Wednesday's Wanderings: Looking Back...and Forward

The year of our Lord Two Thousand and Eleven is over, and I for one am so glad! It was not the best of years for me and my family, so I think 2012 can only be better.

I learned some things this past year, however, that are probably going to change the way I look at the future in terms of my writing. I received a lot of rejections last year, but the "good" part of that is that most of them were personal notes of rejection. I learned that for the most part, agents like my writing. They like my characters, they like my plots, they like the way I develop the story, how I arouse emotion from sympathy to anger in just the first few pages, how vividly I paint an imaginary picture. But the answer is still a 'no.' For a variety of reasons: just accepted one similar; not quite what I am looking for; don't have the "stomach" to go down the road of slavery right now; and the one I liked best: I loved it but didn't "fall in love" with it. And there were other reasons.

What does that tell me..or you? I think agents are looking for a SURE thing, and how can they be "sure" of that with a new author? All of the agents I queried were ones who were looking for new clients, at least according to blog interviews and Query Tracker. But it seems that new clients doesn't equal new authors, in many cases.

Publishing has changed drastically in the last couple of years, due to the bad economy and to the advent of ebook publishing. The "Big Six" publishers in New York are only going to publish those books that are going to bring in a lot of money, and possibly make the New York Times Best Seller list, and very few new authors are going to do that. Well, unless you're the next JK Rowlings or Stephanie Meyer, that is.  And most of us aren't, even if we'd like to think we are!

Consequently, agents have to deal with publishers who are being extremely choosey about what they publish, so agents also have to be extremely choosey. Most of them are no longer willing to take chances on new authors, unless they truly believe you have a blockbuster of a novel. The exception to this 'rule' is the few agents who are aiming for the smaller, less-well-known publishers, rather than the Big Six or  any of their imprints.

(Big Six: Hachette Book Group, formerly TimeWarner, many imprints including Little,Brown, and Co; HarperCollins, with 50 imprints; MacMillan Publishers, dozens of imprints including St.Martin Press, Tor, Farrar,Straus, & Giroux; Penguin Group, second largest trade publisher in the world; Random House, largest English-language trade publisher in the world; and Simon Schuster, with dozens of imprints.)

From what I've been reading on several published authors' blogs, the Big Six are looking for younger writers who are truly outstanding, who are writing series instead of independent novels, and with whom they can have a long-lasting relationship. So where does that leave the, er, not-so-younger writer? Are we all nothing more than chopped liver, in terms of our writing? According to the personal rejections I've been getting, I'm not exactly chopped liver, I'm a "brilliant writer" but I don't have the demographics the Big Six are looking for, so I'm not what the agents are looking for, either.

That was then, this is now. 2011 is over with, 2012 has just begun, and for me, that means changing my direction, changing my thoughts, and changing my career path. I'm a grandmother, and proud of it! And if I have to frame all of those "glowing, thanks but not thanks" personal rejections, and hang them up in my study to prove to myself that my writing is "brilliant," I will do so. But I'm not giving up, just changing things around a bit.

This year, I'm going after the small, independent publishers. NOT, repeat, NOT the vanity-type where you pay them to publish your book, but the smaller, less well-known publishers who do a lot, if not most, of ebook publishing. Why not? Ebooks are now being published from picture books to middle grade, young adult, and adult. Ebook publishing no longer has the stigma that it did when it first came out, and although you don't get an advance, your royalty percentage is quite a bit more than through traditional, print publishing.

You do have to do a lot more of the promotion yourself, but in today's economy, you also have to do much of it even with the Big Six. Websites, blogs, interviews, school visitis, smaller independent book store signings ( if you get into print), are all easy and inexpensive ways to promote your book.

Another thing I'm going to look into is self-publishing. Again, not the kind where you have to do all the work and pay someone else. But I've been reading about highly successful authors, including some who have made the NY Times Best Seller list, whose best-selling books are self-published. It can't be all that bad. At least, it's an option to look into.

Does that mean I'm going to stop querying agents? Not at all. But it does mean that I'm not taking days and days of doing research on them, it means I'm sending out queries to many at a time instead of only a select few, and it means I'm not going to be heartbroken over rejections, personal or otherwise.

And in the meantime, I'm going to be querying as many ebook and smaller, independent publishers as I can for the coming year. I'm looking forward with a smile to 2012. 2011, you're in the trash can!

Are you looking forward to what this new year will bring? What are your feelings about ebook publishing?

Until next time,
That's a wrap.

Wednesday's Wanderings: The Wonderfu, Remarkable, Frustrating World of Websites: Part Two

Today I'm going to add some more websites that I hope will be of use to my readers. Without further ado, here they are:

Bookends: www.bookendslitagency.blogspot.com
Two agents, Jessica Faust and Kim Lionetti, have a great site with a large array of posts on proposals, contracts, editing, story conflict, and a lot more. Their advice is good and it's free!

QueryTracker:  www.querytracker.net
This is the best place in the world to go if you are at the point of wanting to find an agent. Much of the site is free, but if you are really serious about agenting, pay the $40 yearly fee, at least for a year, and take advantage of all the premier things you can do here.

The Market List:  www.marketlist.com
For those of you who want to make some extra money doing freelance writing. If you're writing genre fiction, there are hundreds of market listings here for you to look into.

Ed 2010:  www.ed2010.com
There are young magazine editors here who offer excellent advice about writing for magazines. There is a section called "WhisperJobs" that is a great resource for both freelance and full time magazine jobs.

A Newbie's Guide to Publishing:  www.jakonrath.blogspot.com
J.A.Konrath is a thriller-writer who isn't the least bit shy about sharing his opinions on the best way to seek out traditional publishers, as well as those for self-publishing ebooks. He also offers an array of good writing-related resources.

Writer Beware Blog:  www.accrispin.blogspot.com
This is a writing watchdog who tracks, exposes, and raises awareness about scammers and the other many questionable activities in and around the publishing industry. A good place to visit, to see what is the latest "worry spot" in our business.

Stephie Smith's Writers' Resources:  www.stephiesmith.com/resources.html
There aren't any articles here, just links to everything imaginable concerned with writing. They are all broken down by category, including a list of resources especially valuable to writers of historical fiction. ( That's me, guys!)

Once Written:  www.oncewritten.com
This site gives a lot of solid information, writing prompts, contests, and allows writers an opportunity to have their books reviewed.

Pimp My Novel:  www.pimpmynovel.blogspot.com
This is one site that many of you already know about, but it's worth repeating here. It is authored by a publishing sales rep who gives the inside scoop on what happens to books after they've been acquired. Be sure to check out the Profit & Loss ( P&L) series, which tells about a little-known aspect of how book publishing really works.

Resources for Children's Writers:  www.resourcesforchildren'swriters.com
Rachelle Burk's site links to hundreds of articles for children's writers who are trying to improve their writing skills, network with other writers, and get published and sell their work. It's a great site for us!

Mystery Writing Is Murder:  www.mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com
Mystery writer Elizabeth Spann Craig uses her blog for good, not evil...except when she is explaining how to craft antagonists.

Murder By 4:  www.murderby4.blogspot.com
Great tips on writing the thriller genre by four masters of suspense.

Don't be afraid to check out some of the sites about genres you haven't thought of writing. You might find just the spark you need to step out of your comfort zone and try something new!

Until next time,
That's a wrap.

Monday's Meanderings: The Remarkable, Wonderful, Frustrating World of Websites

Do you ever wander from one writing website to another, looking for information, help, advice, ideas? Do you ever get frustrated because nothing seems to be just what you are looking for? For the next couple of posts, I'm going to give you some of the best websites I've come across in the years I've been writing. Most of these came from the  Writer's Digest "101 Best Websites," but I've used many in the past, and have found them useful, humorous, and sometimes, just plain frustrating. I hope you find some you can enjoy.

Grammar Girl:  www.grammar.quickanddirtytips.com
We can all use a little help with grammar from time to time, and this is a good place to get that help.

Long, Story Short: An E-Zine for Writers: www.alongstoryshort.net
These editors offer great writing tips and personally reply to every author who contacts them for writing and publishing advice.

Plot Whisperer for Writers & Readers: www.plotwhisperer.blogspot.com
A great place for help and tips on writing plots.

Easy Street Promps: www.easystreetprompts.blogspot.com
If you're having trouble getting your muse to come back from her vacation, this is the place for you. Lots of picture prompts and video story-starters.

Six Sentences: www.sixsentences.blogpspot.com
For those of you who can "write short," something I can't seem to do. Here you can submit a six sentence story and take a chance on getting published.

Agent Query: www.agentquery.com
I've used this off and on for a couple of years, just got serious with it this year. If you're looking for an agent, this is the place to come. There is a lot you can do for free, but if you're seriously looking, pay the annual fee of $40, because it is well worth it.

Babbles from Scott Eagan: www.scotteagan.blogspot.com
Scott Eagan is the founder of Greyhaus Literary Agent, and writes multiple columns on querying tips, defining your genre, the pros and cons of social media, and much more. It's worth checking out.

Fundsfor Writers:  www.fundsforwriters.com
A great site if you're looking for money, grants, contests, awards, and markets. Hope Clark is an editor and her free email newsletter is a good one.

Slush Pile Hell:  www.slushpilehell.tumblr.com
What more needs to be said?! The tag line is "One grumpy literary agent, a sea of query fails, and other publishing nonsense." Check it out!

That's all for now, I'll have a few more in the next post.

Until next time,
That's a wrap.