Writing and Publishing News from

January 4, 2011

Publishing Talk

Filed under: Publishing — Patricia @ 8:15 am

I used my blogging time slot to write a guest blog this morning. I’ll give you the link when it is posted. It’s on a subject I think many of you are interested in—what are the chances of and how do you manage to get your self-published book published traditionally? Stay tuned.

Yesterday I located a computer file I was unable to find. I want to share some tricks that might help you do the same in the future. I was desperately looking for my most recent version of the book I am currently revising for the publisher. I flat could not find it. I knew it was in my computer, but where—under what name? So I settled on a file from the original edition of the book and I was meticulously comparing it to the most current edition of the print book and making necessary changes. What a process!

I got to thinking about it and realized that I may have the file I wanted in an email as I had sent it to my page layout person as a Word document. Before I could check, I discussed my dilemma with him and he said, “I have your original document on my computer. I always save the original separate from the PDF file I create.” He found it, told me the file name and, of course, there it was in my computer. Lucky break!

Sometimes as I’m working on a client’s book, I will attach a copy of the document to an email to another address here in the house. That way, if my computer crashes and I lose everything (even though I do have a backup hard drive), I can retrieve the manuscript without having lost all of my edits.

Hey, how do you write “website,” “Website,” “Web site?” I’ve adopted “website.” But as I was conducting research for my revision, I checked the 16th (latest) edition of the Chicago Manual of Style (used by most authors) and see that they recommend “website.”

I hope that all of you who follow this blog or stop in periodically are looking forward to a super successful and fulfilling year as a freelance writer or author. What are your publishing plans for 2011? Finishing a book, landing a publisher, building your freelance career, selling 5,000 copies of your book??? Let me know. Also tell me what types of information and resources you need in order to reach your goals and I’ll see what I can do to bring it to you.

Make it a happy and successful New Year all year.

http://www.patriciafry.com
http://www.matilijapress.com

January 3, 2011

Words, Words, Words

Filed under: Writing — Patricia @ 7:25 am

Have you seen the latest annual list of “banished words” from Lake Superior State University in Michigan? These include words and terms that are overused, misused and have, perhaps, become trite.

They chose fourteen words and terms they’d like to see go away in 2011. If you’re still using any of them, you might want to consider eliminating them from your vocabulary sometime soon.

The most disliked word of the year is “viral.” Second and third on the list are “epic” and “fail,” when describing “a blunder of monumental proportions,” according to reporter Ros Krasny.

These are not words that you habitually use? Wait, how about these terms: “a-ha moment,” “back story” and “wow factor.” Will you miss hearing the ring of these tired phrases or not? How would you feel to see “BFF” go by the wayside? And these critics are suggesting that we no longer use “Facebook” and “Google” as verbs. Now wait a minute… I do not think that’s going to happen.

“Man up” is another phrase that this group has deemed passé.

Read the rest of the 2011 banished words, their meanings and why they were nominated to be eliminated here http://www.lssu.edu/banished/current.php

What about the new words for 2011—here are a few: twenty-eleven, Obama-mess, Great Recession, Palinism and TwitFlocker.

What words would you like to see retired? Have you coined a new word or phrase lately? Want to share?

Visit Patricia Fry’s websites: http://www.patriciafry.com
http://www.matilijapress.com

January 2, 2011

What Do Publishers Want?

Filed under: Publishing — Patricia @ 4:29 am

I’ve been spending a lot of time this week researching publishers’ submission guidelines for the revision of my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. Things change fairly rapidly in this field and it has been just three years since my last such quest for information.

For the revision, I want to know the percentage of publishers who are accepting email submissions, the number who want to receive a book proposal, etc. I can tell you that most still prefer to receive submissions via regular mail, but larger numbers are okay with email submissions now than in 2007. And more publishers seem to be putting stronger restrictions and requests in their guidelines. For example, some are adamant that you have a strong platform in your genre/topic before contacting them with a project in mind. It seems that more publishers specify the importance of author participation in promoting their own books.

Anyone who takes the time to read publishers’ submission guidelines should have no doubts about what the publisher wants. And I can’t stress enough, the importance of doing so.

I get the impression from some of the authors who contact me that they study the guidelines of a few publishers and assume that these apply to all publishers. They couldn’t be more wrong! While, certainly, you’ll find similarities in some guidelines—pretty much all publishers want to see a professional, fully edited presentation, for example—there are also aspects of submission guidelines that vary considerably.

One publisher might want to see a query letter first. Others request the complete manuscript. And many, today, want to see a book proposal and they may require different types of information in that proposal.

If you want to land a traditional publisher, your first step should be to choose the right one. In fact many publishers today practically beg eager authors to check their line of books to make sure that theirs fits in. And it does you no good to overstep the boundaries.

For example, if the publisher’s catalog features only books for serious train and aviation enthusiasts and you don’t see evidence that they have ever published a children’s book on trains, do NOT assume that they will consider yours. If the publisher has been producing science fiction and fantasy young adult novels for eons, why would you ask them to publish your adult romance or your book on how to write young adult fantasies?

And your second step toward successfully landing a traditional publisher is to adhere to his or her submission guidelines. If they want to see a proposal including a brief synopsis, a market analysis involving four similar books, your platform and your marketing ideas sent via the post office along with a self-addressed-stamped envelope, then that’s exactly what you must send them.

You still might be rejected, but it won’t be because you sent the wrong manuscript to the wrong publisher or because you didn’t follow the submission guidelines. In fact, you’ll have a better chance of landing a publishing contract than those who do not take the time to study and follow each individual publisher’s requirements. There are hundreds of publishers in many categories. There were around 1,000 publishers listed in the 2010 Writer’s Market.

For more about this subject and many others, read my article archives, check out my list of resources and look at my display of books for authors: http://www.matilijapress.com

Newsflash: My most popular book during these past few months has been How to Write a Successful Book Proposal in 8 Days or Less. Amazon has ordered copies of that book almost every week since since July.

To learn about my services, visit: http://www.patriciafry.com

To ask me a question related to your writing project email me at PLFry620@yahoo.com.

January 1, 2011

Take Charge of Your Writing in 2011

Filed under: Publishing,Writing — Patricia @ 6:13 am

Happy New Year. May this be the year that the fruits of your writing labor reward you to the fullest. If you’re just starting out with a writing project, my wish for you is that you will do what it takes in order to succeed. Don’t rely on others to create your success. Be proactive on your behalf.

Study the publishing industry and the field in which you want to become involved, whether it be article-writing, producing a book, freelancing for businesses, etc. If you want to blog, start your own blog rather than giving away your wonderful information or benefit of your wisdom. If you want to write for magazines, establish your own business instead of following in someone else’s success. Branch out to include new writing opportunities rather than sticking with what’s familiar. And if you want to publish a book this year, do your best to take charge. Consider seeking out a traditional publisher for your project or establishing your own publishing company in order to produce the book instead of going with a pay-to-publish company.

As you read through these recommendations, do you feel weak-kneed? Are you frightened and insecure or excited and confident? No matter what you feel, I strongly suggest that you take control of your professional writing life as the New Year begins by educating and pumping up yourself. Prepare for your publishing success. How? You’ve taken a great first step by visiting this blog. Step two should be to read relevant books such as, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Here are a few comments from those who have read it:
“I read your book as soon as I received it. It is definitely a must have for anyone serious about writing.”

“I found your book helpful mainly as a brainstorming tool while thinking of ways to publish my first novel. It was helpful in framing strategies.”

“I found your book to be a very valuable as a reference. There are tons of valuable bits of information. I think of it as my writer’s bible.”

“Kudos on your straight-talking, The Right Way to Write Publish and Sell Your Book. I love your direct approach.”

“I love all of the books I’ve bought from you. Your personable writing style makes it seem as though you are speaking directly to me. I consider The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book as my Bible. It’s the Grandmother of all of your books. The straightforward information on promoting and marketing has helped me so much. Thanks for writing such great books”

“This book would be a valuable addition to any writer’s bookshelf, but especially that of the newbie.”

“I purchased, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, a few months back. I have read all of the introductory chapters and pertinent sections to match my particular activities at the moment. All of these are invaluable, as well as very well organized.”

“I purchased The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book and you gave me a lot of information that was useful in putting together my proposal. Also, thank you so much for answering my questions. You have no idea how much it has helped me out.”

“I am on the second reading of The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book and have recommended it to two other people. It is a GREAT help and resource.”

“I have read most of the book and have found it very helpful. You are encouraging, yet honest and direct. I am a former English teacher and a hopeful author. I hope someday to put your good advice to work.”

“Your book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, has been my bible. I read and re-read your advice and recommendations. Thanks for all of your help.”

“I would like to thank you for your book. It is very useful to me. I followed all of your suggestions in the book and I am very happy to tell you they all helped. I will tell my fellow authors to buy your book so their books will fly also. Thanks a million. You are my mentor.

http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

December 31, 2010

Two Steps to Publishing Success in 2011

Filed under: Publishing — Patricia @ 6:06 am

Well, it’s the last day of the year. Tomorrow begins a new year and a new decade. Are you satisfied with your writing/publishing/book promotion accomplishments to this point? Are you excited about your writing/publishing/book promotion goals for 2011?

Are you aware of the steps you can take in order to change your bad “luck” in publishing and start on a new, more successful path? If you have been unable to sell your manuscript, or sell as many copies of your book as you’d like, here are some things that WILL help in the New Year.

• Study the publishing industry so you have a better idea about the business of publishing, your options, the possible consequences of your choices and your responsibilities as a published author. And keep studying it so you are constantly on top of your game.

• Write a book proposal. No matter where you are in the process of your project, a book proposal can assist you in so many ways. How?

1: You’ll find out whether you have a valid book at all.

2: You’ll discover who your audience is and where they are.

3: You’ll learn what it takes to reach this audience.

4: You’ll get a handle on what you can bring to the table—your platform.

5: You’ll be guided to create a marketing plan for your project.

6: You’ll have a greater understanding of what it will take to promote your particular book.

New authors tend to look outside for advice and input related to their book projects. Seeking out the assistance of professionals is a good idea—it is part of how you study the publishing industry. However, you have even more power to determine the potential for your specific project than practically anyone else if you would only follow these two steps all the way through to completion.

I would like to hear from those of you who have learned the value in this recommendation. Details, please.

For Those of You Who Need Guidance
I’m currently teaching an online book proposal course. We have completed the first in a series of eight lessons. It would be easy to catch up and continue the course along with us. And what better time to fully prepare yourself for publishing success than as the New Year dawns? Check out the course and sign up: http://www.matilijapress.com/course_bookproposal.htm

Sign up at the site: it is $200 for the course. And you get plenty of one-on-one attention.
http://www.matilijapress.com

http://www.patriciafry.com

December 30, 2010

The Writer’s Deadline Dilemma

Filed under: Writing — Patricia @ 7:02 am

Do you feel as if you are up against a deadline? There’s just one more day of 2010 and it’s over. Do you have regrets? Unfinished business? Do you feel a need to hurry to complete or start something in order to meet a goal you set early in the year (or even several years ago)?

Is this how you face assignment deadlines—with anxiety, disappointment, pangs of guilt? Do you miss deadlines? How do you handle this? Do you contact the editor or publisher and explain that you can’t meet deadline? Or do you just cram, like you did in college, working all hours of the day and night until you complete the work?

The fact is that some writers and authors thrive on deadlines—claiming it keeps them focused and gives them parameters. These people are good at organizing their lives and their time. Others consider a deadline their enemy—an invisible force set in front of them designed to make them fail.

While some writers do better work under deadline, others get sloppy because they feel so pressured.

Which writer are you? Do you complete projects way under deadline or do you rush in a sweat to the finish line? Or are you somewhere in the middle?

You know, deadlines are not actually steel barriers. If you look at them as steel barriers or as some sort of evil threat, of course, you will experience anxiety. If you can view a deadline, instead, as a gentle reminder, you may have an easier time meeting it. But it is also important that you take the deadline seriously, which may be one reason why people miss them—they dis anything that puts restrictions on them.

Why are there deadlines in a free world? Editors and publishers need to know that they will have material in time for their magazines or their book publishing quota. And generally, they try to create enough leeway for writers in case you need an extension on your deadline if only you would ask. This knowledge might help you to relax about the deadline restriction. But I would be careful. Some of those deadlines are strict and critical. And making a habit of asking to move deadlines or missing a couple of deadlines could definitely hamper your standing within the professional writing community.

What is your attitude about deadlines? Do you love or hate them? Have you ever missed one or asked to have one moved? Was it the end of the world or did the editor/publisher work with you?

I happen to like deadlines. While I might feel a bit of stress when working on deadline, it is the type of stress that keeps me moving forward. It is the sort of stress that helps me to organize my time and dedicate myself to the project at hand. Often I also have other work—I do help run an organization, a household and an editorial business, after all. It can get rather sticky trying to manage all that needs to be done. But then, I don’t commit to a deadline if I don’t think I can do it.

I work with others on deadline, as well. I interview people for a newsletter I write. I ask people to contribute to books and articles I’m writing and so forth. And I always give them deadlines. There are always some who don’t make it. No amount of reminding or prodding can put them on track. There are others who come in way ahead of deadline—like me, they try to get it off of their desk as quickly as they can so they can move on to the next item on their to-do list. And others methodically present me with the information I need exactly on deadline.

Meeting deadlines is an interesting and complex topic as it has more to do with the inner workings of your mind than it does anything else—don’t you think? Some people always arrive to meetings or social events late and cannot see why this would be a problem—they always have an excuse, after all. Other people always arrive early. And then there are those who meticulously show up on time no matter what. I don’t imagine the writer on deadline is any different from the individual at large—those who arrive early will turn in their articles ahead of time, those who are habitually late to events and activities, will have a much more difficult time meeting writing deadlines. Or do you have proof to refute this theory?

This would be a good place to discuss it—leave a comment.

http://www.matilijapress.com
http://www.patriciafry.com

December 29, 2010

Query Letter Versus Cover Letter

Filed under: Book Proposals,Query Letters — Patricia @ 5:56 am

Today, I want to discuss query letters and cover letters and explain the basic differences.

Query Letter
The query letter is your sales pitch. You send a query letter to a publisher first in order to inform him about your wonderful book and to pique his interest in seeing it. Here is where you introduce yourself, describe your book, explain who your audience is and offer evidence of your ability/willingness to promote this book. The query letter is your foot-in-the-door. It is your first opportunity to make a good first impression with the publisher of your choice.

I advise authors not to come on to strong in their query letters, but do present your project with confidence. You want to appear professional and confident not pleading and desperate.

And be sure to identify your query letter as a query letter. Say in the beginning, for example, “I’d like to introduce my book, Parenting the Second Time Around, a guide for grandparents who are raising grandchildren.” Or say, “Please consider publishing my book on….”

Cover Letter
The cover letter accompanies your book proposal package or your manuscript. You will write a different cover letter for your proposal than you will for your manuscript. The cover letter is generally a reminder to the publisher that he requested to see your proposal or your manuscript and you also want to remind him of what your project is about.

Of course, there are instances when you will send a book proposal first (if that’s what the submission guidelines call for). Then your cover letter is strictly an introduction to your proposal and not a reminder that the publisher requested it.

In the case of a cover letter for a requested proposal, you might start by saying, “Thank you for asking to see my book proposal for Who Let the Dogs Out?—Who Will Put Them Back?” or write, “Per your request, I have enclosed my book proposal for my novel, Sweet Sixteen. As you may recall, this is the story of…”

The cover letter won’t be as detailed as the query letter because it is backed up either by a full-blown proposal or a manuscript. But you still want to give an introduction that will entice the publisher to stop what he was doing, to choose your package over all others, to wave of interruptions and focus on your proposal.

Questions? PLFry620@yahoo.com.

http://www.patriciafry.com
http://www.matilijapress.com

December 28, 2010

What Can an Editor Do For My Manuscript?

Filed under: Editing — Patricia @ 5:19 am

“What do you do as an editor?” This is a question I get fairly often. “What can you do for my manuscript?”

My typical response is, whatever your manuscript needs.

My main concern with your manuscript is readability, flow and consistency. I want to make sure it is organized logically and that we catch any typos, grammatical/punctuation errors and spacing problems. I look for cumbersome and/or muddy sentences, repeated words, misused words and more. As I wrote in a post earlier this week, I attempt to help you break any bad, annoying and/or obvious writing habits that tend to weaken your story or devalue your nonfiction book.

Authors ask what my fee is. Some disappear upon hearing that I charge $50/hour. I wonder what they end up doing about the editing they need. Actually, I know what many authors do. They either look around for someone they know who will “take a look” at their manuscript and maybe do a little light editing or they decide to publish (or seek a publisher) without editing. Such a shame. One author who thought I was too high (having no idea of the value I could offer her manuscript), chose to go with someone who claimed to be an editor. This individual advertised that he/she charged $150 an hour, as I recall, and that he/she could edit a 200 page manuscript in something like three hours. The author went for it. Later, she told me that she made a foolish decision. She said it was obvious that all this person did was run a spellcheck on her manuscript.

It seems to be human nature to take the shortcut to success. And we learn over and over again that this isn’t a very effective plan. If you were a pilot, you would not skimp on your plane’s maintenance and your preflight checklist. If you were a doctor, you would make sure to keep up on the latest treatments and remedies. If you were preparing for an audition, you would rehearse. Why would you decide to become an author and then skimp on the final edit of your book? Don’t you think your audience will notice—not to mention any publishers you might approach…

Some authors worry that an editor will steal their voice. I doubt that has happened to many authors. It would take a total rewrite to change the voice of a story. I’ve been accused of changing an author’s voice, when all I did was clean up some extremely muddy sentences. I don’t think this author ever understood how much clarity my edits afforded his story.

I have a lot of editorial stories. I guess an editor collects stories like a fisherman, psychologist, skydiving instructor, door-to-door salesman or anyone in any profession does.

I just finished an editing project yesterday. A few hours after I sent the cleaned up manuscript to the author, he called me to thank me for the wonderful job. Now that’s a happy ending for me. And I hope that my happy ending results in a happier ending for the author and his book.

For more about my editing services visit my newest website: http://www.patriciafry.com

Also check out this site: http://www.matilijapress.com

December 27, 2010

Online, On-Demand Courses for Authors/Writers

Filed under: Writing — Patricia @ 8:02 am

Today is the first class of my free book proposal course. I’m excited. I always enjoy working with authors on their projects—which is why I do this for a living. Hopefully, there will be several success stories emerge from this course. And word will get out about the value of what I offer and bring me more talented clients.

In today’s class we are discussing the purpose of the book proposal and why I believe that a book proposal is more for the author than the publisher. I’ll go over the various parts to the book proposal—for a novel and for a nonfiction book. We will also examine our book titles and talk about the cover letter and title page. Students will work on these two parts of the book proposal this week.

I have also asked each student to send me a description of their projects so I will be more in touch with what they need throughout the 8-week course.

This course is now full. But if you are interested in the Book Proposal Course or one of the other 5 online, on-demand courses I teach, please check them out at http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm.

By the way, when I say, “on-demand,” that means that you can sign up at anytime and choose which day of the week you would like to receive the lectures and assignments. Fees for my courses are: $125 to $200.

Contact me with your questions: PLFry620@yahoo.com.

I’m finishing up an editing job and may have another one coming in this week, so I’m cutting today’s post short. If you have a burning question or would like me to cover a specific topic related to freelance writing, authorship, publishing, book promotion, etc., just let me know.

December 26, 2010

Our Writing Habits

Filed under: Writing — Patricia @ 5:25 am

If you’ve spent any time at all studying the world of book publishing, reading articles and books on authorship, visiting blogs like this one, etc., you know that publishing professionals highly recommend that you hire a good book editor for your book before publishing. I am one of those who advises authors to hire an editor for their manuscript. And one reason may surprise you.

While your manuscript may be fairly well-written, your writing habits could be getting in the way of it being very well-written. Yes, we all have writing habits. They stem from our way of communicating. Writing is communicating, after all. And sometimes our way of communicating doesn’t actually work well in a manuscript which is meant to entertain or inform, for example.

What habits am I referring to? Here are a few:

• The overuse of pet words and phrases. One of them for me used to be “of course,” at the beginning of sentences.

• Creating long, complicated explanations or descriptions, often leading to run-on sentences and muddy writing.

• Trying to use words to impress or forcing the use of unfamiliar words.

• The overuse of commas and other punctuation for emphasis. Too many exclamation points, for example, soon devalue the enthusiasm factor.

• Misuse of punctuation such as quotation marks, em dashes, ellipses.

• Inappropriate paragraph breaks.

• A tendency to over explain, leading to a lot of repeated words.

• The inability to appropriately organize your material—sentences, paragraphs.

• Writing for yourself rather than your reader.

Today, why don’t you examine a few pages of your manuscript and see if you can find patterns that tend to brand your way of writing. See if you can discover your writing habits. Do they enhance or spoil your work? I can tell you that almost any habit that is repeated over and over in your writing (and isn’t that the definition of a habit?) will tend to taint it. You may be surprised at how much fresher and more meaningful your writing can be once an editor helps you to rid your work of some of those writing habits.

Visit my websites for resources, articles on editing (and other topics) and a description of my services:
http://www.matilijapress.com
http://www.patriciafry.com

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