query
What is normal?
Jun 27, 2011
I think most writers have been labeled “weird” at some point in their lives. (Especially those of us who write science fiction and fantasy!) We like reading more than most people, we’re often into geeky things, we’re happy being totally alone for long stretches of time, we do things in the name of writing and creativity that would land other people in some sort of therapy. (See previous post about talking to oneself while writing!) I think part of why joining the writing community online is so much fun and such a revelation for so many aspiring writers is because you realize for potentially the first time that you’re not alone. You’re not weird–you’re brilliant.
Interview over at Adventures in Space!
Jan 06, 2011
Hey guys! My awesome friend Caroline has posted an interview with me over at her blog, Adventures in Space. I met Caroline a couple of months ago while I was doing agent research. It turns out we live really nearby, when I’m in the U.S.–so it figures that we’d meet when I’m living half a world away!
Caroline gave me a ton of advice while I was querying, so I was really excited when she asked if I’d share a bit about my experiences.
The interview is a “How I Got My Agent” story, but it focuses on what to do when you have multiple offers of representation. I was caught by surprise when I was in that situation, so I’m hoping by sharing my experiences with it, it’ll help people to make that choice when they get there!
Tips for the Querying Writer
Nov 29, 2010
It’s a weird feeling, starting a new book while querying the previous one. Part of this is because I’m new to querying in general, and that is weird in and of itself–but the biggest strangeness is having my brain split between two projects. I’ve never been someone who can read multiple books at once, and certainly not someone who can write multiple books at once. I have to work on One Thing, and then if I need to stop and do something else, it’s very clear in my mind that I am officially pausing work on this One Thing and starting up on something else.
It remains to be seen how long I will stay sane. So far, so good. Although my housemates may argue otherwise, they don’t realize just how much worse it could get. (Cue dramatic music. Dun dun DUUUUHHHHN.)
Anyway, I thought I’d share some helpful information and pro tips garnered from my very first week of submitting queries, for anyone who might find themselves in a similar position in the future.
Queries Away!
Nov 23, 2010
Fly, my pretties, fly!
Pardon me while I go throw up in a corner somewhere…
Because my brain is way, way too flipped out at the moment to provide you with anything else, I will instead link to one of my all-time favorite things on the internet, Hyperbole and a Half. Specifically, this post. If you are a follower of hers, I promise it is just as funny the second time around. If you aren’t, well… you’re in for a treat.
Enjoy, and I will return in a few days when the fog of anxiety and despair and glee has lifted.
Contest! Gratitude! Stuff!
Sep 24, 2010
Yeah, I’m not doing much better than single words, here.
I just got back home and sat down to find my Twitter DM and Gmail inboxes flooded with congratulatory messages, and my sleepy brain (it’s past midnight here in Australia) had to really clank and whir a while before I realized what was even going on. As it turns out, my entry in the Adventures in Children’s Publishing pitch-to-query contest won!
I’m so excited that it sounds rather lame to even say “I’m excited.” I was in love with this whole contest and process before, just because of how helpful it was in terms of whipping my rather sad query into much better shape. I just want to say a big THANK YOU to the participants for being awesome, and for being brave enough to post your work for the world to see with the express purpose of being critiqued. It’s not easy. It’s not easy at ALL. I’ve met so many awesome people throughout this process. There’s a reason I love the community of YA writers. You’re an awesome group of people.
So what now? Well, tomorrow I need to go back over my first three chapters. I’ve actually been intending to do this for a while. Of the whole manuscript, the beginning needs the most work, simply because I want to reduce the amount of exposition I have in there. Trust your audience, Meg. They’ll get it even if you don’t lead them by the hand. But yeah, it also just so happens that the first three chapters are what I now need to submit to Sarah LaPolla, so now there’s double incentive!
I’m really glad I have revisions all ready to go. Lesson learned: even if you’re not expecting to win, you’d better darn well prepare for it anyway, because you’ll feel pretty dumb if you’re not ready when you do!
And because a friend just pointed out to me that I’ve never actually posted my query on my LJ, I’ll paste it below. This is about draft #4112 of this query. This is the version that I wrote specifically for this contest and for Sarah LaPolla, hence the personalization at the end.
Query Contest over at Children’s Publishing
Aug 27, 2010
The deadline for entries has already passed, but the KidLit gals over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing are having a fantastic contest/workshop to help writers polish their pitches. I’m learning an absolute ton just from reading other writers’ pitches and the comments on them. I highly recommend it to anyone who’s ever written a query, is writing a query, or may one day need to write a query. Comments are open to contestants and guests alike, so feel free to join in on the critiquing process!
Plus, bonus: my own pitch is up there, for THE IRON WOOD, the book you guys have been listening to me babble about for the past few months.