Are you brave enough to face the Query Shark?
Have you mastered the art of the query letter? That's the one you write to ask an agent or publisher if they'd consider your masterpiece. In America there are a number of great blogs run by agents or editors that let people send their's in for assessment.
Among the ones I regularly check out are those by Nathan Bransford, Editorial Anonymous and Query Shark.
They aren't just full of fantastic advice but they're also very entertaining and it's fascinating reading what proposals people have put out there.
My favourite is Query Shark and for a while now I've been toying with the idea of sending my query letter to her. I'm fairly happy with the letters I have sent out in the past, and generally they prompt a request for sample chapters, but I know they could be improved. Hopefully she won't rip me to shreds if she opts to post my query!
* Query Shark is run by Janet Reid, a literary agent with FinePrint Literary Management based in New York City, who specialises in crime fiction - but looks at all kinds of genres.
On her blog she says: "I'll be glad to receive a query letter from you; guidelines to help you decide if I'm looking for what you write are below. There are several posts labelled "query pitfalls" and "annoy me" that may help you avoid some common mistakes when querying."
How Query Shark Works
You can send a query letter to the Shark.
It might get posted and critiqued.
It might not.
You'll know either way.
You can send a revised query letter after the critique. You MUST include the post number for it to be posted and critiqued as well.
To send work to the shark: email your query letter to [email protected]
You MUST put Query Shark in the subject line to have it be considered for the blog.
Not all queries will be critiqued - I'll let you know if mine is.
http://queryshark.blogspot.com/
She has another blog too at http://jetreidliterary.blogspot.com/
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By: Susan Humphrey,
on 6/5/2008
Blog: Writer's Block (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: 1, 12339, 14136, 15185, 15183, 15179, 15176, 15181, 15177, 15174, Add a tag
By: The Class of 2k8,
on 1/14/2008
Blog: 2k8: Class Notes (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: dag, lies, poo, elizabeth c bunce, Curse dark as Gold, Add a tag
By: The Class of 2k8,
on 12/24/2007
Blog: 2k8: Class Notes (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Teen Book Review, Elizabeth C. Bunce, Curse dark as Gold, The Reading Zone, Miss Erin, Add a tag
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By: Susan Humphrey,
on 6/5/2008
Blog: Writer's Block (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: 1, 12339, 14136, 15185, 15183, 15179, 15176, 15181, 15177, 15174, Add a tag
By: The Class of 2k8,
on 1/14/2008
Blog: 2k8: Class Notes (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: dag, lies, poo, elizabeth c bunce, Curse dark as Gold, Add a tag
(Pickpocket or writer?)
This week at the Class 2k8, we'll be giving you the inside scoop on some of the lines and names and ideas we've umm.... "borrowed" from other people... and used in our books.
This is not an uncommon practice, for authors to steal (as the saying goes, "good poets borrow, great poets steal") from other books, people, movies, folklore, even the guy sitting at the next table at the Starbuck's talking too loudly on his phone.
Really, everyone does it. Really!
But it's worth talking about. Not because it's shocking or wrong, but because it's FUNNY!
Up first is Elizabeth C. Bunce, author of the upcoming, Curse Dark as Gold. Liz?
There is a complicated backstory to mine, but I'm sure you can smooth it out. Because "Rumpelstiltskin" is, in part, about the power of names, I wanted the characters in CURSE to have literal and/or "meaning-laden" names--the miller's daughter is Charlotte Miller, the blacksmith is Nathan Smith, etc. The crochety old dyemaster is Mr. Mordant (mordant is dye fixative). While I was running the manuscript through critique group, our moderator was subscribing to an email "word of the day" service. One day she brought in the word "dag," which means (cough, cough) a small bit of feces caught in the wool around a sheep's, uh, yeah. She was so excited, and begged me to find a place to use it in CURSE. I resisted, until one of the very final scenes, when suddenly I needed a first name for Mr. Mordant. Dag it was, and it was perfect!
Well, and then I totally stole Pilot, the name of the dog, from JANE EYRE.
This week at the Class 2k8, we'll be giving you the inside scoop on some of the lines and names and ideas we've umm.... "borrowed" from other people... and used in our books.
This is not an uncommon practice, for authors to steal (as the saying goes, "good poets borrow, great poets steal") from other books, people, movies, folklore, even the guy sitting at the next table at the Starbuck's talking too loudly on his phone.
Really, everyone does it. Really!
But it's worth talking about. Not because it's shocking or wrong, but because it's FUNNY!
Up first is Elizabeth C. Bunce, author of the upcoming, Curse Dark as Gold. Liz?
There is a complicated backstory to mine, but I'm sure you can smooth it out. Because "Rumpelstiltskin" is, in part, about the power of names, I wanted the characters in CURSE to have literal and/or "meaning-laden" names--the miller's daughter is Charlotte Miller, the blacksmith is Nathan Smith, etc. The crochety old dyemaster is Mr. Mordant (mordant is dye fixative). While I was running the manuscript through critique group, our moderator was subscribing to an email "word of the day" service. One day she brought in the word "dag," which means (cough, cough) a small bit of feces caught in the wool around a sheep's, uh, yeah. She was so excited, and begged me to find a place to use it in CURSE. I resisted, until one of the very final scenes, when suddenly I needed a first name for Mr. Mordant. Dag it was, and it was perfect!
Well, and then I totally stole Pilot, the name of the dog, from JANE EYRE.
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By: The Class of 2k8,
on 12/24/2007
Blog: 2k8: Class Notes (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Teen Book Review, Elizabeth C. Bunce, Curse dark as Gold, The Reading Zone, Miss Erin, Add a tag
All over the kidlitosphere, folks are hearing about the Class of 2k8 and taking note.
Of course, we couldn't be more thrilled. Just today we noticed that Teen Book Review, and The Reading Zone have linked us!
Elsewhere in blogland, Miss Erin has amazing things to say about our very own Elizabeth C. Bunce's "A Curse Dark as Gold". And it isn't even out for months yet...
Yay!
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