Writer's Resource: #MSWL

Yesterday was a #MSWL day on Twitter! Whether you're a seasoned Twitter-user or terrified to even poke your head in, this is an incredibly useful tool for writers who are seeking agents. Here's a quick primer.

#MSWL stands for Manuscript Wishlist. Agent Jessica Sinsheimer conceived this several years ago as a way to connect agents who wanted to see specific things in their inboxes with writers who could provide them.

When an event is scheduled, agents (and sometimes editors, but mostly agents) tweet things they're interested in seeing—say, YA sci-fi with aliens or adult romantic suspense—and because they include the hashtag, it's all collected into an easily searchable list. Writers can get as specific as they want with their searches. Use twitter.com or your favorite third-party Twitter app, like TweetDeck or HootSuite and type "#MSWL" and your keywords into the search.

A few cautions:
-This event has been running since 2013, so be sure to check the dates on any matches you find before you submit your work. Agents usually aren't looking for the same things they were a few years ago.

-Anyone can post on the #MSWL hashtag, so you should always do your research before you send a query and make sure they're someone you'd want to work with.

-Don't ever tweet a pitch for your book using the #MSWL hashtag. It's reserved for agents and other industry professionals, so it's a major faux pas to blunder in as a writer looking for representation. If you need to ask a question to clarify someone's MSWL tweet, that's fine—just do a direct reply and don't use the hashtag, and that way it won't show up in searches.

If you think this #MSWL thing is pretty cool, check out the website! Manuscriptwishlist.com is a huge repository of agent information and should be a writer gearing up to query's first stop.

Query Strategy: Target or Blast?

There's no one so worried about etiquette and detail as a querying writer. I've talked about the personalization debate here on the blog before, but today's topic is a little different: should you only send queries to agents who say they want the genre, themes, and/or tone of your novel ("dark epic fantasy," for example), or should you cast a wider net—anyone who says they want YA at all?

Searching the internet yields varying responses. Janet Reid, for one, is a big fan of querying widely. Victoria Strauss, on the other hand, suggests targeting your queries as closely as possible, picking only agents whose interests and specialties appear to be a good fit for your manuscript.

The truth is, we're spoiled. There are very few other creative fields where industry professionals publicly state their preferences and wishlists. I've had more than one discussion about this with my husband, who spent years querying managers and agents for screenplays and would have KILLED for the kind of information that's freely available for fiction on agency websites, MSWL, and more.

While it's important to keep this information in mind, one lesson I've learned is that agents often won't know they're interested in something until they see it. I've been around the contest circuit enough to be surprised over and over again at who requests my pitches. It's often someone I would never have thought to query based on their wishlists.

My ultimate take on the target vs. blast question? Query widely. Use agent wishlists and agency guidelines to find people you definitely won't query (if they say, "I don't like sci-fi," or "adult fiction only," stay the heck away from them with your YA space opera), but everyone else is fair game. You never know who might fall in love with your work.

Successful Author Chat: Kendra Highley shares her path to pub story, writing advice and a chance to win a $25 gift card.

I'm thrilled the have author Kendra Highley here to share her path to publication story (spoil alert: perseverance is key!), writing advice, and her latest release The Bad Boy Bargain. Make sure you scroll to the bottom of the post for a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card and more!

Guest Post: Author Kendra Highley

I started writing toward publication in 2008. I was in English major, and had been dabbling in writing for some time, but finally had an idea that made me feel like I should be serious about it. Naïve enough to believe it was great (this book will never see the light of day), I subbed it to agents. 110 rejections later, I took a step back, started a new project and found a great online critique group. The second series went a little better—fifteen partial requests, six full requests, and two offers for representation. What people don’t tell you, though, is getting an agent isn’t the same as having it made. After the book failed to sell, my agent wasn’t interested in any of my other work—including Sidelined, which was ultimately my first traditionally published novel—so we parted ways and I pursued self-publishing. I had some real success in that arena, but when I heard Entangled wanted sports’ related contemporary YA, I sent in Sidelined—unagented—and the rest is history.

My writing process has slowly evolved from total pantser, to plotter, to outliner. Over time, as my craft developed, I realized how many words I had to delete by not planning ahead. I still surprise myself and the story sometimes drives in a different direction, but the discipline has helped shorten my timeline—which is good because my deadlines have become tighter, too.

One of things I do that helps is set aside time to write. My biggest blocks of writing time come on the weekends, when I try to sit down for three to four hours each day and put down as many words as I can. This isn’t the time to smooth things out. “Push the story forward, clean it up later” is my mode of attack to finish a draft on time. I do fine tuning and put down additional words during the week, so I have sense of where to go when the next weekend comes.

I don’t have many secret tips other than read in your chosen genre, find a good critique group who will push you to develop, and practice your craft. Write a little every day, even if it’s two hundred words. I’ve found a few books helpful, also: Save the Cat (plotting), Self-editing for Fiction Writers (Editing), and The Emotion Thesaurus (to help vary emotion tags). The most important thing, though, is to believe in yourself and your story. It might take time (for me, it was 4 years) before you have a piece of work polished enough to put out into the world. Don’t do it too soon—reviews are tough, and you want to be ready.

If I had a chance to do things differently, I probably wouldn’t. Everyone’s writing journey is an iterative process, and it’s as unique as leaves on a tree. What works for one writer won’t always work for another. My biggest pieces of advice is you do you—if something is working for you, don’t change it even if “conventional wisdom” says otherwise. Stay true to your story, and it’ll come out in the end. 

About The Bad Boy Bargain by Kendra C. Highley 

Publication Date: November 14, 2016
Publisher: Entangled Teen Crush

Baseball player Kyle Sawyer has many labels: bad boy, delinquent, ladies’ man, fearless outfielder… Only one of them is actually true. But then sweet ballet dancer Faith Gladwell asks him to help wreck her reputation, and everything goes sideways. 

Faith knows a thing or two about love, and what she had with her cheating jerk of an ex wasn’t it. When he starts spreading rumors about her being an Ice Queen, Faith decides it’s time to let a little bad into her life.

Lucky for her, Kyle Sawyer—dark, dangerous, totally swoonworthy Kyle Sawyer—is landscaping her backyard over Spring Break. Shirtless. And if she can convince him to play along, “dating” Kyle will silence the rumors.

But Faith’s plan threatens to expose Sawyer’s biggest secret of all…and that’s a risk he’s not willing to take.

Disclaimer: This book contains drop-the-book-and-fan-yourself kisses…and touches. Fall in love with a bad boy at your own risk.

Goodreads | Amazon US | B&N | Kobo | Amazon AU | Amazon UK | Amazon CA

 

About the Author 

Kendra C. Highley lives in north Texas with her husband and two children. She also serves as staff to four self-important and high-powered cats. This, according to the cats, is her most important job. She believes in everyday magic, extraordinary love stories, and the restorative powers of dark chocolate.

Website -  Twitter - Facebook - Tumblr - Pinterest 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Advice to Writers + How Pantsing Can Help You Write More + A Giveaway from ARGOS Author Philip W. Simpson

We're excited to welcome Philip W. Simpson to Thinking to Inking! Today, he shares how becoming a pantser helped him become a more prolific writer, as well as advice for those of us still slogging it out in the query trenches. Don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the post for a chance to win a copy of Philip's latest release, Argos.

Guest post from author Philip W. Simpson:

Pantsing vs. Plotting and How it Can Help You Write More Books

I’m much more of a pantser now than I used to be. I’ve just about finished my 9th novel and to honest, I’m not really sure what’s going to happen next. I just know that when my fingers hit the keyboard, ideas come. Some are good, some are bad but I just get the draft down first. I can look for inconsistences and poor writing later (and trust me, there’s going to be a lot).

I planned my first three novels meticulously but I have found over the years that I don’t like to be restricted like this. Often unexpected ideas come during the writing process. This initiates a somewhat awkward confrontation between the pantser and planner parts of my brain. One is saying ‘you have to do this because it says so here. See!’ and the other one is saying ‘bollocks to that. This new idea is better. Go with it.’

The pantser often wins out. In fact, I think the planner has given up. Once they’ve done a rough outline i.e. main character starts at this point, get him or her to the end point in the most interesting way possible—then their job is done. The pantser takes over. So, what I’m saying is don’t restrict yourself. Who cares if you write yourself into a corner. Ben Okri once gave me some good advice which was essentially this: writing yourself into a corner is an opportunity for creativity and for some of your best writing to emerge. You are literally forced to come up with some inventive ways for your characters to get out of their dead end/and or sticky situation.

Advice for writers slogging it out in the query trenches:

If you’re looking for an agent, do your research. I checked out Editors and Predators. Look for feedback from other authors on chat sites. Make lists. Look for books that are similar to yours, check out the authors and find who they are represented by. If they look legit, I’d query them. Make more lists.

Many agencies and publishers hate multiple submissions. And I do mean hate. Check their submission criteria. Every one is different. Queries are fine. Send out lots of queries (cover letter, blurb, a bit about yourself—once again, check their webpage to see what they require). Never send a partial or full ms until they ask for it. Some are fine with multiple submissions. Keep a spreadsheet listing with dates and either query, partial, or full. And outcome obviously. One of my spreadsheets has 50 odd entries.

If you do get an offer, however, you must, MUST, let other agents know. If you don’t, you run the risk of being blacklisted. Also, it gives other agents a chance to get in an offer (a multiple offer situation—makes all authors swoon).

To reiterate: do your research. Look for writers who write for the same genre and market. Find out who their agents are. Check out their website. Research individual agents and find out what they are looking for. Tailor your query letter to them i.e. “I see that you are looking for …. And that you represent…” Agents hate form letters (even though they send out form replies). Only send them your ms if it’s the genre they are after. Otherwise, you are wasting their time and yours. Only put things in your cover letter that are relevant. Don’t tell them that you worked at McDonalds in the holidays. Do tell them if you won awards or have been previously published. Don’t tell them that your mom loves your work. Keep a tab on who and what you have sent. I once made the mistake of sending the same ms twice to the same agent because I hadn’t updated my query spreadsheet. He was not impressed. Most of all, if you think you need an agent, be persistent. Don’t give up! Take on board any feedback (you probably won’t get much).

The Process of Writing Argos

I got the idea for Argos from a page in Homer’s Odyssey. This is where Odysseus returns after twenty years to his island of Ithaka and finds his loyal dog Argos still waiting for him. He’s lying forgotten and dying on a dung heap but sees Odysseus, raises his head, wags his tail and dies. I cried when I first read it and have cried every time since. I love stories about dogs and I love first person narratives so hence the reason I chose to tell the story from Argos’ eyes. Besides, I had a blank canvas of twenty years to fill in which gave me creative license.

I’m a full time elementary teacher and as a matter of necessity, I have to write fast. I write in my holidays and weekends. In a two week term break, I can write 40k words so Argos took me around 4-5 weeks to write. You have to remember that I already have a pretty strong idea of the story in my head.

This is not too dissimilar to the writing process for my other books with the exception of last year. I was lucky enough to have a sabbatical last year where I completed my Masters in Creative Writing. The course work for that was to write a novel. I wrote it fairly quickly (4 months) but then had the luxury of spending the rest of the year reworking it. It was a fantastic experience. I wish every year was like that.

Argos by Phillip W. Simpson
Release Date: May 10, 2016
Publisher: Month9Books

Loyalty has no limits

Raised from a pup by Greek hero, Odysseus, Argos has come to learn the true meaning of love and loyalty. But when Odysseus leaves for the Trojan War, little does Argos know it will be 20 years before he sees his master again. With Odysseus gone his wife, Penelope, and son, Telemachus, are easy prey for neighboring kings and the Gods themselves.

But Argos was tasked to keep them safe until Odysseus returns and that is a promise he is determined to keep – whatever the cost. Told through his eyes, Argos recounts the story of his life – his pain, his joy, his triumphs and failures; his endurance in the face of hardships almost too great to believe.

Above all else, Argos strives to do what is right – and to remain loyal to his King when all others have given up hope. To live long enough to see his beloved master one more time.

This epic myth of love and loyalty proves that a dog really is man's best friend.

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | TBD | Chapters  

About the author

Phillip W. Simpson has written over 50 children’s books for both middle grade and young adult readers. He has a background in Ancient History and Archaeology, and has partially completed his doctorate in Archaeology. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand, with his wife Rose, their son, Jack and their two border terriers, Whiskey and Raffles. When not writing, he works as an elementary school teacher.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Pinterest |Goodreads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Writing the First Book in a YA Series

When you’re writing a book, it’s normal to wonder if it would work better as a standalone novel or the beginning of a series. While a series might seem appealing (after all, your fans will get to read more in the world you created and you’ll make more money, right?) there are many books that simply work better as standalone novels. You are the only one who can make a decision about whether there’s enough story to tell to justify more than one book.

If you decide to go the series route, there are some things you’ll want to keep in mind. First, current advice is to have the first book stand alone for the most part. That might sound confusing—how can it be a series if it stands alone?—but another way to put this would be to ensure the first book’s story arc wraps up in a conclusion that’s satisfying for the reader. If your intended first book in a series has a cliffhanger ending where the hero/heroine is about to be devoured by a horrible monster, that’s a problem.

Having the first book stand alone doesn’t mean you can’t leave some loose ends at the end, however. JK Rowling does a great job of this in HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S/PHILOSOPHER’S STONE. While the main plot of the book is resolved (Harry finishes his first year at school, bests the villain who threatened him, and finds a place to belong at last), the reader knows that Voldemort is still out there somewhere and that Harry will be returning to Hogwarts the next year.

When pursuing traditional publication, don’t make the mistake of putting in your query letter to agents that it’s book one of a planned fifteen-book series. Even if you are planning fourteen more books, you’ll have to sell the first one first, and then it will have to do well enough so the publisher wants to publish the others. In a query, the best way to express that your book could be a series is with some variation of the wording “standalone novel with series potential.” (Of course, then you have to make sure the book actually does stand alone.)

If you know you want to write further works in same world and/or about the same characters, but don’t necessarily want to continue forward directly from events of the first book, companion novels might be the perfect compromise. Some good YA examples include Kristin Cashore’s GRACELING and FIRE, and Stephanie Perkins’s ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS and LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR.

Are you planning or have you written a YA series?

Author Jessica Arnold's Advice to Writers + a chance to win THE LINGERING GRACE

Today, we're excited to have author Jessica Arnold join us to share her advice to writers still slogging their way through the trenches. Her latest book, THE LINGERING GRACE, is the second book in her THE LOOKING GLASS series. Don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the post for a chance to win your own copy of The Lingering Grace!

The question: What surprised you most about your path to publication, and what (if anything) would you do differently looking back?

The Lingering Grace is my second book to reach publication. This newest book release will mark a full eight years since I started writing my very first manuscript. It took me about a year to finish that project, and what I created was, at best, unpublishable. But at the time I didn’t know that. When I started querying agents about seven years ago, I thought the journey to publication would take a year at most.

Looking back, part of me wishes I could travel back in time and shatter my delusions bat-on-glass style. But, on the other hand, I’m glad no one told me at the time exactly how many years it would be before I got an agent, before I got a book deal, before that book was released, and so on. Knowing the size of the hurdles ahead is less important than knowing why you’re jumping them.

I get asked sometimes what my advice is for writers fighting their way towards publication. My answer usually is something along these lines: Write because you love it and don’t give up.

Your journey to publication might be shorter or longer than mine. But if you know why you write—if you write because that’s what makes you happy—and if you refuse to give up, you’ll get there.

One of the biggest secrets I’ve learned as my friends have gotten book deals and as I’ve seen my own books reach publication is that the hurdles don’t disappear. Everyone still struggles with the same things—revisions, crises of confidence, lacks of inspiration, and self doubt. Whether you’re just starting the querying process or you’re looking a pub date in the face, it’s knowing why you’re doing this crazy amazing difficult hard thing that keeps you going.

So keep going! Say it to yourself when you’re pushing past writers block. Say it to your friends when they’re trying to get up the courage to query again. Say it, and we’ll all get there.

Good luck and love to all of you! 

More about Jessica and The Lingering Grace:

The Lingering Grace (The Looking Glass #2)
by Jessica Arnold
Publisher: Month9Books

All magic comes with a price.

The new school year brings with it a welcome return to normalcy after Alice’s narrow escape from a cursed hotel while on summer vacation. But when a young girl drowns in a freak accident that seems eerily similar to her own near-death experience, Alice suspects there might be something going on that not even the police can't uncover.

The girl’s older sister, Eva attends Alice’s school, and Alice immediately befriends her. But things change when when Alice learns that Eva is determined to use magic to bring her sister back. She must decide whether to help Eva work the highly dangerous magic or stop her at all costs. After all, no one knows better than Alice the true price of magic.

The Lingering Grace (The Looking Glass #2) by Jessica Arnold:

Add It To Goodreads

Google Play | Chapters |Amazon | B&N | Kobo | TBD | iBooks

The Looking Glass (The Looking Glass #1)

by Jessica Arnold
Publisher: Month9Books

Find the diary, break the curse, step through The Looking Glass!

Fifteen-year-old Alice Montgomery wakes up in the lobby of the B&B where she has been vacationing with her family to a startling discovery: no one can see or hear her. The cheap desk lights have been replaced with gas lamps and the linoleum floor with hardwood and rich Oriental carpeting. Someone has replaced the artwork with eerie paintings of Elizabeth Blackwell, the insane actress and rumored witch who killed herself at the hotel in the 1880s. Alice watches from behind the looking glass where she is haunted by Elizabeth Blackwell. Trapped in the 19th-century version of the hotel,

Alice must figure out a way to break Elizabeth’s curse—with the help of Elizabeth's old diary and Tony, the son of a ghost hunter who is investigating the haunted B&B—before she becomes the inn's next victim.

The Looking Glass (The Looking Glass #1) by Jessica Arnold:

Google Play | BAM | Chapters | Indies | Amazon | B&N | Kobo | TBD | iBooks

Jessica Arnold lives (in an apartment) and works (in a cubicle) in Boston, Massachusetts. She has a master‘s degree in publishing and writing from Emerson College.

Website | Twitter | Facebook |  Goodreads

Giveaway Information:  Contest ends April 1, 2016 

Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of The Lingering Grace (The Looking Glass #2) by Jessica Arnold (INT)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click here if rafflecopter doesn't appear

Advice to writers in the query trenches + giveaway from FACSIMILE Author Vickie Weavil

I'm thrilled to have Vickie L. Weavil, author of CROWN OF ICE and the newly released FACSIMILE with us today to offer her invaluable advice to those of us still in the query trenches. Be sure to scroll to the end of the post and enter for a chance to win your own copy of the fantastic and not-to-be-missed FACSIMILE!

My Advice for Writers Still in the Query Trenches
by Vickie L. Weavil

Authors still struggling to make that connection with an agent and/or publisher often feel that there is some special “thing” they can do to make their dream a reality. If they can just write the perfect query letter, or get into that one contest, or write a book that will scream “future bestseller,” everything will work out.

Having been there, here are my bits of advice on this topic:

1. There is NO perfect query.

No one writes a query that will instantly attract everyone who reads it. This is not because no one writes a brilliant query, it is more a factor of the subjectivity of the publishing business. What is attractive to one agent or publisher makes others yawn.

Polish your query, but don’t wait to query until you have the “perfect” letter. Once you have done your best, send out a few and see what response you get. You can always tweak the query for future submissions if you don’t initially get a good response rate.

2. Word Count DOES count.

Let’s be honest – unless you have written a book so compelling it makes angels weep, NO ONE wants your 175,000 word young adult debut novel. Research and learn the appropriate word count for your age group and genre, and try to stay within those limits.

“But,” you say, “Author X just published a 900 page novel that’s selling like beer at the Super Bowl.” Well yes, but Author X is a famous, established writer. Their book is a sure thing, whereas a book from a debut author is a very iffy proposition. It actually does cost a lot more to produce a longer book, and publishers are (rightfully) leery of investing in a huge book that may or may not sell.

So, my advice is to trim that 150,000 YA fantasy down to a more reasonable 75,000 to 80,000 words. Because if you don’t, I’m afraid you are guaranteeing yourself a LOT of automatic rejections.

3. Query vs Synopsis: One thing is not like the other.

A query is NOT a synopsis. You do need a synopsis (more about that later) but the query should not read like one.

Queries should read more like the blurb on the back of a book. Queries are meant to hook and sell your book concept to an agent or publisher. Even plot details you consider essential can be omitted if they do not SELL the book. My query for CROWN OF ICE (which you can read here: https://chasingthecrazies.wordpress.com/2014/09/19/quite-the-query-vicki-l-weavil-with-crown-of-ice/ omits many important plot points. But it presents the essential idea of my character, her challenges, and the stakes. (Trust me, I struggled to get it into this shape!)

Oh and, if you think writing queries is only something you have to do while attempting to snag an agent or publisher, think again. You will write them for every new book, only now they are called “pitches” or “blurbs.”

4. Use something like Query Tracker.

If you are not already doing so, it is helpful to use something like Query Tracker (https://querytracker.net/ -- it’s free!) to organize your query submissions. This will help avoid the dreaded “I sent that query to the same agent twice” issue and will keep you sane. (Well, with querying, that’s probably impossible, but it will alleviate some of the confusion). Some people use spreadsheets or other methods, but whatever you do – keep track! There’s nothing worse than sending another query to an agent who has already rejected you. (Uhm, I may have done this once, when I first started out!)

5. Yes, you DO need a synopsis. In fact, you need more than one.

Look, I hate writing the things too, but you really should have a synopsis written before you query. Why? Because when your killer query and first pages get you umpteen full requests, the agent or publisher will want a synopsis ASAP. So write one – a longer version to start (maybe up to 5 pages), then cut that down to a 2 page version, then cut THAT down to one page version. If you do that, you will likely be ready for whatever is requested.

Also, just like the query, a synopsis is something you will need to write for all your future books, even after you are agented/published. So it pays to learn how to write them!

6. You are playing a long game.

Being an author is not a one-shot, I “made it,” deal. You need to prepare yourself to be in this business for the long haul, and handle a lot of ups and downs. Even after you snag an agent, and that marvelous pub. deal, there will still be books to write, revise, and promote. Some of those books may sell well, others will not, and that’s the way it is. The best plan I have discovered to cope with all the stress and uncertainty is – KEEP WRITING. (Also, connect with, and promote other authors. They will be your best allies, along with your readers).

You may not make enough on your first book – or your tenth book – to retire and write full-time. But, when you build a catalog of titles, you also build your skill level, a reader base, and the ability to generate income with your writing. So, hang in there, and always remember that you have the power, and privilege, to create new worlds, filled with wonderful characters. There really is nothing better than that!

About FACSIMILE

Facsimile by Vicki L. Weavil

Publication Date:  March 8, 2016 from Month9Books

For a ticket to Earth, seventeen-year-old Anna-Maria “Ann” Solano is willing to jettison her birth planet, best friend, and the boy who loves her. Especially since all she’s required to do is escort Dace Keeling, a young naturalist, through the wilderness of the partially terraformed planet Eco. Ann‘s determination to escape the limitations of her small, frontier colony never falters, until Dace’s expeditions uncover three secrets. One offers riches, one shatters Ann’s perceptions of herself, and one reveals that the humans stranded on Eco are not its only inhabitants.

Ann’s willing to sacrifice friendship and love for a new life on Earth. But when an entire species is placed in jeopardy by her actions, she must make a choice – fulfill the dream that’s always sustained her, or save the planet she’s never considered home.

Add it to Goodreads | Google Play | BAM | Chapters | Indies | Amazon | B&N | Kobo | TBD | iBooks

About Vickie L. Weavil

Vicki L. Weavil was raised in a farming community in Virginia, where her life was shaped by a wonderful family, the culture of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and an obsession with reading. She holds a B.A. in Theatre from the University of Virginia, a Masters in Library Science from Indiana University, and a Masters in Liberal Studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. After working as a librarian at the NY Public Library at Lincoln Center, and the Museum of Television & Radio (now the Paley Center for Media) in NYC, she is currently the Director for Library Services at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Vicki loves good writing in any genre, and has been known to read seven books in as many days. She enjoys travel, gardening, and the arts. Vicki lives in North Carolina with her husband and some very spoiled cats. A member of SCBWI, Vicki is represented by Fran Black at Literary Counsel, NY, NY. 

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Tumblr | Goodreads

Enter to win a copy of Facsimile!

Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of Facsimile by Vicki L. Weavil (INT.) Contest ends March 25, 2016.
Embed Code: a Rafflecopter giveaway

If the rafflecopter doesn't appear, click on the direct link here.

Writer's Resource: Janet Reid's Blog

Regular readers of this blog might have noticed that I'm a huge fan of research, both the kind you do when you're planning a novel and the kind you do before you try to find an agent or publisher (or before you self-publish). I have a huge bookmarked list of helpful links, but one of the best ways I stay on top of what's happening in the publishing industry is by reading certain helpful blogs on a regular basis.

One of the best around is super-agent Janet Reid's. She posts daily with questions and answers from readers, trends she's seeing in the slush, query advice, and even writing contests. Her advice is always blunt—one of the things I like about her is that she feels no need to sugarcoat—but she's honest and encouraging at the same time. She also maintains the QueryShark blog, a must-read for everyone who wants to write an effective query.

If you find it hard to keep up with a post a day, Ms. Reid helpfully puts up a Week in Review post every Sunday with a summary of the past week's posts and the pertinent/funny comments on each. (Side note: the comments on her blog tend to be informative, interesting, and often hilarious. It's the only blog on my feed reader where I regularly click to the full site to read the comments!)

I usually read blogs on my phone, because I'm more likely to get a moment to check them out while waiting in line or riding in the back of a car. There are several good apps you can use to keep track of the blogs you read. The one I use, Feedly, is intuitive and straightforward.

And now, hopefully you'll excuse me for a moment while I gloat about the fact that I get to meet Ms. Reid in person in just a few weeks, at the Midwest Writer's Workshop. I'm pretty excited to hear her publishing wisdom in person!