It feels like Friday around here! Today was our Thanksgiving celebration in school. The elementary did a great job putting together a program to show their thankfulness. The middle school and high school had the opportunity to do some thought-provoking activities based on how to demonstrate gratitude. Some of them showed that they know how to be appreciative. The school also puts together a Thanksgiving feast for family and friends who come to the program. It was awesome! The high school students did a great job setting up and taking down everything. Now I get to head out to the grocery store for last minute supplies. Tomorrow we'll bake the pecan pies and probably more pumpkin bread. I'm considering a pumpkin cheesecake. Maybe. More thoughts later!
Can you hear it playing in the background? One query letter submitted via email! This particular agency simply wants a letter by email. Then if they are interested, they will ask to see more. If not, silence. So now I'm off to the next agency to meet their requirements for submission. By the way, I am going to start posting book reviews. Since I read so many books, I'd like to share them with you. I will also start posting interviews with authors as I have the opportunity to connect with them. Watch for news about authors such as Rachel Hauck and more.
Okay, I've finished reworking chapters 2 and 3, but I'm stuck on 4. I've tried a new method by taking each chapter out of the original work and putting it in a document by itself. This helps me focus on just that chapter and its quirks rather than trying to fix the whole thing at once. Then when I finish editing, I paste it back into the original document. So far this method has helped. Any writers out there have any suggestions that help when you edit a finished work? I'm open to new methods. I'd also like to hear any comments you may have about the first chapter of my work I've posted here.
I am tweaking my book to prepare to send it to literary agents this week. I have four in mind. Each of them has different requirements, so it's a lot like writing four different resumes with all the same information. Time consuming, but not too difficult. I am looking for input. Would you take a few minutes and go to my Books in Progress/Finished page and read the posted chapter? Then come back to the blog and leave me some comments. I am only leaving the chapter posted for the next week, then I will remove it. Thanks for you help!
For several years I have been wrestling with possibly self-publishing. One of the main reasons I haven't crossed over (other than the financial one!) is that the mainline self-publishing companies have very little if anything to do with Christian publishing. Since that is my genre, I want to go with something that will help me market to the right audience.
Thomas Nelson is a MAJOR force in the publishing world. Although it is still self-publishing and not their regular publishing business, it gives me a great deal more confidence knowing they have a mindset to help Christian authors. The new company WestBow Press has excellent information on their website.
I am looking forward to his new book entitled The Art of War for Writers. Bell uses some of the concepts from Sun Tzu's The Art of War to help writers. He breaks it up into three areas - reconnaissance, tactics, and strategy. Read an excerpt from his book, including a table of contents, as posted by Writer's Digest.
As a struggling writer, I know I can use all the help I can get. When it comes from a great writer and teacher such as James Scott Bell, I can't wait to get my hands on it. It will be available December 9, but you can preorder to have it shipped as soon as it is available. I ordered mine!
It has been a while, but I'm back on track again. I have started sending out queries again for Somewhere Down the Road. Now comes the hardest part - waiting. I think the most important quality to have at this point is patience. I am confident that someday, someone will love my work and want to represent it. I'm just not sure when "someday" will be!
I am also back to writing again. I find it difficult to split my brain between the way I need to think to stay in my story and the way I need to think to stay in my job. Sometimes I become frustrated that I don't have more time to write. But then I remember that, as a teacher, at least I have summer and occassional days off during the school year. I'm thankful for that!
Thank you for stopping by. I would love to hear from you. Leave a comment or send an email.
According to a poll and study taken by Reuters, the Bible has been voted the number one book in America. Although I am excited by this, I am also concerned. Too many Americans follow the tradition of having a Bible on the shelf, charting family history through the front pages of a family Bible, or presenting a religious front by having a Bible prominently displayed. But how many Americans actually read the Bible on a daily basis?It’s wonderful to say the Bible is your favorite book, but how do you prove it?Do you live the truths of its words?Does your life portray the message lovingly enfolded within its cover?
Is it enough that Americans voted it the number one book?
While researching agents and publishers for my books, I discovered two rather different but related genres – inspirational fiction and Christian fiction.I thought they were one and the same; they are not.Here is what Wikipedia describes as inspirational fiction:
“Inspirational writing includes a personal philosophy that attempts to persuade the reader to incorporate into his or her own life. The writer of a piece of inspirational writing draws upon personal experiences of his own or of others. The desired result strives to benefit the reader emotionally, physically and spiritually. . .Well-done pieces rely upon honest expression that creates an emotional impact without being preachy.”
This means that any writing which causes change in the characters or the reader – either physically or emotionally – is inspirational.
Christian fiction has a strong sense of Biblical truths.It is written by and for Christians with clear Christian themes.In other words, the motivation for change in the lives of the characters in this type of novel is based upon Biblical truths rather than morals stated plainly throughout the story.
There are many subgenres in both inspirational and Christian fiction, most notably is the romance.However, there are many others such as mystery, historical romance, suspense, western (although this generally falls under historic depending on the time period of the story), and several others.This is by no means an exhaustive list or a profound explanation, but someone asked for some information and I thought others might have the same question.
If you will check my Agent Searching page, you will find a new article regarding The Writer's Literary Agency. If you are considering looking for an agent, please be aware of these agencies. I am not saying they are not legitimate agents, but they certainly don't do things the way I've been taught they should!
Never enter into a contract without knowing fully what you are signing. I have a friend who knows several lawyers who work with literary contracts. When I have a good one (notice I said "when", not "if") they have offered to look over it for me.