simplistic language about extremely simplistic concepts.
congrats on the 3 book deal! Man I wish I had your problems! Agents love my query, but then they get to my book and tell me its over written...
So, someone correct me if I'm wrong, but in the end this author's success at finding an agent had nothing to do with his query writing. He landed an agent through networking on blogs. Right?
If that's the case, then this isn't encouraging at all. I mean, congrats to him, but it's a bummer to all of us who are still relying on the query to do the job.
Hi Jim...
Thanks for your post. It's a great perspective on an intriguing success story.
Sharing your experiences and knowledge learned along the way is inspiring. In fact it has inspired me to change my post name from LaylaF to Layla Fiske...get my name out there, get involved...makes sense!
I'm looking forward to checking out your website.
L
"This is for amusement purposes, not to prove that you might be a sociopath." <--LAMO! That's awesome. This whole post was awesome.
Query letters are evil.
And congrats on the book deal and landing super agent, complete with orange cape. :o)
Congrats Jim.
Congrats, Jim!
Still, I find your story interesting: 3-book deal and no agent until after that deal was secured. I've been chugging forward on querying my own MS with agents, and I suspect I'm nearing the end of that part of the journey. I've had a few material requests, but none lately (despite a finely edited q letter which has been through QLH on Absolute Write and which my critique group tells me is sound and good-to-go), and only one full still out. The past month has been nothing but form rejections. I'm not optimistic about it.
But I am feeling pretty okay about going straight to publishers, increasingly. Nathan's one of the few agents that suggests that you might be okay in doing that, and I've stumbled across quite a few publishing stories lately that seem to start with getting a book deal, which then opens up the doors for an agent. And my goal is publication, and I believe in my book. Stories like yours only emphasize to me that it might be the right way to go.
Now I don't feel bad anymore. I stink at queries too. Congratulations on all the success.
Perseverence should be every writer's middle name. Unless, of course, it's OprahWindreysNieceorNephew. That's good, too.
Love your article. Kudos to you for getting a publishing deal for three books and getting Nathan as your agent! I think your conclusions about specific lessons to be learned from your experience, however, are deeply flawed. First of all, you underestimate your ability to write query letters. You obviously wrote a query letter that landed a three-book deal from a publishing house! Here are the conclusions I reached after reading your article:
- Write a good book. Edit it.
- Socialize with agents online.
- Find a publisher.
- Then contact an agent. With a publishing deal already in hand, agents will be happy to represent you. Agents with whom you’ve socialized online might be extra happy to represent you. (As an aside, I should probably mention that I have a major publishing house interested in my book without having received any interest from agents in response to my query letters.)
I'm selling this book. You wouldn't want to buy it, would you?
Jim,
Congratulations on your book deal, and finding such a nice agent in the process too.
What a great mid-week gem for all aspiring authors! I wish you all the best.
Great contest idea too.
Jim, you're awesome. Love your post.
Nathan's forums.
You know, it strikes me that the forums are a nice place to socialize with others from around the blogs and Nathan, as well.
But so many people pop in and don't comment, or comment a few times and leave. I wish they'd stay - and have fun and let people get to know them.
I agree with the comment someone made that writing the book was easier than writing the query.
Everytime I send out my query, Iam so stressed.
I find this post encouraging and discouraging, all at once. It seems unfair that in order to get the attention of agents who had already deemed you unfit for their efforts, you had to do part of their job by garnering the attention of a publisher. How bad could your query REALLY have been if this added incentive made them "see the light" regarding your novel? I am convinced that agents who ask you to submit sample pages with your query don't read those pages if they don't like your query, and I feel like you've proven me right. Whatever your query was missing, your sample pages should have been enough to give an agent pause, but you had to go above and beyond. And as someone who writes crappy queries, that irks me!
I find this post encouraging and discouraging, all at once. It seems unfair that in order to get the attention of agents who had already deemed you unfit for their efforts, you had to do part of their job by garnering the attention of a publisher. How bad could your query REALLY have been if this added incentive made them "see the light" regarding your novel? I am convinced that agents who ask you to submit sample pages with your query don't read those pages if they don't like your query, and I feel like you've proven me right. Whatever your query was missing, your sample pages should have been enough to give an agent pause, but you had to go above and beyond. And as someone who writes crappy queries, that irks me!
Wow, great story. Reminds us to not give up. Thanks for the inspiring post!
Great anecdote, Jim! :) Congrats on the accomplishments you've made, you're lucky to have Nathan as an agent! Thanks for the tips and for sharing, your story is very inspiring.
~TRA
http://xtheredangelx.blogspot.com
Wow---kudos on your three-book deal! What I'd like to know is how do you get a major publisher to respond, especially when you marketed it under a different genre? I've tried a few editors (pubs who take unsolicited mss.) and can't even get a reply, much less a book deal. What's your secret??
Whenever I write a query I feel like I'm trying to shove my entire body into a one by one box. Which makes sense as if I'm taking 100k and bringing it down to 100.
Oy
What a fantastic success story and very inspiring, thanks for sharing it with us. Having myself received a mixture of responses to queries including total silence/straight rejections/encouraging comments but client list full, I am still none the wiser whether my query letters suck!
So will definitely start looking for feedback and keep going, thanks again and congratulations.
I can't wait to write my first query. I bet I'm a fantastic query writer. The problem is the book.
Hmm, maybe I should offer a service.
Thanks for sharing this! It was generous, useful and timely. Wishing you great success!
You know, it never occurred to me for an instant to requery any agents that sent form rejects after I'd landed a couple of publishing offers. I thought I should restrict the requery list to those who showed some initial interest.
Can't say it's an approach I'd be willing to take, but if you're comfortable with the result, that's all that matters.
Congratulations on your book deal - that's awesome!
Congrats, Jim. Way to go!! I entered your contest, now maybe I'll have a chance to hook Nathan as an agent. Thanks for the opportunity.
Thanks for the post Jim, and for pointing us towards your blog. Creeptastic!
Some commenters seem to be discouraged--but there are many avenues to getting published. I'm sure if you asked 20 authors, you'd get 20 different stories on how they landed their first book deal!
Enjoyed your post, Jim, and also checked out your blog site. Good luck with the contest! Also liked the post about the ghosts in the underground vaults in Scotland (where much of my heritage came from).
You have some valid points regarding an author's own awareness about his work. When the story crosses genre lines, it's hard for the author to see where it fits best. That's where our beta readers and those assessing our work (agents, editors, etc.) can sometimes give us a heads-up.
You're fortunate to have found a great agent as well, Jim. Looking forward to seeing your book in 2011.
Mr. Duncan,
Impressive! And, thank you. I am in the midst of writing my first mystery thriller, so I think this is the genre. Great advice, I'll triple check to be sure. I stopped writing because of the Query letter it literally freaked me out. I decided to give it another stab, I did and I am still alive to share. I agree with you writing about oneself is very difficult, but we must believe in ourselves to overcome the menace of the Query. I've decided to embrace the Query letter as my best friend. And in the near future, I'll be sending my queries. Much success to you and again thank you.
Thank you for all of the feedback everyone. It's much appreciated. Also, another round of thanks for those who have come over to my blog to check out the contest. There are a lot of funny entries. I'm looking forward to perusing them all.
Congratulations, Jim Duncan!
Remus, I AM an arthritic porcupine. Luckily, Nathan’s blog has no ’humans only’ rule. I deeply resent your stereotyping of my species and disability.
I don’t have a personality, since I’m not a person. But, among porcupines, arthritic or otherwise, I’m the life and soul of the party. Yes, porcupines do have souls.
I DO curl up in a ball sometimes, but that’s just expected if you’re a porcupine. I write all the time, of course. I have to do something with all those quills…