Sunday, January 28, 2007

Queries and Openings Needed


We're down to two queries and three openings. Remember, queries can be for any kind of book that you're hoping to have published. Openings should be for fiction only, but any length including short stories is okay. Submit material through the email address in my profile.

As it takes a while to get good Guess the Plots and continuations, we don't want to run dry.

20 comments:

Brenda said...

I'm way too chicken shit to put my query out there yet. Maybe if I do it under another name. Hmm.

Anonymous said...

that might be a cool option on occasion but I'd call it low on the priority scale.

Saipan Writer said...

Well, it would be swell to be listed in any form on Evil Editor's blog. But I don't think it's necessary. If we want to read someone's blog, we can just click on their name, and navigate to their blog from their profile.

If you run out of queries or new beginnings, you can just tell jokes. Or rant and rave about the latest news in the literary world, until more show up.

We'll be here.

Rik said...

I thing if you're going to do this, then you should limit yourself to the bloggers who won bronze/silver and gold in the New Beginnings 2006 vote. I can say this as I'm not one of those people.

If those 3 links look a bit lonely, you could add the 3 most selected Guess the Plotters of 2006. (I'm not one of those people, either).

I mean, you don't want your blog to become just another list of blogs, do you? And the thought of maybe winning a listing on the Evil Editor blog will be a big incentive to make me try harder in 2007 - even if there's no guarantee you'll be awarding prizes at the end of the year.

Sycophantically, etc.

Anonymous said...

It's Brenda!! [ogles photo]

Dave Fragments said...

I agree with Saipan Writer:

"Well, it would be swell to be listed in any form on Evil Editor's blog. But I don't think it's necessary. If we want to read someone's blog, we can just click on their name, and navigate to their blog from their profile."

Anonymous said...

I'm not really interested in author blogs.

I can tell you what would make me submit my opening though...

that is if you, Evil Editor, could chime in with your expert opinion on them. You comment on the queries, but not on the openings. How come? Just a teeny comment with your opinion of the writing. Not that I don't value the minion's opinions but, well, I'd value yours more.

Brenda said...

Having a blog roll isn't that bad of an idea. Sometimes I'll click on someone from here and it shows 2-3 blogs they participate on, and I have to guess at which one is theirs alone. This way, it would be instant access. Then we could all put other minions on our own rolls too to help promote each other.

It reminds me that I need to update my blogroll bigtime. Oh, and that I need to blog more often too.

And that I should probably write novels.

Hmm.

Anonymous said...

Wow, Brenda's back and she found an even better picture! We don't need queries, just more pics!

Evil Editor said...

if you, Evil Editor, could chime in with your expert opinion on them...

There was a time when EE did just queries, and wondered how he could post more often without greatly adding to the time invested. I tried two queries a day, but a query can take an hour or two. I tried New Beginnings, and found that they required only choosing the continuation and some minor editing and formatting--much more manageable. I've been known to chime in if no one else says something I think the author needs to hear, but usually the minions are on top of things. Some have better comments than I could come up with. That said, if you submit your opening, whoever, I'll make a point of commenting.

Blogless Troll said...

I don't have any market research to back this up, but contributors might respond better to cash prizes.

Blogless Troll said...

Is "The Search for Mr. Lincoln: and the Encounter with Cornbread and the Three Eyed Man" one title or two?

Evil Editor said...

It's one.

Anonymous said...

How about a new game?

How about victims submit a short (250 word) synopsis of their novel, and let the minions write humourous query letters for it?

And then, to make up for our prior nastiness, we could offer helpful advice in the comments on where the plot doesn't seem to hold together/make sense.

Dave Fragments said...

I would offer a prize of a Pizza, but since I'm allergic to cheese, tomato, green peppers, anchovies and garlic, I doubt anyone would want to eat my pizza.
;)

Brenda said...

Laughs! It's good to be missed. Not a found picture, simply a new one - the last one was oooooold (much the way I'm feeling).

Okay, so the problem is we're low on queries and we're low on openings. Personally, if it doesn't have critiquing done by EE in it (in this case, a query), I rarely read it (as in a continuation). Just like there's limited time EE can devote to running the blog, there's limited time I have to reading it (especially lately with how ill I've been) and I'd rather hear from the pro, so I read his comments.

While you wait for the list to regenerate with fresh blood... err... queries, perhaps you could do posts about editing in general that you come across every day, or a side of publishing we rarely see, like dealing with snarky authors or bitchy agents, even a really quirky art department. Something that gives us a view into your world, which is vastly different than our world. For instance, Kristen Nelson is always giving little tips for what she likes and doesn't like. Maybe a Top 10 Things to Never Put in Your Query, or The Most Common Editing Mistakes Writers Make, etc.

I have no idea, really. Just spewing stuff out. But it is good to be back. *grin*

Btw, EE, I finally have my pictures back from Nationals, including one of me on that first Meet-n-Greet Wednesday while wearing my I LOVE EVIL EDITOR t-shirt. Expect an email soon.

Brenda said...

Poor Dave. That blows and not in a good way ('cept the anchovies part - hurl).

none said...

EE, when you put the authors' names at the bottom of an entry, you can always make them into links to their respective blogs, if they provide the url.

Anonymous said...

The links are there, so why bother?

Rashenbo said...

I think it would be interesting to pop over to the "minions".