Here's a contest you shouldn't pass up if you're writing a young adult novel and are looking for help from a pro. The Guide to Literary Agents Blog is having one of its fabulous contests called "Dear Lucky Agent" where you submit the first 15 - 200 words of your YA novel and get the chance to win:
1) A critique of the first 10 pages of your work, by your agent judge (the fabulous Tamar Rydzinksi of Laura Dail Literary Agency). 2) A free one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com.
Check out all the juicy details here.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Work Work Work
Sorry that it's been awhile since I've posted. The infrequency will likely continue for a month or so because:
1. The day job is fricking BUSY. Which is good, don't get me wrong. We have four pilots picked up and the networks want most of them yesterday, so we're deep into finding directors, actors, line producers, blah blah blah. It's fascinating to watch people match themselves up to work on a big creative endeavor like a TV pilot. Chemistry is almost as important as talent, seems to me, given how closely these folks have to work together.
2. I'm writing out a plan for a major rewrite. It's not quite the same thing as doing the actual rewrite, it's more like a map of it.
Okay, I guess that's really the first step of a rewrite, is the map. Some people don't map things out at all and they just plunge in, but I'm a planner. I need to know where I'm going. It gives the character's concrete goals and attitudes, so that once I start the actual writing, it flows much faster and I'm less likely to get stuck. If you get stuck a lot, I recommend a writing or rewriting map. Or even if you rewrite a lot - a map can save you some of that time.
Of course, making the map is taking longer than I'd hoped because of #1, above.
3. I'm going to Italy soon. I'm not going to say exactly when because I keep seeing news pieces on people who were robbed because they broadcast online that they were out of town. And the cool part isn't when, it's that I'M GOING TO ITALY!! We'll spend a big chunk of time in Rome, then down to explore Sorrento, Naples, Pompeii, then a few days on the Amalfi Coast. Perhaps we'll toss in a day trip to Capri in there. We'll see how the weather goes and what the boat schedules are.
Mostly I just want to eat the food there. Bringing the stretchy jeans, baby.
I've got my route from airport to hotel all mapped out, day tours of the Vatican and Underground Rome planned (I have a thing for catacombs, laybrinths, tunnels, and the like.) I've printed out articles praising various trattorias, osterias, and gelaterias. I've purchased a lined anorak to combat both cold and wet, and I have the comfy rainproof walking boots I purchased in Prague. Planning's part of the fun.
On, and don't forget the Italian refresher. I bought lessons on cd for Italian 2 (I took a year of Italian in college and got pretty fluent while living in Bologna for a semester). It's weird to wrap my lips around the language again, a kinetic exercise that brings memories of friendly bakers, bus riders, waiters, and passersby flooding back. I haven't been to Rome since college, and then it was only for one day. One day in Rome?? What was I thinking?
I'll post some photos when I return.
Oh, and 4. I'm trying to have some semblance of a life. You know, that whole social/working out/going out/having fun thing. Am in particular looking forward to the Gourd Mutiliation Festival, wherein pumpkins are carved and prizes awarded.
Also, Zenyatta is running in the Breeder's Cup Classic November 6. Set your Tivos!
I'll try to post again before I leave, but meanwhile you can find me on twitter and facebook.
Happy Halloween!
1. The day job is fricking BUSY. Which is good, don't get me wrong. We have four pilots picked up and the networks want most of them yesterday, so we're deep into finding directors, actors, line producers, blah blah blah. It's fascinating to watch people match themselves up to work on a big creative endeavor like a TV pilot. Chemistry is almost as important as talent, seems to me, given how closely these folks have to work together.
2. I'm writing out a plan for a major rewrite. It's not quite the same thing as doing the actual rewrite, it's more like a map of it.
Okay, I guess that's really the first step of a rewrite, is the map. Some people don't map things out at all and they just plunge in, but I'm a planner. I need to know where I'm going. It gives the character's concrete goals and attitudes, so that once I start the actual writing, it flows much faster and I'm less likely to get stuck. If you get stuck a lot, I recommend a writing or rewriting map. Or even if you rewrite a lot - a map can save you some of that time.
Of course, making the map is taking longer than I'd hoped because of #1, above.
3. I'm going to Italy soon. I'm not going to say exactly when because I keep seeing news pieces on people who were robbed because they broadcast online that they were out of town. And the cool part isn't when, it's that I'M GOING TO ITALY!! We'll spend a big chunk of time in Rome, then down to explore Sorrento, Naples, Pompeii, then a few days on the Amalfi Coast. Perhaps we'll toss in a day trip to Capri in there. We'll see how the weather goes and what the boat schedules are.
Mostly I just want to eat the food there. Bringing the stretchy jeans, baby.
I've got my route from airport to hotel all mapped out, day tours of the Vatican and Underground Rome planned (I have a thing for catacombs, laybrinths, tunnels, and the like.) I've printed out articles praising various trattorias, osterias, and gelaterias. I've purchased a lined anorak to combat both cold and wet, and I have the comfy rainproof walking boots I purchased in Prague. Planning's part of the fun.
On, and don't forget the Italian refresher. I bought lessons on cd for Italian 2 (I took a year of Italian in college and got pretty fluent while living in Bologna for a semester). It's weird to wrap my lips around the language again, a kinetic exercise that brings memories of friendly bakers, bus riders, waiters, and passersby flooding back. I haven't been to Rome since college, and then it was only for one day. One day in Rome?? What was I thinking?
I'll post some photos when I return.
Oh, and 4. I'm trying to have some semblance of a life. You know, that whole social/working out/going out/having fun thing. Am in particular looking forward to the Gourd Mutiliation Festival, wherein pumpkins are carved and prizes awarded.
Also, Zenyatta is running in the Breeder's Cup Classic November 6. Set your Tivos!
I'll try to post again before I leave, but meanwhile you can find me on twitter and facebook.
Happy Halloween!
Sunday, October 03, 2010
Zenyatta, Horse Racing Legend
Above is one my own photos of her just before she ran a breath-taking race, gave us all heart attacks, then won the Lady's Secret Stakes 2010. Now that she's won it three times, they plan to name the race after her. She's a huge, elegant, cocky creature, full of personality and uncanny athletic ability.
If you've never heard of her or watched one of her races online, do yourself a favor and watch her run in the video below. This is the Breeder's Classic from last year, where she beats all the best horses in the country in her usual edge-of-your-seat fashion.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Which idea?
How do you decide which idea you're going to spend months (possibly years) writing? Novels take a lot of time and effort, well they do for me, given the day job, need for sleep, soul-saving time w/friends, occasional trips to see family or go to Europe, and so on. And there are so many books in my head that could be written, half-formed premises, ghostly characters, rip-snorting scenes, even the occasional musical number.
I won't know for sure that I'll write the book based on an idea untill I outline it and make sure it works. But what makes me get to the outlining stage?
1. A protagonist I want to spend time with. She must be likeable but flawed, with a sense of humor and a sense of purpose. She's strong, usually a leader of some kind.
I did this exercise in a writing workshop I took where you do this:
a. Write down three people (real or fictional) who are heroes to you.
b. Now write down three qualities in each person that attracts you to them.
c. Those nine qualities are issues you will confront in your life and/or qualities you possess or will work
on possessing.
Me, I wrote down:
Nelson Mandela - wisdom, leadership, integrity
Robin Hood - compassion for less fortunate, derring-do, willing to risk life to fight injustice
Queen Elizabeth Tudor - ability to overcome misogyny, leadership, cleverness.
(I started off with Cleopatra in this slot but scratched her out - then realized she has the same three qualities as Elizabeth Tudor, so it works out the same. Plus Cleopatra didn't have to be the "Virgin" Queen. Bonus points for that!)
And it turns out I like to read about these types of characters and to write about them too. I get impatient with characters that are slow, humorless, sheep-like, and entitled. I can bear it if they're clumsy or not amazingly wise as long as they have some of the other qualities in spades.
2. A plot that provides enough conflict to sustain a novel. Conflict keeps people turning the pages. It's the essence of a story. There have to be big obstacles standing in the way of my protagonist's desires, and the stakes must be big. I don't have to know the ending or the middle, but I get a feeling in my gut that there's lots of juicy stuff to work with here.
3. An idea or hook that's semi-commercial or better yet, really commercial. I'm not a writer of literary novels. I read and write commercial stuff. I get bored with anything else - sorry! The writing still has to be wonderful, of course. But no dreary plot-less disquisitions on the meaninglessness of life for me, thanks. If I spend ages writing a book, I'd like at least a chance at getting it published some day.
4. A theme or topic that digs just a little deeper. Okay, so I want it to be commercial and a fun read. But I also want my story to have some sort of meaning or deal with an issue that could be meaningful to someone other than myself. It's not enough to have it be "true love conquers all" or something like that. There must be an issue that folks struggle with that isn't easy. It may not be front and center, but it lurks in the background.
5. A tone or atmosphere. Getting this straight in my head can be the clincher. If I get the tone down pat in my brain, then I feel like I just might know how to write this. Is it melancholy? (Not my stuff, usually.) Creepy? (possible...) Action-packed with a sly sense of humor? (Hopefully!)
If it was a TV series, how would it be shot? Bright and sunny, with lots of colors? Or chiaroscuro? Glamorous? Or dusty and a bit faded around the edges? I need to sort of see it in my head. Then I'm ready to roll.
How do you decide which idea to write?
I won't know for sure that I'll write the book based on an idea untill I outline it and make sure it works. But what makes me get to the outlining stage?
1. A protagonist I want to spend time with. She must be likeable but flawed, with a sense of humor and a sense of purpose. She's strong, usually a leader of some kind.
I did this exercise in a writing workshop I took where you do this:
a. Write down three people (real or fictional) who are heroes to you.
b. Now write down three qualities in each person that attracts you to them.
c. Those nine qualities are issues you will confront in your life and/or qualities you possess or will work
on possessing.
Me, I wrote down:
Nelson Mandela - wisdom, leadership, integrity
Robin Hood - compassion for less fortunate, derring-do, willing to risk life to fight injustice
Queen Elizabeth Tudor - ability to overcome misogyny, leadership, cleverness.
(I started off with Cleopatra in this slot but scratched her out - then realized she has the same three qualities as Elizabeth Tudor, so it works out the same. Plus Cleopatra didn't have to be the "Virgin" Queen. Bonus points for that!)
And it turns out I like to read about these types of characters and to write about them too. I get impatient with characters that are slow, humorless, sheep-like, and entitled. I can bear it if they're clumsy or not amazingly wise as long as they have some of the other qualities in spades.
2. A plot that provides enough conflict to sustain a novel. Conflict keeps people turning the pages. It's the essence of a story. There have to be big obstacles standing in the way of my protagonist's desires, and the stakes must be big. I don't have to know the ending or the middle, but I get a feeling in my gut that there's lots of juicy stuff to work with here.
3. An idea or hook that's semi-commercial or better yet, really commercial. I'm not a writer of literary novels. I read and write commercial stuff. I get bored with anything else - sorry! The writing still has to be wonderful, of course. But no dreary plot-less disquisitions on the meaninglessness of life for me, thanks. If I spend ages writing a book, I'd like at least a chance at getting it published some day.
4. A theme or topic that digs just a little deeper. Okay, so I want it to be commercial and a fun read. But I also want my story to have some sort of meaning or deal with an issue that could be meaningful to someone other than myself. It's not enough to have it be "true love conquers all" or something like that. There must be an issue that folks struggle with that isn't easy. It may not be front and center, but it lurks in the background.
5. A tone or atmosphere. Getting this straight in my head can be the clincher. If I get the tone down pat in my brain, then I feel like I just might know how to write this. Is it melancholy? (Not my stuff, usually.) Creepy? (possible...) Action-packed with a sly sense of humor? (Hopefully!)
If it was a TV series, how would it be shot? Bright and sunny, with lots of colors? Or chiaroscuro? Glamorous? Or dusty and a bit faded around the edges? I need to sort of see it in my head. Then I'm ready to roll.
How do you decide which idea to write?
Friday, September 03, 2010
Five (no, Three!) Sisters
Yes, this is a post about another dream, but it's really about how writer's brains are split between the creative side and the editorial side.
This is what happened in my brain as I slept last night...
Dreaming Brain (DB): Once upon a time there were five sisters.
Editorial Brain (EB): Whoa, FIVE sisters? That's too many. What are you going to do with all of them? Maybe make it three sisters. Are you sure you want to go with third person omniscient POV? If you truly wish to write a fairy tale that POV can work, but it is the most distant and difficult for readers to identify with. Keep that in mind as you write and consider switching to first person. While we're at it -- "once upon a time"? Didn't that become a bit of a cliche about a hundred years ago? And get rid of that passive verb.
DB: They were all strong and beautiful.
EB: Another passive verb, honey. You really can't have two in a row like that. It's boring. And if you make all the sisters beautiful aren't you perpetuating the idea that female protagonists all have to be gorgeous? Why not make one not-so-beautiful? Or handicapped? Or dyslexic or bipolar?
DB: And they always got their way.
EB: You're implying a theme here. I assume you're going to show how always getting your own way isn't a good thing. Will they get their comeuppance at the end? Or perhaps one of them doesn't get her way and she ends up flourishing? Or perhaps she gets her way and ends up unhappy anyway? Either way, don't be didactic.
I can't remember much after that, but you get the idea. Writing involves so many different parts of your brain, it can be difficult to know which part to listen to.
I generally try to give the Dreaming Brain or creative side free rein while brainstorming and writing the first draft. Sometimes the Editorial Brain steps in, regardless, and I go back and rewrite before I continue on. But if you listen too much to the EB at the start, you'll never finish. And if you don't listen to it later on, you'll have a cliched mess filled with passive verbs.
This is what happened in my brain as I slept last night...
Dreaming Brain (DB): Once upon a time there were five sisters.
Editorial Brain (EB): Whoa, FIVE sisters? That's too many. What are you going to do with all of them? Maybe make it three sisters. Are you sure you want to go with third person omniscient POV? If you truly wish to write a fairy tale that POV can work, but it is the most distant and difficult for readers to identify with. Keep that in mind as you write and consider switching to first person. While we're at it -- "once upon a time"? Didn't that become a bit of a cliche about a hundred years ago? And get rid of that passive verb.
DB: They were all strong and beautiful.
EB: Another passive verb, honey. You really can't have two in a row like that. It's boring. And if you make all the sisters beautiful aren't you perpetuating the idea that female protagonists all have to be gorgeous? Why not make one not-so-beautiful? Or handicapped? Or dyslexic or bipolar?
DB: And they always got their way.
EB: You're implying a theme here. I assume you're going to show how always getting your own way isn't a good thing. Will they get their comeuppance at the end? Or perhaps one of them doesn't get her way and she ends up flourishing? Or perhaps she gets her way and ends up unhappy anyway? Either way, don't be didactic.
I can't remember much after that, but you get the idea. Writing involves so many different parts of your brain, it can be difficult to know which part to listen to.
I generally try to give the Dreaming Brain or creative side free rein while brainstorming and writing the first draft. Sometimes the Editorial Brain steps in, regardless, and I go back and rewrite before I continue on. But if you listen too much to the EB at the start, you'll never finish. And if you don't listen to it later on, you'll have a cliched mess filled with passive verbs.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
In Which My Subconscious Gets Materialistic
Last night I dreamt I got an offer for $134k for my book. Ah, Dreamland, you mock me so!
I won't go into too much detail, because there's nothing quite so boring as the ins and outs of other people's dreams. But it was all very fragmented and a bit uncertain until I made a video to celebrate. Two of my friends and I danced around randomly and sang The Money Song from Monty Python. Here's the original - the song starts about 1:30 in...
First, the song makes me realize how much romance the Euro has taken out of travel in Europe. The lure of the lira indeed!
Second, I can't help wondering what the hell my subconscious is up to. Isn't it supposed to connect me to my deeper self? To find me the answers that elude my conscious mind? Is that answer really: "It's accountancy that makes the world go round"?
I won't go into too much detail, because there's nothing quite so boring as the ins and outs of other people's dreams. But it was all very fragmented and a bit uncertain until I made a video to celebrate. Two of my friends and I danced around randomly and sang The Money Song from Monty Python. Here's the original - the song starts about 1:30 in...
First, the song makes me realize how much romance the Euro has taken out of travel in Europe. The lure of the lira indeed!
Second, I can't help wondering what the hell my subconscious is up to. Isn't it supposed to connect me to my deeper self? To find me the answers that elude my conscious mind? Is that answer really: "It's accountancy that makes the world go round"?
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
SCBWI Insanity
I'm back at work after four incredible days at the International SCBWI LA conference, in lovely downtown Century City at the Hyatt Regency. (If you go I highly recommend having martini under the awning at sunset outside. East Coasters kept looking around in awe, saying, "It's so NICE!")
It was nice. And chock full o'info/advice/inspiration. And exhausting. At the end of each day a nice glass of wine with new SCBWI friends was required in order to recover.
Here are some of the highlights for me:
1. Arthur A. Levine's class in getting Emotions on the Page.
Arthur has his own imprint and is the US publisher of Harry Potter. He's also an editing genius. I took his class in emotion in writing, and sat in awe, watching him pick apart the student's prose - gently, always with humor and sensitivity, but with a laser-like precision that demanded you think long and hard about every word you put on the page. Plus he would occasionally break into song, mime the actions he was talking about, or do a disco move. I can't recreate his brilliant suggestions here, but remember:
2. Meeting online friends at last!
3. Getting inspired by great writer/speakers like Marion Dane Bauer and Jon Scieszka. Marion (winner of the Golden Kite for Picture Book text) had us all crying, while Jon had everyone cracking up. We really ran the emotional gamut every single day of the conference.
4. Reciting poetry with Ashley Bryan and all of the other 1100 attendeees.
And so much more. I'm worn out, but very happy. My brain is so full, I've just got to get to writing to exorcise it.
Arthur has his own imprint and is the US publisher of Harry Potter. He's also an editing genius. I took his class in emotion in writing, and sat in awe, watching him pick apart the student's prose - gently, always with humor and sensitivity, but with a laser-like precision that demanded you think long and hard about every word you put on the page. Plus he would occasionally break into song, mime the actions he was talking about, or do a disco move. I can't recreate his brilliant suggestions here, but remember:
- The details you pick out should convey emotion. Your reader should know what the main emotion of the scene is.
- That emotion and those details should be very specific.
- Avoid generic phrases like "an exhausted sigh." Think about what a sign is, how it sounds, what it feels like, and convey that with vivid word choices.
- Details should be appropriate to the POV character. As in, if your protagonist is an eleven year old and you're writing in first person, all the details should be something an eleven year old would notice and say. More specifically, they should be details YOUR eleven year old would notice.
2. Meeting online friends at last!
3. Getting inspired by great writer/speakers like Marion Dane Bauer and Jon Scieszka. Marion (winner of the Golden Kite for Picture Book text) had us all crying, while Jon had everyone cracking up. We really ran the emotional gamut every single day of the conference.
4. Reciting poetry with Ashley Bryan and all of the other 1100 attendeees.
And so much more. I'm worn out, but very happy. My brain is so full, I've just got to get to writing to exorcise it.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Typealyze Your Blog or Writing
If you have a blog online, there's a cool analyzer here called the Typelyzer that will tell you the "personality type" of your blog.
I ran my blog through this (it took about two seconds) and it came up with this:
ESFP - The Performers
The entertaining and friendly type. They are especially attuned to pleasure and beauty and like to fill their surroundings with soft fabrics, bright colors and sweet smells. They live in the present moment and don´t like to plan ahead - they are always in risk of exhausting themselves.
The enjoy work that makes them able to help other people in a concrete and visible way. They tend to avoid conflicts and rarely initiate confrontation - qualities that can make it hard for them in management positions.
I found this very interesting because it is NOT my personality type, but it is the type of blog I'm trying to achieve - all entertainment, soft fabrics and sweet smells.
My actualy personality type based on Myers-Briggs is INFP. Both types are Feeling and Perceiving, but the blog is more extroverted and fact-based. Makes sense!
I ran my blog through this (it took about two seconds) and it came up with this:
ESFP - The Performers
The entertaining and friendly type. They are especially attuned to pleasure and beauty and like to fill their surroundings with soft fabrics, bright colors and sweet smells. They live in the present moment and don´t like to plan ahead - they are always in risk of exhausting themselves.
The enjoy work that makes them able to help other people in a concrete and visible way. They tend to avoid conflicts and rarely initiate confrontation - qualities that can make it hard for them in management positions.
I found this very interesting because it is NOT my personality type, but it is the type of blog I'm trying to achieve - all entertainment, soft fabrics and sweet smells.
My actualy personality type based on Myers-Briggs is INFP. Both types are Feeling and Perceiving, but the blog is more extroverted and fact-based. Makes sense!
Monday, July 26, 2010
SCBWI Conference Time!
Wow, I used this same post title a year ago. That crazy, fabulous, learning-intensive time is upon us again. The big ol' SCBWI LA conference starts this Friday, spread out over four exhausting, exhilarating days in lovely, lonely Century City, aka Los Angeles.
This year I'm doubly excited because my critique partner, sexy, smart-ass, slinky-prose writing Elisa Nader is coming into town for it. It'll be a whirlwind of seminars, schmoozing, and snacking.
How's that for some alliteration, folks?
We're taking famed writer/publisher Arthur Levine's workshop on putting emotion into your writing. Arthur's a legend in the world of writing for children. Check out his list. I know I have much still to learn when it comes to writing and this is an extraordinary opportunity. Thanks, SCBWI!
I'll try to take photos and blog a bit about it, but the final word comes down from the official SCBWI conference blog here. Check it out for all the juiciest dish and greatest insights.
Happy conferencing, fellow attendees!
This year I'm doubly excited because my critique partner, sexy, smart-ass, slinky-prose writing Elisa Nader is coming into town for it. It'll be a whirlwind of seminars, schmoozing, and snacking.
How's that for some alliteration, folks?
We're taking famed writer/publisher Arthur Levine's workshop on putting emotion into your writing. Arthur's a legend in the world of writing for children. Check out his list. I know I have much still to learn when it comes to writing and this is an extraordinary opportunity. Thanks, SCBWI!
I'll try to take photos and blog a bit about it, but the final word comes down from the official SCBWI conference blog here. Check it out for all the juiciest dish and greatest insights.
Happy conferencing, fellow attendees!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
The Procedural
Yes, I'm busy. Haven't posted, blah blah blah.
But not too busy to read this hilarious, spot-on the beagle's nose post by writer Josh Friedman (yeah, the dude who made that great TV show The Sarah Connor Chronicles, RIP) to help you understand the jabberwocky land of television. His blog is called I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing and if you don't recognize the Star Wars reference, do not go to Comic Con or they will eat you alive.
Read it here.
But not too busy to read this hilarious, spot-on the beagle's nose post by writer Josh Friedman (yeah, the dude who made that great TV show The Sarah Connor Chronicles, RIP) to help you understand the jabberwocky land of television. His blog is called I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing and if you don't recognize the Star Wars reference, do not go to Comic Con or they will eat you alive.
Read it here.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Five Things to Try When the Dryer in Your Building Won't Start
...when it’s filled with wet jeans and you’ve given it your last three quarters and the damn quarter tray is stuck half in/half out:
2. Tilt it, as you would a recalcitrant pinball machine. If a gentle nudge doesn’t work, lift one side of the dryer up high, using your legs and not your back to avoid injury. Then drop it hard, secretly hoping it breaks and the building owner will have to buy a new one.
4. Sit on top of it, then hop on your ass, as it were, pounding the dusty white surface with your butt.
5. After you've successfully dislodged the quarter tray, ask your neighbor for more quarters, trying not to think about how you keyed their car when they blocked your parking space that one time.
1. Try to hammer the quarter tray back out while chanting, “Piece of shit, piece of shit, piece of shit."
2. Tilt it, as you would a recalcitrant pinball machine. If a gentle nudge doesn’t work, lift one side of the dryer up high, using your legs and not your back to avoid injury. Then drop it hard, secretly hoping it breaks and the building owner will have to buy a new one.
3. Paint a blue dot on your forehead using Tide with bleach alternative. Raise your right hand and solemnly swear that you’ll switch to an environmentally friendly laundry soap if the thing will just fricking start.
4. Sit on top of it, then hop on your ass, as it were, pounding the dusty white surface with your butt.
5. After you've successfully dislodged the quarter tray, ask your neighbor for more quarters, trying not to think about how you keyed their car when they blocked your parking space that one time.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Anatomy of a Rejection
Agent Jennifer Laughran of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency has a fascinating post on her blog about various stages of querying and the percentages of queries to requests to offers. See it here.
You might find the percentages discouraging but I don't, actually. If you get a personalized rejection, by Jennifer's accounting, you're in the top 15% of submitters. Not too shabby!
Yes, to only 1% of people who send her a full does she make an offer to rep them. But still - if she kind of likes something, but rejects it, there's a decent chance that another agent might like it even more.
The key, as always with subbing to agents or editors: Do. Your. Research. Check it out: 20% of the folks who sub to Jennifer get deleted without a look because they didn't follow guidelines. And it ain't hard to follow guidelines, people. If you can't follow simple guidelines in submitting your manuscript, how on earth are you going to survive when an editor gives you notes to change your manuscript? How can your judgement be trusted? Research, folks. After all the time and effort you put into your manuscript, a few minutes of agent research is more than worthwhile.
Been rejected and need some soothing? Check out her post On Rejection here.
You might find the percentages discouraging but I don't, actually. If you get a personalized rejection, by Jennifer's accounting, you're in the top 15% of submitters. Not too shabby!
Yes, to only 1% of people who send her a full does she make an offer to rep them. But still - if she kind of likes something, but rejects it, there's a decent chance that another agent might like it even more.
The key, as always with subbing to agents or editors: Do. Your. Research. Check it out: 20% of the folks who sub to Jennifer get deleted without a look because they didn't follow guidelines. And it ain't hard to follow guidelines, people. If you can't follow simple guidelines in submitting your manuscript, how on earth are you going to survive when an editor gives you notes to change your manuscript? How can your judgement be trusted? Research, folks. After all the time and effort you put into your manuscript, a few minutes of agent research is more than worthwhile.
Been rejected and need some soothing? Check out her post On Rejection here.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Read Your Own Book Aloud
...before you show it to agents or publishers.
I heartily recommend this method for catching typos, awkward wording, poor grammar, word repetition, voice adjustment (that is, the "voice" of your manuscript), finding inconsistencies, and much much more.
When I do it sometimes I get all dramatic and pretend I'm auditioning to read my own audiobook. But that takes longer than reading in a monotoned rush, so I usually fall back into that. Either way, it works wonders.
I heartily recommend this method for catching typos, awkward wording, poor grammar, word repetition, voice adjustment (that is, the "voice" of your manuscript), finding inconsistencies, and much much more.
When I do it sometimes I get all dramatic and pretend I'm auditioning to read my own audiobook. But that takes longer than reading in a monotoned rush, so I usually fall back into that. Either way, it works wonders.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Today's Cuteness
I watched this whole, long thing with a giant grin plastered on my face. My cheeks hurt now, but it was worth it. Maybe it's nostalgia. My Aunt Barbara had shelties when I was a kid.
Writers, Be a Pro When You Get Notes
I got a bunch of great notes from my critique partner on my manuscript, and I'm now implementing them at speed. Most of them. No reader's notes are going to jibe 100% with your thoughts, but if you can get someone like Elisa, where it's pretty damned close to 90%, jump on that person, tie them down and force them to be your critique partner.
No, not literally, you weirdos.
Even with someone as sensitive and smart and in sync as Elisa, I find getting notes can be tough. I had lunch with my friend Ruth the other day, and she helps people write screenplays for a living. She too had the same question - why is it so hard sometimes for the writer to get notes? She gives notes all the time and sees the struggles that ensue.
Ego is the easiest answer. And that's part of it. After spending months writing something, to have someone else come along, read it once, and point out a problem means either that you're an idiot or that they are wrong. Which answer would your ego prefer? And sometimes the note-giver isn't right. But a LOT of the time they are (I'm talking about trusted note-givers here, not your grandma or butcher - DON'T give your book or script to them and expect anything useful to come out of it.) So you feel like an idiot.
But you're not, because writing is hard. It's harder than giving notes. Solving the problems is ten times tougher than pointing it out. So you're not an idiot. But your note-giver is still probably right.
And that's the other reason getting notes can be tough emotionally, because writing can be tough emotionally. Hell, it's tough all over. I find that I get so enmeshed in tying up one thread, I'll forget another. Or (and this happens CONSTANTLY in my writing) I assume I've made something perfectly clear when in fact it's as murky as the Gulf of Mexico. (Don't get started on the oil spill. Just... grrrr!) I resist telling people flat out what's going on. I want them to infer it. And sometimes that works. Sometimes, especially in a book, you just need to fricking spell it out. You don't have actors saying your words to help add emotion or a great director shooting your scenes to imply something with a camera angle or spot of light.
Writers can get too close to the material and lose perspective. You may know your book better than your note-giver. You may know these characters like you know yourself. But just as a good friend can sometimes point out a pattern in your own behavior that you never recognized, a good note-giver can do the same for your manuscript.
So be a pro. Take the notes with a smile even if your heart trembles with pain and rage. Then put the manuscript down, and take a walk, hug your dog, or have a nice glass of Toasted Head chardonnay while watching True Blood. Then go back and realize how the note will help you make your book better and go for it.
No, not literally, you weirdos.
Even with someone as sensitive and smart and in sync as Elisa, I find getting notes can be tough. I had lunch with my friend Ruth the other day, and she helps people write screenplays for a living. She too had the same question - why is it so hard sometimes for the writer to get notes? She gives notes all the time and sees the struggles that ensue.
Ego is the easiest answer. And that's part of it. After spending months writing something, to have someone else come along, read it once, and point out a problem means either that you're an idiot or that they are wrong. Which answer would your ego prefer? And sometimes the note-giver isn't right. But a LOT of the time they are (I'm talking about trusted note-givers here, not your grandma or butcher - DON'T give your book or script to them and expect anything useful to come out of it.) So you feel like an idiot.
But you're not, because writing is hard. It's harder than giving notes. Solving the problems is ten times tougher than pointing it out. So you're not an idiot. But your note-giver is still probably right.
And that's the other reason getting notes can be tough emotionally, because writing can be tough emotionally. Hell, it's tough all over. I find that I get so enmeshed in tying up one thread, I'll forget another. Or (and this happens CONSTANTLY in my writing) I assume I've made something perfectly clear when in fact it's as murky as the Gulf of Mexico. (Don't get started on the oil spill. Just... grrrr!) I resist telling people flat out what's going on. I want them to infer it. And sometimes that works. Sometimes, especially in a book, you just need to fricking spell it out. You don't have actors saying your words to help add emotion or a great director shooting your scenes to imply something with a camera angle or spot of light.
Writers can get too close to the material and lose perspective. You may know your book better than your note-giver. You may know these characters like you know yourself. But just as a good friend can sometimes point out a pattern in your own behavior that you never recognized, a good note-giver can do the same for your manuscript.
So be a pro. Take the notes with a smile even if your heart trembles with pain and rage. Then put the manuscript down, and take a walk, hug your dog, or have a nice glass of Toasted Head chardonnay while watching True Blood. Then go back and realize how the note will help you make your book better and go for it.
Saturday, June 05, 2010
Rewriting on Vacation
...can happen. It helps to have a father who is also a writer. And a mother who gets it. And a laptop. And a book you're very motivated to finish.
But I won't be done by the end of the vacay, alas. Perhaps by mid-June. Then - watch out world!
Hope you all had a marvelous Memorial Day.
But I won't be done by the end of the vacay, alas. Perhaps by mid-June. Then - watch out world!
Hope you all had a marvelous Memorial Day.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Time Out
Sorry I haven't been blogging much the last few weeks. Life is busy! And now I'm going on vacation. I'll have ye old laptop with me, since I'm getting close to done on the rewrite of my novel. So I might be posting.
But then again I might not. Sometimes you need to shut down the electronic connection to the outside world and curl up and rest. I won't be resting completely, since the rewrite continues, and I simply must visit my fave beach in the world. But it will be restful. I hope!
Have a splendid Memorial Day weekend. Hope it brings you closer to your writerly dreams.
But then again I might not. Sometimes you need to shut down the electronic connection to the outside world and curl up and rest. I won't be resting completely, since the rewrite continues, and I simply must visit my fave beach in the world. But it will be restful. I hope!
Have a splendid Memorial Day weekend. Hope it brings you closer to your writerly dreams.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Mind Map-o-Rama
After reading Chuck Wendig's hilarious and helpful post on how he uses mind mapping to find out who the characters in his book are, I stumbled onto yet another fabulous use of mind mapping at Visual Thesaurus. Check it!
I'm a visual person, so seeing things mapped out like this is helpful and also sends my mind off into new corners. Connections I didn't understand before seem obvious, and words become like planets, each with their own rings or moons or asteroids orbiting.
You can download free mind mapping software from Free Mind here.
I'm a visual person, so seeing things mapped out like this is helpful and also sends my mind off into new corners. Connections I didn't understand before seem obvious, and words become like planets, each with their own rings or moons or asteroids orbiting.
You can download free mind mapping software from Free Mind here.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Almost Just For a Moment
Back from a trip to Napa to say - see those words in the title of this post? If you find them in your manuscript - cut them!
I use "just" a lot and "almost" a ton, and "for a moment" to make things feel transitory. Truth is - things feel transitory enough without "for a moment" most of the time. And something is stronger without "just" or "almost" in front of it.
Don't hedge. Don't be redundant. Cut these words. Use the Search function if you must to track them down and delete!
I use "just" a lot and "almost" a ton, and "for a moment" to make things feel transitory. Truth is - things feel transitory enough without "for a moment" most of the time. And something is stronger without "just" or "almost" in front of it.
Don't hedge. Don't be redundant. Cut these words. Use the Search function if you must to track them down and delete!
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