G is for Groundwork

Writing a novel is a marathon. And before you run a marathon, you have to train. You run every day, you eat healthy food, you drink lots of water. You slowly build up your endurance over a long period of time until you're finally ready, and then you run a few practice 26Ks in training before Marathon Day.

You lay the groundwork for a successful marathon.

Writing a book is the same thing. You do character analyses; you do outlines; you plot out your novel on index cards and whiteboards. You write a draft, then revise it, then revise it again.

And just like running a marathon, you could try just running one as soon as you buy your first pair of running shoes, but it's much better and easier, and you have a better chance of finishing, if you lay down some of the groundwork first.

What groundwork do you do before drafting your novels?

F is for Fire Hydrant

I was out walking with my kids one morning when my older son noticed this:

Just in case the firefighters weren't sure...

It still makes me giggle.

F is also for Friday, which it is right now, and for #FridayReads, a Twitter hashtag that I try to use every week, because it's fun and it builds community and it's great to share good book titles with other like-minded people. Today is a family day at my house, but I'm going to get in some good reading time with my son as we work our way through BEYONDERS by Brandon Mull, 

You can't click to look inside, but you can go buy it at the bookstore and it is WORTH IT.

and then later I'll finish reading DUST by Arthur Slade 

This book is surprising and sneaky and evocative and totally amazing.

and then dip into THE FIRST PART LAST by Angela Johnson 

I'm looking forward to reading this VERY much. It's outside my normal reading pattern, which is a great thing.

and if I still have time after that, I'll crack open THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green.

WOO-HOO!

Phew!

What are you reading? And does your neighborhood identify their fire hydrants with signs showing pictures of fire hydrants, or am I alone in this?

E is for Editor

When I was a kid, I thought an editor was someone who went through a manuscript and checked for misplaced semicolons and random typos. A lot of people still think that.

A lot of other people think an editor is a gatekeeper: someone with the power to make you an author, or not. Someone who decides.

A lot of people think an editor is a taste-maker.

A lot of people think an editor is extraneous - who needs to hire an editor or sign with a publisher in this age of spell-check and instant e-publishing?

But I would argue that editor is essential. Because an editor does more than find good manuscripts and correct typos. An editor is more than a gatekeeper, more than a taste-maker. An editor is more than any of your writing friends could ever be.

Because a good editor can read your manuscript, get to its heart, and ask you the questions that will force you to dig deeper into the soul of your manuscript and lay bare the essence of your story. Good editors can see the big picture and know what to say to make you see the places where the canvas is showing through because you didn't use enough paint.

Good editors are like gold.

What is your most memorable editorial experience?


And for more A-Z posts, go here.

D is for "Dear Editor"...

...which is something you should NEVER use to open a query.

Equally, you should never use "Dear Agent." These openings make the recipient of your query feel like they've been the recipient of a mass-email, and nobody likes that feeling. (I appreciate the irony of an editor telling us to query widely, and then saying that they don't want to feel like they're just one of a bunch of people receiving your query, but still. It's just not nice to be MADE to feel that way, even if it's a little bit true.)

You should also not open with anything like "Dear Agent Awesome," or "Dear One Who Holds My Dreams in Her Hands," or "O Worthy One," or anything like that. Some people think it makes you look witty, but it doesn't. It makes you look like a fruitcake, and we all know what happens to fruitcake: it ends up in sitting in a tupperware for 12 months until it finally sprouts a mould spore and you have an excuse to throw it in the trash. You don't want that to be your manuscript mouldering in some editor's trash.

Also, the fact is that most of the people who get your query are going to have to pass on it, for perfectly good reasons, which is fine - you only need one person to say "yes" - and saying "no" to someone is HARD. It sucks more than my mother's Dyson. Nobody likes turning people down. So don't make it harder for them by actually stating in your opening how high your hopes are that they will like your work.

Keep it professional. Use his or her last name. And that's it for queries for today!

For more #AtoZchallenge posts, check out the list here.

C is for Critique

Paid Critique, that is.

As those of you who have been to a writing conference know, that's something you can pay a little extra for, and it gets you a critique from one of the conference faculty: an editor, an agent, or a published writer.

Make no mistake: this is TOTALLY WORTH DOING.

But what should one send? Organizers will tell you to send your best work, but what if your best work is already out in someone's slushpile? Do you send something you're still working on, but make it as good as you can? Or do you assume that since no-one's jumped on it yet, that work you queried those editors or agents with might need a pair of expert eyes?

I usually send in something I'm working on, since I do believe in drawing the line somewhere and once I send something out I consider it "done" unless the person I sent it to asks for revisions, but I'm very curious about what you all do.

What do you send? When is a manuscript off limits for a professional critique?

B is for Blog Award!

A few weeks back, I received an email from the lovely Polilla Lynn, informing me that she had awarded me the Sunshine Blogger Award!

While a hectic schedule and lots of pre-scheduled blog posts have made me long overdue in accepting and passing on this award, I DO want to say a huge THANK YOU to her! She has a great blog, which you should all check out.

While the rules say that I should include the logo in my post (done), link back to the person who gave me the award (double done), pass it on to ten others, and answer ten questions about myself, I'm going to cheat a bit, because I know you guys are busy and don't have time to read the answers to ten questions about me.

But I WILL pass on the award! It goes to ten fabuloso bloggers whose blogs I read and love:

1) Shannon O'Donnell at Book Dreaming
2) Julie Hedlund at Write Up My Life
3) Casey McCormick and Natalie Aguirre at Literary Rambles
4) Elana Johnson
5) Matthew MacNish over at the QQQE
6) Kate Hart
7) Rachna Gilmore
8) Lindsey Carmichael at 10 Stories Up
9) Catherine Austen
10) Reading in Color

So go on and check out those great blogs, and have fun on your A-Z journey today!

A is for...

APRIL FOOL'S!

I'm participating in the A-Z blogfest organized by my friend, the amazing blogger-of-awesome Matthew MacNish, along with the rest of the team at the A-Z Blog. So after you read this post, check out the list over at the A-Z blog and find some other cool posts by participating bloggers.

No, this isn't an April Fool - but I have pulled some doozys in my past. My favorite - and best - April Fool was when one of my friends and I snuck one of those fake brains that grows when you put it in water into a bowl in my RA's fridge when I was in College. Boy, did we freak her out. Whooo!

I will NEVER forget that one.

How about you? What was your best ever April Fool's prank?