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Unpleasant Characters in Mysteries

April 14, 2017April 13, 2017Mystery Writing Tips, Uncategorized

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Unpleasant characters are tough for any genre. But for mysteries, they present special challenges.

My editors from Penguin would often bring up concerns they had with unpleasant characters in my manuscripts.

My feeling is that unpleasant characters are incredibly useful in mysteries. They provide motive. They provide realism. They can even provide humor.

Although I find these characters helpful, I do recognize the pitfalls. Unpleasant characters are tricky for mysteries (and, likely, for most genres).Continue reading

Why Did I Get a ‘No’? – The Do’s and Don’ts of Query Letter Writing

April 10, 2017April 1, 2017Business of Writing, Uncategorized

by Mark Gottlieb, @Trident_Media

As a literary agent in major trade publishing at the Trident Media Group literary agency, I often have to explain the elements of a good query letter to new clients. This article is intended as a description of what goes into a good query letter, for new authors unfamiliar with what literary agents and editors are looking for in a query letter intended the book-publishing world. For a writer who might be currently querying literary agents, or even contemplating that process, this might be interesting reading. Considering the high rejection rate in the book publishing industry for writers trying to become debut authors, this article will hopefully be enlightening for the countless writers who are experiencing rejection due to a poorly-constructed query letter.

A lot of authors dread writing query letters. I know many authors who can write a novel in a matter of months, but who could endlessly spend years toiling over writing a query letter. My advice to authors along the querying process is to really nail the writing of that query letter. A query letter that reads well is usually a good indication to the literary agent that the manuscript will similarly read well, inclining the literary agent to request a manuscript. Often the query letter can go on to become the publisher’s jacket copy, were the publisher to acquire the manuscript via the literary agent.

The Do’s

A good query letter is: upfront in one-two sentences what the book is about in hook or elevator pitch fashion (should mention the title, lend a sense of genre, and contain one-three competitive/comparative titles that were bestsellers or award-winners, published within the last few years). If the author has pre-publication blurbs, those can appear before those first two sentences.Continue reading

Reading More in 2017

March 31, 2017March 22, 2017Tools for Writers, Uncategorized

By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

In 2016, I worked in more reading than I had in 2015. I love reading, but for some reason in 2015 I ended up with a bunch of abandoned books (I’m not one of those who feels I must finish reading a book I’m not enjoying).

Not only do I love reading, I know that reading makes me a better writer. That’s why I’m pushing myself to read even more in 2017 than I did last year. I’ve got new ways to make that happen, which I thought I’d share with you.

There are a few things that I’ve done differently:

Used a Goodreads account. I opened a Goodreads account under a different name so that I wouldn’t appear to be using the site to promote other books–I only wanted to use it as a reader. I’ve learned that it’s a very helpful site when it comes to reading. So frequently I’d read a book and then forget the author or title. This way, I can follow authors and learn when they have new releases. Goodreads also sends me newsletters with suggestions for other books to check out.

Spent more time at the library. I got out of the habit of writing at the library in 2015 because I was being productive at home. But I’ve found that I can make even more progress on my book…plus find things to read, myself.

Taken advantage of my Amazon Prime Kindle First benefit. If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can choose between four (usually) selections for free each month. There have been some good choices. Even better, some of the choices have helped me read books in genres I might not otherwise have read.

Used OverDrive more. This ties into my library time, but it’s online. I request books from my library’s OverDrive site. Popular titles have a waiting list, but I never seem to stay on it very long before getting the book. It’s delivered right to my device and I don’t have to worry about returning it to the library.

Used an extension to find out whether a book I’m interested in is at my library. Jane Friedman mentioned this cool extension in one of her Electric Speed newsletters. It’s called Library Extension and currently just for Chrome browser users. When you’re browsing books on Amazon, it will check your library’s catalog to let you know if the book is available (check first to make sure your library is supported–they support 3200).

Develop ‘for later’ lists and wishlists to always have something to read next. It’s not the reading that takes the time…it’s the finding something to read. This is ironic, since there have never been more books on the market. But not all books are good fits. Not every book makes me want to sit down and read.

What are your reading plans for 2017?

Reading more in 2017: Click To Tweet

How Flash Fiction Can Make You a Better Writer (and Where to Find It)

March 27, 2017March 26, 2017Uncategorized, Writing Tips

by Fred Johnson, @FredBobJohn

In our non-stop world of tweets, tags, and text messages, it’s often difficult to find the time and motivation to sit down and read (let alone write!) a full-length novel. Even short stories can fall flat in terms of their ability to reflect the pure speed and transience of modern life.

Enter flash fiction. This relatively modern form describes very short fiction, with pieces normally clocking it at below a thousand words. With so few words to play with, writers of flash fiction have to cram meaning and emotion into as few words as possible. The most famous example is commonly attributed to Ernest Hemingway and is only six words long:

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

Powerful stuff indeed. But here’s the kicker: flash fiction, beyond being a pleasure to read, can make you a better writer, no matter what you’re writing.

This is because flash fiction is all about using every last word and wasting no space whatsoever, which is an incredibly important skill for a writer to cultivate. Learning the value of brevity can help you get better, whether you’re writing short stories, novels, articles, blog posts, reviews, commercial copy… anything really.

Even better, flash fiction takes very little time to read and write. You can embrace brevity and write flash fiction during your break at work, on the bus, or before you go to bed. Better still, it can be a great way to test out ideas or to dip a toe into a different genre–if one piece doesn’t work, it’s no big deal, but if another does, you can develop that piece and use it as the foundation for a longer text.

With all this in mind, here are some great platforms and communities to help encourage you, give you some inspiration, and provide some top-notch reading material.Continue reading

Amazon Author Insights

March 24, 2017March 22, 2017Tools for Writers, Uncategorized, Writing Tips

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Amazon Author Insights is a new author-facing Tumblr site to help both new and established writers find writing-related resources and Amazon services for writers in one spot.

I was asked by Amazon to be a beta-tester for the site and to contribute some of its content (here are a couple of my posts on building an author platform and Kindle Instant Preview).

There are tabs for writers looking for information on writing, publishing, and marketing.

Amazon Tools and Services Page

One of the most helpful things about the site are the links to Amazon’s tools and services. I’ve always felt as if it was tricky to find everything Amazon offers all in one place (out of sight, out of mind for me.)

Although I’d heard about Amazon’s free screenwriting tool online, for instance, I’d never run across it, despite the time I spend on Amazon. I think that’s because when I’m on Amazon, I’m either on Author Central or KDP bookshelf/reports and not searching the site. I’m no screenwriter, but it was interesting to see they offered peer collaboration, auto-formatting (a nice plus), and the ability to submit finished scripts directly to Amazon Studios. For scripts in the brainstorming stages, they also offer Amazon Storybuilder.Continue reading