This summer when we sent our 11 year-old off to summer camp, my husband hugged him, knelt down, and gave him some very simple advice.
"Be kind. Be brave. Be You."
I love that advice. The thing is, our 11 yo IS sweet. He's kind, compassionate, and gentle. It's his nature. He had a great camp experience, probably not because of our advice, but because it's how he lives anyway.
We should all live that way.:)
My blog posts tend to be about books. Books I loved reading, books I'm working on, or NIL, my debut that I'm SO excited for you to read in '14! But I rarely give advice, because I don't feel very qualified to give it. So today is a big ole exception.:) (Not that I feel all that qualified...I just feel compelled to talk. LOL) Lately I've seen harsh comments on Twitter and/or Goodreads that made me cringe...and too much spam. Lots of noise, I guess.:) There is always noise on the internet, but you can choose how much to hear and when to walk away. And when to chime in with something meaningful that is not just--noise. The beautiful thing is, it's all up to YOU.:)
Here's my basic guide to social media.* Because for me, it's not about the number of followers or hits, it's about connections. :) So here goes...
7 Ways to Survive Enjoy Social Media:
Be Kind. To others on Twitter, to the agent who passed on your query or MS. To the writer who put her soul into her MS and asked for your feedback. To the author who's book you read but didn't love. Remember words are powerful, and can sting. Use them wisely.:) And for goodness sake, resist the urge to publicly rant. Never use the internet (Twitter, FB, blog, etc.) to vent.
Be Considerate. To the agent or writer who has your query or MS. To the writer you offered to beta-read for. Remember they are sharing their time or precious work with you. Honor that. Give them the time they need, and use your own time wisely as well. Communication is key. Again, no public rants. EVER.
Be Present. If you join Twitter, reach out and connect. If you read a blog post that hits home, leave a (kind) comment. If you read a book that touches you, share your joy with the author. We all ninja-lurk from time to time, but if you only lurk, no one will know you're there.
Be Consistent. If you blog, try to post on a regular basis. (Guilty.... still working on this one.:D) If you tweet, or use Tumblr, or Facebook, do it regularly. I'm not talking 24/7. Social media can be a timesuck too, but it's hard to forge connections with people if you're never there, or worse, only occasionally there. Find a balance that works for you and stick with it.
Be Brave. Join. Start. Send that query, join Twitter, jump into Goodreads, create a blog, whatever. It might be scary, or overwhelming, or intimidating, or all of the above, but be brave. If you write a 300 page novel, you can craft a 140 character tweet.:) (And incidentally, Twitter is awesome for encouraging brevity.:D) And it just takes one tweet to start.
Be Real. It's not a popularity contest, it's about connections. How can you really connect with anyone if you're trying to be someone you're not? So what if you're not blessed with Will Ferrell's wit? No worries, there's already one Will Ferrell. He's got that Ferrell mojo covered. :) Just like a writer must find his or her own voice, you've got to figure out what to blog about or tweet about that might interest/engage others. But you've got to be authentic, or what's the point?:)
Be You. The most important one of all. I'll leave this one to you.:)
That's it.**
Did I miss anything? Oh, and if I had to leave you with a top three? Be Kind. Be Brave. Be You. :)
*Although this post is geared toward writers--writers starting out, writers in the trenches, writers seeking publication, writers reaching out--I think it can work for anyone. :)
**Of course, it was a list. You know how I love lists! As always, feel feel to ignore anything that doesn't work for you.
It's Time by Imagine Dragons is cranking on my iPod . . . and so right. Because it's time for the final query crit of the week! *waves to Patti*
Here we go.
I read queries like a book flap, looking for simplicity and punch. Do I want to keep reading? Am I confused? And most of all, do I want to read this book?! :)
We all know each query should start with a "hook," then flesh it out--detailing the conflict--and end with a bang. You want the agent to think "I want to read more" when s/he finishes the query.
So without further ado, here's the query (and thank you Patti! :D) My comments are in blue.
Dear Wonder Agent,
World War II, the Holocaust, the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East; all orchestrated by the Cathari, an ancient sect waging a crusade against God. This opening sentence feels choppy. I had to read 3x. :( Seventeen-year-old Geoff Bezier and his family are the only ones who can stop them. Why?
Forced into hiding, not only by the Cathari, but also by others who have an unhealthy interest in their ability to reincarnate, aha! reincarnation! I'd work this point into the hook of your first paragraph :) Geoff must now endure life as a high school senior in rural Minnesota. Dealing with classmates and teachers is tricky, especially when you can never tell the truth. Why can't he tell the truth? About anything? Or just about his immortality? I'd clarify In order to survive the boredom and the hormonal warfare hormonal warfare--love it that surrounds him, he joins the track team, hoping to find solace the way he always has, by running. Never did he imagine he’d find something else – love. Oooo...good stuff.
Track team captain Polly Harring isn’t like any other girl he’s met. She’s observant, thoughtful and able to keep up with him on the track field. The more he gets to know her, the more he wants to open up to her, to show her who he really is. Don't need both of these phrases "the more he wants to open up to her" and "to show her who he really is." Redundant IMHO. I'd cut one--it'll give the idea greater impact.
Although secrecy and distrust are the rules to survival, Geoff is willing to break them if it means being with Polly. Because when he’s with her, the world becomes new and innocent and for the first time in his many lives, he begins to realize that there is more to life than this cycle of death. But first, not only must he convince his family these feelings he has for Polly are real, but he must convince Polly of it as well. What about the Cathari? Don't they play a role in the stakes and Geoff's choice?
Told from Geoff and Polly’s alternating points of view, as well as interludes from Geoff’s former lives, CATHARI, a YA fantasy of 84,000 words, is a stand-alone book with series potential. A mashup of contemporary and historical fiction, it will appeal to fans of A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES and GRAVE MERCY. Very well-written paragraph giving the agent all the relevant info. Nice job.
Originally from Minnesota, I currently live in Germany and am an active member of SCBWI. Per your submission requirements, I have pasted below. Thank you for your consideration.
Okay, Patti, you've got some great stuff here. Your word count is squarely within genre norms, and I like how you give the agent a sense of the fan base using comparable titles. I'm also intrigued by the idea of reincarnation playing a role in an ancient battle that is still waging, and I like how you use concrete examples (i.e., the Middle East) to make your point. :) My main concerns are two-fold. First, you identify the Cathari as the force behind all kinds of terrible wars as they crusade against God, then you explain that the Cathari are the reason Geoff is in hiding. Then you never mention the Cathari again. When you describe the stakes Geoff faces in telling Polly, the Cathari seem strangely absent. Aren't the Cathari the main plot, and Polly/love interest a sub-plot? Second, you set up (1) the Cathari as a sect waging an ongoing crusade against God and (2) Geoff and his family as the only ones who can stop the Cathari. Then you state the Cathari (among others) are the reason Geoff is in hiding. If Geoff and his family are the only ones who can fight the Cathari, why are they hiding (rather than fighting)? And who else is searching for Geoff & company/who else is Geoff hiding from? Bad guys? Allies? And while you mention that Geoff has the ability to reincarnate, I'd clarify the connection between Geoff and his family and God, since you open with the idea that (1) the Cathari are waging against God and (2) only Geoff and his family can stop the Cathari. Maybe when you answer WHY Geoff and his family are the only ones who can stop the Cathari, you'll explain that connection in the process . . . ? Patti, I really think you've got something cool here. I'd tighten your links between the Cathari and Geoff, making the connections clear. Also, I'd re-examine the full extent of the stakes Geoff faces. Does he have to pick between his duty to fight the Cathari or his love for Polly? I think, as written, the stakes aren't quite high enough, and I think it's because the Cathari aren't in play. :) I hope this helps! I think you're really close. :) Good luck, and happy Tuesday!
I read queries like a book flap, looking for simplicity and punch. Do I want to keep reading? Am I confused? And most of all, do I want to read this book?! :)
We all know each query should start with a "hook," then flesh it out and end with a bang. You want the agent to think "I want to read more" when s/he finishes the query.
So without further ado, here's the first query (and thank you Emma! :D) My comments are in blue.
Dear Agent:
Marie is an orphan how old is Marie?, raised within the Southern California social services program, plagued by a history of abuse and mental illness. Nice set-up, but clarify: is Marie plagued by the history of abuse or the social services program? Unclear. Now that I've read further, don't think you need the phrase "raised within the SoCal social services program."Things have gotten better since she moved in with her new foster mother in the small oceanfront community of Revera: a supportive older “sister”, social acceptance within her posh high school, a stable and loving boyfriend, and a medication cocktail that seems to keep seems to?does it keep them away or not? her demons at bay. But lately she’s been having vivid dreams of fire and death, and she can’t seem to seem to?watch this phrase--it dilutes your verb :) It's stronger if you delete the "seem to" stop crying blood. Last line is a GREAT hook. I'm intrigued: an orphan, vivid dreams, bloody tears, diagnosed with a mental illness but perhaps misdiagnosed? :) I'm in. :) Maybe condense the second sentence to get to this line sooner.
In “Adore”, Marie tells you her story as it unfolds. The bleak past, the bright future as she prepares to graduate and go on to art school...and how it all goes wrong when I'd delete everything before this point. You've taken the reader out of the story. she begins shedding bloody tears we already know this and has a chance encounter with a hot-blooded stranger who gives her some unwelcome news: she’s an angel. Marie thinks it’s just another delusion until the wings literally delete literally rip through her skin, and suddenly the dreams begin to make sense. Whisked away in the night to the home of a secretive, brooding and handsome billionaire, Marie learns she is one of the Celestials, an ancient supernatural race charged with overseeing all aspects of the universe. Cool. Marie struggles to make sense of the memories and feelings from another life that begin to awaken and cope with the growing fear that a bloody destiny awaits her. I want more here. What choice does she face? What consequences? Give me stakes. :)
I am querying you because I’ve followed you on Twitter and your blog, and feel “Adore” fits well with the type of material you’re interested in. In addition I think our personalities would be a great match and a good foundation on which to build a strong partnership. I'd cut this last sentence.
“Adore” is my first novel where is your word count & genre? based on an unfinished short story about a disturbed woman who sees angels which I wrote over fifteen years ago. It is the first in an open-ended series, in which I plan to delve deeper into the world of the Celestials and elaborate on other characters introduced in Adore. My genre of choice is speculative fiction with an emphasis on Y/A and children’s themes. All the agents need to know here is title, word count, and genre of the work you're querying, which here is ADORE. It's totally fine to say "it stands alone but has series potential," but no need to delve into the guts of the potential series on a query, or talk about what the novel is based on. :). I tweet as @EAyC and my blog is amessoffeathers.wordpress.com. Take info from this sentence and put after your name at bottom of email. I am not yet published but am active on LitReactor, where my piece “Waiting” won their July flash fiction contest and my horror short story “Crystal” placed sixth out of over 150 entries in August. Awesome bio for a query! Woohoo! :) I have a BA in Japanese language and a background in small animal medicine and furniture buying. Last sentence not necessary, unless you tie it into your novel and it's important.
May I send you the first three chapters of “Adore” so you can decide for yourself? Thank you so much for your time and consideration. Love the politeness. Very professional.:)
Best,
Emma Clark
Emma,
You've got some great stuff here. :) I like the idea of an angel living among humans as an orphan, and am wondering why. Why was she hidden among non-Celestials? Why didn't she know she was an angel? Is that important? But the biggest question is that an orphan taken to a "handsome billionaire's" house and told she's special might be relieved at the change of circumstance--so what problem/dilemma does she face? What choice must she make? A fear of a "bloody destiny" is too vague. Does she have to make a choice between her Celestial family and her human one? The query MUST give the stakes; it's the ending punch. You definitely have something here. Generally, queries should be around 250-300 words (with the guts being around 250, according to Janet Reid of QueryShark fame :D) and you've done a nice job of keeping it within those limits. But use each word to your advantage; show what sets your book apart from other paranormal/angel novels.:) Good luck Emma! :) I hope this helps. Remember, trust your writer's compass. You know your story better than anyone, and the query is your chance to make your novel shine. Yay!
Here's a teeny part I left out: The *near* Spam Disaster.
*shudder*
When Jennifer emailed me in January to ask to read the rest, I didn't reply--not right away. And why not? Because I didn't see her email . . . BECAUSE IT WENT TO SPAM. You read that right, SPAM. (I can't explain it. Spam filters are weird like that. Like this is beyond-explanation-weird:
Because it's SPAM. hehe)
At the time, I rarely checked spam. As in like, NEVER. :) (Seriously, maybe once a month, at best.)
So the next day I received a sweet follow-up email from Jennifer asking if I'd received her email and was NIL still available? No and yes! This time I got back to her right away, and the rest of history. Her enthusiasm was evident from the start, and her communication rocks--as this exchange proved. I'm so grateful she followed up with me, because if she hadn't, I might have missed out on the opportunity to work with her, and I can't imagine a more perfect agent for NIL (and me!). Jennifer is truly made of awesome--she's smart, savvy, and her intuition on strengthening a MS is crazy-good. :) I know I'm not her only author, but she makes me feels like I am (something I'm careful not take advantage of. :D)
So happy Thursday y'all! Now go check your spam folder. You might find gold. :) (Or just more offers from The Gap, but hey, it's worth a peek.)
Have you ever found anything unexpected caught by your spambot? A rejection? A request? An offer from a Nigerian prince?! :) LOL I'd love to hear!
I started writing seriously on January 15, 2009. Not for publication, but for me. At the time I had a 1 year old, 3 year old, 6 year old and 8 year old, so I stole time when I could. Mostly at night, sacrificing tv. Looking back, I’m pretty sure I was sleep deprived, which no doubt fueled my insanity.:)
Six months later, I finished my YA magical realism novel. (Yay! It rocks! I rock!) After a celebratory round of cupcakes, I read it again. And died a little.
It was ROUGH. Terrible, actually. So terrible that even as a baby writer, I KNEW it was terrible. But I didn’t know how to fix it. And the endless tinkering began.
During this time, I was fortunate enough to meet Charles Martin, a high school friend of my husband and a NYT Bestseller author in his own right. He kindly read the first three (awful) chapters and told me to pick up the pace. He suggested I look at my novel from a different angle, maybe start in another place. In hindsight, Charles was SO RIGHT.
Meanwhile, in October 2009, I started Novel No. 2, a YA post-apocalyptic, inspired by a phone call from my husband when he was on a Costa Rican surf trip. Then in February 2010, my husband and I took our first week away from the boys since having babies--to Hawaii, the big island. (GORGEOUS!!!) Inspiration hit, hard, and I wrote 10K of a fresh YA light sci-fi novel (Are you counting? Novel No. 3!) while we were there; 2K on the return flight alone. (I know what you're thinking: bad wife. :D In my defense, it was also a work trip for him so I had plenty of down time to write. Plus, my sweet husband gets my writing addiction. Another reason I love him.:D)
For the next few months, I flitted between books, writing two and tinkering with one. And I worked on my craft. I read blogs, Stephen King’s book On Writing, and just plain read. Books, lots of them. I discovered querying, entered writing contests on Janet Reid’s blog, and realized publication was out there, like a crazy carrot. And I wanted it. I hunkered down with novel number one, slashed and revised tinkered, and by summer 2010, it was ready. And it was AWESOME! My friends and family told me so! I joined QueryTracker (great resource), researched agents, drafted my query (personalized, of course) and sent it out.
And the rejections poured in. Mostly form, occasionally personalized. Sometimes they’d arrive in packs, which was especially crushing. That fall, Charles gave me some valuable advice. He told me to put my first book aside, and write something else. It wasn't easy to hear, but again--he was SO RIGHT.
Around the same time, I met local YA writer, Jessie Harrell. She became my hometown CP. It was HUGE. Game-changing. She introduced me to the YA writing community on-line, and she let me critique her WIP, which was a gift. She have me incredible feedback, and soon I realized I’d never truly revised Novel No. 1, just tinkered, and they’re not the same. But it was too late. Novel number one was dead.
Everything --and everyone-- was telling me to move on. Charles, Jessie, and the pile of rejections. And so I did. I put my first book in a drawer, and let it go.*
Flash-forward to February 2011. I had first drafts of two very different books: a YA post-apocalyptic and a YA light SF, and I had to make a call. Which to polish? I chose NIL, my YA light SF. And I got to work.
I went to Backspace Writer’s Conference in May, where I found awesome crit partners Laura Stanford and Tonya Kuper. (That's another crazy story. :D) Also in May, I won a crit from the talented Natalie Whipple (love her!). After Backspace, I revised my opening pages based on agent feedback (revision no. 1). Then I sent my MS out for critique from this fab four. Each gave me constructive feedback, encouragement, and inspiration, which not only helped my MS, it helped me. Especially my confidence, which you need fully intact before you hit the query trenches. (SO GRATEFUL y’all!) And I became a better CP myself.
Based on the crits, I faced revision, again. This one was tougher. Bigger. But worth every difficult minute. After a *slight* initial freakout ("I can't do it!"), I dug deep, added more layers, and in the process, I fell in love with NIL all over again.
Now my MS was shinier than a Christmas tree. NIL was ready. I was ready. Game on. :)
September 2011: NIL queries went out. This time I got requests right away, and within a month I had a R &R from one agent, a big gun. I mulled it over, even as more requests rolled in and the holidays approached. (One of those requests, a partial, was from Jennifer. Woot! *dream agent alert*) One night as I pondered the revision request, a new sub-plot fell into my head, one that pulled pieces together I didn’t even know were missing. I wrote furiously for the next month, weaving in the new plot line, not sure whether I was addressing the agent’s R & R concerns but knowing this last revision was how the novel was meant to be. (This final revision was revision number 3). Meanwhile, I got more requests. Rejections too. I checked my inbox obsessively. The holidays were S-L-O-W.
But then January arrived. I got an email from Jennifer that she loved the first 50 pages, and could I please send the rest? Uh, YES! She was one of the very first agents I queried on NIL, having loved her interview on the Mother.Write.(Repeat.) blog. Fingers crossed, I sent Jennifer the revised version, which was also in the hands of seven other agents, including the one who requested the R & R. A few weeks later I got "the call" from Jennifer, almost three years to the day after I began writing again. Her enthusiasm for NIL blew me away. We clicked, and I felt she “got” NIL. I notified the other agents considering NIL, including the one who’d requested the revision. (That agent passed BTW; our visions for the book didn’t mesh, and that's okay). That week was a roller-coaster, full of emails and phone calls, but my feeling that Jennifer was the agent for NIL (and for me) never changed. I accepted her offer a week later.
I’m still pinching myself. :D
Here are the dirty numbers:
Novel 1 (YA magical realism):
55 queries, 2 requests. A dismal 3.63 request rate (Ugh!)
Novel 2 (YA post-apoc):
Still in drawer
Novel 3 (NIL, YA light-SF):
35 queries, 14 requests. A much-improved 40% request rate, resulting in my signing with Jennifer. :D (BTW--I'd queried Jennifer on novel 1, and she'd passed.)
Why the improvement? My query was better. My writing was better. But most of all, my MS was better, and it was READY. I let it marinate, then I revised. I got feedback from other writers (CRUCIAL!) and revised again. And then I revised AGAIN, when my gut said it need it.
3 years. 3 books. 3 revisions. The power of three.
I’m still learning, improving my craft. That part of a writer’s road never ends.
But here’s three things I’ve learned:
1. Don’t stop. Don’t stop writing, don’t stop reading, don’t stop improving. Don't stop working. And like Journey sings (*cheese alert* :D): don't step believing--in your writing, in yourself. In your ability to make it.
2. Reach out. Get on-line, go to conferences if you can, make friends with other writers. And remember that old adage, to have a friend you must be a friend? Offer to read their work. Be positive as well as constructive.
3. Remember that your journey is your own. For me it was the power of three. 3 years, 3 books, 3 revisions. Every writer's road is different. But if you keep going, I believe you'll get there, wherever your "there" is. :D
Where are you on your writer's road? *offers travel snacks* And where are you headed? Wherever you are, I wish you safe travels. And I leave you with this song. It gave me heaps of inspiration, reminding me why I refused to stop. :D
"We know, we know, that we are more than this
More than we know, there's a reason we exist"
