Are writing rules meant to be broken? May 20, 2013

 

 

Over the last two years I’ve become a student in the school of publishing.  I started out not knowing what a query was, much less how to format a manuscript or create a pitch. But over time, and through all my teachers (writers on AgentQuery Connect and Twitter – I’m talking to you), I’ve learned how to navigate the crazy world that is publishing.

 

Do I know it all? No.

 

Will I continue to learn and make mistakes every day? Yes.

 

Yet there are some hard and fast rules I’ve learned about publishing I try to adhere to:

 

 

1) Read and follow submission guidelines.

 

2) Your query should be written in third person, present tense.

 

3) Never use adverbs

 

4)  Do not start your first chapter with a dream, eating breakfast, waking up, or riding in a car.

 

 

And I’ll stop right there. Why? Because I’ve learned rules 2-4 can be broken. Yes, I said broken. But only if done the right way.

 

Allow me to elaborate with examples:

 

#2 – Your query should be written in third person, present tense

 

While this is almost always the best route to go, one well-known YA author broke this rule and still signed with an agent.

 

How? Because she did it right.

 

Do you know who I’m talking about? Should I leave you in suspense???

 

No, I’ll be nice. The author is Miranda Kenneally and she broke many query rules when she wrote her letter for CATCHING JORDAN. She wrote it from the perspective of her lead character.  I would venture to guess many “experts” would say not to do this.  But for Miranda it worked in so many ways.

 

Here it is:

 

 

My name is Jordan Woods, I’m seventeen, and last year, I blew it in the final seconds of the Tennessee state championship football game. This year, I can’t let that happen or I’ll never get a scholarship to play ball in college. I have a lot to prove, what, with an NFL star for a father – a father who doesn’t think I should be playing football. Why wouldn’t a famous quarterback want his kid to follow in the family footsteps?

 

I’m a girl.

 

But I’ve been playing quarterback since I was seven, so everyone’s gotten used to me by now. I’m a normal teenage girl. Well, as normal as I can be. I mean, obviously I think Justin Timberlake is a mega hunk, but I’m also over six feet tall and can launch a football fifty yards.

 

Other ways I’m not normal? A girl who hangs with an entire football team must hook up all the time, right?

 

Nope.

 

I’ve never had a boyfriend and most people think I’m gay. Hell, I’ve never even kissed a guy. But that might be about to change because the hottest guy, Ty Green, just moved here from Texas. Just the sight of him makes me want to simultaneously fly and barf. It turns out that he’s also a quarterback, and he’s a hell of a lot better than me. Last year, Ty led his team to win the Texas state championship.

 

And I’m scared. What if Coach gives my position away? What if Ty isn’t interested in me? The worst fear of all? What if Ty distracts me from my dreams of playing ball in college?

 

And why is my best friend, our star wide receiver, acting so strangely all of a sudden?

 

 

So why does this break all the rules and still work? Because this query is full of voice. Miranda tells Jordan’s story in a few sentences and makes you want to read more. I’m not surprised her agent, Sara Megibow, requested after receiving this query.  It is brilliant.

 

Should a beginning writer take this risk? That’s for the individual to decide.  But Miranda was brave. She sent this query out as a test. She didn’t send it to fifty agents, but just a few, and the response was overwhelming. Again, she DID IT RIGHT.

 

 

#3 – Never use adverbs

 

I see people railing about this subject all over social media.  And while the advice is somewhat true, I think it’s difficult to avoid adverbs.  Yes, why say, “he walked quickly” when you can say, “he raced” or “he ran.”  But there are times in writing where it’s almost impossible to describe a movement or action without using an adverb.

 

Now, if you use adverbs at the end of dialogue tags, we are talking another thing.  Recently, I tried to read the fourth book in a very popular YA series.  I stopped reading after 80 pages. Why?  Almost every dialogue tag had an adverb attached. You can only read, “he said angrily” so many times before it gets annoying. Plus, it pulls you out of the story.

 

So yes, adverbs can be an issue, but the rule can be broken if they are used sparingly and in the correct places.

 

 

#4 – Overdone beginnings

 

After doing numerous agent interviews in my First Five Frenzy series one thing is clear:  you should NOT begin your story with a canned opening. No waking up. No looking in a mirror. No eating breakfast or riding in a car.

 

But again, this rule can be broken if done in a convincing way.

 

Another example: The Hunger Games

 

The story begins with Katniss waking up and describing her family and surroundings. A big no-no, right? But for Suzanne Collins it works. Her prose drives the story forward. In those few paragraphs she eases the reader into her world. It’s a lesson all writers could learn from.

 

The thing to remember as a writer is this: rules can be broken.  You have to know what’s going to work for your own plot and characters.  Don’t be afraid to stretch and reach outside the norm to create a beautiful story that will grab readers and never let them go.

 

And one last thing about rule #1:   That one should never, ever be broken.

 

 

What writing rules do you think are okay to break?  I’d love to hear about it in the comments.

FIRST FIVE FRENZY with Annie Bomke of Annie Bomke Literary Agency May 17, 2013

 

 

If you’re like me, you toil for hours editing and fine-tuning the first pages of your manuscript.  You look at the first lines to make sure they are compelling and tight.  You examine the next few paragraphs, hoping  your MC’s voice is already taking hold of the reader.

 

The First Five Frenzy is all about getting an agent’s perspective on what works, and what fails, in those first pages of a manuscript.  By reading each agent’s comments, I hope you’ll learn how to make your manuscript a shining gem that will be requested time and time again.

 

Today, I am proud to share Literary Agent, Annie Bomke’s, perspective on what’s important in those critical first pages.

 

 

Amy: Many writers have the impression that a great first line is imperative to drawing in the reader. How important is a first line to you as an agent?

 

Annie: A great first line does help grab my attention, but it’s not as important to me as the first page or the first chapter.  The first line should set the tone for the rest of the book, it should intrigue me and give me a sense of the voice or perspective of the novel and what makes it special.

 

 

Amy: Many times a writer is told to stay away from common openings like dreams, eating breakfast, riding in a car, etc. What are some common openings you recommend writers stay away from?

 

Annie: All of those, as well as looking in a mirror while they’re getting ready in the morning, having a dialogue that isn’t that interesting (and won’t be important later).  Anything that involves a lot of reflection and little action is a bad way to open a book.

 

A lot of mysteries and thrillers open with a murder, or from the point of view of the killer right before he/she does the deed.  This can be exciting, but it’s just such a popular opening that writers need to find a way to make it fresh and polished.

 

In the first five pages, there’s a fine line between giving away too much information and giving away too little.  If you give away too much information about who the characters are, what they look like, and what their motivations are, etc., the pacing of the story slows down.  If you give away too little information, the opening can seem too vague, and it’ll be unclear what’s going on and what makes this story special.  Either way, your readers will lose interest pretty quickly.  The idea is to put enough information there to intrigue the reader and make them curious to read more.

 

 

Amy: When you’ve responded to a writer to request a partial or full manuscript, what was it about their first pages that piqued your interest?

 

Annie: Sometimes it’s a really unique concept, but usually it’s the writing.  I want to see writing that’s vivid, visceral, emotional, and unique.  I like writing that’s suspenseful, and writing with a great sense of humor.  I want to see ideas and images presented in a way I’ve never read before, and characters that feel rich and real.

 

And the writing should have some tension.  By tension I mean the feeling that something is going to happen, that events are being put into motion.  And for this tension to work, I have to understand the character enough to become invested in what happens to them.

 

 

Amy: What are some common mistakes writers make in their first five pages?

 

Annie: They feel the need to explain some background information on the characters, the setting, or the plot before the story gets going.  Or they open the book with a scene that’s not that exciting, like a character driving in their car, reflecting the past or future.  They include unnecessary information, like a character’s hair and eye color.  They use language that doesn’t help me visualize the scene or get to know the characters.  They rely on clichés and stereotypical characters instead of showing me something new and interesting.

 

 

Amy: What resonates with you most in those first pages? Voice? Pacing? Unique concept?

 

Annie: I’d say it’s usually the voice.  The voice is what pulls me into the story and keeps me there.  And interesting writing is always a plus.

 

 

Annie Bomke is a literary agent with over a decade of experience in the publishing industry.  She has worked with internationally bestselling authors such as Ken Blanchard, Spencer Johnson, Bob Burg and John Assaraf.  Authors have called her the pH test for good writing, and a bedrock for literary quality control.  She is interested in representing a wide range of fiction and nonfiction—including commercial fiction, literary fiction, historical fiction, mysteries, thrillers, YA, business, self-help, health/diet, and memoir—though she is most passionate about character-driven literary fiction, and psychological thrillers.

 

If you’re interested in submitting to Annie, please make sure to check the Annie Bomke Literary Agency website for their guidelines.

W.O.W. – Writer Odyssey Wednesday with Sara Raasch May 15, 2013

 

 

 

Publishing can be a rocky road.  When you are lucky enough to sign with a literary agent that is only the beginning of the journey. There are edits/revisions and a lot of work to be done before submission.  After the work is completed, you still have to shop the book around and hope a publishing house wants to buy it.  The process can be long and arduous.  But what happens when things don’t go as planned and you find yourself needing to move on from that book and that agent? Today’s featured writer, Sara Raasch, shares with us her amazing publishing journey that includes some major setbacks, but ends with a stellar agent and a shiny publishing deal for her debut novel, SNOW LIKE ASHES.

 

Here is Sara’s writing odyssey…

 

 

Amy: You have an interesting backstory I think many aspiring writers would be interested in.  You were previously agented with one book and then left that agency and went back to querying before landing another agent.  Can you share how you came to this difficult decision and how it affected your writing?

 

Sara: Leaving my first agency was hands-down one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make in publishing thus far. It wasn’t a decision I made lightly either — I grappled with it for about ten months before I decided it was right for me. At the time I was at a bit of a crossroads in my career — a book I ADORED with every fiber of my being had been on submission for two and a half years (talk about soul crushing) with no bites whatsoever. I was no longer sure if the writer I wanted to be was linked to that book, if I should have kept going with that book, or where I fit in this mad publishing world. In that ten-month grappling time, I did a lot of soul-searching, philosophical-journey type things, and ultimately decided to leave that agency and refocus who I wanted to be as a writer.

 

This decision didn’t only affect my writing, it affected every aspect of my writing world. It was like a blank slate, which was both horrifying and exhilarating, and let me truly “start over” and make myself into the kind of writer I wanted to be. Leaving an agency is terrifying — you worked so hard to get THIS agent, why on earth would you leave?? — but if it’s something you’re considering, make sure you do consider it very carefully. Any big career move should be made only after thoughtful deliberation. But if you do decide to take that plunge, know you aren’t alone in your choice, and many, many other writers have been in the same boat as you. It’s scary, but can also be the beginning of wonderful, wonderful things.

 

 

Amy: When you queried the second time with SHUTTER, SHUDDER did you feel like you were pretty seasoned with the process? Did the query come easily?

 

Sara: Oh, querying. No matter how long you’ve done it, how many agents you’ve sent to, or how long you’ve been in the business, querying SUCKS. But this time around, I felt a thrill with each query I sent out. Despite how much the rejection sucks (and boy, does it ever suck), there is something to be said for the sheer greatness of possibility. Each email could be The One, each incoming response could be a Let’s Set Up A Call. That possibility is what makes querying bearable.

 

One of my guilty pleasures is, sadly, writing summaries for queries. *ducks sharp projectiles* Okay, okay, hear me out! Actually, there’s nothing I can say to make it less weird. Querying did come easily to me this time around, but only because I adore writing summaries, and that mixed with my excitement to be reevaluating/redeveloping myself as a writer made the whole thing oddly enjoyable.

 

 

Amy: How many agents did you query before you got a positive response?

 

Sara: Luckily, I’m super OCD, and have a nice little excel sheet with just such digits.

 

I sent out 84 queries between the end of March 2012 and mid-April 2012 (I was excitable, okay? And I do not endorse this kind of aggression). Of those queries, I got 10 full requests (which still makes me dance a little inside) and of those 10 full requests, it was a week between when I sent the query to Sheedy Lit and when I got a voicemail saying they loved my book (the one I queried was a paranormal ghost story called SHUTTER, SHUDDER). Suffice to say, between leaving one agency and joining another, the beginning of 2012 was a frickin’ roller coaster.

 

 

Amy: You have a novel coming out in 2014 called SNOW LIKE ASHES.  Did you have critique partners or beta readers that helped you polish it? If so, how did that influence your writing process?

 

Sara: Of course! A writer is nothing without a good network of support and beta-ship. My CPs influence my writing SO much! I shudder to think what SLA would be like without their keen eyes and loving ability to tear scenes to shreds. Also, my agent is a KILLER editor — I rave all the time about how great she is at making my manuscripts that much more polished and coherent.

 

 

Amy: What can you tell us about your call with your agent, Charlotte Sheedy? How did you know she was a good fit for you?

 

Sara: I ended up speaking to both Charlotte and Mackenzie at various points before I accepted representation from them, and I knew they were a good fit because of how passionate they were for my book. Passion is truly the most important trait in an agent — if they love your work, that love will emanate out to editors and help sell your book a LOT more efficiently! There’s no substitute for passion, and as soon as I felt that spark with Mackenzie, I knew SHUTTER, SHUDDER (and all my future projects) would be happy with Sheedy Lit!

 

 

Amy: What was one piece of advice you got during your early writing stages that has stuck with you to this day?

 

Sara: There’s a quote I ADORE by Jodi Picoult: “You can always edit a bad page, but you can’t edit a blank page.” When I’m stuck on a scene or afraid to tackle a new project or seriously doubting my ability to live up to my goals, I remember that quote. You can always make a bad page better, but a blank page? You can’t do anything to fix a blank page. So write, write, write, no matter how you feel, because writing has a way of working out the bad feels too.

 

 

Amy: If you met an aspiring writer at a book signing and they told you they were going to give up on their writing dream, what would you say to them?

 

Sara: “NOOO!” and then I’d tackle them and cling to the hem of their skirt and sob dramatically.

 

Seriously though, I’d ask why they were leaning toward giving up. That can really make all the difference — this industry is much too stressful to put yourself through it if you don’t REALLY want it. So if writing truly isn’t something that’s “for them,” giving up might be a solution worth considering.

 

But if they’re considering giving up because it’s hard, because the rejection hurts, because they’ve been trying for so long and they still haven’t gotten anywhere, because someone gave them a bad review/a mean crit/was overall nasty to them, I’d do the whole dramatic-skirt-clutching-sob thing. None of those reasons are enough to quit if publishing is what you really, truly, deep-down want. If seeing your book on a shelf or finishing your novel or getting an agent is so much a fiery part of yourself that you go to bed every night on the verge of exploding from wanting it so bad, then you HAVE to keep trying.

 

I’ve wanted to be published since I was, no joke, five years old. I started querying when I was around 15, and didn’t get my first agent until I was in college. I’m 23 now and just got my first book deal, so that’s almost 12 years of working toward this goal. 12 years. A lot of it was awful, a lot of it made me question if I really wanted this, a lot of it made me cry and growl in frustration. But then I’d remember why I started this crazy venture in the first place. Why I love stories, writing, this whole thing — because stories are so vitally important to life, as an escape, as a way to make sure we know we aren’t alone, as a way to smile when life is just too hard. Remembering my reason for doing this helped me endure 12 years of up and down and down again until that magical, wondrous day when my agent called and told me we sold SNOW LIKE ASHES to Balzer + Bray in a pre-empt. All those bad things suddenly seemed so, so worth it, and I know I was infinitely happier in my most miserable time during those 12 years than I would have been had a I quit, because even though I was miserable, I was still working toward my dream. And if you keep at it, it WILL happen. Not it might. It WILL.

 

And when it does, it will be even better than you imagined.

 

 

Sara Raasch has known she was destined for bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed since then — her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to draw things and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme measures. Her debut YA fantasy, SNOW LIKE ASHES, is coming out Fall 2014 from Balzer + Bray. It does not feature her hand-drawn pictures. For more info on Sara, check out her blog or follow her on Twitter.

HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY – EYES EVER TO THE SKY!!!! May 13, 2013

My amazing friend (and brilliant critique partner), Katie French, releases her second book today. It’s a cool YA sci-fi tale with PLENTY of romance!  If you like fast-paced, edge of your seat stories, be sure to check this one out! Love the cover too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Hugh wakes up in a smoldering crater—no memory, no clothes—a single thought echoes in his head…trust no one. Frightened and alone, with no memory of who he is, he stumbles upon a grisly murder scene and is fatally shot. He wakes, only to find he can heal himself. He has superpowers, and he’s going to need them.

 

Desperate and bleeding, Hugh stumbles upon fifteen-year-old Cece, who’s got enough troubles of her own. Between caring for her bipolar mother and trying not to get evicted from her run-down trailer, Cece may be the only person struggling as much as Hugh. Drawn to Hugh, Cece finds a love she’s never known. But when the real killer—a man-hunting beast—chooses another victim, Hugh and Cece realize they must unlock the clues to their past if they have any chance at a future.

 

 

 

Katie French imagined herself an author when her poem caught the eye of her second grade teacher. In middle school she spent her free time locked in her room, writing her first young adult novel. Though her social life suffered, her love for literature thrived. She studied English at Eastern Michigan University, where she veered from writing and earned an education degree. She spent nine years teaching high school English. Currently she is a school counselor, doing a job that is both one of the hardest things she’s ever done and the most rewarding. In her free time she writes, reads great books and takes care of her two beautiful and crazy children. She is a contributor and co-creator of Underground Book Reviews, a website dedicated to erasing the boundaries between traditional and non-traditional publishing. She lives in Michigan with her husband and two children.For more information about Katie you can check her out on Goodreads, Facebook or on her website, Katie French Books.  Eyes Ever to the Sky is available on Amazon.

Secret to Sequels May 10, 2013

In the past six months I’ve read five YA sequels.  Three out of the five I put down at least half way through.  One of those I picked up again a few days later and sloshed through until the not-so-satisfying end.

 

I dread reading sequels. They are almost always a disappointment.  My biggest issue when reading?  The author does nothing to drive the plot forward.  Half the time they just rehash old events and continue the angst between the male and female leads.

 

What about those two I enjoyed?  What grabbed me?  I can answer this in two words: fresh blood.  No, I don’t mean death and gore. I mean the introduction of new and vital characters who build up the story and push the plot forward in a satisfying way.

 

Case in point (and I know many will argue with me here) CATCHING FIRE from Suzanne Collins.  The introduction of a new hunger game and characters like Johanna Mason and Finnick Odair kept the book alive for me.  I was intrigued by the characters and how they managed to set off both Peeta and Katniss. Another sequel winner for me? TORMENT by Lauren Kate.  Here again, new characters (and a new setting) made the story one I wanted to follow.

 

As a writer, I can only imagine how difficult it is to keep a steady, intriguing plot going (maybe this is why I’ve never written anything but a stand alone). But as a reader, I wish authors would think about where they are taking their plots and how they can keep the characters fresh.  Many times if the book is a trilogy, I find  the second book is merely filler to get to book three. If this is the case, you’re going to lose the reader and their commitment to finish the series.

 

What do you think is the key to writing a successful sequel?  What keeps you clamoring for the next book in a series?  I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, and please add your suggestion for a book you thought was a compelling sequel.

W.O.W. – Writer Odyssey Wednesday with Francesca Zappia May 8, 2013

 

 

 

Quick confession here – I’ve always wanted to have the talent to draw.  My oldest brother can pick up a pen and doodle something that is absolutely stunning.  Me? I pick up a pen, and I’m lucky if what I draw even looks like a stick figure.  Today’s featured writer, Francesca (Chessie) Zappia is not only a writer but an artist.  I find this fascinating for many reasons, but probably the most dominant being that I think it would be cool to illustrate your characters on a blank piece of paper.  This to me would be the ultimate way to really “see” what my characters look like, and have them become not just words on the page, but colorful beings.  During the interview, as you will read below, I asked Chessie about her drawings, and while she admits they help her visualize the characters, she also feels bad about what she does to them later.

 

Many thanks to Chessie for sharing her writing journey.  Be sure to check out her artwork here: http://www.francescazappia.com/p/artwork.html

 

 

When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?

 

I think I was around seven or eight–it was when I read my first Harry Potter book. After I finished it, I realized that an actual person had written it. For some reason I had the strange idea that all books had always existed since the beginning of time. I’d always liked thinking up stories and drawing them, but that was the first time I realized that I could make stories with words, too, and make people fall in love with them the way I’d fallen in love with Harry Potter.

 

 

I love your artwork.  When you draw your characters, and see them come alive on the page, does it help you connect to them better as a writer?

 

Thank you! I never really thought about it, but I guess it does! When you’re drawing a character, you have to know what pose to put them in, what their expression will be like, what sort of clothes they wear, how they do their hair–little things like that, that you may not necessarily describe all the time in the story, but they help you get a better grasp on the character’s personality and motivation. (It also makes me feel bad for what I do to them later.) I know a lot of people who wish they could translate their ideas into drawings and get frustrated when they can’t, so I feel incredibly lucky to have that skill.

 

 

How many manuscripts had you completed prior to ASK AGAIN LATER?

 

Wellll, that’s a bit of a hard question to answer. When you first start writing, most of what you write is for practice. I think a lot of writers write multiple manuscripts before they find the one that finally gets them an agent/book deal/etc. I mainly wrote two books–one was ASK AGAIN LATER and the other was the beginning of a YA sci-fi trilogy. I rewrote them from the ground up multiple times. To me it feels like dozens of manuscripts, but in reality, I guess it was only two.

 

 

If you had preliminary rejections, how did you deal with that process and continue to write?

 

I’ve been querying since I was fourteen or fifteen, so I’ve had my share of rejections. It’s hard to get rejections, no matter what form they come in, but for me I guess the writing itself was the way I dealt with it. If agents didn’t like my current book, I would write them another book they would like. But it always had to be the book I wanted to write–not what I thought they wanted to read.

 

 

Did you have critique partners that helped you polish ASK AGAIN LATER? If so, how did that affect your writing process?

 

I did! It was one of the first manuscripts I ever handed over to my critique partners, and the help they gave me in shaping it was unbelievable. They’re amazing because they each look at a different part of the story. With all the manuscripts I’ve churned out since then, I feel like I’m more open to trying new things and writing the way I want, because I know if it doesn’t work, my critique partners will slap me over the head and tell me to get my act together.

 

 

How long did it take you to write the query for ASK AGAIN LATER? Did it go through many drafts?

 

The original query took me probably a few days, but I was constantly revising it while I queried. It went through so many drafts it makes me kind of sick to think about it. Needless to say, I am not the best at query writing.

 

 

How many agents did you query for ASK AGAIN LATER?

 

72. But that’s not including those I sent submissions to after contest requests.

 

 

Did you receive instantaneous response or did you have to wait for requests/rejections?

 

All the times I’ve queried, it’s been pretty much a wait for requests/rejections. Sometimes I only had to wait a few days. Some of the queries I waited months on. Most were rejections; the requests were just as spread out. I got one request a week after I queried an agent, and I got another two months after I sent the initial query. It definitely wasn’t one of those “I sent out queries and everyone loved it!” situations, haha.

 

 

Can you tell us what your “call” was like with your agent, Louise Fury? How did you know she was a good fit for you?

 

Our call actually got delayed one or two times before it finally happened, thanks to a plane ride and a very unfortunately-timed illness. Which just meant I got to teeter on the edge of a heart attack for an extra two days. But as soon as I got on the phone with Louise, I knew she was perfect. She’d gotten just about everyone at L. Perkins Agency to read my book, and the overwhelming support they had for it blew me away. We talked about my vision for the book and her ideas for revision, and by the end of the call–which lasted about forty minutes to an hour, if I remember right–I knew she was right for me. She’s so professional and so dedicated to her job, but also so passionate about the books she takes on.

 

 

If you met a struggling writer at a book signing and they told you they were about to give up on their dream of publication, what would you say to encourage them to keep writing?

 

I’d tell them to keep at it, no matter how bad they think they are or how many rejections they get. All writers think their work is horrible at some point. All writers get rejections. But the more you write, the better you get. And the better you get, the more likely you are to attract the perfect agent or publisher. The only way you will for sure never reach that dream of publication is if you quit.

 

 

Francesca is 20, majors in Computer Science the University of Indianapolis, and prefers the name Chessie. She writes books about pirates, aliens, crazy people, ghosts, skysurfing, nightmare hunters, underwater prisons, and any other thing that catches her attention. Her debut novel, ASK AGAIN LATER, is a YA contemporary coming from Greenwillow/HarperCollins in Fall 2014. She’s represented by Louise Fury of L. Perkins Agency. You can find her on Twitter and on her blog.

Write, Learn, Revise, Rinse, Repeat – A Guest Post by Amy Reichert May 6, 2013

 

 

When you are a new writer you are naïve.  You think once you put the final word on the page, your manuscript is complete.  But really, once “The End” is written,  the real work has just begun.  Revisions and edits are key to making any manuscript golden.  It’s in this process we learn where the true story is, and how to bring it to the forefront. By “killing our darlings,” and cutting extra words, we make a manuscript tighter and much more enjoyable to read. But as with anything in writing, those edits/revisions are painful, and it’s hard to know what to cut and what to keep.

 

Today, I’ve asked writer Amy Reichert to share her revision process.  Her manuscript, THE CAKE EFFECT, has gone through many revisions and edits.  And as she explains, those cuts have been tough. But even though the changes have been painful, she admits they have made her work stronger – so strong, she recently signed with agent, Rachel Ekstrom.  Amy’s story is proof that although revisions take time, and at times can be brutal, the process can reap great benefits.

 

 

Write, Learn, Revise, Rinse, Repeat

By Amy Reichert

The best and worst thing about writing is you can always improve.

 

I can always find new problems to fix, or new techniques to try. I’m a revision enthusiast. Nora Roberts said, “I can’t fix a blank page.” I love that. No author, ever, has written the perfect book on the first try. Maybe an author revises each sentence as she writes, maybe she spews forth an entire book than goes back and rewrites, or maybe she has a method somewhere in between. But either way, words never meet the page perfectly. Writers must revise. Full stop. End of story. Learn to love it.

 

Without embracing revision, I wouldn’t have gotten an agent (Hi Rachel!), and I’d never be the tiny bit closer to publishing that I am now.

 

At the beginning of 2012, the draft of The Cake Effect I thought was ready — that my husband, my mom and several well-read friends had read, that I’d polished until I thought it gleamed — sucked. It was a case of I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I had written those first few drafts by instinct. While my plot was solid, the writing had so many newbie mistakes, including classics like telling instead of showing, too much backstory, and way too much unnecessary detail (no one cared why the news stand guy had three clocks – you never see him again).

 

But how did I get from that level of suckiness to an agent-ready manuscript? Revision, learn, revision, learn, revision, learn. And some more revision. I don’t have a creative writing background, so the art of story-telling was something I winged, pulling from my experience as a reader and academic writer. Well folks, let me tell you, intuition only gets you so far.

 

I, fortunately, had wonderful author and good friend, Ann Garvin (http://www.annwertzgarvin.com) to help me in my hour of need. I met her at a pitch workshop in New York and she agreed to read a few chapters. Ann, bless her blunt heart, gave it to me straight. I had the voice, I had the story, but my writing needed a lot of work. She gave me a few resources to study and some needed encouragement. A switch flipped in my head and I understood what I lacked. I lacked a foundation in creative writing.

 

Now, let me be very clear here. You DO NOT need to get a degree or even take classes in creative writing. But just like any profession from a plumber to an attorney, you do need to learn and you do need to study. And also like any other profession, you should always strive to learn more and improve your work. There are many fantastic books, magazines, and websites with oodles of useful information.

 

So, I started with a subscription to Writer’s Digest and bought On Writing by Stephen King. I bookmarked several websites and focused my energies on the issues Ann commented on, like basic plot development, superfluous details, and exposition. I read up on these topics, then tackled my manuscript. I rewrote over half of it and tweaked the other half. I would take little rules and follow them religiously — like not having backstory before page 100, avoiding the passive voice, and using simple dialogue tags. These aren’t hard and fast rules, and there are very good reasons to break them, but they helped me tell my story better.

 

After this major revision, The Cake Effect was much improved. The characters had more life, the story started faster, and readers weren’t distracted by unnecessary details. It still needed a lot of work, but now I knew how to improve.

 

I finally met some fellow authors who would beta read for me, and I was fortunate to get a revise and resubmit from an agent. The feedback she gave me brought my manuscript to the next level. I had a few new chapters, some relationships were clarified, and some scenes had heightened tension. Again, I had learned some new writing skills and implemented them in my manuscript.

 

So, if I were to summarize my revision process, it would be that I learn something new about writing then apply it.

 

As a result, I’ve done many, many, many drafts, and I’ll probably do a few more. But I also realize these new skills I’m acquiring will mean fewer drafts on future novels. Just like practicing a sport or an instrument, muscle memory will take over and I’ll automatically show not tell, use more active words, and avoid clichés.

 

So, here are a few nuggets of wisdom about revision in list form – cause everyone loves a list.

 

FIND BETAS YOU CAN TRUST

 

Betas are not the friends you have coffee with or your mom. Most likely they are other writers, people who will ask you to read their manuscripts and give them feedback. This relationship is a two-way street, people. I’ve learned more from reading other people’s manuscripts than writing my own. It helps you hone the muscles that send up the “something isn’t working here” flag. You want people who will help bring your novel to the next level, who will point out the plot flaws and character problems, and gently explain how you overuse commas.

 

 

BE WILLING TO CUT

 

Your manuscript contains no sacred cows. Repeat that until you believe it. I don’t care how much you love a turn of phrase or a plot point. If it doesn’t work, cut it. I have a file where I save all my lost treasures. It is all about the big picture.

 

 

BE OPEN TO IDEAS

 

People are going to share ideas with you, and believe it or not, some will be good. Use these ideas to make your manuscript better. Just because you didn’t think of it, doesn’t mean you can’t mold it to your purposes. That’s why there are acknowledgment pages in books.

 

 

LEARN TO ACCEPT CRITICISM

 

The road to publication is paved with criticism and rejection, so toughen up, buttercup. You need to be willing to hear the truth. I know, you want to hear how great your book is and that nothing needs to change and it’s perfect as it is. But if someone tells you that, he is either lying or not a good beta reader – don’t use him again. A book can always be improved. Always. (OK, there might be exceptions to this, but chances are, you aren’t one of them).

 

 

ALWAYS TRY TO IMPROVE

 

You need to learn, be it by studying other writers (yay! that means you get to read), reading articles and books, or taking a class. There is always more to learn about the art of writing. Never stop. Ever.

 

 

 

Amy Reichert is a first time novelist, life-long Wisconsin resident, mother of two (three if you count the dog – and you should), beloved wife, spectacular procrastinator, die-hard Harry Potter fan, and amateur baker. She earned her MA in English Lit from Marquette University and worked for several years as a technical writer. When she’s not writing, she’s taking the children somewhere, putting off cleaning the house, or researching new vacation spots. She loves to read, collect more cookbooks than she could possibly use, and sample new ciders. Represented by Rachel Ekstrom at the Irene Goodman Literary Agency. For more on Amy follow her on Twitter or Tumblr.