Good Links, February Edition

Okay, okay, so we’re a week into March and this is a little delayed… big deal. I sort of deleted my listing of good links from February in a fit of ‘housekeeping’ and had to restore them from my Mozy backup–something I put off for a week or two thinking it would be difficult. It was actually surprisingly simple. I mean, uh, it was so difficult, it took me weeks of hacking code and recalling passwords, and digging through piles of aged files and… stuff. It did NOT involve two clicks and then voila, it was right back where I had deleted it from. Definitely not.

Um, so, yeah. The links. Here’s what I’ve got for you:

Marketing Yourself

Online Platform: Kidlit posting on some most excellent dos and don’ts in creating an online platform.

Copyblogger’s post on blogging and platform: Why people think you suck. I mean, why nobody reads your blog. I mean, dammit, just be bold and shake things up a little!

Literary agent Elana Roth’s post on how to market yourself. Brand, audience and trust. Everyone sing with me now, “Express yourself, hey, hey, hey, hey!”

Alan Rinzler shares good hooks that brought the publishing world to a writer’s door.

TK Richardson’s multi-post discussion on how to create a book trailer. Aspects of making a trailer and things to consider. The visual aspect (colour, images, and more). Where to get images. More on visuals and choices you make.

Technical Writing Stuff

Problems with spelling? The Oatmeal will help these common misspellings stick to your ribs with goofy comics and jokes to help you remember.

Craft, story, voice. And the difference is? And if you have one, but not the other? And how do you know? And what do you do to improve one? And crap, I think my brain just got tied up in a knot. Fear not, literary agent Rachelle Gardner explains it all.

Funnies

And because laughter is the best medicine, here are some writer jokes.

And that’s about it! Enjoy! Spring is on the horizon, the days are getting longer, the urge to stuff oneself with everything in the cupboard in order to make it through the long winter are subsiding. Take care, and have fun!

Good Links: December Edition

Was Santa Claus good to you this year? He was very good to me. I must have been a very good girl. Okay, this is sounding a bit off to me.

<clears throat>

Moving on… I haven’t spent as much time on the Internet this month as I have in the past, but I still managed to find some great writing sites and links to pass on for December.

Writing:

Details make the character. Good details make a character memorable and bad details that don’t fit… well, yikes! Read the full article over on Behler Blog.

From Roz Morris’ Nail Your Novel blog the post on making the reader care about the message from December 9th is quite good. It has great tips on how to make the reader care about the message your scene is trying to convey.

Are you blocked? Stumped? Frozen with indecision? Don’t know what to write next? Mind blank? Try Women On Writing’s Beating Writer’s Block tips.

Querying:

Ulysses shares a most excellent query critique from The Rejectionist.

J. Martin weighs in on how to write a perfect(ly dreadful) query. Funny. You’ll actually find yourself picking up some good how-not-to tips.

Networking:

7 Ways to Create a Professional Twitter Presence. Good tips for the beginner. I’m not down with posting your phone number though. Unless, of course, your Twitter account is for a separate business. (What I’m saying: Don’t post your home number, but do post a business number if appropriate.)

Tips on how not to commit social networking suicide from PR guru Sasha Muradali. This should be a must-read for anyone thinking about using online social networking.

Fun:

Liana Brooks reposted my quiz on whether you are a book slut. As it turns out, I am also a plot whore as per Liana’s quiz. Cool beans. Are you?

Ten Gifts to Give a Writer by Margaret Atwood as well as commenters suggestions as well. Who knew she had a blog? It’s for her new book. Cool.

Good Links: November Edition

Well, so much for November. I was so peeved at November ending because I wasn’t over the 50K hump for my NaNoWriMo novel, I totally forgot to put up my favourite November links. Or maybe it was spending all that time under brain-numbing fluorescent lights (as I finished up almost all of my Christmas shopping) that has caused this small oversight.

Without further ado, here are some good writerly things found on the Internet.

Writing:

NaNoWriMo
Of course, there was NaNoWriMo where crazy writers such as myself tried to juggle the real world all while writing 50,000 words during the month of November. Did you participate? Did you finish? Already planning for next year?

Handling Feedback
Got feedback? (On your writing, that is.) Agent Nathan Bransford dishes advice on how to handle feedback from your critique partner, agent or editor. Good advice. In fact, it makes make good life advice too.

Multiple Points of View
Do multiple point of views have you muddled? If so, Vicki Hinze has an article that provides lots of great advice when it comes to writing character point of views.

Firsts
This blog post became a discussion over on AQ, in an AQ chat, as well as a post on my blog. Whew! That’s a lot of action. What was Aprilynne Pike’s post about? It’s about desperation (in writers, not daters) and firsts: first agent, first contracts, first books, etc.

Reasons for Chapter Rejection
Wondering why you’re first chapter isn’t making the grade and keeps getting rejected? Check out Chuck’s blog with guest blogger Livia Blackburne who provides 7 reasons why you might be getting rejected.

Word Counts
Editorial Ass discusses word counts and what the cap might be for a debut novel. Want more specific info on the genres and their ballpark word count lengths? (Use Word to generate your word count, by the way–this is the new standard.) Check out Lee Masterson’s article on word counts.

Publicity:

Interviews
An exclusive interview was granted to me by future YA fantasy writing sensation, TK Richardson. Coincidentally, on the same day she posted an exclusive interview with moi. Remember, you heard it hear first.

Blogs
50 ways to take your blog to the next level by Chris Brogan. Layout, content, promotion and much more.

Attitude:

Stay Positive
With the skies turning grey, the weather chilling, the rejects piling up, and the publishing industry tanking, agent Rachelle Gardner reminds us to stay positive. Don’t allow yourself to turn to negativity and allow bitterness to overrun you–it won’t get you what you want. Like Nathan’s post on feedback (mentioned above) this also works as life advice.

Rejection
Need a little pick-me-up in your querying blues? Check out this post which shares quotes and stats from published authors on rejection. Personally, some of them are not inspiring, but I must say Ray Bradbury is pretty amazing.

Because it can’t be all business, all the time:

Rejection Contest
The best, worst form rejection letter contest. And, of course, the winners.

Character Apology
Have you ever done something to your character that you felt pretty bad about? You know, like killing off the love of their life or say, having them arrested three times while they are trying to do good deeds? Maybe you should take a page out of Abby Librarian’s book and write your character an apology letter.

Where Will You Be?
Although NaNoWriMo is over and you may not need the same number of distractions as you did last month, here’s a fun game I dreamed up while visiting my favourite bookstore: Where will you be? Take a look at the shelves in your local bookstore. Where will you be shelved? Me? I’ll between Michael Ondaatje (The English Patient) and George Orwell (1984). Sweet company! Wondering where you’ll be and can’t wait to visit the bookstore? Wikipedia has author lists.

Banned Books
Totally cool. This kid rocks. I love what she is doing with an extra locker–building readers. Check it out.

Strange Signs
And lastly, Oddly Specific. Need I say more? Well, yes. These signs are hilarious.

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.

Good Links: September Edition

Well, September came and went, just like that. Now here we are in fall. Wah.

Here are some of the good links I came across this month.

Grammar, Style, etc:

Have you been wondering about spacing around your dashes and ellipses? I haven’t either, but I did discover I wasn’t spacing around my ellipses correctly when I read How Publishing Really Works’ article about it.

Along with spacing issues, do you wonder about which font to use? The Rejectionist pokes fun at Courier font while making a nice, valid point for not using that crappy old font.

Passive tense, anyone? Not sure what it is and why you should possibly avoid it? This article will help you out. (Passive tense can be more wordy, more convoluted, but it can also highlight the action instead of the agent performing the action.) Here is a nice little quote from the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL):

You can recognize passive-voice expressions because the verb phrase will always include a form of be, such as am, is, was, were, are, or been. The presence of a be-verb, however, does not necessarily mean that the sentence is in passive voice.

What the heck is an Oxford Comma and where and when do you use one?

On Writing:

Is your character reactive or proactive. Do things happen to your character or does he or she make things happen? Rachelle Gardner explains a bit about reactive and proactive characters.

Finished your project and dreaming up that perfect title? While a perfect title is good to have in the querying stage, don’t get too attached to it. BookEnds Literary explains.

Brenda Hiatt shows us the money in publishing romance. And who says getting your work with a big publisher doesn’t pay?

More on publishing and money, this time the goods straight from a literary agency. Basically, you’ve got to sell a lot folks. And that means you, the writer, have to get your butt in gear and sell your work. It ain’t no free ride.

And here’s the pitch! Rachelle Gardner advises you to tell the actual story in your pitch. Is it an emotional journey? Big deal! What actually happens.

Guide to Literary Agents’ 5 Ways to tell if you and a literary agent are a good match.

Just for Fun:

Universal Studios unveils plans for a Harry Potter theme park in Florida. Thanks, guys. I think bloody ol’ England is closer to my house than freaking Florida.

How much time do you spend listening to muzak while trying to get a hold of a real person when calling a company? Ha! Listen no more. Here’s what number to push to get to a real person. Love it!

Rick Astley (remember him?) only has one dance move. Seriously, though, this is a fun mash-up between Rick Astley and Nirvana.

Cow abduction is a very serious problem. Please check it out and be sure to offer your support for the cause by clicking on the cow. (Some folks have way too much time on their hands and I love them for it.)

And there you have it, September in a nutshell.

Good Links, August Edition

Puttering around on the Internet this month…okay, actually, I have to admit, most of these links were sent to me by other aspiring writers. Here they are:

Looking for the right word? Try this thesaurus. While I couldn’t get it to load up on my computer, and therefore found myself promptly distracted from the task, others have found it to be an amazing tool.

Looking to fix up your dialogue? Michael Stearns has a great article on the Upstart Crow Literary website that discusses how to improve that dialogue. Click on ‘Dialogue, Some Basics’.

Dang it! Rejected again? Check out this list of reasons for getting your work rejected. Maybe you can identify your ‘issue’ and get your work ‘accepted’.

Thinking about the money in books? Maybe you have an agent, or are talking with an agent/editor and thinking, ‘hey, maybe I can quit my day job’. Well, not so fast, according to Jeaniene Frost.

Have an agent? Negotiating your author-agent contract? Check out this list put together over on Writer’s Digest. While some of the tips may be familiar, #4 got me thinking.

Published? Pub date coming up? Check out this blog post over on The Blood-Red Pencil talking about blog tours. It has some great ideas on how to ensure your tours don’t get stale or repetitive.

How about a publicist for that book you’ve got, hot off the press? Do you need one? Check out this blog post by Bookends Literary.

And lastly, for fun…who are you? Type in your name and see what it comes up with. (Good for checking out possible pen names as well.)

Enjoy!

Good Links: June Edition

Hey, it must be revision and how to write list month. A lot of the links I came across this month that are worth mentioning have to do with editing. Or maybe it is because I have been editing all month and that is all I see now. You know, editing when I’m not automating a library, critiquing, or building a garage. Laundry? Nah, we don’t do laundry here anymore. There’s no time! There are tools in the fruit bowl, for Heaven’s sake!

Nathan Bransford over at Curtis Brown has a nice revision checklist which is a must-read for any newbie and will serve as a nice reminder checklist for those who have been in the game a little longer.

Along the same lines is a helpful list of rules as compiled by Elmore Leonard and sits over on Modem Noise.

Editorial Ass also has a post on editing and whether you should hire an editor or not. It sounds as though fewer and fewer publishing houses are including editing in their acquisitions. That means you and your agent need to have your puppy ready to publish. Career tip: if you are good at editing, there’s a growing market for editing!

Along the same lines, Rachelle Gardner, an agent with Wordserve Literary, discusses hot, great and good projects that come across her desk and how she reacts to them. So, if you are wondering why some folks get picked up and published in no time at all while you are finally getting a reply to your query a year later, this post might clarify things for you. She also has a second part posting to this topic.

And if you are wondering how to open that scene in a character’s viewpoint, Camy Tang has a great little article that gives you some do’s and don’ts.

Finally, because we all wonder this every day we write: How to Write a Bad Novel. A tongue in cheek look at mistakes to avoid while writing. It’s worth a read.

Best news of the month: critique partner Calista Taylor signed with an agent! Go Calista!

Good Links, May Edition

Wow, there goes May. Hello, June. Might I say you are looking mighty fine?

I didn’t spend a lot of time surfing the net this month, but I still came across some great links to share. Funny how that works, isn’t it?

Here’s what I found:

On Writing: Many writers like to use archetypes in their stories or build around a myth. Karen Harbaugh, over on her blog, discusses characterization, plotting, fairy tales and archetypes. It’s an interesting read and a blog I will be checking out regularly.

Pitching your Work: Camy Tang discusses how to create a strong 50 word elevator pitch (story summary) so you can pitch agents or editors in person. They are also great for query letters. I’m currently taking one of Camy’s online classes and it is fantastic. This writer knows how to simplify a difficult task and even makes writing a synopsis fun! (Really!)

Building a Query: Former publishing lady and query guru, Molli Nickell, has a new blog called The Query Letter Wizard. She offers tips and exercises on her blog. She also answers questions and helps folks out with their query questions and blues. You can also find her on AgentQuery and on her website.

General Writing Interest: So, many you may be like me and live outside the publishing haven known as the United States. Maybe you spell funny, adding in extra ‘u’s here and there. You say “zed” and not “zee”. And your manuscript reflects that. What to do, what to do… Well, thankfully Jessica Faust over at Bookends Litererary addresses grammar and spelling in her post.

Future of Publishing: On Demand Books. You may have heard of these already, if not, this article is an interesting look at those little machines that print a book as you wait. It is an interesting idea that could become ‘big’. (And possibly save the planet.)

Marketing: If you are wondering about how popular your blog is, or want to compare some websites or blogs you know, pop them into Market Leap and it will compare these sites for you. You can list one site or up to three for comparison.

About the Money: Editorial Ass gives the real scoop on writers and money. Everything from royalties to right sales and more.

And for fun: The “Blog” of “Unnecessary” Quotations. You got it, it is a blog exhibit of signs people have submitted that use unnecessary quotations.

It’s All Kid’s Play: This is my website and blog. It contains over 780 activities to do with children that are free or almost free. Feel free to pass it on to your friends or enjoy it yourself. It has everything from crafts, to staycation ideas to game rules, car ride games and much more. Enjoy!

Best news of May: A buddy on AQ found an agent who LOVES his work. He is now represented, so a huge congratulations to Thrownbones. I am incredibly happy for this writer as he has put in his time, working, working, working. Best of luck!

I hope May was good to you.