Rachelle Gardner Calls for Romance
Literary Agent Rachelle Gardner has announced on the Rants and Ramblings blog that she's adding some new genres. She's now actively seeking romance, cozy mysteries, and female-driven suspense.
Fair warning: Rachelle is specific about what she wants. First, the author needs to be previously published. (This disappoints. I know a couple of writers who deserve the chance to submit.)
Second, the book needs to appeal to female readers and to contain at least one strong female character. Guess what? This is a trend in publishing in general - and one that isn't about to change anytime soon. Jump on. Strengthen those women.
Third, she's looking for manuscripts that fit four specific romance lines: Barbour's Heartsongs Presents, Harlequin's Love Inspired, Summerside's Love Finds You, and HarperCollins' Avon Inspire. She details each and encourages authors to examine the series and the publisher guidelines further before submitting to her.
Share on FacebookEditor Unleashed: “Why I Write” Essay Contest
The blog Editor Unleashed, partnered with Smashwords, has just announced their Why I Write essay contest. The top 40 essays will be published in an anthology on Smashwords (an ebook publishing and distribution platform for ebook authors, publishers, and readers). One Grand Prize winner will receive $500 and promotion on the two sites.
Further details (Rules) will be revealed November 2 on Editor Unleashed.
You can post entries November 9 - December 31, 2009.
Voting on entries happens January 4 - 29, 2010.
Share on FacebookThe Novelette.com: The Beauty Contest
Central Park October 2009
The Novelette.com, a site for writers, artists, and readers, is hosting another of its writing contests. The theme this time around is Beauty.
Take a look at all the beauty in the world.
Then write a story — 750 words max — and enter the writing contest.
The next contest opens now and runs through November 15th. Two winners will win $25 gift certificates!
Beauty — a terrible thing to waste, so write about it.
Many of the entries are already posted--and so many of those are wonderful. The site also features new photographs of autumn out on the East Coast. I encourage looking at those, too, while you're over there. Indeed, they'll probably offer inspiration for the contest.
Share on FacebookNaNoWriMo
NaNoWriMo
Sunday marks the beginning of National Novel Writing Month. Do you have your plan in place?
I cannot help but love an organization whose website includes something called a Procrastination Station.
As all the writing blogs are gearing up for the manic month of typing, words of wisdom are popping up all over the web. At Write to Done, Leo Babauta gives sage advice in How To Write a Novel in 30 Days. I particularly like this gem:
Plan beforehand. Some people go into NaNoWriMo competely blank, with no plan, but I think that’s a mistake. While you can definitely overplan, it’s best to have a decent idea what your novel will be about (be able to say it in one sentence) and a general idea of the characters and plot. Don’t overdo it — half a page to a page will do. I recommend the Snowflake method. Do this before Nov. 1 — maybe in the week leading up to the month (not the night before).
And this one:
Shut off the Interwebs. Seriously. Use a utility such as Freedom to shut it off. Turn off the phones and Blackberry. Clear your desk. Have no distractions. But especially the Internet. If you don’t heed this tip, you’re very likely to fail.
Heck, that last one could be useful the other eleven months of the year. In fact, the first bit of wisdom up there will help you write a novel even if you happen to begin in December.
Meanwhile, over at his blog, agent Nathan Bransford echoes agent Kate Schafer Testerman: Agents don't want to see a flurry of submissions the first week of December. NaNoWriMo creates some great first drafts. Take a few months and polish them up.
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