How to use this Page

The Encylopedia Mythica provides information about mythology, folklore, and religion. 

http://www.pantheon.org/

This is by no means the only things you can use to format and convert your manuscript to an e-book, it is just to give you an idea of the some of the things out in the market you can use. The Kindle, the Nook and the iTunes Bookstore (which services both the iPhone and iPad) now stand out as the most common targets for e-books. This has helped the e-book boom has helped consolidate formats a bit, but there still isn’t a single gold-standard editing product that guides users through the whole workflow and helps them check their results.

You probably will want to format your e-book for a varity of readers –  it helps to support as many of devices as possible. The Kindle, for instance, is notorious for not supporting ePub format files.

So here is a little information about the most common e-book formats and their drawbacks, so you can decide what to use to format your manuscript and create an ebook.

HTML:

If you are looking for only one fromat, HTML is more or less it. For one, it’s ubiquitous; almost every text-processing program can generate or read HTML. It also supports many features e-books will use: hyperlinks, font control, section headings, images, etc. Downside not everyone knows HTML.

But if you’re starting with a Microsoft Word or Open Document Format document, your best bet is to export it directly from the source application into HTML. Word users should do a “Save as…” using the “Web Page, Filtered” option, which strips out most of Word’s generated left over junk (cruft).

Exporting to HTML from your source program helps preserve the most crucial formatting and usually preserves sections and chapters: outline headers are turned into h1/h2/h3 tags, which most conversion programs correctly recognize. Some are even able to auto-generate tables of contents from those tags. Word typically does a good job generating TOCs without problems.

Microsoft Word (DOC or DOCX)

If you’re dealing with an original manuscript, odds are it’s probably going to be in Microsoft Word format. Almost every device on the face of the Earth can read or write Word documents. And the format has native support for most everything you could think of: formulas, chaptering, footnotes, indexes — anything that might show up in an e-book.

Word documents are best as a starting point for an intermediate conversion format, most likely HTML, rather than a format that can be converted directly into an e-book. In fact, most e-book conversion programs don’t accept Word natively as a source document type. They may accept Word’s sibling format, RTF, but that is already at least one stage of conversion away from the original and increases the chance that certain features might not make it through the conversion process. For example, RTF does support features like sections and footnotes, but the Calibre e-book creation suite, for one, doesn’t process them correctly.

OpenDocument (ODF)

OpenDocument is the format used by OpenOffice.org. Microsoft Word also supports ODF as one of it’s formats. it reads and writes.) Third-party OpenOffice offers extensions that let you export directly to e-pub formats. There are also a number of standalone applications, such as ODFToEPub. If you’re already used to creating your documents in ODF, your path to creating a finished e-book may be  shortened, slightly.

ePub:

An open, non-proprietary format. Uses XHTML as the basis for its document format. ePub is widely supported as an output format by various e-book production applications. iTunes only accepts ePub as a source format, so it couldn’t hurt to render a copy of your product as ePub no matter what other formats you use.  Books that require PDF-style page fidelity won’t work well in ePub.

Mobi and Kindle:

After Amazon bought Mobit, it made it into the basis for the Kindle reader’s own e-book format. Mobi supports digital rights management, but unencrypted Mobi documents can be read on the Kindle without issues.

PDF

PDFs can be read as-is in the majority of e-book readers, including the Kindle. It is best used when you want to maintain absolute fidelity to page layout — images, typefaces, etc. But this is the very feature that makes PDFs a problem in some scenarios. Other e-book formats are designed to work independently of any particular device resolution, so pages reflow automatically for each device. This is one of the reasons the Kindle didn’t make use of page numbers at first, since the page numbering for a particular book depends on what device or screen size you are using.

PDFs reproduce the formatting of the original page, no matter what the size of the destination device, so a PDF formatted at a certain size may be readable on a large display, but look cramped on a Kindle or Nook. If you plan to use PDFs, you may want to consider exporting your document with different page sizes for people using e-readers with small screens.

Calibre:

http://calibre-ebook.com/  Calibre is a free and open-source application marketed as a personal e-book management solution. It can be used as an e-book conversion utility.  It is powerful and may be the best place to start, especially if you want to distill output for multiple e-book formats. The program can accept ODF, RTF, ePub, Mobi, PDF and HTML. Calibre can also reformat documents unwrapping plain text that has too many line breaks or insert chapter breaks by looking for certain text structures (such as a line break, the word “Chapter” and then a number).

It doesn’t support DOC or DOCX documents, so anything coming from Word, so you will have to save it in another format first.  Serdar Yegulalp, a computer techology author says, ”Saving in either ODF or HTML from Word seemed to do the best job of preserving formatting and features, including things like monospaced formatting for code examples. Doesn’t process footnotes correctly.”

Sigil:

http://code.google.com/p/sigil/ Sigil is a multi-platform EPUB ebook editor – free open source. It’s an editor that exports to e-books (has a built-in document editor) it includes various tools for collating and assembling a finished e-book (such as a table-of-contents editor). Sigil’s main drawback is how it handles importing – only accepts HTML, plain text or existing ePub files as input documents.

Jutoh:

http://www.jutoh.com/ Accepts OPL files and has slightly more robust editing options. The cost is $39.

Adobes In Design is a full blown publishing solution, but it requires a lot more work and knowledge to generate a finished product than a simple conversion utility. Second is the price tag: It starts at $699.

TIP: Include a Table of Contents

An e-book that isn’t properly chaptered is difficult to navigate. Going to an arbitrary point in a book is not as easy as it should be. The Kindle, for instance, has no touch screen, so jumping around in a book without a table of contents is a chore.

If you have gone through the process of formatting and converting your own ebook, we loved to hear what you chose.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

I have met authors who have spent over $25,000 to self-publish their own book in print. Not counting the content of the book, the quality of the illustrations, paper, cover was beautiful. This was before print on demand, so that same person now could self-publish the same book for less than half that amount.  But still that book had problems. Two many pages, too young of story for the writing and format.  This is something many new authors make and the reason I tell you not to rush your book out the door.

To have a good selling enjoyable picture book the illustrations and design has to go along with the text. Many times a new author will go with a Vanity/Subsidy publisher who offers to publish their book, because they can forego an agent, graphic and interior layout designers, editors, printers, advertising, distribution,  marketing specialists, and book publicists. But buyer beware, what type of artwork will they provide? The books I have seen have used low level artists or the pay so low, that an illustrator can’t give the book the time it needs to shine and the results are awful. I don’t know about you, but I buy most of my picture books because I love the artwork. Of course I have an art degree, so illustration is a big part of my life, but in my opinion a picture book must have enjoyable art or it will fall flat on its face. So spend a lot of time making sure you hire someone who can make it happen. But don’t be a control freak. You will stiffle the artist and not get the best out of them.

So hear I am preaching about the steps you need to take to help lift up the reputation and quality of Self-Published books. These are the steps you need to take even if you want to snag an agent or pique the interest of a mainstream publisher.

The First draft – just the beginning. This is where you write your story and then get your critique group to read it and give you their thoughts. They should be able to point out if they see any holes in your story. Whether they like your main character. Is he/she sympathetic? Too mean? Too dumb? Are there places in the manuscript where they were pulled out of the story?
Are their holes in your plot? Here is a list of questions you can ask them to answer:

Is the conflict strong, or is it contrived and something a conversation could resolve?

Setting? Does it seem real?

Are the senses involved? (description of smell, touch, taste, etc.)

Does the story hold your interest? If not, where did you lose interest?

Accuracy and consistency: Do the facts seem accurate, (no cell phones in the 1700s, for example) and are they consistent (blue eyes don’t turn green somewhere along the way.)

Were you able to suspend disbelief?

Does the story work? Do you want to read more?

With characters, ask yourself: Are the main characters three-dimensional? Sympathetic? Are other characters well drawn? Are motivations strong and clear?

Writing Style

Voice: Strong? Too passive?

Any problems with point of view? If there are multiple points of view, are the POV changes handled well?

Does the dialogue sound natural? Is the dialogue of each character distinct, or does everyone sound the same?

Does the dialogue move the story forward?

Were there too many “he said” dialogue tags, or awkward substitutes for “said?” (snarled, hissed.)

As to back story: Is it woven into the story, or are there any info dumps or “As you know, Bob”s (use of dialogue to dump information into the story.)

Is there too much narrative? Too many flashbacks?

Are the sentences clear, or do they need to be reworded to improve clarity?

Is the story well-paced, or does it slow in places?

Is there plenty of white space, or is the writing dense? (In other words, are the paragraphs short and interspersed with dialogue, or are they long blocks of type running a half page—or more.)

Second Draft – This is where you go back and correct the problems that rang true from your critiques.
Then you get your critique group and if possible, a few different people to read your story to see if you improved the story. Just because you rewrite doesn’t mean you have made the manuscript better. If you have, then it is on to the third draft.

You could also hire a consultant to read and critique your story to help you through this process, but that is additional money you will have to spend. This can run you $150 – $5000, according to the amount of pages, the amount of time, and the amount of expertise.

Third Draft – This is where you read every line and decide if each line is written to the best of your ability. Can the sentence be tighten? Have you repeated the same basic thought in more than one sentence? Have you repeated the same word a number of times? Have you overwritten a scene? Do you need every word? If you are writing in first person. Have you avoided starting your sentences with “I” as much as possible? Have you avoided the use of dialog tags where you can? Do your characters act age appropriate? Does your first page hook your reader? Do you have a sagging middle? Do you have a subplot? Do you have tension that builds to the climax? Are there words that can be changed to be more interesting word?  After making these changes, it is on to the 4th draft.

Fourth Draft – This is where you read the book aloud. How do the sentences sound? Do you hear anything that breaks the tension. Do you hear anything that takes you in another direction?

There are many roads to take to get to this point. Now you should be ready to submit your manuscript to publishers or decide on the plan you are going to follow to Self-Publish. Next week we will talk about your plan of action.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

If you have decided to self- publish, there are lots of things you need to know and consider. Don’t think you get to wiggle out of doing your homework and making a plan on the steps you need to take and things you need to consider.

The biggest mistake writer’s make, is thinking their story is ready after they have finished writing their book. Whether you go the traditional route or want to self-publish, it is always a mistake to run out and seek someone to publish your book after the first draft. You should pat yourself on the back, because you have accomplished something that eludes many writers and you have a right to be excited and proud, but 99% of the time it is not ready for publication. You have just taken step one of the publication process.

So many self-published books could have made money for the author, if only they could take control of that excitement of finishing that first draft.  Even if it is your fourth draft and is the best book ever written, don’t mess it up by accepting a bad contract. There are companies who try to act like real publishers, who will take anybody and any book and offer a contract. The author is elated and jumps at the offer. Don’t do That!

I am convinced these companies do not give any thought as to the quality of the content. Sometimes I wonder if they even take the time to read the books submitted. They offer production, distribution, press release, and design and artwork, but it is all so inferior that even if the first draft of the book was well written and unique, it ends up being so ugly and made from such poor quality paper that no one, other than friends and family would purchase the book. Then they throw on an extremely high price, like $25 for a picture book, which further dooms the sale of the book.

These pretend publishers realize everyone has friends and family and will get those sales and occasionally they might get someone who really promotes their book and sells more than 50 copies.  For all their work these motivated authors end up making maybe a total of $150. When if they had taken their time, did their homework, and made the right choices, they could have put out a good book that people actually read and would have made money for them.

There are so many things to consider and now so many forms of publishing your book. At the beginning of the year, I promised to start including self-publishing in my post. Next week, I will start pointing out steps you need to take, places to consider, and what they bring to the table, new formats and how to make that happen, and how to get your book seen and distributed.

Hope you’ll stop back.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

One of the assignments the writer’s attenting the Writer’s Retreat in March are facing is putting together a pitch for the novel they have written.

Goal is to pique interest in what you wrote and hear, “Tell me more!”

A pitch is a two or three sentence summary of your book. You want to: indicate the genre, the basic premise, and to generate interest to the point where the agent or editor wants to read your manuscript. A pitch should tantalizes the listener with a hook that sets your manuscript apart, so choose your words wisely.

To prepare you can:

1. Read movie descriptions.
2. Read the jacket of a few of your favorite novels – that’s the level of detail you want.

It should be a short and snappy, only be about 2-3 minutes long. Here are a few types of pitching techniques you can use:

1. The When a… technique brought to you by Craig Lewis

2. Hollywood-style: This is where you describe your novel as a mix of two other well-known books or movies. Hint: make sure the two you use were both profitable. For example: “It’s Twilight meets Harry Potter.” Then explain in the rest of your pitch.

3. The “Save the Cat” method: The idea is to come up with a sentence or two that describes your novel and includes the following:
• It should be at least somewhat ironic.
• It should paint a compelling mental picture.
• It should give an idea of genre and audience.
• It should have a killer title.

Blake Snyder, screenwriter and teacher, describes this method for coming up with loglines for film ideas in his popular screenwriting book Save the Cat, but it works for pitches, too.

Here are a couple from Blake’s book Save the Cat. They should be movies you know:

“A cop comes to L.A. to visit his estranged wife and her office building is taken over by terrorists.” – Die Hard
“A businessman falls in love with a hooker he hires to be his date for the weekend” – Pretty Woman

Start here, add some interesting details like who your hero is, what his goal is, why he needs it, what’s stopping him from getting it, then focus on the heart of the conflict and you’ll end up with a “knock their socks off” pitch. You cannot go wrong with this formula.

4. The 1,2,3 Log Line Approach:

First log line: a single sentence that includes:
The hero
The hero flaw
The life changing event that starts the story
The opponent
The ally
The battle or conflict

The second log line:
The character who changes & what changes

The third log line:
includes a sentence about the book’s theme. What the character learns? How he or she changes.

Now:

Since so many of us are using social media and are used to packing in lots of details in short sentence, you could hone into this mind thinking when start. Maybe going to Twitter and writing something or using your cell phone to text your pitch to see how it feels.

You can even get an app for your iphone to help you pitch. Here’s the link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pitch-your-book/id432755697?mt=8

Write and Revise: Try writing 10-15 short intros to your pitch. This is the hook. When done pick the best and polish it. If you nail this part you are almost guaranteed to be asked to submit.

Now it is time to describe your book in a bit more detail. Be natural, be excited, be funny (if that is you or part of the book) describe the key turning points of your story, but make it short.

Practice Make Perfect: Pitching can be nerve-wracking, but it gets easier if you do it often, so practice on your family, friends, and anyone else who will listen. The more you do the more relax you will be.

Formal Pitches: If you are doing a formal pitch to an agent or editor at a conference, then finish by asking if your novel sounds like something they’d be interested in and let the discussion evolve. If they request a portion of your book, then make sure you clarify what they are asking for – the first few chapters – the entire manuscript? Remember to ask for a business card and contact information.

Hope this helps! Even if you aren’t attending the Writer’s Retreat or a conference in the near future, you still should be prepared. Opportunities are all around. Don’t let one slip pass you by not being prepared.  I can’t get the memory of a writer I know meeting a publisher in line at a funeral and letting him know about her book, which ended up being the catalyst of her first published book. 

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Are you an Athena when it comes to literary allusions, or are they your kryptonite? Either way, the Oxford Dictionary of Reference and Allusion can be your Henry Higgins, providing fascinating information on the literary and pop culture references that make reading and entertainment so rich. Take this quiz, Zorro, and leave your calling card.

Andrew Delahunty and Sheila Dignen are freelance lexicographers who have extensive experience compiling dictionaries. From classical mythology to modern movies and TV shows, the revised and updated Oxford Dictionary of Reference and Allusion, third edition explains the meanings of more than 2,000 allusions in use in modern English, from Abaddon to Zorro, Tartarus to Tarzan, and Rambo to Rubens.

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This January illustration was sent in by illustrator Louise C Bergeron.  Her work always makes me smile.

In the past month, I have gotten a number of requests for self-publishing information, thus the reason for sharing this information with you.  The one important piece of advice I can personally share is not to rush your book out, because you are excited and can’t wait.  If you want your self-published book to stand up to the big boys, you need to cross every “t” and dot every “i”. We’ll talk more about that over the weeks. 

Digital Book Wired reported:

Responding to a changing self-publishing landscape, including Pearson’s acquisition of leading self-publishing services provider Author Solutions, Penguin’s Book Country workshopping and self-publishing community has made some changes and added new features, including a free ebook creation, publication and distribution tool. It has also raised the royalty rate that it offers authors to 85% of net sales, up from 70%.

Book Country had taken criticism from self-published authors for charging authors for publishing services and for the percent of revenues that it takes after the book goes on sale. Author Solutions, now a sister company to Book Country, has also faced similar criticism.

The writer community and self-publishing platform will also now offer an online editor service that will help authors with their ebook formatting issues. The self-publishing tool will now also be open to all kinds of writers, not just writers of genre fiction, which the tool was focused on before. The writing community, however, will still be limited to genre work. Book Country will now distribute to more retailers and also be abandoning its print self-publishing capabilities.

Read the Full Article

Since its April launch, www.BookCountry.com has nearly 4,000 members who have posted 500 pieces of fiction, according to the company.

The self-publishing tool is integrated with Book Country’s “genre map,” a detailed classification system of many genres and sub-genres, offering authors fairly sophisticated marketing capabilities, including use of BISAC codes that help readers find books in their area of interest. Users are also given an online marketing guide and advice on pricing through a pricing calculator. Revenues from books sold are to be split between Penguin and the authors, depending on the price the author selects for the book and the distribution method.

“You don’t have to drive around with books in the back of your Subaru anymore”, said Penguin global digital director Barton.

Users can opt for professional print- and e-book production through outsourced firms for $549, produce it themselves for print and digital distribution for $299 or produce it themselves for e-book-only distribution for $99.

*******

Random House sold 11.2 million ebook units; Hachette 8.7 million; Harper UK 7.2 million, and Pan Macmillan 4.5 million. Some of those units were driven by the deep-discount 20-pence promotional bestsellers that have roiled the UK market in recent months.

*******

ePublisher Premier Digital announced a strategic alliance with Ingram in a lengthy press release that doesn’t really explain the business relationship, except to say that it covers “the management and distribution of print and digital content” though Ingram’s “integrated print, digital, and full-service distribution services.”

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Yesterday we talked about writing a successful query letter.  Today we are going to discuss how to find the right agent for those query letters.  I know you might be saying, “Just give me an agent, any agent and I’ll be happy.”  Well, be careful what you wish for, you might get it and it might not be pretty.

It is important to do your homework and learn everything you can about the agents you are considering.  What good is sending an agent a query if they would never be interested in the type of book or writing you do? What good would it do you to have an agent who makes you feel uncomfortable? Make list of agents and  narrow it down.

Here are my homework suggestions for finding the right Agent:

1. When you read a novel you like and you can see similarity to what you are writing, look in the back of the book to see if the author thanked their agent or editor. Write down the names.

2. Visit Literary Agency’s websites and look at the bios of the agents. They list the genres each agent is looking for and their likes and dislikes.  Add the names of the ones that fit what you are writing to your list.  Cross off the ones that don’t fit.

3. Many agents are on Twitter – Follow them.  You can find out little things about them to clue you in on their personality and things they like.  Occasionally, they will say something about what they would like to receive.  Here is the link to Galleycat. They have a list of agents on Twitter. Just understand that the information was posted in April of 2011, so some of the information has changed. Example: Mary Kole is no longer at Andrea Brown and John Cusick is no longer at Scott Treimel NY. They both are still on Twitter.

4. Look for agent and editor blogs and follow the ones on your list.

5. Keep your eyes open for blogs that write about the publishing industry.  Check out your favorite author blogs, too. Keep your list on your desk and write down important information as you find it.

6. Check out conferences and workshops, even the ones that you do not expect to attend. They list the agents attending and give you information about each one.  So what if  you don’t attend, you have increased you knowledge of the movers and the shakers in the industry. Sign-up for a few each year, where the agents on your list are on the faculty.

Why is it important to attend a few conferences or workshop each year? ANSWER: It lets you see the agent in person and get a feel for what they are like.  Are they snarky, soft spoken, friendly, not friendly, sound like they know the industry or not? An agent may look good on paper, but meeting them in person will give you a better chance to know if you would get along with them.

NOTE: Not all conferences are equal.  Do you homework in this area, too.  Find out which ones actually help you mingle with the agents and editors. At the June New Jersey SCBWI conference, we encourage the faculty to mingle with the members. The editors have even helped introduce members to agents with a recommendation for the agent to take them on as a client.

7. Network. Talk to other writers and  illustrators and pick their brains.  Ask others about the agents on your list. Meet an editor at a conference? Work an agent question into the conversation. This will help you narrow your list down and you never know where the networking will end up.

8. Read Publisher’s Lunch it’s free, but if you are interested in sales and contracts, pay for access to the full version of Publisher’s Marketplace. If you are part of a Writer’s Group, you could share the costs. Lots of valuable information about how successful the agent you are considering is with books deals.  Of course, don’t stick your nose up at a new agent.  You might have a better chance getting your foot in the door with them and they could be the next big agent in the industry.

Of course, it is always a leap of faith when choosing someone to work with, but if you do the above you will increase you chances of success. If you have any other good ideas to add, please send so we can all benefit.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

The goal of query letter is to elicit an invitation from an agent (or editor) to send in sample chapters or the whole manuscript.

A query letter is a ONE PAGE letter with three concise paragraphs: the hook, the mini-synopsis, and your writer’s biography. Don’t stray, if you want to be taken seriously as a professional writer. Keep it simple. Stick to three paragraphs.

Paragraph One—The Hook: A hook is a concise, one-sentence tagline for your book. It’s meant to hook your reader’s interest, and reel them in.

Example:  Bridges of Madison County

When Robert Kincaid drives through the heat and dust of an Iowa summer and turns into Francesca Johnson’s farm lane looking for directions, the world-class photographer and the Iowa farm wife are joined in an experience that will haunt them forever.

Agent Query suggests using the when formula: “When such and such event happens, your main character—a descriptive adjective, age, professional occupation—must confront further conflict and triumph in his or her own special way. Sure, it’s a formula, but it’s a formula that works.”

Note: Many writers use the “when” formula, so use it as a starting point. Write your basic hook and then spice it up.

Example: Non-”formulatic” fiction hook:

The Da Vinci Code
A murder in the silent after-hour halls of the Louvre museum reveals a sinister plot to uncover a secret that has been protected by a clandestine society since the days of Christ.

Paragraph Two—Mini-synopsis: This is where boil down your entire novel into one paragraph and expand your hook. Put in the hard work of practicing and revising, until you get that paragraph to sing the same tune as your whole book. Read the back flap of books you like to get a feel for how to create a juicy paragraph.

Paragraph Three—Writer’s bio: Keep it short and related to writing. If your book revolves around a hospital and you are a nurse, then say that. If you have a published book, been published in some magazines, etc,, or won a writing contest or award, then let the agent know. if you’ve never been published, never won any awards, hold no writing degrees, and have no credentials to write your book, then don’t say it. This just gives you more space for Paragraph Two.

The Closing: Thank the agent for their time and consideration. Let the agent know you have the full manuscript available upon request. Note: Never query an agent unless you have written, revised, and finished your full manuscript.

TIPS:

1. Always address your query to a specific person.

2. Make sure you mention the title of your book.

3. Mention the word count and genre of your book.    

Note: Novels should be 80,000 to 100,000 words. Young adult novels can be significantly less: 40,000-60,000 words. Insert word count and genre at the end of your first “hook” paragraph.

If your novel is 200,000 words – Cut before you query.  No one wants an overweight manuscript. AgentQuery reports unless your manuscript is a historical family saga or an epic science fiction battle, agents hit DELETE on proposed first-time novel over 110,000-120,000 words.

4. Share the reason why you are querying this particular agent. Let the agent know that you have researched them and have a reason for choosing them for representation.

5.  Have someone you know check for typos and grammar mistakes. It is very easy when e-mailing a query letter to click the send button before throughly checking your text.  Writers seem to be in the mode to triple check everything when they snail mail their queries, but since we send so many personal e-mails without closely checking every word, that “Send” button can be easily clicked.  The mistake snail mailing query writers make is forgetting to include their contact information – something you don’t need to include with an e-mail. I know that sounds crazy, but I have seen it when writers have sent me submissions for editors and agents.

Need to see an ACTUAL query letter before you’ll know how to write one? Here is the query letter Author (at the time agent) Nathan Bransford:

Dear Ms. Drayton,

As a young literary agent with Curtis Brown Ltd. I have long admired Inkwell, as well as your strong track record. To paraphrase Douglas Adams, if you searched for a book that was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike THE BOOK THIEF (which I absolutely loved), you might just have JACOB WONDERBAR AND THE COSMIC SPACE KAPOW, a middle-grade-and-up science fiction novel that I just completed. Still fun! But no one dies – Mr. Death would be lonely.

Jacob Wonderbar has been the bane of every substitute teacher at Magellan Middle School ever since his dad moved away from home. He never would have survived without his best friend Dexter, even if he is a little timid, and his cute-but-tough friend Sarah Daisy, who is chronically overscheduled. But when the trio meets a mysterious man in silver one night they trade a corn dog for his sassy spaceship and blast off into the great unknown. That is, until they break the universe in a giant space kapow and a nefarious space buccaneer named Mick Cracken maroons Jacob and Dexter on a tiny planet that smells like burp breath. The friends have to work together to make it back to their little street where the houses look the same, even as Earth seems farther and farther away.

JACOB WONDERBAR AND THE COSMIC SPACE KAPOW is 50,000 words and stands alone, but I have ideas for a series, including titles such as JACOB WONDERBAR FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSE and JACOB WONDERBAR AND THE VACATIONING ALIENS FROM ANOTHER PLANET. I’m the author of an eponymous agenting and writing blog.

I’d be thrilled if you would consider WONDERBAR for representation, and a few other agents are considering simultaneously. Thanks very much, and hope to talk to you soon.

Nathan Bransford

Here are a few other places to look:

Nathan Bransford dissects a really good query letter and extoll its virtues.

Click Here to Visit Galleycat. They have 23 Agent Query Letters That Actually Worked.

Nonfiction writers don’t need to have a completed fiction manuscript.  They only need a proposal before seeking representation from an agent. Here’s are books and places to help with writing a proposal:

• “How to Write a Non-Fiction Proposal” Former literary agent, Nathan Bransford.
• Agent Sharlene Martin’s book, Publish Your Nonfiction Book: Strategies for Learning the Industry, Selling Your Book, and Building a Successful Career By Sharlene Martin and Anthony Flacco
• How to Write a Book Proposal, 4th Edition By Michael Larsen

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

December illustration by Susan Drawbough. Susan has been creating whimsical artwork for children’s markets and publishing for years – magazine covers, picture games, and books. Being constantly around children from toddler age to middle school provides Susan with tons of inspiration. www.susandrawbaugh.com/

I managed to post everyday again this year.  Lot of posts informed visitors of contests they could enter.  Others tired to keep you up-to-date with Industry changes, while others let you know editor and agents likes and dislikes, and other industry talk.  Plus I tried to share successes, so we could all find hope and share the joy.  Here are the articles that I felt were worth another visit.  You may have missed them during the year.

Writing Cross Culturally

Agents for Picture Book Writers

Book Scouts

What Teachers and Librarians Need Now

Industry Changes: Jenny Bent Weighs in on the Good and Bad

Categorized Children’s Picture Books

It All Starts With Research (not the kind you think)

Words of Wisdom from Penn & Teller

Ten Character Development Tips

Tropes, Foils, and Other Writing Definitions

Tips to Avoid Horror Story School Visits

He Said, She Said – Using Dialog Tags

Writing and Publishing in the Digital Age

Non-Fiction Writing and Illustrating Offers Publishing Opportunities

How to Approach a Critique Session

Picture Book Writing Tips

Chipping Away at Writer’s Block

Crafting a Picture Book Dummy

Market Your Book─ Without The Book

Book Fairs and Exhibits

Re-Imaging Your Picture Book

Effective Query Letters

First to Final Draft – Novel Developmental Process

Book Contracts & Negotiations

Wordless Picture Books

Formatting for Maximum Visibility

How to Pitch and Submit Illustrated Projects

There’s a Whole Universe Out There:  World Building

Using Academic Standards as a Marketing Tool

Summoning the Muse

World Building

Too Theme or Not to Theme

School Visits – Teacher Talk

Free Database of Publishers Accepting Submissions

Five Opening Novel Blunders

Gone in Seconds

Story Behind the Newbery

Editor Answers Questions

Look into Tension

Develop a Thick Skin

The Waiting Game Tips

Killing Your Darlings

Hooking Your Readers

Finding the Perfect Name for Your Characters

Poetry Critique/Revision Checklist

Can You Answer “YES?” – Synopsis Questions

Critiquing Your Writing? Nine Story Elements to Check

Critiquing?  Revising? 10 Writing Style Elements to Check

Inner Lives of Your Characters

Finding Photos

Write What You Know

Show don’t Tell – When to Break the Rule

TENSION

Will Your Manuscript Keep Your Readers Reading

First Pass Editing List

Screen Writing Plot Techniques

The Journey of Writing a Novel

Agent and Editor on Trends in YA and Kidlit

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Seven reference resources for writers. 

http://www.dailywritingtips.com/7-reference-resources-for-writers-and-editors/

Ruth Sanderson 

Mike Wimmer

Christopher Bing 

By Georgia Mierswa

The New York office’s 13th floor conference room — a quiet, large space with no outside light — functions surprisingly well as miniature studio. Within a few hours of the film crew arriving, the office chairs and table have been removed, a green screen unfurled, camera, lights, and mic all assembled, and the Publisher of Scholarly and Online Reference is sitting in the spotlight, prepped for his interview. Things are running pretty smoothly. There’s been a small glitch with the equipment, but a new lighting piece has been ordered and is on its way. At least no one is wearing white (“it’s harsh on the face,” says the producer) or something stripy (“harsh on the camera”).

Damon Zucca, Publisher of Scholarly and Online Reference at Oxford University Press. Photo by Georgia Mierswa.

When I started as a Marketing Assistant for Online Products, my first assignment was to coordinate with a film company to develop four-five minute videos about each of our top online scholarly resources. The UK-based HobsonCurtis production team fit the bill exactly. They had already worked with Oxford to create a company video, and their work was high quality, creative, and accessible. Since our initial meeting, the online marketing team has commissioned nearly a dozen projects and completed two full-length videos, the most recent of which features Oxford’s new discovery service the Oxford Index.

Before the shooting even begins for a video like the Oxford Index promo, our to-do list looks something like this:

• Brainstorm with the team to decide which voices and perspectives are most important in shaping the film. What story do we want to tell? Who are the key players?
• Communicate this story in a meeting with Florence Curtis (Producer) and James Hobson (Editor) to get them on board with our vision. Set up a schedule with appropriate deadlines.
• Send them the web address, key facts, and any other materials to familiarize them with the online product, so they feel as comfortable talking about it as we do.
• Seek out Oxford staffers involved with the product, international scholars, and librarians with a passion for digital publishing and invite them to participate. Stress to the participants outside Oxford that they have no obligation to promote Oxford’s products — we just want them to talk about what they know!
• Schedule the participants who accept (by far the most time-consuming step, but nit-picky organization now is better than a chaotic, stressed-out crew on the day of filming. I’m just guessing…).
• Block off a location in the New York offices for a week of filming. Notify all key staff that they may see a cameraman walking around and not to worry. This is not for a reality TV show.
• Plan out the filler shots (i.e. students working at computers in the library, staffers in discussion at an editorial meeting) to intersperse between interviews. Book those locations.
• When the week of the shoot rolls around, take a deep breath, keep an eye on your Blackberry for last minute changes, and make sure everyone is comfortable and relaxed. A happy interviewee is a good interviewee. The best, according to Florence, are not only experts in their field, they’re also openly passionate and enthusiastic about sharing their “world” with an audience.

This whole process takes one to two months and is really only the groundwork for the creative stages of the project. Once the interviews have been completed, Florence and James put all the various sound bites together and come up with a ‘rough cut’ of the video. “Soundbites are weaved into a full script to complement key messages,” explained Florence. “We normally opt for opinions rather than facts and stats, but we also look for sections that are delivered well, with energy.”

Once the narrative is clearly outlined, that’s when the really polished pieces are added in, including screenshots of the web pages, a professional voiceover, and graphical representations of site features, like this:

A screengrab from the Oxford Index teaser.

A screengrab from the University Press Scholarship Online video.

Our team can feel free to give feedback, alter the order of shots (as long as it doesn’t compromise the story structure), or make edits to the voiceover script. Typically these changes are minimal. After months of prep work, the crew and our staff are almost always on the same page. If the video is clear and conveys the key messages about the product and its purpose, we consider it successful.

After the final sign off from our team’s director, we’re good to go! The video’s off to YouTube, OUP.com, our Twitter feed, and more. The sky’s the limit.

Full length videos:

University Press Scholarship Online

Click here to view the embedded video.

Oxford Index

Click here to view the embedded video.

Mini video projects:

University Press Scholarship Online for Librarians

Click here to view the embedded video.

University Press Scholarship Online for Partners

Click here to view the embedded video.

Oxford Index Teaser

Click here to view the embedded video.

Oxford Scholarly Editions Online

Click here to view the embedded video.

Damon Zucca, Publisher of Scholarly and Online Reference, reviews his notes before the interview: “We always prefer natural conversation,” said Florence (right) “and no scripting, as this can be a little contrived.”

Damon Zucca, Publisher of Scholarly and Online Reference, with Florence Curtis, Producer at Hobson Curtis. Photo by Georgia Mierswa.

A graduate of Hamilton College and the Columbia Publishing Course, Georgia Mierswa is a marketing assistant at Oxford University Press and reports to the Global Marketing Director for online products. She began working at OUP in September 2011.

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Image credit: Close-up shot of a lens from high-end DV camcorder. Photo by TommL, iStockphoto.

As many of you might know, our beloved Judy Blume was recently diagnosed with Breast Cancer.  She says she feels she is going to be okay, but she is scheduled to get a mastectomy, followed by breast reconstruction. You can read more details on Judy’s blog. http://www.judyblume.com/blog.php. 

I know everyone reading this blog will add Judy to their prayers.  Judy, we love you and truely hope all of this will be resolved soon and you back on your feet in short order.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself when reading a synopsis – Hint: Your answers should be YES.

• Is there enough conflict to carry the story?
• Are the main plot points included?
• Was the ending reveal?
• Were the character names capitalized when first introduced?
• Does it avoid giving too much detail?
• Are characters’ goals/motivations/conflicts clear?
• Does the feel of the story (humorous, suspenseful, etc.) come through in the synopsis?
• Did it get the above done in 1 single space page to 2 double space pages?

Tip from Chuck Sambuchino over at Writer’s Unboxed says, “Take more care and time if you’re writing genre fiction. Synopses are especially difficult to compose if you’re writing character-driven (i.e., literary) fiction, because they may not be a whole lot of plot in the book. Agents and editors understand this, and put little (or no) weight into a synopsis for literary or character-driven stories. However, if you’re writing genre fiction — specifically categories like romance, fantasy, thriller, mystery, horror or science fiction — agents will quickly want to look over your characters and plot points to make sure your book has a clear beginning, middle and end, as well as some unique aspects they haven’t seen before in a story. So if you’re getting ready to submit a genre story, don’t blow through your synopsis; it’s important.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Here are somethings to look for and ask yourself when doing a critique of your own writing or someone elses.

• Are there opening hooks (for both the start of the manuscript and the beginning of each chapter,) as well as hooks at the end of chapters?

• Is the conflict strong, or is it contrived and something a conversation could resolve?

• Setting? Does it seem real?

• Are the senses involved? (description of smell, touch, taste, etc.)

• Does the story hold your interest? If not, where did you lose interest?

• Accuracy and consistency: Do the facts seem accurate, (no cell phones in the 1700s, for example) and are they consistent (blue eyes don’t turn green somewhere along the way.)

• Were you able to suspend disbelief? (Of course, if it is your own story, you will probably not be the best person to judge this. Here is where a critique group will help.)

• Does the story work? Do you want to read more? (This another place where your critique group can help.)

• With characters, ask yourself: Are the main characters three-dimensional? Sympathetic? Are other characters well drawn? Are motivations strong and clear?

I want to thank Anita Nolan www.anitanolan.com for sending these into share with us. Tomorrow I will share 10 Writing Style Elements to Check that Anita sent, so check back.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

How do you choose the right word? Some just don’t fit what you’re trying to convey, either in the labor of love prose for your creative writing class, or the rogue auto-correct function on your phone.

Can you shed lacerations instead of tears? How is the word barren an attack on women? How do writers such as Joshua Ferris, Francine Prose, David Foster Wallace, Zadie Smith, and Simon Winchester weigh and inveigh against words?

We sat down with Katherine Martin and Allison Wright, editors of the Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus, to discuss what makes a word distinctive from others and what writers can teach you about language.

Writing Today, the Choice of Words, and the Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus

Click here to view the embedded video.

Reflections in the Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Use and Abuse of a Thesaurus

Click here to view the embedded video.

Katherine Martin is Head of US Dictionaries at Oxford University Press. Allison Wright is Editor, US Dictionaries at Oxford University Press.

Much more than a word list, the Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus is a browsable source of inspiration as well as an authoritative guide to selecting and using vocabulary. This essential guide for writers provides real-life example sentences and a careful selection of the most relevant synonyms, as well as new usage notes, hints for choosing between similar words, a Word Finder section organized by subject, and a comprehensive language guide. The third edition revises and updates this innovative reference, adding hundreds of new words, senses, and phrases to its more than 300,000 synonyms and 10,000 antonyms. New features in this edition include over 200 literary and humorous quotations highlighting notable usages of words, and a revised graphical word toolkit feature showing common word combinations based on evidence in the Oxford Corpus. There is also a new introduction by noted language commentator Ben Zimmer.

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View more about this book on the

By Katherine Connor Martin

Back in January we published a short glossary of the jargon of the presidential primaries. Now that the campaign has begun in earnest, here is our brief guide to some of the most perplexing vocabulary of this year’s general election.

Nominating conventions

It may seem like the 2012 US presidential election has stretched on for eons, but it only officially begins with the major parties’ quadrennial nominating conventions, on August 27–30 (Republicans) and September 3–6 (Democrats). How can they be called nominating conventions if we already know who the nominees are? Before the 1970s these conventions were important events at which party leaders actually determined their nominees. In the aftermath of the tumultuous 1968 Democratic convention, however, the parties changed their nominating process so that presidential candidates are now effectively settled far in advance of the convention through a system of primaries andcaucuses, leaving the conventions themselves as largely ceremonial occasions.

Purple states, swing states, and battleground states

These three terms all refer to more or less the same thing: a state which is seen as a potential win for either of the two major parties; in the UK, the same idea is expressed by the use of marginal to describe constituencies at risk. The termbattleground state is oldest, and most transparent in origin: it is a state that the two sides are expected to actively fight over. Swing state refers to the idea that the state could swing in favor of either of the parties on election day; undecided voters are often called swing voters. Purple state is a colorful metaphorical extension of the terms red state and blue state, which are used to refer to a safe state for the Republicans or Democrats, respectively (given that purple is a mixture of red and blue). Since red is the traditional color of socialist and leftist parties, the association with the conservative Republicans may seem somewhat surprising. In fact, it is a very recent development, growing out of the arbitrary color scheme on network maps during the fiercely contested 2000 election between George W. Bush and Al Gore.

Electoral vote

What really matters on election day isn’t the popular vote, but the electoral vote. The US Constitution stipulates that the president be chosen by a body, theelectoral college, consisting of electors representing each state (who are bound by the results of their state election). The total number of electors is 538, with each state having as many electors as it does senators and representatives in Congress (plus 3 for the District of Columbia).  California has the largest allotment, 55. With the exception of Maine and Nebraska, all of the states give their electoral votes to the winner of the popular vote in their state on a winner-takes-all basis, and whichever candidate wins the majority of electoral votes (270) wins the election. This means it is technically possible to win the popular vote but lose the election; in fact, this has happened three times, most recently in the 2000 election when Al Gore won the popular vote, but George W. Bush was elected president.

Veepstakes

The choice of a party’s candidate for vice president is completely in the hands of the presidential nominee, making it one of the big surprises of each campaign cycle and a topic of endless media speculation. The perceived jockeying for position among likely VP picks has come to be known colloquially as theveepstakes. The 2012 veepstakes are, of course, already over, with Joe Biden and Paul Ryan the victors.

Super PAC

If there is a single word that most characterizes the 2012 presidential election, it is probably this one. A super PAC is a type of independent political action committee (PAC for short), which is allowed to raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, and individuals but is not permitted to coordinate directly with candidates. Such political action committees rose to prominence in the wake of the 2010 Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission and related lower-court decisions, which lifted restrictions on independent political spending by corporations and unions. Advertising funded by these super PACs is a new feature of this year’s campaign.

501(c)(4)

It isn’t often that an obscure provision of the tax code enters the general lexicon, but discussions of Super PACS often involve references to 501(c)(4)s. These organizations, named by the section of the tax code defining them, are nonprofit advocacy groups which are permitted to participate in political campaigns. 501(c)(4) organizations are not required to disclose their donors. This, combined with the new Super PACs, opens the door to the possibility of political contributions which are not only unlimited but also undisclosed: if a Super PAC receives donations through a 501(c)(4), then the original donor of the funds may remain anonymous.

The horse race

As we’ve discussed above, what really matters in a US presidential election is the outcome of the electoral vote on November 6. But that doesn’t stop commentators and journalists from obsessing about the day-to-day fluctuations in national polls; this is known colloquially as focusing on the horse race.

The online magazine Slate has embraced the metaphor and actually produced an animated chart of poll results in which the candidates are represented as racehorses.

This article originally appeared on the OxfordWords blog.

Katherine Connor Martin is a lexicographer in OUP’s New York office.

Oxford Dictionaries Online is a free site offering a comprehensive current English dictionary, grammar guidance, puzzles and games, and a language blog; as well as up-to-date bilingual dictionaries in French, German, Italian, and Spanish. The premium site, Oxford Dictionaries Pro, features smart-linked dictionaries and thesauruses, audio pronunciations, example sentences, advanced search functionality, and specialist language resources for writers and editors.

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Though listed as a reference book, The Lifespan of a Fact is really a heated and often hilarious battle between essayist John D'Agata and his fact checker at the Believer, Jim Fingal. John's flippant responses frustrate Jim so much that he retaliates by taking stabs at the former's mom (and perhaps even quits the editing biz [...]

Quick study paintings and my digital paint sketchbook.

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Below are a few definitions of important words used to define areas of writing.  It should give you food for thought when revising or writing the first draft of your novel.

TROUPE

Common pattern in a story.  The story or a recognizable attribute in a character that conveys information to the audience.  If over used , it can become a cliché and sadly, some of these troupes often perpetuates offensive stereotypes.

CHEKHOV’S GUN

Chekhov’s Gun is a literary technique whereby an unimportant element introduced early in the story becomes significant later on. For example, a character may find a mysterious necklace that turns out to be the power source to evil, but at the time of finding the object it does not seem important.

Many people consider the phrase “Chekhov’s gun” synonymous with foreshadowing (and they are related), but statements the author made about the Gun can be more properly interpreted as “do not include any unnecessary elements in a story.”  Like Foreshadowing, the object’s importance often goes unnoticed by the audience, and becomes clear only in retrospect, or during a second viewing.

Used properly, this rule gives the item in question some degree of presence before being used, enough to prevent appearing like the writer is pulling something out of thin air that might jar and/or grate on the reader’s willingness to suspend disbelief. It can, however, turn out to be a red herring later on.

DENOUEMENT 

Dénouement (pronounced day-noo-mahn) is French for “unknotting”, and means the point in the story when mysteries are unraveled, fates are determined and explanations are made. It is not, as is commonly believed, synonymous with climax: This is the aftermath of the action, not the peak. It is usually the scene after the climax — although, it can happen in such close proximity to the events of the climax that it may appear to be part of its final moments.  Not all stories have dénouements.

How final and extensive it is depends on the scale of the plot — and whether there may be a sequel. This is where you would put in a “Sequel Hook”, if you envision a series.

For a happy ending or even a bittersweet ending, this is generally where the happiness is shown. This is the place where many of the usual rules, directed at keeping the conflict going, are suspended.  If “The Hero” and “The Love Interest” marry at the climax, the dénouement may show them happily waiting for the birth of a child, or cooing over the child.

In the unhappy ending or even the bittersweet ending, the tragedy is often allowed to ease off. “The Hero” dies at the climax; the Dénouement shows his funeral, or his friends raising their glasses to their absence friend. The star-crossed lovers had to part; the Dénouement shows them going on with their lives, however sadly.

If too long, your reader will suffer from ending fatigue. If it’s missing, there’s no ending.

FOIL

Over the years, jewelers often put shiny metal foil underneath a gem to make the stone shine brighter. A literary foil is someone who highlights another character’s trait, usually by contrast, but sometimes by competing with him, making snarky remarks, or egging him on.

Sidekicks often serve as foils to the hero by being something the hero himself is not.  Example: a calm and pragmatic sidekick when the hero is hotheaded.

Any two characters or character types can serve as foils to each other. There is a large number of character types that exist primarily for the purpose of being a foil, usually to the main character.

In the classic good-guy versus bad guy sc

Good character development is believable and rounds out a well-written character. Bad character development leads to the feeling that someone is manipulating the events on a whim and can reduce the character’s believability.

Below are some things that you may want to consider adding to your characters:

Character Tics: Facial expressions and physical gestures as idioms. Things like Spock’s “Fascinating” eyebrow-raise, the wide eyes of surprise, the “these people are crazy” eye-roll, the furrowed brow of anger, the other kind of furrowed brow of concentration, and the lip-curl of disgust.

Food Fetish: A character is partly defined by a Trademark Favorite Food that he or she craves and eats, all the time.

The writer needs to be aware that when a character exhibits an obsession for food that corresponds with a stereotype for his race or culture, readers may become so irritated that it can only be used in parody, satire, homage or pastiche.

Verbal Tic: It can be a word, sound, or phrase that shows up in various places in a character’s dialogue.

Catch Phrase: It should be always the same and be repeated multiple times.

Phobia: Fear of blood, snakes, spiders, heights, germs, needles, etc.

Collector: Can you give a character something to collect? The possibilities are almost endless: Normal things like movies, stamps, baby animals figurines, bottle caps, books, action figures, Legos, or it could be something bizarre maybe a collection of various types of toenails.

Angst: Divorce, death of a parent or sibling, bereavement, illness, poverty, parental favoritism, losing a boyfriend or girlfriend, jealousy, embarrassment, etc.

Back Story: A good writer has a strong sense of each character’s Back Story, as it gives the character or characters texture and shadings and keeps them from being two-dimensional. It provides an excellent source to give the reader new information which had been withheld to create suspense. You can reveal bits and pieces as the story goes along as to why your character resents another character or why he suffers from bad dreams, etc. It should always be relevant to the plot.

In the Shadows: Someone’s face, or whole body, is kept in shadows until just the right moment, before they are revealed to the reader.

The Big Entrance: Giving a character a big entrance will grab your readers attention and could be use to help define them. But it needs to be over-the-top and cool, ensuring that every character’s eyes are on that entrance. It has to be loud, it has to be overly dramatic and did I say cool?

This is just the tip of the iceburg, but I thought it would give you something to think about.
Talk tomorrow,

Kathy