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Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Call For Submissions...And A Little Idea Brewing...

Let me throw out the idea first.

Obviously we can't have Secret Agent contests all the time. (We've got another one coming up in October, by the way!) Our in-house crit sessions are rewards in themselves -- we all value the input from our colleagues. More than one of you have shared that the feedback has led to improvements in your writing. Good, good, and very good!

But wouldn't it be fun to once in a while offer a prize to a colleague-chosen "best entry" in one of our crit sessions?

Of course, I don't have bags of cash lying around with which to purchase prizes. So I'm thinking...how can we do this?

If I were to install a "donate" button, would you be inclined to give a dollar every once in a while?

(Though I'm thinking...how could I have a "donate" button and remain anonymous? Suggestions?)

Or...might some of you, from time to time, have something to offer? A copy of one of your published books, for instance? Or an extra, perfect-condition copy of one of the "writing bibles" that should be on every writer's shelves?

Chat to me about this in the comments box, please.

In the meantime, here's this week's submission call:

Talkin' Heads:

Submit a 250-word excerpt highlighting DIALOGUE. Choose a section that includes a character or characters with a dialect, speech impediment, or some other distinction of speech that sets the character apart. (Note: this may be subtle!) Our goal? See if our readers can "stick with" the character and not be distracted by the speech quirks. (Think Mark Twain's black characters -- and then don't do that.)

IMPORTANT: Please preface your excerpt with ONE OR TWO BRIEF SENTENCES that set the scene and let us know who is speaking!

So your formatting should look like this:

TITLE
GENRE

BRIEF EXPLANATION (one or two sentences)

EXCERPT (250 words)

I will accept entries until 9:00 am EDT on Thursday, September 25. I'll be posting them the same day. (Obviously I'm not expecting a huge turn-out! *grin* But do give this some thought. I know it's a bit...esoteric.)

Now get ye to your documents and cull, cull, cull!
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22 comments:

  1. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2008 at 1:01 PM

    Just to be clear (yeah, there's always one who isn't clear :P ), aside from the brief explanation the excerpt should be entirely dialogue (no tags, beats, descriptions, etc.) ?

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  2. AuthoressSeptember 23, 2008 at 1:02 PM

    Tags and beats are fine (essential, really).

    Let's say...the excerpt should be around 75% dialogue.

    ReplyDelete
  3. feywriterSeptember 23, 2008 at 1:10 PM

    Hmm. I'm not sure any of my quirky speech characters have that much dialogue in any one scene (all minor characters). I will have to dig, see if I have something that fits.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2008 at 1:52 PM

    I have some F&Gs of my last picture book. Not sure this group would want picture books, but hey, I have some.

    As far as a donate button, open on with a company name through PayPal. You can hide your identity as a corporation...

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2008 at 2:11 PM

    Okay! Now I just have to cram it down to 250 words. :S

    ReplyDelete
  6. MercSeptember 23, 2008 at 2:54 PM

    I swear I'm doing this one. :P

    As for "prizes" um... I do have a lot of writing books I no longer need/want that are in good condition. (I think! They're on a top shelf sort of neglected right now. O:)) I'd donate some if you want.

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  7. Karen DuvallSeptember 23, 2008 at 2:54 PM

    Authoress, I'll donate a critique of the first 5 pages of anyone's manuscript.

    ReplyDelete
  8. MercSeptember 23, 2008 at 3:49 PM

    I sent an entry, yah! My mail has been acting up, so can you let me know here if you got it, Authoress?

    ~Merc

    ReplyDelete
  9. AuthoressSeptember 23, 2008 at 3:51 PM

    Huzzah! Huzzah! Huzzah!

    (That's me, cheering at the receipt of Merc's submission.)

    Karen -- what a GENEROUS offer! You are definitely on my "donated prize" list. :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. The GerlingsSeptember 23, 2008 at 4:50 PM

    you are evil

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2008 at 4:57 PM

    Darn it! I forgot to put my name user name on it! Can I resend?

    ReplyDelete
  12. AuthoressSeptember 23, 2008 at 4:58 PM

    You're fine, I know who you are. :)

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  13. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2008 at 4:59 PM

    Whew! Thanks. :)

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  14. LoriStronginSeptember 24, 2008 at 12:01 AM

    Ditto for me to donate some good-condition writing books!

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  15. Luc2September 24, 2008 at 1:58 AM

    Argh, I have just the scene. But I'll be away for a week, without internet connection, so I'll pass.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Luc2September 24, 2008 at 2:02 AM

    Oh, and about prize... I don't think that's necessary. The back and forth crits and comments are reward enough. If you insist on making them competitive; bragging rights are prize enough, IMO.

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  17. AnonymousSeptember 24, 2008 at 5:37 AM

    Probably a silly question, but where do we send submissions?

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  18. AuthoressSeptember 24, 2008 at 7:07 AM

    Not silly:

    facelesswords(at)gmail.com.

    I forgot to include it in the post!

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  19. goldchevySeptember 24, 2008 at 1:02 PM

    I agree with luc2. Getting the comments is the biggest reward. Maybe you could e-mail a "Best-in--Show" certificate to the winner.

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  20. Liana BrooksSeptember 24, 2008 at 1:13 PM

    I'm looking, but I may sit this one out.

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  21. Liana BrooksSeptember 24, 2008 at 5:14 PM

    Odd question: Can we have names on the DL tags or no?

    ReplyDelete
  22. AuthoressSeptember 24, 2008 at 5:25 PM

    Names, as in, "Lucinda said?"

    Yes.

    Names, as in, I've misunderstood your question?

    Um...

    ReplyDelete