THE GIFT HORSE YOU LOOKED IN THE MOUTH

In February, The Quill offered our members a free subscription to a service called AUTHOR SALON, a 24/7 writer’s conference complete with online critique groups AND a slew of big time agents and editors who regulary shop member's work. Michael Neff, the gracious brainchild behind AS told me he was disappointed that there was no response from our membership besides me.

Granted the signup process is hard for folks who hadn’t been to one of his pitch conferences.  It forces you to think of your work on a marketing level that often times reveals the flaws in your story. But the good news is, AS also requires that you be in an AS online critique group made up of members who write in your genre, and with four other sets of eyes, the flaws are easy to fix.

Does it require a lot of time? YES. But each month, dozens of projects written by aspiring authors on Author Salon have been requested by New York publishers and literary agents on both coasts--all part of Author Salon's ongoing "Literary Showcase" initiative. Genres represented include mystery, young adult fantasy, upmarket and general fiction, women's fiction, adult fantasy and SF, historical fiction, and more.

Which is where the gift horse comes in. If you looked at AS http://authorsalon.com and found the FREE lifetime membership daunting, but you’re still  in this to publish, look again.  You may have to pay a few dollars a month for the service, but it’s worth it if for no other reason than you’ll know IF your idea is marketable, and you’ll have a clear understanding of HOW to sell your work at The South Carolina Writers' Workshop Conference in October. And, most importantly, you’ll have a polished first 50 pages and a great pitch, which makes a dandy query letter.

The Take Away

I listen to a show on National Public Radio called the Take Away. And these days I’m always thinking about the conference, so I started wondering about the Take Away for conference attendees.

What should you take away from our conference? That depends on you. What are you looking for by attending?

Are you just getting started as a writer and you’re looking for guidance? You’ve got a great idea, great plot and great settings, but now you’re stuck in the middle of your work? Have you finished your manuscript and now you want to know what to do next? Are you trying to sell your manuscript and you’d like to find out exactly how to approach your dream agent?

We’ve got classes to cover all of these subjects and more. For the beginning writer, I suggest courses on character and plot development. There is much to learn and a good place to start is any of the sessions David Coe is presenting. You will also have opportunities to meet and talk to other attendees, many of whom are new to writing as well as conferences. I hope you will find inspiration and encouragement in your interactions with other attendees.

If you’re in the middle of your manuscript, try the sessions on pace, craft or strategy. Lisa Tucker, David Coe and James Frenkel are offering a variety of sessions on these topics. It’s a good place to go if you’re stuck or you need some motivation to keep going.

And if you’re done, first congratulations, I suggest sessions on editing and crafting the perfect query letter or synopsis. All of those topics will be covered by Melissa Jeglinski, Stephanie Sun, Chuck Sambuchino and Conference Chair Carrie McCullough throughout the weekend.

There are also seminars on the business of writing and publishing as well as social media presented by Keynote Speaker M.J. Rose, Jessica Regel and Bill Starr.

Our faculty members were selected based on their ability to offer information and relevant industry information to our attendees. I’ve covered only a sample of the faculty members and courses we’re offering this year, please visit http://www.myscww.org/.

No matter your needs, any session is a great learning opportunity. I hope that you will take a little time to decide what you hope to gain from the conference, and then plan your time accordingly.

What’s your take away? It depends on you.

Do Your Homework

As you prepare for the upcoming conference you probably have lots of questions. One of those questions may be: how do I prepare for a conference? The answer: Do Your Homework.

At a conference a few years ago, I spoke with a first timer who bragged about having read a book by each author attending the conference. How clever, I thought, I wished I’d had the forethought to do the same. Later, she confessed that in some cases she only read the first two or three chapters of a book. Even then she was far ahead of my own pre-conference homework.

You may not have time or the money to read a book by each member of the faculty, maybe not even two whole chapters. But you should make time to read websites and blogs by each faculty member. If you have a library at your disposal, at least read a few pages of their books. At least then you have some frame of reference when selecting sessions to attend or the person best suited to critique your manuscript.

We’re writers; that’s what we tell ourselves as we pour over the tenth revision of our roman a clef. One thing writers do is research. We research things so we sound like we know what we’re talking about, even when we don’t. If you’ve never been to Pocatello, Idaho, you’ll have to research it before you can credibly write a scene that takes place there.

Treat your conference experience the same way. While you make your plans for the conference also take a few minutes and look over the list of faculty members. On the conference page click on each name and you’ll find some basic background information. For more details, visit the websites and blogs of our faculty members. And of course, there is always Facebook and Twitter. You can learn a lot about faculty members from their social networking presence on the web.

This post is titled “Do Your Homework” that’s what you have to do, your homework. Write down your questions, all the crazy and not-so crazy things you’ve always wanted to ask an editor, agent or published author. If you come prepared, you’ll be less likely to forget to ask that one thing you most want to know.

Find out what books the authors have available, you may want to purchase these for the book signing we have on Saturday afternoon. Review agency websites to see what books an agent sold and decide how closely it may match your own genre of manuscript.

Research the faculty members, you don’t need to know their favorite colors or how they eat their eggs, but you should know what genres they write in or what genres they represent. If you do nothing else I’ve suggested, at least find out the names of the books the authors have written and the name of the firm where the editors and agents work.

Also, work on that elevator pitch. If you can get it down to less than a minute, you’ll be ready when someone asks, “What are you writing?” If the past is any example, you’ll get to answer that question a lot over the weekend. And if you’re really lucky, you’ll get to answer that question for the editor or agent of your dreams.

Angi Morgan: Dream Agents and Editors

Hello again SCWW and thanks for having me another week. With copy edits and final edits behind me, I’m in a holding pattern waiting to see if the next proposal is accepted or if I have to plot again. So I thought I’d touch on a subject that seems to be a favorite question on every loop or blog: how do you find your dream agent or editor?



What makes a specific agent your DREAM agent? You can research agencies, but you need to discover how that agency works and what the individual agent that connects to your work expects. The best method I’ve found is networking with other authors. Word of mouth. Experience from other writers. Reputations, not gossip.


It’s seems to be as hard to find an agent to represent your work as it is to find an editor to publish your work. And in today’s market, it’s difficult to find a publishing house that will look at un-agented material (with the exception of contest finalists). So writers query. I have to admit that I was one of the lucky ones to get my “dream agency” without the query process. In fact, I’ve been fortunate to have representation offered twice without real solicitation on my part. I won contests or had requests which had my work in front of editors each time. My focus was to catch editors and agents eyes through contests.


Why do you even want an agent?


Leslie, my friend and published author, summed up why she needs an agent: “I want an agent for several reasons. They know who is looking for what type of story. They help me get my foot in the door at some houses that only take agented submissions. They know how to negotiate contracts. And I want someone on my side who is not responsible for paying me for the work. The differences in agents is the very personality and style of the person involved. I wanted someone who would be a cheerleader, who would feel comfortable communicating with me when I needed it, and who would encourage me to do more. My previous agent was very methodical and submitted, but only to a few editors at a time and would wait months to check in with them, then seemed annoyed when I would ask the status. My new agent, seems to be more enthusiastic. She has said I can call or email whenever. And, in fact, has called me several times to discuss something I emailed her about. She is excited to meet me in person for lunch. I don't think my first agent was a BAD agent. I just think her style didn't suit my needs.” ~~Leslie Dicken <http://lesliedicken.com/>


I too have my second agent. My first agent and I had a good relationship. It was my life that interfered with my lack of writing (graduating two girls in consecutive years from high school) which caused us to part, but we remain friends. In fact she sent me congratulations when I sold HILL COUNTRY HOLDUP.


In 2009, I began concentrating on my career again and really paid attention to the talk about agents from my fellow writers. My “research” had more to do with the relationships writers had instead of a track record of sales. After ten years in this business, I knew that I needed someone to be in my corner, to fight for me, but also to have someone who would give me their opinion on what might be wrong with my story. In other words, I wanted someone who didn’t mind giving their opinion on if the story was ready for submission.


Of course I’m never confident in my work. I am a writer, after all.


As much as I love the aspect of having an extra opinion of my work, there are authors who prefer the opposite. Here’s what friend and author Kathleen Long says about her agent: “I trust her. She's intelligent, knows the market, is well-respected and doesn't try to edit me. We both agree that's what your editor is for. I spent a little time with another agent who believed in line editing. That changed the work and my voice. Lesson learned. Not for me!” ~~Kathleen Long <http://www.kathleenlong.com/>


I plan on writing for Harlequin/Silhouette. I like their distribution. I like the built-in book club sales. I like the advance and payout. And I like their foreign sales. It’s a basic boiler-plate contract, so why did *I* need an agent? Honestly, I didn’t. But my friend and Blaze author Tawny Webber summed it up beautifully: “I believe having an agent in your corner is a smart career move. An agent is a go-between, is the person who nudges an editor when contracts are late, money isn’t released, things are sagging. I also knew that as much as I love writing for Blaze, at some point I’d want an agent to shop single title for me. Someone who knew me, my writing and my strengths and would be able to help me make career choices as well as the best sell for my story.” ~~Tawny Weber


When I sold my manuscript in November, my husband was quick to point out that most writers don’t sell a second book because writing becomes a business. It’s as life their muse leaves and an accountant sits on their shoulder instead. It’s all about making money, instead of sharing your stories. Well, an agent is the person who handles all the business for me. As much as I love talking with my editor, I hate dealing with the business. I freeze up, have to read a script (not kidding), and just babble. I really enjoy having an agent.


My fellow Golden Heart finalist stated she chose her dream agent “because of her wonderful mix of professionalism, experience, enthusiasm, and compassion. She's a hands-on agent who puts her years as an editor with top houses and big name authors to work for her clients. And she's one happening force in the publishing world. She had four deals hit Publishers Marketplace last week and has several more that will appear in the next few weeks.” ~~Keli Gwyn <http://www.keligwyn.com/>


The most important part of finding an agent an editor is what Sharon, another fellow Golden Heart finalist, stated what she looked for: An agent “is experienced and has a recognized/respected name, but is still responsive and attentive to every client. More important than that: They must love my writing and my project.” ~~Sharon Fisher


In a nutshell, network with other authors, discover the pros and cons of the type of agent you think you want, and make certain the agent LOVES your writing. If they love it, they’ll want to build you a career--not just sell your book.


The simple answer to finding your DREAM EDITOR? It’s the editor who relates to your work and offers to purchase your manuscript.


‘Til next time,


~~Angi


http://www.angimorgan.com/


Some upcoming topics of discussion:
-An On-Going Behind the Scene Look at Getting Ready for Publication
(promotion, character sheets, log-lines, bios, etc.)
-My Hero Has Brown Hair?
-Targeting Your Book & Choosing Your Market
-Seeing Your Cover For The First Time