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Guest Blogger: Chuck Sambuchino, editor and writer for Writer’s Digest, and host of the Guide To Literary Agents blog.
 

Here’s Chuck:
 

September 2015 sees the release of three of my new books, the 2016 Guide to Literary Agents, the 2016 Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market, and the anti-clown humor book When Clowns Attack: A Survival Guide.
 
To celebrate their release, we are bringing back a popular recurring contest: The “Worst Storyline Ever”—a competition that encourages terrible loglines. Winners get prizes.
 

The “Worst Storyline Ever” Contest 2.0

 
A logline is one sentence that explains what your story is about and shows the “hook” – the unique idea that makes people want to see more. You see loglines all the time on the back of DVD boxes. Here are some examples:

• “Three middle-aged men defeat their midlife crises by starting a college fraternity.” (Old School)
• “When a Roman general is betrayed and his family murdered by an evil emperor, he comes to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge.” (Gladiator)
• “In a future where criminals are arrested before the crime occurs, a cop struggles on the lam to prove his innocence for a murder he has not yet committed.” (Minority Report)

 
But that’s all the examples I’m going to give you, because I’m not looking for good examples of a logline; I’m looking for bad examples. Terrible, stupid, “oh-my-gosh-that-idea-REEKS” examples.
 
Examples of Bad Loglines (Previous Winners/Finalists):

1. “After an unidentified cow swallows an armed nuclear device in a botched Homeland Security raid, Agent Tom Anderson is thrust into an unlikely partnership with buxom organic farmer Daisy Jones to sift through three hundred cows and 10 barns full of manure as the clock runs down in a desperate quest to save Kansas City from a moo-clear disaster.”
2. “A young woman discovers she is half unicorn after farting a rainbow at her bat mitzvah, and must go on a hijinx-filled voyage of self discovery to find her real father and fit as ‘one of the herd.’”
3. “Leonard the narcoleptic snail sets out on his lifelong dream of running the Boston Marathon while humming ‘Macarena,’ and invites you to join the excitement in real time.”

Stick to the format, but have fun with the idea. Your logline must be one sentence, 60 words or fewer, and explain what the movie/book is about. It’s what you put in that one sentence that will win you this competition. The trick is to make your logline a terribly creative idea that’s pitched in a minimal, professional manner.
 
The contest will go until the end of the day, 11:59 p.m., PDT, Tuesday, October 20th, two weeks from today. Submissions received after that will not be considered.
 
Chuck will judge the contest, with some possible input from other WD and WD Books staffers.
 
To participate, simply leave a comment at the end of this post with your submission and your full name. Make sure we are able to reach you through your website or email. Comment by clicking: HERE.
 

You can submit up to two (2) bad loglines. You can include both in the same comment if you wish.
 
The contest is open to everyone of all ages, save those employees, officers and directors of GLA’s publisher, F+W: A Content and eCommerce Company (formerly F+W Media).
 
If you have any questions about the contest, e-mail Chuck directly at [email protected]. Do not leave them in the comments and do not e-mail Rachelle.
 
You do not have to share news of this contest to enter, but if you want to share this fun contest with others, here is an easy tweet:

Create the worst storyline you can – and win writing prizes. http://bit.ly/1KClppO via @chucksambuchino and @rachellegardner.   Click to Tweet

There will be 3 winners.

Each winner receives:

• A critique by Chuck Sambuchino of either your one-page query letter or one-page synopsis .
• Your pick of a free book from any of his 3 recent releases:

2016 Guide to Literary Agents

2016 Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market

When Clowns Attack: A Survival Guide.

Chuck Sambuchino is an editor and instructor for Writer’s Digest Books. Find him on Twitter.


 

The post The Worst Storyline Ever Contest 2.0 appeared first on Rachelle Gardner.

I have a post up at PubSmart today. In case you haven’t heard, PubSmart is a new writers’ conference debuting this April in Charleston, SC, with the goal of bringing together self publishing, traditional, small press and hybrid. PubSmart is about introducing new models that lead to smart decisions about how to seize opportunities in today’s transformed book marketplace. I’m thrilled to be on the faculty of this terrific new conference! Keynote speakers are Hugh Howey and Jane Friedman, and the faculty includes heavy hitters from all walks of today’s expanded publishing world.Learn more on the PubSmartCon website.
 
Here’s a preview of my post:
 

What’s Your Book About?

 
Everyone attends conference for their own reasons—to learn, to network, to get a break from home. One of the primary advantages of a conference is the opportunity to talk to people, including fellow writers and others in the industry. Naturally, one thing you’ll want to talk about is your work, whether you’re in a formal pitch session or just hanging out having drinks. But talking about our work is sometimes challenging! So here are seven tips for discussing your book(s) effectively.
 
1. Be prepared. You never know when you’re going to come across someone who will ask, “So what’s your book about?” Mealtimes, hallway chatting, elevator rides, and designated pitch sessions. Prepare ahead of time so you’ll never be caught stammering, “Well, it’s um… it’s kind of an… uh…”
 
2. While preparing, remember that you’re going to be talking to someone. There are differences between verbal and written pitches. Your speaking voice is different from your writing voice. Make sure you don’t prepare something that sounds too “canned” i.e. written.
 
Click HERE to read the complete post.
 
→And don’t forget our special Facebook event today! Books for writers specially priced at 99 cents, plus all-day chats happening with the authors of these books. Click here for more info.

The post What’s Your Book About? appeared first on Rachelle Gardner.

I’ve posted on this topic numerous times, but since I’m going to a conference this week and will be hearing dozens of pitches, I wanted to go over (once again) some tips for pitching to agents and editors. We can probably all agree on the “don’ts” of pitching your project. Don’t pitch in the bathroom. Don’t pitch a novel that’s nowhere near ready. Don’t pitch with your mouth full. What are some positive tips we can all use?

I think the secret to making a great pitch is to start with a bit of context or background, then tell me about your book. It doesn’t have to be in-depth, considering your time restraints. But take a moment to introduce yourself and your project before pitching.

Too often, people sit down and nervously launch into some kind of story and I find myself dizzy with confusion. I sit there like a deer in the headlights and then I say something like, “Let’s back up. What’s your name? And is this fiction or nonfiction?”

To me, the best pitches include the following information without me having to ask for it:

My name is _____ and I wanted to meet with you because _____.

I’m writing ______ (what genre).

My publishing history includes _____(number of books, genres).

Today I want to tell you about my book called _____ .

Then, launch into your pitch. This should be 2 to 3 minutes long, MAX, allowing time for the agent or editor to ask questions. Have a 1-minute pitch prepared, too, in case of mealtime or elevator pitches.

Here are some guidelines:

→ Don’t try to tell the whole story. Start with the plot catalyst, the event that gets the story started.

→ Then give the set-up, i.e. what happens in the first 30 to 50 pages that drives the reader into the rest of the book. Include the pressing story question or the major story conflict.

→ Fill out your pitch with any of the following: plot elements, character information, setting, backstory, or theme. You want to include just enough information to really intrigue your listener. Note that your pitch doesn’t have to be all “plot.” If your story is more character driven, then fill out your pitch with interesting character details. If the setting is an important element, talk about that. If the backstory plays heavily, round out your pitch with that. Be intentional in how you structure your pitch.

→ Finish by giving an idea of the climactic scenes and the story resolution.

→ Try not to tell too much of the story in the pitch. The pitch is supposed to get somebody interested, not tell the whole story. Stick to the high points, but be sure to tell enough that you don’t leave your listener confused.

→ Include only a couple of characters.

→ Include one plot thread, or two if they’re closely intertwined. You can hint at the existence of other characters and plot lines.

Be prepared to answer questions that could include things like:
→ How does your story end?
→ What published author’s style would you compare your writing to?
→ Who are your favorite authors in your genre?
→ Is this a series? And if so, what are the subsequent books about?
→ Have you worked with a critique group or a professional editor?
→ Have you pitched this to publishers in the past? If so, what was the response?

Important: Know all the key points of your pitch, but don’t memorize your pitch verbatim. You want to be ready to speak it aloud and sound natural, whether during a planned meeting, a meal, in an elevator or a random encounter. Having your pitches prepared ahead of time (and adjusting them as necessary if you learn new things in workshops) will raise your confidence level.

And most important: To help raise your confidence and lower the nervousness, realize that agents and editors are regular people just like you. We clean our toilets, we change our kids’ poopy diapers, we stress over what to wear and whether we’re having a bad hair day. Also, we REALLY like chocolate. How much more normal could we be?

Have you had any mortifying experiences pitching at conferences? Any great experiences? If you haven’t pitched verbally before, what’s your biggest fear?

Comment below or by clicking: HERE.

TWEETABLES

Pitching: Start with context or background, THEN tell me about your book. Click to Tweet.

Too often, author pitches leave me feeling like a deer in the headlights. Click to Tweet.

The pitch is supposed to get somebody interested, NOT tell the whole story. Click to Tweet.

The post Pitching Your Projects appeared first on Rachelle Gardner.

Upstart Crow Literary agent Chris Richman demonstrates how to boil a novel down to twenty-five scintillating words in an excellent post on the Upstart Crow blog. Check it out!

One thing I've noticed lately in fiction pitches - verbal pitches or queries - is that some writers want to tell all about the theme or the emotional journey of the story, but they have a hard time conveying the actual story.

Every novel has a theme. There's a character arc, in which a character grows and/or changes over the course of the story. There's an emotional progression. But that is NOT the story. That is what is illustrated by the story.

What's a story? It's a plot. It's scenes with action and dialogue. It's people going places and doing things and talking to other people. It's characters taking action to make something happen, to change their situation, to solve a problem, to avoid danger.

Over the weekend as I listened to writers' pitches, I often heard something like (this is hypothetical):

A woman is distraught and angry about her teenage daughter's drug use, but finally comes around to be able to forgive her and help her.

To this, I might ask, "Good, so what's the story?"

Well, the mother has a hard time with this because of her own past drug use, and she vowed her own children would never use drugs, and she has to learn that we're all human and that her daughter needs her help.

Me: "Okay, so how does all of this happen? What's the story?"

Um, the mother finally forgives her daughter, and gets her into rehab.

Grrr. Can you see that this is not a novel? At this point, I've been given a premise and a resolution, but I still have no idea what happens between page 1 and page 400.

Sometimes, this is not about the pitch - it's a problem with the book. Some of you are writing entire 100,000 word novels with no actual real-world story, but instead you've chronicled in devastating detail a character's emotional journey.

Take note: the emotional journey is illustrated and reflected in the real-life action of the story. Again: people going places, doing things, interacting with other people, solving problems, and always working towards a goal.

In the words of my friend the Query Shark (agent Janet Reid), your pitch needs to show:

1. Who is the protagonist?
2. What choice does s/he face?
3. What are the consequences of the choice?

Just to be safe, take a step back from your query. Make sure your book has a protagonist with a choice to face (a conflict), obstacles to overcome, a desired outcome, and consequences (the stakes) if the goal is not reached.

And when it comes time to pitch your novel, talk about the actual real-world story, bringing in your protagonist's emotional journey (or the theme of the book) at the end of your pitch.

Have you been pitching themes and emotional journeys instead of stories?

P.S. The phrase emotional journey could also be replaced with spiritual or psychological journey.
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