Laura Heffernan's Blog, page 12
May 3, 2017
Guest Post: Just Write
In the days leading up to Query Kombat, I'll be featuring guest posts from the judges on a variety of writing topics, from ways to polish your writing to common openings. Check back and follow me on Twitter to stay updated. Today's post is from Natasha Raulerson.
Just Write
Happy Query Kombat everyone!
I’m dusting off my guest posting fingers. It’s been a while, and I admit, I’ve missed it. When it comes to writing, unless you’re doing it full time, life can often get in the way. Especially when big events happen: wedding, kids, etc. Trying to put a schedule on writing works for a lot of people, but for some of us, finding the same time to write every day is absolutely impossible.
A lot of people might say it’s essential to have a schedule.
For them it might be.
For you, it might not be.
For me, it’s just not going to happen.
Writing is not a birth control pill. The important thing is not when you write or that it’s done at the exact same time every day. It’s just that you write.
This also doesn’t mean you have to write 2,000 words a day. As much as we’d all like for that to be a reality, sometimes it’s just not. Sometimes, we get stuck on a scene. Sometimes, your six-month-old doesn’t want to sleep. Sometimes, you just want to bang your head on the keyboard and hope the gibberish somehow fixes the giant plot hole you’ve been gaping at for three days.
That’s okay too. The important thing is to get into a rhythm when it comes to writing. Whether you write five words or five thousand words, the important thing is to write something every day. This could be before you go to work, on your lunch break, sneaking a few words between meetings, or at 3am while secretly indulging in that ice cream you’ve hidden in the back of the freezer. It can be ALL of those times on various days or even all of those times during one day.
Don’t be intimidated by the people who can write a million words a day or have the luxury of doing it at the same time every day. It’s amazing that they can do that. I would love to do that, but it’s just not a feasible reality at the moment, but I do write.
Whether it’s five words or five hundred, I write, because this is ultimately my goal. To be a published author.
If you want to write, write. In the car, while cooking dinner, while you’re sitting on the porcelain throne because it’s the only ten-minutes a day to you get to yourself.
Just write every day.
You CAN do it. Granted, it might mean losing social media time. Instead of checking Facebook, write in a journal or on your phone. You might not be able to take the “Are You A True 80s Movie Buff” quiz, but you might figure out just what your character is going to do next.
So, don’t despair if you can’t write at the same time every day, or if you can’t write two thousand words every day.
Just write every day.
Those words add up. Just like anything else, those writing muscles build. You’ll eventually have your own weird, awesome ritual of writing that works just for you. Then, before you know it, you’ll have a rough draft of a novel.
It’s something to get excited about.
Then comes editing, but that’s a different post entirely.
If you want to write.
Just write.
I have faith you can do it.
Natasha grew up as a tomboy hanging with the guys, getting skinned knees, and swimming in the South Florida sun. Tattoos, Jack Daniels, and books are three of her favorite things. By day, she’s a fulltime mom, wife, student, and author. By night, well she’s still all those things, often sacrificing sleep to create stories, hang with the family, and get snuggle attacks from her two spoiled pups. She is represented by the amazing Laura Bradford of The Bradford Literary Agency.
Website I Twitter I Facebook
Just Write
Happy Query Kombat everyone!
I’m dusting off my guest posting fingers. It’s been a while, and I admit, I’ve missed it. When it comes to writing, unless you’re doing it full time, life can often get in the way. Especially when big events happen: wedding, kids, etc. Trying to put a schedule on writing works for a lot of people, but for some of us, finding the same time to write every day is absolutely impossible.
A lot of people might say it’s essential to have a schedule.
For them it might be.
For you, it might not be.
For me, it’s just not going to happen.
Writing is not a birth control pill. The important thing is not when you write or that it’s done at the exact same time every day. It’s just that you write.
This also doesn’t mean you have to write 2,000 words a day. As much as we’d all like for that to be a reality, sometimes it’s just not. Sometimes, we get stuck on a scene. Sometimes, your six-month-old doesn’t want to sleep. Sometimes, you just want to bang your head on the keyboard and hope the gibberish somehow fixes the giant plot hole you’ve been gaping at for three days.
That’s okay too. The important thing is to get into a rhythm when it comes to writing. Whether you write five words or five thousand words, the important thing is to write something every day. This could be before you go to work, on your lunch break, sneaking a few words between meetings, or at 3am while secretly indulging in that ice cream you’ve hidden in the back of the freezer. It can be ALL of those times on various days or even all of those times during one day.
Don’t be intimidated by the people who can write a million words a day or have the luxury of doing it at the same time every day. It’s amazing that they can do that. I would love to do that, but it’s just not a feasible reality at the moment, but I do write.
Whether it’s five words or five hundred, I write, because this is ultimately my goal. To be a published author.
If you want to write, write. In the car, while cooking dinner, while you’re sitting on the porcelain throne because it’s the only ten-minutes a day to you get to yourself.
Just write every day.
You CAN do it. Granted, it might mean losing social media time. Instead of checking Facebook, write in a journal or on your phone. You might not be able to take the “Are You A True 80s Movie Buff” quiz, but you might figure out just what your character is going to do next.
So, don’t despair if you can’t write at the same time every day, or if you can’t write two thousand words every day.
Just write every day.
Those words add up. Just like anything else, those writing muscles build. You’ll eventually have your own weird, awesome ritual of writing that works just for you. Then, before you know it, you’ll have a rough draft of a novel.
It’s something to get excited about.
Then comes editing, but that’s a different post entirely.
If you want to write.
Just write.
I have faith you can do it.
Natasha grew up as a tomboy hanging with the guys, getting skinned knees, and swimming in the South Florida sun. Tattoos, Jack Daniels, and books are three of her favorite things. By day, she’s a fulltime mom, wife, student, and author. By night, well she’s still all those things, often sacrificing sleep to create stories, hang with the family, and get snuggle attacks from her two spoiled pups. She is represented by the amazing Laura Bradford of The Bradford Literary Agency.
Website I Twitter I Facebook
May 2, 2017
Daddy's Best Friend Release Day Blitz!
Daddy’s Best Friend
London Hale
Publication date: May 2nd 2017
Genres: Erotica, Romance
She’s temptation personifiedGoodreads / Amazon
Nathan had always been more than just my dad’s friend. I never thought he’d see me as an adult, especially not after avoiding me for so long. But one hug, one moment feeling every inch of him against me, shattered that illusion. Consequences no longer mattered—I was eighteen, and I was willing to risk everything for my shot with him.
He’s not going to resist anymore
I never should’ve seen Eve as more than my best friend’s daughter. As a cop, I knew it was wrong. It was my job to protect her from guys like me. Chasing her could cost me my career—not to mention the only family I’d ever known—but I couldn’t hold back another second. One taste, and I wanted her. To hell with the fallout.
—EXCERPT:“What are you doing?”What was I doing? I’d come in to check. To see if what I thought I’d seen and felt outside had been a figment of my imagination. But it hadn’t, as evidenced by the bulge he was obviously sporting, and I needed to figure out what to do with that information.So I answered honestly. “Pushing you.”
“Pushing me to do what, exactly?”
“Whatever it is you want.”
“Why?”
“Because you look like a man who needs to be pushed.”
His eyes devoured me again, burning me from the inside out. Leaving nothing but ash where I’d once stood. “Maybe I’m the one man you shouldn’t push.”
Author Bio:
London Hale is the combined pen name of writing besties Ellis Leigh and Brighton Walsh. Between them, they’ve published more than thirty books in the contemporary romance, paranormal romance, and romantic suspense genres. Ellis is a USA Today bestselling author who loves coffee, thinks green Skittles are the best, and prefers to stay in every weekend. Brighton is multi-published with Berkley, St. Martin’s Press, and Carina Press. She hates coffee, thinks green Skittles are the work of the devil, and has never heard of a party she didn’t want to attend. Don’t ask how they became such good friends or work so well together—they still haven’t figured it out themselves.
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter
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Authorly things: Which do you find the hardest to write, the first or the last line of your novel? Why?Brighton:The first, for sure. A blank page is incredibly daunting, and trying to get a sentence just right so it not only sets the tone for the book, but also hooks the reader? It's hard as hell. Ellis:Usually the first one. I “see” my characters in action, so they tend to drop me right into a scene without warning. The last feels more natural as I’m writing it because the scene has an ending point in my head; the first usually has to be edited fifteen times before I’m happy with it.
How is writing in a team different than writing solo?Brighton:Writing solo means you can do whatever you want to your characters and the plot without getting anyone else's approval. It also means you have to create those characters and plot without anyone weighing in, which can be exhausting. And boring. We both went into this unsure if we'd like it or even be able to work together, and now that we've got a short break to work on solo stuff, I miss the co-writing like crazy. We have so much fun writing together—even during the challenging parts—that it doesn't feel like work to me. Ellis:It’s a lot more fun, that’s for sure. It’s also harder at times. Brighton’s characters are solid in her head, as mine are in mine. Sometimes, that creates issues. “The heroine wouldn’t react well to that” or “He wouldn’t act that way” tend to be conversations we have a lot. We usually write the scenes with interaction together in Gdocs, but that also creates issues. Can you say sex scenes feel like sexting? Yeah. Loads of fun.
What’s your co-writing process like?Brighton:Fun as hell. No? That answer won't work? Ellis:We spend a lot of time in Whatsapp. Like...A LOT. We go back and forth about ideas, themes, tropes, characters. We send pictures and snippets of dialogue or stories we saw online. Once we know what we want to write, we set everything up in our files and work out a loose plot for the book. We each write a character, and we go back and forth until the book is done. Then we go back over it about fifteen times.
How do you decide who’s going to be which character?Brighton:So far it's worked out that we've switched with every other character. But Ellis is really unique in that she has far-off side characters whispering in her head already. Characters don't come to me like that, so I'm fine giving her the ones who speak louder to her. Ellis:Sometimes one of us has a better feel for them, sometimes it’s their turn to write the hero instead of the heroine. Totally depends on the story we’re telling.
When you get an idea for a book, what comes first? Plot or characters?Brighton:Characters. I tried it the other way around for two books, and I slogged through every word. Ellis:Characters. I can’t figure out a plot until I know the person making the moves.
Do you have a writing spot that only you can work, like a writing cave? If so what does it look like?Brighton:Nope. I can write anywhere as long as I have my laptop and ear buds. Ellis:I moved from writing at my dining room table to a real desk this year. It’s in my living room with two huge bookcases on either side. I have a 27” iMac that dominates the space and a snowman coaster where I set my coffee. I don’t need much else.
Do you have any writing rituals?Brighton:First, I sacrifice a virgin to the gods of sex scenes… Just kidding. I just sit down and write. Ellis:Nope. Sit down, type words. I’m very much in the mindset of “writing is a job with goals and tasks.”
Do you have a writer’s playlist, or do you write in silence?Brighton:The music I write to depends on what book I'm working on and/or what kind of scene. But I live on Pandora or Spotify. Ellis:I can’t write with music or a lot of background noise. I use brain.fm for focus music when the kids or husband are around and I need to concentrate. Otherwise, it’s pretty quiet when I write.
How do you come up with plot ideas?Ellis:For London, we sort of start with a theme. What’s taboo about it? What line can we nudge a little? From there, we come up with characters, and then the plot starts to unfold. Our stories are completely character driven, though. Brighton:A lot of times we’ll see an article or a meme or something and tuck it away in our idea folder.
How do select names for characters in your books? Brighton:Very, very carefully. Ellis:This one made me laugh because OMG the naming conversations! So, I have a huge family with a ridiculous number of cousins. We both veto family names or names that mean something to us in real life. We also adjust based on current events. We also have to veto when the name intersects with our individual projects. It’s a lot of back and forth like “Nope, I have a cousin with that name” or “Nope, that's the name of my neighbor and it’d be weird to use it.” We keep a list of approved names and cross out fingers when it’s time to build a new set of characters.
How do you plot your books? Do your plots ever change as you write or does it go pretty much according to plan?Brighton:We've got a pretty good system down as far as what happens where in the story, and after six books together, we know where we need more room to develop plot, etc. But even knowing that, sometimes what we planned doesn't work, so we go off track. Then head to WhatsApp and brainstorm a different direction. Ellis:We loosely plot—something like a paragraph per chapter. They change, though. Every story needs to unfold organically, and every character has their own timeline to grow into what we want them to be.
What three words would you use to describe your books?Brighton:dirty, quick, fun Ellis:fun, flirty, filthy
Favorite bookish moment:Brighton:Being able to have intelligent conversations about books with my oldest son. Our tastes tend not to intersect all that often (he’s a fantasy/dystopian kid and I like to read about kissing), but when they do and we are both interested in the same book, we read and then have our own little mini book club to discuss. Ellis:Reading and watching the Harry Potter books with my daughter. Those stories were so meaningful to me that sharing them with her feels like we’ve reached a certain level in our relationship. I love watching her get excited about the same characters and moments as I did.
Best moment as an author:Brighton:This is really hard to pick because I’ve been blessed with a lot of super awesome moments as an author. But there was only once when I cried, and that was when my editor told me Target picked up my book.Ellis:When authors I love and respect recommend my books to their readers. That’s the ultimate marketing tool, IMO, and it’s not something you can buy.
Best advice you’ve ever gotten as an author:Brighton:Don't listen to all the advice you'll get as an author. Ellis:Write the next book.
Favorite part of the book-writing process:Brighton:Drafting, from beginning to end. Ellis:Getting to that point where you know you have a good story and feeling that inertia to finish it.
This or That Hotel or camping? Brighton:Hotel. Allllll day, errday. Ellis:I want to say camping, but the reality is hotel. In the woods. With a sauna.
Greedy or generous?Brighton:I hope I'm generous. Ellis:I strive to be generous.
Pessimist or optimist? Brighton:Optimist Ellis:optimist. Totally.
Casual or formal?Brighton:Both. Casual in day-to-day, but I love getting dressed up. Ellis:Casual AF
Beer or champagne? Ellis:Can I sneak in a margarita instead?Brighton:While I get Ellis a margarita, I'mma sneak myself some rum.
Deliberate or spontaneous? Brighton:Deliberate Ellis:I think deliberate, but I could be wrong.
Town or country?Brighton:Both. I'd love a huge lot of land right in the middle of a city. LolEllis:Country-ish.
Waffles or pancakes?Brighton:French toast. Ellis:Pancakes
Coke or pepsi? Brighton:I don't drink either anymore, but Coke will always win. Ellis:Coke, diet please
Vanilla or chocolate? Brighton:ChocolateEllis:Vanilla
Rock or pop?Brighton:Can’t choose. Ellis:Pop
Zombie horde or plague? Brighton:ZombiesEllis:Zombies. At least I can defend myself.
Beach or mountains? Brighton:BeachEllis:Beach
Ocean or pool? Brighton:PoolEllis:To sit by? Ocean. To swim in? Pool. I don’t do open water. There are things in there that will eat you.
Fireplace or bonfire?Brighton:BonfireEllis:Either
Bath or shower? Brighton:ShowerEllis:Shower. Totally.
Museum or theater? Brighton:TheaterEllis:Theater
Night owl or morning person? Brighton:Night owlEllis:Morning person.
Sun or stars? Brighton:StarsEllis:Sun
TV or movies? Brighton:MoviesEllis:TV
Salty or sweet? Brighton:SweetEllis:BOTH!
Karaoke or concert? Brighton:ConcertEllis:Karaoke
Neat freak or slob? Brighton:Neat freakEllis:Slobbish tendencies for sure
Fancy restaurant or diner? Brighton:DinerEllis:Diner
Tattoos or piercings? Brighton:YesEllis:Both
Farmer’s market or grocery store? Brighton:Grocery store Ellis:Farmer’s market
May 1, 2017
Query Kombat Judge Post: Simple(ish) Tricks to Make Any Style of Writing Better
In the days leading up to Query Kombat, I'll be featuring guest posts from the judges on a variety of writing topics, from ways to polish your writing to common openings. Check back and follow me on Twitter to stay updated. Today's post is from Elizabeth Roderick.
Simple(ish) Tricks to Make Any Style of Writing Better
I’ve done a lot of critiquing, beta reading, and professional editing, so I’ve had the privilege of working with people who write in all different styles and genres. Each style and genre has its own rules, and I’ve learned to appreciate them all on their own merits.
There’s a lot of writing advice that doesn’t take the differences in genres into account. Some of it makes me want to headbutt the person giving it, because it amounts to a style critique rather than sound writing advice, especially if applied indiscriminately. This sort of writing advice can impede creativity.
There is other advice, however, that works across all styles and genres. These are some of the tips and tricks I use when writing and editing my own work as well as clients’ work. It’s the stuff that always seems to make writing better (although there are exceptions…like when I was writing Justin’s schizophrenic character voice in The Other Place Series. There are times to break every rule, as long as you’re doing it mindfully).
So, with that small caveat, here are six things I’ve found (almost) always improve writing:
1. Avoid dialogue tags whenever possible.
If you only have two people in the conversation, you don’t need a dialogue tag with every line of dialogue, because readers understand who’s talking as long as they’re oriented now and again. You can also use action tags in the place of dialogue tags. Action tags usually precede the dialogue (though they can come after), and describe something a character is doing while they speak. Action tags are super great because they can perform quadruple duty: let us know who is speaking, develop character, create a mood or vibe, and put a vivid image in the reader’s mind. For instance:“I just don’t know,” Marla said.As opposed to:Marla chiseled the dried blood from beneath her fingernails with her hunting knife. “I just don’t know.”Be careful, however, of overusing dialogue tags like, “She smiled,” or “She cocked an eyebrow.” I’m guilty of overusing these. Often, they don’t add anything, and/or are already implied by the dialogue.
2. Adjectives and adverbs are okay; redundancy isn’t.If the adjective or adverb is already implied by the scene, dialogue, or action, you don’t need to use it. For instance:The bright Southern California sun shone intensely on their faces.Neither “bright” nor “intensely” are really needed here (because they’re implied by SoCal sun), and don’t add much as to style, either (you probably don’t even need “on their faces” in most cases, if you want to get technical). Or:“We need to get out of here!” she yelled urgently.You really just need the dialogue here. Very few people would exclaim such a thing languorously, and if they were, it would be very appropriate to use that adverb—especially because “languorously” is a bitchin’ word.However:He leaned on the dented bumper of his car, eyeing her lustily.Both “dented” and “lustily” add something here, if we don’t already know those things from context.
3. Description is fine, but diagraming is generally not.I love it when the author gives me a bizarre, beautiful, or bleak image that sticks with me. However, I get really confused and any image in my head is destroyed whenever I read something like this:The house was three stories tall, with three rows of five windows off to the right of the main entrance, and three rows of eight windows to the left of the entrance. The front door was tall and stately, a double door, with carved frescoes of cherubs and nymphs all along the edges. Inside, a hallway led off in front to the state rooms. Another to the right led to the ballroom …You get what I’m going for. The point of description is to give readers an image, and a mood. You can do this succinctly, and let their imaginations fill in the rest—that’s part of the fun of reading. In the passage above, the writer can convey the image of a grand, old-style mansion with little images dropped here and there throughout the dialogue and action, preferably when the characters interact with the graceful draperies or display of jade fertility carvings. We don’t need a layout of the house, especially all at once.
4. Inner dialogue and exposition are fine, but be careful of telling the reader stuff they already know, or don’t need to know.He pressed his lips to hers. She gave a little gasp, and her body melted into his. I want him so badly, she thought. I’ve never felt like this before about anyone.Now, you can get away with a lot of inner dialogue and exposition in romance, but in the above passage, we don’t need that inner thought at all. Even if we do perhaps, in some cases, need to see that thought once, we don’t need it every time he kisses her. We actually feel the moment and the romantic tension more if the inner dialogue is mostly implied by the characters and the situation, and left to the imagination.Also, giving expository backstory or detail that doesn’t play into the story is a double no-no. Backstories on minor characters that only appear once in the book; memories of events that aren’t relevant; long descriptions of job duties when the novel takes place while the character is on vacation—these sorts of things are dead weight that slow pacing and bore readers.
5. You don’t need to say something using the fewest words possible, but avoid repeating yourself, or telling something you’ve already shown.Some people can go on and on and on without losing the reader, because their style is engaging for one reason or another. But, even if you’re prone to wordiness, you don’t need to say things more than once. For instance:She drove quickly down the road. She was in a hurry. She was late for a meeting, and would be in trouble with her boss.Those three sentences basically convey the same idea a bunch of times. You could say the same thing by showing her honking her horn and swearing at traffic, and letting us know by context that she’s on her way to a meeting; or if nothing else by saying something like She drove like a maniac to get to the meeting.Or:She hated chocolate pie. She poked at it with her fork, wrinkling her nose. “I hate chocolate pie.”You really just need the action there. You could also have the dialogue if character-appropriate, but the first sentence should never be there. It just tells before it shows, and thus reduces the impact of showing.
6. Avoid sensory words such as “saw” “heard” “smelled” or “felt” as much as possible.This is the hardest one for some people. The trick here is just to put the reader in the story by describing what’s going on instead of saying so-and-so saw or heard it going on. For instance:Jeremy smelled jasmine.As opposed to:The scent of jasmine wafted over him.The second makes you feel more like you’re there, right? Sometimes you do need the sensory tag for emphasis; for instance, if your main character is in the other room and can’t see the door opening, you can’t say the door opened. You have to say they heard the door opening…or you could say The door creaked as it opened, or something, if appropriate. Also, I use the saw tag when I want to make it clear someone is noticing something that they were not meant to notice. Abraham saw Fred tuck his shirt over the butt of his pistol. That makes it clearer that it didn’t just happen, it happened surreptitiously. Even in these situations, you can sometimes remove the sensory tag: Fred quickly tugged his shirt over the butt of his pistol, then smiled wide at the approaching cop.The “feel” tag is harder to remove. It’s best if you can write the scene so it’s obvious what someone would be feeling. If you’ve done your character development, scene setting, and dialogue right, this is often possible. But, at times, you really do have to say things like George felt like she’d hung him by his nuts from the flagpole. There’s no other way to get the point across and keep the reader along for the ride.What writing tips and tricks do you use? I’d love to hear them. I’d also love to argue with you if you don’t agree with some of mine J
Elizabeth Roderick is a freelance editor, and the author of many strange novels. You can find her on Amazon.
Simple(ish) Tricks to Make Any Style of Writing Better
I’ve done a lot of critiquing, beta reading, and professional editing, so I’ve had the privilege of working with people who write in all different styles and genres. Each style and genre has its own rules, and I’ve learned to appreciate them all on their own merits.
There’s a lot of writing advice that doesn’t take the differences in genres into account. Some of it makes me want to headbutt the person giving it, because it amounts to a style critique rather than sound writing advice, especially if applied indiscriminately. This sort of writing advice can impede creativity.
There is other advice, however, that works across all styles and genres. These are some of the tips and tricks I use when writing and editing my own work as well as clients’ work. It’s the stuff that always seems to make writing better (although there are exceptions…like when I was writing Justin’s schizophrenic character voice in The Other Place Series. There are times to break every rule, as long as you’re doing it mindfully).
So, with that small caveat, here are six things I’ve found (almost) always improve writing:
1. Avoid dialogue tags whenever possible.
If you only have two people in the conversation, you don’t need a dialogue tag with every line of dialogue, because readers understand who’s talking as long as they’re oriented now and again. You can also use action tags in the place of dialogue tags. Action tags usually precede the dialogue (though they can come after), and describe something a character is doing while they speak. Action tags are super great because they can perform quadruple duty: let us know who is speaking, develop character, create a mood or vibe, and put a vivid image in the reader’s mind. For instance:“I just don’t know,” Marla said.As opposed to:Marla chiseled the dried blood from beneath her fingernails with her hunting knife. “I just don’t know.”Be careful, however, of overusing dialogue tags like, “She smiled,” or “She cocked an eyebrow.” I’m guilty of overusing these. Often, they don’t add anything, and/or are already implied by the dialogue.
2. Adjectives and adverbs are okay; redundancy isn’t.If the adjective or adverb is already implied by the scene, dialogue, or action, you don’t need to use it. For instance:The bright Southern California sun shone intensely on their faces.Neither “bright” nor “intensely” are really needed here (because they’re implied by SoCal sun), and don’t add much as to style, either (you probably don’t even need “on their faces” in most cases, if you want to get technical). Or:“We need to get out of here!” she yelled urgently.You really just need the dialogue here. Very few people would exclaim such a thing languorously, and if they were, it would be very appropriate to use that adverb—especially because “languorously” is a bitchin’ word.However:He leaned on the dented bumper of his car, eyeing her lustily.Both “dented” and “lustily” add something here, if we don’t already know those things from context.
3. Description is fine, but diagraming is generally not.I love it when the author gives me a bizarre, beautiful, or bleak image that sticks with me. However, I get really confused and any image in my head is destroyed whenever I read something like this:The house was three stories tall, with three rows of five windows off to the right of the main entrance, and three rows of eight windows to the left of the entrance. The front door was tall and stately, a double door, with carved frescoes of cherubs and nymphs all along the edges. Inside, a hallway led off in front to the state rooms. Another to the right led to the ballroom …You get what I’m going for. The point of description is to give readers an image, and a mood. You can do this succinctly, and let their imaginations fill in the rest—that’s part of the fun of reading. In the passage above, the writer can convey the image of a grand, old-style mansion with little images dropped here and there throughout the dialogue and action, preferably when the characters interact with the graceful draperies or display of jade fertility carvings. We don’t need a layout of the house, especially all at once.
4. Inner dialogue and exposition are fine, but be careful of telling the reader stuff they already know, or don’t need to know.He pressed his lips to hers. She gave a little gasp, and her body melted into his. I want him so badly, she thought. I’ve never felt like this before about anyone.Now, you can get away with a lot of inner dialogue and exposition in romance, but in the above passage, we don’t need that inner thought at all. Even if we do perhaps, in some cases, need to see that thought once, we don’t need it every time he kisses her. We actually feel the moment and the romantic tension more if the inner dialogue is mostly implied by the characters and the situation, and left to the imagination.Also, giving expository backstory or detail that doesn’t play into the story is a double no-no. Backstories on minor characters that only appear once in the book; memories of events that aren’t relevant; long descriptions of job duties when the novel takes place while the character is on vacation—these sorts of things are dead weight that slow pacing and bore readers.
5. You don’t need to say something using the fewest words possible, but avoid repeating yourself, or telling something you’ve already shown.Some people can go on and on and on without losing the reader, because their style is engaging for one reason or another. But, even if you’re prone to wordiness, you don’t need to say things more than once. For instance:She drove quickly down the road. She was in a hurry. She was late for a meeting, and would be in trouble with her boss.Those three sentences basically convey the same idea a bunch of times. You could say the same thing by showing her honking her horn and swearing at traffic, and letting us know by context that she’s on her way to a meeting; or if nothing else by saying something like She drove like a maniac to get to the meeting.Or:She hated chocolate pie. She poked at it with her fork, wrinkling her nose. “I hate chocolate pie.”You really just need the action there. You could also have the dialogue if character-appropriate, but the first sentence should never be there. It just tells before it shows, and thus reduces the impact of showing.
6. Avoid sensory words such as “saw” “heard” “smelled” or “felt” as much as possible.This is the hardest one for some people. The trick here is just to put the reader in the story by describing what’s going on instead of saying so-and-so saw or heard it going on. For instance:Jeremy smelled jasmine.As opposed to:The scent of jasmine wafted over him.The second makes you feel more like you’re there, right? Sometimes you do need the sensory tag for emphasis; for instance, if your main character is in the other room and can’t see the door opening, you can’t say the door opened. You have to say they heard the door opening…or you could say The door creaked as it opened, or something, if appropriate. Also, I use the saw tag when I want to make it clear someone is noticing something that they were not meant to notice. Abraham saw Fred tuck his shirt over the butt of his pistol. That makes it clearer that it didn’t just happen, it happened surreptitiously. Even in these situations, you can sometimes remove the sensory tag: Fred quickly tugged his shirt over the butt of his pistol, then smiled wide at the approaching cop.The “feel” tag is harder to remove. It’s best if you can write the scene so it’s obvious what someone would be feeling. If you’ve done your character development, scene setting, and dialogue right, this is often possible. But, at times, you really do have to say things like George felt like she’d hung him by his nuts from the flagpole. There’s no other way to get the point across and keep the reader along for the ride.What writing tips and tricks do you use? I’d love to hear them. I’d also love to argue with you if you don’t agree with some of mine J
Elizabeth Roderick is a freelance editor, and the author of many strange novels. You can find her on Amazon.
April 19, 2017
Query Kombat Free Pass Giveaway!
Query Kombat begins soon! Each year, I raffle off one entry into the first round. The free pass winner is guaranteed to be featured on my blog for Round 1 only, and to get feedback from about a dozen judges (possibly more).* Winning a free pass does not guarantee entry into the agent round.
I've been thinking a lot about the tragic death of Julie Lonewolf and what I can do to help marginalized writers. Nothing I can do can undo what happened, but I'd like to give a chance to someone whose work might have been overlooked. This year, my free pass is open to marginalized writers only. The contest itself remains open to all writers.
For this giveaway, I'm using a definition borrowed from DV Pit:
This includes (but is not limited to): Native peoples and people of color; people living and/or born/raised in underrepresented cultures and countries; disabled persons (including neurodiverse); people living with illness; people on marginalized ends of the socioeconomic, cultural and/or religious spectrum; people identifying within LGBTQIA+; and more.
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To enter, leave a blog comment. Share your story. Tell how the lack of diversity in books has affected you. Or tell a story about growing up a member of a marginalized group. Name a diverse book that has touched your life. Again, this is your story. I'm not going to put rules on what you say. You do not need to use your real name. You do not need to state how you've been marginalized (but please do not enter if you're do not fit the above definition). Your comment can be as long or as short as it needs to be. If you have a lot to say, PLEASE put it in Microsoft Word so you can break into multiple comments if it's too long. Then, use the Rafflecopter below. The rafflecopter will pick the winner, so you must submit your entries after leaving a comment.
The Rafflecopter will remain active through May 15. The winner will be announced on my blog on May 16. You have plenty of time to prepare your comments and still get into the giveaway. If you do not want me to announce your name if you win, please email me at laura (at) pitchslamcontest (dot) com. This will not affect your chances. I'll check it after drawing a winner.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Inappropriate, racist, homophobic, bigoted, or otherwise offensive comments will be deleted and anyone leaving such comments will be disqualified from the kompetition.
If you have any questions, please feel free to tweet me. I tend to be online less over the weekends, but will get back to you as soon as I can.
* I reserve the right, in my sole discretion, to disqualify racist, offensive, or inappropriate entries, entries in genres we're not accepting (i.e., picture books), or entries with words counts that are significantly outside genre standards (like if you send me a 20,000 word adult fantasy. Or a 200,000 word adult fantasy).
I've been thinking a lot about the tragic death of Julie Lonewolf and what I can do to help marginalized writers. Nothing I can do can undo what happened, but I'd like to give a chance to someone whose work might have been overlooked. This year, my free pass is open to marginalized writers only. The contest itself remains open to all writers.
For this giveaway, I'm using a definition borrowed from DV Pit:
This includes (but is not limited to): Native peoples and people of color; people living and/or born/raised in underrepresented cultures and countries; disabled persons (including neurodiverse); people living with illness; people on marginalized ends of the socioeconomic, cultural and/or religious spectrum; people identifying within LGBTQIA+; and more.
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #5a5959; -webkit-text-stroke: #5a5959} span.s1 {font-kerning: none}
To enter, leave a blog comment. Share your story. Tell how the lack of diversity in books has affected you. Or tell a story about growing up a member of a marginalized group. Name a diverse book that has touched your life. Again, this is your story. I'm not going to put rules on what you say. You do not need to use your real name. You do not need to state how you've been marginalized (but please do not enter if you're do not fit the above definition). Your comment can be as long or as short as it needs to be. If you have a lot to say, PLEASE put it in Microsoft Word so you can break into multiple comments if it's too long. Then, use the Rafflecopter below. The rafflecopter will pick the winner, so you must submit your entries after leaving a comment.
The Rafflecopter will remain active through May 15. The winner will be announced on my blog on May 16. You have plenty of time to prepare your comments and still get into the giveaway. If you do not want me to announce your name if you win, please email me at laura (at) pitchslamcontest (dot) com. This will not affect your chances. I'll check it after drawing a winner.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Inappropriate, racist, homophobic, bigoted, or otherwise offensive comments will be deleted and anyone leaving such comments will be disqualified from the kompetition.
If you have any questions, please feel free to tweet me. I tend to be online less over the weekends, but will get back to you as soon as I can.
* I reserve the right, in my sole discretion, to disqualify racist, offensive, or inappropriate entries, entries in genres we're not accepting (i.e., picture books), or entries with words counts that are significantly outside genre standards (like if you send me a 20,000 word adult fantasy. Or a 200,000 word adult fantasy).
April 18, 2017
Query Kombat 2017: Fight For Your Dreams
Bloggers Laura, Michael, and Michelle are back again to bring you the fifth annual Query Kombat tournament.
Contest Mission:
To showcase the work of diverse and talented novelists, while providing a learning environment that unites the writing community through knowledge, kindness, and a little friendly kompetition.
The BasicsQuery Kombat will host 64 kombatants in a single-elimination, tournament style query-off. Entries will go head to head (one on one) with one another until only ONE entry remains. There will be a total of six rounds in Query Kombat. 64 entries in round one, 32 in round two, 16 in round three, 8 in round four, 4 in round five, and 2 in round six.
Unlike traditional tournaments, we won't be using tournament brackets. Entries will be matched up based on target audience and genre. We'll continue grouping that way until it's no longer possible.
If you secure a spot in the tournament, your query and the first 250 words of your manuscript (to the end of a complete sentence) will be pitted against another query and first 250 words. Judges will read each match-up and vote 'Victory' on the best entry. Remember, this is subjective. Considering last year, votes may come down to personal tastes.
The entry with the most ‘victories’ at the end of the round will advance to the next round until only one champion remains.
The agent round will be held after the first round. That mean the top 32 entries will make it to the agent round.
Of course, there's a twist!
The agent round will be conducted in secret. And by secret, we mean TOP SECRET. Entrants won't know who requested what—or how much—until that entrant has been eliminated from the contest.
On the plus side, winners of the first round will be able to submit and updated entry prior to the agent round. So, any feedback the judges give can be implemented before the agents see your work.
Who’s Invited to Submit:The Query Kombat tournament is open only to unagented writers seeking representation. Your manuscript must be complete, polished, and ready to submit. If your manuscript has been in the agent round of another contest within the last six months, you are not eligible to participate in Query Kombat. Please don’t try to sneak in. The QK team includes about fifty people and a few hundreds of spectators. Someone will notice and inform us. Submissions for MG, YA, NA, and Adult works will be accepted (Sorry we aren't accepting Picture books or Chapter Books this year.). Only one entry per person. Do not attempt to submit more than one entry by using different email accounts. Again, the QK family is huge. Someone will notice.
Submissions The submission window will open on May 17th at 9:00 AM Eastern time and close on May 19th at Noon.
We will have email confirmation. If you don't receive it within an hour of submitting your
entry, contact us via twitter and let us know. Kontestants will be revealed on May 26th, and the tournament will kick off on June 2nd.
IMPORTANT: The Query Kombat team reserves the right to disqualify any entrant, at any time, for any reason. If an entrant is disqualified/drops out before the agent round, an alternate from the same host will take its place. If an entrant is disqualified/drops out after the agent round, the opposing entry will automatically advance to the next round.
The only time we will ever disqualify an applicant is if you say or do something to blemish the spirit of query contests. Query Kombat is supposed to be fun…
So no fighting!
In order to enter the contest you MUST follow formatting guidelines, and submit during the contest window. All entries that follow said guidelines will be considered.
In the event that we receive more than the available 64 spots (this is highly expected), Michelle, Laura, and I will savagely attack the slush pile in attempts to build the best team. We will pick (and announce) three alternates in case a submission is disqualified.
Entries should be sent to: QueryKombat (at) gmail (dot) com.
Formatting Guidelines:Font: Times New Roman (or an equivalent), 12pt font, single-spaced with spaces between each paragraph. No (I repeat: NO!) indentations. Subject line of the Email: A short, unique nickname for your entry [colon] your genre (audience included). Do not skip this step or your entry will be deleted. (ex. I Fell in Love with a Ken Doll: Adult Erotica)
For the nickname, make it as unique as possible so that there are no duplicates. These will be the names used in the tournament (or an abbreviated version if it's too long) so keep it PG-13 and try to have it relate to your story in some way.
In the body of the email (with examples):
Name: Michael AnthonyEmail address: myboyfriendwasbittenbyashark (at) gmail (dot)
com.
Twitter Handle: @BarbforSenate36
Title: Eunuchs and PoliticsEntry Nickname: I Fell in Love with a Ken DollWord count: 72KGenre: Adult Erotica (If Ownvoices please list here)
Query:
Barbara B. Doll seemed like a woman who had it all, from the perfect body to her own dream house, McDonald's and a variety of vehicles. She even managed to become a U.S. Senator and go to the moon! However, something seemed missing. She didn't have any idea what it was until she met Ken.
Ken Dahl is funny, good-looking, and may have ties to the Illuminati. Barbara is immediately drawn to his shiny, perfect hair and teeth. When he offers to teach her surfing, they hit it off instantly. Everything seems to be going perfectly until Barbara discovers Ken has no genitalia. She must search within herself to determine whether love can overcome plastic, non-removable underwear.
EUNUCHS AND POLITICS is adult erotica, complete at 72,000 words.
***THIS is NOT a PITCH but your FULL query. You may include greeting and closing. Do not include a bio or comp title.
First 250:
Words, words, and more words.
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Don't include the chapter title and please. If the 250th word puts you in the middle of a sentence, you may go up to 258 to finish that sentence. Do not abuse and send 256 words or more. Both Pages and Google Docs will return incorrect word counts if you have hyphens, em-dashes, and ellipses. Microsoft Word counts correctly.
Please use this site to give you an accurate word count if you are concerned about your standard word counter: https://wordcounter.net/. If you must, count by hand. A properly hyphenated word is one word. Words separated by an em-dash or ellipse are two words.
All queries submitted are FINAL. We will not edit them in any way, shape, or form. Please read, reread, and rereread your submission before you hit send. You have several weeks to polish your work. Take advantage of it. Competition will be fierce.
Host BlogsBecause the immense amount of work ahead of us, the tournament will be hosted on three separate blogs. In order to enter the contest, you MUST follow Michael, Michelle, and Laura's blogs (Twitter is cool too). All three blogs will host the first round and agent round. The second round will be hosted by Michael and Michelle. The third round will be hosted by Laura. The fourth round will be hosted by Michael. The fifth round will be hosted by Michelle. The final round will be hosted by Laura.Have no fear, each blog will have links to all rounds so you will not get lost.
Agents and judges will be revealed soon. ( As of now we have 30 agents and 27 judges! )Questions can be left in the comments and I'll answer them as quickly as possible.
One last thing:
Contests are very time-consuming, and in order to continue hosting each year, we’re asking contestants to give a $5-$10 donation when making their entries. Asking for donations is one way to ensure we’re able to give you the time needed to carefully consider every entry. Chosen Kontestants receive feedback from up to 27 agented/published writers on their query and first page, plus the ability to query agents they otherwise may not have connected with. Some agents even read requested contest entries before the rest of the slush pile! All Kontestants, chosen are not, receive free slush tips from the hosts and the camaraderie that develops from entering contests together. Many writers find lifelong critique partners and good friends from these contests (I did).
Donating this year is strictly voluntary. Giving a donation does not increase your chances of being picked. Giving less than $5 or more than $10 will also have no impact on your chances. Donating will not affect how many rounds a person makes it through if chosen. People who are not able to donate will not be disqualified.
Thanks for your understanding and your donations!
Best of luck in the tournament!
Every year, I raffle off one free pass into the contest to help spread the word and give a chance to an entry I might not otherwise have noticed. The free pass giveaway for this year will start on Thursday, April 20. Check back for more details!
April 17, 2017
DADDY'S BEST FRIEND cover reveal!
I've always been a huge fan of Brighton Walsh. Today, I'm excited to be able to help reveal the smokin' hot new cover for the first book Brighton is putting out with Ellis Leigh as London Hale. This book looks awesome, and I can't wait to get my hands on it.
She’s temptation personified
Nathan had always been more than just my dad’s friend. I never thought he’d see me as an adult, especially not after avoiding me for so long. But one hug, one moment feeling every inch of him against me, shattered that illusion. Consequences no longer mattered—I was eighteen, and I was willing to risk everything for my shot with him.
He’s not going to resist anymore I never should’ve seen Eve as more than my best friend’s daughter. As a cop, I knew it was wrong. It was my job to protect her from guys like me. Chasing her could cost me my career—not to mention the only family I’d ever known—but I couldn’t hold back another second. One taste, and I wanted her. To hell with the fallout.
Amazon US I Amazon CA I Amazon UK I Amazon AU Add to Goodreads
And now, check out this awesome cover!
Enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card!
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About London London Hale is the combined pen name of writing besties Ellis Leigh and Brighton Walsh. Between them, they’ve published more than thirty books in the contemporary romance, paranormal romance, and romantic suspense genres. Ellis is a USA Today bestselling author who loves coffee, thinks green Skittles are the best, and prefers to stay in every weekend. Brighton is multi-published with Berkley, St. Martin’s Press, and Carina Press. She hates coffee, thinks green Skittles are the work of the devil, and has never heard of a party she didn’t want to attend. Don’t ask how they became such good friends or work so well together—they still haven’t figured it out themselves.
Website: http://www.londonhale.com Email: london@londonhale.com Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLondon... Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bundt... Twitter: https://twitter.com/haleyeslondon Goodreads: http://bit.ly/GR-London
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She’s temptation personified
Nathan had always been more than just my dad’s friend. I never thought he’d see me as an adult, especially not after avoiding me for so long. But one hug, one moment feeling every inch of him against me, shattered that illusion. Consequences no longer mattered—I was eighteen, and I was willing to risk everything for my shot with him.
He’s not going to resist anymore I never should’ve seen Eve as more than my best friend’s daughter. As a cop, I knew it was wrong. It was my job to protect her from guys like me. Chasing her could cost me my career—not to mention the only family I’d ever known—but I couldn’t hold back another second. One taste, and I wanted her. To hell with the fallout.
Amazon US I Amazon CA I Amazon UK I Amazon AU Add to Goodreads
And now, check out this awesome cover!
Enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card!
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Garamond; min-height: 13.0px} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: justify; line-height: 14.1px; font: 14.0px Garamond} span.s1 {font: 12.0px Garamond} span.s2 {text-decoration: underline} http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/22b294fa7/
About London London Hale is the combined pen name of writing besties Ellis Leigh and Brighton Walsh. Between them, they’ve published more than thirty books in the contemporary romance, paranormal romance, and romantic suspense genres. Ellis is a USA Today bestselling author who loves coffee, thinks green Skittles are the best, and prefers to stay in every weekend. Brighton is multi-published with Berkley, St. Martin’s Press, and Carina Press. She hates coffee, thinks green Skittles are the work of the devil, and has never heard of a party she didn’t want to attend. Don’t ask how they became such good friends or work so well together—they still haven’t figured it out themselves.
Website: http://www.londonhale.com Email: london@londonhale.com Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLondon... Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bundt... Twitter: https://twitter.com/haleyeslondon Goodreads: http://bit.ly/GR-London
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April 13, 2017
A #PitchWars Guide to Interacting with Mentors, Part 1
Pitchwars is one of the most exciting contests of the year, both for mentors and prospective mentees. It’s a huge contest, and everyone wants to be a part of it. In this three part blog series, I’m going to take a look at ways that you can benefit from the contest through your interactions with mentors, whether you’re chosen or not. A lot of the same principals apply to interacting with mentors, hosts, and judges of other contests, so if you're planning to enter TeenPit or QueryKombat, read on.
HOW TO INTERACT WITH MENTORS BEFORE THE CONTEST STARTS: DO read the bios carefully. Even if you’ve applied before, things change. A lot of us will fine tune our wishlists based on current trends, what we’re writing, or even just realizing that we worded something badly in a previous year. (Not that I’d do that…) It also really helps to get mentors' books from the library when you can, or download the sample pages from Amazon to get a sense of our writing styles. You've got a lot of time to decide who to sub. Use it wisely.
DON’T tweet about how much contests suck, or the mentors suck, or about how you’re sure you won’t get in. Being positive is contagious.DO your research. Mentors are happy to answer questions, but some of us get a little frustrated about answering the same question over and over. We’re not Google. There are a lot of resources out there besides us. I know people say it only takes about 10 seconds to answer a question, and that’s true. Now multiply ten seconds times the 2,500 or so people who intend to enter. Even if you cut it down to the 100 or so who’ll be subbing an individual mentor – that’s a lot of time. We don’t get paid for this. There are a ton of entries on my blogwith writing tips, including how to polish a query and/or contest entry. I tweet about them before and during the submission period. So when I get a submission where the only verb used in the first chapter is “was,” that tells me one of two things: either you didn’t care enough about my opinion to read all those blogs, or you decided you know better than me what works and what doesn’t. Neither of those things makes me want to work with you.DON’T be afraid of us. We don’t bite, seriously. (Well, some of the romance mentors might, but only if you ask nicely.) We love interacting with potential mentees. It helps us get a sense of you just like it helps you get a sense of us. Ask questions if you’re not sure about subbing to someone! We want to help you find the best fit for your work. If I’m not it, I’m happy to point you to someone who is. But…DO be polite, always. Both to mentors and other mentees. Someone was disqualified last year for being a dick on the hashtag. That shouldn’t be you.DON’T pre-pitch every single mentor with the same tweet. In fact, don’t pre-pitch at all, it’s against the rules. General questions are fine, explaining your specific plot is not.DO be respectful of our time. The twitter feed gets crazy. Some of us (especially the hosts) get inundated with tweets. It can take time to respond. Every minute spent doing Pitchwars stuff is time away from our day jobs, our spouses and children, cleaning our house, our hobbies, our workouts, and our own writing. We’re happy to do it, but let us decide how much time we’re willing to give. If you want to tweet a mentor at 10:00 pm on a Friday, don’t be surprised if you don’t get an answer until Monday. Also, don't DM/email a mentor or host unless they've specifically said it's OK or you have a pre-existing relationship with them that includes private messages or emails.DON’T leave reviews trashing the mentors’ work. I mean, sure, that’s your prerogative, but if I see Wendy Writer called my book a “steaming dumpster of tripe,” do you think that’ll make me want to help her out?
At the end of the day, we’re doing our mentees a favor. I generally prefer not to do favors for people who tell everyone they think I suck. (Positive reviews are lovely, assuming you've read the book, but won't affect your chances.)DO take full advantage of the hashtag to find new friends. Follow other writers, connect. The blog hop is also great for this purpose. Only about 1% of applicants typically get chosen. But 100% of you can find friends and critique partners through the contest if you make the effort. Trust me, it’s worth it. Some of my closest friends and critique partners are people I’ve met through other contests. I'd be lost without them.
A couple of days before the blog hop begins, I'll post the next part of this series: HOW TO INTERACT WITH MENTORS DURING THE SELECTION PERIOD. Until then, focus on the one thing you can control: polishing your manuscript until it's your best possible work.
Hope to see you in TeenPit, QueryKombat, and PitchWars!
HOW TO INTERACT WITH MENTORS BEFORE THE CONTEST STARTS: DO read the bios carefully. Even if you’ve applied before, things change. A lot of us will fine tune our wishlists based on current trends, what we’re writing, or even just realizing that we worded something badly in a previous year. (Not that I’d do that…) It also really helps to get mentors' books from the library when you can, or download the sample pages from Amazon to get a sense of our writing styles. You've got a lot of time to decide who to sub. Use it wisely.
DON’T tweet about how much contests suck, or the mentors suck, or about how you’re sure you won’t get in. Being positive is contagious.DO your research. Mentors are happy to answer questions, but some of us get a little frustrated about answering the same question over and over. We’re not Google. There are a lot of resources out there besides us. I know people say it only takes about 10 seconds to answer a question, and that’s true. Now multiply ten seconds times the 2,500 or so people who intend to enter. Even if you cut it down to the 100 or so who’ll be subbing an individual mentor – that’s a lot of time. We don’t get paid for this. There are a ton of entries on my blogwith writing tips, including how to polish a query and/or contest entry. I tweet about them before and during the submission period. So when I get a submission where the only verb used in the first chapter is “was,” that tells me one of two things: either you didn’t care enough about my opinion to read all those blogs, or you decided you know better than me what works and what doesn’t. Neither of those things makes me want to work with you.DON’T be afraid of us. We don’t bite, seriously. (Well, some of the romance mentors might, but only if you ask nicely.) We love interacting with potential mentees. It helps us get a sense of you just like it helps you get a sense of us. Ask questions if you’re not sure about subbing to someone! We want to help you find the best fit for your work. If I’m not it, I’m happy to point you to someone who is. But…DO be polite, always. Both to mentors and other mentees. Someone was disqualified last year for being a dick on the hashtag. That shouldn’t be you.DON’T pre-pitch every single mentor with the same tweet. In fact, don’t pre-pitch at all, it’s against the rules. General questions are fine, explaining your specific plot is not.DO be respectful of our time. The twitter feed gets crazy. Some of us (especially the hosts) get inundated with tweets. It can take time to respond. Every minute spent doing Pitchwars stuff is time away from our day jobs, our spouses and children, cleaning our house, our hobbies, our workouts, and our own writing. We’re happy to do it, but let us decide how much time we’re willing to give. If you want to tweet a mentor at 10:00 pm on a Friday, don’t be surprised if you don’t get an answer until Monday. Also, don't DM/email a mentor or host unless they've specifically said it's OK or you have a pre-existing relationship with them that includes private messages or emails.DON’T leave reviews trashing the mentors’ work. I mean, sure, that’s your prerogative, but if I see Wendy Writer called my book a “steaming dumpster of tripe,” do you think that’ll make me want to help her out?
At the end of the day, we’re doing our mentees a favor. I generally prefer not to do favors for people who tell everyone they think I suck. (Positive reviews are lovely, assuming you've read the book, but won't affect your chances.)DO take full advantage of the hashtag to find new friends. Follow other writers, connect. The blog hop is also great for this purpose. Only about 1% of applicants typically get chosen. But 100% of you can find friends and critique partners through the contest if you make the effort. Trust me, it’s worth it. Some of my closest friends and critique partners are people I’ve met through other contests. I'd be lost without them.A couple of days before the blog hop begins, I'll post the next part of this series: HOW TO INTERACT WITH MENTORS DURING THE SELECTION PERIOD. Until then, focus on the one thing you can control: polishing your manuscript until it's your best possible work.
Hope to see you in TeenPit, QueryKombat, and PitchWars!
April 11, 2017
MEET ME UNDER THE STARS Cover Reveal!!
Today I have the pleasure of hosting the cover reveal for KD Proctor's MEET ME UNDER THE STARS, to be released by BookFish Books on July 19, 2017. I was extremely fortunate to have met KD last year while mentoring Sun vs. Snow. I got a sneak peek at the opening of this book, and it's fantastic. I can't wait to get to read the rest!
Look at this pretty...
Cover Reveal! MEET ME UNDER THE
STARSAuthor: KD ProctorGenre: NA RomanceRelease Date: July 18, 2017Publisher: BookFish Books (www.bookfishbooks.com) Cover Designer: Anita B. Carroll, Race-Point US (www.race-point.com)
Back
Cover Blurb
When
ratings for her popular DIY show start to circle the drain after the sudden
death of her sister, Charlotte “Charlie” Conti has only one mission—to plan a
comeback. But her sister had other plans. As part of the will, Charlie must
work with *him* to create a memorial scholarship in her sister’s memory. The same *him* Charlie fell in love with three years ago while working at a summer camp.
The same *him* she dumped to protect his heart.Sexy
British player, Nate Walsh, has sixty days to find a new job or he’ll be
deported back to England where he’s no longer welcome. He doesn’t have time to work on a memorial scholarship with *her*. The same *her* who shattered his heart without explanation or warning.The same *her* he’s never gotten over.Unable to agree on a benefactor for the scholarship, Nate and Charlie challenge each other to a winner-takes-all competition. They both know the only way to win is to turn up the heat and tease one another with the one thing they both want: each other. But as sparks fly, their true feelings resurface. Nate and Charlie must decide if their love is worth the effort or if they'll allow their
disastrous past mistakes to destroy their chance at forever.
A Little about KD...
KD Proctor loved college so much that when it came time to graduate, she didn’t
want to leave. Trading in her textbooks for student handbooks and policy manuals, she began a career in College Student Personnel and she fulfilled her wish to stay on a college campus forever. She always joked that one day she’d write a book about college students, never expecting that to come true!
KD lives in West Central, Minnesota with her husband and fur-kids. She likes to write fun twists on the usual tropes that we all
love. Her characters are smart, funny, and always swoony. And yes. They
always get their happily ever after.
Before being accepted for publication, MEET ME UNDER THE STARS
(formerly titled IF YOU'RE EVER IN TOWN) was the 2016 YARWA winner for the New Adult category.
Rafflecopter
link- Two $15 Amazon Gift Cards are up for grabs! Click HERE for Rafflecopter Giveaway!
Find KD
here:
Website
Pinterest
Twitter
Instagram
Goodreads
Look at this pretty...
Cover Reveal! MEET ME UNDER THE
STARSAuthor: KD ProctorGenre: NA RomanceRelease Date: July 18, 2017Publisher: BookFish Books (www.bookfishbooks.com) Cover Designer: Anita B. Carroll, Race-Point US (www.race-point.com)
Back
Cover Blurb
When
ratings for her popular DIY show start to circle the drain after the sudden
death of her sister, Charlotte “Charlie” Conti has only one mission—to plan a
comeback. But her sister had other plans. As part of the will, Charlie must
work with *him* to create a memorial scholarship in her sister’s memory. The same *him* Charlie fell in love with three years ago while working at a summer camp.
The same *him* she dumped to protect his heart.Sexy
British player, Nate Walsh, has sixty days to find a new job or he’ll be
deported back to England where he’s no longer welcome. He doesn’t have time to work on a memorial scholarship with *her*. The same *her* who shattered his heart without explanation or warning.The same *her* he’s never gotten over.Unable to agree on a benefactor for the scholarship, Nate and Charlie challenge each other to a winner-takes-all competition. They both know the only way to win is to turn up the heat and tease one another with the one thing they both want: each other. But as sparks fly, their true feelings resurface. Nate and Charlie must decide if their love is worth the effort or if they'll allow their
disastrous past mistakes to destroy their chance at forever.
A Little about KD...
KD Proctor loved college so much that when it came time to graduate, she didn’twant to leave. Trading in her textbooks for student handbooks and policy manuals, she began a career in College Student Personnel and she fulfilled her wish to stay on a college campus forever. She always joked that one day she’d write a book about college students, never expecting that to come true!
KD lives in West Central, Minnesota with her husband and fur-kids. She likes to write fun twists on the usual tropes that we all
love. Her characters are smart, funny, and always swoony. And yes. They
always get their happily ever after.
Before being accepted for publication, MEET ME UNDER THE STARS
(formerly titled IF YOU'RE EVER IN TOWN) was the 2016 YARWA winner for the New Adult category.
Rafflecopter
link- Two $15 Amazon Gift Cards are up for grabs! Click HERE for Rafflecopter Giveaway!
Find KD
here:
Website
Goodreads
April 10, 2017
Query Kombat 2017 is coming!
It's coming....
The Battle Begins
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Can your query survive?
Query Kombat Tournament Calendar:
Submission Window: May 17th - 19th
First round revealed: May 26thRound 1: June 2nd - 5th
Agent round: June 7th -10th
Round 2: June 14th - 16th
Round 3: June 20st - 22nd
Round 4: June 24th - 25th
Round 5: June 27th -28th
Round 6: June 30th -July 1st Contest Mission: To showcase the work of diverse and talented novelists, while providing a learning environment that unites the writing community through knowledge, kindness, and a little friendly kompetition.
March 31, 2017
Review: The Heartbeat Hypothesis
I was so excited to get an advance copy of this book for review. It seems like it's been ages since I plucked Lindsey's book out of the slush to feature her in the New Agent query contest. Her writing pulled me in instantly then, and it kept my interest completely now. Read on for the full review.
Audra Madison simply wanted to walk in the shoes of Emily Cavanaugh, a free-spirited teenager who died too young. After all, Audra wasn’t supposed to be here.
Thanks to Emily, Audra has a second chance at life. She’s doing all the things that seemed impossible just two years ago: Go to college. Date. Stargaze in the Rocky Mountains. Maybe get a tattoo. You know, live.
Jake Cavanaugh, a photographer with mysterious, brooding gray eyes, agrees to help chronicle her newfound experiences. She makes him laugh, one of the only people who can these days. As they delve into each other’s pasts – and secrets – the closer they become.
But she’s guarded and feels like she can’t trust anyone, including herself.
And he’s struggling with the fact that his beloved sister’s heart beats inside her.
REVIEW:
So, Lindsey warned me about this book. She told me it was going to make me cry. But I, in my stupid arrogance, didn't listen. Oh, no, I scoffed, crying is for mere mortals. I don't cry at books! Boy, do I feel silly. Two weeks later, there I was, clutching the book and sobbing like someone just told Trump is going to be named Supreme Continual Ruler of the United States. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
And dammit, I hate things that make me cry. But I adored this book. The writing is beautiful, and Audra's impossible not to root for. After all, she had a heart transplant. She didn't expect to live long enough to get to college. But now she's healthy and alive... and she's got a crush on the brother of the girl who died to make it possible. OUCH.
Jake is utterly swoon-worthy. He's hot, he's a photographer who plays piano, and he's really conflicted about falling for the girl who is carrying around his sister's heart. It's so easy to root for both of them, yet so easy to see why starting a relationship could feel weird and awkward. Especially at 18 and 20.
The entire book is a delight. The romance unfolds in a realistic manner, the pacing is spot-on, and the ending is absolutely perfect. 5 Stars. Highly recommended!
PREORDER: AmazonABOUT LINDSEY FRYDMAN
Lindsey has been writing since she was nine years old, when she discovered the awesomeness that is Harriet the Spy. Her books always include a romance, though sometimes there’s an added sci-fi or magical realism twist. She lives in Columbus, Ohio (where the weather is never quite right). Her BFA in Photography and Graphic Design has granted her a wide assortment of creative knowledge that serves as inspiration (and not much else). When she’s not crafting YA and NA stories, you'll likely find her spending waaay too much time on Pinterest, playing a video game, singing show-tunes, or performing in a burlesque show—because she enjoys giving her introversion a worthy adversary. (Plus, it's the closest to Broadway she’ll ever get.) Lindsey was a proud 2016 Pitch Wars Mentee and thoroughly adores being a part of the wonderful writing community. THE HEARTBEAT HYPOTHESIS is her debut novel.
CONNECT WITH LINDSEY:Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Newsletter
Audra Madison simply wanted to walk in the shoes of Emily Cavanaugh, a free-spirited teenager who died too young. After all, Audra wasn’t supposed to be here.Thanks to Emily, Audra has a second chance at life. She’s doing all the things that seemed impossible just two years ago: Go to college. Date. Stargaze in the Rocky Mountains. Maybe get a tattoo. You know, live.
Jake Cavanaugh, a photographer with mysterious, brooding gray eyes, agrees to help chronicle her newfound experiences. She makes him laugh, one of the only people who can these days. As they delve into each other’s pasts – and secrets – the closer they become.
But she’s guarded and feels like she can’t trust anyone, including herself.
And he’s struggling with the fact that his beloved sister’s heart beats inside her.
REVIEW:
So, Lindsey warned me about this book. She told me it was going to make me cry. But I, in my stupid arrogance, didn't listen. Oh, no, I scoffed, crying is for mere mortals. I don't cry at books! Boy, do I feel silly. Two weeks later, there I was, clutching the book and sobbing like someone just told Trump is going to be named Supreme Continual Ruler of the United States. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
And dammit, I hate things that make me cry. But I adored this book. The writing is beautiful, and Audra's impossible not to root for. After all, she had a heart transplant. She didn't expect to live long enough to get to college. But now she's healthy and alive... and she's got a crush on the brother of the girl who died to make it possible. OUCH.
Jake is utterly swoon-worthy. He's hot, he's a photographer who plays piano, and he's really conflicted about falling for the girl who is carrying around his sister's heart. It's so easy to root for both of them, yet so easy to see why starting a relationship could feel weird and awkward. Especially at 18 and 20.
The entire book is a delight. The romance unfolds in a realistic manner, the pacing is spot-on, and the ending is absolutely perfect. 5 Stars. Highly recommended!
PREORDER: AmazonABOUT LINDSEY FRYDMAN
Lindsey has been writing since she was nine years old, when she discovered the awesomeness that is Harriet the Spy. Her books always include a romance, though sometimes there’s an added sci-fi or magical realism twist. She lives in Columbus, Ohio (where the weather is never quite right). Her BFA in Photography and Graphic Design has granted her a wide assortment of creative knowledge that serves as inspiration (and not much else). When she’s not crafting YA and NA stories, you'll likely find her spending waaay too much time on Pinterest, playing a video game, singing show-tunes, or performing in a burlesque show—because she enjoys giving her introversion a worthy adversary. (Plus, it's the closest to Broadway she’ll ever get.) Lindsey was a proud 2016 Pitch Wars Mentee and thoroughly adores being a part of the wonderful writing community. THE HEARTBEAT HYPOTHESIS is her debut novel.CONNECT WITH LINDSEY:Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Newsletter
