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mary rosenblum
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Good morning all...
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mary rosenblum
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or afternoon, depending on
where you are. :-)
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mary rosenblum
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I hope you all had a good
weekend. :-)
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mary rosenblum
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I'
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mary rosenblum
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I"ve been working on the
New Beginnings LR Anthology this past week...
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mary rosenblum
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which is what prompted me to
choose this topic for the Forum today.
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mary rosenblum
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This is the Tuesday Forum with
me Mary Rosenblum LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. We're
talking about submitting your work, today. If you're new here, remember
that you need to click on the Ask a Question button or the word bubble next
to the red question mark at the top of the screen, or use the ask a
question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular send bar won't reach
me! You can also type /ask in front of your question in your regular send
bar to reach me
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mary rosenblum
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I saw some problems that would
have really cost the authors if they had submitted to, say, an ezine.
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cherley
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I didn't think to send a cover
letter.
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mary rosenblum
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Oh, that was no issue at all,
cherley. Many editors would actually prefer that you did not and they don't
care if you don't.
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mary rosenblum
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But an amazing number of
people did not put their NAME on their ms.
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mary rosenblum
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If you're submitting via email
to an ezine or as a paper submission...
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mary rosenblum
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your ms is usually separated
from your email or your cover letter at some point.
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mary rosenblum
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With no name...guess where it
ends up.
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mary rosenblum
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The 'round file'.
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mary rosenblum
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And you never hear back from
the magazine.
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cherley
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That was probably me too. LOL
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mary rosenblum
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Nah, you put your name on it.
:-)
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mary rosenblum
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Now I was nice enough to go
back through 45 or so emails and match ms to owner...but a magazine
editor...
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mary rosenblum
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with maybe 150 to look at will
NOT do this.
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paminnapa
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wouldnt you normally submit like
you do an assignment name word count date
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mary rosenblum
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Exactly.
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jyinxy
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mary you are a saint
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mary rosenblum
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No, I'm not. I just decided to
chew you all out here is all. LOL
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cherley
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Do you know when we'll know if
we were accepted or not?
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mary rosenblum
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I should have 'em up sometime
today, Cherley.
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mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me Mary Rosenblum LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. We're
talking about submitting your work, today. If you're new here, remember
that you need to click on the Ask a Question button or the word bubble next
to the red question mark at the top of the screen, or use the ask a
question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular send bar won't reach
me! You can also type /ask in front of your question in your regular send
bar to reach me
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mephistopheles
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what is the correct format for
book publishers and magazine publishers?
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mary rosenblum
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Some things are a must,
whether you put them in the right place on the page or not.
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mary rosenblum
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You MUST have your name and
address at least on the first page of your magazine ms...
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mary rosenblum
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or the title page of your book
ms.
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mary rosenblum
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You MUST number every page and
use a title keyword and your last name...all in lower case...
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mary rosenblum
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In case the editor drops four
ms on the floor at the same time. (has happened)
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mary rosenblum
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You must have the word count
on the page with your name and address.
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mary rosenblum
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And if you use a pen name,
that goes below the title... Rory's Tale by Anne Carter
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mary rosenblum
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If your real name is June
Morrow, that goes with your address in the upper left hand corner...
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mary rosenblum
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unless your bank will cash a
check sritten to Anne Carter. :-)
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cherley
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your name on every page? Plus
word from title?
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mary rosenblum
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put it at the top of every
page after your title page in an upper corner like this:
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mary rosenblum
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rosenblum/horizon/56
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mary rosenblum
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If the editor drops several ms
onto the floor, he/she can sort 'em out.
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mary rosenblum
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And that HAS happened. I met
an editor who got stuck when she was a lowly sub assistant editor...
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mary rosenblum
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with sorting out two 400 page
book ms that got mixed up.
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cherley
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Sorry, what's the 56 (word
count)?
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mary rosenblum
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That's the page number
cherley:
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mary rosenblum
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lastname/title keyword/page#
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sallyk
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If a publication only has a
generic mailbox, like "food@news, and no specific editor assigned, would
you pitch to the box....
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sallyk
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or call to get an editor's name?
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mary rosenblum
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I hate it when that happens,
sally, but it does. You can just address it to Submissions Editor..
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mary rosenblum
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publishers HATE phone calls in
general, and it's going to go to whomever is reading slush today.
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mary rosenblum
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Even if you put the Senior
Editor's name on it, it'll still go to whomever is reading slush
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mary rosenblum
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The only time it really
matters is if, say, you have talked to an editor at a conference...
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mary rosenblum
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and he seemed interested in
this piece. And then you make that clear in the cover letter...
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mary rosenblum
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and the mail room will get it
to the right person.
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ling630
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with a query letter you are only
selling the idea so the information of address and name etc. is already
there. All I wait for is the go ahead to continue the idea or not.
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mary rosenblum
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That's right, ling.
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mary rosenblum
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The query is simply a This is
what I want to sell you , this is who I am, this is why you need to buy it
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kungfumama
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I'm sorry, Mary. I didn't catch
this. Where do you place your address again? On the first page only?
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mary rosenblum
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Yes, kung, you only need to
put your address on the first page of the ms or the title page of the book
ms.
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mary rosenblum
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The ms is usually logged in
when it arrives, so if that first page gets lost or eaten by the editor's
dog, they still have your address.
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mary rosenblum
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BUT make sure it's there.
Cover letters often get shed very early in the process.
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mary rosenblum
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Now the old manuscript format
is breaking down in the world of ezines...
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mary rosenblum
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since once you are using an
electronic file, you can alter line spacing, typeface, and the like.
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mary rosenblum
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So if you are submitting to an
ezine, read their guidelines carefully to find out what they do and do not
want.
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mary rosenblum
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Some ms Word codes can really
mess up a publishing software.
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mary rosenblum
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Many ezines want a text file.
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mephistopheles
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what is the old manuscript
format?
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mary rosenblum
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The default ms format, on you
should always use if no other format is specified...
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mary rosenblum
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is double space, one inch
margins, courier or times new roman font in 12 point size.
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mary rosenblum
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Those fonts in that size are
easy on the editor's eyes and that is important. She reads ALL day.
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gskearney
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Might mention that there is a
complete discussion of creating an MS template in my PC-Basics article. I
should probably redo that as a separate article. The link to the template
doesn't work though, so I'll put a copy up on my own site in the next day
or two. http://gskearney.com in the writing section.
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mary rosenblum
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Good point, gary.
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mary rosenblum
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I have templates for SF ms,
Mystery ms, SF chapters, mystery chapters, mainstream ms and chapters.
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mary rosenblum
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A template is when you set up
all the formatting...
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mary rosenblum
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your header, margins, font,
type size, spacing...
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mary rosenblum
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using 'placeholder' words like
title, start, etc...
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mary rosenblum
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You can call up the file and
save it as the working title of your story...
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mary rosenblum
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and then the header etc are
already there.
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mary rosenblum
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You replace 'title' with the
title of your ms and so forth. Saves a lot of time.
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sallyk
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For a multi-page ms pasted into
the body of an email, how do you handle the ID on subsequent pages?
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mary rosenblum
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That's when you need to pay
attention to the guidelines sally.
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paminnapa
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wouldnt the LR template be good
to use for the most part? seems to have the stats most MS want?
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mary rosenblum
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It's perfectly fine. DOn't
bother to include your student number, though. :-)
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jewel
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I am new, and have not gotten my
books yet.
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jewel
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Will this be discussed while I
complete the asignments?
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mary rosenblum
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Yes, Jewel. Your manual will
have sample templates for you. LR assignments are supposed to be...
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mary rosenblum
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set up in ms format.
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mary rosenblum
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The other thing to remember
...at least in print format...is that underlining indicates italic.
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mary rosenblum
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Don't use italic or bold on a
paper ms.
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mary rosenblum
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The editor has to annote each
use for the typesetter.
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mary rosenblum
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Use underline only.
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mary rosenblum
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This is a hangover from the
typewriter age, but there it is. :-) You're still stuck with it.
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mary rosenblum
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The editor will put the type
into the correct form.
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mary rosenblum
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If you're subbing nonfiction
do NOT bullett your lists, use text boxes, or neatly box in your sidebar.
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mary rosenblum
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Page layout is for the editor
to do and if you send an electronic file later, as often happens, all those
codes...
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mary rosenblum
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really mess up Quark or
whatever publishing program they're using.
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mary rosenblum
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Just label your sidebar
'Sidebar to....' and let the editor bullett your lists!
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ling630
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how do you create a sidebar on
the computer?
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mary rosenblum
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Double space, one inch
margins, separate sheet of paper...labeled with your name and the name of
the article it belongs to, ling.
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janecj333
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Maybe I can apologize for
everyone who has never uploaded a file before. I have submitted work
hundreds of times by mail, and know the drill by heart. Getting Word to
save a file in rich text, moving it from one computer to another, and then
figuring out how to attach it to an email are practically impossible when
you have never done it before (all under deadline).
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mary rosenblum
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Oh, it is tough. So it's a
good idea to learn how to do it...the ezine market is expanding rapidly...
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mary rosenblum
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and I suspect that before too
long, it's mostly going to be electronic submission even for paper
publishing.
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mary rosenblum
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Even now, when something is
accepted I still have to email them the file.
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mary rosenblum
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Even if they have the paper
copy.
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mary rosenblum
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A lot of editors prefer paper
slush...they can read it on the subway more easily, or they're not
comfortable reading onscreen...
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mary rosenblum
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but I think all of publishing
has finally gone electronic.
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tkat_2
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How long is a novella? Is it
smaller in word count than the novel?
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mary rosenblum
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A novella is 18,000 to 40,000
words, tkat.
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mary rosenblum
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I'm pretty sure 40K is the
upper limit.
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mary rosenblum
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It's shorter than a novel.
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mary rosenblum
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A very few magazines publish
that length, and a few publishers have started publishing them as...
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mary rosenblum
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trade paperback or even small
hardcover books.
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geezer
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You e-mail an entire novel? I
have chapters in separate files. Is that a problem?
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mary rosenblum
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Depends, geeze. When I emailed
Horizon to my publisher, he asked me to combine the chapters into a single
file.
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mary rosenblum
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It emailed fine.
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mary rosenblum
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Before, I've sent them as
separate files.
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rosedak
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Are there the same restricitons
on multiple submittals for queries as with MS?
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mary rosenblum
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Yes, Rose. What if you query
two magazines about the same article and both say yes?
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mary rosenblum
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You're going to SERIOUSLY tick
off one editor. There goes THAT market!
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mary rosenblum
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Nobody is going to arrest you,
but that ticked off editor may not buy from you after that.
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mephistopheles
|
mary is there a web page or site
we can go to to get various templates for all the different genere writings
out there for transmitting a traditional ms querry letter and who should we
contact if the publisher does not have any specific format requirements?\
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mary rosenblum
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There's no difference from
genre to genre, mephis. The only reason I have different templates..
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mary rosenblum
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is that in mystery the
lastname on the header is freeman and it's rosenblum in sf and mainstream.
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mary rosenblum
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And I have Member MWA on my
mystery template, Member SFWA on my SF template and Member SFWA and MWA on
my mainstream templates...
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mary rosenblum
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but otherwise they're the
same. :-)
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janecj333
|
Twenty-three years ago, we
received floppy disks in the mail that, of course, had codes embedded in
the text files that our computerized typesetting equipment could not read.
I think with technology changing so much all the time, it's just a hazard
of the business that files often arrive a total mess by email. Just my
opinion.
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mary rosenblum
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They do. It's still a
headache....I had troubles with computers that insisted on doing text files
even with an .rtf extention...
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mary rosenblum
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and ezine editors gripe about
it all the time.
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mary rosenblum
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No good way around it. Part of
the biz.
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ling630
|
so then it is best to let an
editor know you have made multiple submissions
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mary rosenblum
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The guidelines will tell you
if it's even doable, ling.
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mary rosenblum
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They'll either say 'no
simultaneous submissions' or they'll say 'simultaneous submissions okay'
and then, yes, you do tell the editor.
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rosedak
|
When submitting an article or
story to a magazine that does not list a preference in their guidelines
regarding query or MS which do you recommend? Is on better then the other?
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mary rosenblum
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ALWAYS send the ms if you have
the option, rose.
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mary rosenblum
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Only a very experienced
freelancer is likely to write a query letter that is as good as the actual
ms.
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sady
|
You mentioned elsewhere that you
had problems with some of the RTF files...anything we need to do
differently?
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mary rosenblum
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Well, you don't. :-) It wasn't
your fault.
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mary rosenblum
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But next anthology, I'm going
to just ask for .doc files. It's harder to send viruses in .rtf, but I
scanned all the ms anyway, and it'll save a lot of headache.
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tory
|
re the question on multiple
simultaneous submissions. Does that apply to novel-length work as well?
I've heard editors/agents say they want it, but expect all submissions are
multiple. confusing.
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mary rosenblum
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Well, let's face it, when it
takes editors forever to get back to you, LOTS of people do sim subs even
tho they're not supposed to.
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mary rosenblum
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If one accepts you, you can
always write a withdrawal letter to the other editors. And if you're
subbing to most of the publishers (outside of SF)...
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mary rosenblum
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you're going to need an agent
for the big NY houses anyway. THEY can submit to multiple editors and do.
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mary rosenblum
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For the small press houses,
I'd be less inclined to sim sub. They generally have a much shorter
response time.
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megger
|
Would you say that certain
genres present themselves better in a novella or is it pretty much up for
grabs?
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mary rosenblum
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Every story has a natural
length, megger. YOur story needs to be that length, whatever it is.
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mary rosenblum
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The publishers will or will
not publish single novellas depending on whether or not their readers are
willing to buy them.
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mary rosenblum
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That's the only thing that
drives publishing...sales.
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mary rosenblum
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Apparently mainstream readers
have been buying stand alone novellas lately.
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mary rosenblum
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And there's a market for them
from some small press publishers in speculative fiction, too.
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mary rosenblum
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Fairwood Press puts out some
novella length works.
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mary rosenblum
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So do a few other of the spec
fic small press publishers.
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mary rosenblum
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I haven't seen that from the
big NY houses, though.
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mudhen
|
does the real name or pen name
go on the subsequent pages?
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mary rosenblum
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Thanks, mudhen...I missed
that, didn't i?
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mary rosenblum
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Your pen name goes on the
header with the title keyword and page numberl
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mephistopheles
|
mary do you just do a trial and
error method for queries, I know you have your own templates, but us
newbies don't have the years or the reflection on how to write a strong
querry to hook and editor, perhaps you can post some examples from previous
experiences on the website for all to see and learn from. :)
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mary rosenblum
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Meph, you really do NOT want
to use any kind of template for a query letter.
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mary rosenblum
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A query letter is a pitch...it
needs to grab the editor's attention in the space of one single spaced
letter page.
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mary rosenblum
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That means it will be
different for every editor even if you are pitching the same article.
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mary rosenblum
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Your query should reflect the
magazine's slant and the style of the articles in the mag in question.
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mary rosenblum
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For example, say you have been
to Terra Del Fuego and want to sell a couple of articles on the hiking and
camping and wildlife there.
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mary rosenblum
|
You'd write a very different
query letter to the editor of an extreme treking mag, an ecotour mag, and a
camping and tourism mag.
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mary rosenblum
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No single template could cover
that.
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mary rosenblum
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YOu'd use a different hook for
each, you'd be offering a different lead, using a different style, and
possibly even mentioning different clips (should you have them).
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mary rosenblum
|
YOu will find an article on
writing a strong query in Writing Craft: Nonfiction...
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mary rosenblum
|
that goes into what you need
to include in some detail.
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mary rosenblum
|
Most of my queries are novel
queries and there, it's mostly the chapters and synopsis that sells the
book...or not.
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janecj333
|
I would sure love to see several
fiction query letters that resulted in sales.
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mary rosenblum
|
I don't know that I've kept
copies, jane. They've probably vanished as I changed computers and
transferred files over.
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mary rosenblum
|
Most of the time, you're only
going to be using a query letter if you're proposing a novel...
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mary rosenblum
|
or if you're trying to acquire
an agent. And then it's a matter of giving a brief and exciting summary of
your story..
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mary rosenblum
|
Read a lot of book jacket
blurbs!
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mary rosenblum
|
They are GREAT examples.
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tory
|
Mary, have you mentioned yet how
detailed to be in the synopsis? And that is where we tell, don't show,
right? Or some of both?
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mary rosenblum
|
Yes, if you are going to send
in synopsis and chapters to an agent or editor (and as unpublished writers,
you'll need to have the book finished first)...
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mary rosenblum
|
the synopsis is written in
present tense and the high points of the plot are portrayed through ONE pov
character, no matter...
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mary rosenblum
|
how man you may have.
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ling630
|
for magazines don't you send a
query first for non fiction or is it just novels as you said?
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mary rosenblum
|
For nonfiction, you nearly
always query first, but check the guidelines.
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mary rosenblum
|
Some will take short articles
without a query.
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mary rosenblum
|
I know of almost no fiction
mags who want a query first...
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mary rosenblum
|
unless you have a story that
greatly exceeds their maximum length.
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rosedak
|
You mentioned using a query for
an agent. At several conventions I've sat in on discussions where agents
say that they don't accept anyone that sends MS or queries direct. Then
don't suggest how you should meet and agent. Is the query the best way to
go? Or persaonal introductions at these conventions?
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mary rosenblum
|
Those agents are just 'closed'
rose. My agent won't either. The only way she'll look...
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mary rosenblum
|
at something is if one of her
current clients recommends that person.
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mary rosenblum
|
But there are plenty of agents
who ARE looking for new clients and will read queries.
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mary rosenblum
|
Agents split off from
established agencies all the time to start their own agencies...
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mary rosenblum
|
and they make fine agents. :-)
They're hungry for new people and they know the field.
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paminnapa
|
when they ask for a
summary...you do you send a summary of the whole book....giving away
plots/twists endings....
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mary rosenblum
|
ABsolutely. NOw you don't have
to give away the end in a query letter. :-) But that synopsis must prove
that you can actually bring this book in for a solid landing.
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mary rosenblum
|
A bad ending ruins everything.
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mary rosenblum
|
BUT you still only include the
high points of the plots...not all the subplots etc...
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mary rosenblum
|
The synopsis shows the
editor/agent that you can write a solid dramatic arc that is strong enough
to carry the book...
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mary rosenblum
|
and that agent/editor will
read the whole ms to find out how well you handled the subplots, etc. Those
are very fixable after all.
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gskearney
|
Mary, the template for LWRG is
up on my site at: http://gskearney.com/writing/template.htm
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mary rosenblum
|
Thank you, Gary.
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is the Tuesday Forum with
me Mary Rosenblum LR Web Editor, fiction and nonfiction writer. We're
talking about submitting your work, today. If you're new here, remember
that you need to click on the Ask a Question button or the word bubble next
to the red question mark at the top of the screen, or use the ask a
question icon in order to ask a question. Your regular send bar won't reach
me! You can also type /ask in front of your question in your regular send
bar to reach me
|
|
spider
|
What type of information is in a
"good" query letter as opposed to a "bad" one?
|
|
mary rosenblum
|
This is why you need to buy
this, this is why I"m the one to write this, essentially.
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|
mary rosenblum
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THe article on query letters
in Writing Craft: nonfiction is a bit more detailed than the above. :-)
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geezer
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Could you give an example of the
synopsis using only one character for say (briefly) Little Women
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mary rosenblum
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Well, a full synopsis of a
novel is three to five pages, geeze...too long for this.
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mary rosenblum
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But here's a synopsis for you:
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mary rosenblum
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A willful little girl runs of
into the woods one spring day and sneaks into an unlocked cabin. After
making herself at home and doing a bit of petty vandalism, she is surprised
by the...
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mary rosenblum
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returning residents...three
angry bears. She barely manages to escape and learns a valuable lesson
about tresspassing in the process.
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mary rosenblum
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Those are the high points of
the plot. I don't go into details about the three residents, other than
that they are bears...
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mary rosenblum
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I don't go into details about
porridge, furniture, or even her nap.
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mary rosenblum
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She enters the cabin, messes
around, gets caught, and barely escapes.
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mary rosenblum
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High points.
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mary rosenblum
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Book jacket blurbs are great
examples of the kind of dramatic tone you want...only book jacket blurbs,
of course, leave off the ending.
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mary rosenblum
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Now if you are writing a query
letter to an agent, you can leave off the ending. Just as with the
prospective reader, you want to entice that agent to ask for the book.
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mary rosenblum
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BUT...when you send a complete
synopsis, that agent or editor does need to know that you can actually end
it well, so include it then.
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mary rosenblum
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A query letter is a page long.
So obviously, your query blurb is about a paragraph.
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mary rosenblum
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A synopsis is three to five
pages, and some publishers may ask for a more extensive 10 - 20 page
synopsis or outline.
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tory
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So we don't use the synopsis as
an opportunity to acquaint the editor with all the characters or our
writing style? Just the high-point/facts, ma'am?
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mary rosenblum
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Yep. That's why they usually
ask for three chapters...that's where they find out if you can actually
write. :-)
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mary rosenblum
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A great plot and lousy writing
will not sell your book.
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mary rosenblum
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A lousy plot and great writing
will not sell your book.
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mary rosenblum
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They have to work together.
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geezer
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So this is all covered in the
novel course?
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mary rosenblum
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You bet. YOu have to find out
what the agent or editor you choose to send this book to wants, too. That's
part of it. :-)
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mary rosenblum
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For the novel course, you not
only write a working plot outline early on, you eventually write an actual
synopsis of the kind you would really send in with your chapters.
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mary rosenblum
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New is fine, Pam. I would
check to see that they belong to AAR (Association of Authors
Representatives).
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mary rosenblum
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New agents are hungry!
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mary rosenblum
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It's also a good idea to find
out what their experience is with the pubilishing world.
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mary rosenblum
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Anyone can call
himself/herself an agent and start sending unsolicited ms to editors...
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mary rosenblum
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They'll pretty much ignore
them...editors get to know agents and know that this agent always sends
good stuff his way...
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mary rosenblum
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and look at those ms first.
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mary rosenblum
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That's why it's a good idea to
get an agent close to NYC for print publishing and a Hollywood agent if you
want to do screenplays.
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mary rosenblum
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It is VERY hard to get an
established agent.
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mary rosenblum
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They have a string of authors
who are making money and unless you bring publishing credits with you...
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mary rosenblum
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they will figure you are more
work than you'll be worth.
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mary rosenblum
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They mostly take new clients
on referral from other clients or editors.
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mary rosenblum
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Newer agents are hungry and
then you'll be one of their string when they're established. :-)
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rosedak
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Mary are the details on the
novel course on the website?
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mary rosenblum
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No on the part I run. If you
email Student Services and ask, they'll be happy to send you the material,
I'm sure. But as of now, it's only open to LR grads..
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janecj333
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That unknown agents get ignored
by publishers is an interesting irony.
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mary rosenblum
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Well, it's a matter of volume,
Jane. I have been in editor offices and literally, the ms are stacked three
feet deep along the wall.
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mary rosenblum
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It's not like they're short of
books! And if they know that ms sent by these agents are usually worth the
read...
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mary rosenblum
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they look at them and when
they have time..if they have time...they look at work sent in my people
they've never heard of.
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mary rosenblum
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The reason you PAY an agent
that 15% is to make himself or herself known to that editor!
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mary rosenblum
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I want my agent to earn that
money, thank you!
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janecj333
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Three feet deep...might make a
good fallout shelter if you pile some along the ceiling, too.
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mary rosenblum
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Hey, it's great insulation!
:-)
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mary rosenblum
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Why pay someone 15% to sit in
Dubuque and put stamps on a package?
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tory
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Think of all those poor trees!
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mary rosenblum
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NOt to mention what it costs
to copy and mail the stupid things by Fedex!
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mary rosenblum
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I can't wait until it's all
electronic!
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mary rosenblum
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You don't even want to know
what it costs to airmail a ms overseas!
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cherley
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How long would you wait on
results from a agent?
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mary rosenblum
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They're pretty fast, cherley.
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mary rosenblum
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You usually hear back by six
weeks.
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mary rosenblum
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And you can query as many
simultaneiously as you want.
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mary rosenblum
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I'd make up a list and spend
one afternoon sending out about thirty queries, myself.
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cherley
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I mean for them to sell your
book.
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mary rosenblum
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Until it's sold. :-) I have
several unsold books.
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mary rosenblum
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Both Martha and I keep an eye
out for new markets or new editors...
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mary rosenblum
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and they'll go back out then.
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cherley
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How would you know they're doing
their job?
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mary rosenblum
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YOu have to be an informed
comsumer, cherley.
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mary rosenblum
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You have to find out who that
agent represents...see what those people have published and where.
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mary rosenblum
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How often does that agent send
your work out?
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mary rosenblum
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Where?
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mary rosenblum
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Does that agent meet with
editors?
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geezer
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Is there a contract with an
agent that specifies a time limit or anything?
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mary rosenblum
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Not on how soon a book sells,
geeze...
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mary rosenblum
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No agent takes your book
unless he/she thinks it can sell.
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mary rosenblum
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If it doesn't sell and doesn't
fit well elsewhere, what are you going to do?
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cherley
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So they keep you informed of
what they're doing.
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mary rosenblum
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They should.
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mary rosenblum
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Read the FAQ page on the AAR
website. It tells you everything you should ask when you are making a
connection wiht an agent.
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mary rosenblum
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AAR website
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wr1ter
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so when do you know you are
ready for an agent?
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mary rosenblum
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When you HAVE to have one,
writer.
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mary rosenblum
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If you can't submit to a
publisher without one (no unagented or no unsolicited ms in the guidelines).
Or when you make a sale to a NY publisher...
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mary rosenblum
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and need an agent to handle
the contract.
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mary rosenblum
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Small press contracts are
usually pretty simple and clear. You don't need an agent for that...
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mary rosenblum
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and agents won't usually
handle them.
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janecj333
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Can you tell us what makes
editors happy, in a nutshell, how we can pleasantly surprise them?
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mary rosenblum
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Sure. The way writers have
always made editors happy. Write a really good story that impresses them.
:-) Then they'll fight for your book tooth and nail.
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geezer
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Off topic. Does it matter in the
novel course if your instructor does not write in the same genre as the
student does?
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mary rosenblum
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No, geeze. The main course is
all about the craft of noveling.
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mary rosenblum
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Students have the option of
continuing on past chapter three and if they choose to do that...
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mary rosenblum
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you'll be reassigned to an
instructor who writes in your genre.
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paminnapa
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so if the agent is new, and not
on the preditors/editors page, would they be ok to use? Ive seen several
new ones come up that dont represent many people yet...do you suggest to go
for a more well established agent?
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mary rosenblum
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gosh, pam, sorry. I think I
answered your question earlier and didn't post it.
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mary rosenblum
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Yes, new agents are great, as
long as they have some connection with publishers...
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mary rosenblum
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and are not just mailing ms
out of their kitchen in the midwest somewhere.
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geezer
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If they exist.
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mary rosenblum
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If who exists, geeze?
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geezer
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My genre
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mary rosenblum
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Oh, should be. The ten
instructors handling the course right now, cover the genres pretty well.
:-)
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mary rosenblum
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Well, this has been a fun
Oregon hour. Good questions!
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mary rosenblum
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I'll post the transcripts in
the usual place: Writing Craft, Forum Transcripts.
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mary rosenblum
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Do join us tomorrow for our
casual chat...
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mary rosenblum
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same yime same place
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mary rosenblum
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Have a good week, all!
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