Welcome to a Writer’s World…
July 26, 2013
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Posted by lynnpricewrites
Writing Blooms With Fresh Air
July 23, 2013
“We go out now?”
After a rough morning of sleeping, mixing margaritas, and chasing each other around, the rescue beagles realize they need to put distance between their busy lives in order to gain some perspective. So they drop what they’re doing and insist we go outside.
Yah, I’m good with that because I normally need a break as well. Editing all day long makes for a stale Pricey. But a nice walk and a breath of fresh air puts new wind in my literary sails.
It’s the same thing when we write. We increase our BIC (Butt In Chair) index to the point where answering the call of nature is an irritant because we “in the zone.” What I see all too often is that writers type The End, and shove their babies out the door…and it isn’t ready. Before you do anything, you need to back away from your computer and get some fresh air.
Right now, you’re stale, so you can’t see the warts hiding inside your writing. If you send it out, I’ll see those warts and reject it. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard back from writers saying how embarrassed they were to have sent me their first three chapters. In the time they sent it to me and received my rejection, they’ve had a chance to get some fresh air. When they read my reasons for rejection, they hurriedly go back and review those chapters.
“GAH!!! How could I have not seen those POV switches, or the fact that my main character was in her office, and the next scene has her in Mexico?” Oh, the horror of seeing your work with fresh eyes.
Do yourself a huge favor and get some literary fresh air. Put your writing away for a couple weeks and go outside. Go to lunch with friends, take that hike you’ve been wanting to take, go visit Mom and Dad, learn a new hobby. Do something besides writing. This is the only way you can see the dust bunnies and tumbleweeds hiding among your nouns and verbs.
If I’ve been working on a tough scene, I go ahead and bang it out – and then I put it away and walk away, even though I’m convinced that I’ve just written the best writing in the world. Upon returning with a breath of fresh air, I usually discover that my writing is pure Bantha fodder. The best writing comes from being fresh and clear. Putting you focus elsewhere allows your brain to expand – and suddenly you can see your writing with new eyes. No, those rough paragraph transitions didn’t sneak in while you were sleeping. You wrote them, and didn’t see it before.
If you don’t have pesky rescue beagles reminding you to keep your literary air fresh, then write yourself a note and tape it to your forehead. Nothing good happens in a stale room. Don’t send your work out too early. You’ve worked this hard, so doesn’t it make sense to honor that hard work by sucking in some fresh air?
Do you take long breaks after writing? What do you do to get your breath of fresh air?
5 Comments | editing, publishing, writing | Tagged: editing, publishing, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Query Letter: There’s Disagreeing and There’s Being Unwise
July 22, 2013A recent email responding to my rejection:
Thank you for your comment regarding my story, but I have to disagree. I don’t think my book lacks a plot or specific message. Please let me know if I can rewrite my query and send it to you. You’ll find that if you read my work, that your conclusions are all wrong.
Um. Here’s the thing; I base my decision to ask for pages on the strength of your query letter. If your query letter lacks pertinent information, then I’ll normally say something so you may consider revising your query letter. I don’t offer critique in order to open a dialog or entertain a difference of opinion, so it does you little good to disagree with me.
It could be that your story rocks the Earth and Moon, and I’d be a simpleton not to immediately sign you. But unless you communicate that fabulosity in your query letter, I’ll be none the wiser. I understand author frustration and the desire to lash out, but rather than blaming me for the fact that you didn’t do your job in your query letter, try standing outside yourself and viewing your query letter objectively. Remember that I didn’t have the advantage of sitting next to you while you wrote your story, so I’m literally blind.
The Art of Objectivity
When authors fall into this trap of “What the heck, Pricey, why don’t you love my query?” it’s usually because they’re too close to their stories. Objectivity allows you to look at your query letter with fresh eyes and answer those pesky questions:
- Is there a clear intro to my main characters?
- What situation have they gotten themselves into?
- What choices are they facing?
- What do they stand to lose if they don’t take action?
Being too close can get you into trouble. You react defensively rather than taking a step back and allowing your cooler self to take control. This is when you publicly lash out at a bad review, or invite editors to make merry with barnyard animals if they reject you.
Of course there are times when authors have been unfairly rejected, and the editor was simply a cranky pants. But so what? You can’t argue your way back into their inbox, so why bother? Best line of defense is to avoid being like the author above.
Have there been times when you really wanted to bite back? What would you have said, and would it have been right?
6 Comments | publishing, query, writing | Tagged: publishing, query, rejection, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Feed Your Soul = Brilliant Writing
July 17, 2013I remember when I was writing my novel and how I’d write from the minute the kids split for school until the sun went down. There were times when I’d look over a scene and wondered if diseased yaks had taken over my body. Suddenly, my writing sucked stale Twinkie cream. Wha’ happened, I’d screech, I’ve lost my mojo! Oh, the pain. The agony. Then I’d hear the distant roar of my bread basket, pleading to be filled. Soon, my brain chimed in and asked me how much I enjoyed being alive.
Oh. Yeah. Writer does not live on the written word alone. We must feed the writer. And so I give you a quick and yummy meal that pleases my bread basket and my brain…
Scene-Stealing Spinach Salad
- Fresh spinach leaves (I use baby spinach)
- Gorgonzola cheese
- Sauteed apple slices (or pear)
- Pinenuts
- grilled chicken chopped up
Toss together.
Character Development Cider Vinegar
- 1 tbs. maple syru
- 2 tsp. dry mustard (I cheat and use Dijon because I’m too lazy to buy dry mustard)
- 1 tbs. red wine vinegar
- 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup canola oil
Mix together in a blender, and pour over the whole spinach salad mess.
Eat. Enjoy. Write brilliantly.
Leave a Comment » | Author recipies | Tagged: author recipies, publishing, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Another Writerly Public Service Announcement
July 17, 2013
Pass this along to all non-writers. It’s the difference between life and death. Really.
1 Comment | publishing, writing | Tagged: publishing, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Consider Killing Your Gray Hairs
July 16, 2013
I’m “of an age” where my hair color comes out of a bottle. No, not the tequila bottle…the voodoo my hairdresser concocts in the back room, where I believe they chant over bat wings and eye of newt. Such is the rage of my gray hairs.
I have lots of them. Or I imagine I do. I’m too busy killing them off like a heat-seeking missile to actually know….which leads me to “gray hair” words – those annoying little things that you tend to repeat in your writing until your readers are ready to toss your book under a garbage skow. Luckily, editors find them and kill them for you. For example, I’ve killed “that”… a “gray hair” word… in a manuscript 1200 times.
But wouldn’t it be nice to kill those “gray hair” words before you submit out? Or worse, self-publish?
We all have “gray hair” words. Mine is “really.” Go figure. It seems to be a weakness of mine, and it sneaks its bad self into my writing on a regular basis – just like my gray hair – and I have to go back and kill them. But many writers haven’t developed the ability to self-edit, and miss those “gray hair” words, so when it crosses my desk, my head spins, and I develop an eye tic.
I remember reading a book from a very well-known writer who used “palaver” and “piny woods” to frustrating excess. It was so bad that I found myself counting the abuses rather than engaging in the story. How did his editor let this pass? It’s been years since the hubs and I read that book, and we still toss in a “palaver” or “piny woods” whenever the chance arises because it’s gotten to be a bad joke between us.
It’s OK if you let your hairs go au naturale, but do take your writing to the literary hairdresser and cover up those gray hair words that litter your writing.
What is/are your gray hair word(s)?
9 Comments | publishing, writing | Tagged: publishing, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Even the Crazy Writer Needs to Eat
July 12, 2013
We all know writer’s are a few degrees off plumb – it’s what makes y’all so brilliant and dedicated. And being a few degrees off plumb means you probably spend hours behind your laptop banging out your tome, right? And you forget all about the time, right? And you ignore that growly sound emanating from your gastric region, right? And you look at the clock and realize you blew through lunch, and it’s now dinner time, and…
YOU’RE FREAKING STARVING.
Don’t do it. Don’t reach for that box of Twinkies (oh, how I anxiously await their return), or the Ritz crackers and Cheez Whiz. Think about quality and flavor. After all, you can’t run the literary marathon on a raging case of rickets. You want it fast. You want it good. And heck yes, you want it elegant.
So here it is. The perfect recipe that scratches all those itches. I stole this recipe from a chef many years ago. Well, ok, I didn’t really steal it – he gave it to me. But it’s a gem.
Chicken Princess
- Boneless chicken of your choosing – toss on the grill or panini maker
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbs. Dijon mustard
- 2 medium shallots chopped fine (you can also use onions)
Combine the wine and shallots in a saucepan and cook until almost dry.
Add heavy cream and reduce by half.
Fold in Dijon mustard and blend together
And that’s it. The magic is ready to pour over any kind of boneless chickie. This doesn’t sound like much, but the flavor bursting from this is amazing. Best of all, you’re ready to eat within minutes.
When I do this for real-live people, I serve the chickie over linguini and pour the sauce over the whole mess. Serve with a pouty white wine…I adore Chateau St. Michele chardonnay. When it’s just me, I pork out with veggies.
Now that you’re well-fed and happy, re-fill your wine glass and return to your laptop and resume writing.
6 Comments | publishing, writing | Tagged: publishing, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
The Great Procrastination Escapade: Establishing Yourself
July 11, 2013
My last blog post talked about making sure that you present a united front between you and your book – meaning that your platform and promo plan is consistent with the content of your book. It’s hard to make lemonade with a book about the joys of gardening if the author’s platform is that of a blood researcher, and his promo plan is to give talks to his co-workers at the hospital.
If that isn’t hard enough, I run into many cases where authors wait too long to establish their platform in the belief they can work on that after they secure a book deal. So instead of seeing a book proposal that says, “I have done/am doing…”, I see “I’m gonna…”
Après le Book Deal – Coming From Behind
First thing I gotta ask is, what’s holding you back? It takes a long time to establish a platform. If you wait for that book deal to get cracking, your book will be out long before you barely hit your stride. And the terrain is completely different because you’re constantly playing catch up. The book is out and needs to sell, yet you’re not known by many people, so everyone has to work a lot harder to propel your book out there.
The pressure is on, and you’re worried about making sales. It’s forced. What’s worse is that you’re may be facing a lot of rejection from those whom you’d hoped would interview you, book you for a speaking gig, accept your magazine article, or host your book signing. That’s a lot of pressure, and it’s all because you’re coming from behind.
Avant le Book Deal
#1 thing I see in query letters and book proposals: “I’m going to start a blog, get a FB page, start tweeting.”
Why haven’t you started working on establishing yourself before going for the book deal? If you planned on having a blog, then why didn’t you establish it eons ago? I know of a number of authors who got nice book deals based on the fact that their long-standing blogs were wildly popular. Editors knew these folks had a built-in target audience.
One blog that comes to mind is The Underwear Drawer. I’ve been reading Michele Au’s blog for years because I adore all things medical (and I write medical fiction). I used to look forward to her ScutMonkey comics, which were based when she was a resident. I used to scream with laughter at her unique analysis of residency and all the scut jobs doctors and nurses foisted upon her. Michele’s blog became insanely popular, so it was no surprise when she announced her book deal for THIS WON’T HURT A BIT.
I can’t help but wonder if Michelle would have been as attractive a target to her publisher had she not had a very well-established, active blog. After all, there are a ton of doctor memoirs already crowding the marketplace.
So you see that I’m gonna means nothing because It. Takes. Time. Lots and lots of time to become established.
Don’t wait for that book deal to begin establishing yourself because you’re already too late.
Thoughtful Planning
Let’s get back to my make-believe knitting friend from my previous blog post. She’s written a manuscript about how knitting is a great stress buster, so let’s consider how can she establish a platform.
Let’s say she works in a bank and decides that her fellow workmates would love to hear her talk about knitting as a great stress reliever because she knows banking is stressful. I went through college working as a teller, and it was long hours, crap pay, angry grumpy patrons…but I digress.
So she’s trying to create a target audience with her fellow workmates – possibly a tough road to hoe. But let’s say her little talk to her workmates is a rousing success because she, surprisingly enough, discovered she’s a hambone and loves talking to audiences. She’s put together a thoughtful and entertaining talk that engages both men and women…who all believed they have ten thumbs.
Let’s say she’s so successful that she ends up traveling to other bank branches after hours and teaches a rousing class that she’s titled Smokin’ Hot Knitting Needles. Let’s say word travels (as it usually does), and other groups begin asking if she’d talk to their groups. Over time, this knitter realizes she’s establishing herself among a larger populace of people. And the more talks she gives, the larger her audiences becomes, and the more groups want her to speak to their members as well, until one day, a corporation asks her to give a talk. Word spreads and other corporations want her to come speak as well. Maybe the local newspaper is intrigued and does an article on her in their Local section. And the speaking offers keep coming in.
Guess what? Now she has a platform. Now she has bragging rights that back up the premise of her book – that knitting is a stress buster. Now she has defined her audience (which is basically anyone who lives with stress) and has the ability to reach them. This is what excites editors, their sales teams, and corporate genre book buyers. This is what results in book deals and nice sales.
Don’t Rush the Process
This the one thought I wish authors would tattoo on their foreheads: You’ve worked so hard on your manuscript, doesn’t it make sense to give it and you the very best chances possible?
I realize that rushing the process normally comes from lack of knowledge about the industry, and this is why it’s so important that authors research the biz before they take their first step. The breathless gasp of “I had no idea it would be this hard,” is something I hear all the time. Believe me, it’s so much easier to book an event or interview with an author who has established their platform.
I have an acquaintance who wrote a wonderful manuscript. It’s very unique and caught my attention immediately because I could see women loving this book. But she has zero platform, so I knew that no matter how lovely her book is, it probably wouldn’t sell well because the subject matter is a bit quirky. Luckily, she’s working with a marketing/branding expert who is helping the author focus on establishing her platform, even though the manuscript is complete and ready to query out. Smart, smart, smart. Because of this specialized focus, she’ll be a much more attractive target for agents and editors, thus giving sales teams a lot more meat to work with.
Publishing isn’t a matter of “if you write it, they will come.” They won’t. You won’t even be a blip on a anyone’s radar screen. A lack of platform and thoughtful promo plan is the #1 complaint I hear from authors who self-publish. They had no idea how hard it would be, and they become defeated within a few months of their books coming out. Avoid this. If you value yourself and your writing, don’t be in a rush to get a book out to market before you’re ready to properly promote it. That is what helps get you a solid book deal and sales.
Now go out and rock the world.
Leave a Comment » | platform, promotion, publishing, writing | Tagged: platform, promotion, publishing, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Be Consistent With Your Book and Your Promo Plan
July 9, 2013
I’ve come across a number of book proposals that appear to be at odds between the book’s focus and the author’s platform and/or promotion plan, and the result is usually a rejection letter. It’s like in math, and 2 + 2 has gotta equal 4.
What do I mean by that? Let’s say your book is about knitting, and your premise is that knitting is a great therapy tool for easing tension and phobias. However, if you’re not a well-known name within the knitting community and your promo plan doesn’t include some serious contact with therapy groups, or well-attended classes where you’re teaching people to knit, then I’m going to have a harder time taking your book’s premise seriously.
Anyone can have a fabulous premise/focus/intent for their book, but the promo plan and author platform must support it. Otherwise, I’m going to have a much harder time promoting your book. Imagine if said knitter sits at home knitting toilet paper doilies or pickling eggs, who is she going to talk to? She’s not in touch with any audience, so this makes promoting her book an uphill battle.
Let’s say she works in a bank, and her idea for promotion is to give a talk to her bank mates during their lunch break. That’s also a misfire because it’s a gamble that her fellow bankers will be interested in her book. The genre buyers at bookstores would look at my sales team like they had just gulped down engine grease.
“How is she in touch with her intended readership?” they’d ask. And they’d be right.
The Misfire
Publishers promote and sell memoirs based on the author’s platform and targeted promotion plan. It’s not how many people you know, but how many people know you for your book’s topic. You could be the cop who writes true crime, or the partner of someone who had a heart attack – the clincher here is how you put your experiences to work in the public eye – and then base your platform and promo plan around it.
Take a look at your book proposal (for info on how to write one, click here). These are the #1 elements I see in a promo plan in book proposals that make me want to toss myself in front of a herd of rabid camels:
- I’m available for book signing events
- I have a Facebook page, Twitter account, and a blog
- I have public speaking experience
Let’s take ‘em one at a time.
I’m available for book signing events
This is a tepid thing to say in a book proposal. You’re available? Well, I should certainly hope so. What you should be asking yourself is how and why would a bookstore want to host your signing. Do you have the ability to draw people to your signing event? Which gets us back to your platform. How many people know you? We schedule book events for our authors, and I can tell you that bookstores aren’t as willing to host author events unless they feel confident the author will bring in paying customers.
I have a Facebook page, Twitter account, and a blog
This has never flipped up my Victoria Secrets because I have yet to see an uptick in sales because someone started a blog, FB page, or spent hours tweeting. Establishing a following takes a long time, so if you’re waiting for a book deal to start that blog, then you’re already too late.
Showing your pretty face sells books. Whether it’s on radio, TV, print, or at a live event, people get excited seeing and hearing the author. Very few authors know how to effectively utilize the magic of social media, so their efforts don’t yield a lot of result. Unless I see that your blog is wildly active with huge numbers of comments and participation, I’m not easily impressed.
Call me an idiot (not really, please), but Twitter eludes me. Every time I visit it, I see tons of tweets flying by, and I wonder if anyone is listening. Unless you happen to be in the Twitterverse at that moment, all those tweets that happened hours ago have passed you by as well. It’s like nailing Jell-O to the wall. Unless you cook with Elmer’s Glue, the experience will slide down the wall.
I have public speaking experience
This is nice, but what does that mean? I have experience filling my car up with gas, but this doesn’t make me a mechanic. What is your speaking experience, and how does it relate to your book? Do you do seminars, or warm up the gang waiting for the train with dirty jokes? Do you speak for a living, or does this equate to calling the kids in for dinner? See, I can’t use this is information because it doesn’t tell me anything. If you’re vague, then I have to wonder why.
So in the end, it’s important to be focused and deliberate with your promotion plan and establishing your platform. If you’re a soccer coach who wrote a manuscript about the joys of baking as a stress reliever, then you have some serious work to do so editors will jump on their desks and scream, “We got us a live one!!!”
The idea is to make yourself an attractive target that showcases you and your book in the best light.
3 Comments | promotion, publishing, writing | Tagged: books, promotion, publishing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
Who needs reality shows when you can read
July 8, 2013
Who needs reality shows when you can read Behler books – unbeatable, unforgettable, soul-swelling memoir.
Leave a Comment » | memoir, publishing, readership, writing, writing memoirs | Tagged: books, memoir, publishing, reading, writing | Permalink
Posted by lynnpricewrites
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