Inside of a Dog

Girl on Demand Calling it Quits

2007-03-18T13:36:00.000-07:00

I was saddened to read that the fabulous blog, POD-dy Mouth, Girl on Demand, has posted her last blog on POD books. I understand ALL of her reasons, but she really was doing a GREAT job in unearthing buried treasures in the mass of POD published works.

She writes:

Along with this, it is clear to see that POD (with a few exceptions) is a useful tool to gain some ground in the book world (hopefully to build an audience to more than your immediate family)--but only so that you can ultimately get an agent and publisher to produce/release your book (and others) in the traditional way. No one knows this more than I, for that was the sole purpose of the Needle Awards. However, it is simply not a compelling reason to stay up late every night.

And right there she says everything I believe about POD. Right now I can hear the Internet hallelujah chorus singing, "POD is JUST a technology." Yes, yes, I know this. And it's been hashed and rehashed, and dished out enough times that I am NOT going to go there again. But I am going to say this. Girl managed to find some pretty good gems in the mass amounts of works published using Print on Demand, and it had to be an exhausting job.

Kudos to her. Her blog will be missed.

Guest Blogger Kim Howe

2007-01-15T15:58:00.000-08:00

Please note: Author Kim Howe is one of the finalists in the Dorchester American Title contest.

American Title Quest

Quest stories have stood the test of time. The Odyssey involves the search for Ithica, Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings is a classic quest tale where good triumphs over evil, and David Morrell’s upcoming novel Scavenger involves the pursuit of a hundred-year-old time capsule. These novels appeal to the universal theme that we are all searching for something—like love, success, happiness, or a mysterious scroll!

Most of us are on a quest in our daily lives—it could be something as simple as taking off those extra pounds we adopted during the holidays or as complicated as discovering our dreams. Quests are what drive us to get up in the morning, down enough caffeine to be productive, and launch into our tasks. In the last few months, I’ve been on a quest for the American Title, the literary equivalent of American Idol. My suspense novel, ONE SHOT, TWO KILLS, was chosen as one of ten finalists battling for the honor of becoming the American Title III winner.

Dorchester Publishing and Romantic Times BOOKReview Magazine teamed up to create a contest for unpublished writers. Each month, small sections of the finalists’ novels have been showcased and critiqued by three judges modeled on Paula, Randy, and the infamous Simon Cowell. And these comments can be rather, well—scathing. My sniper heroine Kenya Alexikova needed her flak jacket to ward off the hollow-tipped zingers aimed at ONE SHOT, TWO KILLS.

The contest encourages readers to support their favorite novel via e-mail votes. Each month, the two contestants with the lowest number of votes are eliminated from the contest until the winner collects a publishing contract from Dorchester. We’re down to the final four and the tension is mounting. Using her camouflage skills, Kenya has avoided a fatal blow so far, but she could sure use back-up (the dream team would include Rambo, Reacher, and Rain!).

ONE SHOT, TWO KILLS stemmed from a desire to do a twist on the Cain and Abel story. This time, brother and sister are pitted against each other. The book blurb could read:

One shot, one kill is the sniper motto. But when the time came to execute her orders, U.S. Army sniper Kenya Alexikova failed to fire. At first, the mission seemed routine—stalk and terminate a faceless predator, code-named Afanasi, a man who thrived in Russia’s underworld. When she stared through the scope, Kenya reeled from shock. The face in the crosshairs was her estranged brother’s and the hesitation cost her partner’s life. Discharged from the Army and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, Kenya plunged into a self-imposed exile in St. Lucia. Three years later, the past comes calling in the form of CIA recruiter Jack Travis with a mission Kenya can’t refuse—after all, she’s on a quest for redemption.

I’m fortunate my personal story isn’t quite as dramatic as Kenya’s. Words have been my passion since I first read See Spot Run in nursery school. An eclectic education followed, as I was shuttled across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Caribbean due to my father’s work. Books were my sanctuary, an escape from the pressure of being the new kid.

After graduating from University of Toronto with a Specialist Degree in Labor Management Relations, I tried the business world—but the creative pull to write was irresistible. I work as a medical writer, an excellent training ground for research and answers to countless Jeopardy questions. Determined to make my dream of becoming a novelist a reality, I pursued every writing course available. In fact, I’ve just graduated from Seton Hill University with Master’s Degree in Writing Popular Fiction. I’ve signed with agent Evan Marshall and I’m working hard to find a home in the publishing world. And that leads me back to my quest…the American Title III Contest.
Voting for the final four runs from January 22-February 4, so all friendly operatives are encouraged to drop by http://www.romantictimes.com/news_amtitle.php to cast your vote. If it’s more convenient for you, please just send an e-mail to webmaster@romantictimes.com with ONE SHOT, TWO KILLS in the subject line. I’d really appreciate your support!

As a fun aside, I’m doing a “Kill Me Off” draw this month. To be the lucky (???) winner, send me an e-mail through my website www.kjhowe.com including the phrase “Kill Me Off” and your name. At the end of this voting period, I’ll draw the name of the person whose namesake will meet an untimely demise in my next novel. And, no, you cannot nominate your boss or mother-in-law. 

The next round of the ATIII contest includes dialogue scenes and here is what my characters have to say about that!

Dialogue Scene:

“What are you after?” Kenya asked.
“I’m a psychologist with the CIA. My specialty is persuasion.” He winked, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. She could see he’d be good at his job.
Jack stroked the stubble shadowing his cheeks. “Your file states you spent seven years as an Army Intel sniper. Unusual occupation for a woman. What made you get into that field, anyway?”
“The glamour.”
“Very funny. What was it really like?”
“It was great. Food’s crap, pay’s lousy, and you’re surrounded by chauvinist jerks. What more could a girl ask for?” Her heart pulverized her ribs. Years of repressed emotion bubbled to the surface.
“Jeez, lady, you sure have an interesting take on Army life. Given your past, the job I’m offering would be a cakewalk. You have the deep diving expertise, and I just witnessed how well you can defend yourself.”
“What’s the job?”
Jack leaned toward her. “I need to retrieve the contents of a Russian satellite from the ocean floor.”
“Hasn’t anyone told you the Cold War is over?” she asked.
“Like I haven’t heard that one before. Look, there’s information inside the satellite we believe is crucial to national security.”
“So bring in the Navy,” she said. “With their equipment, they shouldn’t have any trouble recovering whatever you’re after.”
“My superiors don’t want this salvage on the books. When the analysts searched for a solution, your name popped up.”
“Well, unpop it,” she said, knowing deep down the danger tempted her. Like Sleeping Beauty awakened by a kiss, the serious action of the morning had aroused her desire to live on the edge. Maybe the opportunity to spar with Jack had something to do with it as well.

Natalie, thank you for inviting me to join The Readers Room. It has been an absolute pleasure.

Is a Bad Agent Better than No Agent?

2006-09-15T16:16:00.000-07:00

When query after query to agents is returned with a “no thanks,” many writers become frustrated by the endless search for representation. Just getting someone to read your material seems an overwhelming task, which is why many writers settle for a less than ideal agent, only to find themselves in much worse shape than they were on their own.

Is a bad agent better than no agent?

“A bad agent is definitely worse than no agent at all,” said Cathy Yardly, author of The Driven Snow, a Harlequin Blaze romance, and the upcoming L.A. Woman, published in June, 2002, under Harlequin’s Red Dress Ink imprint. “Of course, my experience is with romance, primarily, where you don’t really need an agent, for category especially. But I have had a friend go through horror stories of signing with an agent who claimed to have an ‘in’ with a publishing house that my friend had a manuscript in with. Afterwards, it turned out that the publisher wasn’t even returning the agent’s calls! What’s worse, now that she’s signed, she is contractually obligated to give up a percentage of the profits should that book sell because of ‘work done on the author’s behalf on this project,’ even though she’s already fired that agent!”

Before signing any contracts, a writer should always research the credentials of an agent. This can be as easy as surfing over to my favorite search engine, Google (http://www.google.com) and typing in the agent’s name. For more on agents, see Jeff Kleinman's article this month.

Red flags to look for when researching a prospective agent include disputes with former clients, no verifiable track record of sales, and, believe it or not, your own correspondence with the agent in question. Emails returned full of typos and Web sites that are unprofessional tell you many things, but the most important message you are being sent is this “literary” agent is not very literate. How can they possibly represent you well?

“I’m a living, breathing testimonial to the fact that a bad agent can cause you sleepless nights, confusion, hand-wringing, horrible disappointment, and eye-twitching,” author Jerri Corgiat said. “My bad agent experience lasted only a few months, thank goodness, which is just a few weeks longer than it took me to raise holy heck with her agency and wiggle out of my contract after I’d discovered she’d, to put it politely, bent the truth. I’m sorry I won’t name names as she’s no longer employed there. And I do a Google search every once in a while to make sure she’s not lurking around conferences!”

I've heard from many, many writers who asked not to quoted, primarily because they were still locked in horrible contracts with bad agents. “Bad agents don’t return your calls promptly, don’t shop your manuscripts around, have an irritating reputation with publishing houses, which consequently reflects on you, and basically can damage your career,” Yardley said. “Better off without.”

So, how can you keep this from happening to you?

Along with researching the agent extensively, develop a list of qualities that you are looking for in an agent. Writer Karen Brichoux shared her “wish” list with me, and I suggest each writer should have a similar list.

• An agent with an established, recognizable agency

• An agent who likes my writing style and voice

• An agent who allows me to work in my own way

• An agent who likes my ideas

• An agent who gives some editorial advice but, for the most part, concentrates on selling the manuscript

• An agent who is capable of getting the best deal

• An agent who is open and honest, and who discusses the details of submission--who makes plans with me, not for me

• An agent who shakes and rattles publishers’ cages, and who can sell ideas and new voices

• An agent who is excited about my work but also has his/her feet firmly on the ground

• An agent who will sell my manuscript right away or has ideas for how to sell and market the manuscript as opposed to an agent who goes through the motions, sending the manuscript to the same places he/she sends every manuscript--basically duplicating what I could do without an agent

• An agent who exudes confidence, joie de vivre, likes animals, has curiosity, and who will be something of a friend as well as a business partner

• An agent who will be a partner rather than someone who lords it over me

• An agent who will make logical criticisms of my work rather than using critiques as a way to make me feel like a lousy writer or as a way to blame me for a lack of sales--she/he is not a bully or a blame-shifter

• An agent who is careful and detail oriented

• An agent who is ethical and honest in all of his/her business dealings

• An agent with ties to the publishing industry

• An agent with good ideas about marketing, one who will take risks, but not at my expense

• An agent who is interested in forming a long-term relationship over the course of a career

• An agent who is young enough to last throughout a career

• An agent who will keep me updated automatically; who won’t make me beg for an update

• An agent who is professional and business-like but who isn’t frightening to talk to; doesn’t make me feel like I am wasting his/her time.

• An agent who is open and honest with praise and with criticisms--someone who doesn’t just tell me what’s wrong with the book when he/she reads it

• An agent who loves reading and imagination, who has an active brain not deadened by TV and who enjoys the journey as much as the plot line

• An agent who carbon copies all correspondence concerning my book; who understands that this is my career and that it is important to me to know what is happening on every level

Brichoux said her most important criteria, however, was an agent she could respect. “It is possible to have an agent who does everything right but somehow manages to convince you that he or she is a dim star in the universe, might do something shady if she or he had the opportunity, and who basically gives you the impression that she or he never thinks very deeply about anything, but accepts the general, popular consensus without question. Every person has buttons which when pushed make them respect or disrespect someone. I would like an agent who doesn’t push my disrespect buttons.”

“At the top of my list is an agent who is ethical and professional,” Jerri Corgiat adds. “The biggest thing I learned from that [bad] experience was to listen to your innards—if you have doubts about someone, don’t go for it without very, very careful investigation. My lesson was easy and brief compared to some horror stories I’ve heard, and I’m grateful I got to learn it quickly.”

Thrillerfest Summary

2006-07-03T17:04:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am going offline until Friday, on vacation, so I wanted to summarize Thrillerfest, and I'm sure I'll forget something, so feel free to ask questions.

John Lescroat
One of the "writing" tips that stuck with me the most was one I heard Sunday at the John Lescroat brunch. His best advice for writers was "just get to the end." In other words, quit obsessing about each page and each word and finish the book, then go back. He is a very funny man, very open and honest, and he showed a very human side when he thanked his wife and got a little emotional.

Clive Cussler
Dr. Cussler spoke during his award at the banquet, and he is funny, quick-witted and he told some great stories. The best ones were those he told about trying to sign his books when he saw people reading them, and their responses. Most of them didn't believe him. It reminded me of the time I went into Albertson's and I asked to sign their stock. The guy asked me how he was supposed to know that was me, and I was thinking, "What, is there a crime spree of people signing other people's books? Is this a big problem?" Cussler is JUST as sharp as ever, and what a thrill to see him in person and hear him speak.

Gayle Lynds
Gayle did a great workshop on the eight points of writing a thriller (I'm sure my wording is off, but it was something like that), and I'm hoping someone took notes. If you did, let me know, and I'll post it. Gayle is very sweet and open, and she did a great job with all of her duties.

David Morrell
When you consider that this man CREATED Rambo, you are pretty awestruck, and then you figure out just how cool he really is. I'm really sorry, David. Next time, I will wait until you are through chewing your vegetables before I try to take a picture.

CJ Lyons
CJ was this year's chair, and she did an AWESOME job. I am so impressed. She deserves a round of cyber-applause for all she did. Everything was great, and what fun! It was informative, entertaining, and uplifting

James Born
I attended a workshop put on by Born, who is a Florida police officer with all kinds of credentials (SWAT, DEA, etc.) and he is also an author and damned funny. We got to look at real guns, and hear the big mistakes writers make in books, and how NOT to make them. I also admitted to Tess Gerritsen that the way I avoid making mistakes about gun and ammo is by being vague. And now I'm sure that those words will come back to haunt me, but I want you ALL to know that I held a Glock. Yes, I did. No, it did not have bullets. They are not THAT dumb.

I was SO impressed with SO many authors, I bought way more books than I could really afford, and I can't wait for next year.

The only downside, as far as I can see, was the price of everything at the Arizona Biltmore. Water was $6. "Good, God, don't open that!" Water? Please. Alcoholic drinks were horribly high priced. A Diet Pepsi (like Bill Gates, Pepsi is trying to take over the world. You cannot FORCE us to like Pepsi, Pepsi People!) was $4.25 for a 20 oz. bottle. The bills were pretty messed up, and by the end of the trip I would have had to sell one of my children, had they been with me, to get a cab ride to the airport. Do rich people think that to prove you are rich you must pay more money for things? Pepsi is Pepsi. Paying $4.25 for it does not make it Diet Coke. (Disclaimer: I do not work for Diet Coke, but I'm pretty irked with the Pepsi people and their attempt to convert the world. I think they are taking lessons from the Mormons.)

Last set of pictures

2006-07-03T08:52:00.000-07:00

John Lescroat and the Killerettes perform at the Awards Dinner. The Killerettes are AKA Alexa Sokoloff, Heather Graham, and Harley Jane Kozak.

The adorable and young (yet apparently, extremely talented) Marcus Sakey, author of the upcoming (highly raved about) debut THE BLADE ITSELF, learns all about guns. Be still my old heart.

Lee Goldberg on a panel. Lee is still taking slack because of a question his daughter had for RL Stine, at the luncheon. Come on, it was a GOOD question. How can tears run down a mermaid's face if she is locked in an aquarium? Lee swears the question was his daughter's and she backed him up.

Jim Born and Robin Burcell, after Jim's presentation.

Kayla Perrin and Laura Caldwell after one of the panels. (Thanks to Jeff Abbott for telling me who it was. I remembered her face, but I must be getting old, because I could NOT remember her name.)

Heather Graham and moi at the Awards Banquet.

The lovely Erica Spindler on her panel.

Debra Webb, Suzanne Barr and Moi. These ladies were AWESOME and so much fun.

Deborah LeBlanc and Heather Graham.

Look at Deborah LeBlanc! (She is going to kill me for this, I promise you.)

Clive Cussler accepts his award at the banquet. He was so charming, and funny!

Bob and Eileen Hutton. Eileen is the co-owner of Brilliance Audio.

Brad Meltzer doing his Mr. Magoo impression.

The ladies in black.

The Arizona Biltmore.

I'm entirely disappointed I didn't get more "blackmail" type photos. But that would have required me going places I didn't exactly want to go--ya know?

Thrillerfest Winners

2006-07-03T08:40:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm now in Burbank, attending a dance competition with my daughter. This is after a horrific four hours in the Phoenix airport. No thanks. Can I NOT do that again?

I wanted to post the winners of the first annual Thrillers. Since I couldn't remember them all, and didn't want to strain my brain looking at the program, I stole them from the BookBitch site! Thanks, Stacy! FYI, she's not a bitch at all. Quite lovely, really.
The winners of the first ever THRILLER Awards:

Best Screenplay - CACHE (Hidden), screenplay by Michael Haneke

Best First Novel - IMPROBABLE by Adam Fawer (William Morrow)

Best Paperback Original - PRIDE RUNS DEEP by R. Cameron Cooke (Jove)

Best Novel - THE PATRIOT'S CLUB by Christopher Reich (Delacorte Press)

As previously announced, the first ThrillerMaster Award went to Clive Cussler

Thrillerfest Roundup

2006-07-02T10:58:00.000-07:00

Today is the final day of Thrillerfest, and although many have already departed, we are getting ready for the final brunch and interview with John Lescroat (Pronounced Le SQUAW--kinda).

Everybody is pretty weary, especially after the late night at the awards banquet, but it was a great time. The award is pretty cool looking, and the winners were really excited. Right about now I can't tell you who they are because I can barely remember my name. In fact, I was on the "Hair of the Dog" panel this morning and I can tell you that I am not the only author who can't remember their own name, let alone anybody else's, so I shall be blogging more about this tomorrow.

I'm about to get on a plane for California, so the loading up of more pictures will have to wait, but I promise they are coming.

For now, I will sign off with the cliched line, "And a great time was had by all."

More Pictures from Thrillerfest

2006-06-30T15:30:00.000-07:00

Tess Gerritsen with Irish author Pat Mullan.

Debra Webb, Allison Brennan, Toni McGee-Causey, and Robert Gregory Browne. All St. Martin's authors except Allison. Allison, what are you doing in that picture, huh? JUST because you hit the New York Times extended list with your first book does NOT mean you can be in every picture! (Kidding here. I made Allison pose in the picture.)

ReadersRoom's own Sarie Morrell, uber-publicist and damn cute, too!

Sandra Brown and her agent, Maria Carvainis. I promised Maria I would try to get another picture when she had her eyes open.

MJ Rose and Toni McGee-Causey. MJ is starting to regret they let me come to Thrillerfest, because I keep snapping pictures.

Jeff Anderson, who hails from Salt Lake City, Utah, and Reviewer Larry Gandle. Jeff is up for a Thriller award for his novel Sleeper Cell.

Author James Rollins, who posed during the signing of the anthology, THRILLER. He looked a little pained. He might have thought I was stalking him. Not sure.

Heather Graham and CJ Lyons. CJ is the chair of this year's Thrillerfest, and has done an awesome job.

Ali Karim, book reviewer from England and great supporter of thrillers!

Thrillerfest co-founder Gayle Lynds at the signing of THRILLER.

Thrillerfest co-founder David Morrell, shortly after he nearly choked to death because I asked him to pose while he was eating raw vegetables. Note to Rambo: Way to kill famous author--kill him with raw vegetables. It is entirely possible I will be banned from the conference after this.

Ali, Larry, and Elaine, who is doing her impression of a woman smoking through a hole in her head. Either that, or trying to light her hair on fire. No, we are not in the bar. Writers don't drink!

Author Shane Gericke and Debra Webb. NO, I told you, we are NOT in the bar. Okay, fine, we're in the bar.

Thursday Afternoon at Thrillerfest

2006-06-30T15:25:00.000-07:00

The highlight of Thursday had to be the luncheon and interview with R.L. Stine. Very funny man, and he said he thinks things that are SCARY are funny. He must like Paris Hilton's new single. He also noted that someone once called him the literary training bra for Stephen King.

Sandra Brown and Heather Graham sat down at our luncheon table, and we had a great discussion. I found it a little amusing considering some "up-and-coming" authors were actually chasing established authors and trying to sit with them. My friend Deborah LeBlanc said, "Sandra Brown and Heather Graham just sat down at our table!" Yup.

On another note, I've had some great discussions with Sarie Morrell, who is an incredible publicist (she reps her dad, David Morrell, MJ Rose, Gayle Lynds, David Dun and more). She also does a great column for ReadersRoom.com, Beyond the Spine, that you have to check out if you're looking to publicize your book.

More pictures will follow... I hope.

Thrillerfest Thursday

2006-06-30T09:53:00.000-07:00

Lee Child and Elaine Flinn chat in the hotel bar.

Jeffrey Deaver chats with fans. That's him in the back.

Yesterday was a busy day, and I'm finally getting some pictures uploaded. Unfortunately, I don't have a photo program on my laptop, so there are a few photographs I cannot rotate, and they are sideways. If anyone knows if Blogger can do this, please send me an email and let me know.

On Thursday, Gayle Lynds gave a great panel on writing a thriller, and she had some excellent suggestions for those who are working in this genre (which is almost everyone HERE). I also attended a seminar by MJ Rose, David J. Montgomery (a reviewer) and Sarie Morrell, a very talented publicist, about buzzing your book. They were frank and honest about the difficulties of marketing a book, and the reality that you MUST market or you will fizzle out and die. It's a hard aspect, I think, for all writers.

The opening reception was last night, and Jim Fusilli interviewed Doug Preston, which was fascinating.

Then the authors of the Thriller book autographed copies, and people mingled. Attendees included Sandra Brown, Gayle Lynds, David Morrell, MJ Rose, Heather Graham, Erica Spindler, Tess Gerritsen, and of course a lot more. I spent some time taking pictures so you could check it out.

Unfortunately, Blogger keeps EATING my photographs, and I'm getting a little FRUSTRATED! I have to jet out to work the registration desk, so I'm just going to publish the promised photos of Jeffrey Deaver and Lee Child, and you'll get the rest a little later on. Blame Blogger. In fact, send them hatemail.

Okay, don't do that.

Wednesday Night at Thrillerfest

2006-06-29T07:13:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Phoenix around 2:30 p.m., ready to participate in my first big writer's conference. I've been to several small local ones, but never one of the magnitude of Thrillerfest, and I found out I was pretty nervous. I also found out it's hot here. Okay, kidding. I knew it was hot. But let me say for the record that it's really hot. REALLY, really hot. I took the shuttle to the Arizona Biltmore, which is air-conditioned, like everything else down here, and checked into my room.

Then I sat down and did a little bit of writing, since no one I knew was getting in until later. Around seven, I went down to the restaurant to meet a group of people who had arranged to meet for dinner. Then I passed out when I read the prices on the dinner menu, but hey, I was revived. I had to be, to pay my $42 for a salad. (It's entirely possible I inflated the prices SLIGHTLY). While we were sitting there, I noted that I recognized some faces.

It's an interesting thing about big name writers. You only see their pictures here and there, but usually you don't see them on television screens, or billboards, or in magazines (unless it's Publisher's Weekly). But I recognized faces nonetheless. Gayle Lynds and MJ Rose were sitting together at the table behind us. I got to chat with both Gayle and MJ (both are lovely and friendly, and Gayle is very tall). I sat next to two unpublished writers and one big fan (Hi, MommyKim!) and across from Debra Webb, who is published with Harlequin, and just sold to St. Martin's. Debra is the FIRST person I've actually met (who isn't horribly famous) who shares my editor, so we had lots to chat about. She's from Alabama, and has a great accent, which makes just about everything sound lyrical, including "Where's the baaathrum?"

After dinner we went to the bar (hey, we're writers) and lo and behold, in walks Jeffrey Deaver. No, I am not lying here. He's not actually attending Thrillerfest, but just happened to be in town on tour and is either staying here or dropped by. I did not grill him on exactly which one it was, because I was too busy thinking "Jeffrey Deaver--You just shook Jeffrey Deaver's hand."

One of the aspiring writers who joined our group, Mark, was shaking, because he's read every book Jeffrey Deaver has ever written. He could barely get words out. I had no problem with that. (NO, I did not grill him about where he was staying! I am not stalking him. I do NOT have a cabin, and I will not make him change that scene where... Uh, kidding.)

Also sitting with us for a minute was Lee Child, which was really cool. He's very nice and has a "YOUR-peen" accent (as Deb said. Remember, she's from Alabama), which makes us American ladies swoon.

Another male writer--who shall remain unnamed--got a little peeved that we weren't fawning over him and made a few rude comments. One of the reasons he shall remain unnamed is because I can't remember his name. But I'm bad with names. It has nothing to do with the fact he's not Lee Child.

I also met Elaine Flinn and Jeffrey Anderson (who happens to be from Salt Lake City, and shares the same agent as my friend Karin Tabke).

Towards the end of the night, Debra and I started asking "Who's that. Do we need to know him/her? Can you introduce us?" That's when we figured it was time for bed.

Now, I am getting into the shower, and off to DAY TWO of Thrillerfest. Stay tuned.

FYI, I have photographic PROOF that Jeffrey Deaver and Lee Child were in the bar with us, and will post it later today.

Thrillerfest

2006-06-27T18:05:00.000-07:00

I'm headed out tomorrow for Thrillerfest, and I promise to report on a daily basis! So make sure you check back for information about all of your favorite Thriller writers.....

The Vicious Circle

2006-06-15T15:18:00.000-07:00

Do you need an agent to get published, and be published to get an agent?

The fact that it sometimes takes getting published to get an agent cannot be ignored.

After first-time author Beverly Brandt queried fifteen agents and found mostly rejection, she decided to take matters into her own hands. Two agents had requested the entire manuscript and turned it down, and a third hadn’t made a decision on it yet, so she queried St. Martin’s press directly, while awaiting a decision from the third agent.

She sent off her query letter to St. Martin’s on a Monday in April, and by Friday of the same week, she had a request for the entire manuscript. After “spending the weekend agonizing over whether it was ready,” she sent the book off the following Monday, unsure what to expect.

“Ten weeks to the day I mailed the manuscript off, St. Martin’s called with a two-book offer,” Brandt said. “This was June 19, 2000—a day I will remember forever.”
Brandt’s first book, True North, is a contemporary romance, and was published January 8, 2002. After receiving the news from St. Martin’s, she decided that she needed an agent, and she contacted one of the agents who had turned her down before.

“I knew I wanted an agent right away because I’m a terrible negotiator. I did re-contact an agent who had rejected me in my prior agent hunt. She and I didn’t connect at all during our phone interview, so she was pretty much out of the running from the beginning—even though she offered to take a lower commission on the first two books because I’d already sold them,” Brandt said. “When I asked the agent I ended up with [Deirdre Knight of the Knight Agency] if she’d do the same, she said she wouldn’t. Her reason? Because there was so much work to be done after the sale. I liked that answer, because I felt as if I was going to need extra attention from her as I learned the ropes. I have been very pleased with my decision. I have an agent who likes me, who likes my work, who returns my calls and e-mails within an hour (within minutes, usually), gets along with my editor, and is active in the agenting community so she can educate me on what to expect and what not to.”

Incidentally, Knight was the agent who had not yet made a decision on Brandt’s partial when the author decided to query St. Martin’s herself.

Brandt said she was not bothered by the fact that no agents chose to represent her until after she sold her book herself. "I took a lot of comfort in the stories of people like John Grisham and Stephen King who have ungodly numbers of rejection letters in their files. I was just going to keep sending material out until somebody paid attention to me,” she said. “That’s not to say that the rejections didn’t hurt, but I think what helped me was that I had so many things out there that no one rejection was going to end it for me. I was simply going to start the whole process over again by querying different agents at the same agencies with my second book. And my third. And my fourth . . . ."

Brandt believes that rejection is just a part of the writing business, and that an author, especially a first time one, cannot let it stop them. “Getting published doesn’t end that. I’ve been rejected by two movie agents since selling, and at any time St. Martin’s could stop buying my books. I hope that won’t happen, but there are just no guarantees. I guess if I wanted security, I should have stayed in the insurance business!”

Writing since the age of twelve, she said her first rejection came from Mary O’Hara, author of the My Friend Flicka series. She wrote to Ms. O’Hara, offering to write a sequel to the first three books. O’Hara had her secretary send Brandt a kind note telling her that due to copyright issues, she would not be able to write a book in the series.

“That didn’t stop me, though. I dabbled at writing for years as a teenager, moving from horses to romance at about age fourteen. Writing then fell prey to getting a ‘real’ job (at McDonald’s) when I was 16. I stopped writing for years, but was bitten by the bug again after a fairly serious quarter-life crisis, just before I turned 30,” Brandt explained. “It was one of those times in my life when I looked back at all the years I’d spent working and putting myself through college, and I really wasn’t happy with where I was headed. I went on a serious reading binge, which led me back into writing. I got serious about it in September 1999 when I gave myself an ultimatum--finish the book I was working on, or never write again.”
She finished the book, and completed two others, all of which have been sold to St. Martins. Brandt’s other two books are Record Time, and Room Service.

When asked what advice she would offer new writers, Brandt said, “Don’t get trapped in the premature submission mentality. Write the best book you can write, then edit it, then have it critiqued by a select few trusted critique partners who won’t try to mess up your voice, then revise it, and then edit it again. Being a professional writer is a lot of fun, but it’s also a lot of hard work. Don’t submit unfinished books to agents and editors, no matter how excited you are about the great premise you just thought up over the weekend. What will you do if, as happened to me, you get a request for the full manuscript less than a week after you query? Don’t submit your first drafts to agents and editors, then write them a month later with an updated version of your story. If you’re going to keep revising it after submitting, wait to submit it until you’re certain you’ve done the best job you could do at the time.”

Brandt said new writers spend too much time polishing those crucial first three chapters and the synopsis, and not enough time writing the entire book.

“I know, because I fell into this trap myself about five years ago. But, above all, I would tell you to believe in yourself,” she said. “You are the only one who can tell your story, in your unique voice. Your life will be immeasurably better for having written the stories only you can write!”

http://www.beverlybrandt.com.

The Total Package

2006-05-16T18:50:00.000-07:00

A Simple Checklist to Make Your Work Ready For an Agent

Now that your query letter is a work of art, and your synopsis sings, you begin to send out query letters. Using the listing of agents included in this book, you narrow down your search and target the agents who represent your genre or type of book. When sending out queries, I always recommend sending sample chapters. Make sure you send the first three chapters. Do not select them randomly. Sending random chapters only applies to snail mail queries. Do not send attachments or long emails to agents you are querying by email.

When the agent of your dreams responds with a “yes, I would like to read this manuscript,” your work has just begun. This is the reason I suggest doing this step before you begin querying agents. If you don’t, you might find yourself making a quick trip to the post office, mailing off the tome, complete with a self-addressed stamped envelope, and returning home with the niggling feeling you have forgotten something.

You pick up a copy of the manuscript you just sent, and your stomach starts to churn, your knees start to knock and your head starts to spin. You just found a typo on page ten! How did you miss it? What else did you miss? Egads, you left out the cover letter!

Can you now kiss the agent goodbye? How could you have avoided this?

There are steps you can take before sending a manuscript that will allow you to rest easy after you leave the post office. It will help if you think of your submission as a total package: cover letter, manuscript, and mailing material.

Let’s concentrate first on the bulk of your package: the manuscript

1. Finalizing your manuscript. Remember that it is absolutely imperative that someone other than you reads the manuscript. This is not a slight to your own editing and proofreading skills, but insurance against mistakes your eye becomes trained to jump over. Once you’ve read the same words over and over again (you have read them over and over again, haven’t you?), it becomes nearly impossible to spot all mistakes and typos. I recommend you have your work professionally edited. Check with your local college or in the classified ads for editing services. Join a writing list, such as the one I moderate on YahooGroups (send a blank email to: The-Write-List-subscribe@yahoogroups.com), and ask other authors to recommend an editor. Offer to become a critique partner to writers whose work you admire. The friendships that can arise out of these situations are both beneficial and rewarding.

“I have a friend—she’s an editor, a writing teacher, and a published writer—who edits my material before it goes to any agent. Nancy is simply great; superb is actually the right word. With a few touches, a few notes and a ruthless strike-out method, she literally elevates the writing to the next higher commercial level,” said Edita Petrick, a writer from Toronto, Ontario. “Today, I don’t submit anything to an agent/agency, unless Nancy has edited it. We arrange and negotiate a fee for each such editing job. Editing is not a hobby and it’s not a short job either. Nancy has done many free favors for me. But when it comes to a complete novel that I’ve finished as my next-to-last draft, it’s pay for excellent service.”

If you can’t afford an editor, join a professional online critique group, such as the Internet Writing Workshop. Critique workshops like the IWW are filled with other writers, like you, who need someone to look over their work. Most workshops function on a reciprocal critiquing system. If you critique a lot of other work, your work will receive a lot of critiques.

After your work has been edited and critiqued, and you feel it’s complete and ready to go, you are ready to follow the rest of the checklist.

2. Format. All manuscript submissions, unless otherwise noted by the agent you are submitting to, should be on 8½x11 paper, single-sided, in twelve-point Courier Font. There has been much discussion recently on whether or not this is necessary, and some say it is old school. However, I prefer to keep the odds in my favor by following all the guidelines. Why put yourself at risk because you despise Courier and would rather use Times New Roman? The wrong format or font won’t destroy your chances. It might not even hurt them, but are you willing to take the chance that your writing is strong enough to sell itself if you don’t do things properly?

When I send out a manuscript, these are the guidelines I follow:

• I use the Courier font
• Twelve point
• Double spaced (between lines, not words!)
• A one inch margin on all sides
• On one side of the paper only
• Address in the upper left-hand corner of page one
• Word-count in the upper right-hand corner of page one
• Title in all caps in the exact middle of page one
• Byline (“by Natalie R. Collins”) two lines underneath it.
• Story beginning on page two (or a later page if you have dedications/quotes/acknowledgments/etc. to go at the start)
• With all pages after the first page containing the author’s last name, the story title, and the current page number in the upper right-hand corner as a header (“Author/STORY/2”)
• Make sure all your chapters start on a fresh page, and include the chapter number and title, in bold.

3. Spell Check and Grammar Check. Almost all word processing programs come with a grammar and spell checker. Use it. This is time consuming and irritating, particularly when your grammar checker wants you to make changes that you know are wrong. Remember, it is a computer, and it isn’t really “reading” your work. However, every time I use this tool I do find one or two mistakes that I might have missed. Even if you already did this before your work was edited, do it again. If you made any changes, the possibility of new mistakes exists.

4. Use your Find and Replace Tool. I routinely check the entire manuscript for homonyms. Words like “then” and “than,” “it’s” and “its,” and “their, they’re,” and “there” are easy to type wrong and just as easy to miss when editing. Using your find tool allows you to zero in on these words, and make sure you’ve used them correctly.

I also search for “that,” a word that is often overused. If it’s not necessary, I delete it. Other weasel words to search for are “suddenly,” “felt,” “realized,” and “managed.” Did your character manage to walk through the door, or did he just do it? And if you have to use “suddenly” to build tension, you haven’t done your job as a writer.

Make sure to check for “anymore” and “everyday.” “Anymore” indicates time while “any more” shows quantity. “Everyday,” means routine, common, ordinary, while “every day” also indicates time.

I also check every name, to make sure my spelling stays consistent throughout the manuscript.

5. Print Out a Copy. Once your editing has been done on screen, it’s essential to edit a printed copy.

“I always print my work out in hard copy because it’s easier to find the punctuation mistakes. Tired eyes can mistake a comma for a period very easily when you’ve been staring at the computer screen for an extended period of time,” said Tina Morgan, a fantasy writer from the Midwest.
6. Editing on screen saves both time and paper, but it is essential to read through a printed copy at least once before your manuscript is mailed. If you are concerned about saving paper or about wear and tear on your printer, remember that you only have to reprint the pages you correct (unless you edit with a cup of hot cocoa, a donut, and chocolate bars).

7. Check and Double Check. Make sure you have the agent’s name correct, double check the address and never forget your SASE. Write “requested material” on your package. This allows the agent to sort through the unsolicited manuscripts they receive. Make sure you include a cover letter. In addition, include the original query, even if it was an e-query.

“What I double check is that the whole package sells me as a professional,” said Shirley Kawa-Jump, a Midwest author who has written more books than I can quote here.

“Does the letterhead look clean and crisp? Does the cover letter really punch and inspire them to read the rest? Did I put it all into a manuscript box instead of an envelope so it arrives in pristine condition? Did I double-check the address? And I always opt for Priority Tracking, too, so I can be sure it gets delivered and eliminate a phone call to the agent. Then I send it off and obsess until they call me!”
Once you’ve followed the steps of this checklist, you can send your manuscript off with no qualms. Now the time has come to toss and turn and wait for a response. Remember, agents are busy. Although you can’t gauge the agent’s reaction to your prose, you can rest confident in knowing you have done everything to make your manuscript stand out from the crowd.

When all of this is finished, we are left once again with the question, “What do agents really want?”

Writing a Superb Synopsis--The Short Synopsis

2006-04-15T14:26:00.000-07:00

Despite the torture, you wrote your long synopsis and lived to tell about it. The hardest part is over. You have summed up your book in three to five pages. What remains now is editing and fine-tuning.

You are now going to pare down your synopsis even more, so that you can offer a one- to two-page synopsis to agents. That may sound impossible, but it’s not. As in our other lessons, we are going to simplify this by using steps. On a piece of paper or in your word processing program, write the numbers one through five. You are going to go into your long synopsis and identify these five things.

1. Hook
2. The main conflict (should be one, but no more than two)
3. Extraneous characters
4. The main resolution
5. Summary and ending

Using these five steps, you will go through and delete all the portions of your synopsis that are not vital to your plot. They may help to move your plot forward, but if they don’t connect directly to the conflict or resolution, they can be removed from the synopsis. We start, of course, with the hook, which you should already have summed up from your query letter and long synopsis. This should not change. If you go through this exercise and determine it doesn’t fit, then you have not properly summed up your book. This exercise works two-fold, to make sure that your hook is strong, and that it also really does sum up your plot.

1. Hook. We have already discussed this in detail. This should be one sentence, no more than two.
2. Identify the main conflict and sum it up. What one conflict drives your entire plot? If you have a complicated plot, you can use two conflicts, but if you have more than that, you should consider if you have overwritten your book. Or you might want to sit down and ask yourself if these conflicts are actually offshoots of your main conflict, in which case they can remain, but should not contribute to the synopsis.
3. Delete all extraneous characters. This does not mean that you need to remove them from the book (although you should consider whether or not they are cluttering up your plot), however, if they are not vital to your plot, they should not be mentioned. If it is necessary to mention them, do not give them names. It gets too confusing in a one- or two-page synopsis. As you go through and delete these extraneous characters, you will find yourself deleting a lot of your synopsis they show up in.
4. The main resolution. How is your conflict resolved, and how do your main characters survive?
5. What is the final outcome? The agent needs to know how this book ends. This is not the time for a teaser. They want to know your plot, and they want it summed up neat and tidy.

Now your job is to go through your synopsis and apply each of these steps. If you find yourself having trouble, ask a valued friend or writing colleague to help you. It is often easier for someone (an outsider) to tell you if something is essential to your plot than it is for you yourself. You know your plot very well. You know the characters. It is too easy to leave something out, not realizing that you have, because you know exactly what has happened. This is not nearly as painful as the long synopsis. In fact, you may find yourself enjoying it as you come close to a tight, barebones synopsis.

Once you feel confident about your synopses, then you are ready to query an agent. And once again, we go back to the proverbial question, “What are agents really looking for?”

Writing a Superb Synopsis--The Long Synopsis

2006-03-15T21:50:00.000-08:00

Note: In the next few months, I will be running articles from a book I wrote a while back on how to get an agent. That book is no longer available, so I am going to share the information free of charge. I hope someone gets something out of it.

A synopsis is an incredibly important part of your book. Think of it as the skeleton of your novel. Without the skeleton to support the vulnerable insides, the entire thing will not survive. The skeleton must be extremely strong.

Much like the query letter, there are only five important parts of a synopsis. I’m going to teach you to take those five elements and apply them to your own synopsis. I like to say this is easy, but in reality it is not. It can be rather grueling. The time to write a synopsis is before you write your book. However, here I am working on the assumption that you have already written your book, and are just now writing the synopsis. This format will still work for your synopsis before your book is written, too.

Often, when I say the word “synopsis” I hear screams. Yes, they are coming out of my own mouth. When faced with writing one of these nasty little papers, I never fail to freeze up. It has only been in the last three months that I actually wrote a synopsis that a person I consider a tough critic (the only kind to have, in my opinion), called “riveting.” It was high praise. The hardest job facing a writer today, it seems, is writing the synopsis. Prolific authors who have no trouble writing 100,000 words freeze up when faced with summing up their work in just a few short pages. I count myself among those writers who have struggled with a synopsis.

But as I learned to write a good query letter, one that started receiving positive responses from agents and publishers, I discovered something that helped me tremendously. The key is to keep it simple.

Whether writing a query, a synopsis, or a cover letter, don’t try to overwrite it.

As with a query, covered in the preceding chapters, there are only a few basic ingredients to the synopsis. By following these simple rules, you will be able to hone a good, tight synopsis that will make an agent or publisher sit up and take notice.

Part of the problem with writing a synopsis is that many writers don’t understand its purpose. A synopsis is used to sell your plot, not your writing. If you fill a synopsis with flowery, beautiful prose, it might read well, but will it tell the agent or publisher what they need to know: Can you write a plausible plot?

So, what goes into a synopsis?

1. A great hook.
2. Your book’s beginning
3. The conflicts your lead characters are facing.
4. How they resolve and survive those conflicts.
5. How your book ends.

That’s it. No flowery prose. No long descriptions. No secondary characters. No character studies. The synopsis is used to sell your plot.

We are going to make this process slightly less painful by writing two synopses. The first one will be three- to five-pages long, and the second, short synopsis will be only one page long. This simplifies the process as it allows you to cull out unnecessary pieces of your plot and storyline that you might feel compelled to throw into your synopses.

You should know that we are all starting off here on the wrong foot, according to Beth Anderson, a long time author, however, because the time to write a synopsis is before you write the book. (This does not apply to those of you who are working on nonfiction proposal, and have not written the book.)

“I know that’s a pretty sweeping statement, and I realize there are authors who don’t plot their books, but it’s the rare author that doesn’t, because there are too many pitfalls associated with starting out blind,” Anderson said.

However, assuming your book is already written (I know most authors do not write the synopsis until they are absolutely forced to), it is now necessary to go back and sum up your novel. The long synopsis allows us a little more latitude than the short one, so we will start with it.

To begin, you need a pad of paper and a pen, or a blank document on your word processing program. At the top of your paper or document, write the steps one through five, and sum up your storyline in these five steps.

1. A great hook.
2. Your book’s beginning
3. The conflicts your lead characters are facing.
4. How they resolve and survive those conflicts.
5. How your book ends.

Each of these steps should be one to three sentences only. You can do this. We will get even tougher on the short synopsis, so appreciate the latitude I am giving you here. Cut out all the fluff and tell me exactly what happens.

Example:
1. Allison Marie Jensen is a young Mormon girl whose world changes drastically the day she falls victim to a ruthless predator.
2. A bearded man holds her and a friend at gunpoint, threatening to kill them if they don’t remove their clothes. Her friend disappears and is never found, and Alli is haunted by nightmares as she grows up.
3. Realizing that despite her father’s teachings it takes more than prayer, a faithful tithe, and baptism to protect her, she no longer accepts the Mormon doctrine as truth. She rebels and leaves home, and when she is raped, she is forced to go back and reevaluate her life.
4. She uncovers a conspiracy by the leaders of the Church to cover up the crimes of a pedophile, one that carries through two generations and countless victims, including her own rapist. Despite pleas, pressure, and threats to stay quiet, she is determined to expose all those who allowed a sexual predator to destroy young lives.
5. Allison faces her rapist, determined to be a victim no more, and finds he was molested by a man years before, the man who murdered her friend. He admits he saw the murder but can’t remember where the body is, and before she can convince him to turn himself in, he puts a gun to his head and shoots. Allison writes the story for her newspaper.

If you think this was easy for me, you are very wrong. I am now legally insane. The plot to this book is incredibly complicated, with lots of players and crises. It took hours to get these five steps down to a few sentences. It took even longer to do it with the short synopses, but it is possible.

Now, pull out your manuscript. Go through each chapter, and summarize it in one paragraph. What happens in this chapter? Who is present in this chapter? And most importantly, does this chapter move your story forward? There is a good chance when you do this you will discover you have some unnecessary chapters in your manuscript. This is a good thing. It will allow you to fine tune your work for the agent, so if it does happen, don’t panic. When we address your total package, you will see why this works to your benefit.

When you have completed steps one through five, and summarized each chapter, it is now time to put this together in a workable synopsis.

Start with your hook, and your beginning: Steps one and two. Putting them together, you will find that you are on your way. Now, take your chapter summaries and add them, in order. Last of all, use step five, how does your book end?

Now take your five steps, and examine them. Make sure you have covered everything you have listed in those steps in your synopsis. Read through and edit your work for transition or continuity problems, and readability. Even though this is a synopsis, you still need to write smoothly and transition each paragraph into the next one. It may not be the time for flowery prose, but your writing still has to flow.

Ask yourself, does this make sense? If I didn’t know these characters better than my own family, would I understand their motivations? Unless you have a 400-chapter book, your synopsis should now be three to five pages long, single spaced.
I suggest here that in the future, all synopses should be written before the book. Perhaps some of you have already done that, and are happy with them, or perhaps unhappy, but I learned the hard way how important a synopsis is. I would have saved myself a lot of grief and countless rewrites if I had used a synopsis for SisterWife, because this tool allows you to see pitfalls and problems with a plot that you can miss if you don’t write it.

Bestselling author Katherine Sutcliffe also writes her synopses before starting a book. “A synopsis lays the foundation on which I construct the plot, sub plots, characterization and motivations in a way that keeps me focused and on track.”
Take each one of these steps and apply it to your own manuscript. Analyzing each chapter may seem time-consuming, but you will be grateful you did it.

Writing a Killer Query

2006-02-16T19:26:00.000-08:00

Note: In the next few months, I will be running articles from a book I wrote a while back on how to get an agent. That book is no longer available, so I am going to share the information free of charge. I hope someone gets something out of it.

In this chapter we will address that all-important one-page query that the agents in the previous chapter talked about.

Query letters and synopses are the bane of writers everywhere. Extremely prolific authors with 200,000-word manuscripts suddenly suffer writer’s block when faced with a letter that starts: “Dear Agent.”

Why are these two products so difficult to write? Perhaps because we are making it harder than it needs to be.

Query letters are simple. You may not believe me, but it’s true. I’m going to help you stop overthinking them, and just get the letter written.

How do you summarize your novel, life experience, and market in just a few short paragraphs? I have devised a format that I believe takes some of the difficulty out of writing a query letter.

To start you need a professional template or format that you use on every contact letter. I have a template with my name, address, phone number, and email address at the top and bottom. I also have a dummy space where I put the contact information and address of the person I am querying. If I am sending requested material to an agent, I always include that in my official address to the person.

Setting yourself up a letterhead template on your word processing program will make each letter much easier. Do not forget your contact information. I cannot emphasize this enough. Make it extremely easy for the agent to get hold of you. With all the queries and manuscripts they receive every day, don’t make it easy for the agent to write you off as a PITA (pain in the, uh, behind) client.
Now, let’s move on to body of the letter.

The Five Ingredients to a Successful Query

There are only five parts to an effective query. This is the format that I follow.

1. Hook
2. Book description/mini-synopsis
3. Genre, word count, market
4. Your credentials
5. Ending

This formula works on queries for both fiction and nonfiction.
Sounds easy, right? It is, if you remember to put it in perspective. A query letter is the tool that you will use to sell your work and yourself to an agent. This is your 30-second Superbowl spot. It needs to be brief, well written, snappy, and include all the vital information.

Let’s start with the hook. What is the most important aspect of your work? You need to focus on something unique, original, and attention getting that sums up your story in one sentence. I advise against using a question for your hook. This is an overused tactic, and one I’m sure that agents are tiring of. Remember that a hook is your slogan. It’s your selling point. It has to be the very best part of your letter. As an example, I will use my own query letter for Outer Darkness, my second book. This query letter received a very positive and enthusiastic response from the agents I queried.

1. Hook: Allison Marie Jensen is a rebellious young Mormon woman whose father rules his world and family like a god.

With this hook, I give the agent a reason to want to read on and be compelled by my storyline. After you find the right hook, you move to the second part of your query, the book description. Remember that a hook should be only one sentence, brief and catchy.

2. Book Description/Mini-Synopsis: The Church sets his right in stone, and Allison chafes under the strictures of fundamental religion. Struggling to leave her abusive past behind, she sets out on a journey of self-discovery only to discover that in trying to destroy her father, the only person she has hurt is herself. Following a brutal attack, Allison retraces her tumultuous childhood years, trying to fill in the gaps of a patchwork memory. She uncovers a conspiracy by a series of Church leaders to cover up the abuses of a sexual predator. Determined to bring him, and those who didn’t stop him, to justice, she sets out on a journey that drastically changes the lives of every member of her family--including her fanatically religious father. Stalked by her rapist, she ultimately discovers the worst betrayal is perpetrated by those who believe themselves to be following God’s will.

Your book description should be as brief and compelling as you can possibly make it. Secondary plots and characters have no place here. You don’t have the time for them. You need to get to the meat of your story. What drives this manuscript? After you have your description down, you move to genre, word count, and market.

3. Genre, word count, market: With recent events spotlighting Utah, including the 2002 Olympics and media coverage, and the trial of polygamist Tom Green, there has been much interest in Utah and the Mormon Church. This 80,000-word work, mainstream women’s fiction, covers much of the history of the Mormon religion, and opens up to the world a closed society about which very little is known.

Should you always include a genre? In my opinion, no. I research the agent I am querying first, before trying to put a “tag” on my work. Most often, agents will decide what genre your work fits in. If you do feel it necessary to use a genre, try to keep it broad and non-specific. From here, we move to your credentials.

4. Credentials: I have over twenty years writing experience, including eleven years with the largest daily newspaper in Salt Lake City. I also served as an editor for the 2001 and 2002 Sundance Film Festivals. Outer Darkness is based on my own upbringing as a Mormon. Through my work with Sundance, I have been approached by several independent producers interested in screenplay rights to Sisterwife (Booklocker, 2001), which is garnering excellent reviews, and was voted number seven in the annual Preditors & Editors Poll for 2002. I have two other books completed, and have started on my fourth.

Keep it short and sweet. Do not list every award you have received, or every school you have attended, but be careful not to leave anything out. After you have introduced yourself, end it on a brief, professional note.

5. Ending: Please let me know if you are interested in reading Outer Darkness. I have enclosed a SASE for your convenience. Best, Natalie R. Collins.

That’s it. Nothing more is needed, except, of course, a SASE for those snail mail queries. Regarding SASEs, I no longer send postage to return an entire manuscript. I have found that agents often lose these costly envelopes, and if they do not, you receive back a dog-eared manuscript that you cannot possibly use again. It is a waste of time and money. Instead, I include a legal-sized SASE for a letter.

Now it’s your turn. Number a piece of paper from one to five. Start with your one-sentence hook and work your way through each element. Keep it simple and short. You can always add more information, something much easier than deleting excess words.
There are really only five important parts of a query. Learn what those parts are, and how to apply them to your book.

If you divide your query into these five parts, it makes your job much easier. If you have included something in your letter that does not fit in one of these groups, you should seriously consider whether or not it is necessary to your query. Some extra things I have seen that I believe work are short quotes from your work, or timely quips. However, don’t try to be funny if you aren’t. This usually backfires and comes across as arrogance.

Queries should never be more than one page, and should always be professionally written, edited, and proofread. Even email queries should contain your contact information, and should be professional.

Speaking of email queries, I have found that agents either embrace them wholeheartedly or despise them. There doesn’t seem to be much middle ground. Research an agent and ask whether or not they are open to e-queries before going this route. I also, however, have had much more success with agents through email queries than I have ever experienced with snail mail queries. I believe this is because agents who are open to email queries are also more open to considering new writers.

“I’m of two minds about this issue,” said Simon Lipskar of Writers House, about receiving e-queries. “On the one hand, email sure beats snail mail in terms of speed and efficiency. On the other hand, email from people I don’t know always feels like an invasion of my privacy, in a way that I find inexplicable but, nonetheless, feel consistently. I’ve received and responded positively to email queries, but I never really like it.”

If an agent’s guidelines unequivocally state that they do not accept e-queries, I would not try this method of submission with them. However, I will note that I have seen quite a few agents in the past year change their policy to begin accepting e-queries, and even have found some agencies that prefer, or only accept e-queries. Some of these agencies include William Clark Associates, Doris S. Michaels Literary Agency, Inc., Linda Chester Associates, Harvey Klinger Inc., and The Vines Agency, all of which can be found in the agent listing in this book.

Now that we have covered the necessary components of your query letter, let’s talk about what you should not put in your query.

1. Boastful statements, such as “If you don’t pick up my manuscript for representation, you will kick yourself in the ass later.” (Yes, I have seen queries that basically said this.)
2. Comments that try to tell the agent his/her business.
3. Too much background information on yourself. Sum it up nicely. Include the key points. Do not list every contest you ever won since the second-grade spelling bee.
4. Hints that your query letter is not personal, but rather is a form letter you sent to every agent on the Association of Authors’ Representatives listing.
5. Typos, grammar problems, spelling errors, smudges, yesterday’s coffee. Sending a letter full of these mistakes says you are an amateur, and do not care about your work—so why should the agent?
6. Mistakes that show you do not know the agent you are querying, i.e., addressing a Ms. as a Mr.

In my recent Agent Workshop for Writing World (http://www.writing-world.com) I saw two mistakes in every single query I critiqued.

1. Repetition
2. Wordiness

Repeating the same words over and over in a query (or a synopsis, or a novel) affects the rhythm and pacing of your writing, and will cause your query to sink like a lead weight. You want something snazzy and catchy, not repetitive and monotonous.

In the English language, there are sayings that we all use automatically. Examples are “in the meantime,” “by and by,” “after a while,” “in an attempt,” etc. These sayings deaden your query, when all you want is tight, crisp verbiage. Also, words like “then,” and “soon” are usually not necessary.

Example: In the meantime, Joe sets fire to the barn in an attempt to flush the alien out. After a while, when nothing happens, he decides to call the fire department when his house catches fire. He wonders how he can explain there is a little green man in his barn.

The above sentence can be easily tightened. (Please note that my example in no way constitutes good writing or plotting.)

Example: Joe sets fire to the barn to flush the alien out. Nothing happens. As he waits, his house catches fire and, chagrined, he calls the fire department.

When you have worked through each of these steps, and checked your query for wordiness and repetition, you are ready to move on. Remember to sign your query personally, and double check to make sure that you have included every item you mention in your letter. If the agent has requested your material, make sure you remind him/her of this.

The bottom line is, make it simple. Don’t overthink your query.
Now that your query is finished, you are ready to check it closely. Although I highly recommend that you have someone else critique your query letter, I do suggest you run through the following steps of self-critique.

1. Make sure your hook is extremely strong. It is the most important part of your manuscript. If you don’t catch the agent with the hook, you might as well not even write the rest of the letter.
2. Be professional.
3. Be brief.
4. Try to clear your mind of what you already know about your manuscript, and read your query like someone who has never heard of you or your book. Are you getting your key points across? Is it clear, or confusing?
5. Your book description/mini-synopsis needs to get to the core of your book. Who are the lead characters? What conflicts are they facing? How do they resolve those conflicts? How does your book end? We will cover more of this in the next chapter, when we cover the long synopsis. But in the query letter, you only have one or two brief paragraphs to convey this information.
6. Know who your market is. You must convince an agent that this book will sell, therefore, you must know who your readers are going to be. If you don’t know who your market is, you should seriously question whether or not you are wasting your time trying to sell this book.

Remember, too, that fiction manuscripts submitted to an agent must be complete. In nonfiction, however, it is common to sell a book based solely on a proposal.
On the next page, you will find a finalized version of my query for Outer Darkness, as an example of a finished query letter.

Here is a sample of my finished query, in proper format.

Natalie R. Collins
555 Want to Be Published Lane
Hopeful, Utah 55555
(555) 555-5555
Email: Nataliewrites@nataliercollins.com
October 31, 2002

Joe SuperAgent
SuperAgents-R-Us
555 Avenue of the Agents
New York, New York 55555
Re: Outer Darkness

Dear Mr. SuperAgent:
Allison Marie Jensen is a rebellious young Mormon woman whose father rules his world and family like a god.
The Church sets his right in stone, and Allison chafes under the strictures of fundamental religion. Struggling to leave her abusive past behind, she sets out on a journey of self-discovery, finding that in trying to destroy her father, the only person she hurts is herself. Following a brutal attack, Allison retraces her tumultuous childhood years, filling in the gaps of a patchwork memory. She uncovers a conspiracy by a series of Church leaders to cover up the abuses of a sexual predator. Determined to bring him, and those who didn’t stop him, to justice, she sets out on a journey that drastically changes the lives of every member of her family--including her fanatically religious father. Stalked by her rapist, she ultimately discovers the worst betrayal is perpetrated by those who believe themselves to be following God’s will.
With recent events spotlighting Utah, including the 2002 Olympics and media coverage, and the trial of polygamist Tom Green, there has been much interest in Utah and the Mormon Church. This 80,000-word work, mainstream women’s fiction, covers much of the history of the Mormon religion, and opens up to the world a closed society about which very little is known.
I have over twenty years writing experience, including eleven years with the largest daily newspaper in Salt Lake City. I also served as an editor for the 2001 and 2002 Sundance Film Festivals. Outer Darkness is based on my own upbringing as a Mormon. Through my work with Sundance, I have been approached by several independent producers interested in screenplay rights to Sisterwife (Booklocker, 2001), which is garnering excellent reviews, and was voted number seven in the annual Preditors & Editors Poll for 2002. I have two other books completed, and have started on my fourth.
Please let me know if you are interested in reading Outer Darkness. I have enclosed a SASE for your convenience.

Sincerely,

Natalie R. Collins
Requested Material

More of What Agents Really Want

2006-01-15T10:15:00.000-08:00

Note: In the next few months, I will be running articles from a book I wrote a while back on how to get an agent. That book is no longer available, so I am going to share the information free of charge. I hope someone gets something out of it.

Dear Author:

Your work sounds intriguing. I would be interested in seeing the first fifty pages, along with a synopsis and your original query letter.

Best,
Joe Agent

Now what do you do? Page fifty leaves the heroine dangling precariously from the outer tip of …

See my point? Should you send forty-five pages, which ends a chapter and has a better breaking point, or should you send seventy-five pages, ending the chapter you started on page forty-six?

When a writer is searching for an agent, all the different submission guidelines can be mind-boggling, and cause many sleepless nights. Not wanting to be labeled a “difficult” client, an author wonders if sending fifty-two pages is going to set the agent off on a rampage that ends with the ritual sacrifice of the writer’s beloved manuscript. Or even worse, will the manuscript end up in the trash can without ever having been read?

To answer some of those burning questions that keep writers awake at night, I asked six agents exactly how they felt about the following questions:

1. If you ask someone for the first fifty pages, and they send you fifty-two, because that is where a chapter breaks, are you going to disregard their work because they didn’t follow your guidelines?

2. Should a writer automatically send a synopsis? If so, how long should that synopsis be?

3. How long should a query letter be?

The answers I received reaffirmed my belief that agents are not as rigid as you might think. What they are looking for, overall, is a professional client who has the talent and knowledge to write a good book, and a winning proposal and query letter. This is how you present yourself to the agent or publisher. It needs to be the very best and most professional work that you have to offer.
Overwhelmingly, the agents I asked stated that a writer sending extra pages or a few less than requested would not really affect how they look at the work. I would suggest that you don’t send an entire manuscript, however, when an agent has only asked for the first three chapters.

Although the agents were pretty much in agreement about whether or not you should break in a chapter and stop at exactly fifty pages, they had differing opinions on whether or not to send a synopsis and how long it should be. Based on their answers I believe that you should only send a synopsis if the agent requests it. All were in agreement again, however, when it comes to a query letter being only one page long. Keep it short.

Below, I have posted my questions to some top agents, and their responses. Kind enough to respond politely to my inquiries were B.J. Robbins of B.J. Robbins Literary Agency; Liza Dawson, of Liza Dawson Associates; William Contardi, formerly of William Morris who is now with Brandt and Hochman; Pam Strickler, of Pam Strickler Literary Management; Simon Lipskar of Writers House; Linda Hyatt of Hyatt Literary Agency; Jeff Kleinman of Graybill and English; and Nicole Aragi, who recently left Watkins-Loomis to start her own agency.

1. If you ask someone for the first fifty pages, and they send you fifty-two because that is where a chapter breaks, are you going to disregard their work because they didn’t follow your guidelines?

B.J. Robbins: No, I would never disregard or reject out of hand someone’s work if they sent me a few pages more than I had requested. I ask for the first three chapters, which eliminates this problem.

Liza Dawson: Of course not!

William Contardi: Of course not....fifty pages give or take, this is a writerocracy not an agentatorship.

Pam Strickler: No, that would be fine.

Simon Lipskar: Of course not. If there’s a natural break somewhere near fifty pages, then send that many pages. However, if the first chapter ends on page ninety-seven and the agent has requested fifty pages, just send fifty pages.

Linda Hyatt: Two pages will not break or make a writer. But, when I am overwhelmed with submissions and I respond with “I am not accepting submissions at this time” I do expect the author to heed my statement and try at a later date.

Jeff Kleinman: I’m a completely crappy person to ask about that kind of stuff, because I frankly don’t care very much. I tend to think, though, that writers should try to follow an agent’s requests—because there are a lot of completely anal-retentive agents out there. The feeling is that if a writer can’t follow simple directions like send X, they’ll probably be difficult to work with for editing and editors.

Nicole Aragi: No, of course not, the fifty-page guideline is just rough. I usually ask for fifty pages, or three chapters, or whatever “cut” seems most logical. Under no circumstances should they send a mix of chapters. It’s infuriating to receive a query letter with chapters twelve and thirteen enclosed. Like any reader, an agent wants to start at the beginning.

2. Should a writer automatically send a synopsis? If so, how long should that synopsis be?

BJR: I don’t request a synopsis, since I find them tedious to read, but if a writer wants to include one that’s fine. It should be short (those twenty-eight-page chapter outlines are a complete waste of time and I never read them) and in narrative form if possible.

LD: A short one. One to two pages. Short is better.

WC: [I’m] not that interested in a synopsis, more about the writing itself. Doesn’t hurt, but several lines in a cover letter is just as if not more effective.

PS: I think so. I prefer five pages or less.

SL: Yes. One to two pages maximum.

LH: I prefer a pitch letter, with writing credentials and the points of the story so I will be able to tell right away if it is something I can market. A synopsis should be as long as is necessary to work as a selling tool for the novel.

JK: It never hurts. I rarely read ‘em unless I really like the book, and then I always want to see how the book will go. I think you should try to limit it to one to two pages, maximum. Double-spaced, of course. And make it read really, really smoothly, too. (Yeah, right—it’s far easier said than done!)

NA: It can be helpful, but is not essential. Whereas receiving a synopsis without a sample chapter(s) is distinctly unhelpful. Reading a sample of the text is the only way to make a judgment. [The synopsis] should be no more than a couple of paragraphs.

3. How long should a query letter be?

BJR: Query letters should be short and to the point, no more than one page. I want to know who you are, what you’ve written, where you’ve studied, and any other pertinent information that will help you stand out from the pack. Avoid cutesy, gimmicky letters or anything overly obsequious or grandiose.

LD: One page. Unless it’s brilliant and there is a lot to say.

WC: One page-ish with writer credits and a paragraph summation of the book.

PS: Short, on one page.

SL: No more than a single page. Remember, though, if you can’t write an
enticing query letter, agents will invariably assume that you can’t write an enticing novel.

LH: A pitch letter can be one or two pages.

JK: Never more than one page.

NA: Again, a couple of paragraphs, not more.

So there you have it. Keep your query letter to one page. Make it concise and to the point. Do not tell the agent his or her business. Rather, let them know what your credentials are, and why they should read your book. Don’t forget your hook. Your first line is without a doubt the most important one in the whole letter. If the agent asks for a synopsis, send one, but keep it short. Don’t send lengthy chapter outlines. Do send sample chapters, beginning with chapter one.
And if your fifty pages need one or two more pages to complete a chapter or an important scene, by all means include them. When an agent responds to your query positively, pay attention to what they are saying. More often than not, they will tell you exactly what they want. Staying within the guidelines as closely as possible guarantees you the best chance of success.

What Agents Really Want....

2005-12-16T15:54:00.000-08:00

Note: In the next few months, I will be running articles from a book I wrote a while back on how to get an agent. That book is no longer available, so I am going to share the information free of charge. I hope someone gets something out of it.

“I wish I knew what agents are looking for,” a writing friend of mine said the other day. “If I could only read their minds, I’d be in!” I have heard this same statement repeated time and time again.

In today’s tough publishing climate, most big commercial presses will not accept unsolicited manuscripts or queries from authors, and instead use agents to sort through the slush pile and bring them the best work around.

This means the most important contact a writer can or will have is with his/her agent. There are many things to consider when choosing an agent, including their sales record, affiliations, reputation, and client list. As you query the agents that meet your criteria, you will undoubtedly meet with much rejection.

Once you have an agent, don’t imagine you’re on easy street. Most agents will tell you to put aside that dream of instant success and royalties that pour in unchecked, and prepare to go to work. New writers must be willing to actively market their work, a job that is both time consuming and tedious. No agent wants a client who thinks once the book is written, the job is done.

Since I’m seriously short on psychic skills, I decided to do the next best thing and ask a few successful agents some questions. I asked four questions of three agents: Jeff Kleinman of Graybill and English, LLC [JK] (Note: Jeff will be joining Readers with an column on agenting next month); Liza Dawson [LD]; and Felicia Eth [FE]. All three are successful non-fee charging literary agents with proven track records and good reputations. One fact came out loud and clear: Writers are making the same mistakes over and over again. Here’s your opportunity to learn what an agent is looking for, directly from the source.

1. What is the worst thing a writer can do in a query letter?

JK: Hmm, that’s a tough one. How about three things: ramble for more than a page and a half; sound desperate; and make grammatical, punctuation, or spelling mistakes.

LD: Here are two worst things. One, write the letter like it’s a promo piece for Publishers Clearinghouse, i.e. “Dear Ms. Dawson: I’d like to offer you the opportunity at a sure bestseller. I’ve heard you’re brilliant and so successful and that’s why I’m sending you and the other fifty agents on this e-mail submission this letter.” Two, beg me in hysterical language to pay attention because you’ve never written a letter to an agent and you’re really scared and you know that no one will ever listen to you.

FE: Bore me. If the letter does, probably the manuscript will too. Boast about it—
tell me it’s sure to be a bestseller, tell me I’ll make lots of money. Send it to me, but address it to another agent. You’d be amazed how often this happens. Make it clear it’s a form letter, where my name is hand-written in. It makes me think it’s been to a million other agents.

2. What catches your eye and makes you want to read someone’s work?

JK: A tightly-crafted letter with a great single- or two-sentence description of the work, and an author with very good credentials—published in national magazines, or with a national platform; winning awards, and so forth.

LD: One, a recommendation; two, a clear description of the work with few superfluous sentences; three, previous publications.

FE: Pizzazz in the query letter. Good, maybe great credentials—either on the person’s expertise, or publishing background. An original approach without being overly corny; sometimes writers cross the line in making something way too cute. It’s strong, original writing that catches my eye.

3. As writers, we hear stories of the “good old days,” where agents and editors would nurture a promising writer with two or three books until they reached top form. In your opinion, was this ever the case, and if so, what changed it?

JK: I think that’s still the case with agents and editors. It’s all about nurturing and building up a brand name.

LD: It was true a long time ago. Agents will nurture for longer than editors will. Editors now must justify their salaries in a way that they never had to before. Unless that writer gets fabulous reviews and there’s a whiff of a Nobel Prize in the air, then that editor has to maintain a wall between himself or herself and the writer—or else the editor will end up standing next to the writer, looking at the publishing house from the outside rather than the inside.

FE: I’ve been around for a while, and though things were never “great” still there are definite differences today. People used to buy a book they loved but didn’t think would be a great commercial success, for small money, publish it well and hope that it would help establish a writer for his/her next book. Today no one (of the major houses at least) wants to spend small money on a book with small expectations. They just can’t buy those books; they need to meet minimums in terms of the number of copies they can get out. Also, previously if someone was a good writer, credentials and platform weren’t nearly as important as they are today. Now, without that, it’s a long, difficult, uphill battle and most editors aren’t willing to fight that fight. So yes, things are different.

4. If you could give a new author one piece of advice to help advance his/her career, what would it be?

JK: Build up your credentials! By that I mean: One, learn to make your writing as solid, tight, and wonderful as possible; and two, become an “authority” on your subject, with some kind of very strong regional, or national, platform.

LD: Cultivate a following on National Public Radio. Come up with a high concept gimmick.

FE: Build credentials—short stories or magazine and newspaper pieces. Contests, supportive quotes from any major name you know. Build up a good case for why your work needs to be taken seriously, and then, amazingly enough, it will be. That’s no guarantee it will be bought, but at least it will be read and that’s an important first step.

I also asked one final question, half-jokingly: “When you become a literary agent, are you automatically required to use the word ‘subjective’ in your rejections?” Liza Dawson says yes: “Every time we send out a rejection notice we’re afraid that we’re going to spark a suicide, or reject a fabulously successful novel and the author will then make merciless fun of the agents who rejected the book and post the pompous rejections on his web site.”

Felicia Eth had this response: “You know, I do use ‘subjective’ myself, because it is. In fact, I don’t love ‘commercial’ novels, with all that implies, and probably reject a fair number of them that are good and likely to sell. But that’s not what I do, not what I like, and though other agents probably think I’m nuts, that’s my criteria. Authors should know that. I told someone this week that I don’t do Mob novels—and said, ‘yes I probably would have rejected The Godfather.’ So that’s how subjective it is.”

An important thing to remember is that this ruthless business is also difficult from the agent’s perspective. The goal of an agent is not to crush the spirit of a new writer, who often has great potential but simply is not ready to seek publication. The only way to succeed is to write, rewrite, edit and write again, until your work is perfectly polished. At that point, remember the business of publishing is, indeed, subjective. What one agent hates, another may love. You simply must keep going until you find the agent who loves your work.

More Blog Bytes

2005-11-15T17:08:00.000-08:00

Today's blog is a roundup of happenings in the publishing industry, garnered from Blogs around the Internet.

In a tidbit I picked up on Beatrice.com, the independent bookstore Chapters, in Washington, D.C., a veritable institution, might not make it to their 21st year. In an effort to avoid this, they are selling the bookstore to a non-profit they formed to promote Wordfest, a poetry festival, and are looking for investors.... about 1600 of them.

Chapters owner Steve Moyers said:

In the short run it would enable Chapters to get an infusion of capital and we would be back on firm financial footing. Once that happens it completes the circle. Wordfest can continue doing the events it does and Chapters can continue selling books at these events. When, and if, Chapters has a profit it would go back to Wordfest and support its work.

Author Tess Gerritsen talks about how there's always a reader who wants to point out snafus you might make in your book (I sometimes wonder if people read books just LOOKING for them) on her blog. Below that, the divine Miss G. chats about the M word... you know, money, and how much authors really make.

P.J. Parrish (a sister writing team) talks about sex in books, or the lack of well written sex, in a very good post on their blog.

"But the hand was what she tried to concentrate on, the hand, since it has the entire terrain of her torso to explore and not just the otorhinolaryngological caverns -- oh God, it was not just at the border where the flesh of the breast joins the pectoral sheath of the chest -- no, the hand was cupping her entire right -- Now!"

Okay, this is cheating because the above quote was NOT written by a crime writer. I could name names in the crime world here, but I have to bend elbows with my fellow writers at conventions. And according to one drunken broad at Bouchercon, I already have the reputation for being "offensive." So forgive me for chickening out and not quoting directly from some of the books on my shelf. But you people know who you are....

As for the lyrical passage above, it was upchucked onto the page by none other than Tom Wolfe in his latest, "I am Charlotte Simmons."

Hmmm. A book I won't be reading....

I also gleaned, from reading Tod Goldberg's blog, that he managed to piss off Dean Koontz. That's almost sorta like making Stephen King mad, isn't it? Tod cracks me up, especially since just about every post he writes denounces another F&@$tard or two (his word, not mine, but it's a glorious one).

Apparently, Tod took exception to Koontz calling someone Mr. Teriyaki, and after he was quoted by the LA Times, Koontz took exception to Tod calling him a f$#@tard, although not in so many words.

He doesn't see how people might find him calling someone else Mr. Teriyaki anything but the height of humor because, I suspect, no one has told him otherwise, maybe because he's Dean Koontz and maybe because he doesn't put himself up for the same kind of hilarity as his subjects. Whatever the case may be, I suspect saying, "Sorry if I offended anyone, it certainly wasn't my intention" would have been a far better response than, "You're all out to get me!"

And that's a roundabout from the bookblog world!

Blog Bytes

2005-10-15T16:10:00.000-07:00

Karin is in the middle of revisions on her book, Good Girl Gone Bad, but I asked her to take a minute and tell us which industry blogs she reads religiously. Then I intend to share my own blog reading habits. Please note on Karin's blog picks, she lists MY blog. I did not pay her. I promise. There was no cash involved. No bribery of any kind.

Karin's PICKS:

The Age of Blogs.
I have a love hate relationship with blogs. I love to read them, and I hate the time they suck from me. I have a few I visit regularly:

Natalie Collins. Love her POV on the Mormon thang.

Then there is Miss Snark. I love her snark. This agent pulls no punches. I love her like I love Simon from American Idol. You might not like the delivery or the message, but most of the time the two are right on.

Then there is the kinder gentler Agent 007. 007 had played both sides of the publishing fence, first as an editor and now as an agent. Personally, if I didn't already have a stellar agent and had to pick one, I'd pounce on Miss Snark like she pounces on naive snarklings.

Romancing the Blog is another good one. I write romance so, natch I'm a regular visitor here. Lots of great authors in my genre post regularly.

Slay Your Demons, Julie Kenner's blog, hosts regular guest bloggers. It's kind of a bitch session, and well, I like to bitch with the best of them.

I like to read Maud, and the Book Slut, and Flogging The Quill.

Another snarker is Mrs. Giggles. I love her Web site for the reviews. I'm not even going to think about how she'll shred my first book, to be released this January. I will survive it, I have lots of bandages and Neosporin on hand. Her blog is just like her reviews. Snark, sarcasm, and lots of truth. And the wierd/fun thing is, authors she, um, discusses, post to her blog. Her site is not for the faint of heart.

OK, I have a ton more, but I have revisions I need to complete. Blog on.

Natalie says:

Like Karin, I'm a regular Maud reader. I also like POD-dy Mouth, being a former POD-dy author. Girl (yes, that IS what she goes by, in order to remain anonymous.) is spot on and funny, and I love that she is finding the gems in the POD-dreck barrel, because the gems do exist. And she even interviewed MOI. Good taste, Girl has. I agree with her about the premise of her blog, though. In fact, I reviewed a good POD book just this month on ReadersRoom.com, called Techno-Noir, from Zumaya, my former publisher. It was a great book. And the other book review is published by, gasp, Publish America. You can hear the collective gasps across the writing nation. But Peggy Tibbetts, my good friend and fellow writer, quite enjoyed the book. Yeah, yeah, Publish America will publish anything, and has, indeed, set out to publish EVERY book that EVERY American has "inside" them, but that doesn't mean they don't publish good books.

I'm a regular visitor at Tess Gerritsen's blog, because I find her funny, honest, and very, very open (something that has, on occasion, gotten her in trouble).

I'm a huge fan of Beatrice.com, not just because Ron Hogan took the time to explain the eccentricities of the Amazon ranking system to me, back when I was comparing my book sales to that of the Book of Mormon. (The Book of Mormon won most of the time.)

I also like the blogs of brothers Tod and Lee Goldberg. Tod's blog is just damn funny, and snarky, and spot on, even when he is skewering the "f#*$tards" of the world. And Lee has a great outlook on the industry, and is also man enough to admit when he's wrong.

Okay, that's enough reading to keep anyone busy for a while. As Karin said, blog on.

On Romance

2005-08-25T00:10:00.000-07:00

I've been busy this week, writing as well as corresponding with fellow writers. The Internet is a beautiful thing. Just how did we manage a scant decade or so ago? The info out there is as we all know, mind-boggling. I love being able to shoot a post off to my agent or editors and have an instant answer. My CP's are just a click away. The age of instant gratification is here to stay. And speaking of instant gratification, I believe in my heart of hearts IG plays a huge role in the popularity of romance. The HEA (happily ever after) is an instant certainty. While you may spend hours getting to it, you know it's coming. And with romance, the guidelines being what they are (and for those of you who pooh-pooh the idea, you're wrong. Romance has a formula. It's simple. h/h meet, jump through emotional as well as plot hoops then voila the HEA. Oh and for those of you think it's a cinch to write, be my guest. Oh, and after you've done that go get big bucks for it. I dare you.) the reader expects to be gratified at the end. There are no secrets when you pick up a romance novel. You know the minute you get it into your hot little hands there will be a satisfying emotional ending at the end of the roller coaster ride.
The HEA is the hook.
A romance cover and blurb screams this at a potential reader as she or he walks by. Hey! You there! Stop for a minute. If you give me a few hours of your time and make an emotional investment in me, I will not disappoint you.
Look, I didn't watch Titanic. I knew they sank, and I didn't want to invest myself emotionally only to lose the characters I would inevitably grow to care about. Had I had a clue to the ending of Cold Mountain I would never have watched it. I was so pissed off when that movie ended, I seriously considered throwing something at the television. Sorry, I want the HEA. So do a lot of other readers. And there is nothing wrong with it.
That doesn't mean the books have to be sappy sweet. Personally, I like to drop a few bodies along the way in my stories, wrench up the drama, the tension and the anxiety. I want my readers to squirm. But no matter how rocky it gets, they hang in there because they know what's coming. The HEA.
OK, now, so there are some really bad romances out there. I've written a few, luckily they've never seen the light of an editor's desk. I would have been laughed out of the business. Let's face it, there's also some really bad literary crap out there. Kind of like looking at a canvass hanging in the spotlight at the Guggenheim. It's completely white, void of color. You have to look closely. Huh? I know it ain't just me (I said ain't on purpose). I'm squinting now. I don't get it, until someone tells me to look closer, grasshopper become one with the painting, don't you see that itty bitty speck? There up in the corner? It represents our lives in the universe. Yeah, right, OK, moving on to something more lifelike, like that fly on the wall. Not for me folks, I'll take a painting with some color over that. Just like I'll take a well written, riveting romance over some literary work I don't get. It's not that I'm dense either. I have enough brains to raise four kids, startup and run a successful business for nearly 20 years and sell three books to big NY print publishers with more in the wings.
Here it is. I'm easy. I love foreplay, emotional and physical. I love to escape. I love suspense and growing right along with my characters. I love big bad alpha males, and the big bad kick ass heroines who love them. I don't do wimpy and I don't read it. TSTL? (too stupid to live, usually applied to the heroine but sometimes the hero, Ack, those are really bad) I'll throw that book against the nearest wall and never pick that author again. I've been doing quite a bit of reading lately, and let me say, as a romance author there are some stories out there that give me the willies. But, there are so many more wonderfully written love stories. Love stories with characters who stay with me long after I read The End. Characters I want to know in real life. Stories where I laugh and cry, and get all hot and bothered, and sigh when it comes together for that HEA.
Romance. Gotta love it.
K*

Quick intro

2005-08-16T17:57:00.000-07:00

OK, so, I'm the romance writer. Karin Tabke. My first release will be January '06, The Hard Stuff, Kensington Books. I've also contracted two ST's with Pocket books, Internal Affairs to be released June '06 and Protective Custody Feb '07. Go ahead, take a stab at the sub genre. My father, a flier, asked me the other day when was I going to start writing literary works, you know the kind he could tell his buddies about. I assured him, it wouldn't be in his life time. I write romance: hot, sexy, roller coaster ride, curl your toes romance, and I'm proud of it.
OK, so now that you know my secret, Natalie has invited me to be the voice of romance here at Inside of a Dog. I'm happy to oblige.
I plan on offering a review or two, industry news and any gossip I may come across, and occasionally a rant, although Nat does it so much better than I. :)
So, look for me to post the 2nd and 4th weeks of the month and if the muse strikes or there is a hot topic I can't wait to share, I'll post more frequently.
In case any of you have cop questions or want a mild form of entertainment you're welcome to visit my site. www.karintabke.com
So until next week, or maybe sooner, ciao.

K*

Marianne Mancusi Needs Your Help

2005-08-15T20:48:00.000-07:00

While attending the RWA conference in Reno earlier this month, Marianne Mancusi's house was hit by lightning, and it burned to the ground. I can't even imagine the horror. The only thing worse would have been loss of life, and luckily, Marianne was away.

But she has nothing left. Because it was a rental, she did not have homeowner's insurance, and unfortunately, also did not have rental insurance.

But the publishing industry has rallied around Marianne, and many, many authors have banded together to raise money AND to help her get back on her feet.

You can read more about this effort on the Literary Chicks Web site.

Also, you can go directly to E-Bay to the Marianne Fire Fund, and bid on critiques, books, and other tidbits that writers have donated.

Currently, my manuscript critique offer has a bid of $5.50. That's pretty damn cheap. I usually don't work that cheap, and Marianne has needs, so GO BID!

Left Behind....

2005-08-01T21:12:00.000-07:00

This past week was the RWA conference in Reno, and all my writing friends were gone. Gone, gone, gone. Oh, they'd pop up on IM once in a while to tell me about all the fabulous parties they were drinking at, and all the authors, editors and agents they were schmoozing with, but they were still gone, gone, GONE.

And me? Well, I was NOT at RWA. Now, I'm sure my curmudgeonly friend Rob would point out that I don't really write romance. To which I would reply, "Well, I HAVE before. Sort of. It's hard-edged romantic suspense."

Then Rob would say: "Well, you don't belong to RWA."

At which point I would say, "Well, I'm GOING to join. After all, I HAVE been talking about it for two years."

Then Rob would say: "Did I mention you don't write romance?"

It's so irritating to have a conversation with Rob, even an imaginary one where he doesn't actually get to say anything and I just ASSUME what he is going to say. That's what happens when you get to know someone really well, and they get to know you, too.

He thinks I'm a wingnut.

He's probably not too far off, particularly today. I am bone tired, not because I was dancing and drinking at the fabulous RWA parties (note to self: Must ask good friends Jennifer Apodaca and Karin Tabke if there was dancing at RWA. Am well aware there was drinking, in copious amounts.)

Annnyway, I'm tired because I'm working on revisions for my second book, BEHIND CLOSED DOORS, coming sometime in the next ten years, provided I get these revisions done, from St. Martin's Press.

Not only that, but my oldest daughter had a foot and leg surgery that required complete bedrest and a complete inability to walk. I've been playing slave mama for four days now, and haven't had much sleep.

And then there's the damn HORSE I was dogsitting. No, I am not hallucinating. He actually IS a dog, but he looks like a horse. He's a great dane puppy, and he went home today. I'm sure he's glad about that, since there is absolutely nothing left in my backyard to destroy or eat or tear up, and he was probably getting bored. The first SIX days were a hoot for him though, especially the day he played tug of war with the hose and discovered that water pipes are not very strong when being tugged at by a great dane.

He hid behind a tree for about 20 minutes after the geyser went off, which of course did not work very well because he IS A GREAT DANE!

So, in between all of that I was trying to work on revisions and hearing in snippets about the fabulous time being had by all at RWA.

Since I wasn't there, how about it RWAers. Please comment on this post and tell us what went on for you at RWA.