Posts

Dear Rachelle: Could poor self-pubbed Kindle sales affect a writer’s chance of getting an agent in the future? Is a pseudonym safer? Signed, Considering Self Pubbing Dear Considering: Yes, if you’ve self-pubbed a book and it sold poorly, it could affect your chance of getting an agent and getting traditionally pubbed in the future. But…

If you’ve been studying the craft of writing for long, you’ve heard all the “rules.” You know that you’re supposed to show not tell, use active not passive verbs, eschew adverbs, maintain consistent POVs, avoid repetition, and all the rest. But it’s easy to get too caught up in the rules and get frustrated at…

Some people believe in writer’s block; others believe in the power of discipline and “just do it.” Some writers wait for the muse, others just power through. Some have numerous obligations competing for their time; others are not so fragmented. All of us have moments… hours… days… or even weeks in which we can’t write. What, if…

A little shout-out to the place I call home… A young writer wanted to write a book about churches around the country. He decided to start with the most-populated states in the U.S., and work his way down from there. At a very large church in California, he began taking photographs and making notes. He spotted a golden…

I’m so sad about Borders closing. But I’m also the reason Borders is closing. *sigh* I’ve visited bookstores regularly the last few years, even as the digital age dawned and my Kindle filled up. I’ve made it a point to buy books when I visit bookstores. But last month when I visited Borders (this was before their…

Believe it or not, I get emails regularly from people who want to become literary agents, and they want advice on how to do it. Typically, the people who send these emails are either right out of college or they’re looking for a career change, and they don’t have experience in publishing. It’s hard to answer…

Hi Rachelle, I have a question about attending a fiction conference. Lots of posts are flying around the Internet about bringing one sheets and the first 1-2 chapters of each novel to give to editors when meeting with them. I’m going to design a really nice one-sheet with 1-paragraph synopses of my two novels. Should…

This isn’t one of those posts that I’m excited about, but a few things have come to my attention recently that made me want to remind you all to beware of certain practices by literary agents that may be unethical, questionable, or represent a conflict of interest. Of course, every case is different, and just because…

This quote is specifically about screenwriting, but applies to novelists as well. Literary talent is not enough. If you cannot tell a story, all those beautiful images and subtleties of dialogue that you spent months and months perfecting waste the paper they’re written on. What we create for the world, what it demands of us,…

Recently I asked my followers on Facebook what question I should answer in my next “vlog,” and the overwhelming response was “What is High Concept?” Here’s my three-minute response,with a written recap below. High concept is primarily a term used in pitching movies but these days, we find it a helpful shorthand to describe a…

I received a query that pitched six completely different kinds of books: A social commentary. A historical novel. A “road” story travel memoir. A compilation of short stories. A contemporary novel about a class action lawsuit. A history of Harley-Davidsons. There is absolutely nothing I can do with this, and it’s a quick pass. First,…

Cartoon courtesy of “The Napkin Dad” Marty Coleman, Photographer and Artist Visit Napkin Dad Website See Marty Coleman’s photography View Napkin Dad Products

*The Definitive Guide* Query letters are a recurring theme here since every writer needs one, and there are hundreds of posts online full of query advice. But I wanted to give you a simple, straightforward set of instructions. Queries should include the following three elements: Something about the book – enough to make the agent want more  Something…

Today’s thought is primarily for novelists: A scene will not be vivid if the writer gives too few details to stir and guide the reader’s imagination; neither will it be vivid if the language the writer uses is abstract instead of concrete. If the writer says “creatures” instead of “snakes,” … if instead of the desert’s…