Getting the Interview

Writers, as creative as we may be, are not able to imagine the true details of the many professions we envision for our characters. Wikipedia does not suffice. We need to get out there and find individuals who live and breathe, as our characters do, to interview. How to turn away from our solitary world where we have complete control, and get out there to do the job right?

Q) Do you have advice on the best way to get an interview with someone you want to speak with for research purposes? One of the characters in my book had a niche job that I know I don't know enough about, but I've located someone who would be perfect to speak with. How do I go about getting a busy person to speak with me for informational purposes?

Lynne Griffin
I do a lot of research before I ask for an interview. Being prepared is critical to conducting an informative one and in being seen as professional. By doing your homework, you'll have a better sense of who to approach and specifically what you're after. Don't waste your subject's time by asking the obvious things you have access to by reading books or searching online. Make the experience worthwhile for both of you by going deep. The interviews I've conducted for my work-in-progress gave me some of my best insights into my characters' motivations. I strongly urge you to round out your research by going to a primary source. And always send a thank you afterwards, and again via your acknowledgments once the book is published.

Amy MacKinnon
Call and ask. It's amazing how helpful people are -- and flattered that you're interested in their lives. As for questions, allow your natural curiousity free reign and make a point of going to their environment. It's crucial to the detials, to the setting, the character to be present.

Hannah Roveto
People are amazingly kind and always flattered when anyone wants to peek into their lives, nevermind someone who might turn knowledge into a story. I've interviewed complete strangers on things as arcane as bioluminescence (glowing plankton!). Take a deep breath, and be professional. Write the person a brief but thoughtful email or letter. Explain you are a writer and you have a character doing a similar job, and need to understand the whys and wherefores and hows. Estimate how much time the interview will take and tell them. An hour? At their convenience, of course! Go in prepared with questions based on the story, going beyond the job to things like the temperament of people who do that job, what motivates them to go into that field, terms that might have useful secret or double meanings. Explain your basic theme; what comes to mind professionally for them? Why did you make your character this way? You are genuinely interested in who these people are; enjoy the conversation and write a follow-up thank you. And credit them when the book comes out!

How To Thread a Novel

So much detail to put in just the right places. How does anyone ever write a novel? There are tricks, of course, passed along from writer to writer. Not to over simplify -- or over promise as per our header here, but here are our best suggestions in a nutshell.

Q: I've written my first draft and there are sizeable clumps of information that need to be threaded throughout. What's the best way to do this? I started an outline, but got sick of it. I read Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird about plot treatment--summarize chapter by chapter what happens. I'm thinking this might be the best way to go. I know the chronological thread of my MC's life, but I want to start when she's an adult, then go back and insert background on her past, her relationship with her mother, her job, her relationship with her boss, how she met certain friends, all while keeping the main story moving forward. Without it all becoming a huge mess. How have you done it? Hannah's Thread Obsessed and Millefeuille post were helpful, but maybe a little more nuts and bolts about how to work those threads? And Lynne's post on journals hit home. I had one character as an ex-Marine, then realized it didn't really fit his personality! Exactly what does a thread consist of--subplots or just the chronology of each character?

Lynne Griffin
Like Amy, my storytelling process is more organic than plotted or outlined. I don't choose jobs or homes or life circumstances for my characters, these come to me over time. And the time I spend thinking about my characters--listening to their story, wondering about their predicaments-- far exceeds the time I spend putting words on the page. That said, as you mentioned above, I keep a journal for each novel. Not only do I jot down plot points as they come to me, but I note what threads I'll need to go back and tighten in revision. Writing fiction, for me, is equal parts art and science. I strive to write for the story, then I go back to be sure I've been true to craft. As my dear friend Michael Lowenthal once said, "Let readers dismiss the work on taste, not talent."

Amy MacKinnon
Outlines? Plot treatments? Chapter summaries? It all sounds so technical. I'm afraid I can't help you with this one because my process is more organic and very simple. In terms of threads, I introduce them the way I'm introduced to other people's stories in real life: in bits and pieces. When I'm getting to know someone, they don't tell me everything of their past and present right away, and they almost always hedge the truth. Time teases out the story, trust, circumstances, a shared experience. It's a gradual process. And then, finally, there's the big revelation and you realize the clues were there all along. It's simply a matter of identifying each story in your novel, and ensuring each is told as fully, as richly as possible, and all sharing a common thread.

Hannah Roveto
I always do a chapter-by-chapter synopsis, for my own work and when I read for others. Hallie Ephron teaches a High-Low Revision process; she explains it in her Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel, which is perfect for any kind of novel. Whether or not you're an outliner, and I'm not, you do need to see your first draft from higher ground and follow each character through. The draft is very organic for me, messy even. Once it's complete, then comes the work to make sure it doesn't stay that way! I do synopses on a couple of sheets of lined paper, with 3-4 lines per chapter. Line one is the synopsis, with the date in the left margin and setting, then a quick description of key points. When I've got them all down I go back and make little notes -- one or two words -- thread by thread, character by character, on what info gets revealed to whom when ("R 2 K, dad issue"). Leaving yourself little space makes you focus. What really does happen here that is important to the reader/story? Best to do this with a cup of hot tea to one side, in the comfiest office chair you own. The few hours it takes are well spent!

Book Sales in This Economy?

Okay, so maybe you heard Houghton Mifflin is no longer acquiring manuscripts. I know, breathe. Or you read this post by Editorial (Ass)istant and you're scared your book won't catch an agent's eye or sell to any of the twenty editors to whom she's submitting. Scary stuff. But take heart, where there's a will, there most certainly, undoubtedly, is a way.


Q: Okay, I know the chances of making it as a writer have never been good, but the bad economic news I hear every day has to make my chances worse. What I need to know is whether or not there's any chance now for me. And before you tell me I need to write well, let me say that I'm no J. K. Rowling. All I ever hoped for was to be a mid-list author; I love to write and I want to make money on the side. Go ahead ladies, make my day and say there's still a chance for me or tell me to give it up. I can handle your version of the truth!

A:
Lynne Griffin
My answer contains both good news and bad news. The bad news—and the reality is—there will be fewer book deals in the coming months and years. So whether you want to hear it again or not, this means you must write well. Very well. Pen a story strong in narrative drive. Work hard to unravel the secrets of writing a novel.

Yet this reality has an up side, too. In my opinion, fewer books should be published. Being an eternal optimist, I think this economic downturn will force editors and publishers to acquire only the best books, working with talented writers who have career potential. Fewer acquisitions will mean more focused campaigns for promoting the ones they do buy. Economic concerns aside, your challenge will always be to write the best book you can. And for goodness sake, readjust your attitude. Don’t aim for midlist, hoping you’ll be offered pocket change. Aim high. Don’t settle. And of course, write well.

Amy MacKinnon
Until you want this with every fiber of your being and you're willing to dedicate nearly all of yourself to your writing, no, I don't believe you have a chance. Writing isn't about the money, it's not about dabbling here and there, and it should never be about shooting for mediocrity. It's about pouring your soul onto the page.

Lisa Marnell
Well, all I'll say is that children's books were published in the Great Depression. You've heard of the Tales of Babar, right? What about The Little Engine That Could? That's right, both of these published in the worst of times and from what I here, the news today, unemployment, etc. doesn't even come close.

Oh, by the way. I asked this question to my husband (A Marketing Man). He said simply: Publishers need product. And the piece I heard on NPR the other day said that authors like you, my friend, are now often referred to as "content providers."

And I promise you, between now and Christmas, Publishers Marketplace will annouce sales; just last week I read about an auction and a pre-empt for two children's book authors.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

Hannah Roveto
If you have characters in your head who beg to come alive, whispering to you about a set of situations that make you laugh or cry or shake with fear, and they won't leave you alone no matter what you read or hear, then read and hear us instead. Get them onto paper. Fill the edges of their world with details and beauty. You can't get published if you don't finish a manuscript, so take control of what you can. Write, and read, and study, and revise, and connect and believe.

Narrative Drive

Amy here. When I lived in Washington, DC, I rented a WWII-era studio on Capitol Hill. Fabulous. Every day I walked to work and passed Folger Shakespeare Library; the Supreme Court and Library of Congress; and, the most beautiful building on earth, the United States Capitol. One day, a woman befuddled by her map stopped me and asked, "Where's the Capitol?" I pointed to the ginormous building before us. A couple of Congressional aides strutting by snickered (yes, they absolutely did), and she wilted a little. I reassured her that there's no such thing as a stupid question. None at all.

Having worked for the most convoluted bureaucracy on planet earth, the United States Government, I can say with utmost sincerity that publishing is a close second. Lots of unspoken rules and unknowable expectations. I don't know what I don't know and neither do you. Ask away; we'll give it a go or pose it to one of our special guests. So if you have a question, whatever it may be, know you're safe here: writersgroupquestions@gmail.com.

Q) I have representation for my first novel from a successful agent. Many editors have reviewed my full MS and have said that they enjoyed my writing and characters but found that my novel lacked narrative drive. I have revised extensively a few times, but am getting the same concern with each submission. I used to think that my novel was getting better each time, but for the first time I think it may be getting worse. I'm afraid I'm removing too much in order to achieve the "what happens next" suspense factor. Can you offer any advice about what editors are truly looking for when they assess a novel for narrative drive?

Lynne Griffin
Imagine that every detail you give readers is a stone you ask them to carry for a long journey up a mountain. As the load becomes heavier, the reader will reevaluate his or her load, asking if each is integral to the experience. Once at the mountain top, all the stones the reader carried for no reason will add up to pile of bad feelings and negative impressions of the author.

Narrative drive is story force. If you’re in what you believe to be your final revision, before sending your manuscript to an agent or editor, you must take accountability for every sentence, every word. When you come upon dialogue that says nothing, cut it. When you read scenes that do nothing to move the story forward, sorry, they must go. Glorious phrases that don’t tell the reader something worth carrying—kill those little darlings. When you revise with narrative drive in mind, you will eventually get to the heart of your story. After this humbling experience of accountable revision, you may have to go back to the drawing board to add scenes rich in conflict, loaded with compelling details. Now is the time to rework the piece with the goal of asking your readers to care, inviting them to embrace what you're asking them to hold.

Amy MacKinnon
In a word? Compelling. Suspenseful. Page-turner. Even children's picture books -- take Where the Wild Things Are -- make us care deeply about the character and wonder what will happen on the next page. Do that.

Lisa Marnell
All you have to know is this:
YOUR CHARACTER MUST SUFFER FROM THE TORTURE OF HER INTERNAL ANGST.

This will drive your narrative and this will force the reader to stay up late into the night to find out what happens. Things must get bleak for the old MC, then bleaker still. She has to want something so, so badly, but in chasing it, she must face the worst decision and struggle of her life.
Now, if you want to know how to achieve this, it's a simple answer as well. YOU must suffer internal angst in the writing and revising. What you must do is - as Amy says - up the stakes. Then, add a surprise, shock yourself. Next, sit somewhere by yourself in the middle of the night and think of one more thing to make it worse for your character. Tell yourself this isn't good enough and make it more compelling. This is not fun. I know. It's actually torture, until you have a breakthrough. This feels like heaven on earth. I know, I had a breakthrough last night.

What you cannot do is think that an okay story is good enough to make it. IT WON'T.

Yes, you can do this if you are not afraid to go back to square one and look at the story again and again, until it sings. You can do this!

Hannah Roveto
Not that a group blog needs narrative drive, but like a novel, we do not want to wallow in repetition, nor do we want to put down words for their own sake. So I offer this as you do revisions. Everyone works differently, but this helps me. Absorb every wise word above, and then sit down with a cup of tea and write an abbreviated summary of each scene, each chapter. Two lined sheets of paper at the most. Identify troublesome passages. Highlight where they are and take a close look at them and how they fit into the whole. Why does the reader need that section? Do we need it at that moment, in that way? What physicality in that scene provides movement and action, even if the passage takes us into a character's thoughts? Does this involve the reader, or simply inform? Sometimes it helps to reread a book like The Time Traveler's Wife, that ties every moment in time, every thought to a purpose. Dig at it and explore the why. Then return to your own work. Sometimes I find when a section is not pushing the narrative forward, something is missing in the story that my brain tried to fill without success. Why did I write that passage, what did I want to say, and how can I deliver with more impact? Doodle your thoughts next to your summary. You will find yourself finding ways of being more compelling, of upping the stakes, and before you know it, you will be adding words and not deleting them, and the result will be exactly what you need.

Editorial (Ass)istant: When Do You Know?

Ah, it's Thursday, you can all breathe again. We know you've been waiting with bated breath for Miss Moonrat's answer to that vexing question. Before you read on, one bit of advice, be certain that first page sings, my friend -- and the rest of it too! And after you read her response, make sure to go over to her blog, http://editorialass.blogspot.com/, and read the archives, all of them. There's much to learn.

So to recap, we asked Moonrat (aka Editorial (Ass)istant), a woman we know to work at one of New York's finer publishing houses (see Monday's post), to answer a simple question:

Q) When you read a manuscript, at what point do you stop reading, knowing you'll decline, and at what point do you feel your pulse quicken, expecting to make an offer?

Moonrat: At the risk of quoting a Tom Cruise movie... Remember when Jerry McGuire walks in the door and gives Renee Zelwegger a long take-me-back speech? I know you can see where this is going.

You really should have me at "hello." The proposals that really get me start so strongly that I can't resist them. If you don't start strongly, then (on my desk, at least) your book will have to distinguish itself in spite of itself.

Notice I say "proposal" and not "manuscript." The reason is that "hello" comes well before I start reading your first page. Really, "hello" comes when your agent calls me on the phone and pitches your book to me. To this end, you can help your agent out by working together to brainstorm the perfect pitch line--one that catches my attention and is memorable. There are ways of pitching the same book that can make it more or less attractive to an editor (who, keep in mind, will have to sell the concept to her money-minded publisher and sales department, not to mention about a jillin other people). Stay away from generic praise and focus on what is special and unique about the book--"A beautiful collection of lyrical linked stories" means much less to me (and, thereby, to my boss) than "What happens to a tight-knit small-town community when they discover a secret in their church basement?"--even if we're talking about the exact same book. I know it sounds horribly commercial and low-minded, but a memorable pitch will set your manuscript apart from the other 15 beautiful and lyrical books I have on my desk at any given time.

Not that I encourage you to underestimate the importance of your first page! If you do, it may be the only page of your manuscript I read! On the other hand, for almost every book I've ever bought--let me think, are there even any exceptions?--I've already known at the first page that this book was one I was going to care about. It's a combination of the sellable hook and how caught up in the writing I get at the first page.

If a book does not speak to me with its first page, I give it the benefit of the doubt and continue reading closely for at least 20 pages. After that, I'll skim to 50pages. But as I turn each page and still fail to be engaged, it becomes less and less likely that I will change my mind.

It's true. I make snap judgments. But I'm not too proud to admit it. I hope that that is information that authors can make work for them, though. I sincerely doubt I'm the only editor who works like this!

Reading

Posted by Lynne Griffin

Put the words literature and professor together, and do you get a case of the hives? Maybe visions of long papers and red pen come to mind? Don't let that turn you off to the book called, How to Read Literature Like a Professor, by Thomas C. Foster.

This book is filled with insight into great works of fiction that draw on Greek myths, Shakespeare, and the bible. You may have known that West Side Story was a contemporary Romeo and Juliet, but did you know that the scene in Toni Morrison's Beloved when Sethe is protecting her children as four white men come after her is based on the book of Revelation's four horsemen of the apocalypse?

The book's subtitle is--A lively and entertaining guide to reading between the lines, and let me tell you, it's as much a book for writers as readers. If you're going to put your characters at a table to enjoy a meal, you better know why writers do that. And if you're interested in planting symbols or burying meaning read the chapters called, Is that a symbol? and What does that mean?

This is a terrific book to add to your library, and though I haven't read Foster's next, How to Read Novels Like a Professor, I imagine that's a keeper too. So if you're interested in learning more about craft in a new way, pick up a copy and be prepared to be entertained. And think of the trivia you'll have for your next get together with writers or avid readers.

Making a Literary Life Friday: Party!

Everyone likes a good party and we at the Writers' Group are no different. Well, actually we are. We're writers, we're not into swinging bashes and binge drinking -- with apologies to Dorothy Parker and William Faulkner. Our idea of a good time is a little more sedate: parrying over the relevance of the semicolon; flexible intelligence when it comes to the pros and cons of first and third points-of-view; and, oh heady times, the best first lines in literature.

And what better venue to discuss these matters than at literary events. Tell us about your favorite experience at a conference and, by all means, tell us the worst. Which authors give the best readings and who is a total snore. Tell us what events you'll be attending in the coming weeks and which ones you wish you could attend. And if you feel like it, let everyone know how you feel about that irascible semicolon.

Lisa Marnell
I will NEVER forget the day I interviewed Gregory Maguire at the 2007 Muse and the Marketplace. The Gregory Maguire of Wicked fame. He is easily the most intelligent and articulate person I have crossed paths with. At the end of our interview - he's so kind and generous - Gregory asked me about my projects and encouraged me. Ironically, we share the same literary agent (if I can finally get my final manuscripts completed), and he said this kind and experienced agent has been nothing but wonderful.

At times, memories of that hour I spent with Gregory Maguire comforts me. Sigh!

Amy MacKinnon
Hands down the best conference I ever attended was Grub Street's 2006 Muse and the Marketplace when after critiquing twenty pages of my WIP Asya Muchnick, Little, Brown editor of The Lovely Bones and The Dogs of Babel, asked that I submit to her when I finished writing it. I will always adore her for that. The worst? There was this event where the room was stifling, the drinks ran out far too soon, and a best selling author I'd met on numerous occassions claimed never to have met me at all -- in front of a rather large group of authors I admired. Worse, when we each mentioned a favorite book or author, and I mentioned Stephen King, she said, "I only read him in the New Yorker." Hmmm...

More recently, I was welcomed with open arms by the Duxbury Free Library and Westwinds Bookshop last Sunday. The library director Carol Jankowski said they had reservations for 60 and strange but true, my high school English teacher Roberta Erickson, whom I thanked in the acknowledgments of Tethered, was there as a bookseller for Westwinds! It was a lovely reunion. Thanks to all who attended; I was impressed and honored with your questions.

Lastly the event I'm most looking forward to attending with Hannah by my side is Grub Street's annual fundraiser Taste of Grub. It's sure to be huge and I really, really want to see you there! Will you come?

Hannah Roveto
One of the best was listening to Lisa Scottoline present at Grub Street's Muse and the Marketplace this year. Holy cow. The talk was something like "Everything Lisa Scottoline Knows About Getting Published" and indeed, she covered getting started to elements of a novel to getting published in an hour and a half, including offering up her agent to us. A different, um, memorable one was a conference where a tall male writer decided to stand out from the crowd wearing bike shorts. No matter his talent, the crowd was divided into two groups: those who dared look down and those who memorized his face.

I wish I could be at the upcoming PEN New England's Horrors of the Publishing World event, but will dedicate what I call my Literary Life funds for this season to Grub's Taste. Cannot wait!

Lynne Griffin
My favorite conference was also the 2007 Muse and the Marketplace conference. My manuscript pages were reviewed by Elinor Lipman's and Michael Lowenthal's editor at Houghton Mifflin, and she requested my full. I sailed off to the luncheon, plunked myself down in an empty seat, only after situated did I realize that I was sitting at keynote speaker Charles Baxter's table! His talk about taking this business one step at a time is one I will never forget.

My horrific workshop experience came just last year when I went to a noted author's talk. When someone in the audience mentioned that my novel was going to be published, she asked me to describe it. I gave my best two sentence pitch, and her response? "Oh, dear. I only write happy books." To which I was left to use a line from Carolyn See's Making a Literary Life. "No kidding."

Covers

Posted by Lynne Griffin

If you're a regular reader of our blog, then you know Amy and I are thrilled with the cover art for our novels. We are deeply grateful to Whitney Cookson (Random House) and Michael Storrings (St Martin's Press) for persevering until "the right" images graced our covers.

How do you know the image is right? Well to be perfectly honest, you don't. What you do know is that the cover should represent the genre of the novel, connect to the title of the book, captivate and encourage readers to pick the book up off the crowded bookshelf, and most important, evoke a reaction--all kinds of reactions will do.

That said, many people are involved in signing off on your cover design--your editor, sales staff, publisher, booksellers-- but the true test is the over time reaction from readers. Keep in mind, covers that work don't have to be pretty, though pretty sometimes works very well. So far so good for Tethered and Life Without Summer!

In keeping with Hannah's Fun and Games post yesterday, would you like to test your skills at judging a book by its cover? Click on over to the new website that tests your ability to rate covers and then find out how many stars they've received on Amazon. I admit it's not scientific, but it is a lot of fun to play.

Other great blog posts about book jackets include:
Jackets Required
Best Book Jackets of 2007
Hardback Paperback Covers

Feel free to post your questions in the comment section. I'll do my best to answer or direct you to the resources that might inform.

Making a Literary Life: Boo!

It's getting close to Halloween, that time of year when small children and frightening teenagers knock on your door and bid you Trick or Treat! It's time for us to get into costume. We wanted to share with you, our readers, what literary character we would love to dress up as.


Lisa Marnell
I actually did dress up as Jane Eyre. Yes, for Halloween. I had watched a British version of this classic on television and the next day my brother suggested we go out for one final Halloween; we were far too old, but who can say no to free candy? I wrapped my long brown hair in Princess Leah-like cinnamon buns at the sides of my head. I found a dowdy brown skirt and a white blouse. I didn't frighten anyone that night - or did I?


Amy MacKinnon
Do myths count? If so, I would like to inhabit the world of Medusa. At least then I would have an excuse for all of the voices swirling about me. And I do like snakes. And I like the idea of turning those who bother me while I'm writing to stone with just a look -- just for a little while. Yesssssss, Medusssa.


Hannah Roveto
When I was about ten, I made a paper mache over-the-head Snoopy mask; does that count? Not terribly literary, but then most of the fun characters that come to mind for me are from young adult novels. How about Narnia's White Witch?


Lynne Griffin
When I think of dressing up, I think more about the theatre than Halloween. If I had the acting talent and operatic voice needed to anchor the show, I'd love to dress in the gowns Christine wears in Phantom of the Opera. Sadly, my job each year is to answer the door to ghouls and goblins.

Publicity

Posted by Lynne Griffin

This is funny to me no matter how many times I view it. Partly because I feel his pain and partly because it's a bit ridiculous.

Watch, laugh, and learn.



On a more optimistic note, Editor-in-Chief George Witte of St. Martin's Press spoke about Life Without Summer on Online and Unscripted, a webcast sponsored by Publishers Weekly and the Association of American Publishers. You can listen to it by going to the seventh link down, where George's name is listed. Once you download the program, SUMMER is the fourth book of five he discusses.

Note: You can go here if the embedded video is glitchy. This clip is worth watching.

Making a Literary Life Friday: Discoveries

In the spirit of Columbus Day, celebrating Cristoforo Columbo's discovery of a place other people already lived, what have you discovered of late of your own writing, process, or approach to writing that deserves a nod this holiday?

Lisa Marnell
There are two ways to put this. Either, "Trust Yourself", or "Don't let your ADD interfere with your writing." In reading books on writing craft, I rarely hear about the phenomenon of writers completely changing their work, or thinking about changing plot (in a major way) in the final hours. I am so close to the finish line that it must be nerves, or self-doubt, or disbelief.

Amy MacKinnon
I've discovered that before I can became truly immersed in the writing, I must first do most of my research. I need to have that foundation of facts to build a fictious world. Research is one of my absolute favorite parts of the writing process.

Hannah Roveto
I have been reading novels with shifting narrators and viewpoints. Whether I decide to tackle this with the emerging WIP is yet to be determined, but this is definitely a new shore I feel prepared to land upon and explore.

Lynne Griffin
Like a good map, editorial feedback points me in the direction of the story. What I've learned is that only I can take the story the distance. And I still believe revision is a wonderful thing!

_____

A few people of note this week:

Congratulations to friend of the blog, Therese Fowler, on the sale of her next two books. Very impressive!

A huge round of applause to Kim Reid for winning the Colorado Book Award for her debut No Safe Place. What an accomplishment!

And finally, three cheers to faithful blog readers Ello, Holly LeCraw, and Ray Anderson for recently signing with their dream agents. Onward and upward!

Do Your Homework

Posted by Lynne Griffin

If you have kids, then you know that homework can be a headache for everyone. Few have children who skip up the driveway after school, eager to pull up a chair to begin research for a term paper. And I don't know any parent who likes policing the activity. What does this have to do with living a writer's life? You too must do your homework. And other writers don't want to supervise you doing it.

In the last few months, I've been approached by a number of writers who, like most, wish to be published. Some have clearly done their homework, studying agents' lists and learning everything they can about the industry. I'm all too happy to share my lessons learned so far, having published a nonfiction parenting book and with my soon-to-be-released novel in production. It's the writer who hasn't done a lick of research, one who expects me to do the homework for him or her, that believe it or not, brings out the teacher in me.

I've taught elementary age children and now I teach graduate level students, and regardless of age, both groups have something in common. Some students are self-directed learners; they're well aware of what they know, what they don't know, and they have a strong sense of how to get the information they need. And some students need study guides.

"Can you give me the name of an agent who represents memoirs?" "I'm sending you some of my short stories, and I'd like you to tell me how I can organize them into a themed collection."

Stop your printer! These examples of real requests I've received just in the last two weeks are not examples of networking, nor are they reasonable expectations to have of a fellow writer. Would you ask a friend who works for a bank to balance your checkbook?

You've got to do your own homework. And with the Internet, lots of published books about writing, and blogs like ours and others available, your study guide is right in front of you. Take a look at our list of links. We've collated the best and brightest industry sites, author pages, and books on craft. Make friends with Google, folks. Search key words, mixing them up like a salad until you find what appeals to your palate. Take classes. Go to conferences. Join a writers' group. You'll find what your looking for if you're persistent enough. And speaking of persistence. Doing your homework is perfect practice for learning to cope with the ins and outs, the ups and downs of traveling the road to publication. Not to mention staying on the road after you're published.

So here's this week's homework assignment: Whether you've read it or not, read Carolyn See's Making a Literary Life. Take notes if that's your style. Trust me, there's a test and you're the only one who can take it.

Taking Feedback

Posted by Lynne Griffin

I've been doing some manuscript consultation through Grub Street and through my own company and I'm learning a lot about how writers respond to editorial feedback. Now I'm not an agent looking to buff and polish a manuscript to get it ready for submission. And I'm not an editor at a publishing house. I'm reading like a writer and giving honest development feedback on stories and nonfiction book proposals. There are a number of myths out there about editorial feedback, some I admit to grappling with in my writing career. I'm going to attempt to bust a few.

Myth 1
If your work needs editing, it isn't very good.

Every writer needs a good editor, or two! From developmental edits about structure and voice to copy edits for consistent grammar, open your mind to this: you will be edited. Before any kind of submission, be sure to find smart, savvy readers. Your work will absolutely be better as a result of constructive feedback.

Myth 2
If you accept the editorial feedback, then the story isn't yours.

You are in the driver's seat making the final choices about what stays and goes, and what is deepened and strengthened. If you write with the hopes of being published, then get set to embrace a team mentality when it comes to fine-tuning your work.

Myth 3
If there is too much editorial feedback, then the story probably isn't worth revising.

Feedback on a first draft may well be overwhelming, but keep in mind most writers believe it is in revision that the real writing begins. I doubt Arthur Golden or Wally Lamb would show you first drafts of Memoirs of a Geisha or She's Come Undone.

Myth 4
If an editor suggests that an aspect of your work is confusing, he or she just doesn't get what you were trying to do.

When one trusted reader says he doesn't get, and then another says the same, it's time to listen. If sophisticated readers don't understand something, likely readers won't either. There's an art and a science to listening to feedback, and of course then to taking it.

Myth 5
If your editor gives you feedback, that means he or she doesn't like the work.

Often editors can be more objective about your work than you can. Simply because he or she points out flaws in argument or weak plot lines doesn't mean he or she doesn't like your overall effort. It's all too easy to take feedback personally. This business requires you to know when to put on your armor or when to close the office door.

Like anything in this journey toward living a literary life, it's important to learn where you are in accepting honest, constructive feedback. Perspective taking is hard work, but I will say it's important to do it. If you're able to let go of mythical thinking and really sort through the feedback you've received, only then will you be able to see what rings true and what doesn't. You'll be in a better position to execute changes that deepen the piece, and in the process become a better writer.

Working through my own feelings about accepting feedback is it's own work-in-progress. I'm willing but not always able to challenge my thinking about accepting feedback, but when I can, my writing is stronger for it. I'm truly grateful for the cadre of trusted readers who've challenged me to reach for a new personal best when it comes to story telling.

The first step in debunking myths related to accepting editorial feedback is to be open to what gets in the way of seeing it's validity. What gets in your way? And how do you attempt to overcome it?

Trade Shows

Posted by Lynne Griffin

I had the privilege of attending the New England Independent Booksellers Association trade show last week. My publisher sent me there to sign advance copies of Life Without Summer. The event, held in Boston's Hynes Convention Center, buzzed with publishers, booksellers, authors, and other vendors all passionate about books.

Sales representatives, who cover the region, man booths showcasing the next season's books. Galleys and finished books are everywhere. Author receptions, signings, educational programming, and general schmoozing make up the agenda.

My expectations were to go and do my best to represent my novel to booksellers. I had my two minute pitch down, along with my backstory on how I came to write it. Armed with gorgeous new book/business cards, I'd expected to go there and be generous with my energy. I ended up walking away with so much more than I offered.

Spending two days with the sales representatives who will bring my book all over New England was invaluable. They had the chance to ask me questions about the novel, thankfully because they'd already read it. Each wanted to know more about my background, including my connections with my writers' group and to Grub Street. On my second day there, they set me up to sign advance copies in the booth, in addition to my formal signing to take place later that afternoon. This gave them a chance to see my ability to speak to my story and to demonstrate the way I would represent my work and our publisher.

Another unforeseen benefit of attending the trade show was that I got to see first hand how booksellers and avid readers would respond to my title, my cover, my blurbs, and my pitch. All of this was reassuring, and all of this provided valuable information for fine-tuning my press materials and talking points.

I'm grateful to have attended NEIBA, and urge other writers to discuss attending regional trade shows with their editor and/or publicist. Getting out there early builds buzz and allows an author the chance to add the personal touch. Two things debut authors very much need to do.

Making a Literary Life: Improving Craft

We all have strengths and weaknesses when it comes to craft. Some of us write polished prose in that first draft, but the pacing is a little ho-hum. Others nail characters so well, it's as if they are flesh, blood, and snarling comebacks, but, wait, ground me, where's the setting? This week, at our writers' group meeting, we turned to the subject of writing workshops and reflected on what needs attention with our own writing.

Lisa Marnell
I've been reading Pretties by Scott Westerfeld. He's a master of voice, plain and simple. Pretties, you see, are teens who have had parts of their brains altered (as well as their faces) so they see only happiness in the world. They're the valley-people of this decade, if you will. Their speech reflects their thinking. "Oh, that snow outside is so cold-making!" He's nailed them.

I need to work on revealing internal thought in clever, unobtrusive, non-hitting-the-reader-over-the-head ways.

Amy Mackinnon

Gosh, I don't know -- everything! I want to improve everything. This interview with Ann Patchett is what I keep turning to for guidance as I work on my next book, especially that part about narrative structure. It's all so humbling.

Hannah Roveto
Like Amy, I want to learn more about everything. I've learned a lot from the first MS, of course, and as I look to the second, much of what I want to reach for is in details -- touches of characterization, delicate hints as to threads that build intrigue without bashing the reader over the head or are missed entirely, a reining in of the world I create, a refinement of phrasing. We were talking this week about Karl Iagnemma's class on editing at the Muse and the Marketplace, how he spoke of revision as sandpaper, starting with a rough pass on form and plot, then moving to chapters, paragraphs, sentences, words. I want to have more of that knowledge so that the first draft is more of what it will be than what it could be.

Lynne Griffin
Lynne's at the New England Independent Booksellers Association trade show today. I'll bet next week, she'll be happy to weigh in on the aspects of craft she still wants to learn more about.

Magazines

Posted by Lynne Griffin

If you're in the market for an agent, check out the interview series in Poets & Writers, or the article on agents looking for your work in Writer's Digest.

Want ten tips for curing the mid-book blues? Then read next month's article in The Writer.

Love Hallie Ephron's Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel? Then you'll love her article in the September issue of The Writer.

There are plenty of magazines to peruse aimed at helping you refine your writing while staying tuned into the marketplace side of writing. Whether you subscribe, buy a copy now and again, or visit each magazine's on line equivalent, writer's magazines are a useful tool.

Do you have any magazine recommendations for our readers? If so, please share them in the comments section. And do check out the article featuring friend of our blog, Gail Konop Baker's memoir. It's in Writer's Digest, on stands now. It's terrific. Congrats, Gail.

Making a Literary Life: Memorable Characters

Memorable characters leap off the page and stay with a reader long after a book is closed and returned to the shelf. Reading like writers, we study our favorite characters in fiction, frequently making recommendations to each other. Whether the ones you've come to love are from novels you've read years ago or just last week, we'd love to know your favorites.

Lisa Marnell
I loved Maddelena in A Kiss From Maddelena by Christopher Castellani. Was she the victim of circumstances, meeting the wrong man at the wrong time, or did she simply make a foolish choice that changed her life?

Amy MacKinnon
Inman from Cold Mountain rattles my bones. It's as if Camille Preaker of Sharp Objects lies huddled in one of my upstairs bedrooms. Deenie is a dear, dear friend, someone I spent a lot of time with when we were children. Meursault from Camus' The Stranger still haunts me. Pauline Chen's 83rd organ procurement from Final Exam will leave you gasping for air (did you see Dr. Chen's new column debut in the New York Times?). And then the cast of characters I reunite with every so often because they are so dear to me: Stu Redman, Nick, Frannie, Trashcan Man, Larry Underwood, the Walking Dude aka Randal Flagg, and darling Tom. Don't you know this book?

Hannah Roveto
I love Pat Wood's Perry L.-for Lucky- Crandall in Lottery. Love him, love him, and his Gram and Keith. I know them, had lunch with them: microwaved burritos and a soda. Joe Kavalier and Sammy Clay, of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay are complex, unwinding as each page turns. Quoyle in E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News is so solid I couldn't see the movie, for fear those images would remove the ones I hold so clearly. Christopher Boone, the autistic boy in Curious Incident by Mark Haddon... Celie in Alice Walker's Color Purple... oh, how the list goes on!

Lynne Griffin
Oh, there are so many! The unnamed, second Mrs. DeWinter in Rebecca, by Daphne Du Maurier is a wonderful example of a multi-layered, complicated character whose inner motivations make her physical attributes almost unnecessary. Leo Gursky in Nicole Krauss's, The History of Love is so fully drawn, I feel like he's a relative or friend. And Jennie in Portrait of Jennie, by Robert Nathan exemplifies how to craft characters across the stages in human development.

*CHECK THIS OUT*

Look for Marilyn Stasio's review of Tethered in this weekend's New York Times Review of Books!

Advance Review Copies

Posted by Lynne Griffin


I knew they were coming, still the feelings were intense when I opened the package. Cotton candy kind of feelings that leave you not knowing what to do. Should I read it. Should I go show it to someone. I was over the moon, yet nothing about my life changed when I opened my mail at ten in the morning on a Monday.

So I wrote a note, thanking my editor for all she did to secure great quotes and lobby for my marvelous cover. And I parked it on my desk so I could admire it.

Then it hit me. It was two years from the time the first word landed on the page to the date of its sale to St. Martin's. A full eighteen months in production, six more months until it sits on book store shelves. I needed to get back to work. I have a manuscript that needs revision.

Choose to Write

Posted by Lynne Griffin

I love September. It's time for a fresh start. Positive outlooks and enthusiasm abound. Even my teenagers like being set up for success with clean rooms and tidy desks, new notebooks and a handful of good pens.

As a writer intent on revising my second novel, I deserve a new set of goals and an optimistic plan for achieving them, too.

Here's my four point plan for getting back to basics.

Schedule writing time
I write my appointments with writing directly on my calendar, just like every other important meeting I make time for.

Write down specific tasks I want to accomplish this month
I assign realistic target dates for completing chapters or polishing parts of my manuscript.

Feed my brain
My best writing happens when I exercise, eat right, and get seven hours of sleep a night. A sharp mind is critical to my ability to concentrate and work through challenging sections of my novel.

Feed my muse
When I read a short story, some poetry, or excerpts of a favorite novel before writing, it's as if I'm putting out an invitation for inspiration to find me.

So many writers lament there isn't time to write. Truth is, if you buy into that kind of thinking, there won't be. I'm of the mindset that we all have the same twenty-four hours a day to do with what we will. I choose to write.

A Writer's Retreat

Posted by Lynne Griffin

I admit I work a lot. Yet to me writing is where work and play come together, it's the definition of being in flow. I don't mind working long hours, I often write six days a week. I have no anxiety around spending an entire day on one paragraph or tossing out a whole chapter in favor of going in a new direction with my work-in-progress. I love the challenge of writing the novel, but I still love a good vacation.

Last week, my family and I took our annual trip to Maine. The house we rent lakeside, in the Sebago region just outside Portland, is magical enough to draw my husband and me away from our career and home responsibilities. More astounding is its ability to coax two teenagers away from friends and technology. It's a just us, no TV, no laptop trip, and it has been for fourteen years.

And while you can take the writer out of her office and away from her computer, you can't take the writing away from the writer. Here's a glimpse inside what I call my writer's retreat.

I've always baked a pie using wild Maine blueberries. This year in honor of Patry Francis, author of The Liar's Diary and her tradition of making a pie for the muse, I made my version of the literary blues pie.

Before

After

Some of us couldn't wait for the after photo to be taken before diving into the pie.











In Portland, ME, in the wonderful independent book shop, Books, Etc... I couldn't resist searching out Tethered. My daughter thought a photo was called for.




Lost in a family game or puzzle, or while sipping a glass of wine from a local vineyard on the dock at sunset, I worked out a structural change in my novel. It was so easy to see things clearly sitting there.



And of course, I read. Thanks to a recommendation from Michael Lowenthal, I've now added another novel to my top ten. Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates is perfection!

I loved The Shack by William P. Young, The Rest of her Life, by Laura Moriarty, and The Unthinkable, by Amanda Ripley, too.

So I'm back now and ready to begin working again in the traditional sense. I still have my memories of the time I spent with the people I hold most dear and I look forward to next year when perhaps I'll walk into Books, Etc... in Portland and find a copy of Life Without Summer on those shelves.