Catching Up with Our Now-Published Contest Winner

Amy Sue Nathan was one of the five winners in our April 2010 contest with agent Jason Yarn. She went on to become one of Jason's clients, and her first novel, The Glass Wives, came out yesterday. We're pleased to be able to find out how far she's come since our last interview with her!

Tell us a little bit about your novel and where people can learn more about it and where they can get it. 

THE GLASS WIVES is about Evie Glass, a divorced mom whose ex-husband dies suddenly leaving her the only parent of ten-year-old twins. Then, when Evie finds she’s strapped for cash, she takes in her ex’s widow and baby, so they can share living expenses and childcare. Troubled by this decision, Evie’s friends and family try to intervene, forcing Evie to walk out on long-time friendships until the widow causes a ruckus of her own. That’s when Evie has to decide who she can trust, and what really makes a family.

On May 14th THE GLASS WIVES became available in bookstores (indies and Barnes & Noble) as well as at Target stores. It's also available online everywhere books are sold.

What inspired you to write The Glass Wives? Where did the idea for this story come from? 

Like my main character, Evie, I’m a divorced mom in a suburb where everyone is married. And like Evie, my ex-husband passed away suddenly. When I divorced, I felt that some people were uncomfortable having a single mom for a friend. When my ex-husband died, well, they just didn’t know what to do with me, or my kids. We didn’t fit into any of the fixed suburban circles and frankly, I think the sadness in our lives overwhelmed them. Writing this novel allowed me to put this kind of discomfort—and its ramifications—on display and show that families are equal no matter their parts, and that the term broken home is outdated. There may be a few cracks in our walls, but broken? No way.

The sales aspect of writing—producing a good pitch and query and providing a great excerpt—can be very challenging for some writers. How did you learn to produce such catchy material? Were there any particular resources you used?

I have always belonged to writing groups and online forums, but I'd say in the years leading up to up querying my novel, the best resource was Backspace, where traditionally published authors (Karen Dionne, Randy Susan Meyers, Keith Cronin, and A.S. King, for example) and a few literary agents, were kind enough to give me tips, guidance, and advice that I always took to heart.

Do you have a writing routine?

When I'm on track I write fiction in the morning and non-fiction—essays, blog posts, interview questions, and interview answers (like these)—in the afternoon and evening. Working at home and being a single mom means I have to be flexible. Today my daughter had a doctor's appointment in the morning, so I did my fiction writing in the afternoon.  But my preference will always be morning. I'm an early bird!

What is the single best piece of writing advice you've ever gotten?

Recently, while working on the beginning of my new novel, I kept thinking about best-seller trends and what my editor would be looking for.  I considered fitting elements like magical realism or a heated romance, into my new story. And then Therese Walsh, author of The Last Will of Moira Leahy and co-founder of Writer Unboxed told me something very simple: separate the craft from the business. I wrote it on a sticky note and stuck it to my computer. She was right. I couldn’t worry about whether the book would sell, all I could do, at that moment, was to tell the story I needed to tell. And for me that story does not include zombies or a hot shirtless hero. At least not today.

What has been the hardest or most surprising thing you've learned on the journey between the time Jason began submitting to editors and your publication date?

That patience in publishing is not simply a virtue, it's a necessity.

What is the most important (or surprising) thing you've learned about publicity as you near your publication date? Do you have any advice for others on publicity?

I've learned there's no such thing as too much publicity. I'm not sure about "any publicity is good publicity" adage, but we'll see!  My advice would be to seize every opportunity to build relationships with readers and other writers because in the long run that will go farther than hundreds of "buy my book" tweets.

Are you working on any new projects? Can you tell us anything about them?

Absolutely! I'm always working on a few things, and right now I'm writing a novel about a blogger who tells lies online and keeps secrets in real life and what happen to make her finally truth. I'm also jotting down notes for two more book ideas I'm excited about. I know if I don't write down my ideas I'll lose them. Sometimes my best scenes are written on the backs of envelopes or napkins while I'm standing in the kitchen or parked in a parking lot!

Visit Amy Sue Nathan on her website, Twitter @AmySueNathan, or Facebook!

How to Get Your Book Noticed in Today’s Changing Marketplace

by Stina Lindenblatt @StinaLL

 ©Stina Lindenblatt

Unless you’ve been wandering lost in a desert for the past year, you are aware that the publishing industry is rapidly changing. With it, the number of self-published, small press, ebooks, and traditionally published books being published each week is dramatically growing. What does this mean? More people are trying to gain the reader’s attention. The same reader we want to check out our own new release.

Elana Johnson blogged last week on how we’re starting to suffer from asocial media hangover.  Promotional activities (blog tours, giveaways, interviews) that used to be effective are now turning people off. Some readers still enjoy them, but most don’t bother to read the posts. Based on comments from Elana post, personal experience, and feedback I’ve received from others, this is what I’ve learned:

Covers are important. If your cover looks amateurish, no one (other than your mom) will be interested in your book. When you send the JPEG file to be used on a blog, make sure you send one of high resolution; otherwise, it will look blurry and amateurish. If you plan to self publish your book, invest in a professionally created cover.

A compelling title always tromps a dull one. Study titles in your genre and figure out which ones grab your attention and which don’t. Why is one more appealing than another? Apply what’s you’ve learned to your own title. After you create a list of potential titles, google them to ensure every other author in your genre hasn’t used the same ones. You want it to stand out and be unique in case the reader can’t remember your name but remembers the title. 

Make sure your blurb is tight and interesting. If your blurb is dull and vague, I’m not going to read your book. I’ve seen a number of self-published books lately with great covers and boring blurbs. Use power words that hook the reader. For example, hidden room, strange fascination, obsession, horrifying discovery, chilling truth, terrifying events, mysterious disappearance, twisted legacy, malevolent life of its own, a bottomless hunger for new victims (In the Dark of the Night by John Saul).

Don’t irritate people with your promotion. This is a serious issue with Twitter and Facebook. It’s also becoming a problem on Goodreads. If you want people to pay attention to your new release, then please avoid spamming. If you DM someone who just followed you back on Twitter, you can guarantee they WON’T read your book (or blog) if you tell them to. Many people will just unfollow you.

Use Goodreads wisely. Goodreads is a great way for people to find out about your book via word-of-mouth. Plus, fans of your books can check the site for the release date of your next novel. It’s also a good way to invite your “friends” to your book-release party. However, people often delete the announcements (unread) unless they’re excited about the book or the author is a friend of theirs (A real friend. Not a social networking “friend”). Other people have mentioned they are frustrated by the amount of spam being generated on Goodreads by authors using it to promote their book. Spamming doesn’t cause people to want to buy your book. It does the opposite. 

Word-of-mouth is your best promotion. When we love a book, we can’t wait to tell our friends about it. And when we share the same taste in reading as our friends, we are more apt to rush out and buy the great book they just read, even if we’ve never heard of it before. This is how many books become unexpected hits. It has nothing to do with the initial promotion, which is often lacking. Just look at Harry Potter. In the beginning, it didn’t receive any hype. Its popularity increased due to its fans: the kids on the playgrounds in England, gushing to their friends about the great book they just read. 

Be selective with your blog tours. You are better off having your book reviewed on a major book blog (if possible) than swamp your blogging circle with a blog tour. According to the comments on Elana’s post, most of us avoid reading guest posts that are part of a blog tour. This is especially true when a number of the blogs we follow are part of the tour. The exception is if the topic is of interest to us. Then we stop to read it. 

Remember the purpose of social networking. The key word here is social. This is your chance to make genuine friendships. Friendships that could eventually lead to positive word-of-mouth about your book.   

Keep your promotion small, unless you can spread it around so it’s not hitting the same people again and again. Every so often, subtly remind us about your book. I might not buy it right away, but the reminder later on might be all I need to pick the book up. This is more effective than over promotion, which tends to turn some people off a book. 

If you’re going to do an interview, KEEP IT SHORT. Most of us don’t have time to read to a 750-word plus interview, unless it’s by our favorite author. When doing an interview, keep your answers brief. You are better off spending the time working on your next book than spending it on a long interview that most people will skip or skim over. 

Make sure your book is professionally edited. There is nothing worse than reading a book that is poorly written and ridden with typos. And there is nothing more damaging to your sales than word-of-mouth about the poor quality of your book. The best edits include structural, line, and copy edits. Unfortunately, editing isn’t cheap, but if you want to do things right, it’s worth the investment. 

Start working on your next project. The best promotion for your last book is your next one. I recently read a book that I loved so much, I decided to read another of the author’s books. It happened to be the first book in a trilogy. I ended up also loving that book and bought the other two. And how did I find out about the initial book? A friend recommended it to me. That’s right. Word-of-mouth is a beautiful thing.

How do you decide what books to read? Are there any forms of promotion that especially turns you off? Do you have any other suggestions for getting your book noticed?

Stina Lindenblatt @StinaLL writes young adult and new adult novels. In her spare time, she’s a photographer and blogging addict, and can be found hanging out on her blog.  

 

The Challenges and Rewards of Self-Publishing: An Interview

Here on the QueryTracker Blog, we often talk about publishing in a traditional way: seeking out an agent, who then finds a home for your story with a publishing house. But more and more authors are taking non-traditional approaches to publishing, and there are lots of options out there! Today we talk with our own Danyelle Leafty about her journey with self-publishing her series, The Fairy Godmother Dilemma. Read on to learn about the challenges and rewards of non-traditional publishing!

You decided to go the non-traditional publishing route with your trilogy The Fairy Godmother Dilemma. Why?

With the publishing industry going through some major changes, I wanted to approach [publishing my book] in as many different ways as possible so as not to put all my eggs in one basket.

When I learned about people releasing their novels as serials, I thought this would be an interesting way to get a book out there. The Fairy Godmother Dilemma: Catspell is the book I wrote specifically for this purpose.

One of the big challenges of non-traditional publishing is that the author is responsible for everything—from book artwork to formatting the digital book files to marketing. Can you talk a little bit about these challenges?

I’ve actually loved doing all of these things—which kind of surprised me. I don’t mean to say this isn’t a whole lot of work—it is—but I’ve enjoyed learning how to do new things even if I wanted to drop my computer out the window when I hit bumps.

I’ve been very fortunate in finding stock art for my cover that was perfect in terms of character and tone of the book. I was even more fortunate that there are some incredible Photoshop and Indesign tutorials on Youtube. :) The part I dreaded the most was coding the files, but Scrivener (the writing program I use) came out with an update that compiled manuscripts into digital files without the author having to do all the coding.

Marketing, I think, is the hardest for me. I’m still working on finding a balance between getting my name out there without turning into a commercial. I’m still fine-tuning my approach and will be putting it to work in February. For now, I’m just focusing on getting the series polished and up.

Tell us a little bit about what you’ve liked best about self-publishing.

The thing I’ve liked best about self-publishing is the control I have over my story. I’ve enjoyed putting everything together and learning new things. I’ve also loved getting to know new people along the way.

What have you liked least?

The thing I’ve liked least is the dividing line between the different avenues of publishing. Publishing is a hard business, and I like to think we’re all in this together.

What advice would you give others considering the self-publishing route?

Don’t do it unless you mean it. What I mean by this is don’t self-publish to make a million dollars, to prove anyone wrong, or because it’s easier. (It’s not. I promise!) If you’re going to self-publish, do it deliberately. Have a good plan, be willing to work hard, very hard, and educate yourself on the process and the business. Make sure you put out your very best.

There will be times when you’re so tired you can’t see straight, you put the milk in the oven, and you forget what your name is. There will be times when you want to pull your hair out and give up. There will be times when you really wonder if it’s worth all this.

And there will be times when it all comes together and you know it was. The key is being true to yourself and focusing on the positive while learning from the mistakes you make. (Be flexible! Things can and will go wrong, but that’s all part of the business.)


Some people feel that self-published material may be poorer quality than traditionally-published material. How do you combat that prejudice?

The short version is that I work very, very, very hard. I combat that prejudice by adjusting my thinking and my actions.

Thinking: I’ve determined that the only person I’ll ever be competing against is myself. I strive to make sure each book I put out is better than the one before, and will not release a book unless I feel it’s ready. I had originally planned on releasing the whole series in November (I’d had most of them written and completed long before), but as time went on, I realized that in order to make that deadline, I’d have to work myself to death and risk putting something out riddled with errors.

Which leads to my actions. Because self publishers are in charge of doing everything, it’s vital they don’t skim over the finer details. Editors, or at least really honest, very talented beta readers, are a must. No author can catch all of her own mistakes or weak points.

To be seen professionally, it’s important to act professional and make sure the total package of the book is at a professional standard. This means good cover art, good editing—both line and content, a great synopsis, and professional comportment online.

This also comes with the understanding that no book is perfect, no matter how many editors have edited it, and no book is going to appeal to everyone. And that’s okay.


Tell us a bit about your story and how we can get it!

The official synopsis is:

Sixteen-year-old Breena never thought anything could be worse than being forced to leave the faerie realm. Then she got stuck with a fairy godmother. But if she has to choose between the two, she’d leave the Faerie Realm over getting bossed about by a faerie with a pointed stick any day. Unfortunately, her attempt to evade her fairy godmother gives her growing pains in the form of fur, whiskers, and a tail. 

Turning into a cat is the least of her worries, though. The potion wasn’t meant to bring out her inner feline, it was meant to put her to sleep. Forever. If Breena wants to make it to her Happily Ever After, she’ll have to accept that sometimes a fairy godmother really does come in handy, after all.

Catspell is a fairy tale retelling of The White Cat with a few twists *coughcoughcrazycatscough* and a fairy godmother. It’s the first in a series of five. The first 3 books are available now, and I hope to have books 4 and 5 up and ready to go by February.

The Fairy Godmother Dilemma: Catspell is available on B&N and Amazon as e-books.

I’m planning on either doing a print run or releasing the paperback through POD (publishing on demand) mid-2012. I also have some hard cover copies I’m having printed as part of the serial, but will only be releasing a limited number of those through my website. Each of those will be signed and numbered!

Thanks so much for the interview! It’s been a pleasure.

Thanks to you, Danyelle!

Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD's book, THE WRITER'S GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGY: How to Write Accurately About Psychological Disorders, Clinical Treatment, and Human Behavior helps writers avoid common misconceptions and inaccuracies and "get the psych right" in their stories. You can learn more about The Writer's Guide to Psychology, check out Dr. K's blog on Psychology Today, or follow her on Facebook or Google+! 

Pathway to Publication: An Interview

One of Querytracker.net success stories recently landed a book contract with HaperTeen. Ryan Graudin was thrilled to share with us her story on her pathway to publication.  I, for one, can’t wait to see what tattoo she decides to get. (Yes, you will have to read the interview to see what I’m talking about).

Ryan, can you tell us what happened between the time you signed with your agent to the time HarperCollins told you they just had to have your book (i.e. offered you the contract)?: I signed with my lovely and awesome agent Alyssa Eisner Henkin in May. One of the great things about her is that she’s such a fast worker (i.e. has a very short reading/turnaround time). She got me her revision letter within the same month. Printed out it was 4 pages long… detailing scenes and big picture issues that she thought needed improving. I had a minor panic attack and then dove into insane work mode for about 3 weeks. My house was a wreck. There were notecards of scenes covering the living room floor and endless mugs of half-consumed tea and coffee. But while my abode suffered, my manuscript improved. I got it back to Alyssa in mid-June. It went through another small round of edits and then (after what felt like forever at the time) my book went out on submission in mid-July. Compared to a great majority of authors, I received my first positive response within a day!! The editor really loved it, but she still needed to finish it and get reads from her bosses. Once she acquired those she had to get the approval of several boards within HarperCollins before she could put together an offer! This whole process stretched out for about three weeks. I was an absolute mess the entire time. Just ask my poor, patient husband.

Now that you’re going to be published, is there anything you wish you had done differently before you were agented? I wish I’d written more for myself in college (as opposed to writing only for class). Also, the first book I queried never got picked up, but I spent almost 4 months writing its sequel before I switched my efforts to LUMINANCE HOUR. Generally writing the sequels to books that aren’t picked up is a poor use of your time… I learned the hard way.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book? While I was writing the first draft of LUMINANCE HOUR, I was working a 45-hour a week teaching job in a foreign country. My life was busy with outside work, traveling and handling the stress of living half a world away from everyone I knew. I was amazed that, although the rest of my life was so crammed, I was still able to piece together this fully formed and functional novel! “I don’t have the time” is not an excuse to not write. If you’re determined enough, you can make the time.

Is there anything you’ve done that you feel helped you grow as a writer? I took a lot of formal writing classes all throughout middle school, high school and college. These did help my writing, but I think most importantly they showed me the value of critique partners. Another thing I’m passionate about which has really grown my writing is traveling. Last time I counted, I’ve been to more foreign countries than I have states. Seeing so many different cultures, people and places helps me broaden the stories I’m able to tell. In fact, LUMINANCE HOUR probably wouldn’t have come into being if I hadn’t had the awesome opportunity to visit London and walk through Buckingham Palace when I was younger. Much of the story takes place in that palace, and my experience of being there in person was invaluable!

What’s the wackiest thing you did in researching your novel? How much research was involved in writing your novel? I had to do a fair bit of research for this story: having words translated into Old English by one of my former English professors, acquiring a floorplan of Buckingham palace, scraping my memories from the two trips I took to London when I was 13 and 17, reading dictionaries on British spirits and folklore. I also watched a good deal of the Queen’s official YouTube channel. And I spent a lot of time talking in my fake and probably terrible British accent. Do any of those qualify as wacky?

Any quirky writing habits? I have to be listening to music. Generally it doesn’t matter what kind of music. Rap, Pop, Soundtracks, String Quartets. My iTunes is a mess of genres. Also, I cannot write unless I have some sort of hot drink at my side. Coffee, tea, cocoa, chai. This often leads to me being over-caffeinated. And I have to open my Internet browser at least once every 10 minutes. It’s amazing that I get anything done!

If you could give one piece of writing advice, what would it be? Just one? How about I give you three. Work your butt off. Don’t take anything for granted. Don’t give up.

What did you to do to celebrate signing with your agent? How about when you celebrated signing the book contract? Champagne. On both occasions. My husband and I are both “starving” artists at this point in our lives, so it was a real treat when my parents took us out for shrimp and grits (my favorite Southern dish) to celebrate the book contract! Also, I’m thinking of getting a tattoo to mark the occasion… but that’s still in the works.

If you could have one superhero power or paranormal ability, what would it be? To write a rough draft in the span of a single day! Just kidding. Seeing as I love travel, I would probably want to teleport everywhere. It would save so much time and money. Plus I could see all of my friends around the world whenever I wanted!

Bio: When she’s not writing and drifting around the globe, Ryan Graudin enjoys hunting through thrift stores and taking pictures of her native Charleston, SC. Her novel LUMINANCE HOUR, the story of a Faery Godmother who falls in love with the prince she’s forced to guard, is due out with HarperTeen in 2013. You can learn about all of these things and more at Ryan Writes. Her twitter handle is @ryangraudin.

Promoting Your Book: The Dos and Don’ts of Being a Great Interviewee

I’ve done a number of interviews over the past few months—both as the interviewee and as the interviewer—and along the way I’ve had a lot of really great experiences…and one really bad one (identifying characteristics are being changed to protect the guilty). Here, then, are some tips to help you be the best interviewee you can.

DO remember to be personable and professional.

First and foremost, remember that anytime you deal with other people, you are networking—probably in hopes of finding outlets to promote your book. The more personable and professional you can be, the better the interviewer (and probably readers) will like you.

DON’T forget that the other person is doing you a favor.

Remember that the individual who is interviewing you or asking you to do a guest post is doing you a favor by providing you with publicity for your book. He is also driving traffic to your website, blog, and social media accounts. Therefore, you want to make everything easy (or even better, fun) for him.

DO expect interview questions to be repetitive.

Coming up with interview questions can be tough, especially if the interviewer hasn’t yet read your book. You can also expect interviewers to be interested in the same types of things, like how you came up with your idea and why your book is important, timely, or unique.

Back when I was in digital media publishing, I got to do an audio interview with a famous author whom I admired. I slaved over the questions, both eager to impress her with my knowledge of her books and enthusiastic to learn more about how she got published. But as she began to answer me, it very became very clear that she’d heard my questions a million times. And that brings me to my next don’t.

DON’T become an answer automaton.

No matter how many times you’ve answered the questions, that interviewer and that audience may be hearing your answers for the first time. The author above lapsed into a bored, obviously well-rehearsed set of answers. While we were able to pull clips from the interview, without talented editing her lack of enthusiasm could have been poisonous.

While it’s easier—especially in written interviews—to use the same text you used last time, you’re better off writing off the top of your head. Nobody wants to interview a robot, and if you’re not tailoring your responses to the nuances of the interviewer’s questions, that’s how you’ll sound. Also, if people are interested in your work, they may seek out multiple interviews. If all those interviews are exactly the same, your readers will be bored. To some, that repetition may even suggest you don’t have time for your fans. Not a good move—those are the people responsible for your sales.

While that does mean finding yet another way to tell the story of why you wrote the book, answering as spontaneously as you can also means that from time to time you’ll come up with a fresh, interesting angle you haven’t yet shared.

DO provide a press kit if you don’t have time for individual interviews.

If you really don’t want to write new answers each time, provide a set of questions with answers as part of your website’s press kit. Then you can simply direct interested parties to that page. Provide 8 to 12 good questions with answers, along with any supplemental materials (see the next DO).

DO include helpful photos and links.

DO provide the interviewer with any information she might need, including a photo of you, a photo of your book, and links to your website, blog, or social networking sites. If you’re doing a guest post and an image of something you’re discussing in the post might be useful to readers, include that as well. DO be sure to attach these things to your email if you’re doing an email interview, even if the material is also available online.

DON’T expect your interviewer to do additional research.

Never ask an interviewer to sort through pages and pages of information in search of pertinent details or answers for your interview. I recently asked a psychologist to do an interview about his controversial books for one my websites. After he’d agreed and I’d written up some questions, he directed me to an online discussion board (which was password protected) and expected me to dig through numerous long posts in search of appropriate questions to my answers.

He immediately followed up that expectation with a digital copy of his latest book and stated that I could draw quotes from the book and he’d say he’d said it. (I’m still confused by that. If he actually wrote the book, didn’t he say it?) Not only was the individual insensitive to my busy schedule, but his lack of helpfulness and downright arrogance left me annoyed, resentful, and—probably needless to say—unwilling to do a damn thing to promote anything he’d written. (Worse, I suppose, he inspired the blog post you’re now reading.)

DO keep a calendar – and use it.

As soon as you commit to doing an interview or guest blog post, give yourself a deadline a week or (at most) two away to get it done. We all have busy lives, and it’s embarrassing to have to apologize because you forgot. (Trust me on this.) I strongly recommend a paper calendar on the wall near your desk, because you can see your deadline approaching. A digital calendar may only remind you a day or two ahead of time, forcing you to scramble to put something together.

What's your experience? Which DOs and DON'Ts would you add?

Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD's book, THE WRITER'S GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGY: How to Write Accurately About Psychological Disorders, Clinical Treatment, and Human Behavior helps writers avoid common misconceptions and inaccuracies and "get the psych right" in their stories. You can learn more about The Writer's Guide to Psychology, check out Dr. K's blog on Psychology Today, or follow her on Facebook!

MURDER YOUR DARLINGS: an interview

Last month, John Murphy, one of Querytracker.net’s success stories, saw the release of his first novel, MURDER YOUR DARLINGS. We’re thrilled to have him here to talk about his pathway to publication. Also, make sure you check out the side link for an upcoming agent contest. It starts this Thursday and is for adult fiction.

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In August 2009, you landed John Talbot as your agent and he sold your mystery novel, Murder Your Darlings, to an imprint of Penguin. The book came out in January. Can you tell us about your journey from The Call to now?

It has been a perilous journey, fraught with danger in exotic locales!

Just kidding. It has been surprisingly simple—almost uneventful. The editing process with my darling editor was a piece of cake. I was asked for some ideas for the book cover, and I was thrilled with the cover that Penguin came up with. Frankly, the hardest part was the copy-editing stage, where I was called to “defend” a number of historical references. (Fortunately, I had done my homework and that went down fairly easily as well.) As a matter of fact, the greatest challenge presented itself when the book was released—how can I let people know about it? I’m still working on that one.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book?

Two surprising things: We hear a lot these days that editors don’t have time to edit and publicists only have time for the most successful authors. That was not my experience with MURDER YOUR DARLINGS. Both my editor and publicist have been surprisingly generous with their time and very open minded about my suggestions.

Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn’t you?

Yes, every day I felt like giving up. And I still do. As everyone who reads this knows, getting published is foolhardy. It’s brutal on the psyche. But, aside from the day to day doubts, my “darkest hour” was right before my agent John Talbot called. I had thought I had a slam dunk of a book, but after sending out nearly 60 query letters and getting no action, I figured I must be wrong. Fortunately, right when I was truly about to throw in the towel, I got the call. Sometimes it’s just a matter of sending out letter after letter after letter, and hoping it clicks with someone who understands.

What is the hardest/least favorite part of being a writer?

The worst part is the carpal tunnel injuries from signing all those hefty paychecks. Will they never stop pouring in?

Huh? Wha? Oh, OK, I’m awake again. Fell asleep there for a minute… The hardest part of being a writer, for me, is finding the time to write. I have a busy full-time job, six-year-old twins, and a house in need of constant repair. I need to learn how to write in my sleep. That would be really helpful.

If you could give a message to aspiring authors everywhere, what would it be?

Two things: If you’re really serious about being a writer, then get serious about writing. Don’t wait for the muse to whisper in your ear. Treat it like a job. Punch in and do your work.

Second, forget about writing what you know. Instead, write what you want to read. What kind of story do you wish somebody would publish? Write that. There’s somebody else out there who’s waiting for the same story to be on the bookshelf.

What is your advice to new or unpublished writers? 

Take it seriously (even if you’re writing something frivolous) and, if you’re serious, keep at it. Oh, and be hard on yourself when you wear your editing hat. Also, don’t take others’ advice without a grain of salt.

What kinds of things are you doing to promote your books? Did you do anything before you found an agent? If so, what?

I’m learning that word of mouth is the best form of promotion. And writing a good book is the best thing you can do to create word of mouth. That said, I’ve written several guest posts on other people’s blogs, and that’s been very positive and rewarding.

Is there anything you wished you had done differently?

I wish I had used a pseudonym, such as “James Patterson.”

What are you working on now?

The second book in the Algonquin Round Table Mystery Series. In this one, a second-rate painter commits suicide, and Dorothy Parker enlists the aid of Harry Houdini to find out why. Shenanigans and séances ensue. Should be lots of fun.

Now for the big question, how do you find to write with two young, twin girls and a full-time job?

With great difficulty.

More can be found about John and MURDER YOUR DARLINGS on his website.

Once again, congratulations, John!

Interview with a Winning Winner!

Writers love writing contests. That’s obvious by the number who flock to the Query Tracker blog contests. But have you ever wondered what happens to the winners after the agent picks their entry for a prize? Most of the time, the agent ends up passing on the project. Not so for one of the winners in the April 2010 contest with Jason Yarn. Out of the five winners, Amy Sue Nathan went onto become one of his clients.

We decided it would only be fitting to interview Amy and share her great news. Here’s the winner entry with Jason’s comments, followed by the interview with her. Enjoy!

THE GLASS HOUSE by Amy Sue Nathan: Ms. Nathan’s pitch was solid, but didn’t totally grab me. What did grab me, and what I thought should have been her pitch, was the first line in her excerpt. It’s a great contrasting image. That line made me very curious about the rest of the book and the subsequent paragraph was a nice layout to what’s to come for Evie Glass.

Amy Sue's pitch:
Amidst a torrent of grief, betrayal and bake sales, Evie Glass convinces herself, and a town full of nosy neighbors, to redefine the meaning of family.

Amy Sue's excerpt:
Evie never expected to get divorced, let alone sit Shiva for her ex-husband in a house with a Christmas tree. Yet there she was.

The imitation pine tree was dressed in tinsel and shiny red balls. Hallmark ornaments masquerading as heirlooms dangled from its branches. Stockings hung from the mantel above a card table topped with a green velveteen runner, holly-stamped paper plates and a Lucite platter heaped with lox, cream cheese balls and a mountain of seeded bagels. Richard had mocked Christmas folderol until he married Nicole a year before. Now he was being mourned in the company of a motorized Santa. Evie shook her head, unsure which was more shocking – the attempt for cultural balance or Richard’s sudden death.

How far into the querying process were you when you heard about the contest on the QTblog?

I started querying right after New Year’s Day 2010, and the contest was at the end of March. 

Had you entered any other contest for your book?

I entered another online contest for the first chapter and won – the recognition was great but it wasn’t an agent contest. 

You were awarded with a query and first ten page critique. How was the experience?

It was exciting and very encouraging because Jason was so enthusiastic. It was a slow process, because agents are so busy, so I kept querying other agents, following up with Jason, and moving forward.

Jason ended up offering representation. How did that come about?

Jason asked if he could read the full and after that happened, we talked on the phone.  Jason suggested some places and ways to tweak the novel.  I agreed with his ideas and to make those changes and resubmit the full to him.  He emailed me his extensive notes, I revised the novel and emailed it back. All that happened over the summer.

How long did the whole process take from the time you found out you were one of the winners until the moment the offer for representation came?

A long time but was it was worth the wait!  The contest was at the end of March 2010 and I signed with Jason in October 2010.  I think the most important thing for querying authors to have (besides a great book) is patience.  I started querying in January and signed in October. The whole process took more time than having a baby!

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book?

Good feedback may really change something about your book, but if it’s still within your vision for the story, and makes the book better, it’s smart to go with it.  Don’t be so possessive of the story and your writer’s ego that you’re unwilling to see where it isn’t perfect.

Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn’t you?

I never considered giving up.  I used QueryTracker to send over 125 queries in ten months.  I received my share of no replies and form rejections, but I also received gems – very helpful notes that helped me revise, and a few nice notes to send revisions or the next project, and up to the end, I was communicating with a few agents who were interested.  Had I not signed with any agent, I’d have started writing the query for my second novel. 

What happened next?

My novel went out on submission!

Anything you’d like to say to aspiring authors everywhere?

Don’t let the publishing gremlins get you down. 

Amy Sue Nathan is a published freelance writer and editor, and the editor of STET! The Backspace Blog and the Backspace monthly newsletter.  You can read Amy's writing and find more information on editing and critique services on her blog.  You can also follow her on Twitter @AmySueNathan. 

For those of you itching to enter a contest, please stay tuned. We have more planned for this year. Hopefully this will be one of many success stories in 2011.

 

Stina Lindenblatt writes romantic suspense and young adults novels. In her spare time, she’s a photographer and blogging addict, and can be found hanging out on her blog, Seeing Creative.