First of all, I want to express sincere thanks for each of you who took the time to leave critique for our 10 Blog Critique Tour authors. SO MUCH thoughtful critique! And I've gotten messages from thankful authors, letting me know how much the feedback has helped them.
As always, you are a shining example of what it means to be a community.
And now, here's the winner of the 15-page edit from AUTHORESS EDITS (that's me), chosen randomly from valid critique comments:
JK Wise
Congratulations, JK! Please email me at authoress.edits(at)gmail.com to set up your free edit.
Yay!
Miss Snark's First Victim
Tuesday, July 15, 2014
Monday, July 14, 2014
July Secret Agent Early Info
Please note: This is NOT the call for submissions! The contest will open next Monday, July 21.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES (please read carefully):
*There are TWO WAYS to enter: a) via email to authoress.submissions(at)gmail.com OR via web form at msfv.thoughbin.org
*THIS WILL BE A LOTTERY: The submission window will be open from NOON to 6:00 PM EDT, after which the bot will randomly select 50 entries.
* 2 alternates will also be accepted, for a total of 52 entries.
* PLEASE NOTE: You are responsible for figuring out your own time zone. "Time Zone differences" are NOT a reason for not getting your entry in.
* Submissions received before the contest opens will be rejected.
* Submissions are for COMPLETED MANUSCRIPTS ONLY. If you wouldn't want an agent to read the entire thing, DON'T SEND IT. If an "entire thing" doesn't exist, you shouldn't even be reading these rules.
* Manuscripts THAT HAVE BEEN IN EITHER OF THE LAST 2 SECRET AGENT CONTESTS (March or May) will not be accepted.
* You may submit A DIFFERENT MANUSCRIPT if you've participated in any previous Secret Agent contests.
* Only ONE ENTRY per person per contest. If you send more than one, your subsequent entry(ies) will be rejected.
* If you WON A CONTEST WITHIN THE PAST 12 MONTHS (i.e., offered any kind of prize from a Secret Agent), please DO NOT ENTER THIS CONTEST. (Unless it's a different manuscript.)
* Submissions are for THE FIRST 250 WORDS of your manuscript. Please do not stop in the middle of a
GO HERE to submit via our web form.
If you choose to submit via email, your submission for this contest should be formatted EXACTLY as follows:
SCREEN NAME: Your Screen Name Here
TITLE: Your Title Here
GENRE: Your Genre Here
(Followed by the excerpt here.)
* No "chapter one," chapter titles, etc.
* You will receive a confirmation email with your lottery number.
* Submissions go to authoress.submissions(at)gmail.com. They DO NOT GO to my facelesswords address. Or any other address.
*It doesn't matter what you put in the subject line. The only thing you MUST NOT do is to use "RE:" The bot will think you are attempting to respond to an email, and will reject you.
As always, there is no fee to enter the Secret Agent contest.
This month's contest will include the following genres:
* Chapter Books (all genres)
* MG (all genres)
* YA (all genres)
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES (please read carefully):
*There are TWO WAYS to enter: a) via email to authoress.submissions(at)gmail.com OR via web form at msfv.thoughbin.org
*THIS WILL BE A LOTTERY: The submission window will be open from NOON to 6:00 PM EDT, after which the bot will randomly select 50 entries.
* 2 alternates will also be accepted, for a total of 52 entries.
* PLEASE NOTE: You are responsible for figuring out your own time zone. "Time Zone differences" are NOT a reason for not getting your entry in.
* Submissions received before the contest opens will be rejected.
* Submissions are for COMPLETED MANUSCRIPTS ONLY. If you wouldn't want an agent to read the entire thing, DON'T SEND IT. If an "entire thing" doesn't exist, you shouldn't even be reading these rules.
* Manuscripts THAT HAVE BEEN IN EITHER OF THE LAST 2 SECRET AGENT CONTESTS (March or May) will not be accepted.
* You may submit A DIFFERENT MANUSCRIPT if you've participated in any previous Secret Agent contests.
* Only ONE ENTRY per person per contest. If you send more than one, your subsequent entry(ies) will be rejected.
* If you WON A CONTEST WITHIN THE PAST 12 MONTHS (i.e., offered any kind of prize from a Secret Agent), please DO NOT ENTER THIS CONTEST. (Unless it's a different manuscript.)
* Submissions are for THE FIRST 250 WORDS of your manuscript. Please do not stop in the middle of a
GO HERE to submit via our web form.
If you choose to submit via email, your submission for this contest should be formatted EXACTLY as follows:
SCREEN NAME: Your Screen Name Here
TITLE: Your Title Here
GENRE: Your Genre Here
(Followed by the excerpt here.)
* No "chapter one," chapter titles, etc.
* You will receive a confirmation email with your lottery number.
* Submissions go to authoress.submissions(at)gmail.com. They DO NOT GO to my facelesswords address. Or any other address.
*It doesn't matter what you put in the subject line. The only thing you MUST NOT do is to use "RE:" The bot will think you are attempting to respond to an email, and will reject you.
As always, there is no fee to enter the Secret Agent contest.
This month's contest will include the following genres:
* Chapter Books (all genres)
* MG (all genres)
* YA (all genres)
Friday, July 11, 2014
Friday Fricassee
Happy Friday!
1. Our BLOG CRITIQUE TOUR seems to have produced some good feedback for our participants. Yay! Please remember that you may continue to leave critique until midnight EDT tonight--and that each critique you leave = 1 entry in the drawing to win a 15-page critique from AUTHORESS EDITS.
HERE IS THE LIST OF EXCERPTS.
2. A small addendum to last Friday's thoughts ON TREND-CHASING AND THE UNPUBLISHED NOVEL:
In addition to writing what we love, there's also a place for branching out and trying something new. Not because someone tells us to; not because we think it will sell--but because we're stretching ourselves and flexing our writing muscles in a new way. If the slightest idea is niggling at your brain, and it's not like anything you've ever written before, give it a try! It may come to nothing, or it may blossom into something you never imagined you'd write.
I'd like to point out that my current novel-on-submission is a YA science fiction that I wrote because Agent Josh suggested I move in that direction. Note my use of "suggested". (Because, if he were, yanno, bossy or something, I wouldn't like him much.) If he hadn't given me that gentle, creative prod, I would not have written the novel. And that would be very sad, because it turned out to be a story I absolutely love! There's something different about it--something that honed my voice in a new way. For me, it was a definite "I've reached the next level" achievement in my journey as a writer.
So listen to those gentle suggestions. Pay attention to the oddball idea that wakes you up at night. It may turn into something new for you to love. And if it doesn't--well, a good, creative stretch always bears good fruit.
(I've got my own out-of-left-field idea swimming around. And it's, of all things, YA Contemporary. Which I sorta told Agent Josh I couldn't write. Not saying I'm sitting down tomorrow to get started, but if the idea doesn't stop poking me, I'm going to have to let it out. Right?)
3. If you could ask an editor any question at all, what would you ask? Please let me know in today's comment box. I'm working on a new idea for the blog, and if I get enough decent questions, I'll go ahead with my plans.
And that about covers it! Have a glorious weekend.
1. Our BLOG CRITIQUE TOUR seems to have produced some good feedback for our participants. Yay! Please remember that you may continue to leave critique until midnight EDT tonight--and that each critique you leave = 1 entry in the drawing to win a 15-page critique from AUTHORESS EDITS.
HERE IS THE LIST OF EXCERPTS.
2. A small addendum to last Friday's thoughts ON TREND-CHASING AND THE UNPUBLISHED NOVEL:
In addition to writing what we love, there's also a place for branching out and trying something new. Not because someone tells us to; not because we think it will sell--but because we're stretching ourselves and flexing our writing muscles in a new way. If the slightest idea is niggling at your brain, and it's not like anything you've ever written before, give it a try! It may come to nothing, or it may blossom into something you never imagined you'd write.
I'd like to point out that my current novel-on-submission is a YA science fiction that I wrote because Agent Josh suggested I move in that direction. Note my use of "suggested". (Because, if he were, yanno, bossy or something, I wouldn't like him much.) If he hadn't given me that gentle, creative prod, I would not have written the novel. And that would be very sad, because it turned out to be a story I absolutely love! There's something different about it--something that honed my voice in a new way. For me, it was a definite "I've reached the next level" achievement in my journey as a writer.
So listen to those gentle suggestions. Pay attention to the oddball idea that wakes you up at night. It may turn into something new for you to love. And if it doesn't--well, a good, creative stretch always bears good fruit.
(I've got my own out-of-left-field idea swimming around. And it's, of all things, YA Contemporary. Which I sorta told Agent Josh I couldn't write. Not saying I'm sitting down tomorrow to get started, but if the idea doesn't stop poking me, I'm going to have to let it out. Right?)
3. If you could ask an editor any question at all, what would you ask? Please let me know in today's comment box. I'm working on a new idea for the blog, and if I get enough decent questions, I'll go ahead with my plans.
And that about covers it! Have a glorious weekend.
Thursday, July 10, 2014
MSFV Success Story Authors at EMLA
I absolutely love this picture. I love staring at it. And I'm thankful that Peter Salomon had the presence of thought to gather these folks for the photo op.
The scoop: Erin Murphy Literary Agency holds an annual retreat in Vermont for its clients. While attending this year's retreat, Peter realized that TEN PERCENT of EMLA's clients are part of the MSFV Success Story family. As in--each of the authors in the above picture attributes a portion of his or her success to this blog.
More specifically, Ammi-Joan Paquette and Tricia Lawrence are both long-term supporters of this blog, and have been involved in many events over the years, including the popular Baker's Dozen Agent Auction each December. In addition, Joan has been a hard-core lurker here, and has signed more clients from MSFV than any other agent. Let's just say that, if she paid me back in a year's supply of chocolate for each MSFV client she's nabbed, I'd have chocolate for quite some time!
Pictured above, from left to right:
Peter Salomon, Tara Dairman, agent Joan Paquette, J. Anderson Coats, Joshua McCune, Ann Bedichek Braden, agent Tricia Lawrence.
The scoop: Erin Murphy Literary Agency holds an annual retreat in Vermont for its clients. While attending this year's retreat, Peter realized that TEN PERCENT of EMLA's clients are part of the MSFV Success Story family. As in--each of the authors in the above picture attributes a portion of his or her success to this blog.
More specifically, Ammi-Joan Paquette and Tricia Lawrence are both long-term supporters of this blog, and have been involved in many events over the years, including the popular Baker's Dozen Agent Auction each December. In addition, Joan has been a hard-core lurker here, and has signed more clients from MSFV than any other agent. Let's just say that, if she paid me back in a year's supply of chocolate for each MSFV client she's nabbed, I'd have chocolate for quite some time!
Pictured above, from left to right:
Peter Salomon, Tara Dairman, agent Joan Paquette, J. Anderson Coats, Joshua McCune, Ann Bedichek Braden, agent Tricia Lawrence.
It is a blessing and a privilege to have played a small role in each of these author's journeys. Look how beautiful they are! This photograph is, for me, like a virtual group hug.
I'm proud of you guys, and I'm happy for you. Thank you for allowing my words and my life to brush against yours. And thank you, Joan and Trish, for trusting me enough to offer your continued support and involvement.
L'chaim!
I'm proud of you guys, and I'm happy for you. Thank you for allowing my words and my life to brush against yours. And thank you, Joan and Trish, for trusting me enough to offer your continued support and involvement.
L'chaim!
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Blog Critique Tour!
Here it is, folks! Your opportunity to critique 10 excerpts on the authors' own blogs, while also being entered to win a 15-page critique from Authoress Edits. It's win-win!
While leaving your feedback for these brave writers, please observe the following:
1. Use a screen name OTHER THAN "Anonymous". I can't enter you into a drawing that way. Any entry signed "Anonymous" will not be included in the drawing.
2. Please be kind as well as honest in your critique. A little tact goes a long way!
3. Shout this out in your social media hang-outs! Let's support these authors and their blogs. (Also? If this is successful, we'll do it again. You might be the next author-with-a-blog hoping for traffic and critique!)
Each thoughtful critique that you leave equals one entry in the drawing, for a total of 10 possible entries. Please note: Leaving 1 sentence doesn't count. So if you go through the entries and leave, "I love this!" on each one, I won't include those in the drawing.
And now, without further ado, here are our 10 authors and the links to their blog posts. At the bottom of each post, you will find a link back to this page; that way, you can easily navigate to the next author's blog.
Have fun, everyone!
OUR 10 WINNING ENTRIES:
1. KATHLEEN S. ALLEN (YA Dark Contemporary)
2. GEORGE KULZ (MG Mystery)
3. LAURA DIAMOND (YA Contemporary)
4. MICHELLE MASON (YA Contemporary)
5. JUSTIN HERD (Urban Fantasy)
6. JOHN M. DAVIDSON (YA SF)
7. KATE LARKINDALE (YA Contemporary)
8. AUBREY CANN (YA Historical Fantasy)
9. ADRIENNE PROCTOR (Historical Fantasy)
10. ELIZABETH JANETTE (Romantic Suspense)
While leaving your feedback for these brave writers, please observe the following:
1. Use a screen name OTHER THAN "Anonymous". I can't enter you into a drawing that way. Any entry signed "Anonymous" will not be included in the drawing.
2. Please be kind as well as honest in your critique. A little tact goes a long way!
3. Shout this out in your social media hang-outs! Let's support these authors and their blogs. (Also? If this is successful, we'll do it again. You might be the next author-with-a-blog hoping for traffic and critique!)
Each thoughtful critique that you leave equals one entry in the drawing, for a total of 10 possible entries. Please note: Leaving 1 sentence doesn't count. So if you go through the entries and leave, "I love this!" on each one, I won't include those in the drawing.
And now, without further ado, here are our 10 authors and the links to their blog posts. At the bottom of each post, you will find a link back to this page; that way, you can easily navigate to the next author's blog.
Have fun, everyone!
OUR 10 WINNING ENTRIES:
1. KATHLEEN S. ALLEN (YA Dark Contemporary)
2. GEORGE KULZ (MG Mystery)
3. LAURA DIAMOND (YA Contemporary)
4. MICHELLE MASON (YA Contemporary)
5. JUSTIN HERD (Urban Fantasy)
6. JOHN M. DAVIDSON (YA SF)
7. KATE LARKINDALE (YA Contemporary)
8. AUBREY CANN (YA Historical Fantasy)
9. ADRIENNE PROCTOR (Historical Fantasy)
10. ELIZABETH JANETTE (Romantic Suspense)
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