Musings Of A New Southern Man

I have been writing quite a bit in the past several days, hence another long break between posts. Or to be more precise, I have been writing and then rewriting chapters for my second book in the series. That much rewriting? What do you expect a veteran copy editor to do. But as I have gone over the matter of query letters, I have reached a conclusion. I have to tweak mine. It is obvious my current query isn't catching enough attention. The problem? I think it makes the book sound too dark, too foreboding. There are dark parts in the book, parts that made me feel uncomfortable while I was writing them. (I am not a violent man by any means, but I have one chapter devoted to a crime, and the violence gets very detailed at the end. But that chapter is so basic to why one of my protagonists reacts the way he does that it has to be included.) My book is more about decisions we make, why we make them and the impacts they have on our lives and the lives of those around us. Dark and foreb...

Writing a novel with strong characters isn't hard for me. Putting twists and turns into a plot and creating a world of challenges for my protagonists is daunting but fun. Dialogue? I love doing it. But if you want to see my resolute confidence shaken, have me sit down and create a good query letter to submit to literary agents. Why such fear and trembling? Oh, I can write a good query, but there is the nagging question when I'm done ... Is it the right wording to sell my novel? Have I done the best job necessary to make some agent in New York City, or Denver, or Tiburon, Calif., sit up and take notice? I may feel fine about my current query letter, but am I separating my work from the 100-200 other queries a single agent will handle during a week? Is my query good enough to avoid being lumped into the dreaded slush pile? Judging by results, the answer is a resounding no. I still haven't persuaded an agent that I'm the author for them. I will press on and refine th...

(I was sick, so pardon the long break between posts. But I'm feeling better. Now, where was I?) Jeff Kleinman isn't one of the true gentlemen in the literary agent business just because he asked for more of my manuscript to review ... but maybe it didn't hurt. He eventually decided not to take me on, but I was impressed by Jeff's commitment to searching out new authors who suddenly show up in his e-mail file. I sent to Jeff one day and got a reply the next. In the world of agents, that's megaspeed. Every agent should appreciate what it means to an author to get that kind of response time. I had done lots of research on Jeff before I filed with him, and he has built an impressive background. He's one of the agent/lawyer combinations, the head of Folio Literary Management. In one interview, he said his day often consists of checking his e-mail at home, going to the office and checking e-mail, getting home and checking e-mail, etc. That kind of commitment to auth...

I wish I could talk about literary agents with some degree of certainty. I can't, simply because of limited contact. But that isn't going to stop me from commenting. Oh, there are some things I know. They are overburdened, getting an avalanche of contacts every week from aspiring writers like myself. They have their areas of interest regarding genres with which they will work. They are writers, editors and lawyers all rolled into one (or at least they know good lawyers) and guide their clients through the tricky world of publishing. Ah yes, there is the most important fact for someone such as myself: They are absolutely vital to my future, because they hold the first set of keys to getting published. But that is a mighty tough first step to take. Here is a quick statistic: I have contacted 23 agents since mid-December; I have heard back from six of them. All were rejections. I'm not shaken by that fact, for two reasons. First, I don't have a big ego, so rejection do...

I have written enough during a 35-year career on newspapers to fill a small library. I have been part of several departments that have been ranked among the 10 best in America. I know how to be a manager. I know how to write for journalism. I know how to edit other writers. But nothing ... absolutely nothing ... in all that experience prepared me for the world of publishing ... the agent-and-publishing house side of creativity. I know I'm not alone. This blog is designed for all the first-timers to get together and commiserate. Good agents get hundreds of queries (the name of the short pitch an aspiring writer sends) a week. Very, very few of those aspiring writers are invited into the select circle of published authors. Hence, I know there is a crowded world of first-timers out there, so let's share some of our stories. I believe there is one thing that unites all of us: We believe intensely in our work. I spent a year of my life carving out time to write and ...