Friday, June 18, 2010
Moving Day
I've moved my blog to a place where it will be easier to find, and unpacked all my old entries. Have a peek at them, and I'll see you soon.
Conventions are good for you
Rather than give you a run down of my weekend, let's talk people, starting with David Pomerico of Del Rey Spectra.
He gave a panel on the state of the publishing industry, what was in demand, what they looked for in new authors, etc., then opened it for questions, which sparked a debate over internet platforms. David maintained that a wannabe writer should have an internet presence, and that readers should be able to google their name and find them online.
This made total sense to me: as a writer, you have to promote yourself, and you have to be out there. Also, the guy works at a big time publisher and he was telling those present how to make yourself more attractive to publishers.
However, a few people in attendance took up issue with this. They didn't want to have to go through all the time and effort to build a platform. At one point, a woman asked what they (the publishers) wanted: the authors to be writing or blogging?
David handled the heat very well, answering their questions while explaining himself, and man, did I want to chime in, but I didn't want to add fuel to the fire or start a discussion. I was there to be a sponge, not argue. But what I wanted to say was:
BOTH.
They want you to write and be out there, promoting yourself. They want to know you have the tools to get your book out there, and that you want to connect with readers. They want to know you want to be part of the process.
Hell, I want that too. I want people reading my books, its why I want to be published. Second to that is the idea of making money doing it, and as a newcomer, let's face it: I'm not going to be there for a while, if ever.
I can't write for eight hours a day (unless I am on tear) anyway. After 2,000 (or around 6,000 on second drafts) I start to slow down a bit. That usually runs around three to four hours. Blogging and website stuff is a cooldown while I make notes and chart the path for tomorrow.
In the end, to quote Stephen King quoting someone else: The Book is the Boss.
If you have a good book, that has some sort of audience, you'll get published. I really do believe that.
But if you want people to read it, you should do everything you can to make it happen, up to and including shoving the book in their hands.
Back to David Pomerico. I spoke with David several times during the weekend and was encouraged by him. He knows his stuff and he loves books. That's what you want in an editor. He offered to talk about my book more than once, and genuinely wanted to help writers. He's got a good feel for stories, and improved my first few pages dramatically with a few comments.
It's important to remember that editors aren't the enemy. They love books and they want to read and work on good ones.
P.S. On getting home, I immediately learned how to submit my site to search engines. The process takes around two minutes to do and six weeks to take effect
He gave a panel on the state of the publishing industry, what was in demand, what they looked for in new authors, etc., then opened it for questions, which sparked a debate over internet platforms. David maintained that a wannabe writer should have an internet presence, and that readers should be able to google their name and find them online.
This made total sense to me: as a writer, you have to promote yourself, and you have to be out there. Also, the guy works at a big time publisher and he was telling those present how to make yourself more attractive to publishers.
However, a few people in attendance took up issue with this. They didn't want to have to go through all the time and effort to build a platform. At one point, a woman asked what they (the publishers) wanted: the authors to be writing or blogging?
David handled the heat very well, answering their questions while explaining himself, and man, did I want to chime in, but I didn't want to add fuel to the fire or start a discussion. I was there to be a sponge, not argue. But what I wanted to say was:
BOTH.
They want you to write and be out there, promoting yourself. They want to know you have the tools to get your book out there, and that you want to connect with readers. They want to know you want to be part of the process.
Hell, I want that too. I want people reading my books, its why I want to be published. Second to that is the idea of making money doing it, and as a newcomer, let's face it: I'm not going to be there for a while, if ever.
I can't write for eight hours a day (unless I am on tear) anyway. After 2,000 (or around 6,000 on second drafts) I start to slow down a bit. That usually runs around three to four hours. Blogging and website stuff is a cooldown while I make notes and chart the path for tomorrow.
In the end, to quote Stephen King quoting someone else: The Book is the Boss.
If you have a good book, that has some sort of audience, you'll get published. I really do believe that.
But if you want people to read it, you should do everything you can to make it happen, up to and including shoving the book in their hands.
Back to David Pomerico. I spoke with David several times during the weekend and was encouraged by him. He knows his stuff and he loves books. That's what you want in an editor. He offered to talk about my book more than once, and genuinely wanted to help writers. He's got a good feel for stories, and improved my first few pages dramatically with a few comments.
It's important to remember that editors aren't the enemy. They love books and they want to read and work on good ones.
P.S. On getting home, I immediately learned how to submit my site to search engines. The process takes around two minutes to do and six weeks to take effect
Conventions
Let's get right into it.
I finished the first book, and had no idea how to go forward. My query letter and synopsis weren't good and I knew it. I also had no writing mentor, group, etc. So I decided to go to a conference. I chose Pennwriter's based on which editors/agents were going to be there, and I was not disappointed. In the meantime I worked on other projects (secret for now, sorry) and went through A Monstrous War sentence by sentence.
I learned a lot and finally got some pages in the right hands.
I want to keep things shorter, in order to update more often, so next time a little about David Pomerico of Del Rey Spectra, who in about 10 minutes vastly improved my first few pages.
I finished the first book, and had no idea how to go forward. My query letter and synopsis weren't good and I knew it. I also had no writing mentor, group, etc. So I decided to go to a conference. I chose Pennwriter's based on which editors/agents were going to be there, and I was not disappointed. In the meantime I worked on other projects (secret for now, sorry) and went through A Monstrous War sentence by sentence.
I learned a lot and finally got some pages in the right hands.
I want to keep things shorter, in order to update more often, so next time a little about David Pomerico of Del Rey Spectra, who in about 10 minutes vastly improved my first few pages.
Everything ! (But the Book)
So, I have begun looking for an agent. Getting published is an exhausting process, designed to weed out the serious wannabees from the sorta wannabees. A lot goes into selling a book (and yourself). Besides the actual complete and worth-it novel, you need to write a query letter, a synopsis, and a chapter by chapter synopsis.
Each takes time and practice to craft.
First there is a query letter. It contains some specifics about the book (genre, number of words), and then a few catchy paragraphs - what you'd read on the back of a book. This is the writing equivalent to approaching a girl at a bar. You don't have much time to get her interested, and saying the wrong thing means instant rejection.
Then comes the synopsis. A synopsis is an ugly, cliff's notes version of a book. I've just written a 400+ page novel, and now I have to condense it into one page and still make it sound interesting. In one page, I have to describe thecharacters, their story arcs, the plot, and the ending in such a wayit makes a person want to read it. This was not easy. Every word matters. I stared atsentences over and over again, shifting and replacing words andreading them out loud to see how they sounded.
Its tough, because my style involves using foreshadowing and mystery, and I stress character development. These things take time to unfold. For any of the work to have gravity, you have to go on the journey.*
Next is a chapter-by-chapter synopsis. You get one paragraph for each chapter. Ever try to explain an awesome movie to someone? You know that awkward moment that happens while you're explaining it and getting a blank stare back? Then you realize you're ruining it, maybe making the person not want to see it now, which is the opposite of what you wanted? Yeah, that's how a chapter-by-chapter synopsis is.
And if you screw any of the above up, the agent or publisher will reject you without ever actually reading the book. Now, this is not their fault, they get dozen of these every day, they can't read every wannabee's book. It's just frustrating knowing you have a great book but not being able to get the right people to read it.
Query letter, synopsis, chapter-by-chapter synopsis. And we're still not done. Next is the research. Now you have to look into agents. This is the person who is your advocate. As a writer, they represent you and sell your book to the publishers. It has to be someone you think would be a good fit for you and your work, as well as someone you think can sell your book. And they actually have to be looking for new, unproven authors. Then you have to tailor the above materials to that agent's sensibilities - whatever you think those may be.
In the process of becoming a published author, writing the book has been the easiest part.
* Where that asterisk is, that's one page, the length of a synopsis.
Each takes time and practice to craft.
First there is a query letter. It contains some specifics about the book (genre, number of words), and then a few catchy paragraphs - what you'd read on the back of a book. This is the writing equivalent to approaching a girl at a bar. You don't have much time to get her interested, and saying the wrong thing means instant rejection.
Then comes the synopsis. A synopsis is an ugly, cliff's notes version of a book. I've just written a 400+ page novel, and now I have to condense it into one page and still make it sound interesting. In one page, I have to describe thecharacters, their story arcs, the plot, and the ending in such a wayit makes a person want to read it. This was not easy. Every word matters. I stared atsentences over and over again, shifting and replacing words andreading them out loud to see how they sounded.
Its tough, because my style involves using foreshadowing and mystery, and I stress character development. These things take time to unfold. For any of the work to have gravity, you have to go on the journey.*
Next is a chapter-by-chapter synopsis. You get one paragraph for each chapter. Ever try to explain an awesome movie to someone? You know that awkward moment that happens while you're explaining it and getting a blank stare back? Then you realize you're ruining it, maybe making the person not want to see it now, which is the opposite of what you wanted? Yeah, that's how a chapter-by-chapter synopsis is.
And if you screw any of the above up, the agent or publisher will reject you without ever actually reading the book. Now, this is not their fault, they get dozen of these every day, they can't read every wannabee's book. It's just frustrating knowing you have a great book but not being able to get the right people to read it.
Query letter, synopsis, chapter-by-chapter synopsis. And we're still not done. Next is the research. Now you have to look into agents. This is the person who is your advocate. As a writer, they represent you and sell your book to the publishers. It has to be someone you think would be a good fit for you and your work, as well as someone you think can sell your book. And they actually have to be looking for new, unproven authors. Then you have to tailor the above materials to that agent's sensibilities - whatever you think those may be.
In the process of becoming a published author, writing the book has been the easiest part.
* Where that asterisk is, that's one page, the length of a synopsis.
Using a Framework
So, people wonder how you manage to write a book-length story. Perhaps they've given it a try themselves, and when they're done, they have around fifty pages. What's the trick to having enough material? How do you know what comes next? How to you prevent the ending from coming too soon?
Well, there is no trick, but having a framework helps. By that, I mean a structure to help you get from point A to point B to point C and so on. A lot of stories move through time (spending a year in a new place) or through space(traveling cross-country), giving the author a base to plan the story around. Let's find some popular examples.
Harry Potter and the School Year
J.K. Rowling uses the school year calendar to frame Harry Potter. She goes from the first day of school to Halloween to Christmas (dodging Easter—she handles religion well in those books by never addressing it) to final exams. She fills it in with a sports season. This gave a young author a nice structure to fit her story into.
As a side note, she necessarily abandons it in the last book, and as a result people thought the book meandered a bit. The pace of it seemed off. Rowling stated she's most proud of that last book, and I understand why. It must have been a challenge to abandon the structure she'd used for her first six books.
J.R.R. Tolkien, Map Master Supreme
Now Tolkien was different. He had a whole world ready to draw upon. This is pure conjecture, but I suspect he simply traced the path his characters would take and that dictated what they would encounter. A lot of his chapters encapsulate a location. There is a chapter for the Prancing Pony Inn, Helm's Deep, etc.
It's also an excellent way to show off your settings, giving the reader a tour of your world. I admit, I use this one a bit. It's really helpful having a fully designed world at my fingertips. Having to build it as I wrote would have been daunting.
Ender's Game: the Repeating Framework
Ender goes to Battleschool; he's new and has to prove himself. He does and earns respect. Ender becomes a commander; he's new and has to prove himself. He does and earns respect. Ender is sent to command school. Everything is new, and he has to prove himself. He does and...
The framework here is introducing the character into a new environment, having him master it, and then going on to another new environment.
A Series of Unfortunate Events, a Series of Settings
The kids go to a new area and they meet their new guardian. Count Olaf shows up in disguise and causes problems, forcing the kids to move on a robbing them of any allies. I've only read the first three of these, so don't come after me if it eventually changed.
---
These works have a few things in common:
- They are all early works by new authors. I think each found a framework that helped them chart apath and fill out their stories.
- They are all great books. Having a framework doesn't mean a book will be bad. It's just a structure for the story and characters.
T.V. shows follow the same frame work all the time, House and Scooby Doo being prime examples. Don't ask me why Scooby Doo came to mind. Movie sequels often follow the framework of the first film, but I think that's an attempt to safely emulate the first film's success, basically giving the audience the same movie.
So my suggestion would be to choose either time or space and establish the starting and ending point. Move your characters and story through it. Knowing what comes next can help when deciding what happens next.
Well, there is no trick, but having a framework helps. By that, I mean a structure to help you get from point A to point B to point C and so on. A lot of stories move through time (spending a year in a new place) or through space(traveling cross-country), giving the author a base to plan the story around. Let's find some popular examples.
Harry Potter and the School Year
J.K. Rowling uses the school year calendar to frame Harry Potter. She goes from the first day of school to Halloween to Christmas (dodging Easter—she handles religion well in those books by never addressing it) to final exams. She fills it in with a sports season. This gave a young author a nice structure to fit her story into.
As a side note, she necessarily abandons it in the last book, and as a result people thought the book meandered a bit. The pace of it seemed off. Rowling stated she's most proud of that last book, and I understand why. It must have been a challenge to abandon the structure she'd used for her first six books.
J.R.R. Tolkien, Map Master Supreme
Now Tolkien was different. He had a whole world ready to draw upon. This is pure conjecture, but I suspect he simply traced the path his characters would take and that dictated what they would encounter. A lot of his chapters encapsulate a location. There is a chapter for the Prancing Pony Inn, Helm's Deep, etc.
It's also an excellent way to show off your settings, giving the reader a tour of your world. I admit, I use this one a bit. It's really helpful having a fully designed world at my fingertips. Having to build it as I wrote would have been daunting.
Ender's Game: the Repeating Framework
Ender goes to Battleschool; he's new and has to prove himself. He does and earns respect. Ender becomes a commander; he's new and has to prove himself. He does and earns respect. Ender is sent to command school. Everything is new, and he has to prove himself. He does and...
The framework here is introducing the character into a new environment, having him master it, and then going on to another new environment.
A Series of Unfortunate Events, a Series of Settings
The kids go to a new area and they meet their new guardian. Count Olaf shows up in disguise and causes problems, forcing the kids to move on a robbing them of any allies. I've only read the first three of these, so don't come after me if it eventually changed.
---
These works have a few things in common:
- They are all early works by new authors. I think each found a framework that helped them chart apath and fill out their stories.
- They are all great books. Having a framework doesn't mean a book will be bad. It's just a structure for the story and characters.
T.V. shows follow the same frame work all the time, House and Scooby Doo being prime examples. Don't ask me why Scooby Doo came to mind. Movie sequels often follow the framework of the first film, but I think that's an attempt to safely emulate the first film's success, basically giving the audience the same movie.
So my suggestion would be to choose either time or space and establish the starting and ending point. Move your characters and story through it. Knowing what comes next can help when deciding what happens next.
A Book Down
After 350 days, my first novel is in the can. The first draft took eight weeks of intense writing. I realize now that was the easy part. Its there-writes that are the real grind, going through line by line, taking out what doesn't need to be there and cleaning it up. Each re-write took as long as the first draft, and you have to sit the draft and let it cool down in your mind. That time is essential. I didn't realize how important it was to get distance from the book.
My last draft was my forth draft, and I was still finding errors and plain bad writing. And I had two good proof readers besides myself going through it. In the end, I read the whole thing, one sentence at a time, out loud, and that helped a lot.
I'm excited to get back to the first draft of the second one. I miss drafting. I used to think of it as"real writing", but really its creating. Its all real writing, but that first draft is the funnest part.
I'm back to chronicling my day to day writing, as well as doing my best to give everyone an honest look at the submission process for a first time writer, which is bound to be brutal.
There are two roads: straight to a publisher and trying to get an agent. I plan to submit to one publisher at a time while shopping agents. For those of you who don't know, its a rejection filled process. Writers tend to have fragile egos, and the rejection tends to make people quit trying.
In the end, its about belief. I have to believe that the book is good and not give up. This is the sort of thing that no one can do for you - you have to find it in yourself. Its not anyone else's dream, its yours.
Polishing
Yes, I know. But I'm back now. Don't be mad, baby.
So, I've been polishing A Monstrous War. Its shiny.
What comes next is querying and submitting samples. I am not going to lie, I'm scared. I guess this is where a lot of new authors wash out. They have the product but are afraid of the rejection.
I'm feeling that.
There are a lot of excuses. Its a bad time in the market. Its a worse time for traditional fantasy. Saturn is obscuring Uranus, etc.
But the truth is I'm just plain scared. I know I have a good book. Now I have to get the right people to look at it.
So, I've been polishing A Monstrous War. Its shiny.
What comes next is querying and submitting samples. I am not going to lie, I'm scared. I guess this is where a lot of new authors wash out. They have the product but are afraid of the rejection.
I'm feeling that.
There are a lot of excuses. Its a bad time in the market. Its a worse time for traditional fantasy. Saturn is obscuring Uranus, etc.
But the truth is I'm just plain scared. I know I have a good book. Now I have to get the right people to look at it.
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