January 2012
6 posts
6 tags
When all you want is rainbow poop
Here’s what you might think happens, if you ever spend time thinking about signing with a literary agent:
You make a choice, if more than one offers, and then the heavenly choir sings and unicorns start pooping rainbows on your front lawn. You have an agent! Someone Important with a capital I has read your work, likes it, thinks publishers will like it, and is willing to invest quite a lot...
5 tags
The Story Lives Behind the Obvious
My day job is pretty awesome. I go to an elementary school and for two hours, four afternoons a week, I help a group of fourth graders (and one seriously funny first grader) become better writers.
On Tuesday, I gave my fourth grade students an assignment: Think about what your life would be like without electricity. Brainstorm, then write three paragraphs.
One of my small groups is just two...
6 tags
Some Thoughts on Querying Literary Agents
I thought I’d post a little about the querying process for anyone who wants to know. I am aware that there are a zillion posts out there in Interwebs land about agent querying, but here’s my take on it:
1. Write a really good query letter. Write it, then have a few people read it. Then write it again. Get this one right guys, because it’s your one chance for a first impression.
...
4 tags
Book Review: 11/22/63, Stephen King
My father gave me a copy of Stephen King’s The Stand for my thirteenth birthday, and I was hooked. A serious King fan from then on.
And I still am. Even after Dreamcatcher. It seems though, that sometimes I read something he’s written and my brain is searching for that same high I got in the eighth grade reading about Captain Trips and the end of the world. I had high hopes for...
7 tags
The Corner of Luck and Hard Work
So the last few weeks, as my book has had a giddy-crazy burst of attention, I’ve heard a lot about luck. I belong to a website where I tracked my query letters and was able to chat in forums with other writers in a similar situation. Whenever I reported a request, someone would invariably say, “you’re so lucky!”
And then the other day a friend reminded me of how hard...
5 tags
The Insanely Crazy, Really Amazing Week
It all started in the middle of last November.
Let me start by telling you that querying agents in the middle of November is generally a crazy-making idea. Everyone is going on vacation. They’re trying to clear out their inboxes for the new year, and so might be quick on the rejection trigger.
It still started in the middle of last November. I finished a revision of my novel, Freaks and...