The Cat's Table - Michael Ondaatje

I don't know why, but I always look forward to the publication of a new Micahel Ondaatje book. I loved The English Patient when I first read it back in my university days, enjoyed In the Skin of a Lion almost as much. However with his more recent books (Anil's Ghost and Divisidaro), I have found myself wavering in my loyalty.

I think that I enjoyed The Cat's Table as much as his earlier books, and certainly more than his more recent books, but only time will tell if it is as memorable. I think that is what I didn't enjoy about Anil's Ghost and Divisidero - they were very forgettable. If you were to ask me know, I wouldn't be able to tell you what they were about.

The Cat's Table is different. I found both the plot line, the setting, and the characters to be engaging, and therefore, I hope, memorable. Michael (yes, the author has stated that this book has autobiographical tendencies) is an 11-year old passenger on a ship traveling from Sri Lanka to England in the 1950's. He is assigned to take his meals at the Cat's Table - the table farthest from the captain's table. The story revolves around his interactions with fellow passengers both at his table and from other tables; as well as the happenings at sea as they journey half way around the world.

In the second half of the book, there are some happenings from the time after Michael arrives in England interspersed with the story of the ocean journey. This was not intrusive, and the past and the future link together so that both story lines make more sense.

There is a bit of a mystery on board that Michael didn't understand as an 11 year old, and he is gradually able to piece together as an adult, as he encounters other people who had been on board the ship.

This book has made it to the longlist for the Giller Prize, and I am hoping that it makes it to the shortlist when it is announced next week.

Connecting with readers...

Many times I'm on a blog or a writer's webpage and am amazed that I can't easily find out how to get in touch with them. Some have forms where you can leave a message, but to be honest I'm put off by them. Why can't I just send them an email? I don't understand why authors put a barrier between themselves and others. So today I'm going to mention some tips to make sure you are easy to reach.

• You may notice a series of buttons at the top of this post. They are "quick links" to all the important places that are relevant for me: The Ridan Publishing site, a link to send me email, the "first page" of my blog, twitter, facebook, my inperson meetup group, and a link so they can sign up for my newsletter. These "button bars" ideally should show up at the top and bottom of every post you make. That way if someone is reading your post and like it and want to reach you, they are just one click away. This is something I should have been doing (even I am neglectful of good practices sometime) so you'll see them from now on.
  
  
• Contact page - Every blog should have a "contact page" If you've used up all your tabs then make your "About me" also your contact page. When someone arrives at the page then don't present them with a form, instead give them a table of ways to reach you (see my contact page for an example)
  
  
• List all your platforms. Think about all the places you interact do you have a goodreads group? Then you should add that as well. What about a forum? Better get a link for that one as well.
  
  
• Do you have a link to your contact information as a signature line when you post to someone else's blog? No? If you are out there interacting and people like what you're saying why are you making it difficult for them to find you?

HOW TO MAKE A BUTTON BAR
For those who would like to make a button bar similar to the one I'm using I'll give you a helping hand.

• Getting buttons to line up is really quite easy if you use a table. I'll show you how in a minute
  
  
• Sometimes making the graphics can be a challenge - So I'll let you use mine. If you want to make ones of your own make the "colored portion" 41 x 41 and then but a 1 pixel white border around them so that they are 43 x 43 and then all your buttons will be the same size.
  
  
• You'll need to know how to add .html code to your site or your blog. I use blogger and as I type there are two tabs "compose" that shows how the post will look and "edit html" which shows the "code" that is a combination of commands (enclosed by <> symbols) and the text.

Let's look at the code to make the button bars. NOTE: If I put the code in "exactly" then you'd see the "results rather than the code" so in the example below I'm going to use square brackets ([ ]) as a replacement for the pointy brackets (< >). If you copy/paste this code be sure to do a global search and replace first.

[p][table align="left" border="0"][tbody][tr][td][a href="mailto:robin.sullivan.dc@gmail.com" target="_blank"][img src="http://bitly.com/niWSgk" border="0" /][/a][/td][td][a href="http://bitly.com/lQljrE" target="_blank"][img src="http://bitly.com/nbG62a" border="0" /][/a][/td][td][a href="http://bitly.com/qmx8sX" target="_blank"][img src="http://bitly.com/rmHYzV" border="0" /][/a][/td][td][a href="http://on.fb.me/pfDtfW" target="_blank"][img src="http://bitly.com/nbCQSL" border="0" /][/a][/td][td][a href="http://bitly.com/nIF63x" target="_blank"][img src="http://bitly.com/nvJnGg" border="0" /][/a][/td][/tr][/tbody][/table][/p][br/][br/]

Don't worry if this looks like complete nonsense, we'll be going through it step by step.

• The first thing to realize about .html is most commands have a start and stop. The stop is designated by and the stop by . These will always appear in pairs.
  
  
• In some cases a command may have a start and stop in a single command and that is shown by

Let's look at the various commands used in this snippet.

• p - is used to denote paragraph begin/end
• table - is used to indicate the start/end of a table
• tbody - is used to indicate the body of a table
• tr - is used to denote the start/end of a table's row
• td - is used to denote the start/end of a table's cells
• a href - is used to indicate the URL of a link (the start/end shows what will be hyperlinked)
  
• img src - is used to indicate a graphic - and only one is needed
• mailto: - is used to indicate that an email should be started rather than a webpage
• br - is used to inicate a new line - and only one is needed

Note that in html codes nest, such that a table with two rows that have words one, two, and three in separate cells on the first row and four, five, and six in the second row would look something like this (but would need < replaced for [ and > replaced for >:

[table][tbody][tr][td]one[/td][td]two[/td][td]three[/td][/tr][tr][td]four[/td][td]five[/td][td]six[/td][/tr][/tbody][/table]

In our html example I'm using bitly urls (so that I can track them) but it makes it harder to understand - You can highlight any of the urls and paste them into a browser to see what they go to but I'll also explain them here:

• http://bitly.com/niWSgk - email graphic
• http://bitly.com/nbG62a - blogger graphic
• http://bitly.com/rmHYzV - twitter graphic
• http://bitly.com/nbCQSL - facebook graphic
• http://bitly.com/nvJnGg - newsletter graphic

You can use these same URL's so that you don't have to worry about posting your own images or uploading them to your blog.

What you will also need are URL's for where you want each button to go to - why you don't have to use bit.ly you should as it will track results for your.

Okay, now we can explain the code snippet

• We start out with codes to: start a paragraph [p], start a table that is left aligned and has no board [table], start the body of the table, start a row, start a cell
• Then we use an [a href] command to indicate where to send an email to - you can replace the address with your email. The target="a_blank" indicates whether a new window should be used or not. This does not always work for emails but it will for webpages.
• Then we have the email graphic, with no border [img src=]
• then we close the hyperlink [/a], then the cell [/td], then start a new cell [td]
• Then we have a link for the URL for my blog, followed by the blogger graphic, then closing the hyperlink, cell, and starting a new cell
• Then we have a link for the URL for my twitter account, followed by the twitter graphic, then closing the hyperlink, cell and starting a new cell
• Then we have a link for the URL for my facebook account, followed by the facebook graphic, then closing the hyperlink, cell and starting a new cell
• Then we have a link for the URL for to sign up for my newsletter (I'll explain how to do newsletters in the future), followed by the newsletter graphic, then closing the hyperlink, cell
  
• Finally we close the row, the table body, the table, and the pararaph
• Then we add a few blank lines so that the "text" of our post will show up below the buttons

And that's it. What I suggest is that you make this once by using notepad and save the file. Then each time you start a blog do the following:

• Switch to Edit HTML tab
• Paste your code (top of post)
  
• Skip down a line and type some text like: xxx
• Paste your code (bottom of post)
• Switch to compose mode

And there you have it. Having links right at people's finger tips makes it easy for them to get in touch with you. If you have any questions or problems be sure to let me know.

Working with an Agent

I do not have a U.S. literary agent, but I do have an agent in Turkey who approached me a few months ago. At that time, she said she had a publisher seriously interested in one of my novels, and has now offered it to multiple publishers in Turkey. She says she is close to making a deal. My question is whether there is a commission involved when the author hasn't "hired" the agent, rather, the foreign agent is working on the author's behalf sort of in the background.



What concerns me most about this question, and the many similar questions I have received through the years, is the author who jumps into a deal or an agreement without asking any questions. These aren't questions you should be asking me, but questions you should be asking your agent.



My answer, though, is of course there's a commission involved. The agent is not working to sell your book because she loves to sell books, it's a job for her and she will expect to get paid a percentage of the sale and royalties. Typically with foreign rights sales she will seek somewhere between 10% and 20%, depending on how many people are involved, but that's a question you'll have to ask her. And note, this is the way an agent works. She's not working in the background, she's working to sell your book as any agent would do.



Jessica

Branding #4...taglines

Today I'd like to talk about taglines. A tagline is used to provide a very quick, snappy summation of your books or series. The secret to a tagline is making it short and sweet. The shorter the better. Personally I think a tagline should never exceed 10 words and my preferred number is 4 words.

I know what you're thinking...that's not enough space to do anything. Well it is if you think about things properly. Let's look at a tagline that I recently came up with for my husband's Riyria Revelation Series. To understand the tagline let's tell you a bit about the series. Here is some marketing copy for the first book that I wrote:

They killed the king. They pinned it on two men. They chose poorly.

There's no ancient evil to defeat, no destined orphan, just two guys in the wrong place at the wrong time...Royce Melborn, a cynical thief, and ex-mercenary Hadrian Blackwater make a profitable living carrying out dangerous assignments for conspiring nobles until they become the unwitting scapegoats in a plot to murder the king. Caught, imprisoned, and sentenced to death they have only one way out. And so begins this epic tale of treachery and adventure, sword fighting and magic, myth and legend.

Okay so now I need to try and describe the books so I'll describe it with the following keywords:

• Genre: classic medieval fantasy
• Main character(s): cynical thief & mercenary
  
• Theme: Heroes rise to the occasion
  
• Writing style: Light, fast-paced, fun

The tag line I eventually came up was:

Unlikely Heroes...Classic Adventure

These 4 little words actually sum up the series quite nicely. Let me go though the thought process.

• Notice that I didn't use fantasy (even though this is the genre) the reason is because fantasy has many connotations (fantasy football, phone sex, erotica) so instead I used the words "Heroes" and "Adventure" which both conjure the concept of medieval fantasy
  
  
• I wanted to point out that the book has more than one character and that character wasn't what you usually find (kings, knights, wizards, orphans) hence "unlikely heroes".
  
  
• I wanted to position the book as "a classic" because many reviews have noted that this book reminds them of the fantasy of their youth that made them fall in love with the genre in the first place.

So how should you go about this...

• First, start listing words that describe your book - each one can't be more than 2 words.
  
• Try to determine a word or words that actually cover multiple ideas at once for instance "hero" has the notion of "good" "virtuous" "chivalrous" "winning" "strong"
  
• Don't try to make a sentence...try to have two ideas and play one against another.

One you have a tagline where do you use it?

• Any advertisement: web banner, print, goodreads, facebook, google
  
• Any swag material (bookmarks, key rings, pens, coffee mugs, tshirts)
• Emails to potential reviewers
• Book descriptions on forums
• Book descriptions when publishing your books

The best taglines sometimes take a long time to come up with. I suggest you make a few and then just let some time pass while you "noodle" each one - and one will usually bubble to the top.

Feel free to share your taglines here as you develop them for your own books.

Workshop Wednesday

We've been doing Workshop Wednesday for a few months now and so far I've been very happy with the way things are going. I wanted to take a break today from an actual critique to answer some of the questions and respond to some of the feedback we've received.



You may have noticed that we've only done, to the best of my knowledge, one nonfiction query. That's because we haven't received very many nonfiction queries for the workshop. We've had requests from readers to workshop more, but unless we're getting them we can't workshop them.



We also had a comment from a reader asking to see more critiques on queries that were "close" but not quite there. We've been receiving queries for the workshop since February. Every Wednesday we receive a few more. When choosing which queries to workshop we choose randomly. I scroll through the query folder, drop my cursor on an email and critique that query. I know that when Kim, Jessica, or Lauren critiques a query they do the same thing. In other words, what you're seeing from our query critiques is a very real example of what an agent's query inbox must look like. There are a few hits and a lot of misses for various reasons. We're not choosing queries that necessarily need more work, we're just choosing queries.



And last, I want to thank all of you who have been regularly participating and giving feedback of your own. Some of your insight has been fantastic and I've noticed that some of you have a real eye for queries and writing, a real editorial eye.



Stay tuned next week for another critique.





Jessica

LOL

Sharing with you those things that can really make us laugh.



In a query the author started by going into great detail to tell the story of Famous Bestselling Author and how she struggled to find an agent and publisher. It was only "one visionary agent" who took it on. The Author then continued, after telling me the title of her book, to say, "I expect most agents and editors will dismiss it out of hand."



So before even telling me anything about your book, you've told me I'm not a visionary and that your book won't sell. . . .



Your query tells me nothing about your book. It talks about you, your children, your life (sort of like a Christmas letter) and finishes by asking me to take a look at your writing. The clincher? You know I'm going to pass so in your P.S. you tell me that you've researched lots of sample queries, they seem odd, so you're just going to write from the heart. That's all well and good. Writing from the heart is great. I still need to know something about your book.





"I have many different ideas for books. There are 3 major reasons why I have no manuscript for you 2 look at. A. Honestly, my grammar skills suck and writing a full manuscript would be futile. B. I just don't have the time to finish one and if I was living comfortably and had a person to help me with my writing dos and donts than I could finish one pretty quickly. C. I'm too ignorant about the process and would be embarrassed to hand people my work that didn't completely encompass my vision. Anyways, what I lack as writer, I make up for it with my story telling.



"I have four kids; I am single; and I am available. . . ." Now, the author did add: "for all aspects of editing, writing, and polishing my book," but those first words were rather jarring.





Jessica

The Perfect Pitch

When I first queried editors about Bella Riley’s books I asked Bella to supply the pitch. This is something I frequently do because it helps give me a starting point for my own pitch. The one thing I say to authors when sending my request is, “Feel free to keep it rough. I’ll probably edit and change it anyway.”

Not the case for Bella Riley, and not the case with many other clients. Bella’s pitch was perfect. So perfect, in fact, that when I first queried her editor at Grand Central to ask if she’d be interested in seeing the proposal, the editor responded immediately with, “Wow. I’m not sure if I’ve been desperate for a vacation to the mountains or if you need a book deal yourself—could be both—but your pitch sounds awesome. I’d love to take a look.”

Don’t I wish it was my writing? I told her the pitch was straight from Bella herself, and it wasn’t long before we had a three-book deal.

Bella Riley is the contemporary romance pseudonym for erotic romance author Bella Andre. We like to think of these books as Bella Andre meets Susan Wiggs. Home Sweet Home is her first contemporary romance with Grand Central, and here’s the pitch that got her that deal:

After thinking she had left Emerald Lake – and the girl she had once been – behind forever, Andi Powell must return for one more summer at the lake to save her family's knitting store. She isn't prepared for Nate Turner, the boy from the wrong side of the tracks that she'd always loved from afar, to have turned into a man who takes her breath away. She isn't ready for his determined sensual plays for her body . . . and her heart. And she definitely isn't prepared to discover that the darkness he hides so well from everyone else tugs at her heart – and makes her wonder if leaving again is really the right thing to do after all.

But with the help of the Thursday Night Knitting Group, Nate's sister, Andi's mother and grandmother, and a pair of missing carousel horses, Andi just might find the love she's always deserved in the arms of the one man who has waited his entire life for her to come back and heal the hole in his heart with her love.

Jessica

Sucked into Negativity

The other day I sat down with a group of publishing professionals to talk about the state of the industry, and by the end of the hour I was a wreck. This particular group was full of doomsday predictors, something I'm not, and it got to me. It got to me really fast. And then I walked out of the meeting, went home, chatted with Kim, had a glass of wine, and centered myself again.



I will not be meeting with that particular group again.



It's really, really easy to get sucked into other people's angst. I see it all the time with authors, especially after conferences. Suddenly everyone is in a panic and it's usually incited by one or two people. If you're a negative person, I'm sorry. If you tend to think the glass is half full, keep away from those who don't.



Jessica

Britons Still Oppose Gay Marriage

National Statistics recent findings suggest 55% believe homosexual marriage is wrong and 75% think adoption by gay couples should not have been allowed nine years ago. Civil partnerships are also on the decline. Lib Dems Equality Minister recently said the UK was a world leader in gay rights however this only applies to a minority of the population. The government commissioned the survey to gage public opinion amidst pressure to align civil partnership with marriage. It would seem this would not be a popular move. Perhaps the stastitics also show that many people are willing to voice their true opinion against homosexuality when done anonomously rather than publicly through fear of being labeled 'bigotted' or 'homophobic.' Interestingly the majority of the population are free to express any opinion on just about any subject without fear of persecution or ridicule unless of course that view is against homosexuality. With the current legislation undermining holy matrimony and the obvious break down of the traditional family surely this report will be welcomed by those who are most concerned.

Guest Post: Sage advice from Julie Ann Dawson

As regular readers of this post know, I spend some time over at Kindle Board's Writer's Cafe (a great place of very knowledgeable supportive people btw). One of the people who "tells it like it is" is Julie, who like me, runs a small publishing company (Bards and Sages). She had a post the other day that I really liked so I asked her permission to guest blog it and she agreed...so here it is.

WHY YOUR SALES HAVE DROPPED

There have been a lot of threads lately about sales dropping, and many of them are pointing the finger at Amazon. It isn’t Amazon’s fault. Some of this may apply to you.

What you’ve done wrong.
You have depended too much on Amazon to find customers for you. Too many authors are 100% dependent on Amazon to do the heavy lifting. Your sales depend on Amazon algorithms in order for Amazon’s customers to find you, instead of you going out and finding your own customers.

How you can fix it.
Go find your own target market. Visit sites that cater to the type of people who would be interested in your book and start promoting there. Take advantage of services like Project Wonderful that allow you to place low-cost, highly targeted ads on sites frequented by the exact type of reader you are looking for. Use Facebook ads to build your author fan page using the demographic data they have available.

What you’ve done wrong.
You have kept all your eggs in one basket for too long. Your fixation on Amazon sales rank has led you to put all your efforts into generating sales at Amazon at the expense of other outlets. I’ve always said I would rather sell 50 books a month each on 20 different sites than sell 1,000 books on just Amazon. Spreading out your sales volume reduces your risk, so when sales slow in one location your entire business doesn’t crumble.

How you can fix it.
Get your books up on other sites. Smashwords makes it easy to get your book into wider distribution. Seek out smaller niche retailers that cater to your specific genre. Get your book available in print using a service like Createspace or directly with LSI so that you have print distribution through a variety of retailers outside on Amazon. Then people who learn about your book can shop and the stores they are comfortable with, instead of having to shop where you tell them to.

What you’ve done wrong.
99 cents doesn’t mean anything anymore. The race to the bottom has finally bottomed out. When most books were listed on Amazon at $9.99, selling a book for 99 cents seemed like a great deal to consumers who were not yet aware of the difference between indie books and traditionally published books. But with the surge in 99 cent books and the increased reader awareness that 99 cents = self-published, the only people buying 99 cent books these days are value shoppers that buy everything at 99 cents.

How you can fix it.
Raising your price may cause a temporary drop in sales, but will increase your overall profit. Particularly with genre fiction, the price has historically been between $4.99-$7.99. Pricing your book at the same level as your small press peers in the industry creates the impression that you are in the mainstream of your genre.

What you’ve done wrong.
You have spent too much time commiserating with other writers and not enough time looking for readers. Your blog, website, and sales pitches are all geared toward “indie writers” and use jargon the average reader doesn’t know about or care about. You spend too much time promoting “indie books” and not enough time selling YOUR books to readers, readers who could care less whether or not a book is indie or trad.

How you can fix it.
Take DOWN the bright neon sign that screams “self-published author” and just be an “author.” Readers don’t care or have any desire to actively support self-publishers. They just want good books. Your fixation on being indie means that the only people who will find your books are people who actively search for indies, which are usually other indies looking for places to promote. Rewire your presentation to think about what is going to interest the average readers without shoving in their faces your self-published status.

What you’ve done wrong.
You have spent too much time blaming “the industry” for your problems. It is Amazon’s fault your sales have slipped. The trads are up to no good. Nobody will give you a chance. Yada yada yada. While you may not realize it, your daily, public whining is seem by casual readers, who are put off by it.

How you can fix it.
There is an old saying in sales that goes “Fake it until you make it.” That doesn’t mean to lie. What it means is to stop placing blame and engaging in public baiting and start focusing on the positive in your business. Customers want to buy from people they believe are successful. The appearance of success gives a certain confidence to consumers that you know what you are doing and are producing quality books. Stop referring to yourself as an “unknown author,” which simply reinforces the idea that you are nobody important. Stop referring to people in the traditional industry as “the enemy” and refer to them as “peers.”

What you’ve done wrong.
Stop thinking “Outside the box” and look what is actually in the box first. You jump around from marketing gimmick to marketing gimmick without a clear plan or goal, hoping to reproduce someone else’s success without understanding all of the nuances and factors that went into that success. Further, people are so busy recreating the wheel that they have forgotten what the wheel looks like.

How you can fix it.
Any marketing plan takes time. It can take years to build a strong fan base. Like the cliché goes, it is a marathon, not a sprint. Think small and then slowly expand so that you not only gain readers, but retain them for the long haul. A strong marketing plan requires a consistent message and repetition. Instead of jumping from place to place, focus your efforts on two or three sites to start that are frequented by the type of reader you want, and then use the existing tools to read those people on a regular basis. Most marketing professionals will tell you that the average consumer needs to see something seven times before they even remember it, let alone act on it. So your goal is to focus on repeating your message to a regular audience in order to build your base, and then expand out from there.


MY TAKE
Julie makes a good point about an over dependence on the Amazon algortihms. Many authors (mine included) have benefited from getting some good numbers and having Amazon recommend their books. This is not a substitute for other marketing efforts, and it's getting harder and harder to make the big lists. The number of sales that used to get you on the top 100 won't get you in the top 300 these days - there are just many more books out there and the $0.99 ones that get some legs do take up a lot of the top spots. She's giving us a good kick in the pants to do good solid marketing elsewhere and I agree.

I also love that she gives specific recommendations to how to fix it. We don't agree on all points (I'm less likely to use paid advertising) but I love that she's not just pointing at the problem but giving good real world solutions for how to solve it.

I also love that she is another voice trying to get people out of the $0.99 ghetto. I agree that it creates an impression that you are mainstream in the genre it is the same strategy I've used with Ridan authors.

I also love that she encourages a thought out plan and giving it time to work. Reactionary thinking just ties you up in knots - yes you need to be flexible and adjust but don't chase too many things in too many directions.


I want to thank Julie for her great words of advice and allowing me to share it here. You can find out more about her in the short bio below.

ABOUT JULIE
Julie Ann Dawson earned a degree in English, Liberal Arts from Rowan University in 1993. While there, she also studied marketing, public relations, and sociology. Upon graduation, she worked as a Public Relations Assistant for the City of Bridgeton’s Department of Recreation and Public Affairs, writing press releases, creating marketing literature, and assisting with organizing special events. She honed her sales and marketing skills while working for a South Jersey Kirby vacuum distributor, first as a sales representative and then as a team leader and finally as a recruiter. While with Kirby, her sales efforts won five paid vacations, including trips to Hawaii and Montreal.

Her work has appeared in a variety of print and digital media, including such diverse publications as the New Jersey Review of Literature, Lucidity, Black Bough, Poetry Magazine, Gareth Blackmore’s Unusual Tales, Demonground, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and others. In 2002 she started her own publishing company, Bards and Sages. The company has gone from having two titles to over one hundred titles between their print and digital products.

Seeking an Agent Is Not Seeking a Job

When talking about query letters we often use the analogy of the job hunter. We say things like, "Your query letter is like the business suit you wear to a job interview. It's your first impression." But that analogy has never been quite right because you are not looking for a job, and the agent is not looking to hire you. In fact, it's just the opposite: You are looking to hire the agent. That being said, the agent still has the chance to say no, unlike many in today's job market.



So instead of thinking of your agent search as comparable to a job search, I think you should look at it as the search for an investor in your new business, because that is, in fact, what you're looking for. An investor will only agree to back your business if she feels it's going to be profitable for both of you. She has a certain level of financial success, a gain or return on her investment that she hopes to achieve, and her decision to invest or not invest in your business is based entirely on her personal feelings and experiences with the business you are proposing.



In other words, you might be pitching a profitable-looking business plan, but the investor might personally feel that it's not enough profit or simply not the type of business she wants to spend her money on, especially if she has six other business plans to consider.



Finding an agent to work with is about finding the right person to invest in your future as an author.





Jessica

Workshop Wednesday

By repeated request we've started Workshop Wednesday. It will definitely play out through 2011, and beyond that we'll just have to see. We've received well over 200 queries at this point, but we are choosing at random, so don't be afraid to participate as per the guidelines in our original post.



For anyone wanting to comment, we ask that you comment in a polite and respectful manner, and we ask that you be as constructive as possible. If you can be useful to the brave souls who submitted their query and comment on the query, that's great. Please keep any anonymous tirades on publishing or other snarky comments to yourself. This is and should remain an open and safe forum for people to put themselves and their queries out there so that everyone can learn. I'm leaving comments open and open to anonymous posters, as I always have; don't make me feel the need to change that policy.



And for those who have never "met" Query Shark, get over there and do that. She's the originator of the query critique, the queen, if you will.





Dear :



Sentimental Journey is a 98,000-word women’s fiction. My style has been described by writing instructors as having similarities to Anne Tyler, with some Maeve Binchy, voice of Barbara Delinsky, and the emotional appeal of Nicholas Sparks.



It's funny that I should open this just hours after we were discussing whether or not it's good to compare your book or writing to others. Our thought was that it's usually not. The reason? If the agent you're pitching happens to really dislike one of those authors you might be doing yourself a disservice. In this case you've picked a variety of writers so I don't think it's a huge problem, but I also don't think it adds much. You've pretty much just described what I would expect from women's fiction.





Meredith Fields’ formerly placid suburban life is shattering piece by piece. She feels guilty over placing her mother, Katherine, in a nursing home. Keith, her husband, has fallen in love with his young assistant, and wants a divorce. An accomplished author, she’s bored with her romance books, and has a tight deadline for her next book – which she hasn’t quite started.



Here's one of the problems with comparing your writing style to other writers: You've set me up to have really high expectations for your writing and you don't carry it through in your query. Either your voice isn't coming through in the query or your voice isn't what you described, and that's a concern.



That being said, so far I'm liking the description of your book, and this is where it gets personal. This is a plot that would interest me. I think part of the problem with this paragraph is that it feels very choppy. It doesn't really sing for me.





As Meredith sorts through her mother’s house and finds clues to the woman’s shadowy past, she recognizes much of her mother in herself. She begins to understand why her mother related so poorly to her children, and is shaken by parallels in her relationships with her own children. Her growing compassion for Katherine’s difficult life becomes the catalyst for her new novel, Hope’s Illusion, the early chapters of which are included in Sentimental Journey. Meanwhile Meredith finds a journal she kept in her twenties, she is reminded of the love she once felt for Keith, and the extent of his loss settles in. A series of crises forces them to confront their relationship, showing Meredith the way to restore her spirit and mend her shattered life.



Did she know her mother had a shadowy past or is that part of the discovery? I would skip using her mother's given name and continue calling her "her mother." I think that will make it clear who we're focusing on (Meredith) and prevent any confusion from too many names. The information about the new novel seems dropped in and unnecessary. In fact, it kind of throws me. I'm not sure you need it here.



Last, I think I'd change the title. It sounds rather flat and unexciting.





I am the author of Autumn Colors, a romance, released by Author House on March 23, 2011.



I’ve also published several articles in professional journals, an article in Runners’ World, and contributed chapters for two nonfiction books. More information and excerpts from Autumn Colors can be found on my website (www.dawnlajeunesse.com).



I’ve enclosed a synopsis and first five pages of Sentimental Journey. Thank you for your time and consideration.



Sincerely,









Jessica

Books and libraries...a few things to keep in mind

A few days ago Michael's Theft of Swords got a starred review from Library Journal and even better was picked as the scifi/fantasy "Debut of the month". Congrats Michael!

When I posted this on kindle boards some responses reminded me of some things that some indie authors might not be aware of so I thought I would bring them up here. Call it some "tips" about libraries.

• worldcat.org: can be used to see which libraries are carrying your books. Libraries that participate in the program have their book orders show up on this site. So put in your ISBN and you can see if your book is being carried anywhere.
  
  
• Recommendations: Whenever you see a post, or get a piece of fan mail that says "too bad your book isn't in the library" or some thing to that effect...write back and tell them to make a request. Libraries will often order books when a patron makes the recommendation - they have a library card in that municipality so their request has more weight.
  
  
• Recommend it yourself: I know an indie author who sold about 400 books and 350 of them were to libraries. This was a main goal of his so he would spend a bit of each day sending off an email to libraries. He compiled a huge list of libraries and kept track of those who carried the books by watching worldcat.org
  
  
• Reviews...Most libraries do make their selections based off of the big reviews. These include Library Journal, BookList, Romantic Times, Publisher's Weekly, School Library Journal). As an indie author you are not "forbidden" from these lists but it can be pretty daunting as there is only so many slots and your chances of making them are not all that great. If you make a go of it - make sure of a few things: a) You have your own publishing company as the imprint (not CreateSpace, iUniverse, Lulu, or any other organization which will immediately brand you "self-pubbed". b) set a "publication date" far enough out in advance to meet their deadlines - usually most of these places want to get a ARC 3-4 months prior to release so that means keeping your book off the market for a while so that your live date does not coincide with the date they received the book. c) Follow their submission requirements carefully.
  
  
• Usually you can make some inroads into "local libraries" through recommendations of card carrying fans or your own emails - if you do get selected...go down to the library and introduce yourself in person. Talk to a few of the librarians telling them about your book and that they carry it. Ask if you could leave some free bookmarks for people to pickup at the checkout counter. Ask to give them a free copy to read in the hopes they'll like it and recommend to people who come in. You can even find out if you can do a "in library event" where you talk about your book, or being a writer, or getting published. Libraries love to have events to get people to come in and sometimes they don't have enough resources to pull from.
  
  
• If you have bookmarks...or business cards...place one of them in a library book of a similar genre books. Choose the "hot title" and someone might stumble upon your book when reading another.
  
  

• Don't rely on the publisher alone...My hope is that Michael's traditionally published books (Theft of Swords, Rise of Empire, Heir of Novron) will be in many libraries once they are released. But...I'm not going to count on it. I'm going to use worldcat to see where they "get in" then do my own promotion to other libraries to increase the exposure.

Just a few things to keep in mind with regards to libraries and using them effectively. I'd love to hear other ideas as well.

Resending Queries

This may sound like an unprofessional and very likely stupid question, but I had to make certain before giving up entirely: I was wondering whether it was alright to send a revised query letter to your agency when the first has not been replied to yet? I know that the query letter you send should have been edited and revised until it was polished but I just have to ask.



Hey, we all make mistakes. In fact, just recently I sent an email out to an editor, querying a book, with a major grammatical error in the subject heading. It happens. I don't think the editor judged me or the submission any less.



You must have caught me on one of those days because I'm of two minds on this. First of all, yes, I would rather the query be right the first time, but as everyone knows sometimes it takes a few days or months and a few rejections before you realize it isn't right. And in the end I think I would rather not miss out on an opportunity than have one less query in my inbox. But do you send it while still waiting for an answer? That does feel like it's mucking up my inbox to me. People do it all the time though.



The truth is that unless I happen to read the queries in backward order and notice that you've sent the revised and asked me to delete the original, I will probably just end up reading them both and wonder if they were both sent accidentally or on purpose.



So here's what I'm going to say: Just send the revised one whenever you want to.





Jessica

Branding #3...product vs. author brand

I think part of the reason that authors get a bit stumped when it comes to branding is they don't realize the difference between product branding and author branding and only consider one or the other. I'll propose you have to think about both.

Product Brand
Most people understand branding a product - Campbell's Soup, Coca-Cola. When developing the brand for a product you have a few things:

• Consistency of design
• Consistency of tag line/messaging
• Ability for easy classification
• Ability for easy recognition

One of the panelists at dragoncon kept mentioning that big, traditional publishers don't do author branding, they only understand product branding and I'd have to agree with this. A lot of the marketing activities are centered around activities such as:

• Cover design (product)
• Title of book (product)
• Tag lines (product)

These are all important activities that need to be done, and done well. If you are self-published you'll have to take over this side of things, but if you are published through another organization they'll take care of this for you.

Author Brand
Is what I've been focusing on in my other posts: Branding where to begin & Branding Part 2 The Basics and we'll have more on this important topic but for now I just want people to realize that there is a distinction between the two so let's get back to product branding.

Covers
Everyone will tell you that a good cover is a key to success and I couldn't agree more. I'll actually do a lot more on covers but today I want to focus on one thing in particular...series. If you are responsible for the covers (self-publishing) the cover is going to be your MOST important branding signal and if they are in a series you have to spend more time planning them out.

I'm going to pick on A.P. Stevens for just a minute. I bumped into him on facebook (which reminds me...please "like me on facebook" as I need to get to 25 likes to add a username (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Robin-Sullivan/177995785609073). In any case he was speaking about his books and a promotion he did and I asked him for a link. here are A.P.'s first two books in his "White Wolf Series":

I gave A.P. a ton of advice about these covers, and I won't repeat it all here except to illustrate one particular point which is I would never think that these two book are book 1 and book 2 of a series.

Messing up the "in a series" branding is not limited to self-published titles. I publish, through Ridan, a great set of books by Leslie Ann Moore. Originally the first two books were published through a company called Avari Press. Here are their covers:

Again, I would never think these are the same two books. Even though the publisher used the same fonts for the titles and author's name the graphics are so different that I can't make any connection. Moreover, the first book looks like some kind of young adult book and the second looks like a Gothic vampire novel.

Now let's look at what Ridan did when we re-released this title.

Now these, not surprisingly are reflecting a single product brand. My litmus test on branding is that if a table was filled with 25 stacks of books could you tell which ones went together. I think people would pretty easily pick these out as "together". They would struggle a bit with the ones from Avari, but because both books start with Griffin and the fonts are the same they might eventually figure it out. In the case of AP's books. I'm not sure I could ever connect the two.

We'll be looking more at covers in future posts but for now these are the points I want you to walk away with:

• Your author branding is all about "you" - who you are, what you believe in
• Your product brand is separate and you need to present consistent visual cues to the brand
• If you have a series of books you have to apply additional care to make sure that your cover design can be coordinated across all the books.

More to come....

Reference and Thank You

It's always humbling to discover that your opinion is valued enough that others will reference it and use it as a source; so I was quite chuffed to find out that a friend of mine quoted an essay that I wrote a few years back in a sermon that she gave yesterday. The full sermon can be found here, and the original essay was published by the CBC and can be found here. Thank you Laura Marie! I feel very honoured.

Handling Editor Interest

Two years ago, an editor was interested in my previous novel. The novel was taken to acquisitions and not acquired. Subsequently, I withdrew that novel from sale and began to work on another novel. Over a year and a half later, the same editor contacted my agent to see if I had anything new he could look at. (I know, pretty flattering, huh?) In the intervening time my agent had retired and I hadn't found a new agent because the book was unfinished (and there was no point looking for an agent for an already-shopped book), so I emailed the editor directly and told him about my new project.



Well, he was really interested. Took a look at the partial and made some brilliant editorial suggestions. Which I have implemented. (They meant an entire rewrite, so I'm not quite done, but nearly there.) But when I sent him a partial with the changes, he sent them to another Senior editor, and they both got a little excited, and now they're waiting on the full. No promises, but lots of interest.



So what's the protocol here, in regards to queries? I really want to work with this editor should an offer be forthcoming, but I also want an agent. Preferably first, so they can negotiate the contract and make sure I'm getting a fair deal and for other novels - to help me turn this into a career. Should I mention anything in the query title or open with, 'I have an interested editor'? Or do I wait until I have an offer in hand?



Life never works the way it's supposed to, does it? All the time people do things out of order or "not the way they're supposed to" and it works brilliantly for them. The difference between these people and those who "do everything right" with little success is that the people who use the back door first also grab every opportunity the moment it arises.



Grab this opportunity. The moment you feel the manuscript is in fighting shape you get it off to that editor. You have someone waiting for your work, don't let too much time slip by (of course, don't rush it too quickly either). Then get your queries out to agents and yes, definitely mention that Editor Name at House Name is reviewing the manuscript by request. You can explain the details later if necessary.



If you get an offer from the editor before you hear from agents you can use the offer to push an agent offer. Simply follow my guidelines, ask the editor to wait, and get the agent on board before you agree to anything. You don't need an agent first to negotiate the contract. You're just going in through the back door.



Hope that helps. Best of luck!





Jessica

Le Petit Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

It has been a bit of a joke of mine that there is only room in my brain for one language other than English. So when I learned and became fluent in Swahili, I had to delete my French in order to make room. However I have since discovered that the French is still there, just a bit rusty from lack of use.

This summer when I was in Paris, I picked up a copy of Le Petit Prince from a book stall on the left bank of the Seine. This is a book that I read back in high school French class and remembered liking it a lot, though I couldn't remember any of the plot. I also remember that most of the class (probably all of the class - there were only 6 of us!) tracked down English translations and read the book in English rather than French. And I remember that we had to write an essay on the book; though fortunately I don't remember what I wrote about - probably some pompous BS (as are most high school essays) regurgitating something that the teacher had told us.

I've had a very stressful week. Actually, make that a very stressful 6 months that flared up into an acute state of stress a week ago. This was a perfect book for me to be reading this week. Those vague impressions of liking the book back in high school proved to be true.

It is a hard book to describe for those of you who haven't read it as there are so many layers to the story. On the surface, the narrator crashes his plane in the middle of the Sahara desert where he meets a young boy. It turns out that this boy (the Little Prince) has traveled from a tiny astroid far far away, via some other stars, to the earth in search of some friends. He is now trying to get back to his own planet.

Along his journey he encounters a series of people and animals and each encounter is almost a little morality tale unto itself. He encounters a series of people who show to him the ridiculousness of many people - a king with no one to rule over; a drunk who drinks to forget the shame of being a drunk; a businessman who acquires things for the sake of acquiring them; and a geographer too proud to go exploring to have something to write about.

On the earth he meets a fox who teaches him the message that he needs to learn, which the Little Prince then shares with the narrator. That what is truly important is invisible to the eyes and can only be seen with the heart. To the Little Prince, his rose that he left behind on his planet (the rose that he escaped due to her vanity and self-centredness) is important since she depends on him for protection. To the narrator, it is the relationship that he develops with the Little Prince that is important.

I could list so many favourite quotes from this book that I would lose any readers for this posting, so I will try to limit myself to just a few (all translations by me).

"Nous écrivons des choses éternelles." (We write of the eternal things.)

"Mais si tu m'apprivoises, nous aurons besion l'un de l'autre. Tu serais pour moi unique au monde. Je serai pour toi unique au monde." (The fox to the prince - But if you tame me, we will need each other. You will be unique to me; and I will be unique to you.)

"On ne voit bien qu'avec le coeur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux. C'est le temps que tu as perdu pour ta rose qui fait ta rose si importante. Les hommes ont oublié cette vérité. Mais tu de doeis pas l'oublier." (We don't see except with the heart. What is essential is invisible to the eyes. It is the time that you have spent on your rose that makes your rose so important. Men have forgotten this truth, but you must not forget.)

"On est seul aussi chez les hommes." (You are also alone when you are with men/humans.)

"Les grandes personnes sont décidément très très bizarres." (Adults are decidedly very, very bizarre."

"Ce sera comme si je t'avais donné, au lieu d'étoiles, des tas de petits grelots qui savent rire..." (It will be like I have given you, in the place of the stars, little bells that know how to laugh..)

Reading this book reminded me of another quote from high school, this time from English class. "No man is an Island, entire of itself; ... because I am involved in mankind." (John Donne - my very favourite English-language poet). Both the Little Prince and the narrator learn that it is relationships that are important to this life.

Another quote that came to mind is, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 18:3) The innocence and child-like curiosity of the Little Prince are highlighted throughout the book; and yet he is the one that learns and teaches true wisdom at the end.

I'm glad that I was reading this book in the original French (with a dictionary at my side to look up the occasional word that i didn't know), since it forced me to read more slowly and take in every word rather than skimming. And I'm glad that I re-read this book this week. All is going to be OK with the world. I have a feeling that this book is going to be on my "to-reread-regularly" list.

Author's Business Cards...Get Them...Use them

If you don't have business cards for yourself you really should. You can get free cards from VistaPrint (they charge you just for the shipping and put their promotional text on the back), but I recommend Gotprint.com some example pricing from them:

• $9.55 - 1,000 cards - 4 color front no back
  
• $11.00 - 1,000 cards - 4 color front and back
• $33.50 - 5,000 cards - 4 color front no back
• $38.70 - 5,000 cards - 4 color front and back

As you can see there is virtually no difference between doing two sided so splurge. Here are some of my business card recommendations:

• Have a picture of your book(s) - This is as high of a priority as your name
  
• Use a QR code - if you don't know what that is see my blog post about them
  
• Use your publishers logo - even if you've made your own publishing company putting a logo on the card will give you some added credibility (people won't know it's your own company)
  
• Don't give out your phone number - as a writer you need to control when/how you are interrupted
  
• Make it easy for them to identify your genre. Your book's graphic should do this for you but if someone (your or your publisher) dropped the ball on this then make sure they know your genre
• Have a tagline that differentiates your book from others
• Include your twitter, blog, and email - these are all acceptable ways to reach you.

To illustrate good business card design, let's look at Michael's cards:

BACK

Let's analyze what we have here starting with the back:

• Michael has three books so putting all of them on the back makes the most sense. If he had two, I'd still use the back but put the QR code next to them. With one, I might be inclined to put the cover on the front and the QR code alone on the back
  
  
• From the covers there is no mistaking these books from being in the fantasy genre. But we can augment this with a simple tagline which we did. I'll explain this particular tagline in my next post on branding.
  
  
• I included the URL and the twitter just to round out the back so that it looks like a little standalone ad.

Now the front

• Notice both the QR code and his current publisher's logo
• The three pieces of information to reach him
• A good, well balanced design (feel free to copy it for your own cards)

Once you have the cards here's the important point...get them out there. Here's some tips:

• Every time you pay a bill at a restaurant include your card - and tip well!!
  
• Drop them in every "free lunch" drawing you find - someone goes through those cards and just might go - hey this looks interesting. (After all how many times do they meet an author)
  
• See someone on a computer train or bus reading a novel in your genre talk to them for a few seconds and leave your card with them
  
• If you have any casual conversation where you happen to mention that you write don't leave without passing out a card
• Are you a speaker at a panel of a conference, tell people to come up afterward and get your card
• Going out to dinner with a friend and a bunch of their friends you don't know - given them a card when they ask you "what do you do"

For such a small expense, you really need to get yourself business cards. Make them attractive, and use them often. Besides, on those days when you're feeling kinda blue take out a card and remind yourself what you are in this for.

Disabled But Equal

I recently received some very sad news of the death of a little boy born with a severe disabilty. His life was short however his parents doted on him. He was much cared for and very much loved. On the back of this a Florida couple have been awarded 4.5 million dollars in compensation because they 'missed the chance' to abort their disabled son. He is now 3 and they argued they they were not given the correct advice. The mother said 'had she known' she would have aborted him. The Bible teaches that every human being is created after the image of God, and is no less valuable to him because of a disabilty. Many treat children like commodoties that can be returned if the product is faulty rather than the precious gift from God that they are. Isn't it true that disabled people have taught the world so much and our lives are much the richer for them. Perhaps this would be a good opportunity to tell you about Ray Comforts new project. Its called 180 and Ray claims he can change a mind set on Pro Abortion in less than 180 seconds. The DVD's for sale for as little as £1 and will be released for sale on the 26th September.

Go to: www.180movie.com

Uk stockist expected to follow shortly at:

www.livingwaters.eu.com

Do You Limit Yourself

I have this friend who "can't" or "doesn't" do so many things I sometimes wonder how she gets out of bed in the morning. She's a writer, but she "can't" write a synopsis because it's not how she writes and she's a reader but she "can't" read dark thrillers because she's too happy of a person, and she's a foodie but she "doesn't" eat curry (which by the way is a fancy term for a blend of spices).



Ultimately what this friend is saying is that she's afraid. She's afraid to try new things or re-explore areas that might not have worked all that well for her in the past. She's afraid of failing or of not liking something, so afraid that she's "can't"-ed herself into a box. Her world has become increasingly smaller because of all of the things she "can't" or "doesn't" do. It's frustrating and sad because this same friend will complain about how hard it is to get published or find new restaurants or discover great books, but when offered suggestions, before trying, she comes up with a list of excuses why she can't.



I firmly believe that the only limitations we have in this world are those we make for ourselves. You want to climb Mt. Everest? What's stopping you? No, really? What's stopping you? You want to write a great novel? What's stopping you?



To break free and find great success you need to break free of the limitations you place on yourself. There are enough people in this world trying to tell you what you can't do, why are you doing it to yourself?





Jessica

Following Up

We writers always wonder about how long it takes agents to respond (if they do at all) and whether to follow up and so forth, but I was wondering - what about agents and editors? How long do agents (or just you guys, since I'm sure it's different for everyone) wait for a response from an editor before following up?



This is a great question to ask any agent when you get an offer of representation, because the answer is going to differ from agent to agent and situation to situation. Overall, I tend to follow up four to six weeks after a submission. How long I wait will depend on how quick other feedback is coming in, whether the book was submitted on proposal or full, how busy the editors are (sometimes I know that an editor has just returned from vacation or the time fell around a major holiday), generally how responsive the editors are (some tend to respond faster than others), etc.



Generally though, I will follow up in about four weeks.





Jessica

The Rebel Angels - Robertson Davies

This is my first selection for the Canadian Book Challenge #5 hosted by John at The Book Mine Set. This year, I decided that rather than just reading 13 Canadian books between July 1 and June 30 (too easy - I usually finish the challenge half way through the year), I would re-read and review 13 Canadian books. Books that I have read and loved; books that I have read and disliked; books that I have read and forgotten.

Book: The Rebel Angels by Robertson Davies

First Read: Maybe 1993 or 1994? I know that by the time that I went off to university in 1995 I had read everything that Robertson Davies had written, then was very sad when he died that year knowing that he would not be writing any more books for me to enjoy. This is a book that I have re-read many times since the first reading. I usually get a craving to read it in September since it is a book inextricably linked with the school year.

Original Impressions: This wasn't my favourite Davies book the first time I read it. It is the first in a trilogy, and I liked it better than the 2nd book (What's Bred in the Bone) but the 3rd book (The Lyre of Orpheus) was by far my favourite, probably because it dealt with music and musicians. The characters in The Rebel Angels are scholars and professors and academics set in place in a university loosely based in the University of Toronto. I did like the character of Maria who, at age 23, was closest in age to my 17-year-old self. She was everything that I wanted to be - intelligent, beautiful, interesting.

Current Impressions: This book grew on me over the years, probably as I went through the university system (though with a science degree, not the arts); and the humour became funnier. Robertson Davies is one of the few authors that remains laugh-out-loud funny to me, every time I re-read his books. Maria doesn't appeal to me as much now, 18 years later. Have I outgrown her? She seems so immature at times, and lacking in wisdom despite her intelligence. Or maybe it is knowing what happens to her through the next 2 books in the trilogy. She becomes boring (in my opinion). But the other characters have developed much more depth to me since my first reading. It is interesting to re-read a book that I loved at a different stage in life - there are some books that have remained favourites (e.g. Anne of Green Gables); others that have grown on me (e.g. The Diviners); and others that I no longer enjoy (e.g. several by Maeve Binchey).

On this re-reading, I was frustrated by Maria's stubbornness, intrigued by Parlabane's background, sympathetic with Darcourt's frustrations, and impatient with Hollier's single mindedness. Overall, it is a book that continues to hold my interest with each re-reading.

Next up for the challenge? I don't know - maybe a re-reading of The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence, a book that I haven't re-read since my first reading.

Branding - Part 2 - The basics

So, based on some emails from my last post on branding (Branding...where to begin) as well as comments in that post it seems that people struggle with "branding" so let's take a step back.

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."

The important part here is distinct. Let's break that down a bit...

Adjective: distinct

1. (often followed by 'from') not alike; different in nature or quality
2. Easy to perceive; especially clearly outlined
3. Constituting a separate entity or part
4. Recognizable; marked
5. Clearly or sharply defined to the mind

Starting out this way shows a few things that really resonate with me.

Uniqueness
Just like snowflakes no two people are alike. We are all different from one another. Some conventional wisdom says "align yourself with something people already know". You've heard people pitch their books this way:

• It's like Mad Max meets Jaws
• A combination of Aliens, Driving Ms Daisy and Benji.
• and so on.

While I understand the need to "classify" yourself I think it's better to stand out to spend your limited words on letting people know what about you is different. If we try to brand ourselves by following the brands of others we are "followers" not "leaders.

Easy to perceive; especially clearly outlined
Have you ever watched a television commercial and said to yourself .... I have no idea what they were selling (was it the jeans of the hot guy, the car, his glasses?) This is an example of a message working against what you are attempting. Does it meet the first requirement (unique) probably - but to me this is marketing gone astray. It's done so some big ad exec can put it in their portfolio - look how cutting edge I was...but ultimately did was it effective. Which means did people embrace the product or the idea...nope because they had no idea what you were talking about.

Recognizable; marked
Ah..here's a nice concept. You want to be easy to recognize. You want people to immediately - go - Hey that's from Robin or Michael or whoever. Once you start to become "known" then people will gravitate to you when they see (recognize you).

Clearly or sharply defined in your mind.
This is the final goal...(not sales btw - those are results not goals - thank you Simon Sinek). Your brand is going to give people an impression about you (and later your work). Your goal is to show them what you are.

Some people shudder at the concept of branding...."I don't want to brand I just want to be me" they wail. Well guess what....you're way ahead of the game because that's what branding is ... showing the world who you are and what you're about.

Branding should be effortless. Because all you have to do is be yourself. Since you are here reading this blog we can use me as an example. If I were to think of words that I "hope" people would think about me they would be.

• Intelligent
• Passionate
• Supportive

Did I do market research to determine if these words "resonate with people"? Then carefully craft this blog to showcase this? Nope. I'm simply doing what I do and trying to be self-aware as to my strengths.

But then again - I may be completely delusional. (I've been accused of this in the past). So tell me some of your impressions of me (good and bad) as it will help me to know if I'm on the right track or not and can be used as a baseline for as we go on to the next post on branding.

Workshop Wednesday

By repeated request we've started Workshop Wednesday. It will definitely play out through 2011, and beyond that we'll just have to see. We've received well over 200 queries at this point, but we are choosing at random, so don't be afraid to participate as per the guidelines in our original post.



For anyone wanting to comment, we ask that you comment in a polite and respectful manner, and we ask that you be as constructive as possible. If you can be useful to the brave souls who submitted their query and comment on the query, that's great. Please keep any anonymous tirades on publishing or other snarky comments to yourself. This is and should remain an open and safe forum for people to put themselves and their queries out there so that everyone can learn. I'm leaving comments open and open to anonymous posters, as I always have; don't make me feel the need to change that policy.



And for those who have never "met" Query Shark, get over there and do that. She's the originator of the query critique, the queen, if you will.





Ms. Jessica Faust:





Lexy’s not the type of girl to stand by and watch a fight—after all she’s been training all of her life to fight the infected. In her world there are two simple rules 1. Zombies are bad. 2. Werewolves are worse. But when a rogue zombie breaks into her family’s compound it sets off a series of events that challenge everything Lexy’s ever been taught.



I think this opening was spot-on. I knew from this that it was YA and you instantly grabbed my attention.





Her family moves to the city where Lexy meets up with long-time friend Jason. Their relationship heats up and Lexy’s sure she’s found her one and only—until Jason becomes infected. Stunned and reeling from the news Lexy runs away straight into a trap. She’s abducted by a kickass werewolf clan—turns out that they’ve been genetically engineered to combat zombies and protect humanity. Kaden, their leader, promises Lexy that they can save Jason if she’ll join them in their fight. The only catch is she has to change. Lexy has to choose between following what her family has taught her or following Kaden, a werewolf, for a chance to save Jason the boy—I mean zombie of her dreams.



I'm a little less enthused about this paragraph. The phrase "heats up" made me question whether this was still YA or a romance. Mostly though, I think you have a little too much information here. I'm not sure that we need to know that she's moved or just met up with Jason. I think you could probably start right in with the fact that her boyfriend is infected, and then I think I'd tie it back in to the first paragraph and suggest that now she's in for the fight of her life. I guess my other question is what does that rogue zombie in paragraph one have to do with this paragraph? I'm not seeing the connection and I would expect to.





DECEPTION, a young adult novel, is complete at 75,000 words. It will appeal to readers who loved the intrigue of THE SUMMONING by Kelley Armstrong and to those who enjoyed the paranormal romance of NEED by Carrie Jones.



This is a good, strong finish.





I am a graduate of Brigham Young University, where I studied English teaching with a focus on young adult literature. If you would like to consider DECEPTION, I would be glad to send you the complete manuscript at your request. Thank you for your time and consideration.



Despite my concerns about the second paragraph I would probably request this. However, I think you'll have many who won't, so I would work on making sure you tie in what you've started in paragraph one with paragraph two and keep on course with the voice you were writing in.





Sincerely,











Jessica

Branding...where to begin

So, at BookExpo America, Dragoncon, and other writer's events I've been to lately all the experts are saying the same thing...branding...branding...branding. But I think many people don't know what means or where to start.

If you want to understand branding - you should be listening to Simon Sinek. (Go to the video page of this blog to see some great things from him. He's really got it right.

Simon points out that many companies or people decide their brand by looking at the marketplace and seeing what is hot or what people are looking for and then they build their brand around that to maximize income...WRONG....buzzer goes off thank you for playing.

Simon's key is that you don't make a brand and try to attract people to it. You find what you believe in, expose your own beliefs, find what gets you excited and what you are passionate about and tell others...this then IS your brand. It's not something you create it is something that you are. Then...and here's the magic...the people you attract will already be aligned with you and you don't need to convince them to do business with you...they'll want to because they belief what you believe.

Sounds simple right? Yes it is but trust me, I've been in business for 30+ years and I can't tell you how many people don't understand this very simple concept. I've worked for many companies that have paid thousands of dollars to bring in consultants to help them create a brand. I've had to pass by posters of "mission statements" that all sound the same...basically a pumped up variation of:

"To be the preeminent supplier of xyz by providing exceptional customer service".

Blah!

This is not a mission. A mission is something that drives you from your toes to your head. What gets you excited about getting out of bed everyday. It's what you enjoy doing more than anything else and devote your whole heart and soul to.

Anyone who had read this blog can see pretty quickly what my passion is:

"To help authors navigate the changes in publishing such that they can quit their day jobs and do what they want to do most ... write for a living and provide inspiration and entertainment for the people who love reading their creations"

So...today's assignment....think long and hard what gets you fired up and make this the cornerstone of your brand. I'll be posting more on brand building over the next few posts.

Writers Beware

It's been a long, long time since I've written a post on writers beware in publishing. I think that after a certain amount of time I've made the incorrect assumption that my readers know this already. I forget that daily I'm reaching new people and that some of those who were here in the early days have moved on to other things.

Not too long ago I received an email from an author with an offer. She had a contract in hand from Tate Publishing and was seeking representation. Of course she was really excited. Tate was offering to publish her book for free and, for an additional $4,000, would supply a publicist. Ouch.

It took me two seconds to google "Tate Publishing Preditors and Editors" and find that this publisher was not recommended. I immediately notified the author, told her she should never pay to get published, and sent the link. She replied that payment was for the publicist only and optional. I'm doubtful, but I don't know for sure.

And then I read some of the manuscript. And my heart hurt. This manuscript was nowhere near ready for publication. It needed a lot of work, and I'm not saying the author won't get there someday, because let's face it, we've all written something that should never have been shown to a beta reader, let alone been published, but it's not ready now. And I worried. Will this author sign this contract simply because it's there, because all other avenues have been exhausted and because she figures it's time?

I don't know what the final outcome was. I never heard back from the author. What I do know is that there are those out there in all areas of our lives, preying on those who are desperate for a good word, positive feedback, and success.

If you've never been to Preditors and Editors or Writer Beware or the Writer Beware blog, please go now. Even if you think you know how to spot a someone trying to take advantage of you go. It's up to all of us to protect the writing community and each other, and the more information we arm ourselves with the more we can help others.

I hope this author shredded that contract and went back to honing her writing skills. I really do hope that.

Jessica

What I’m Looking For

Though I’ve only been with BookEnds since April, I’ve already made some shifts in what kinds of projects I’m looking to represent. Some of this has to do with changes in market trends, but a lot really has to do with my personal reading preferences. I want to be enthusiastic about each and every book I work on, and if I’m just not getting excited about submissions in a particular genre, I think it’s better for everyone if I concentrate my energies elsewhere. With that said, my focus is absolutely still on a wide variety of full-length, adult romance and women’s fiction. I’m not actively looking for YA, novellas, or nonfiction.



To help give you a better idea of what I’m looking for, maybe I should tell you about some of the clients I’ve taken on. I have a bit of a spread. So far, I have clients who write historical romance, historical erotica, paranormal erotica, category romance, romantic suspense, women’s fiction, and African literary fiction.



That last one may have surprised you, right? It’s actually not quite as outside of my stated interests as you might think. While I am looking to focus on commercial fiction, I absolutely love women’s fiction set in exotic locations, and would love to receive more projects set abroad. I have a special interest in books set in Iran, India, and Southeast Asia, but would also welcome more submissions set in African or European countries, or set in the US but with a focus on immigrant communities.



I’m looking for a wide variety of contemporary romance, but I’d particularly like to see more small-town books in which the town and community are richly developed. Southern settings and New England settings work particularly well for me. Overall, I tend to gravitate toward darker voices and storylines, but quirky, comedic stories can be great, too.



With historicals, I have a strong preference for very sexy Regencies and Victorians. Also, it’s probably worth noting that I tend not to enjoy historical fiction as much as I do historical romance. As with contemporaries, I tend to like darker voices in historicals, and I like books with seemingly insurmountable obstacles to the protagonists’ relationship—like a story about a duke and a fishmonger’s widow.



While I still am looking for paranormal romances, I’m no longer looking for urban fantasy. I love kick-ass heroines, but I prefer to see them falling in love. What I really want in paranormal is something so different and original that I’m incapable of even coming close to now imagining what that might be. I enjoy a good vampire or werewolf tale, but the market (and my in-box) has been so saturated with them that it’s difficult for me to find something I get excited about.



For erotica, I’m mostly looking for books in which the central storyline is m/f. These can be contemporary, historical, and/or suspenseful or paranormal, but I’m probably not the right agent for anything futuristic or sci-fi. A few things that are absolutely necessary to me in erotica are emotional depth, rich characterization, and an actual plot. I may live to regret saying this, but it’s pretty darn hard to shock me with erotica. Graphic, kinky novels are welcome.



The above doesn’t encompass everything I’m looking to represent, but I hope it gives you more insight into my preferences. As always, I look forward to reading your queries!



Jessica A