First Thursday Preview

The first Thursday on the first day of the month deserves a perfect preview, but I will opt for one that is just pithy. We have several manuscripts to critique, including picture books from Sandy & me, a poem from Billy, a short from Bill, Jerri Lynn's retitled memoir, and Zack's novel, The Dead Machine, which, as it turns out, is not dead after all.

Our topic is "Showing, Not Telling," avoiding that seemingly intrinsic but not intractable habit writers have of telling the reader what is happening or foreshadowing the action poorly. Remember: excite, don't explain. Or extrapulation, not exposition.

We will also present tips for writing good dialogue.

Summer meetings don't mean a sparse agenda. Hope to see all of you there as we head into the holiday weekend!

Details: 7-9pm, Holden Room, Crandall Library, Glens Falls, with optional social afterward.

Writing press review

Some links to articles and essays that may be of interest to writers (and readers)...

-8 Basic Writing Blunders (WritersDigest.com)

-Three Things Debut Authors Should Know When Signing With an Agent as well as 5 Lies Unpublished Writers Tell Themselves and Truths that can Get Them Published (Guide to Literary Agents Editor's Blog)

-50 best blogs for teen readers (OnlineDegrees.net)

-Top 10 Blogs for Freelance Writers (Word Count)

-The Blurbing Game (GayleForman.com)

Third Thursday Review

A better turn out than our First Thursday meeting, as we saw returns from recently absent members Jerri Lynn, Ann Marie, Crystal, and Bill. There wasn't much in the way of business news, except to discuss my attendance of the Mid-Hudson Valley Writers Conference and some of my recent interactions with Scholastic Books.

We then jumped right to the critiques, beginning with our holdovers from Jerri Lynn and Bill, then into my Leaping Lemmings, Zack's The Dead Machine, Kay's Open House, Closed Casket, and Billy's unpronounceable title. We covered children's books and tense crime drama, light humor and the seedy underbelly of New Orleans, anthropomorphism and metaphoric zoomorphism. It's delightful to see us cover such a wide variety of topics, skills, and genres. K and I are both familiar with genre-specific groups (for me, children; Kay, murder-mystery), that are great at getting your manuscript reviewed by peers familiar with that genre, but the GFWG has always had a different purpose: to give writers regardless of genre, skill, or background, a chance to get better. Last night that was on display.

Next month is no different. We'll review a poem by Billy, sci fi by Zack, memoir from Jerri Lynn, a reworked short from Bill, and picture books from Sandy and me. Plus we have a discussion topic ready to go: the art of showing, not telling. Which ties in to what Jerri Lynn called a Johnism, as stated at last night's meeting: "A lady may not kiss and tell, but an author does."

Let's all keep that in mind as we prepare for the July 1st meeting. See you then!

Next meeting: July 1, Holden Room, Crandall Library, Glens Falls.

Third Thursday Preview

Another gathering -- Big? Small? We don't know yet -- of the GFWG. We'll be critiquing Zack's thriller, Kay's murder mystery, and Billy's gritty creative non-fiction. We also have Bill's short and Jerri Lynn's memoir held over from last month. And finally, we'll get to my picture book.

We'll also have a discussion on writing news, news from me, a recap of the Mid-Hudson Writer's Conference, and a quirky tidbit regarding this blog.

Hoping last meeting was an aberration as we head into summer. It's the last meeting of spring -- let's make it a good one!

Details: 7-9pm, Holden Room, Crandall Library, Glens Falls, with optional social afterward.

Addressing an Editor's Concerns

When an author receives a critique from members of a writers group, ours or any other, he has choices to make: what to keep in, what to take out. What to move, what to leave. Suggestions flow in as the author works toward final draft.

But what to do when an editor from a major publishing house has suggestions? The author faces the same decisions, but from a professional with the end goal of acquisition and publication. Such is the case with a recent submission I made to HarperCollins' imprint Balzer+Bray. Now I am mired in the middle of rewrites based on the editor's suggestions. Keep in mind that the editor loves certain parts of the story and is willing to read a resubmission.

As it applies to this particular story:

1. Editor said parts read more like a short story than a picture book. She's right. She suggested I work up a dummy, which I had done once before, but this time I gave it much greater detail, complete with sketches and separate pages and pieces I could rearrange. I trimmed nearly 100 words from the story, or roughly 20%, including my favorite phrase. In removing all those words, however, I discovered I could put in two more jokes that don't disrupt the flow of the story. Pulling out all those words makes it read much more like a picture book than before.
2. She thought the ending was too didactic, or preachy. She may have a point here, though no one else has said that. Removed the one most egregious line, but discovered that that ruined the rhythm of the final joke. Not sure what to do here, so the line, at least for now, remains.
3. She was worried about the main character's species. (Hey, it's a picture book!) Couldn't find a way around this until I sat down and just started making a list of animals that might work. After several false starts for which I could not conceive an ending, I finally hit on one animal that unfortunately requires a complete rewrite, but that doesn't change the story's basic formula. The jokes remain very much the same, but unlike the original story, it becomes a parody of classic fairy tales and pop culture. Fortunately the structure that the B+B editor liked is intact.

I am making choices here between art and commerce, publishing and personal preference. Working with a good editor should open your eyes to new possibilities, new considerations, new directions. That has happened here, and I've managed to address some of her concerns, make the story stronger, and still keep my original vision in place. Even if I have to rewrite it from top to bottom to meet point number three.

So that's where things stand now as I push toward publication. It is not as dire as it may sound because I see the possibility -- the very real possibility -- of publishing this story.

Preparing for a Writers Conference

As I gear up for the SCBWI Conference in Poughkeepsie tomorrow, I thought I'd reflect on the steps I take before any conference. Most seem logical and straightforward, a few perhaps unusual.

1. Read the Conference material. Seems obvious, but too often I see people making hasty notes in the morning, not knowing which seminar to attend, not knowing which editor, agent, or author to meet. Place your schedule on a single sheet of paper and keep it readily accessible.
2. Research the presenters, particularly editors and agents. Know what type of work they represent. Know their tastes within a given genre. Know their authors. Try to read at least one book from a client. Not always possible, but try. Also take these notes to the conference so you can refresh your memory before meeting them.
3. Visit their business websites, but also see if you can find interviews with them. Do they have a blog? Discover something about them beyond the working world. One of the writers at this weekend's conference was a TV critic for TV Guide, while I was a TV critic for TVData. We will talk television, likely my introduction when I approach her. One agent has a delightful Twitter feed that I find very funny. I will tell her that. Fortunately, I mean it. Always mean it. Insincerity can sink you. If you know something about them, you can target your approach. I've used hometowns, sports interests, mutual friends, college majors and other topics to start conversations. Also include this in your take-along notes.
4. Find a picture, if possible. Sure it might be out of date or out of focus, and there will be general introductions at the conference, but it will help you know who to approach without reading a nametag resting on her chest.
5. If you have specific questions regarding a seminar topic or for that agent in a one-on-one, write them down ahead of time. That way you won't forget.
6. Bring extra copies of your work. Rare that you get the opportunity to show one let alone several, but it does happen. I separate them according to editor or agent, using a yellow scrawled-upon Post-It to find it quickly. If there's time, I bring the correct stack to the top of my attache before meeting said agent.

Good first impressions are important, memorable ones difficult to make. These agents and editors see too many aspirants at too many conferences to remember everyone, but bad impressions last all the way back to the office. Yes, you want your work to stand on its own, as if a sight-unseen submission, but it can be difficult to separate author from manuscript.

Hope these help anyone attending a conference in the future. It's research. Be diligent. Preparation is a sign of professionalism. Agents and editors think so, too.

First Thursday Review

It was a small gathering this past Thursday, with only six in attendance. We had only two pieces to critique (Zack's The Dead Machine, which his fans inside and outside the group will be happy to hear he has picked up again, and David's history of Hermit Mountain), giving us a lot of time to discuss the business of writing. This largely focused on submitting and her ugly stepsister, rejection.

This began with me reading highlights of a rejection letter from Balzer+Bray, an imprint of Harper Collins. Essentially, it's a one-percenter, a term derived from your likelihood of receiving it. Publishers claim they accept one-half of one percent of all submissions, though agency submissions might increase that number slightly. That said, here's the breakdown:

• Publishers reject 90% of all submissions with a form letter.
• The remaining 10% receive a personal rejection, a general summation of what the editor liked and didn't like.
• Of that 10%, 90% will still say, "Thanks, but not thanks," and good luck placing it elsewhere.
• The remaining 10%, or one percent of all submissions, get the following: "Rework this and resubmit it." That's what I got from B+B.

So with that encouragement (all my struggles with this will be the subject of a future post), the floor was opened to questions on submitting to publishers, what various rejections mean, etc. I handled most of the questions, but Zack was a great help in discussing how Frostie the Deadman found a publisher. (Zack won a YA contest.)

All in all, it was nice to touch on this aspect of the business, keeping in mind that the purpose of all this writing is to publish it somewhere. We often focus on improving writing (yes, absolutely necessary), but it's good to remember the larger publishing world outside friends, family, and fellow writers.

Next time, we'll review selections from Billy, Zack, and Kay, as well as the picture book rejected by B+B, in the draft that they saw. It has already undergone revisions in the hope of seeing it on the shelves some day. Or better yet, in the hands of a child reading it!

First Thursday Preview

We'll see how attendance is at tomorrow night's first meeting after the "unofficial start of summer." I have faith in this group. Our production has remained strong since doubling our schedule and nearly doubling our workload in January. I am sure the diehards and the drifters will be out in full force tomorrow night and throughout the summer.

We'll be reviewing Zack's lively The Dead Machine. If you didn't receive it via email in May, check your email again since he resent it. We'll also be critiquing Jerri Lynn's memoire, Bill's much shorter memoir, and possibly David's bio short. We'll also find some topic on the business of writing to fill up the first half hour, including my recent experience with HarperCollins imprint, Balzer+Bray.

Short, sweet, and to the point. Rather like a critique should be. See all of you Thursday!

Details: 7-9pm, Holden Room, Crandall Library, Glens Falls, with optional social afterward.