The second half of this week's publishing news covers interesting industry blogs for 2/15-3/7.
Industry Blogs
QueryTracker's Publishing News for 2/14, 2/21, 2/28, and 3/7.
Also on QueryTracker: 5 Easy Steps to (not) survive your release day (hint: obsession is good for you, right?). Do you need to interview someone for research purposes, but they're really nervous? Jane Lebak explains that "off the record" can get them comfortable. And Stinda Lindenblatt talks about where to get feedback.
Agent Rachelle Gardner reminds us that although in many ways the e-publishing revolution resembles the changes in the music industry, the two aren't identical. She lists some key differences to keep in mind when making comparisons. She also describes her "typical day" and her daily priorities as an agent (Hint: getting new clients comes after taking care of existing ones). And she looks at how the industry has changed since 2008, when she first began blogging.
Agent Janet Reid answers more questions: If you want to shelve a project that's not selling it, is it damaging to ask your agent to withdraw it from submission? (No; be polite, but it happens often.) Trying to contact your old publisher to fulfill "first rights," but they won't answer? (Keep track of what you've done and send a registered letter--after a certain amount of effort, you've fulfilled your legal requirement and may move on without hearing back.) How do you handle evidence that your memoir happened as said in a post-Frey false memoir-querying world? (Mention extensive records, etc). If you break an "iron-clad rule" of writing [like having the opening scene involve waking up], are you out of luck and never salable? (You can do anything if you do it well enough.)
Agent Janet Reid also advises: Make sure to use effective comparison titles. Sending an e-mail? Use an effective and specific subject title. Update your schedule of appearances. If you've written a book one genre but plan long-term to write a different genre, should you even bother querying the first work? (Do you think it's publishable and do you want to sell it? If so, yes.) Your agent has gone incommunicado for months, and you suspect she may be dead or crazy. What now? (Breathe. Then check if you're in contract with the agency instead of the agent, and if another agent there can help you. If needed, dissolve the contract.)
And Reid answers more questions: If other agents have requested pages, should I mention it in my query? (No. If there's a request for more, maybe then.) If an agent requests 30 pages or 3 chapters, which should you send? (Unless specified, whichever is more.) You have a prologue, and it's good, but agents hate prologues. How should this be handled? (Maybe send the sample requested sans prologue, or call it chapter 0 until later.) Should you mention that you once had an agent as a way of getting "street cred" in your query for a revised version of the manuscript? (No. Now it's this-thing-has-history-baggage, not a sign of awesomeness.) You've written the first book of a trilogy. Should you write the next one before getting an offer on the first, or wait to see if it sells? (Yes, write the second. Now get writing.) You're not getting responses on the query. Is it the query, the manuscript, or the agents? (Complicated. Reid suggests going to an authors' conference pitch session--but not actually pitching--to find out.)
Aerogramme Studio assembles assorted opportunities for writers (contests; literary submission dates) for March and April.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch continues her Discoverability for Authors series with Part 10 (Social media, young people actively run away from ads, and the generational gap on what works), Part 10-2 (People still see your stuff on FB; don't do things you dislike), and Part 11 (networking).
And a very interesting article looking at Amazon by the New Yorker (link found by Connie Keller--Thanks!)
On Publishing Perspectives, Dennis Abrams asks if binge reading--reading an entire series at time--is the new "binge watching" fad.
Theresa Ragan offers a way to estimate your sales based on your author rank.
Nathan Bransford disputes the "you must write every day" myth.
On the Futuristic, Fantasy, and Paranormal Romance Writers blog, Veronica Scott talks about using actual mythology to enhance your fiction.
Writer Peter Salomon evaluates whether or not Facebook ads are worth it before and after the new algorithms, sharing his results on how much he spent, how many new likes he got, and how he things it paid off (or didn't).
Humble Bundle's looking to get into e-books with a more regular e-book feature.
What countries spend the most time reading?
Industry Blogs
QueryTracker's Publishing News for 2/14, 2/21, 2/28, and 3/7.
Also on QueryTracker: 5 Easy Steps to (not) survive your release day (hint: obsession is good for you, right?). Do you need to interview someone for research purposes, but they're really nervous? Jane Lebak explains that "off the record" can get them comfortable. And Stinda Lindenblatt talks about where to get feedback.
Agent Rachelle Gardner reminds us that although in many ways the e-publishing revolution resembles the changes in the music industry, the two aren't identical. She lists some key differences to keep in mind when making comparisons. She also describes her "typical day" and her daily priorities as an agent (Hint: getting new clients comes after taking care of existing ones). And she looks at how the industry has changed since 2008, when she first began blogging.
Agent Janet Reid answers more questions: If you want to shelve a project that's not selling it, is it damaging to ask your agent to withdraw it from submission? (No; be polite, but it happens often.) Trying to contact your old publisher to fulfill "first rights," but they won't answer? (Keep track of what you've done and send a registered letter--after a certain amount of effort, you've fulfilled your legal requirement and may move on without hearing back.) How do you handle evidence that your memoir happened as said in a post-Frey false memoir-querying world? (Mention extensive records, etc). If you break an "iron-clad rule" of writing [like having the opening scene involve waking up], are you out of luck and never salable? (You can do anything if you do it well enough.)
Agent Janet Reid also advises: Make sure to use effective comparison titles. Sending an e-mail? Use an effective and specific subject title. Update your schedule of appearances. If you've written a book one genre but plan long-term to write a different genre, should you even bother querying the first work? (Do you think it's publishable and do you want to sell it? If so, yes.) Your agent has gone incommunicado for months, and you suspect she may be dead or crazy. What now? (Breathe. Then check if you're in contract with the agency instead of the agent, and if another agent there can help you. If needed, dissolve the contract.)
And Reid answers more questions: If other agents have requested pages, should I mention it in my query? (No. If there's a request for more, maybe then.) If an agent requests 30 pages or 3 chapters, which should you send? (Unless specified, whichever is more.) You have a prologue, and it's good, but agents hate prologues. How should this be handled? (Maybe send the sample requested sans prologue, or call it chapter 0 until later.) Should you mention that you once had an agent as a way of getting "street cred" in your query for a revised version of the manuscript? (No. Now it's this-thing-has-history-baggage, not a sign of awesomeness.) You've written the first book of a trilogy. Should you write the next one before getting an offer on the first, or wait to see if it sells? (Yes, write the second. Now get writing.) You're not getting responses on the query. Is it the query, the manuscript, or the agents? (Complicated. Reid suggests going to an authors' conference pitch session--but not actually pitching--to find out.)
Aerogramme Studio assembles assorted opportunities for writers (contests; literary submission dates) for March and April.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch continues her Discoverability for Authors series with Part 10 (Social media, young people actively run away from ads, and the generational gap on what works), Part 10-2 (People still see your stuff on FB; don't do things you dislike), and Part 11 (networking).
And a very interesting article looking at Amazon by the New Yorker (link found by Connie Keller--Thanks!)
On Publishing Perspectives, Dennis Abrams asks if binge reading--reading an entire series at time--is the new "binge watching" fad.
Theresa Ragan offers a way to estimate your sales based on your author rank.
Nathan Bransford disputes the "you must write every day" myth.
On the Futuristic, Fantasy, and Paranormal Romance Writers blog, Veronica Scott talks about using actual mythology to enhance your fiction.
Writer Peter Salomon evaluates whether or not Facebook ads are worth it before and after the new algorithms, sharing his results on how much he spent, how many new likes he got, and how he things it paid off (or didn't).
Humble Bundle's looking to get into e-books with a more regular e-book feature.
What countries spend the most time reading?
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