Fiction Writing Archives - Page 11 of 16

Updated May, 2021: 7 Awesome Resources For Querying Agents About Your Novel

Posted on April 20, 2014 Written by Pinar Tarhan

Update: This post was written some time ago, so an update is in order. While I still love these resources for querying agents, I decided to go the self-publishing route. I guess a post in favor of self-publishing is in order, so stay tuned to the blog. You can subscribe to the blog here.

Want to check out how my self-published novels and books look? Check out my Amazon Author page here.

My agent search has begun. So while I have several posts in progress including (but not limited to):

Review for extremely helpful and fun guide by Kirsty Stuart for making money travel blogging,
Review for another terrific resource for bloggers, The Blogger’s Guide to Freelancing by Ali Luke,
A descriptive piece on steampunk,
Getting attached to fictional characters (and how sometimes writers need to kill off key characters).

But it’s only relevant and timely that I update you on my agent search, as well as the resources – yep, there’ll be some affiliate links- I’m using during the dreaded query and synopsis-writing phase:

Submitting and Formatting Your Manuscript by Chuck Sambuchino

Written by freelance writer/editor Chuck Sambuchino, this Writer’s Digest book guides you on the process of writing, formatting and querying both fiction and non-fiction. You’ll find invaluable tips on querying, cover letters, manuscript pages; as well as samples for anything you will need to write.

In addition to novel writing and submitting, the book includes sections for non-fiction, memoirs, graphic novels, screenplays and more.

2014 Guide to Agents

After having spent two hours and having only completed a detailed list for a handful of agents, I wanted to have a readily compiled book at hand with tips on the querying process as well:

2014 Guide to Agents includes contact details, agent interviews and their genre preferences, query letters agents liked, percentage of new writers vs. established writers, contracts and more.

Yes, I couldn’t recommend this book enough. That said, always check the website of the agency in question and combine the information you find in the book and on the site. Agencies tend to update their needs, so make sure you do your homework well.

For instance, while some agencies preference for romance is not mentioned in the book, you might find they’re especially after romance these days. Yeah, I’m speaking from experienceJ

AGENTQUERY. COM

AgentQuery, by their definition, is an online database of literary agents.

Agent Query is more than just a database, however. It includes information on the industry, including genre descriptions, reasons for needing an agent, other resources for writers and more.

QueryTracker

QueryTracker, by their definition, is a free database of agents and publishers. It’s free to register, and you can use it to track your own queries, hence the appropriateness of the name. The site has been repeatedly named as one of the best sites for writers by Writer’s Digest.

Query Shark

Literary Agent Janet Reid runs the essential query critique blog Query Shark where she analyzes real queries on what works and what doesn’t. Read her submission guidelines (and the rich well of previously critiqued queries) before querying yourself. There’s a chance she already corrected your mistakes and evaluated your strengths and weaknesses on somebody else’s query.

Writer’s Digest Posts on Agents

Just keep clicking on the related links you come across while reading these. There’s a ton, and it would take me months to generate a complete list here. I’ve, however, selected a few to get you started:

SUCCESSFUL QUERIES: AGENT ALYSSA REUBEN AND “HIDDEN CITIES” (MEMOIR / TRAVEL)

LITERARY AGENT INTERVIEW: MELISSA FLASHMAN OF TRIDENT MEDIA GROUP, LLC

AGENT ADVICE: SHIRA HOFFMAN OF MCINTOSH & OTIS, INC.

The Write Life Blog Posts:

This is a very insightful and practical resource on all aspects of writing in general.

But when you are looking for an agent, there are some questions you’d like answered to do a better job, including:

– What does an agent want to see when they google you?

– What do they want or hate in a query letter?

– Is it OK to query multiple agents at the same agency?

– How many queries without answers should be a warning sign for you to improve that query?

(*Please note that some of these have been excerpted from the 2014 Guide to Literary Agents, the book recommended earlier in this post.)

How Many Literary Agents Should You Query to have the Best Chance of Success?

Querying Literary Agents: Your Top 9 Questions Answered

What Does a Literary Agent Want to See When They Google You?

13 Ways to Convince a Literary Agent to Represent You

Frankly, I was a fan of The Write Life before. But these posts above turned me into an addict.:)

Of course it’s a good idea not to only apply these tips, but take notes of the names of agents that offered them as well. They might be amongst the people you’ll be submitting your work to after all.

Agents information are generally featured on the websites of the literary agencies they work for. However they tend to offer even more about what they want through interviews, tweets and blogs.

So learn what you can about each agent’s preferences before you send that query letter.

Currently, I’m absorbing and deploying these resources. Please add what you use in the comments.J

And good luck to everyone, whether you need it for inspiration, submission or just selling more.:)

Why I’m Forming My Own Thesaurus

Posted on March 20, 2014 Written by Pinar Tarhan

Thesauruses are often one of writers’ best friends, especially in times of drafting and editing. You don’t want to be repetitive. You want the word that sounds just right, and sometimes a nice Thesaurus provides you with some nifty words that for some reason elude your mind.

As someone who still has a fondness for paperbacks, I own an Oxford Thesaurus. I also make use of my built-in one that came with my MacBook Air. I occasionally use dictionary.com.

But I recently took up the habit of making a list of most-needed/liked words and phrases. I’ll be reading an article and I’ll see a word that fits the image I have in my head. I underline the stuff I loved in other books/magazines/blogs…Some of them even served as unintentional writing prompts. Ah…the mysterious (and slightly crazy) mind of the writer…

And let’s face it, while there are many ways your character can walk/enter/move/run…etc., only one or two will describe his mood and speed perfectly without contrasting his personality or situation.

Using the right word also eliminates unnecessary adverbs and adjectives. Don’t get me wrong. I might be the in the minority as a writer as I love those parts of speech. Still, some of them are redundant and if you can make your piece smoother, you go ahead and do it.

So there. I’m, with the help the stuff I’m reading and other Thesauruses at hand, forming my own. Because I know what I need. I know what my characters need.

And it makes the process much faster.

What are your go-to resources for the writing process? Have you thought about collecting your favorite vocabulary?

To conclude, here’s a funny video from Friends on why we shouldn’t overuse anything, thesauruses.:)

P.S. I was also recommended Chambers Dictionary for Mac.

Turn-Offs in Novels: Jargon, Foreign Languages and Detailed Description of Very Minor Characters

Posted on March 2, 2014 Written by Pinar Tarhan

I’ve fallen out with a novel I had eagerly bought. I picked it out the ways I always do. I went to one of my favorite bookstores (aka a big store with a decent, varied collection and offering comfy seating and quiet to explore), took 5-10 books whose premise (and genre) I was intrigued by and read a little. I chose the one that appealed to my current reading need: a fun, fast-paced, emotional romance novel. (While I’m also a huge fan of thrillers, I’m working on a romantic/comedy/drama manuscript myself, it makes more sense to research the market – seeing what sells while getting the escapism I need.)

And it started fine enough. For the first 50/100 pages or so, it was unputdownable. I read it on the bus, on the escalators, before I went to bed… If I wasn’t working (or resting my eyes), I was reading it. Sure, there were some wordy descriptions, a few mentions in a foreign language and some jargon related to the characters’ work. It set the mood. It was sort of relevant. I didn’t mind.

But then the characters dropped their foreign language randomly in their sentences regularly. Some characters were from that foreign country so it made sense. Regrettably, it wasn’t one of the languages I sort of spoke. No, they went beyond your typical travel phrases or widely-known vocabulary. Then there was the jargon rain. It kept coming and coming.

Now, the book is aimed more at a female audience. The romantic storyline, a typical female character (I’ll get into the “typical” in my next post) and even the job (decoration-related) probably made the majority of female readers happy. But, you see, when it comes to interior design, I’m more like a guy than a girl . I don’t have an extended furniture vocabulary . Sure, I love shopping and decorating myself, but I don’t want to know the name/root/history of every single thing. So the book slowed down further. I kept giving breaks and then coming back.

The third turn-off was the detailed description of the more minor characters- characters we run into once or twice as the reader. Yes, I could picture them all vividly, but it took me off from the plots and subplots. Now, there are some things the book did very well. The woven storylines, the setting and the dialogue were pretty good. But I started rolling my eyes way too often, and the initial love and enthusiasm disappeared.

The good news is, the book breaks some rules with novel-writing advice. It’s good news, because it proves you can follow your heart, write your novel your own way and get it published. The bad news is, this book isn’t a debut. So the writer had some leeway. First-timers don’t usually have this luxury.

Now, the point is this post isn’t to critique one particular book (hence the absence of the the title and the name of the author), but to spark a discussion about using other languages, jargon, and the amount of details insignificant characters deserve. Basically, this author hasn’t killed her darlings but has given birth to them over and over and over again.

How do you feel about the use of them? How generous are you with these when it comes to your fiction? As for my musings on “typical“ female character, that’ll be in my next post, so please stay tuned. Until then, you can check out the problem with following advice in this post The Problem With Following Advice, and Writing Your Novel Your Way.

The Problem With Following Advice, and Writing Your Novel Your Way

Posted on February 1, 2014 Written by Pinar Tarhan

novel writing — Image via bang2write.com

How good are you at following advice? For me, there is no single answer to this question. It depends on where the said advice comes from (reliability), and whether or not it can match my personality traits and some very rooted habits. Meaning I won’t (and can’t) fool myself into thinking I can take the “get up early” tip of some writers, because before 9 o’clock, I’m cranky, useless, sleepy and yes, unproductive. So instead of having a staring contest with the blank sheets or screen, I get up a little later and get the most out of my awake self.

For instance, I adore John Grisham’s legal thrillers and dramas, but the fact that he got up two hours before work (as in before he headed to the law firm) while working on his first novel makes me think he is an (awesome) alien.

I’m sure you can relate. Maybe not to my sleeping habits, but to how I analyze and decide to internalize or chuck tips from successful people. I can work with “be organized”, because that’s sane advice. I might not be able to keep the tidiest house, but I will clean up the mess before I start working.

Where’s this coming from? I’ve been reading about agents and publishing since I started working on my novel, and while some of the tips make me say “Of course!”, some make me scratch my head and get a bit pessimistic. The latest collection of tips that inspired this post can be read here.

(Some of the tips I couldn’t agree more with are about “dream” starts, verbose paragraphs, laundry lists… Please refer to this post for these to make sense )

The good news is, following some viable advice, combined with a good story and hard work, can get you published. Bad news is, it might kill diversity.

I’m working on a romantic/drama comedy which will probably appeal more to women than man on the basis of its genre. Let’s assume I get published (I haven’t started pitching yet,) and a reader picked it up. Here’s what he/she won’t see:

– A main female character picking all her physical flaws and insecurities apart in several different places.

I read this sensible tip that says no one wants to read about physically perfect characters. They’re boring and/or hard to relate to. I agree.

But when I mentioned the “beauty” of my characters in this story, I referred to how other people perceived them. For instance one character is confident, playful, free-spirited and cute. She has no problem flirting with men, and this is observed by her friends. Maybe she has crooked teeth, or eyes that are too small for her face or she doesn’t like her nose much. Who cares? Her insecurities are irrelevant to her storyline, so I don’t mention them.

Or let’s take my leading male character. He’s described as handsome in a manly and outdoorsy way. He’s also smart, nice and extremely altruistic. So even before my female lead meets him, she is very intrigued. And because she finds his personality sexy too, she is drawn to him. While their chemistry dominates the scene, I don’t talk about if he is too tall or she’s too short or they’re going through a bad hair day. They might not be everybody’s type. They are certainly not perfect, whether physically or personally. No one is. But as far as their looks are concerned, they are perfect according to each other.

– First person present tense narrative from this main female character.

I love romance and comedy, and I read a lot of fiction with a female leading character, told from her perspective and in present simple. I like this type of narrative. It’s fun, captivating and quite addictive. But the problem is, as I identify with this 20-something, physically-not-perfect but-can-be- quite-alluring-with-the-right-style character who has some problems at work and her romantic life, I keep wondering what the other characters are like. I get how the lead sees them, but I never get to see what they truly think. You can show and not tell as much as you want, but you are still showing one character’s point of view.

I wanted to study from published and well-received romance novels so I could get an idea of how to tell a romantic drama/comedy using past tense, and with an omniscient narrative. I failed to find such books…There are many thrillers and dramas like this, but romantic comedies? Not really. (If you can think of some, please recommend away!)

So I fumbled through my first novel. I tried to use what worked for me as a reader, and what didn’t. I left out what bored me. I tried to produce the type of story that I’d like to read.

I’m not saying it reinvents the wheel. It doesn’t. I’m not saying it’s not unpredictable, or as catchy as the first-person narratives I’m a big fan of.

But this is the story I wanted to tell. I’m open to critiques, rewrites and notes on it. But since there are numerous authors who have been doing this so well for so long, maybe I can find an agent that will take a shot with me, because it’s a bit different.

I realize that some of the advice I don’t apply might work against me. But for the sake of this story being its own (and mine), I have to reject certain tips, and cross fingers that I made the right call.

As always, I welcome all your tips, experiences and opinions.

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