Stalker List

So I started my stalking list for Science Fiction Publishers or rather, editors.

I've spent the past few days writing furiously and needed a little break to scoop my brains up off the keyboard. I decided that since I am coming up to the completion of my speculative fiction novel I should really start exploring the places that publish books like mine.

My first step was to check out the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America guild for their list of acceptable publishers to use in their membership application process. The list was plenty helpful.

I had to go website by website to weed out the children's book and graphic novel only publishers. Then I had to figure out which ones accepted unsolicited or non-agent submissions and which ones did not.

I had to go through this whole process before with my romance books so it wasn't as overwhelming as before, but it was still very time consuming.

Anyway...I am now going to check out upcoming writers conferences with science fiction emphasis and see if there are any editors on my list attending.  Maybe I can get my book done and a one-sheet put together in time to register.

Until next time...Go Write!

Just Take A Breath...And Go!

I always encourage people to go to writer's conferences because I believe they are the best way to gain the interest of an agent or an editor. There's nothing like sitting face to face with a person to really show how passionate and excited you are about a project.


Its also a time for you to judge whether or not this is the type of person you want to work with. Book Ends Literary Blog has a great post on what you need to know about an agent before signing with them.

Ask them questions about how hands on they are, what level of communication with clients they maintain, if there is a specific genre they feel they have strong contacts in...all these are important for you, the client, to know before pursuing a working relationship with the agent.


That being said...you need to GO in order to actually meet anyone. It amazes me how many writers don't go to conferences at all.  Not only is it a great place to learn -- they have wonderful workshops by agents, editors, and other authors -- it helps you to learn the business side of writing.


That's right...the BUSINESS side of writing. Because there is one.  You need to understand that although its an art, a craft, and something dear to your heart, it is also an industry.


A good conference will publish updates of what's going on in the publishing world, have keynote speakers that address the changes and upcoming trends, and a faculty that is knowledgeable and professional.

I encourage you to sign up for a pitch session with an agent. It is scary...like, spit less, sweaty-hands, scary...but so worth it in terms of growth as a writer.  


They have always had great advice, direction, and encouragement for me at those sessions.


A good conference has a submission process like the one for OC Christian Writer's conference to get you ready for meeting with those agents. 


The San Diego Christian Writer's Guild conference has you submit your intended proposal before the conference. This is really helpful because you get valuable feedback on how to fine tune your pitch. Something that will help long after the conference.


Shaw Guides has a list of conferences for every state and every focus. From horror to inspirational to non-fiction there's a place for you to learn, network, and maybe even...land an agent. 


I hope you take a chance and take trip to one of them. Until next time...Go Write!
Photograph by Chispita . Photograph by Beneath Blue Skies. Photograph by Bill Kuffrey.

Conference Jitters - Survival Wednesday

You're standing in the the main hall, your welcome packet clutched in your sweaty palms as you scan the tables and booths for a glimpse of your prey...the agent.


Finding a seat at one of the round tables, you pull out your name tag and affix it to your lapel...no your pocket...no, uh, your lapel - yeah.  


You pour out the contents of your manila packet and hunt for your consultation sheet.  Scanning the time slots your eyes dart to the name of the faculty member you've selected.


Yes! You got an appointment despite your late registration!  Agent Reed Moore of the Serious Authors Literary Agency is in your 10am slot.


Immediately your stomach tumbles...you rifle through your folder to make sure you've brought your one-sheet.  Sighing with relief, you hold in your hands; the result of hours of shaping and trimming and refining...its your pitch.   


Microphone feedback pulls your eyes to the podium in front. Its time to finish up breakfast and head to your first 15 minute meeting.  You gulp...your pulse races...this is your ONE and ONLY chance at becoming a "real" writer... 


What if it goes terribly wrong? What if you get flop sweat and stutter like you did during your 8th grade oral report?  What if they're mean and cut you off mid-sentence with a bored sigh and shake of their head?  What if... What if....?


RELAX -- 


First of all, agents are usually super nice people who patiently listen to you as you explain your project. They WANT to find something good out there. They WANT to listen to you.  Relax...and slow down. And start your pitch with confidence.


You are passionate about what you've written. That will show through. And this is NOT your one and only chance. Publication is a survival process...not just selection...keep at it and you'll find success.

Some things to keep in mind while preparing for the conference and your meeting with an agent....RESEARCH!


Meet with an agent that actually represents your genre.  Go on their website and find out their submission guidelines and have a proposal and query with you just in case they ask for it.  Always...ALWAYS, have one chapter with you.   


I was at a group meeting and a woman pitched a project, got the interest of the agent, and was asked for a sample of her writing.  She didn't have one. Yikes!  They may not ask for it, but for Pete's sake, have it if they do.


Also do some research into the type of books releasing this year under the agent or the publishing house.  Tell them where your book would go on the shelf. Would it go next to their  newest Amish title?  How about next to their latest CIA thriller? Show how you fit into a genre...not that you're a copy. There's a difference.


Let them know you're aware of the business side of writing. Look professional. Shake their hand. Have a pitch-sheet or a one-sheet for them to take with them.


And don't forget why you're really at the conference. To learn and grow in your craft. Take the classes and workshops. Listen to the keynote speaker and RELAX!   You'll get there.


Until next time...Go Write!

Photography by Magnetbox. Photograph by Matt Grover.

Did Ya Miss Me?

Photograph by Kevin Dooley

I've been out of town at a conference. The Writing for Life Conference, to be exact. Hosted by the San Diego Christian Writers Guild.

I hadn't planned on attending and then decided at the very last minute to go. Literally, the last minute. I had to call them to ask if I could still submit a pre-aproval form they require before meeting with the faculty.  They let me...so I was very pleased.

The conference was in Rancho Bernardo which is just a hop, skip, and a jump from where I live, but I still opted for the hotel room because of the multiple days involved.  The Radisson offered a deal to attendees and I gotta say...the hotel rocked! Best red velvet cake EVER!

Friday night featured a "Round Table" with dessert. Who can pass that up? It turned out to be more of a panel Q and A.  I got so much out of that session, let me tell you! The first panel was editors and agents. They answered questions pre-submitted and asked on the spot. They were funny and encouraging while giving non-sugar coated answers.  Thank You!

The second panel consisted of published professionals. Non-fiction, fiction, newspaper, screen play, and magazine. Some great discussions went on about budgeting time. Realistic economic goals for the writer, and the dawn of the e-book and what it might mean to the mid-list and debut author.  Very informative and, again, encouraging.

The next day was filled with workshops and general sessions. Barbara-Nicolosi Harrington, if you haven't heard her speak before, is a powerhouse of wry humor and thought-provoking commentary on the industry as a whole.

The workshops were a-plenty. I opted for the "Crafting A Page-Turer" two-part series given by author Susan Meissner. She illustrated character layering, tension, and plot twists in such a fun and applicable manner, that I felt like running out of the classroom and finding the nearest computer. I was that inspired...thanks Susan!

The workshop on Lyrical Writing and Paradox in the Plot was illuminating and made me take a second look at some areas in my writing that could use some work. 

General session was quite interesting as we got to interview the collaborator of Sarah Palin's Biography; Going Rogue and her agent. Quite a ride doing biographies, especially with the dynamic and the powerful.  Some of her other works included a biography of the creator of the Delta Force and the book Same Kind of Different As Me.

To top things off, I reconnected with an old critique group that I'd lost contact with after a move. They are still going strong and I'm excited to start attending once again.

If you haven't been to a conference in the past few years, I encourage you to go. For the growth, friendship, and encouragement...if not to get away from it all and have a silent hotel room in which to write.

Until next time...Go Write!

Do the Thing You Fear and the Death of Fear is Certain

Writing a full length novel is difficult at best, impossible for many, and downright insane for most. Writers take on hours of solitude and angst over storylines or characters. We brood over scenes we love, but don't need. We tinker and revise and polish until we feel ready to...revise again. Most people spend years in this loop. They never feel ready to show their work. They're afraid its not perfect.

Then there is the query. Does it reveal too much or too little? Will the agent "get" my story idea; will they love the characters like I do? We cut and paste and show it to our blog buddies. We stare at the one page we're allowed to send. Our hopes go will go with this one-page herald...our sweat and tears. But you have to send it, for it to do any good. My old writers group had a lady that spent months on a query she never sent out. Her reason? She was afraid if she took that step, the one that opened her up to rejection, that the result would be devastating. She loved writing. She didn't want to quit. Fear.

Proposals are hard to put together. There’s market analysis and author bios to wrangle into place. We have to include marketing ideas and why we're qualified to write this particular book. Its intimidating. It can seem overwhelming. Then there are the three chapters or the fifty pages we're allowed to send. They must be perfect, so we go back to our revision loop and agonize over every adverb and comma. We're afraid they won't ask for more.

Waiting, for me, is the hardest part of writing. Waiting to hear back on the queries I sent. Waiting to hear back from my proposal packages. Waiting. Waiting. Will they want the full manuscript? Have I missed their email? What if they all say no? Do I keep writing this series? This genre? Fear.

Then you get an agent and it all starts again. He sent your proposal out to the editors and now we're waiting again. What if you get too many rejections? Will you be dropped by the agency? Will they keep trying? Should I write something vastly different to show my range?

Say you're picked up by the publisher...will they spend enough on marketing? What if you don't sell like they wanted? The list goes on and on and on...And yet we do it anyway. We type and fret and hope desperately.

Why do we do this to ourselves?

Because to not write is the worst thing I can imagine. To not slip into that wonderful world that blinks to life when my fingers hit the keys would mean a life less extraordinary. Fear may cause me to hesitate, but never to turn back. I encourage all of you to send out your queries and proposals. Give them a kiss and slip them through the mail slot...the worst that could happen is you never did it.

Another compelling character waits on the fringes of your mind to be written; another world. This one comes more easily...the story more vivid. Glance over your shoulder at the fear you shed and trampled on the road to better things....Now Go Write!

Photograph by The 5th Ape.

Marketing *Gulp* and the Writer

I used to think that getting a publishing contract was the finish line. The publishing house takes care of the rest, right? According to many writers and agents out there this is wrong…so, so wrong.

So when I think about marketing my *fingers crossed* future books I try not to get too overwhelmed. There are a lot of agent and editor blogs out there that have wonderful ideas for marketing your book once you get published. Instead of lamenting the fact that I don’t have use for them yet…I collect them, categorize them, pysch myself up with the idea of me doing them. In that vein, I thought I'd share a bit of my insanity with you all today.

Chip Macgregor wrote a great article called The Hidden Cost of Social Networking. In it, he explains that Facebook and Blogging are all well and good, but if they don’t create book sales then you’re wasting your time. Web presence is nice, but there is much more work that a writer must do. There are some great suggestions you can, and are expected to do, yourself.

• First you need to educate yourself. Read a marketing book and come up with a plan you intend to implement. This is really great when talking to agents at conferences. It shows you are serious about the business side of publishing.

• Pitch yourself to local radio stations and give them segment ideas. Does your story revolve around a current controversy, event, or breaking news?

• Regional magazines often do reviews of local authors, offer them an incentive like a signed copy for a contest.

• If you’re having a book signing, call not only the local papers, but the free community readers. Print up inserts for bulletins and bookmarks for libraries, coffee shops, and other venues willing to promote book signings by a local.

• Online community calendars sell advertisement space, and you can put in your book signing date and a link to your book website.

• Go and physically visit your local book stores. Get to know the owners or managers and let them know that not only is your book coming out, but you’d love to come in and sign some.

• Create press releases and send them to local events, like Renaissance Faires, Comic book conventions, etc…anything that includes people that are into your genre.

• Go to conferences and build relationships; this is a key item on any writer’s marketing list.

• Promote your book on Goodreads.com. It offers an amazing opportunity not only for unpublished authors to set up a profile page, but for published authors to set up links to their website, upload signing events, do giveaways, and even book trailers.

Writing the novel isn't the end of the journey, but the good news is that there are a lot of ideas and strategies that we can use to make sure all our hard work ends in sales success.  Do you have any ideas to share? How have you prepared for your own success story?

Until next time...Go Write!

Photograph by David Boyle. Photgraph by A. Germain. Photograph by rintakumpu.

T is for Targeting the Right People

I was talking with another writer the other day and she told me she'd just finished sending out her last batch of queries and proposals to agents. Baffled, I asked her how many went in a 'batch' and she said the ones that made up the last seven letters of the alphabet in her guide. Surprised, I asked her if she'd done any "T" is for Targeting before doing all of that work. The resounding chorus of crickets gave me my answser.

Targeting is simply researching the market and finding out who represents your genre. It amazes me that many writers in my group do not do this. They take the shotgun approach to queries and this results in much more work. This is true for both seeking agent representation, and polishing your proposal for submission to publishers.

One of the best ways to find out if an agent even represents your type of book is to go on their website. An agency may have several agents representing many different types of books. Some agents take only non-fiction, or historical romance, and it makes no sense to query them.

Tip Sheets are a great way to take the pulse of the publishing houses out there. They list editorial needs, including information on the types of books they'd like to see, including word length for a certain genre. You can pick them up at conferences, online, or with a SASE to the publishing house.

Leigh Michaels has a wonderful collection of romance publisher websites for easy perusal. Whatever your task, securing representation or pitching a book, it pays to not waste time and money. Take some time to target the right people, the ones that are looking for a writer like you.  Until next time...Go Write!


Photograph by cliff1066, Uploaded on December 25, 2008.