|
mary rosenblum
|
Hello, all
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Sorry to be late...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I had to pick up my dogs at
the kennel and rush hour traffic this AM was not kind. :-)
|
|
bengalrose
|
we'll let you slide...this time
;-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Thank you, Bengal
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me, Mary Rosenblum, LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. If you're
new here, remember that you need to click on the 'Ask a Question' button or
the 'word bubble' next to the red question mark at the top of the screen,
or use the ask a question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular
'send' bar won't reach me! You can also type /ask in front of your question
to reach me
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I thought I'd do open
questions today, for those who can't make Fridays and missed the Open
Question Forum on Friday night.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I had a very good time at the
conference...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
got to meet one of my students
in person.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And was on quite a few panels.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Busy weekend, but it was nice
to catch up with writers and editors I don't get to see often.
|
|
t green
|
In your experience, how
forgiving are editors when you miss something? I'd submitted an article to
an online e-zine back in March and the editor replied in July that she
wanted to use it in August. .....
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
What did you miss, t?
|
|
t green
|
during that time, I had lots of
trouble with my ISP (server) and didn't get her reply until just last
week...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Ah...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
they're realistic, t. Just
tell her what happened.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is what happened with my
missing guest two weeks ago...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
she simply wasn't getting my
emails.
|
|
lore alley
|
How different is writing YA from
writing adult fiction? I've got some stories that are more YA
character-age-wise, but I don't know if they'd be interesting to teens.
More internal. Plus the characters are guys and I don't know how much teen
guys want to read about other guys' issues if there's not a lot of action
to back it up (that's what I've heard anyway). Is that true?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Not necessarily, lore. YA is
quite different from adult in some ways and in others, at the teen end,
blurs wiht adult.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Remember that your readers ARE
teens. They have a teen world view, and life issues that matter to
teens...even powerful ones like death, pregnancy, sex, what have you...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
need to be from that
age-perspective. Adult preaching is not gonna work.
|
|
kungfumama
|
wouldn't the Harry Potter series
be an example of that?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Exactly, kungfu...and a nice
one. There aren't any really serious issues there...it's entertainment
fiction primarily...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
but it appeals to both. You
also have YA that deals with issues much more seriously and that blurs less
into adults.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Hinton's books often do that.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
As to action/setting, yes you
do need to offer some entertainment there, even if you ARE dealing with
serious issues. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me, Mary Rosenblum, LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. If you're
new here, remember that you need to click on the 'Ask a Question' button or
the 'word bubble' next to the red question mark at the top of the screen,
or use the ask a question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular
'send' bar won't reach me! You can also type /ask in front of your question
to reach me
|
|
t green
|
Thanks Mary... I did just that.
Replied with my new e-mail addy and told her what happened. I've still got
my fingers crossed to make that sale.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Oh, I'm sure she'll use it
later if she wanted it in the first place. :-)
|
|
kungfumama
|
Mary, I've seen online critique
groups mentioned. One I think was LRX. Anyone got any info on that one?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You'll have to ask around,
kung.
|
|
ferretlover
|
How should I go about starting a
local writer's group
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Well, if you want a 'real' as
in face to face group,,
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
try leaving flyers in small
bookstores and the libraries.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Give a contact number or email
addy. You can usually use free meeting space in libraries, by the way, if
you're not charging money for attendance.
|
|
lore alley
|
So if something is written about
teens but is geared more toward adults (more internal conflict, less
external), will it get published for the adult market?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It entirely depends on whether
it fits the market, lore. Many 'adult' books would make good YA with a bit
of tweaking and vice versa.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
diane2, try using your regular
send bar and typing ask/ in front of your question.
|
|
tory
|
Mary I have a kind of
"etiquette" question. My novel is about the healing journey of two
women--one a rape wictim, other domestic violence. I've had an agent enter
into a series of e-mails about whether the Christian morket will deal with
these issues. (to some extent it does.) He has said IF he's convinced it
does, he would represent me. The dilemma. I go to a conference in two
weeks. Is it unethical to meet with agents there and go with one of them IF
they would represent me? this one I'm e-mailing seems reluctant. I'm not
sure what to do. Keep lookingor not.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Of course it's ethical.
Personally, I wouldn't use this agent.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Clearly he is not familiar
with the Christian market, so he doesn't know editors personally. You're
not going to benefit much from his representation.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I'd try to find an agent who
DOES know and is on a personal basis with the market.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You don't want JUST an agent,
you want an agent who brings valuable expetise to your table...you ARE
gonna pay this guy quite a chunk of your profits.
|
|
diane2
|
what's the best way to approach
editor's /agents with a
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Well, I don't have the rest of
this question, but I'm assuming that you're asking about approaching them
with a proposal?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You do not do that at a conference
unless the conference offers a formal 'pitch' session...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
which some, such as Willamette
Writers Conference, do.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It is VERY bad form and earns
you a real black mark to try it and they will always brush you off.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You must submit proposals/work
through regular submission channels...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
BUT...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
a conference is a great 'back
door' to get you past that 'agent only' requirement.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Say you are at a conference,
and you attend panels with editors on the panel.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
After the panel, you chat with
that editor, talk about publishing, whatever.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You can certainly ask: What
are you looking for these days?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If that editor's reply sounds
like the book you have to offer, you can certainly say, 'You know, I have a
paranormal romance like that. The woman wakens the spirits of...' and go on
to give a sentence or two of description.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
The editor may well say, 'hmm,
sounds interesting, send it to me'.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
At that point, you ARE
entitled to send the ms directed specifically to that editor even if the
house has a 'agented only' policy or does not accept unsolicited
submissions.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Because this book HAS been
solicited.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
The editor said 'send it to
me'.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This alone is worth the price
of admission to the conference.
|
|
ducky
|
What about handing an editor a
"one-sheet" or a resume at a conference?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Nope.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Editors fly in, they are there
with their own business to attend to and they cannot and will not deal with
submissions,
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
resumes, proposals, etc. They
MUST go the regular route. BUT...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
what is to stop you, Ducky,
from inviting that editor to lunch, a cup of coffee...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and talking about publishing,
the state of the world, etc?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Make an impression. Sneak in a
bit about what you write and why.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Bring up your project if you
really think the editor may like it.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If nothing else, when you send
a book in to that publisher or editor, you can remind that preson that you
met.
|
|
diane2
|
what if you just have a full
synopsis?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You have to submit according
to what the publisher wants, and how, diane2.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You can find that in the
writers market lists or the publisher's website.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me, Mary Rosenblum, LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. If you're
new here, remember that you need to click on the 'Ask a Question' button or
the 'word bubble' next to the red question mark at the top of the screen,
or use the ask a question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular
'send' bar won't reach me! You can also type /ask in front of your question
to reach me
|
|
kungfumama
|
Am I the only one that gets the
jitters about meeting people? I hope I get over that some day ... sigh. Any
tips?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Ha, I will forever get the
jitters around people, kung. I am not a social animal or I wouldn't be a
writer.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I"m chuckling.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
BUT...you wouldn't know it to
meet me. I can put on a very social and comfortable face in public.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You simply learn how to do it.
It's worth the effort because networking is a VERY important shortcut in
this business...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and can cut literally years
off of your 'breaking in' period.
|
|
seigfried007
|
in other words, ask yourself,
"Would I want someone I've never met doing this?" when pitching
to an editor...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Yes...and remember that person
is NOT at work. Would YOU like someone to hand you a chunk of YOUR day job
at a conference?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
'Here, take extra time from
your busy schedule to do this for me, instead of at your desk on Monday'.
|
|
kungfumama
|
Gee, you mean there's hope for
me? Yippee !!! Thanks.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Kung, I can count the 'social'
writers I know on one hand...with a few fingers left over. :-)
|
|
ducky
|
I actually made a good
connection with another author at a Pikes Peak Writers Conference a few
years ago. But I didn't have any writing evolved enough to follow up with
at that time. But I did make the connection and I saw how it can be really
useful. Next time, I've got something to take with me that is
quasi-publishable.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And the connection wasn't
wasted, ducky. You an reconnect with that editor, or mention your earlier
meeting, should you want to reconnect.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
The more you hang out with the
pros and behave yourself, the more you will be seen as a pro.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
We don't ask for a pub list
while chatting in the bar, folks. :-)
|
|
seigfried007
|
i think most writers (good
characer writers at least) are intraverted--we're too busy watching other
people to meet them
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Yep. It does seem to be part
of what makes someone a writer.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I figure if we were socially
well adjusted we wouldn't be doing this masochistic stuff.
|
|
ferretlover
|
How do I find these confrences?
I'm in Vegas, there should
|
|
ferretlover
|
be lots of them here.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Look in the writers magazines,
ferret, and try shawguides.com.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I think that's the website
that lists conference.
|
|
ducky
|
I can't recommend conferences
highly enough - I learned more in three days than I had in years. I'm
planning on going to at least two in the next year and I can't rave enough.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
They're very useful.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Nearly all offer excellent
panels on all aspects of writing and publishing...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and you can meet authors and
editors and even agents at some.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And many have writers
workshops where you can submit a ms and have it critiqued by one or more
pros.
|
|
kungfumama
|
HA HA ! I must be REALLY
maladujusted --- I like to write AND do martial arts. Go figure !!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Gives you GREAT expertise
should you use it in your fiction, kung.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And MANY writers are also into
martial arts...dunno why, but is true.
|
|
ducky
|
I did that and boy-oh-boy did I
learn a lot! It changed the way I write ENTIRELY. (submitted ms at
conference)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Good for you, ducky.
|
|
geezer
|
For Texasrose: Do many LR grads
pursue careers in copywriting?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Dunno, texas...none of my
students have, as far as I know.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Realize writing copy is pretty
non creative...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
you are just coming up with
strong prose for ads, etc.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I don't know many writers that
use it as a day job...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
it may draw from the same
well.
|
|
telcontar
|
gives us a chance to let out our
frustration??
|
|
seigfried007
|
maybe because most writers are
maladjusted nerds?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I think both, you all. :-)
|
|
kungfumama
|
I seem to recall that a Writer's
conference is happening soon in Wisconsin. Ring a bell with anyone?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Madison, kung.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I'll be there.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
World Fantasy con, one of the
best of the SF/fantasy cons.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Nov 1 weekend.
|
|
ducky
|
try that again.... Ever notice
how ofent "brilliant writer" translates to "crazy as a
loon". does in my case! LOL
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Goodness, ducky, what sane
person would choose this as a career????
|
|
kungfumama
|
Cool! I'll have to jot that one
on my Calendar.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Realize that con has a limited
membership. When it is reached, the con is closed and no more memberships
are available.
|
|
bengalrose
|
Masochistic, maladjusted
nerds...ha! Sounds like my kind of croud!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
There you go. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Realistically, people who
write do tend to be those who watch what goes on rather than participating.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
That's where characterization
comes from...paying attention to others.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me, Mary Rosenblum, LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. If you're
new here, remember that you need to click on the 'Ask a Question' button or
the 'word bubble' next to the red question mark at the top of the screen,
or use the ask a question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular
'send' bar won't reach me! You can also type /ask in front of your question
to reach me
|
|
kungfumama
|
I prefer closet nonconformist,
myself ;-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
What you find, when you get to
know other authors, is that most are nonconformists...if we weren't, we'd
be successful plumbers. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And make MUCH more money.
|
|
kungfumama
|
for diane2 (and me) from the
conference list of editors/agents, what criteria do you look for in dciding
which one to chat with at the pitch session?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Good question, kung.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You're going to spend a fair
amount of money to attend conference...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
especially if you have to pay
for travel and hotel..
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
so make it pay.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Once you buy a membership to
the conference (and I strongly recommend you buy it in advance) you'll get
information on the conference...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
including a schedule of panels
and list of participants .
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Go through the pro participants.
Find out what publishing houses are represented and go see what they are
publishing.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Does your book seem to fit
their lineup?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If magazines will be
represented, does this magazine seem like a good market?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If so, plan on meeting those
editors.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Find out which panels they'll
be on and attend them.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Look over the schedule and
decide what panels you want to attend.
|
|
kungfumama
|
is it best to have some clips
under your belt before approaching these people?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
No. Not at all.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
We all started in the same
place, kung, and nearly all of us remember it.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me, Mary Rosenblum, LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. If you're
new here, remember that you need to click on the 'Ask a Question' button or
the 'word bubble' next to the red question mark at the top of the screen,
or use the ask a question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular
'send' bar won't reach me! You can also type /ask in front of your question
to reach me
|
|
loti
|
What is your opinion of direct
mail orders as a means of selling your book?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Depends on how much you want
to sell, loti, and how much you can spend on advertising.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If selling 50 books is just
great, you can probably do a website and sell that many...may take you a
year or two.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Maybe much less if your book
'proliferates' on the internet...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
ie...people tell their friends
how great it is and they tell THEIR friends...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
but you can't control that. It
has to happen on its own.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
BUT...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
if you need to sell, say,
25,000 copies...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
you'll have to spend money to
get reader attention.
|
|
loti
|
I plan on writing several self
help or how to books for on the website and sell direct mail order
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Again, depends entirely on how
much you need to sell to at least break even...or if that even matters to
you.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It's all about numbers.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If all you want is to see your
book with a cover...go iUniverse.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If you want to make a living
at it, that's probably not going to work for you unless you are VERY lucky.
|
|
loti
|
It would as this is the primary
money maker for me right now.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Sigh. Don't quit your day job,
loti.
|
|
geezer
|
How many books do you have to
sell for it to be considered a success?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Depends on your publisher.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
For a big traditional NY
publisher, you need to sell about 50,000 copies to be a 'hot seller'...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and at least 25,000 to have a
'success'.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
For a small press like
Poisoned Pen or Fairwood, 5000 copies is hot seller.
|
|
ducky
|
would it be true to say the
bigger the house, the higher the numbers have to be?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Yes, but also, the bigger the
house, the greater the distribution.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
My mysteries sold around
30,000 each.
|
|
geezer
|
Gee, I don't have 25,000
relatives.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Yeah, that IS a problem, LOL.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And that's what new writers
really don't understand.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
JUST getting a book published,
which it is a big success in its own right...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
does not at all mean financial
success...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and this is why the advance on
most first novels is shall we say...abysmal.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It CAN be large, but not
often, and that can mess up your career, if your numbers don't earn out
that HUGE advance.
|
|
kungfumama
|
do the bigger houses ever buy
'hot' books from the smaller houses ?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
No.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Nearly never.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me, Mary Rosenblum, LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. If you're
new here, remember that you need to click on the 'Ask a Question' button or
the 'word bubble' next to the red question mark at the top of the screen,
or use the ask a question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular
'send' bar won't reach me! You can also type /ask in front of your question
to reach me
|
|
janecj333
|
what is your opinion of
submitting work to online contests (e-magazines)? a good career idea or not
really?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Depends, janec.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Many 'agent only' publishers
run 'contests' for novels or book length work.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Publication is part of the
'prize' and essentially, this is a back door for unagented work.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
BUT...many short fiction
contests offer a cash prize only.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Remember if that contest
publishes the winners...even on a website...you have lost your first rights
and cannot sell them.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And contests are judged by
people who tend to pick what they LIKE rather than what is really good.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If you get only money for
winning, go for it.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If you get publication in a
good magazine or your book will be published by a reputable legitimate
publisher (and check THAT OUT)...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
then go for it.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
But realize that story that
did NOT win, might well sell to the first editor you send it to, so don't
think it's a bad story if it does not win.
|
|
wingedwarrior24
|
is the 40,000+ word rule apply
to YA?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You have to read the guidelines
put out by the publisher to know what the word lengths are, winged.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Forty thousand is SFWA's
definition of 'novel' and is pretty standard...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
but every publisher has their
own length requirements for novels.
|
|
janecj333
|
what motive could 'agent only'
publishers have in offering occasional opportunities (contests) for
unagented writers to have their work considered?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Agents are hard to get, many
new writers get discouraged or find it takes them years to get an agent...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and the publisher doesn't want
to miss the next 'Harry Potter'. It's totally self interest. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Publishing is ALWAYS about
self interest on the part of the publisher. Never forget that, or that your
editor works for the publisher.
|
|
ducky
|
Do you know of an example of a
publisher who does this contest thing to find "fresh meat" so to
speak? LOL
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Tons.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Pick up a copy of any writers
market list and start reading the contest section.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Look for book publishers that
publish the winner.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Not every publisher does it,
but many do.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And...be careful.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
There are some very regular
scams that offer a contest with publication as the prize...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and then start charging 'fees'
for the publishing process.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Those are scams where the fake
publisher simply makes money from the author and the book sells very few
copies.
|
|
speckledorf
|
St. Martin's Press does two
types of contests each year for ms. They are mystery publishers.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Yes, and there are many
others, including YA.
|
|
kungfumama
|
Pays to read the fine print, eh?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Google any publisher or agent.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If that person has a bad track
record, it will show up.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Go to www.sfwa.org and hit the
'writers beware' page...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
or go to preditors and
editors...a site that rates publishers and agents good and bad.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
preditors and editors
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
There's the link, even if I
can't spell predators, sigh.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I do want to get back to what
Loti asked...about making a living selling books from a website.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
The problem here is this: How
do your readers find you?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I have a lot of interests, but
I do not spend hours combing the internet every day, hoping to find a new
book that serves one of my interests.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Unless I stumble over an ad or
someone tells me where to get the book, I'll never know about it.
|
|
ducky
|
From what I've been observing,
I'm almost thinking that anything I publish on the web is a
"throwaway" - something I don't plan on making money with. Input?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
At the moment yes, you
probably won't make money on it, but it can be very valuable...it's PR.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I have a story up on
amazon.com's new 'amazon shorts' store...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and at the grand cost of .49
cents...of which I think I get about 22 cents, I aint' gonna get much
money!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
But it lets new readers try
what I write....then maybe they'll buy my books later.
|
|
ducky
|
So writing some stories and such
strictly for PR on a website isn't a bad thing, then?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
As long as you realize you
cannot sell first rights on those stories, ever.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Me, I'd do my best to sell 'em
first and only THEN post 'em.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
AND...don't post a lot of
them. Finished stories are inventory.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Yeah, you might not find a
market today. But how long will you live?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
That market might exist in a
year, a month, five years, ten.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
And then you have the story
ready.
|
|
tory
|
Mary, how did you get a story on
the Amazon site? Can we try for that or is it invitation only?...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I was invited, tory, but I
think they're going to expand it so that if you have a book for sale...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
on amazon.com, you can post a
short work, too.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
But I think this is really
their beta test right now...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I think they want to see what
the traffic is like first.
|
|
janecj333
|
do you have any knowledge of a
Lou Aronica, a supposed 'book doctor/independent editor' who phones
recommendations to publishers for a hefty 'editing' fee? this practice
sounds like buying a publishing contract, and a disreputable practice
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I do know Lou, have met him
personally several times.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
He was an editor in the sf
field.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I wouldn't do it. If you have
a book Lou can sell, YOU can sell it and save yourself the money.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You don't even have to have an
agent to submit in the Sf/fantasy universe.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
He's simply acting as an agent
but charging you up front instead of taking a share of the purchase price.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
No editor will buy a book JUST
because Lou says to, don't worry. :-)_
|
|
lore alley
|
I'm feeling a bit discouraged.
I'm starting to look past what I'm writing to the market(s) I'm writing for
and I have no clue what market fits or if it will even fit any market at
all! And I don't know where to start finding out. Help?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Well, start by writing the
book jacket blurb for your book, lore.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
That will tell you what your
book is about.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
One paragraph.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If you STILL can't figure it
out, head for the bookstore and start reading blurbs.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If they sound sort of
familiar, look to see who published that book...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and keep a list. Pretty soon,
you'll notice that a couple or three names show up over and over again...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and that's the place you
should start.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the BEST way to
research publishers before you submit.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Who is publishing books like
yours?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Forget the writers market
lists...START with the bookstore and only then go to the lists.
|
|
seigfried007
|
but what abut behemoths? how do
you sum up something that complicated in a blurb?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Practice makes perfect.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If your behemoth is so complex
that even YOU the writer can't figure out what matters...what about your
poor readers?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is an exercise I give my
writing students at workshops.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It's a great way for you to
define the central core of your huge novel.
|
|
bengalrose
|
Mary, I have about 35,000 words
written in my Fantasy novel and think I have about 30 - 40,000 more to do
before the story is done. Is this too long for the genre?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Not at all, bengal.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
For most SF/fantasy houses you
can go to about 100,000.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Generally, they want at least
70,000
|
|
lore alley
|
I THINK I'm mainstream fiction
but Im not sure how to even find that out! There's no section in any of my
bookstores for mainstream. All fiction is clumped together. That's a lot to
read!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Better get to work then. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Nobody said writing is easy.
Or marketing.
|
|
kungfumama
|
wouldn't you start by distilling
it down to the climatic moments in your storyline?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
That's a good way to start...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
and then narrow that down.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Which climaxes MATTER to the
story? What is your story really about?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I make workshop students
answer THAT question in ONE sentence. I'm mean.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
But the big problem for new
novelists is keeping the core of their story in focus...if they even know
what that core IS.
|
|
kungfumama
|
I can appreciate mean ;-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
-)
|
|
seigfried007
|
the core--sure, but the central
complications (other than teh strife between species) doesn't even come
into play for like a hundred pages....
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Well, one thing that doing a
brief blurb can do for you, seig, is to reveal structural problems...
|
|
ducky
|
I find it easier to summarize my
larger work by taking a 40,000-foot view. For example: "Two people
fall in love because of some ghosts who aren't really ghosts,and it's all
tied in with the Mayan calendar..." This is the long description. The
blurb on the cover says, "Are ghosts really what we think they are?
What if they aren't?"
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
That's a good blurb, but get
aht Mayan connection in there, ducky...that'll hook a lot of readers.
|
|
lore alley
|
thanks Mary! :-) I don't mind
work! I just thought I was doing something wrong!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Writing is a LOT of work. You
don't realize it until you start writing seriously.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Believe me, writing
professionally is a long way from sitting down in your bathrobe for a
couple of hours and knocking out a best seller. HA!
|
|
seigfried007
|
i guess i feel like i would be
ruining the story if i wrote those parts into a blurb...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Well, seig, stories are not
fragile. They take a lot of hammering, twisting, tweaking, polishing...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
hacking, sawing, hammering
some more...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Write the blurb AFTER you have
done your first draft...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
but then write it, think about
your story for awhile, and get out the tools...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
because you're gonna be doing
a LOT of changing.
|
|
ducky
|
Boy have I learned about the
"lot of work" issue on writing! if I ever wanna work at this, I'm
going to have to trade off a lot of hobbies!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
ohmygosh, shall I give you the
short list? LOL.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
You'll drop a LOT of stuff,
believe me.
|
|
kungfumama
|
You have time for hobbies ?!?!?!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Not me. But then, my 'hobbies'
are my life. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I made a conscious choice many
years ago that I was going to do what I loved for my day job, by golly.
|
|
seigfried007
|
my hobbies are related to
writing--like my artwork
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
good for you, seig.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Writing DOES take up a lot of
time/effort. I put in a LOT of work on the next novel at the con...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
not at the keyboard, but
brainstorming some stuff I needed to work out...the people I needed to
brainstorm with were at the con.
|
|
lore alley
|
so I should seriously just start
reading all the book blurbs at the bookstore for marketing ideas? that
seems too easy, and yet hard, all at the same time! LOL
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
yes
|
|
ashton
|
Morning, Mary...If you'd have to
render a guess...what was the highest number of drafts you've ever written
for a paticular story before you got to the polishing stage and were
satisfied?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Wow, ashton, it really has
varied a lot.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It was many more when I first
started...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I'm much better at working the
bugs out of a story BEFORE I start typing now.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
But I know how to do what I do
a lot better now than I did ten years ago. :-)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
But I do at least three drafts
of every piece....short or long...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
before it goes off to an
editor.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
1: Rough draft
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
2: second draft.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
[send work to my readers]
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
3: polishing draft,
incorporating reader changes.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Now if I make a big structural
change, I'll hvae four drafts since I'll do the polishing draft...
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
after I make the big changes.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
If I'm just fixing nits the
readers picked, I'll polish at the same time.
|
|
janecj333
|
I've written a sf story where an
idea/ideal is the protagonist, and the main character the antagonist. Any
thoughts on how an editor might perceive this?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Cool idea. It merely has to
work and the editor will love it. ANYTHING that works will make an editor
happy.
|
|
lore alley
|
Would it be better for me to
just WRiTE the thing, THEN worry about what market it fits? (Maybe I'm
getting too caught up in the marketing thing. I haven't even finished the
story yet!)
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Oohmygosh yes!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Lore write the story that
moves YOU and THEN figure out where to sell it.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
It is very rare that an
inexperienced writer can write for a market successfully.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Write what MOVES you.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Write what you LOVE.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Write with all the passion you
can muster.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Market later.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Okay...got to unpack now. Got
home late last night and went to bed.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
I'll see you all in the AM for
our casual chat!
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
Thanks for coming and I'll
post this in Writing Craft: Forum Transcripts.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
bye all!
|