Lisa Gail Green was one of the first and best people I met in the blogosphere. She was a badass writer, already agented by a badass agent, and I remember being so excited when she did a guest post on Adventures. We got to know each other and started exchanging manuscripts, and the very first thing I read was the book that she is releasing tomorrow. That was years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. I had just finished reading PARANORMALLY and PERSONAL DEMONS and Lisa's book blew me away. I loved it. I loved the humor and the romance, the originality of her story. The way her brain works humbles me--she's amazing.

And guess what? SOUL CROSSED is coming out tomorrow! Squeee!!! I'm so, so honored to turn today's post over to her to share her incredible story and insight. Also? There's a pre-order link at the bottom just above the incredible giveaway. Hint, hint! : )

In honor of SOUL CROSSED's release tomorrow I'm doing a SUPER giveaway, including SEVEN SIGNED books by authors like Ally Condie, Jennifer Armentrout, Ellen Hopkins, Jennifer Donelly and Maggie Stiefvater. Is that enough? NO. I also am giving away a giftcard, swag, and another book! So don't forget to enter!! Am I crazy? Well, that's besides the point. The thing is I value all of YOU and I want to honor all the readers out there. Now to the post!

Tomorrow my baby is out in the big wide world, but guess what? It didn't happen overnight. Shocked? Probably not! Most of us are familiar with the torturous wait and seemingly inescapable lessons in patience associated with writing.

Five years ago I had an agent (and I mean uber agent) and had every expectation that I'd soon be hearing about an offer from one of the "big five". Ha! Lesson number one - just because you have an agent, there's no guarantee of publication. Things kind of went South from there instead North. My agent and I split amicably and I was faced with starting "all over".

Skip ahead to this past year and you will find that I signed with an agent working with my previous agent AND sold not one, but several manuscripts previously shopped to the most enthusiastic editor that I could imagine. Oh and did I mention that I'm a lead title?

What happened in between though? What the heck was I doing for those *missing* years? I'll give you a hint -- I wasn't sitting around waiting for everything to turn around. Were there ups and downs? Mostly downs! I was diagnosed with RA (rheumatoid arthritis), which made me nervous about my writing future, had a baby who stole my heart and a TON of time, and was so close to throwing in the towel it's not even funny.

BUT I also continued working on my craft and poking around social media, though I admit I let that fall behind a bit with everything else going on. And while that was happening I learned a few things. Things that made a HUGE difference in the work I do now versus the work I originally tried to sell. So have my manuscripts changed since they were shopped and then picked up by FFF? *nods* You betcha. And I'm going to share those tips with you! In an easy to follow guide that you can use right away. You're welcome. ;D


1. Connections are important.  

I already mentioned letting social media fall by the wayside. That's okay if you do it the smart way. I loved my little blog I used to post on twice a week. But when Martina mentioned the possibility of joining her here I knew it was the right move for several reasons.
A.  It was an established blog with a huge following.
B.  I could concentrate on something new and interesting that was relevant to where I was in the journey -- i.e. agents and contests.
C.  I knew I would learn a TON from Martina and everyone else here and I haven't been disappointed!
     
Not everyone has access to publishing on an amazing blog like AYAP I get that, but here's my advice to you: Don't start a blog unless you KNOW it's something you love. Same with FB and Twitter and any of the other sites out there. You WILL burn out eventually but if it's what you love then the time commitment is worth it. I concentrated on the social media that I love and used shortcuts like IFTTT to help me post across platforms. And I found as I always did in the past that when I engage others with what I truly enjoy I find followers and make real connections with people.  So by being in that somewhat humbled position I found that it was even more important to me to keep up with what meant the most to me and the interactions, in my opinion, are what it's all about.
     
2. You are never above the basics.

Think you've seen it all? The blog posts, the workshops, etc.? Not true. Sometimes all it takes is someone repeating a single thing in a unique way that give you that aha moment. It's true that we grow as writers the more we do, but do you know how many adverbs I STILL have in my gosh darned manuscripts?? Grrrr. Yes, I catch a lot of them the first time through now, but they still sneak in there.

So if you're having a tough time one of the best things you can do is go back and re-read some posts or a book that was there for you in the beginning. Sometimes something new will even leap out. You can even get something new to you, but on a subject you've seen so many times. Example? I re-read James Scott Bell's book PLOT AND STRUCTURE. I must have wanted to smack my forehead fifty times because of a simple thing I'd forgotten to pay attention to in my work.

3. The industry keeps moving, don't let it pass you by.

I went through a period where I couldn't read. That makes me very sad. I LOVE READING and that's what inspires me to write. I felt some part of me was missing. Thankfully I read again now, just a bit slower than I used to. But it's SO important! I learn through, let's call it osmosis, while reading more than anything else I do. And new books in YA come out all the time. For a short while I didn't familiarize myself with the new ones, which is bad. Bad bad bad. You have to know what's out there in your genre. You have to know what's being done and what works and why. Why did you like it? Why DIDN'T you like it?

4. Be wary but not cynical.

When you are "desperate" to get your work noticed you find all sorts of people ready to help. Do you hire an editor? Do you enter contests? Do you take any agent that offers? The answers are: Maybe, maybe, and NO.

Hiring an editor is a personal decision. It's something that has helped many of my friends, but it's also expensive. My advice? If you decide you are stuck, meaning you don't have anyone else to ask and you don't know what's wrong but you're convinced either by rejections or your gut that you're missing something important then you are at a good point to potentially hire an editor. Before you do make sure they are reputable by asking for references and exchanging a bit of work to make sure their comments resonate. Try to find someone, if you're going to splurge anyway, that has professional experience with a publishing house under his/her belt.

Contest-wise? Well, we're running Pitch Plus One right now! There are many online pitch or opening pages contests that are worth a look or a try. I myself got several requests a while back from Pitch Madness by Brenda Drake, who by the way got started on a contest here that I helped judge! Be careful. My advice? Never enter a contest that asks for money. Why? Not because they may not be reputable. Many are. Some aren't. But why do that if you don't have to? There are free resources out there if you search. Take advantage of our very own First Five Pages Workshop, for example. We never charge and have amazing mentors, including an agent, for every manuscript every month.

Agent wise? Don't just take anyone that will have you. Take your time to research and ask questions. Ask for references. You are hiring them too. Get Publisher's Marketplace (or ask someone who knows) what their recent sales are like. Make sure you feel comfortable with them and understand their policies and procedures when it comes to communication, editing and submission. The wrong agent is worse than no agent. For reals.

5.Write.

You can do all of the above, but if you are convinced your first manuscript has to be the "one" and you can't move on then you are far more likely to fail. You have to write. You have to write even if you are sad or doubtful or don't know what you're going to say. Take out an old manuscript that's been sitting for a while and read it through. Do you see errors you wouldn't make anymore? I did. Fix them. Can you think of something that would make it stronger? Add it! Do you see scenes that are superfluous? Chop 'em. Open a new document and start something new. Outline if you outline, start writing if you don't! The more you write, the better you will get. AND the more options you will have to offer a potential agent or editor. Pick what you think your weakest attribute is (writing wise, silly) and focus on it while you write or re-write a chapter.

These tips may sound simple, but they sincerely saved my writing career. They work. So DON'T GIVE UP. Focus on your craft instead. There is always more to learn and do.

Soul Crossed 

(Of Demons and Angels #1)

One Demon. 

One Angel.

One Soul.
Josh lived a reckless, selfish life, so upon his death, escaping the eternal torments of Hell by assuming the role of a powerful, soul-corrupting demon is an easy choice. His first soul assignment doesn’t seem too hard: the mortal Camden is already obsessed with weapons, pain, and torture. If only Josh wasn’t distracted by Cam's beautiful friend, Grace.

Grace never expected to die violently at age sixteen, but now she’s an Angel, responsible for saving a soul. She can already see past Camden’s earthly flaws, so the job should be be easy. If only that handsome, playboy Josh would stop getting in the way.

It’s forbidden for an Angel to be with a Demon, so if Josh and Grace stop resisting each other, the results would be disastrous. 

And only one can claim Cam’s soul.


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I hope by now you all know about our fantastic COMPULSION FOR WRITING PARTY AND PRIZE FEST! I also hope you'll all attend because not only are there going to be ah-maze-ing prizes, including agent critiques, but also because it's our way of supporting each other.

See, several of us here at AYAP have been sprinkled with pixie dust - or at least that's my theory - and have incredible news. But we've also had a long, twisted road to travel to get here. We KNOW how hard it is to keep going sometimes and that's what we want to share with all of you. That we are living proof that if you persevere through the hard times, you can accomplish your goals.

Today I'm sharing my story with you. The REAL story. And my hope is that it will inspire you to persevere. I'll also be revealing my big prize pack that I'll be giving away to a lucky winner who shares his/her own story or advice at the FB party (so go click and attend if you haven't yet).

About six years ago, give or take, I decided to go for it and take writing seriously. I started by joining SCBWI, which I can't recommend enough, so I could learn the business side of things. I also sat down while the kids were at school and wrote. Soon enough I had my first novel. An actual completed novel. Which, as you may well guess, will never see the light of day. BUT I did it. I knew at that point that I was capable of it.

So what did I do with my *cough* masterpiece? Why I queried of course! Yup, full of typos and the most confusing pitch ever.

Then I joined a critique group. Some of my best friends are still with me from that. The group though is long disbanded.

Meanwhile I kept writing and by my third novel I somehow (through a connection so there was no formal query or I never could have done it at that point) landed an uber agent! WOW! I had it made, right???

Nope. Rubin was WONDERFUL. Don't get me wrong. Heck, I'm still with his agency, just not him. But we eventually realized that as much as we respected each other, we weren't a good match. So with many tears from me we separated and I felt like a total failure.

What I thought was my happily ever after turned out to be a detour that sent me back to the beginning. BUT the thing was it didn't. I'd grown so much, learned so much, shared so much, and kept writing. My friends tease me: "I blinked and Lisa wrote another book." But each one gets better. I keep challenging myself and I know I could never stop.

So I ate lots of chocolate and started querying for real. And guess what? I started getting full requests! But guess what else? Paranormal was no longer in style. DOH!

Then other things happened that I wasn't expecting.

I had a baby! I have three kids. Fifteen, Eleven, and TWO.

I was (and this is still hard for me to say to the world) diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. My finger swelled and hurt. But I type constantly, right? Then it got worse. I was misdiagnosed, I was allergic to meds, one hand wouldn't close all the way, the other wouldn't open all the way. I couldn't get off the couch. I was sleeping: All. The. Time.

Still I kept trying. I kept blogging, querying, writing, reading. I don't know how except to say I NEEDED to.

Then I found the right doctor. The right diagnosis. The right meds. And I'm almost normal again. PHEW. Also - Dragon software is great for emails and things. There are ways around things. Guess what else? My daughter is in preschool!

But at my darkest point, I was soooooo close to throwing in the proverbial towel. I was afraid to share my problems because who would want a writer that can't type? For the first time in forever I put something slightly negative on FB! That's big for me, because I believe in being supportive and positive no matter what.

The VERY NEXT DAY I found out that the editor from Full Fathom Five's new digital imprint remembered me from submissions long ago. In fact, she once worked with my agent and helped me with my book, THE BINDING STONE, which is out with a small indie press. We worked so well together and now she was in charge of this new imprint that wants prolific writers. Writers like ME.

Samantha called me and we talked for about an hour and half and I  heard the words I've dreamed of: "We want to publish Lisa Green."

About the same time I was put in contact with Melissa Nasson, Rubin's newest addition. I sent her my work and she read EVERYTHING in a matter of days. We also scheduled a phone call and we were completely honest and answered each other's questions and I knew from that that I loved her. We clicked! She was everything I wanted in an agent and she LOVED my work! She offered representation. I'd come full circle in a way and time that I least expected.

And if you want to know more about Melissa, check out our agent post tomorrow because she'll answer some great questions and tell you all what she thinks of me. ;)

So now I feel better, I have my dream agent, my dream editor/deal, and have some time again to work. But I wouldn't have had all that if I'd given up at my darkest moment.

So DON'T GIVE UP. NEVER GIVE UP.

Oh yes - and prize pack!!!! I'm going to share my Support for Miserable Writer's Package. CHOCOLATE, a B&N gift card, journal, writing utensils, an iTunes gift card, and a secret uber cool bag to put it all in. I might even throw in a few more inspirational things as I find them!

I'll also be offering along with the others here, a half hour phone call so we can talk about whatever YOU want.

AND *drum roll* Melissa, my amazing agent, has graciously offered a chapter critique for someone who hasn't been so lucky and needs a pinch of pixie dust.

Thanks for listening to my story. I look forward to hearing YOURS. So join us for the party!!

-Lisa

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It’s a VERY special month here at Adventures, and we’re beyond thrilled to be able to share it with the writers who’ve been with us since the beginning, and with the new writers and readers who have joined us along the journey. And it really is a journey! Four years ago, I started this blog with a friend as we started to think about getting our books published. In less than a month, on October 28th, COMPULSION will finally emerge into the world as a published really-truly book. There are lots of fun things in store to celebrate the kick off, but wait . . . There’s even MORE to celebrate.

Our very own Lisa Gail Green has a fabulous new agent, and a slew of incredibly awesome new book deals, and our lovely Erin Cashman is brewing some wonderful news as well!

In the next couple of weeks, they are going to tell you their stories, and I’m going to tell you mine. What stories you ask? The stories of how we almost quit writing and ended up turning it around.

Have you ever felt like that? Like you were DONE? You just couldn’t face rejection or take coming “close" any more? Have you thought about giving up?

We all have! I did. Lisa did. Erin did.

But we kept going because we loved to write. You could almost say we had a Compulsion for Writing? :D

We’d love to hear about YOUR Compulsion for Writing. We want you to tell us your stories, and we’re going to host a giveaway and a celebration of persistence.

Here’s how it’s going to work.

1.) You write your story — a paragraph, a page, whatever you want — about how your Compulsion for Writing kept you going at a time when you got discouraged and thought about quitting.

Or

2) You write about how to feed your Compulsion for Writing and keep the joy through the hard times.

3) Post what you've written on your Blog, Pinterest, Tumblr or Facebook Page and share it to the contest event page on Facebook, or write it directly on the Compulsion for Writing Party and Prize-Fest event page.

4) Get everyone you know to “Like" the Compulsion for Writing Page and their favorite posts people have shared there. Here's a nifty banner you can use to help spread the word!

We’ll review the posts with the greatest number of "likes" and Lisa, Erin, and I will each pick winners. We’ll send the winners special gift packs, but we’ll also each provide half-hour long phone calls to discuss your writing in general, your book or WIP, querying, agents, the book business, publishing, promotion and marketing, our books, social media, or whatever else you want to talk about.

And, because sometimes all it takes is a bit of a push, but the people who need the biggest push are often the ones who don’t get it by querying or by entering contests, we’ll have some agent critiques for a few lucky winners, too.

On 10/21/28 at 6:00 PM eastern, we will join everyone for a live Facebook Party where we can all trade stories and answer questions. That’s also when we’ll announce the winners and throw in a few extra and spectacular live giveaways as well! So mark your calendars.

Oh, and for those who are voting on stories? We'll add giveaways as we go along, and we'll announce winners for those on the 22nd, too. The first will be posted on the Facebook page later today. Stop by and check it out. : )

More details are posted on the Facebook page, and stay tuned for our stories and prize packages coming in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, here’s a bit of photo inspiration for what can happen if you don’t give up! : ) Last year, I was down at YALLFEST as a fan with some friends. They had stacks and stacks of Justine Magazines with the coolest Teen Read Week feature showcasing some great YA books. And tomorrow, the Justine Teen Read Week issue hits the stands, and guess what's in it?



And did I mention that Melissa Marr and I happen to be doing an event together to kick off the Compelling Reads Tour? That's total coincidence, but it's another example of what can happen.

It CAN happen. You just have to believe! (And be compelled to write!)

And now for the first of the HUGE giveaways! : ) 

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Thank you, Whitley!!

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Another WOW Wednesday, another guest blog from a wonderful writer about how she achieved success. Today's writer blogs over at Paranormal Point of View where she does a great series on Mondays turning other writers into monsters. She also has a formula for success she's willing to share. Read on! And as always, if you have a success, big or small, you'd be willing to share, please let us know!

---

Do not try to adjust your monitors. I have, in fact, temporarily taken over Adventures in Children’s Publishing. Mwahahaha! Okay, seriously? I’ve been asked to guest blog - to share with you my story and the surprises I’ve had along the way. So here goes…

My name is Lisa Gail Green and I’ve been writing basically my whole life, starting at age seven. I’ve done many different things since then, always with the idea in the back of my mind that one of these days I’d be a writer. The nice thing is that just about anything you do in the “real world” can help prepare you for a career in writing. Case in point? I was an actress. “Bah! Completely frivolous,” you say? No way. I have a handle on character. I get inside my characters’ heads and not coincidentally, tend to favor first person in my manuscripts. It also helps with natural dialogue.

Just under a year ago (don’t shoot me, please) I joined SCBWI. That was probably the best thing I’d ever done. I took advantage of every board, every conference, every workshop, and quite simply every resource I could. I immersed myself and learned the “business” side of things. I learned all about how I’d been sending out horrifyingly embarrassing query letters before my manuscript was ready. I learned all about the “rules” of writing and when it might be okay to break them. But most importantly, I learned that overwhelmingly, the people in this business, whether agents, editors, or other writers, are kind and supportive and absolutely AMAZING.

So, I started querying (for real this time). I joined my beloved critique group. I took Jill Corcoran’s workshop on the subject. I started publishing in online magazines, which raised my self-esteem and gave me something to put in that dreaded bio paragraph. I also started reading like crazy in my genre.

My agent didn’t pull me from the slushpile – though I beg you not to discount it as impossible. I met Rubin Pfeffer of East-West Literary (sorry guys, he only takes clients by referral, though you can hear him speak at this year’s SCBWI LA conference) through a mutual friend. He even said in the email in which he offered me representation that this is “not the typical outcome of introductions of writers to publishers or agents when made by friends.”

The thing was, I had still done what I was supposed to. I polished my manuscripts (by this time I had two plus a WIP), pumped myself up and braved the world announcing that I am a writer (which led me to my connection with Rubin), and approached him in the professional manner I’d taken the time to learn about. I sent a query letter, as I would have to anyone else. He asked me for quite a bit of info after that – info on me, on my books, my characters, comparison books, and marketing. Finally he asked to see my other work.

Then he offered to represent me. I was at my in-laws at the time and I still think they believe me to be completely unhinged. I was hysterical. See, I’d done my homework and I knew exactly who Rubin was (a former senior VP from Simon and Schuster’s children’s division for starters). After I collected myself off the floor, walls, and ceiling, I went right back to researching what to ask, how to handle other queries I’d had out, etc.

I signed up and met with both Rubin and Deborah Wa

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