P.M. Dooling's Blog, page 4

Misunderstood Words and Phrases…is it really a big deal?

The answer for me is yes – and no.

With NaNoWriMo in full swing I decided to post some helpful writing tips, grammar help, etc. The first one is a nice big graphic I found on misunderstood words and phrases. For the most part, you think you’d know all of them. I thought that. I thought that way back in 2011 when I published my first book and used the phrase “for all intensive purposes”. Yeah, that one still haunts me.

Some I personally feel don’t need to be taken too strictly. Especially, in character dialogue. Farther/Further all confuses me a little. And I KNOW I use it incorrectly in my real life conversations, so by all means, my characters, especially the young ones might not be using it properly either.

So, glance away and I hope this brings you just a bit of help. And for those participating in NaNoWriMo…good luck and good writing!!!

 

 

New Agent to Query

New agents are actively building their client list, so it’s a great idea for new and up and coming writers to query to them.

One new agent is Amanda Jain of Inklings Literary.

Among other things she is interested in historical fiction, romance and mysteries.

To read more about what she’s looking for and how to query her check out her profile at Writer’s Digest – HERE

 

Free Mystery Writers Writing Contest

Writing contests can be a great way to both – 1) hone your writing skills AND 2) make a little extra money. Personally, I only ever enter free writing contests. As a struggling writer I just can’t go around paying a lot of entry fees – I need to eat and pay rent and enjoy going to the movies and Applebees Happy Hour every once in awhile.

This free writing contest is called The Black Orchid Novella Award. Sponsored by the Wolfe Pack and Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. It is for mystery/crime story novella writers and seems pretty legit – with a winning prize of $1,ooo and publication in the magazine. If you write this kind of genre and are up for the challenge – GO FOR IT! Below are listed some of the rules and guidelines.

 

General Procedures:

Entries must be 15,000 to 20,000 words in length, and submitted by the deadline.
Entries must be postmarked by May 31 of the submission year.
The winner will be announced at The Wolfe Pack’s Annual Black Orchid Banquet in New York City, the first Saturday of December.
The Black Orchid Novella Award is a blind contest. In order to be considered, your manuscript must follow the standards set out below exactly. Your manuscript must:

Be typed and printed in Times Roman, 12 pt., double spaced, single side only, with 1 inch margins. All pages must be numbered.
Be a copy—please keep the original—manuscripts will not be returned
Contain two cover sheets:

Top cover sheet should list your name, address, phone number, novella title, word count, and number of pages
The bottom cover sheet should list only the title of the manuscript, the word count, and the number of pages.


Include a header on every page containing the title and page number only. Do not put your name or contact information on the manuscript except on one of the two cover sheets as described above.
Clip the pages together. Do not bind them. Do not put them in a binder of any kind.
If you’d like, you’re welcome to include a self-addressed, stamped postcard. The postcard will be mailed to you to indicate our receipt of your novella.
Submissions should be sent to:

Jane K. Cleland, Chair

BONA

P.O. 3233

New York, NY 10163-3233

 

Rules and Qualifications:

Each entry must be an original unpublished work of fiction that conforms to the tradition of the Nero Wolfe series.
The mystery should be “traditional” in flavor.
The crime must be solved using the deductive abilities of the sleuth. No coincidences.
The killer must be known to the victim. No random psycho shootings.
The characters (male or female) must have an engaging relationship.
There needs to be some wit.
The timing could be retro or current.
There should be no explicit sex or violence.
The detective could be a professional or amateur.
The setting could be NYC or Boston or wherever.
We’re not looking for anything derivative of the Nero Wolfe character, milieu, etc.

40 Agents You Want to Submit Your Science Fiction Novel To!

If you’re looking to start querying agents for that awesome and epic Sci-Fi novel you’ve just written, I’ve compiled a list of 40 literary agents actively seeking Science Fiction to help you start.

Just click on the link after the agent’s name to be taken to their profile, where you can find submission guidelines and more information about what interest them.

Happy querying and GOOD LUCK!

Jennifer Udden of Barry Goldblatt Literary Agency – especially seeking innovative SF worlds we haven’t seen before.


Beth Campbell of Bookends


Moe Ferrara of Bookends – all subsets of SF.


Natalie Lakosil of Bradford Literary Agency


Sarah LaPolla of Bradford Literary Agency


Sarita Hernandez of Corvisiero Literary Agency – action-packed SF.


Jonathan Lyons of Curtis Brown Ltd.


Ginger Clark of Curtis Brown Ltd.


Adam Schear of DeFiore and Company – SF that breaks the mold.


Colin Farstad of DeFiore and Company


Michael Curry of Donald Maass Literary Agency – SF leaning towards the literary and the weird.


Paul Stevens of Donald Maass Literary Agency – Tried and true genre tropes turned on their head.


Michael Hoogland of Dystel and Goderich Literary Management


Penny Moore of FinePrint Literary Management


Michael Harriot of Folio Literary Management


Connor Goldsmith of Fuse Literary


Andrea Somberg of Harvey Klinger Inc.


Margaret Bail of Inklings Literary Agency – Soft SF.


Eddie Schneider of JABerwocky – Very interested in SF written in n0n-Western culture perspectives.


Lisa Rodgers of JABerwocky – Particularly drawn towards Space Opera and Military SF.


Sam Morgan of JABerwocky – More character and plot driven than science drive.


Paul Lucas of Jankow and Nesbit Associates


Caitlin Blasdell of Liza Dawson Associates 


Hannah Bowman of Liza Dawson Associates


Peter Knapp of New Leaf Literary – Smart grounded SF.


Becca Stumpf of Prospect Agency – Character driven SF that defy genre stereotypes.


Linda Camacho of Prospect Agency – Light SF.


Jennie Goloboy of Red Sofa Literary – SF that has literary flair.


Laura Zats of Red Sofa Literary –  Must pass Bechdel Test.


Amanda Rutter of Red Sofa Literary


Thao Le of Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency


Marlene Stringer of Stringer Literary Agency


Seth Fishman of The Gernert Company


Andy Kifer of The Gernert Company


Nephele Tempest of The Knight Agency


Lucienne Driver of The Knight Agency


Mark Gottlieb of Trident Media Group


John Silbersack of Trident Media Group


Fleetwood Robbins of Waxman Leavell Literary


Robin Rue of Writers House

Becoming Eden FREE Today on Amazon

Becoming Eden is FREE today on Kindle!!!

Check it out here – BECOMING EDEN by P.M. DOOLING

I’d love to hear what you think about it!

The small town of Delphi, Colorado wasn’t like most towns. New people were always coming and going, there were large numbers of animal attacks in the surrounding woods, and a suspiciously high rate of missing persons. This was the town were seventeen-year old Eden Day had lived her entire life. Eden and her three best friends, Mel, Wes, and Jasmine love to hang out, eat junk food, watch too much television and dream about someday leaving Delphi to see the world. That was until the dark rainy night when Eden was walking home alone in the woods and was attacked by a vampire. Bleeding and broken she crawled into an old abandoned church…where she died.

Miraculously coming back to life, she senses something within her is changing. Is she still human? Is she becoming a vampire? Something that would be terribly inconvenient considering she’s a vegetarian. In her quest to discover what is happening to her, Eden meets Oswald Chang, a genius computer geek with extensive knowledge of the Supernatural. Through him she learns of the secrets behind her town and her newfound connections to them.

As the vampire attacks increase, Eden must learn to embrace what she is becoming in order to protect all that she holds close. If she can do this while still passing English and avoiding the irresistibly charming, but equally infuriating new boy in town Eden just might have a chance of surviving till her graduation.

Writing Help – Mythical Creatures

Writing a fantasy or paranormal story and need a little inspiration? This list of mythical creatures by jezkemp might help you come up with some ideas.

Some Writing Inspiration

I love this Maya Angelou quote. I’ve always loved it. It’s become one of my life’s philosophies. Creativity is so integral to the human soul, especially souls that eat, breathe and exist in some aspect of artistry. I put imagination and creativity into how I dress, how I cook, how I approach the world. It genuinely helps with my writing. The more I allow myself to express my individual creativity the freer I feel. The easier it is for me to escape into my head where all my stories live- and simply write.

I feel like in society sometimes it can be hard to be truly as expressive as we desire to be. We can be looked at as weird or different, but as we grow up we learn that not fitting into the norm is actually a good thing. That words like weird or different – are a compliment. That in reality, no one truly fits into the “norm”. There is no normal. We are our own normal. So let your creativity flow.

Upcoming Writers Conferences

Writer’s Conferences are a great way to meet and mingle with fellow writers. Pitch to agents and publishers. And simply take in some general knowledge from experts in the field of writing and publishing.

One of my good friends was actually able to land an agent after talking to them at the Midwest Writers Workshop. Any opportunity you can get your work seen by people in the industry is significant. Take a chance – anything could happen!

Here are some upcoming ones that may be worth checking out:

Las Vegas Writers Conference (Apr 28-30) –  http://lasvegaswritersconference.com/

Midwest Writers Workshop (July 21-23) – http://www.midwestwriters.org/

Romance Writers of America Annual Conference (July 13-16) – https://www.rwa.org/conference

Thrillerfest (July 5-9) – http://thrillerfest.com/

Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference (May 22-26) – http://ridgecrestconferencecenter.org/event/blueridgemountainchristianwritersconference#.Vwv95pwrK9K

SCBWI Annual Summer Conference {for children’s book writing and illustrating} (July 29-Aug 1) – https://www.scbwi.org/annual-conferences/

Outlining Your Story

I want to talk about outlining a story. That process some of us love, some of us hate, and some of us don’t even do.

I’m part of a creative writing critique group and recently we discussed outlining and the process of “starting” your story. I was surprised at how many members struggled with the process. Personally, that’s always been one of the easiest parts for me. I think of it as creating the bones of story – a road map to help me lay down muscle and sinew and skin – the meat of the story!

So I’d like to share some tips for people that do struggle with outlining a story. These are things that work for me, and hopefully something might make the whole journey easier for you as well.

FIRST – Figure out your characters 

Flesh our your protagonist. Who are they? What motivates them? What path do you want them to take – or what do you want them to have learned from the beginning to end of the book?
Whose the antagonist? Is there a specific antagonist? If there is how will they relate or interact with the protagonist? What motivates them?
Any important side characters you want or need to help move the story along?
I never have ALL my characters figured out. A lot of times when you’re writing a character just comes to life. You have to allow yourself creative space for that to happen.

SECOND – World building

Where does your story take place? What city? What country? Research the areas – whether in person or through Google. Find out facts about the weather, geography, etc.
Does your story take place on another world? In another galaxy? That’s when things really get fun. Let your imagination play. What do you definitely want this world to portray. Is it post-apocalyptic, similar to Earth, or completely different. Outlining this can be a blast!

THIRD – Quotes and character interaction

This is something I like to do because it gives me a better feel for my characters.
If there’s an interaction between characters or quote you want in your story – perhaps something you can’t get out of your head. Or something you feel would help develop a certain character in a way you want to take them, WRITE IT DOWN. Even if you don’t end up using it, at least you have it written down. The quote may even change or interaction evolve.

FOURTH – Specific scenes

A lot of writers have written entire books off of an idea they had of a single scene.
I usually keep my scenes in order by highlighter. One color for every different part of my story. In all I use about 10 colors. It ends up looking like a neon rainbow, but it works for me.

FIFTH – Your actual outline

This part can be different for everyone. I know some authors whose story outlines look like actual books themselves. For me, I like to keep it succinct. I keep 5 separate folders on my laptop. One for exposition. One for rising action. One for climax. One for falling action. And one for resolution. My definition of the meaning of those folder titles are not always written in stone. I also try to keep each folder no longer than 2500 words. Otherwise, I personally feel like I’m expelling too much energy on my outline. But everyone has a different technique that works for them.

I hope these tips have helped any struggling outliners just a little. It’s also important to remember that YOU DON’T HAVE TO WRITE AN OUTLINE. For me, I need to. It helps corral all the crazy ideas dancing around my brain. But don’t feel obligated. If it doesn’t work for you, it doesn’t work, and that’s perfectly okay.

Another more detailed post that may help you with outlining – Steps to Creating a Flexible Outline

And a post that explains why some authors prefer not to have an outline – Outline Free is the Way for Me

 

 

New Agent to Query

If you’re a querying writer you know how stressful the process can be. And let’s face it, landing that dream agent, although not impossible, is a long-shot. A very very big long-shot. That same agent probably receives hundreds of queries a month. A good number of them probably by completely capable writers with at least semi interesting stories. Something has to speak to them at just the right time, and chances are not in a writer’s favor.

That’s not to say you should quit querying. Never give up on that dream. And keep querying those big dream agents. But one way to give yourself a better chance at possibly landing an agent is to query the newer agents. The ones just starting out and hungry for authors to rep.

One new agent is Mike Hoogland of Dystel and Goderich. He’s seeking a few things, but on that list is SCI-FI, FANTASY, and YA – all my favorite genres.

If you have a book that you’re looking to query, or that you’ve been querying that has so far had little success, or if you’re thinking about querying in the near future – he might be someone worth submitting to.

You can find the entire article about more of his wants and don’t wants and general info here – Writer’s Digest New Agent Alert