Good Links: October Edition

Happy Halloween everyone! It’s that time again. No, not trick-or-treating. Good links time!

Here are a few good posts, articles, etc I came across this month. I hope they help you out.

Writing Tips:

Tighten up that manscript, folks. Here are some words to be on the lookout for, courtesy Rachelle Gardener.

I love the name of this blog: Writinghood. What’s more to love, how about writing tips on creating curisoity, empathy and anticipation.

Another cool blog name: Men with Pens. Har, har. Anyhoo. They help you think about story theme and its importance.

What the heck is narrative anyway?

Character names, they aren’t just for newborns anymore. 15 tips on how to select a good one.

Career:

Hey, woman, get a job. A freelance job. Check out WOW’s (Women on Writing) job board.

Be realistic! Yes, you want to write, you want to publish, you want film deals. You want to read this and get your cart in order.

Take your heart pills before reading this one. All about the money. Well, and also about rights and royalties for ebooks, traditional publishing, self publishing and basically some numbers that will make you want to put your head in your hands and cry like a little baby. Or, come up with a game plan to make you millions. One or the other.

Thinking of making an author website? Be sure to check out this one. There is a great list of things any great author website should have.

Fun:

Challenging road signs. It is said a good, challenging road sign makes better drivers of us all because we have to actually think about them. Come on folks, think and drive.

And finally, because most writers have a cat, I thought I had better share this with you. Please, take care and read carefully.

Is Conviction a Blessing or a Curse?

Bigblackcat97 over on AgentQuery Connect brought up the question of whether having conviction is a blessing or a curse. (We’re not talking religious conviction, rather, general ‘know what I want to do with my life’ conviction.)

That got me thinking about life–again.

I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. I never have. Truly. Never. Whenever in school they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I handed them an answer, because that’s what ‘good’ kids do. I never looked them straight in the eye and said, “I haven’t got the foggiest clue and sometimes that scares me. It makes me think I won’t survive childhood because I can’t see what I want to do in my future.”

Not knowing what you want to do is not horrible. I survived childhood. I also survived many, many career aptitude tests which failed to unfold my future before me like a yellow brick road. So, what do you do if you don’t have conviction? You listen to the universe and go find something that interests you. Go with it.  Sometimes you have to go out there and accumulate skills so you will be ready when life hands you your ‘job.’ Wait. Be patient. Have faith.

Yes, it can be hard. Sometimes, society helps us get too wrapped up in ‘who we are.’ One of the first things people ask when they meet you is, ‘what do you do?’ We define people by what they do. Or don’t do.

But what does it matter?

What matters is this: Are you having fun? Does it make you happy? Because unhappy people are like urine in a pool. They touch everyone with their acidity. Happy people are like sunshine. They touch everyone too, but with warmth.

Yes, conviction would be nice. It would be nice to have something to lean on. A purpose. A direction. But those with conviction can easily let it consume them. They have to make a conscious effort to lift their head and look around. Even those with conviction have to do something else every once in awhile to recharge, and find new direction within their conviction. Because if they lose their conviction, they could lose everything.

I would argue that conviction can be a curse or a blessing, depending upon the person. It all depends on how someone  handles their conviction. If you ‘know’ and you ‘believe’ and you add to that conviction with skill attainment, practice and determination, you’ll move forward–it just might not land you where you thought you were going. And sometimes that might feel like a curse, but can be a true blessing. With or without conviction, we have to stay open to what life has planned for us.

What Makes for a Good Book Trailer

Yesterday, while I was watching book trailers (short videos to advertise books) on YouTube, I began to compile a list of what makes for an interesting book trailer and what doesn’t. (For you marketing types out there, here’s a hint, take someone with a flu-addled brain and see how long they can stay interested or focused on your trailer.)

Honestly, some of the book trailers were awful. They were boring, didn’t show/tell what the book was about, were too long, were dry, and essentially would not sell the book. Here are a few important things to consider (from a viewer) if you are considering making a book trailer for your book:

1) A book trailer should give us an idea of the plot, who the characters are, what they want, and what stands in their way.

2) We should be able to figure out whether we are the intended audience.

3) Viewers should be able to figure out the book’s genre.

3) The book trailer should appeal to the intended audience. Men tend to like moving images. Women tend to like something that makes them ‘feel.’

4) Don’t use a lame, soft, lulling, flat voice for your voice over. Hire a professional.

5) They should not look cheap (like they are made with PowerPoint and pixely images), even if they are.

6) Move it along! Don’t make each slide of text stay on screen forever.

7) The right music can make your whole trailer.

Don’t go over much more than a minute, particularly if you are creating a ‘slide show’ trailer.

9) Tell us the title, author, publisher, and where we can get the book.

Movie trailers are commercials. Think of them as such. It should be at home on TV, not just YouTube or emailing to friends.

Book Trailers

Book Trailer are like movie trailers, only for books. They can be a relatively inexpensive way to drum up buzz about one’s book. A few years ago, there were very few of them out there, but now if you do a search for them on YouTube, you can find quite a few. Some, naturally, are much more entertaining than others.

What I’d like to see are awards for book trailers. What shall we call them? The Booker Prize? Nope, taken. The Oscars? Nope, also taken. Hmmm. I’ll have to think on that one.

Here are a few that are worthy of mention:

Bent Art:

Funny Parenting book:

My all-time favourite (there is a short version, but I like the long one better):

Overview of Online Chat With Scott Edelstein

Last night, AgentQuery Connect hosted Scott Edelstein of HelpingWriters.com. Scott is a former literary agent, editor, columnist, writing instructor, writer, and much, much more. He currently is working as a writing and publishing consultant and spends his free time giving AQ members a good ol’ well-timed kick in the pants. If you want to get your own head a little friendly shake, check out the transcripts.

Here are some highlights and teasers:

“Every book is different. So is the list of best publishers. So are the things necessary to sell and promote it.” And “Getting published is a dance, not a science.”

He distinguishes between self-publishing and vanity presses for the writer considering going it alone.

He’ll teach you how to talk like an insider and think small while thinking big.

He’ll help you decide when to use an agent and when to go straight to a publisher.

He also sheds light on what agents and editors are truly thinking when they send out rejections and says, “They’re not taking their own words that seriously.” As well, he insists that when querying/pitching to keep it simple and uncomplicated or you’ll make the editor or agent’s head explode. (And yes, he is serious. Head exploding isn’t just for writers, anymore.)

If you’ve queried less than 100-120 agents, then honey, you haven’t truly tried.

“Don’t let categories define your book. Call it whatever the agent reps that you can get away with.”

He answers whether query letters and pitch letters differ.

And finally, whatever you do, don’t end your pitch with, “I look forward to hearing from you.”

Fantastic advice. Check it out, it’ll be time well-spent.

Upcoming Chat With Scott Edstein

Scott Edelstein, publishing world guru, of HelpingWriters.com is joining us at AgentQuery Connect for a chat tonight, Tuesday October 20th, at 8p.m. Eastern.

Scott has worked as a professional writer, literary agent, editor, journalist, freelancer, ghostwriter, columnist, writing instructor, and has finally donned the title of publishing/writing consultant. Scott will be discussing: “tips for assessing your own writing, creating a professional book proposal (especially for non-fiction), and how to conduct proper market research for your proposal or novel. He will also be on-hand to answer your questions about everything related to the business side of publishing such as contract negotiation, how to comparing publishers and literary agents, and what it’s really like to sell your book to a commercial publisher..” (AQ Crew over at AQ) and much, much more.

If you have any questions about publishing and writing, drop in and join the chat. It is free, as always and sure to be informative. If you can’t make the chat, the transcripts will be available on the AgentQuery Connect site by Wednesday morning. (You need to be a member of AQ to join this chat, but the membership is free and painless.)

Please join us!

How to Use Exclamation Marks!!!!

I have a confession to make. I overuse exclamation marks. I love them. I use exclamation marks like salt, and sprinkle them in almost every scene. But alas, exclamation marks are a sign of immaturity, poor writing, and tend to distract the reader. (Or so they say.)

In an effort to solve my exclamation mark problem (the first step is admitting you have a problem, right?), I have done some research on exclamation marks. Here are a few things I’ve discovered:

* Elmore Leonard suggests: “You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose. If you have the knack of playing with exclaimers the way Tom Wolfe does, you can throw them in by the handful.”

* In formal writing, exclamation marks are often considered out of place!

* Exclamation marks create a child-like quality!

* Exclamation marks are best used in fiction!

* Exclamation marks are best used in dialogue to show excitement, or shouting/raised voices!

* Using these marks frequently will give your work a breathless quality!

* Overusing exclamation marks reduce their meaning!

* Don’t use two or three exclamation marks in a row!!!

* Only use exclamation marks if it is absolutely necessary.

Cut out all those exclamation marks. An exclamation mark is like laughing at your own jokes.
—F. Scott Fitzgerald

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Later note: I figured something out. It’s exclamation marks in the narrative/prose that count. You can have more than two or three exclamation marks per 100,000 words IF it is in dialogue. Of course, of course. Why didn’t I realize that sooner? It isn’t like characters having a shouting match (and thus a needed sprinkling of exclamation marks) is a writing faux pas that will bring about the exclamation mark police.

Book Review: All the Tea in Chicago

Book Review: All the Tea in Chicago
By: Susan Blumberg-Kason

I love tea. Chai tea, green tea, you name it, and name it tea, I’ll probably drink it. Yet, I’ve always resisted going for high tea. Or afternoon tea, British-style. I’m not sure why. I suppose it is the idea of paying approximately twenty dollars for tea and a few crustless sandwiches. I did have ‘proper’ tea in England at least a decade ago, but day-old scones with jam somehow didn’t do it for me. However, after reading some of the descriptions in Blumberg-Kason’s book, I am ready to jump on a plane, fly to Chicago and sit down and cough up twenty dollars for tea, chicken salad on walnut bread, crepes with peanut sauce, chocolate canele and more. Much, much more. (She mentions which places gracefully and willing to serve seconds and thirds.) If that isn’t enough to sell you on going for tea, how about the idea of slipping into a seat at a place called Infini-tea or Serenitea?

If you aren’t up for the whole tea and meal deal, there is a section that lists and describes restaurants, shops and tea houses. The guide mentions which places are child friendly (some places even have special tea for children), have wifi, and are wheelchair accessible.) It also contains tea facts and quotes, a list of tea websites, and a glossary. Just reading the guide (thousands of miles from Chicago) I learned that green tea in Japan is often made from a powder (crushed leaves) and that tea fights harmful bacteria and viruses. As well, loose tea is better than bags and there is this crazy new-fangled tea called bubble tea that has tapioca in it. Yum!

There are tea people in this world. Are you one? If so, you’ll enjoy this book, even if you never set foot in Chicago.

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