Today's post is brought to you by the loverly Shannon Messenger. She recently signed with literary agent Laura Rennert, after only two weeks of querying! If you're not following Shannon's blog, you're totally missing out. And today, she's got some great advice for us on how to know when your draft -- and your query letter -- are ready to send out.
So I give you: Shannon.
You did it! You finished a whole book! You finally have something you’re not only proud of, but that you think will sell.
Awesome! Well done you. Now, it’s time to query!
Or is it?
How do you know that you’re REALLY ready to query?
I’ll admit, I struggled with that question. All right, FINE—my friends had to drag me into the querying pool kicking and screaming. I’m a baby. But I’ve since put a lot of thought into this, because I was curious to know how my friends could be so positive that I was ready (since they knew I would kill them if they set me up for epic failure). And it really comes down to 3 things:
Your Draft: You know your draft is ready when you’ve gotten positive feedback from a number of CPs—and no, I don’t mean your spouse/parent/BFF. I mean honest, brutal CPs who aren’t afraid to tell you when your draft is made of suckage. If they think you’re ready, you probably are.
Your Query: Writing a good query letter is HARD, so I’m a big believer in seeking professional assistance. (I personally used an online query workshop and had an additional query critique.) It’s not expensive and it’s SO worth it. But if that’s not in your budget, have your CPs help. It’s also good to have a few people who know nothing about the project read and give you their thoughts. You’ll be surprised at the things they notice.
You: Ask yourself if you’re ready to face the rejections—because rejections WILL come. Are you passionate enough about your project to keep going when you run into obstacles? And do you really believe that this is not only the best draft you’ve ever written—but the best draft you’re capable of writing right now? Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impression with an agent, so don’t query a project just because you’re proud of yourself for finishing. Wait until you’re querying your BEST work.
If you examine those three areas and come up with the right answers, you’re ready to query. It may still mean a lot of frustration and rejection. But it’ll also pay off, and you’ll end up announcing to the world that you signed with your dream agent. And when you do, we’ll all be there to celebrate right along with you.
So what about you guys. How did you know when you were ready to query? Did I miss anything?
Monday, May 31, 2010
Friday, May 28, 2010
Publishing Pulse: 5/28/2010
Success Story!Congratulations to Donna Cummings -- she landed an agent (and tracked her queries with QueryTracker)! Read her success story.
Our Next Contest!
Don't forget, our next contest opens this coming week on Tuesday, June 1st! And you can always find the info on our latest contests on our Contest Page.
Around the Internet
Jane Friedman shares The 3 Best Takeaways for Writers From BookExpo America -- a must read. (Psst -- interesting Amazon news included.)
Guest columnist Livia Blackburne shares 7 of her favorite Tips on Book Publicity on the Guide to Literary Agents blog.
Want to know how to get an agent's attention? Lisa Katzenberger explains all in her guest column on the Guide to Literary Agents blog.
Guest blogger Mary DeMuth shares The Triple Three: Tenacious, Talkative, and Teachable on Rachelle Gardner's blog. These are words you must live by if you want to be published!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Branding: Not Just For Livestock Anymore
Today's post is brought to you by Sheralyn Pratt, PR Manager at Cedar Fort Publishing and author of the Rhea Jensen series. She lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she spends entirely too much time in front of a computer. (Who doesn't??)
Take it away, Sheralyn!
Branding. We could argue that it originally started with livestock when owners wanted to prove an animal was theirs. From there the differentiation grew to: my sheep is better than your sheep. Convincing the consumer of that then created disparate prices and, well, everything escalated from there.
While this approach to branding still happens today, the branding concept has also adjusted to modern lifestyle with the unique evolvement of making humans pay to brand themselves or anything else they value. Sure, we could make our own pants, but if we want pants with a designer’s brand, we need to pay for it.
Businesses invest a huge amount of money in branding because they know that they succeed or fail based on “fan” support. Harley Davidson, iPod, Twizzlers, Dr Pepper… if we truly believed that the generic versions of these products held a candle to the branded version, the branded products with their higher prices would be out of business in months.
As an author, without your own personal brand, the same applies to you. Twenty, fifty, a hundred years ago, maybe you could have gotten away with just writing a good book and leaving it at that, but in the current climate where the average attention span is conditioned to focus a max of 5 seconds, you definitely need to be memorable to survive.
So what’s an author’s brand? And how do you design your own?
Looking around, we recognize the branding of authors, even if we don’t call it that. We may use words like genre, niche, audience, cover art, autograph, and so forth, but we are still identifying branding that helps audiences find the books they like.
Example: Harry Potter. You know the covers, the font, the jargon and even recognize the lightning bolt. This entire series is a model example of brilliant branding. I have a first-year Gryffindor scarf that was hand knitted by a friend. When I go out, do you think people recognize it on sight without having to be told what it is? You bet. Whenever I wear that scarf, I am advertising for J.K. Rowling. Immediately a stranger and I know that we have something in common, just as Twilight mom’s know they share a certain passion when one of them walks by wearing a shirt or official Twilight jewelry.
The result: insta-friends, pulled together more quickly than any microwave meal. All brought to you by branding.
“You like Edward?!? I like Edward!!! OMG!”
“You like Jacob?!? WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU?!? CAN’T YOU SEE HOW PERFECT BELLA AND EDWARD ARE FOR EACH OTHER???”
Like that. On first sight we know something about other fans and have an immediate connection—a friend we haven’t met yet.
In weekly acquisition meetings, the first thing I ask the editors who are pitching books is: “Who is the audience and how does this book/author reach them?” How that question is answered is HUGE as to whether I want a closer look at the book.
As authors, you need to put thought into what exactly that brand is before you push your way out into the world. Just like a clothing designer, you must be known for doing one thing exceptionally before you can branch out and do it all. Evening wear? Swim wear? Casual? Urban? Pick your strongest genre and specialize before you expand.
Much of this is intuitive, which is why few people actually sit down and define their personal brand. “I write romance,” they say, and incorporate pink and flowers into their website. After all, flowers and pink are romantic. They are not, however, images people can immediately associate with you (i.e. a lightning bolt). Branding is the very specific way fans know they have found YOU and you alone. Not some imposter.
Below is a logo I saw on the back of a Barnes & Noble CRM’s black Escalade:
To many, this image means nothing, but it is actually a declaration of fan-dom, and lovers of the Dark Hunters will immediately see it for what it is (and likely seek this CRM out for a fun coversation). Another CRM I spoke to was actually considering tattooing this image on the back of her neck. Both women are both HUGE fans of the same series. They work for a massive corporation at different locations, but do you want to take a guess at whether or not they’re friends?
Of course they are.
That is branding. And in the case of the tattoo, it is branding at it’s most fundamental.
Whether you are published or looking to be, one sure way to be noticed is to know your brand. It will save you and publishers a lot of time, and help you get right where you want to go much quicker. Know where you fit in your genre, who your neighbors are on the shelf, and how you should be marketed. You hand all that to a publisher/agent and they will be very tempted to hit the ground running.
So, approach branding yourself the same way any business would: Who are you? Who do you write for? What does your audience read? Where do they hang out? What do people value who hang out there? How do they accessorize? And how, exactly, do you fit in there?
Answer those questions, and you are good way along the road of having a publisher perk up and pay attention as you hand them a package they know they can work with. Because in the end, what a publisher is looking for from you is for you and your books to add value to their own brand/imprint, so they can attract more high-quality authors and expand their brand.
And so it goes…
Take it away, Sheralyn!
Branding. We could argue that it originally started with livestock when owners wanted to prove an animal was theirs. From there the differentiation grew to: my sheep is better than your sheep. Convincing the consumer of that then created disparate prices and, well, everything escalated from there.
While this approach to branding still happens today, the branding concept has also adjusted to modern lifestyle with the unique evolvement of making humans pay to brand themselves or anything else they value. Sure, we could make our own pants, but if we want pants with a designer’s brand, we need to pay for it.
Businesses invest a huge amount of money in branding because they know that they succeed or fail based on “fan” support. Harley Davidson, iPod, Twizzlers, Dr Pepper… if we truly believed that the generic versions of these products held a candle to the branded version, the branded products with their higher prices would be out of business in months.
As an author, without your own personal brand, the same applies to you. Twenty, fifty, a hundred years ago, maybe you could have gotten away with just writing a good book and leaving it at that, but in the current climate where the average attention span is conditioned to focus a max of 5 seconds, you definitely need to be memorable to survive.
So what’s an author’s brand? And how do you design your own?
Looking around, we recognize the branding of authors, even if we don’t call it that. We may use words like genre, niche, audience, cover art, autograph, and so forth, but we are still identifying branding that helps audiences find the books they like.
Example: Harry Potter. You know the covers, the font, the jargon and even recognize the lightning bolt. This entire series is a model example of brilliant branding. I have a first-year Gryffindor scarf that was hand knitted by a friend. When I go out, do you think people recognize it on sight without having to be told what it is? You bet. Whenever I wear that scarf, I am advertising for J.K. Rowling. Immediately a stranger and I know that we have something in common, just as Twilight mom’s know they share a certain passion when one of them walks by wearing a shirt or official Twilight jewelry.
The result: insta-friends, pulled together more quickly than any microwave meal. All brought to you by branding.
“You like Edward?!? I like Edward!!! OMG!”
“You like Jacob?!? WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU?!? CAN’T YOU SEE HOW PERFECT BELLA AND EDWARD ARE FOR EACH OTHER???”
Like that. On first sight we know something about other fans and have an immediate connection—a friend we haven’t met yet.
In weekly acquisition meetings, the first thing I ask the editors who are pitching books is: “Who is the audience and how does this book/author reach them?” How that question is answered is HUGE as to whether I want a closer look at the book.
As authors, you need to put thought into what exactly that brand is before you push your way out into the world. Just like a clothing designer, you must be known for doing one thing exceptionally before you can branch out and do it all. Evening wear? Swim wear? Casual? Urban? Pick your strongest genre and specialize before you expand.
Much of this is intuitive, which is why few people actually sit down and define their personal brand. “I write romance,” they say, and incorporate pink and flowers into their website. After all, flowers and pink are romantic. They are not, however, images people can immediately associate with you (i.e. a lightning bolt). Branding is the very specific way fans know they have found YOU and you alone. Not some imposter.
Below is a logo I saw on the back of a Barnes & Noble CRM’s black Escalade:
To many, this image means nothing, but it is actually a declaration of fan-dom, and lovers of the Dark Hunters will immediately see it for what it is (and likely seek this CRM out for a fun coversation). Another CRM I spoke to was actually considering tattooing this image on the back of her neck. Both women are both HUGE fans of the same series. They work for a massive corporation at different locations, but do you want to take a guess at whether or not they’re friends?
Of course they are.
That is branding. And in the case of the tattoo, it is branding at it’s most fundamental.
Whether you are published or looking to be, one sure way to be noticed is to know your brand. It will save you and publishers a lot of time, and help you get right where you want to go much quicker. Know where you fit in your genre, who your neighbors are on the shelf, and how you should be marketed. You hand all that to a publisher/agent and they will be very tempted to hit the ground running.
So, approach branding yourself the same way any business would: Who are you? Who do you write for? What does your audience read? Where do they hang out? What do people value who hang out there? How do they accessorize? And how, exactly, do you fit in there?
Answer those questions, and you are good way along the road of having a publisher perk up and pay attention as you hand them a package they know they can work with. Because in the end, what a publisher is looking for from you is for you and your books to add value to their own brand/imprint, so they can attract more high-quality authors and expand their brand.
And so it goes…
Monday, May 24, 2010
Public Speaking as a Promotional Tool
Hey, y'all! Today's post is brought to you by L. Diane Wolfe, Professional Speaker & Author. Check her out her awesome Spunk on a Stick blog here, and her website Spunk on a Stick here and The Circle of Friends website here.
Take it away Diane!
Public speaking can be an author’s greatest marketing tool. It opens up unique promotional opportunities. It can supplement the author’s income. It sells books! And in today’s market, authors need to employ every possible angle.
At its most basic, speaking places the author in front of real human beings. The lure of the Internet has prompted more and more authors to remain hidden behind a website. While blogs and social sites provide a certain measure of interaction, it cannot replace real-world contact and physical appearances. Readers like to know about the creator behind the book, and meeting an author in person provides a human quality that is lacking online.
Not every writer is destined to be a professional speaker, but learning the craft is vital. For the introverted author too nervous to speak in front of two people, let alone a crowd, training is required. A media coach teaches poise and confidence. An organization such as Toastmasters offers critique sessions in a secure environment. Public speaking courses are available at almost every college. There are ample opportunities to train and prepare for public speaking.
Remember, there is power in the spoken word! Now, how do we use that power?
At the very least, every author should be able to discuss his own book. This will be required for signings, book readings, and library appearances. Book clubs and writer’s groups are also open to the author. These opportunities provide more than just a personal touch, as promotional materials distributed by the author can influence later sales.
However, magic happens when an author moves beyond his book and develops a platform around his area of expertise. This should be a natural transition for the non-fiction writer. His education, skills, and experience led to the book’s creation, and he can build a platform around this very knowledge. This doesn’t preclude the fiction writer, though. Every book requires research, and a level of expertise is required to write fiction as well. Regardless of genre, all authors possess the ability to develop a platform and message.
The author who markets himself as a speaker gains several advantages. Professional speakers usually receive payment for their services. Speaking engagements can supplement royalties (which are rarely enough to live on) and the income from day jobs. These events often allow for back of room sales, netting additional income. An author with a platform is also more appealing to the media, as they want experts who can inform and entertain. The author who delivers what the media seeks and desires gains exposure to a far greater audience.
The list of venues for speakers is endless: libraries; businesses; schools; churches; colleges; writer and book festivals; organizations; clubs; conferences; etc. All of these provide an opportunity to reach a wider audience and generate greater books sales. Once established as a professional speaker, the author’s reputation will drive the sales of future books as well, thus laying the groundwork for a long career!
Take it away Diane!
Public speaking can be an author’s greatest marketing tool. It opens up unique promotional opportunities. It can supplement the author’s income. It sells books! And in today’s market, authors need to employ every possible angle.
At its most basic, speaking places the author in front of real human beings. The lure of the Internet has prompted more and more authors to remain hidden behind a website. While blogs and social sites provide a certain measure of interaction, it cannot replace real-world contact and physical appearances. Readers like to know about the creator behind the book, and meeting an author in person provides a human quality that is lacking online.
Not every writer is destined to be a professional speaker, but learning the craft is vital. For the introverted author too nervous to speak in front of two people, let alone a crowd, training is required. A media coach teaches poise and confidence. An organization such as Toastmasters offers critique sessions in a secure environment. Public speaking courses are available at almost every college. There are ample opportunities to train and prepare for public speaking.
Remember, there is power in the spoken word! Now, how do we use that power?
At the very least, every author should be able to discuss his own book. This will be required for signings, book readings, and library appearances. Book clubs and writer’s groups are also open to the author. These opportunities provide more than just a personal touch, as promotional materials distributed by the author can influence later sales.
However, magic happens when an author moves beyond his book and develops a platform around his area of expertise. This should be a natural transition for the non-fiction writer. His education, skills, and experience led to the book’s creation, and he can build a platform around this very knowledge. This doesn’t preclude the fiction writer, though. Every book requires research, and a level of expertise is required to write fiction as well. Regardless of genre, all authors possess the ability to develop a platform and message.
The author who markets himself as a speaker gains several advantages. Professional speakers usually receive payment for their services. Speaking engagements can supplement royalties (which are rarely enough to live on) and the income from day jobs. These events often allow for back of room sales, netting additional income. An author with a platform is also more appealing to the media, as they want experts who can inform and entertain. The author who delivers what the media seeks and desires gains exposure to a far greater audience.
The list of venues for speakers is endless: libraries; businesses; schools; churches; colleges; writer and book festivals; organizations; clubs; conferences; etc. All of these provide an opportunity to reach a wider audience and generate greater books sales. Once established as a professional speaker, the author’s reputation will drive the sales of future books as well, thus laying the groundwork for a long career!
Friday, May 21, 2010
Publishing Pulse
Success StoriesCaroline Tung Richmond landed an agent! Read her success story. And on her blog this week, she's doing a "Surviving the Rejection" series, so go check that out.
Our next contest!
Suzy put up the details yesterday, but in case you missed it... And you can always find the info on our latest contests on our Contest Page.
Around the Web
Literary agent Kristin Nelson talks about the youthfulness she's seen recently in authors. A great reminder that age doesn't matter -- good writing does.
Nathan Bransford reminds us that every writer gets rejected. A great read to remind yourself that it only takes one yes. Still feeling hopeless? Read this article about 30 great authors who got rejected again and again...and again.
Literary agents talk trends in children's publishing at NESCBWI.
Rachelle Gardner tackles the tough question: What if my agent doesn't like my next book?
Why you should register your domain name. It's never too early to begin thinking about author branding.
Literary agent Marietta Zacker weighs in on children's series' and how to approach agents with them.
From YA Highway: The non-traditional YA audience. Has a great list of YA books for adults.
Author Jody Hedlund talks about social media in an unselfish way. And her posts this week have all been about charcterization. Worth a read.
A contest that will explode your brain. Go enter!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Agent- judged Contest Announced!
EVERYBODY WINS!
Agent Kathleen Ortiz of Lowenstein Associates will be judging our next contest. Here are the deets:
To enter the contest:
This contest is not for whiners! It is only open to those who are willing to receive honest feedback. Ms. Ortiz will:
Helpful links on pitching at Elana Johnson's blog.
Literary agent Laura Rennert helps you build your pitch.
Literary agent Rachelle Gardner reveals the secrets of a great pitch.
Also, read a word about pitches and what makes them work by last month's judge, Chris Richman.
Agent Kathleen Ortiz of Lowenstein Associates will be judging our next contest. Here are the deets:
- Opens Tuesday June 1, 2010 at 9:00 PM EST
- Only 100 entries will be accepted
- Genres: Young Adult and Middle Grade only (next month's contest will be adult only.)
- You must be a follower of the QueryTracker blog, widget at right.
To enter the contest:
- You must have a free QueryTracker membership
- You must submit a one-sentence pitch (helpful links below) and your first chapter
- Your submission will be accepted on the submission form (won't be available until the contest opens)
- DO NOT EMAIL YOUR SUBMISSION DIRECTLY TO THE AGENT. You will be disqualified if you do.
This contest is not for whiners! It is only open to those who are willing to receive honest feedback. Ms. Ortiz will:
- Treat every entry as a partial submission (therefore you must only enter if you, in Ms. Ortiz's words "for the LOVE OF GODIVA," have a completed MS)
- Read every entry TO THE POINT SHE WOULD NORMALLY STOP READING on a partial submission
- She will tell you why she stopped reading
- She will request more of the manuscript only if it is something she would normally request.
Helpful links on pitching at Elana Johnson's blog.
Literary agent Laura Rennert helps you build your pitch.
Literary agent Rachelle Gardner reveals the secrets of a great pitch.
Also, read a word about pitches and what makes them work by last month's judge, Chris Richman.
Good luck! And let us know if you have any questions.
Monday, May 17, 2010
How To Critique: It’s All In the Way You Say It
I am going to spend another post talking about the nuts and bolts of a great critique – be specific, provide suggestions to help out, that kind of thing. But let’s focus first on what may be the critiquer’s most important skill: knowing how to phrase things.
From time to time I’ve seen critiquers sweep in on high horses with their noses in the air, prepared to point out perceived mistakes with the kind of cruel delight usually reserved for Disney villains. This type of person exerts ridiculous amounts of energy bashing other people. Since they’re often very frustrated writers, I suspect they do it to avoid looking at their own writerly shortcomings and dealing with their own issues.
Assuming you’re not channeling Cruella de Vil, though, you may still need benefit from keeping the following in mind:
1. Go in with the right attitude: to help the other person
Your primary goal with a critique should always be to help the writer improve his or her story. Sure, you can benefit from critiquing – you’ll be developing your editing skills, for example, and getting an opportunity to compare your work with someone else’s. You may even earn a critique from the other person of your own work. But while you’re actually doing the critique, focus not on what you’re getting out of it, but on how you can help the other writer improve the story.
2. Critique the story, not the storyteller
It’s hard enough for many writers to separate their feelings about themselves from their feelings about their work – don’t confuse matters by making the story’s problems about the writer. Instead, focus on the work. Rather than saying things like “You need to…” or “You keep…” or “You’re not being clear…” try phrases like “The grammar…” “Your character…” and “This plot point…”
3. Contempt has no place in a critique
If a problem is repeated or the writer is having trouble grasping what the critique is trying to say, some critiquers get mean. They use lots of exclamation points, TYPE IN ALL CAPS (which indicates shouting in the digital world), use a supercilious or parental tone, and make demands. “Why are you calling this URBAN FANTASY?!!” such a critique might say. “You CLEARLY don’t understand the genre!!!” Or, “DON’T send me anything else you haven’t PROOFREAD. You also need to learn to USE COMMAS CORRECTLY if you ever want to get published!!!”
Yes, you may feel like SHOUTING at a particularly dense crit buddy, but they’re much more likely to take in your feedback if you say something like “Your work is a little different than what I understand are the standards for the genre, such as _____.” Or, “I found a lot of typos in the manuscript. Do you have your spell-checker turned on in Word?” and “Commas can be tough to use. I have this great resource that helps me – here it is, maybe it’ll also help you.”
4. Point out the positives as well as the problems
In their rush to point out the areas that need work, some critiquers forget how important it is to recognize the things that are well done! It's actually much easier for someone to learn to repeat a positive behavior than it is for them to develop a behavior that's different than one that isn't working. So be sure to encourage them to build on their strengths and keep up the good work when you see some in action.
If you have a particularly difficult piece of feedback, it can also help to pad it with positives. Try the sandwich method – emphasize a positive of some sort before pointing out the problem, and then finish with another positive. For example, "Your heroine is strong, and I like that. I'm afraid that her actions [give examples] in this scene may be so extreme that they'll be a turnoff for a lot of readers, though. I wonder if there's a way to make her more empathetic – you've done a great job of that with your hero [give more examples]."
5. Remember that your suggestions are just that – your suggestions
When you give advice, try giving it tentatively. Let the writer try it on for size rather than slamming it down his throat, and give him the freedom to adapt or even reject your advice. Phrases like “Maybe you could try…” or “Have you thought about…” or “See if anyone else points this out…” can help a lot.
After all, at the end of the day, it is the other person's story. You're just there to help!
What am I missing? What are YOUR tricks for providing palatable feedback?
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