tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post1515347718334888720..comments2024-03-26T18:28:06.391-04:00Comments on Evil Editor: Face-Lift 630Evil Editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03879826770199639420noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-62536952190355225162009-05-12T21:13:00.000-04:002009-05-12T21:13:00.000-04:00Thank You all for your comments. I take all critis...Thank You all for your comments. I take all critisism with a smile. After reading your comments you guys have confirmed what I have already started to believe. <br /><br />YOU CAN'T JUDGE A BOOK BY IT'S QUERY LETTER!! The entire process is smoke and mirrors. You have to submit this perfect letter to the publisher/agent who (depends on how he/her feel on that day) may take my letter however they want. All 37K words is interesting. My book is diverse and that's why I have a hard time putting it into one letter. There is so much that happens and (trust me)it all comes together. I have decided to continue to self-publish. I will take some writing courses. I will find my market. I will succeed! The traditional way to get published is not fair and it doesn't allow writer's of raw talent to achive their goals. Look for me in Hollywood guys. And again, Thank you for comments.Jeffrey Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04717752898326563221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-54089621897328576792009-05-09T12:23:00.000-04:002009-05-09T12:23:00.000-04:00Am I the only one to get completely distracted by ...Am I the only one to get completely distracted by the idea of a friend named BJ offering 'one type of comfort?' Because as soon as I read it, I spewed coffee all over my keyboard. Unfortunately, I realized right after that this was not THAT kind of novel; and had to go get my kicks with a bagel.deb hoagnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-18523250514371767032009-05-09T10:59:00.000-04:002009-05-09T10:59:00.000-04:00The real story seems to begin when when Monty is m...The real story seems to begin when when Monty is murdered and comes back as some sort of avenging angel. That means all the meat of your query letter is taken up with backstory.<br /><br />I would leave out that you are a truck driver, as it isn't relevant. Only the quality of your writing is relevant.<br /><br />One thing that I noticed in this query is that you start talking about how bad things are happening to your protagonist, and you imply that they continue for some divine purpose, but then seque into your character's murder and his afterlife job. (I was inclined to think the point of the story was Job-like punishment and testing until the death/avenging angel part showed up.)<br /><br />What we are lacking here is what your protagonist's goals are and a hint at how he resolves them. Tell us about that stuff, not how he ended up that way. (I too thought he was a teenager until we hear about his job and the rest.)<br /><br />As far as being self-published with this book (and yes it is too short to be called a novel) it really is a handicap. I'd suggest going on to the next project, too.writtenwyrddhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02280711822302493122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-13279978233871934992009-05-09T10:09:00.000-04:002009-05-09T10:09:00.000-04:00If you have to use the words visual, and imaginati...If you have to use the words visual, and imaginative in the query, that indicates that you're afraid the writing actually isn't. Let agents discover those qualities themselves.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06958826713934309361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-34700203090405445042009-05-08T20:30:00.000-04:002009-05-08T20:30:00.000-04:00The only non-classic novella I've ever seen was in...The only non-classic novella I've ever seen was included in a book of short stories. Something that short won't usually get printed alone unless they want to teach in English classes or you self-publish._*rachel*_https://www.blogger.com/profile/03293167107180931700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-995419576423358642009-05-08T20:06:00.000-04:002009-05-08T20:06:00.000-04:00Neil Gaiman's "Coraline" for middle-schoolers is s...Neil Gaiman's "Coraline" for middle-schoolers is self-described as a novella at about 50K words.<br /><br />The title, for the 50+ crowd, conjures the first mega-bomb movie; it brought down a movie studio, but resulted in a riveting non-fiction book by the exec producer for the movie, Stephen Bach: "Final Cut: Art, Money, and Ego in the Making of Heaven's Gate, the Film That Sank United Artists." The book is highly recommended by moi.<br /><br />Bill H.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-43462924324096536452009-05-08T18:27:00.000-04:002009-05-08T18:27:00.000-04:00I think things have changed since 1937; further, O...I think things have changed since 1937; further, OMAM is clearly a novella.nonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00415222406280230021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-33036881252857552272009-05-08T18:15:00.000-04:002009-05-08T18:15:00.000-04:00The query seems to focus a lot on information that...The query seems to focus a lot on information that is back history and set-up. At 37K words, I think it would be difficult to follow Monty from teenage years to some undefined point as an adult when he dies, and Armageddon. But then, I could be wrong. <br /><br />Is this the first installment of 7 stories - one for each deadly sin? If so, you might want to make that clear. <br /><br />Try to focus the query on the story that happens in the 37K. The last paragraph about your credentials can be cut since it doesn't help you. <br /><br />I suspect you're going to have a hard time finding someone to represent a previously self-published book. Pat yourself on the back for finishing since that sets you aside from probably 90% of the people who want to write and work on book 2.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12237518808756712176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-40333502502722304642009-05-08T17:08:00.000-04:002009-05-08T17:08:00.000-04:00BuffySquirrel, 37 K is a little short, yes. But &q...BuffySquirrel, 37 K is a little short, yes. But "Of Mice & Men" is something like 32K and I don't think anyone would deny it's a novel.Khazar-khumnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-53159488578251490262009-05-08T16:16:00.000-04:002009-05-08T16:16:00.000-04:00Monty's murder and subsequent transformation into ...Monty's murder and subsequent transformation into an Armageddon-stopping angel seem to be where the story really gets going, so maybe consider shortening the human part of Monty's story so you can tell a little more about the angel-fighting part. Monty's struggle with his faith is clearly a big part of the novel, but I'm not sure it needs to be in the query because he ends up working for God anyway . . . right? <br /><br />"Senseless neighborhood violence" was a bit vague for me. Is this a gang thing, or are there unusual circumstances here?Chelsea Pitcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16301150715189103602noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-78753319058762071802009-05-08T15:36:00.000-04:002009-05-08T15:36:00.000-04:00I read this statement to a friend of mine:
"a per...I read this statement to a friend of mine: <br /><I>"a personal journey fraught with emotional peril"</I>To be honest, neither of us could figure out what it meant. So then we called a friend each and asked if they ever went on a <I>a personal journey fraught with emotional peril</I> and they said "what?"... No one of the four of us knew what sort of personal journal would be marked by emotional peril. <br /><br />If we had such trouble with those words, and we're all deep, brainy and thoughtful philosophical people... then how would anyone else have a chance at understanding it?<br /><br />He said tongue firmly planted in cheek.Dave Fragmentshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17985158361431606939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-921304072314160302009-05-08T15:24:00.000-04:002009-05-08T15:24:00.000-04:00This reminds me of the only self-published novel I...This reminds me of the only self-published novel I own, Coffee with the Prophet. The idea behind it is OK, but the author has more experience writing nonfiction--the first reason it was self-published. The second reason involved the possibility of very angry people. Still, not bad.<br /><br />What I'd advise you to do here is the same I'd like to see Mark Gabriel do: write another novel. It'll be better than the first, and you'll have a better possibility of getting it published. Might I recommend making your next one a bit longer? Maybe not Peretti long, but longer than Narnia, especially if it's meant for adults.<br /><br />One advantage of traditional publishing is editing and copyediting. You'll have to do your own for now, and you might want to step it up a bit. I know, annoying--my view exactly. Oh, well._*rachel*_https://www.blogger.com/profile/03293167107180931700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-53031285895927044202009-05-08T14:29:00.000-04:002009-05-08T14:29:00.000-04:00The query is as long as the novel is short and I'm...The query is as long as the novel is short and I'm not sure how you're going to fit it all in.<br /><br />I'm with everyone else so far in that there are too many mistakes in this as it stands.<br /><br />If you can correct those and ditch the last paragraph, you'll have something closer to the mark, though I'm not sure the subject matter is quite my cup of tea.Whirlochrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09846196906206886945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-36223026857424855822009-05-08T14:27:00.000-04:002009-05-08T14:27:00.000-04:00The way to go from a self published book into the ...The way to go from a self published book into the catalog of a publisher, is to have a market for your book. <br /><br />The few examples of the success of such self published books are the ones that created their own market and sold well as self published. What that shows is that there is an audience or a fan base willing to spend money on the books. <br /><br />I can cite "Still Alice" for one title.Dave Fragmentshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17985158361431606939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-30092941934799817702009-05-08T13:34:00.000-04:002009-05-08T13:34:00.000-04:00What 150 said. Very few agents will consider a sel...What 150 said. Very few agents will consider a self-published book. If it's sold well, you might be able to include it as writing credit in the bio paragraph for your next book.batgirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15143310557906978680noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-14121915741152135142009-05-08T12:41:00.000-04:002009-05-08T12:41:00.000-04:0037k is too short for a novel. Further, if it's wr...37k is too short for a novel. Further, if it's written with the same disregard for the English language as the query, it probably isn't publishable.<br /><br />150 is right, except you should probably take an English course as well.nonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00415222406280230021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26791026.post-4728471532011434912009-05-08T11:20:00.000-04:002009-05-08T11:20:00.000-04:00Hello, Jeffrey Brown.
Since this book is very sho...Hello, Jeffrey Brown.<br /><br />Since this book is very short and already available through iUniverse (great cover!), your best bet is probably to leave this where it is and write the next book.150noreply@blogger.com