06 30 11 WRITING and A GAME PLAN TO GETTING PUBLISHED

On the verge of the release of my sci-fi novel, Die Laughing, I thought it might be of advantage to other writers to hear my approach on how I got it published.

This has nothing to do with the quality of the story (I’ll leave that to others.) This is strictly a pragmatic approach that I used, which may help you to formulate your own plan.

I put together a tier of objectives, starting with what I thought should be my main goal, which I figured would be the best way to lead to a publishing deal with a major publisher. (Aim for the stars, settle for the moon.)

On top was to get an agent. I put together the best query letter and brief pitch that I could (constantly refining them.) From there I scoured agentquery.com and the Internet in general for agents related to my genre. I went through everyone I could find. I had some nibbles but no bites.

Next on my tier was to have the large and mid-size sci-fi publishers who would accept unsolicited manuscripts read mine. There aren't many, but I sent it out without any success.

The next step was to send out my query letter and pitch to the smaller legitimate (and check carefully!) publishers, which I did. This is where I started hitting pay dirt. In a short period of time I had five positive responses. The first one to make a concrete offer was IFWG Publishing, which I was pleased to accept. They're small, but spunky.

Had I not gotten any bites at that level I was faced with a choice - to hold back until my next novel was completed, start the process over with the new novel, and then present my first novel to whoever accepted the new novel (providing someone accepted it) - or to self-publish. I'm not sure which direction I would have taken.

The advantage to a tier system is that when I signed with IFWG it was with the knowledge that I was taking the best offer out there for my book.

The entire process took about a year and a half. And I’m happily sitting on the moon.

There is one caveat; it takes more than a plan. It requires perseverance and commitment.

Good luck and keep writing.

06 13 11 WRITING and PROOFREADING

First a big congrats to fantasy author Mysti Parker. She just celebrated her 5,000^th hit on her blog “Unwritten.” I’ve only got about 3,400 more hits to catch up with you!

Secondly a big thanks to my friend Debbie Orta. She’s not only a mom, a great vocalist and an actor, but also a proofreader. Debbie volunteered to go through Die Laughing. It’s amazing how generous people can be. Deb, I can’t thank you enough!

Speaking of Die Laughing, I finally set up a Facebook fan page for my book. Take a look at it. I’ve got my promo video – where I try to channel Rod Serling – on there. I’ve put up movie posters of 1950’s sci-fi movies that influenced my writing of the story, and I’ve even got a quiz asking what your favorite movie of that era is. If you like the site, “help a poor alter boy out” and hit the ‘like’ button. (That quote is from The Exorcist, if memory serves me correctly.”

Okay enough of the plug, back to the topic.

Before Deb’s proofreading I went over the book twice more myself after it being proofread at least four times earlier. This is humiliating to say, but I still had characters being called by different names! I had Hoover Dam spelled like Hoover Damn. I had one character, Francis, referred to once as France. Sheesh – how embarrassing would all that have been? In my blog on the Nuts ‘n Bolts of submission, I stressed the importance of proofreading, well here I am a classic example of why you can never overdue the process!

It’s the publisher’s turn to proof it again, and then I’m going to go through the galley. Anyone want to bet there’s still more correcting to do?

It’s a headache for sure, but nowhere near the pain of having your work published with errors in it. And really, who do you blame? After all, as the author, the buck stops with me. Keep writing everyone…and keep proofreading!

05 26 11 – WRITING – FANTASIZING ABOUT THE FANTASY GENRE

In the writer’s group that I belong to I’ve been reading a fantasy novel.

I’ve written sci-fi and horror but I’ve never ventured into this particular genre. Not knowing the rules to these kinds of books I wasn’t sure how to properly critique it.

I eventually went to my old friend Wikipedia for help. Wiki says, “Fantasy is a genre of fiction that uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in fictional worlds where magic is common. Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of (pseudo-)scientific and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three (which are subgenres of speculative fiction).

As I read the chapters I did indeed experience the various elements listed in the above definition, but as I read more and more chapters I discovered that what really mattered to me beyond the wonderful settings and other-worldly characters was whether I cared about the protagonist or not. This got me to thinking, isn’t that pretty much the case with any genre?

Shakespeare once said, “A beer by any other name would still taste as sweet.” Okay, maybe he didn’t say it quite like that, but the point is no matter where the story takes place or who the characters are, it nearly always boils down to whether we – the reader – have an emotional interest in their outcome.

Here’s an interesting blurb from fantasy author Mysti Parker for her book A Ranger’s Tale

In the world of Tallenmere, the high elf – Caliphany Aranea – who is nearly a century old, has never been allowed to travel farther than a few miles out of the capital city of Leogard.

Her father, Sirius, leads the Mage Academy. After losing his only son, he expects Caliphany to take his place one day. The trouble is, she doesn't want to study magic and doubts she'll ever be as good a wizard as her father.

She dreams of leaving Leogard to explore the world and strike out on her own. When two brutes at Leogard Harbor attempt to kidnap her, half-elf ship captain and ranger, Galadin Trudeaux, comes to her rescue.

She and Galadin will face more adventure, more love, more heartache, than they ever thought possible. Through it all, Caliphany must decide where her heart truly lies.

This certainly has all the elements of the fantasy genre, and just as important seems to have a central character that is determined to make her own way, yet is torn over her obligation to her father and her country. Caliphany sounds like a character I could care about.

Mysti Parker's book can be found at: A Ranger's Tale.

Now pass me a beer, or whatever you want to call those things.

05 18 11 WRITING – LO AND BEHOLD, SOMETIMES IT’S FUN!

I took my Nuts 'N Bolts of Story Submitting seminar on the road to Design and Architecture Senior High in Miami. DASH is one of the premiere high schools in America. I gave the lecture to two writing classes. The students were amazing. I wish I was half as on the ball as they were when I was their age. I posted a picture on my website http://www.louisklowy.com/

Two of my short stories appear in print this month. "The Lord Was My Shepherd" in a Scottish magazine called Pushing Out the Boat, which they read at a writing festival that featured Margaret Atwood, and "The One Cupper", which appears in The MacGuffin Magazine.

And it keeps getting better...

I've been going through the line edits of my sci-fi book, Die Laughing. As nerdy as it is, I actually enjoy it. I get to scrutinize each and every word that's already been scrutinized by IFWG Publishing. Sometimes we go back and forth on quote placements, he saids and she replies, and what is and isn't crossing the line on sex scenes.

To add to the fun my author bio page is up and running on the IFWG Publishing site: http://ifwgpublishing.weebly.com/bio-louis-k-lowy.html And I saw the cover to the book. I'm hyped up about it! The artist - Laura Givens - did a fantastic job.

This kind of pleasure is few and far between, so I'm enjoying it while I can. But just to keep a check on reality, I also received three rejection slips for one of my short stories the other day.

04 21 11 The Nuts ‘N Bolts of Story Submission. Part IV : IT’S TIME TO SUBMIT!

This is the final installment of my four part series, The Nuts ‘N Bolts of Story Submission.

In part one I discussed the reasons for submitting, in part two I talked about pre-preparation, in part three I talked about getting your game plan together, and now in part four IT’S TIME TO SUBMIT!

The most convenient way to find publications is through online search engines.

DOUTROPE’S DIGEST is my favorite. It has a great search engine with many criteria options. It’s extremely convenient and the search results are listed similar to a data sheet so there’s a lot of info. Numerous publications are on the same page. As with all the online search engines there are links to the publications included.

The link is: http://www.duotrope.com/

POETS AND WRITERS - Not as convenient, but Nearly 600 Literary Journals Are Listed. The link is: http://www.pw.org/ look under their Tools For Writers menu.

NEWPAGES.COM – Again, not as convenient as Doutrope, but it’s geared toward university and indie publications, and indie publishers. The link is: http://www.newpages.com/

CRWOPPS: Creative Writer’s Opportunity List - Allison Joseph’s yahoo group. Emails are sent to members daily. It’s mostly geared toward fee based contests, and occasionally submission requests. To join go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CRWROPPS-B/

FINAL TIPS

WHEN SUBMITTING ALWAYS CHECK OUT THE PUBLICATIONS WEBSITE FIRST – make sure they are what they say they are.

If you’re looking for a print publication, check to see if they have a subscription page. If they don’t they’re probably online only. Make sure their version of print is your version of print. I don’t count a downloadable PDF file as a print publication. Some of them do. Check when the last issue came out to make sure they’re active.

ALWAYS READ THE PUBLISHER’S GUIDELINES before you submit to them. If you don’t, you may be rejected for not following the rules. You may be accepted in a publication that you’ll regret later.

SUBMIT TO A PUBLICATION THAT’S APPROPRIATE FOR YOUR STORY. You may have a great story, but if it’s not the type the editor is looking for you’ll be wasting your time.

LASTLY AND MOST IMPORTANTLY…

                       

ONCE YOU GET INTO THE HABIT OF SUBMITTING IT’S IMPORTANT TO MAINTANE: make submitting part of your writing regimen. The best way is to put together a weekly routine or goal. DON’T MAKE IT STRENUOUS.

Maybe devote an hour a week to it. That’s less than 10 minutes a day.

Maybe have a number goal instead: six submissions a week: that’s less than one a day.

IT’S VITAL TO KEEP THE BALL ROLLING. Don’t get discouraged. I went nearly a year from my first fiction acceptance to my second one. Remember that it’s a subjective process. What doesn’t work for one editor may work for another, but you have to get it to them so they can make that decision.

Submitting – done properly and routinely – is your best bet at achieving success in finding a home for your stories. Good luck, get to it, and take that leap into the pool. It’s not so cold. Stay in, don’t give up, and eventually it’ll pay off.

ALWAYS REMEMBER IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW MANY TIMES YOU’RE TOLD NO, ALL THAT COUNTS IS THE ONE YES.

I hope you found this series useful. I look forward to reading your work online, on my eReader and/or in print!

04 12 11 The Nuts ‘N Bolts of Story Submission. Part III : SET TO DO BATTLE

This is Part III of my four part series The Nuts 'N Bolts of Story Submission. This installment is called SET TO DO BATTLE.

In Part I, I discussed the reasons that you, the writer, should submit your work. In Part II, I talked about the importance of pre-preparation.

The current discussion has to do with deciding who you’re going to send your work to.

To do this there are three terms you need to know, which will be in each publication’s submission guidelines. The first is SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS: this means you can submit to other publications at the same time your work is being considered by the current magazine or journal you’ve sent it to.

The second is NO SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS means you can not submit until the work has been rejected by the current magazine or journal you’ve sent it to. Usually paying publications and the upper echelons have this policy.

The final one is MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS means that you can submit more than one piece to the same publication at the same time.

As part of your battle plan you need to decide a few things – though they’re flexible decisions: HOW DO YOU WANT YOUR WORK TO APPEAR? Do you want your work to appear in print only? Online only? Or in both?

WHAT PAYSCALE ARE YOU LOOKING FOR? Do you want your work to appear in pay only publications? If so, do you want only pro rates, semi-pro rates, or are you okay with contributor copies (when in print) as payment? Are you okay with having your work appear without pay?

HOW DO YOU WANT TO SUBMIT? Electronically, snail mail, or both?

WHAT KIND OF PUBLICATIONS DO YOU WANT YOUR WORK TO APPEAR IN? Only the top selling Magazines and literary journals? Are university journals okay? How about local and regional publications, or fledgling publications, or anyone that will have you?

There’s a give and take with each decision. Realistically, with the prestigious and the top payers, the competition is going to be near impossible. You may be competing with Joyce Carol Oates, Alice Monroe and William Trevor. That’s not to say it’s a bad thing, it just something to think about. The other consideration, as I said earlier, is that most of the prestigious publications don’t allow simultaneous submissions. You have to wait until they reject (or accept) you before you can send it to someone else.

A good alternative may be to start with a few from the top ones and work your way down. The criteria I set for myself was that number one I wanted to be in print, for a couple of reasons: I just liked the idea of it, and more importantly I want to try and get my short stories published as a collection. I’m afraid if my stories are available online publishers won’t be interested in putting them out in print.

The second decision I made was I wanted to be able to simultaneously submit, I didn’t want to wait around for rejections. I also decided I liked the idea of Literary Journals and magazines. I had no problem with local and regional publications as long as they looked professional. Finally, I made the choice that I wanted to submit electronically – it’s quick and doesn’t cost a dime, which eases the pain if you’re rejected. It’s important to mention again that these choices are a rule of thumb. Don’t be afraid to vary or experiment. It’s a process meant to develop and mould over time.

Once you’ve decided on a basic game plan, IT’S TIME TO SUBMIT, which happens to be the title of my final install. It will appear here next Tuesday. I’ll point you towards what I consider to be the best submission sources and why I think so.

See you next week!

04 05 11 The Nuts ‘N Bolts of Story Submission. Part II : PRE-PREPARATION – THE KEY TO SUBMITTING

This is part two of my four part series on The Nuts ‘N Bolts of Story Submission. I call my second installment PRE-PREPARATION – THE KEY TO SUBMITTING.

In a response to Part I, a reader mentioned that it can get expensive to submit because of reader’s fees. Good point! I don’t submit to contests or publications that charge a fee. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t if you feel strongly about the magazine or contest. It just means that there’s a route to go that doesn’t cost a dime.

Now, on to Part II : PRE-PREP – THE KEY TO SUBMITTING. I’ll go through how to line up your ducks in order to save time and effort in the long run.

With submitting, PRE-PREPERATION is the key. It’s a one time set-up, that takes a while but in the long run it’ll save you lots of time and increase your productivity.

The first thing is GO OVER YOUR WORK WITH A FINE TOOTH COMB. If you’re sure your piece is free of typos and grammar errors, check it again, and one more time after that. Nothing says amateur – and rejection – louder than sloppy work.

Next, save your story in multiple formats: save it as a word doc, an rtf file and a pdf. Also save them – in all formats – with your name on it and without any name on it. Depending on what each publication wants, you’ll already be prepared to send it.

DO A WORD COUNT of every one of your stories and post a paper of the results where you can see them (mine is taped above my computer screen.) Every publisher has word restrictions. It’s a guaranteed rejection if you submit a piece that doesn’t fit in their category. I always include word count in my submissions.

WRITE A COVER LETTER. I recommend one that isn’t frilly, “I enjoy Oreo’s with my cat, Fluffenuffer.” Save that for the ‘get to know the author’ page.

DON’T EXAGGERATE your credentials. It’s not necessary, and it’s pretty easy to spot the ‘enhancers.’

INCLUDE A BRIEF BIO, with writing credits if you have them. If not, it’s okay to say ‘I’m living in Miami, but originally from Kansas where most of my writing inspiration comes from.’ Keep the bio under seventy-five words. If you’re accepted they’ll probably want you to keep it anywhere from 30 to 50 words.

INCLUDE COMPLETE CONTACT INFO: name, address, email, phone. Do the cover letter in first and third person. Again – depending on the demands of each publication – you’ll already be prepared to cut and paste it into your submission.

MAKE IT APPEAR PERSONALIZED. I think editors look for “shotgunners” people who submit willy-nilly and it turns them off. Dear (fill in the publication’s name) Submission Editor, is fine.

The last thing in pre-preparation is to MAKE A DATA SHEET to record your transactions – including vital info such as DATE SUBMITTED, PUBLICATION, STORY SUBMISSION, CONTACTS, RESULTS, ETC. I use an excel sheet. At first I did it by hand originally, but it was too cumbersome.

A data sheet is important because the info it contains will prevent you from submitting the same stories to the same publications. It will let you know when you submitted to them so you don’t waste time submitting in the same time period – which most publications don’t allow.

A data sheet will let you know who you have to contact in the event that you get accepted and you’ve submitted the story to other publications. It’s your obligation to let the others know it was accepted so it can be withdrawn from their consideration.

It tells you who’s getting back to you in a timely manner and who isn’t – in other words their professionalism, which is their obligation. That way you can decide if you want to submit to them again.

And it gives you an idea of your progress, and may suggest which stories to go back and tweak. I’ve tweaked some after long spells of rejection, and to my surprise and joy, had a few of them accepted a short time later.

Whew! I know pre-prep is somewhat of a task, but when it’s over you’ll be glad you did it. In the long run the work you put into pre-preparation will be gained back over and over again in time and effort saved during the actual submitting.

With pre-prep over, you’re ready to step into the stadium. I call my next installment SET TO DO BATTLE. I discuss terms you need to be familiar with, and how to determine who to send your work to. See you next Tuesday. Keep the feedback coming!