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Agent Q&A Day!

Wednesday, December 12th, 2012

It’s time for another Agent Q&A session. For those of you unfamiliar with how this works, it’s very simple. Post whatever

questions you have regarding publishing, submissions, writing, etc. in the comments section of this thread. Try and make

them at least a bit general, and not something that only applies to your specific project. Then late tonight or early tomorrow morning, I’ll drop by and answer at least three of the questions — more if I have the time. That’s all there is to

it!

Don’t feel bad if I don’t answer your questions. I run these sessions around once a month, so you’ll have the chance to ask again. Or else check back through previous Q&A sessions to see if it’s been answered already.

So, what do you all want to know?

~Nephele

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After NaNoWriMo: What Comes Next?

Wednesday, December 5th, 2012

A big congratulations to those of you who completed NaNoWriMo this past month. But now that the buzz of accomplishment has worn off, and you’ve had a chance to sleep and eat, shower, maybe tal

k to your family and take the dog for a walk, you might be scratching your head and wondering what comes next.

What you do now depends heavily on what you did during NaNoWriMo itself. Did you scramble for 50,000 words in any way possible, using endless descriptions and extra characters to plump up your word count? Or did you work methodically to an outline

and end up with roughly three quarters of your story once you hit that 50,000-word goal? Or maybe you didn’t finish, but have many thousands of words anyway and would like to know how to proceed.

First, a few things to keep in mind.

Most novels are not 50,000 words; they’re more like 80,000 to 100,000, give or take, depending on genre, etc. So if you’ve written 50,000 words, unless you’re writing for younger readers, the chance are your draft is still incomplete.

Which brings me to the next really important point. Your Nano novel is not a finished manuscript, it’s a draft. A first draft, no less. And for most writers, that is just the starting point. You need to revise and rewrite, add and delete, polish and hone. There will be more drafts in your future before your manuscript is ready to launch out into the world.

A down-and-dirty draft is an excellent way to start your novel. Writing quickly gives you the chance to get all those ideas down, to see where you need to think through you plot some more, to determine what parts of your story are slow or unnecessary. It helps you discover who your characters are, how they behave in certain situations, and what they want. First drafts are exploratory.

So maybe you have a complete first draft, maybe you need a few thousand more words. But NaNoWriMo is over, and you’re feeling a loss of momentum. Besides, the holidays are coming up and those pesky New Year’s resolutions, and maybe you’re thinking you can just table that work in progress until after January first. Worry about it in 2013, along with those extra fifteen pounds you’ve picked up and the hall closet that needs cleaning and the trip to the dentist you’ve been putting off and your contribution to your IRA.

Beep! Wrong answer.

The beauty of NaNoWriMo is it trains you to make writing a priority. You have to write every day, or close to it, in order to achieve your final goal. Don’t let inertia creep in and rob you of your wonderful new writing habit. Keep going! Celebrate your achievement by shooting for more. Set yourself some new writing goals, for the month, for next year, and strive to meet them. Do not allow yourself to backslide into procrastination mode.

For those of you looking for the ongoing encouragement of NaNoWriMo, I have a December Writing Challenge going at my blog. Don’t worry that you’ve missed the start of the month; just pick up and stick to it going forward. If personal contact is more your thing, look into local writing groups at your library or YMCA or other community meeting place, or ask at your nearest bookstore. Find an online writing forum where you can check in and chat and help cheer other writers on while getting the support you need.

Some of you may be thinking, “But I do all that already.” Fair enough. Not every NaNoWriMo participant is a newbie, or trying to develop a writing practice. Many are already dedicated writers. So where does your Nano novel stand? Did you finish your draft? Are you ready to revise? Or are you still plowing forward toward the end? The same advice applies; keep writing, stick with it. Don’t let the holiday insanity distract you.

Take breaks, yes. Enjoy the season, do things with friends and family. But make sure to schedule time for your writing. This time of year more than any other it is easy to relegate our needs to the back burner in our efforts to please others. Remember to make time for yourself. Writers write. Writers write all year long. Stand up for your right to be a writer.

You’ve all heard the warnings. Please don’t rush off and submit your Nano novel this month. Give it time to breathe. Work on revisions. Put it in a drawer for a few weeks, then read it again to determine what’s working and what needs further attention. Be professional. NaNoWriMo attracts writers of every level, from the curious and the casual writers to those aspiring to make this their career. If you fall into the latter category, develop those professional habits now. Like writing regularly, they will help you go far.

Happy writing, editing, revising, etc. And best of luck with your projects.

 

Comments (4)

Agent Q&A

Wednesday, November 7th, 2012

Welcome to another Agent Q&A session! For those who have not participated before, this is how it works: You leave your questions about writing, publishing, submissions, etc. in the comments of this thread. Then I will drop by late tonight or e

arly tomorrow morning to answer some of them. I will answer at least three of the questions, more if time allows. Don’t feel bad if your question does not get a reply — there’s always next time. Also, you can check the previous Q&As (click the q&a category) to see if your question has been answered previously, as we do get quite a few repeats.

I only answer once per thread, so if

you drop by late, make sure you check out the comments to see if I’ve buy viagra without prescription already been by with my answers. I occasionally have people leaving additional questions later in the week; save them up for next time, please.

So, that’s it! Let those questions rip. What do you want to know?

~Nephele

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Categories : q&a

Agent Q&A

Wednesday, October 10th, 2012

It’s time for another Agent Q&A session! Do you have burning questions about how to get an agent? Publishing? Writing? Just post them in comments on this thread, and I’ll come back at some point either late tonight or early tomorrow and provid

e answers for at least three of the questions — more if time permits.

Previous Q&A sessions offer a great resource if you’d like an overview of what people have been asking. Just click on the q&a category below to see past posts.

So? What do you want to know? Let those questions rip.

~Nephele

Agent Q&A

Wednesday, September 12th, 2012

Time for another agent Q&A. Do you have burning questions about the publishing industry, getting an agent, writing, etc? Ask away!

For those of you new to this, simply post your questions below in the comment section of this

thread. (You mi

ght want to scroll back to previous Q&A sessions to see if your question has already been answered.) I’ll be back either late this evening or early tomorrow to throw out some answers. I will reply to at least three questions, more if time allows. Don’t be upset if I don’t get to your question — there will be more Q&As in the future.

So? What do you all want to know?

~Nephele

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Categories : q&a

Submission Dos and Don'ts

Wednesday, September 5th, 2012

Submitting material to an agent is a nerve-wracking experience, and despite all of the blogs and books and magazine articles on the subject, it still seems to have an air of mystery to it. So I thought I’d throw out a few quick tips today that will

– I hope — make things a little easier.

There are, of course, the obvious steps that start you off on your search for an agent. Assuming you’re an unagented author looking to shop your first book (or your first project with an agent, at least), you need to make sure that you have a completed manuscript (for fiction) or proposal/chapters/platform (for nonfiction), and that your work is as polished and perfected as you can manage. You need to do your research and make a list of agents who represent what you write, and who are also accepting new clients. And you need to read the submission guidelines for each of those agents before you start to query.

Then what? Send query letters out into the universe and cross your fingers?

Well, yes and no. First make sure that you have a strong query letter. Take your time with it. Do some rewrites. Get your critique partners to take a look. This is the first piece of writing an agent will see from you; make it representative of your abilities. Give

it the same level of care that you did to your actual manuscript.

Do try to personalize your query letter a bit for each agent. What does that mean? Tell the agent why you’ve chosen to query them. If you’re a fan of one of their authors and that’s how you heard of them, say so. If you’re excited to read a title they’ve recently sold, mention that. If you read their blog and or met them at a conference, be sure to add that in. Keep it short — don’t spend paragraphs on this — but by all means let the agent know that you didn’t just pick their name out of a hat.

Do be sure to follow those submission guidelines. Some agencies ask for a few pages of the manuscript or even a longer partial along with the query. Others prefer you simply query first and will request to see pages if they’re interested. Likewise, some agencies still accept paper submissions while others have gone strictly electronic. Follow their guidelines. Doing something else will not make you stand out — it will get you an automatic rejection, or worse, ignored.

Do try to be patient. Submissions are the last thing to get an agent’s attention. All client work, contracts, and so on come first. If they’re accepting new material, they’ll get to you as soon as they can, but most submissions are read in an agent’s “free time,” and even agents need to sleep and take the occasional day off.

Do follow up. If the agent has not responded within the time frame listed on the agency website, do follow up with a polite email to make sure the material was received and is still under consideration. Chances are the agent is simply swamped, but queries or responses do occasionally get lost in cyberspace, and snail mail still does go astray.

Do continue to send out submissions to other agents. Unless an agency website specifies that they don’t accept simultaneous submissions, or an agent has requested to see something exclusively for an agreed upon period of time, keep submitting elsewhere. There’s no way of knowing how quickly or slowly an agent will get to your material, or how they will respond. If you send your project to one agent at a time, you could be ready for retirement before you sign with an agency. Most agents expect that you’re sending multiple submissions.

Do keep agents informed regarding your situation. If you get an offer of representation from an agent, be sure to let any other agents you’ve yet to hear from know about the offer. At that point you can either state you’re accepting the offer and withdrawing your manuscript from consideration, or you can ask that they get back to you regarding your material and whether they’re interested within a few days to a week, depending on your decision.

 

So that’s a list of dos. What should you avoid when you’re submitting your material to agents?

Don’t hedge your publishing bets. If you’re looking to sign with an agency, you are looking to pursue a traditional publishing career, at least in part. Agents submit projects to publishers. If you want to self-publish, that’s fine as well. But don’t start querying agents and then self-publish the project in question in the middle of your submissions process. I’m not talking about self-published authors who decide to seek an agent after the fact, but writers who attempt everything at once. Decide on a direction and give it a fair shot before you change your approach.

Don’t lose your temper. This is a business and you need to treat it as such. It’s easy to get angry and frustrated over rejections and so on, but flying off the handle and shooting a rude email response off to an agent won’t help matters, and it could burn a few bridges.

Don’t assume an agent’s just being nice. If an agent rejects your project, but says they’d look at it again with certain changes, don’t ignore that advice. Unless you completely disagree with it, make the changes and resubmit. Agents don’t make that offer very often, and when they do, they really, really hope to see your manuscript again.

Don’t hide in your writing tower and think that will be enough. The writer’s job has changed. The internet has made marketers of everyone. Yes, a well written book with a great hook is the key to getting published, but you’re relying an awful lot on luck if that’s all that you have. While a “platform” is traditionally reserved for nonfiction writers, even novelists need to think of their careers in big picture terms and figure out a marketing approach to pursue. Do your research, learn about social media, etc., build a simple website, and get ready to market the hell out of your book. You’ll make yourself a more attractive prospect to agents and to publishers, and you’ll have a leg up on the competition.

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Categories : query letter

Agent Q&A

Wednesday, August 1st, 2012

It’s

Agent Q&A day! Bring me your burning questions about publishing, writing, the submissions process, etc.

Simply ask your questions in a comment on this thread. I will come back either late today or early tomorrow and answer a minimum

of three of

the questions, more if time allows. Please note that I just answer the one time, so don’t leave any additional questions after I’ve chimed in with responses. I do these Q&A sessions about once a month, so you’ll get another chance.

That’s about it. So? Who’s got questions?

~Nephele

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Categories : q&a

Agent Q&A

Wednesday, June 27th, 2012

It’s time for another Agent Q&A session! For those of you who haven’t participated before, it’s very simple. Just leave your questions about publishing, finding an agent, writing, and so on in the comments section of this thread. I’ll com

e back late tonight or early tomorrow and answer at least three of them — more if time allows.

Be sure to check back to see what everyone else has asked

(you may share a few of their questions) and to read my replies! You can also visit previous Q&A posts for a quick round up of information.

~Nephele Tempest

6/27/2012

Comments (16)

But What Are You Looking For?

Wednesday, June 20th, 2012

It’s generally the first question out of a writer’s mouth when they meet me: What are you looking for? The phrasing can vary, of course. What’s on your wish list? What would you love to see? But the principle

is the same.

Agents are notori

ously vague when it comes to responding to this question. We’ll tell you what genres we represent, and if we’re more eager for submissions in one genre over the rest. Maybe we’ll mention a few recent releases by our clients and tell you “more like this.” Or we’ll start mentioning qualities of writing over types of story: Strong characters, a great voice, a unique hook. As a last resort, we get all vague and ethereal.  We can only say what we don’t want, what we’re sick of reading. We want to fall in love. We’ll know it when we see it.

Yeah. Not so helpful, is it?

And yet, it’s all true. If we could imagine the perfect story, that book we truly want to read, we’d go write it ourselves instead of representing it for one of our clients. Our job is not to tell you what to write, merely to sign you on when you happen to write something that pushes all our buttons. The writer’s job is to write what makes their own heart sing, and to polish their manuscript for submission. If you do that, eventually you’ll find that agent who loves the same sorts of stories that you do.

All that said, what I can do is tell you some of the things I love about books. You all know at this point what a book needs – fabulous story, intriguing characters, solid writing, etc. These, by contrast, are some of the ideas and tropes that capture my imagination and suck me down into a story. These sorts of details are the reasons I love to read.  Not the only ones, but they seem to show up with fair regularity.

Smart characters. I love a clever protagonist, someone who works things through and has realizations over the course of the story. I love characters who solve puzzles, whether they are physical, follow-the-clue sorts of situations or situations that require research or careful sifting of ideas. The thought process draws me in and I am with you for the ride. And this does not mean the book needs to be a mystery; all books require some sort of puzzle or level of suspense, even if it’s a will-they-or-won’t-they romantic scenario. And this isn’t limited to smart adult characters. Smart (and smart-ass) teen and child protagonists push my buttons, too.

By contrast, I hate a stupid protagonist. And by this I don’t mean naïve or uneducated or possessing a low I.Q. A stupid protagonist is one who stares the facts in the face and then ignores them for the sake of keeping the story going, who could solve the book’s major issue by making a phone call or being honest or reading a note someone left on the refrigerator. In these instances, it’s not the protagonist who is really stupid, but the author who insists on insulting the reader’s intelligence.

Smart characters are not perfect characters. A character can be brilliant and still have many flaws. They can, and should, be wrong some of the time, and their intelligence can often stand in the way of their accepting or realizing that fact. Smart can still be real.

An intriguing setting. I’m all about the world building. I want to feel like I’ve stepped into the world of your story, which is one of the reasons I adore fantasy and science fiction and historical novels, but that sense of place is important regardless of the genre. (I’m a sucker for travel blogs, so you can see where my weakness lies.) I love well-done description that puts the reader in the scene, in the moment, but still keeps the story moving forward. Carefully chosen words that pack a punch over long, rambling descriptions of everything in a room or landscape. Settings that reveal character – details about someone’s décor or the state of their car trunk or the sort of small town they’ve chosen to make their home. Intriguing for me can be well-rendered and meaningful. It doesn’t have to be a glamorous cityscape to draw me in. Audrey Niffenegger’s HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY takes place primarily in Highgate Cemetery and a neighboring set of flats, and that setting is utterly integral to the story she tells. And if you introduce me to a place or a culture or a world that is new to me, all the better.

Themes of rebirth, rehabilitation, and resurrection. While I love a good coming-of-age story or rags-to-riches story as much as the next girl, I’m a sucker for the complete makeover. Characters who were walking on the wrong side of things and, for some reason, have decided to put their past to rest and start a new life. I love the idea of transformation, of being able to take control of your destiny, of not allowing past mistakes to set the path for the future. I’m also fond of protagonists who walk the line, gentlemen thieves, Robin Hood-type characters, and so on. I’m intrigued by morally complicated individuals. For anyone who has seen The Avengers in theaters this summer, it

won’t surprise you that Hawkeye and Black Widow intrigue me the most. A former circus performer and Russian assassin, respectively, they have complex backgrounds that make me want to know more about them, their choices, their motivations.

Adventure. I mean this both as a state of mind and as an actual story arc. I love characters that have adventures of some sort, they don’t have to be a long, winding quest or involve a battle against the forces of evil, though I love those as well. Someone starting their life over in a new city where they don’t know a soul can certainly have an adventure. It’s about their mindset and their willingness to experience something huge and life changing; or, conversely, about their lack of willingness to change and how life or external forces somehow force an adventure upon them. Unwilling adventurers can be just as compelling.

Psychological twists. This ties in to my love of smart characters as well as those who are morally complex. A protagonist with a mystery in their past, a situation that appears to have no solution, questions of identity, mind games, etc. I love it when these sorts of things are the focus of the story, but also when they creep in unexpectedly along the edges, adding color to a main storyline and making things just a little bit more complicated.

These facets of storytelling can be interpreted many ways, and combined to create fabulous stories.  For frame of reference, I offer up a list of some great books that have sucked me in and kept me riveted from beginning to end, some recent discoveries and some old favorites. I can’t tell you specifically what I’m looking to sign on next, but if your book can make me feel the way any of these did, I look forward to reading it.

THE EIGHT by Katherine Neville

THE HISTORIAN by Elizabeth Kostova

A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES by Deborah Harkness

THE SHADOW OF THE WIND by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

THE THIRTEENTH TALE by Diane Setterfield

THE GODS OF GOTHAM by Lyndsay Faye

THE LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA by Scott Lynch

AMONG OTHERS by Jo Walton

WHEN YOU REACH ME by Rebecca Stead

THE NIGHT CIRCUS by Erin Morgenstern

THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt

Please note this is a very brief list of books I love – I could easily keep going for days.  I’ve tried to steer clear of more obvious examples. Yes, I love the Harry Potter books and THE LORD OF THE RINGS, DUNE  and PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, and a host of other books that many, many other people adore. Also, it goes without saying that I have a soft spot in my heart for my own clients’ work. In contrast, there are a fair number of popular titles that I really dislike, but it would be rude to start listing those. So I’ll leave you with this food for thought, and wish you happy reading.

~Nephele Tempest

6/20/2012

 

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Firming Up Your Foundations

Wednesday, June 13th, 2012

Writers talking shop can discuss many aspects of the business, from whether or not to outline, to how to find a good critique partner, to the merits of various forms of social media when it’s time to promote their books. But today I’d like to

address something a bit more basic, something that lies at the very foundation of your career. It might seem like a gimme—something you learned so long ago that it rarely crosses your mind when you sit down to write. And that’s the problem. I’m talking about basic grammar skills.

We learn grammar in school, in drips and drabs over the years, sometimes from text books in formal lessons and sometimes in practice as teachers mark up essays where sentences have strayed from the proper path. There are a bunch of rules that may or may not get drilled into our heads, but it’s more likely that we learn from example and from doing—from reading and writing and getting a feel for the way the language works. But let’s face it; not everyone pays attention to every lesson in school. Bits and pieces go in one ear and out the other, or else are simply forgotten after decades out of the classroom. And for most people it’s not much of a problem. They manage to sound intelligent and educated, and if they occasionally dash off an e-mail that’s less than grammatically correct, well, no one’s going to fuss over something so small.

That’s not true for writers. For a writer, grammar is the building material that forms your product—the stuff that strings together words and ideas into fabulous stories. As such, it’s an important tool, and the better your skills with that tool, the more refined and well-crafted the end result. Proper grammar creates a seamless

sentence that coveys a message beyond the story; it tells the reader that they are in capable hands.

There are times, of course, when you might deliberately subvert the rules for stylistic purposes or character building. Grammatically incorrect dialogue, for instance, can tell a reader much about a character’s background. But this only works if the structure around that dialogue is flawless. You cannot break the rules until you know what they are.

Most writers make a good effort to use proper grammar in their writing, but they also rely on the publishing process to help them with any mistakes. After all, that’s what editors are for, right? To catch any niggling problems that might slip through the cracks? But that supposes that an editor will be reading your work. What about your blog posts? Your notices on Twitter or Facebook? More and more, writers are producing additional material for websites and social media, and that writing goes out into the world unedited, making it that much more important for you to brush up on your grammar skills.

No one expects writers to be perfect. Everyone is prone to typos or the occasional error in their work. But as a professional or aspiring professional, you are going to be held accountable on some level for

all of the writing you send out into the world. If you don’t know the difference between making a word possessive or plural, if you make repeated mistakes regarding pronouns—the gaps in your knowledge will become obvious. More and more, I see submissions that offer up compelling stories, but that are so riddled with errors that it detracts from the reading experience. These writers are doing themselves a grave disservice.

So take the time to review your grammar skills. Read through a couple of good grammar and style guides to make sure you remember the basics, and pay attention to any consistent errors that you make when edited manuscripts come back from your publisher. Be respectful of your readers’ time no matter what sort of project you’re working on, and produce the cleanest, smoothest text that you can manage. Build your career on strong foundations and continue to aim high.

~Nephele Tempest

6/13/2012

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Categories : writing

Agent Q&A

Wednesday, May 30th, 2012

It’s time for another Agent Q&A day! For those who have not participated before, here is how this works: You post your questions about publishing, writing, getting an agent, etc., in the comments section for this thread over the course of

the day. Then I’ll come back tonight or early tomorrow morning and answer a few — at least three, more

if I have time.

Please take the time to read the comments and see if someone has already asked

your question, and to check if I’ve already come by to answer. Last time around several people continued posting questions once I’d replied, and this is just a one-day thread. If you miss me, or if your question does not get answered, keep an eye out, because this feature will pop up from time to time.

Okay, have at it! What has you wondering?

~Nephele Tempest

5/30/2012

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Categories : q&a

The Dos and Don'ts of Writers' Conferences: Part 4

Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012

Your writers’ conference has come to a close and you’re on your way back home, exhausted but, with any luck, feeling inspired.

What’s your next step?

Now is the time to take what you’ve learned and run with it. A writers’ conference can le

ave you with a wonderful high – a sense of community, ideas for new projects, techniques to apply to your work, and requests for material. The key is to prioritize.

Send requested material: If you met with an agent or editor and they asked to see a partial or complete manuscript based on your pitch, this should be your first priority. That does not mean you need to rush to get your work to them before you’ve even done your post-conference laundry. Take a couple of days to reread your material, give it a final proofread, and compose a short note that will accompany your pages. This doesn’t need to be a query; someone already wants to read your work. Just include a reminder that the material was requested at such-and-such conference, with a few sentences about the project that will help jolt the reader’s memory. Make sure you send exactly what was requested – three chapters and a synopsis, first 50 pages, etc., and use the agent’s or

editor’s preferred method of submission – e-mail or snail mail. You should have written down this information in your notebook during your meeting.

Reassess your writing plan: Are you in the middle of a project? About to start a new one? Go over your conference notes and determine if anything you learned during the various workshops and sessions applies directly to what you’re writing.

Touch base with new acquaintances: No doubt you met some new people over the conference and traded contact information. Now is an excellent time to reach out if you’d like to keep in touch, particularly if there was any discussion of reading each other’s work or networking for marketing purposes.

Consider your marketing and social media use: If you spent any time at the conference attending panels on self-promotion and/or social media, you should take a good, hard look at your own approach to marketing your work and see where you can make changes. A smart idea is to break down what you’ve learned at the conference when it comes to this area, and try one new strategy at a time. This will give you the chance to experiment and to see what works best for you.

One last thought: If the conference hosts passed out an evaluation form at the close of the conference, make an effort to fill it out and return it to them, either before leaving the conference itself or shortly after you return home. They genuinely look for ways to improve the conference experience for attendees, so they appreciate any input regarding what has worked well and what needs some tweaking.

 

~Nephele Tempest

5/23/2012