Take a look at the following words:
doomed
shattered
unforgettable
coldly
devastating
attraction
ferocious
overwhelming pleasure
peril
mistrust
desire
incipient hope
painful
new
What do you notice about there words? Most are adjectives. Some are nouns. One is an adverb.
Okay, go deeper--what do you feel about these words? Does reading down the list make your heart beat a little faster? Does it cause you to imagine something, well--exciting? Does it make you wonder how all these words fit together?
Is this the kind of book you'd like to be reading right now?
Romance writers--is this the kind of book you'd like to be writing right now?!
Okay, now click here for the source. It is the amazing author Sherry Thomas's query letter (on Pub Rants, literary agent Kristin Nelson's blog) for what eventually became Private Arrangements, the smashing debut that put her on the map.
I was reading through all the outstanding query letters listed on Ms. Nelson's blog, trying to figure out what makes them outstanding. And of course it's many things. But what I realized is that presenting your fabulous story idea isn't enough for a query. You have to present it emotionally. When you read the common advice, use the same tone in your query as your manuscript, this may be (at least in part) what that means.
Readers buy for the emotional experience. (After all, we're not writing textbooks, are we?) So agents are looking for that, too. It's a hard task to distill a 350-page book into a one-page query letter, and it's even harder to do it with feeling, enthusiasm, and excitement. But forgetting to convey the reasons you wrote the story in the first place is like leaving the sugar out of the sugar cookie batter. (Sorry, I had to get a holiday analogy in there somewhere :)
Happy Holidays, Everyone!
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
High Concept Tree
I have never (until now) seen a pine tree that changes colors and LOSES its needles. A deciduous pine?!!!
Even scarier, I saw it and thought, this tree is EXACTLY the kind of thing we strive for as writers of fiction. That unique twist on the usual that is so compelling it makes you immediately turn your head!
(I think I need a break)...but anyway, Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!
Even scarier, I saw it and thought, this tree is EXACTLY the kind of thing we strive for as writers of fiction. That unique twist on the usual that is so compelling it makes you immediately turn your head!
(I think I need a break)...but anyway, Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!
Friday, November 4, 2011
Want to write for Mills and Boon? Read This!
A few weeks ago I told you the Mills and Boon first chapter competition topped out at 1090 entries. Well, today they announced the winner, Natalie Charles, for her story The Seven Day Target. Check out her story here
For the rest of us who didn't final: the Mills and Boon editors selected 20 random first chapters and wrote up very short and helpful critiques on each. They are posted in four batches of five here (On the website romanceisnotdead.com, select the dropdown "News.")
This is a wonderful opportunity to read some interesting entries and understand what these editors are looking for.
Nothing like learning by example! Check it out!
For the rest of us who didn't final: the Mills and Boon editors selected 20 random first chapters and wrote up very short and helpful critiques on each. They are posted in four batches of five here (On the website romanceisnotdead.com, select the dropdown "News.")
This is a wonderful opportunity to read some interesting entries and understand what these editors are looking for.
Nothing like learning by example! Check it out!
Friday, October 21, 2011
Slaying the Dragon--Every Day
Every day, the same fear seizes me. I sit at my keyboard, hands poised, and I freeze. And that horrible, whining voice starts in.
"What if you're not clever enough?" (or funny enough, smart enough, entertaining enough, just fill in the blank) it says, mocking me.
"Do you actually think you can put words into coherent sentences? You actually think you are clever enough to tell a story?"
Every single day, I must find the will to stop this dreadful voice, the voice of my deeptest fears, and continue despite it, drown it out, override it.
It never gets easier.
Desperation, despair, hope. They all mix together as I bleed words onto each screen page. Pieces of my soul I bear for all to see.
Okay, that's a bit dramatic. But it is October, and it is Golden Heart time once again. My goal is to have my manuscript done and in querying shape by the sort-of-end of November. The Golden Heart offers the perfect excuse to do that--the first 50 pages in tiptop shape, a synopsis, and the whole manuscript on disc.
This is a marathon of willpower. Every day I grit my teeth and sit down. Every day I stay planted. It seems it will never end. There are too many pages, I will never get to the end. There is too much to do, too much to fix, too many glitches to smoothe out. And when I finally type THE END, I worry it will suck so badly I will have to write the entire thing over. Sisyphus and his rock, the eternal climb.
Being a writer means for me that I am always conquering myself. It's a constant mind workout, a battle between my strong self and my weak self. A constant buckling down, a discipline to keep going regardless of which voice, the Good One or the Bad One, is the dominant one in my head for the day.
Eventually, the story takes over, most of the time, and the voices quiet (the Haldol helps quite a lot, too--just kidding).
Did I also mention the food voices? The ones that cry, get coffee! Get cookies! Chocolate emergency NOW!!! Have to beat those down frequently, too.
Yet we endure this, day after day, because of something--something great that we occasionally partake in. A process of creation. A yearning to tell our tales, to show that flawed people can prevail regardless of what life throws at them. That love brings out the best in all of us. That forgiveness and redemption are priceless.
The messages we are meant to tell, I honestly believe, are more important than all our fears and weaknesses. And that's the sword I keep by my computer every day.
"What if you're not clever enough?" (or funny enough, smart enough, entertaining enough, just fill in the blank) it says, mocking me.
"Do you actually think you can put words into coherent sentences? You actually think you are clever enough to tell a story?"
Every single day, I must find the will to stop this dreadful voice, the voice of my deeptest fears, and continue despite it, drown it out, override it.
It never gets easier.
Desperation, despair, hope. They all mix together as I bleed words onto each screen page. Pieces of my soul I bear for all to see.
Okay, that's a bit dramatic. But it is October, and it is Golden Heart time once again. My goal is to have my manuscript done and in querying shape by the sort-of-end of November. The Golden Heart offers the perfect excuse to do that--the first 50 pages in tiptop shape, a synopsis, and the whole manuscript on disc.
This is a marathon of willpower. Every day I grit my teeth and sit down. Every day I stay planted. It seems it will never end. There are too many pages, I will never get to the end. There is too much to do, too much to fix, too many glitches to smoothe out. And when I finally type THE END, I worry it will suck so badly I will have to write the entire thing over. Sisyphus and his rock, the eternal climb.
Being a writer means for me that I am always conquering myself. It's a constant mind workout, a battle between my strong self and my weak self. A constant buckling down, a discipline to keep going regardless of which voice, the Good One or the Bad One, is the dominant one in my head for the day.
Eventually, the story takes over, most of the time, and the voices quiet (the Haldol helps quite a lot, too--just kidding).
Did I also mention the food voices? The ones that cry, get coffee! Get cookies! Chocolate emergency NOW!!! Have to beat those down frequently, too.
Yet we endure this, day after day, because of something--something great that we occasionally partake in. A process of creation. A yearning to tell our tales, to show that flawed people can prevail regardless of what life throws at them. That love brings out the best in all of us. That forgiveness and redemption are priceless.
The messages we are meant to tell, I honestly believe, are more important than all our fears and weaknesses. And that's the sword I keep by my computer every day.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Mills and Boon Competition Tops Out at Over 1,000 Entries
The Mills and Boon New Voices Competition just closed today with 1,090 entries. Wow. Read the amazing first chapters of as many as you like in six different categories at http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/Open-to-All
And of course you can check out my entry, A Bride for the Bachelor, where a workaholic New York editor and a carefree reality show star spar over a baby, at http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/1086-A-Bride-for-the-Bachelor/Chapter-One
Enjoy all the fun!
And of course you can check out my entry, A Bride for the Bachelor, where a workaholic New York editor and a carefree reality show star spar over a baby, at http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/1086-A-Bride-for-the-Bachelor/Chapter-One
Enjoy all the fun!
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Rubies Discuss GH Tips
Well, my first page was not one of the 4 finalists on the Ruby Sisters blog last week but if you haven't already, go and read the wonderfully creative ones that did final. This little contest underscored the importance of the first line and the first page of your manuscript. From now till October 13th, the Rubies are posting the first pages of their GH-winning manuscripts and offering tips about making your first page GH-worthy. Best of all they are doing it by GH category. Find all this great stuff at http://www.rubyslipperedsisterhood.com/
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Fun with the Rubies Today
Are you polishing up your manuscript for the RWA's Golden Heart contest? Pop on over to The Ruby Slippered Sisterhood today to check out the finalists in their First Line contest. The Rubies (who are the 2009 Golden Heart winners) took 100 first-line entries and voted to choose 11 favorites. Those 11 will submit the first 250 words of their manuscripts today on the blog (up till midnight tonight).
So does your manuscript begin with description? Maybe of the setting? Well, take a look at these lines and they will encourage you to look at your ms again and come up with a snappy, clever first-line hook to draw your reader in.
Oh, and BTW, I'm one of the finalists! :)
So does your manuscript begin with description? Maybe of the setting? Well, take a look at these lines and they will encourage you to look at your ms again and come up with a snappy, clever first-line hook to draw your reader in.
Oh, and BTW, I'm one of the finalists! :)
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