Change...

Change… 

Sadly once again I have to postpone my examination of the Game of Thrones being secretly a YA novel in the trappings of adult fantasy to talk about change.

Last month I talked about the loss of my best friends and incredible talented author Eugie Foster.

Now I am talking about change. Change is something we all face in life regardless of what we are doing. Change is a constant.

I talked about how at DragonCon I just talked to a kid about Doctor Who and I talked to her like she was an adult, well maybe not like an adult, but I didn’t dumb the conversation down and talked to her like a person.

Well I had another conversation recently which changed my life. And I mean changed it drastically. 

This conversation was a job interview with a new library system.

With that conversation I am now a branch manager of my own library. With taking that job I am buying my first house. I still can’t believe I found a house that fast to purchase.

But this why I bring all of this up; you never know when a conversation will change your life. I have pitched books and short stories in conversations with publisher and editors. That is how I started transforming my world of Amazing Pulp Adventures into a roleplaying game. It is how it was also licensed for a board/card game.

It is thanks to a number of conversations that I wrote for the newest volume of You and Who; which is an essay anthology about individual people and their relationship with Doctor Who.

You never know who you are going to meet and interact with on a daily basis. Or where it might lead you. 

The No Spark Rejection

If you're a writer and any kind of good, you'll inevitably get past form rejections and make it to the big leagues of actual comments on your work.

Wow. An agent/editor was moved enough to give a personalized rejection!

But this can be bitter sweet.

Sometimes they might offer helpful feedback that, if you agree with it, can help you fix an area of your manuscript you and your CPs hadn't caught. Heck, they might even request a rewrite.

Other times it's not so helpful.

The "no spark" rejection, also known as the "didn't connect" or "just didn't love it the way I wanted to" rejection, is a big, acrid jug of "no thanks".

And there's nothing you can do about it. Often these rejections are attached with comments saying there's nothing wrong with your work. Not one dang thing! You have great characters, an interesting premise, the pacing is right, there are no cliches--but....

It's a case of "she's just not that into you".

These kinds of rejections can be hard to take. "But you said there's nothing wrong with it!" As productive human beings we struggle with the thought that there is nothing to fix. No flick of the wand that'll brush things up for the next agent/editor.

But on the flip side of things, you don't have to fix anything. Move on to the next agent. Send the work out to the next editor. Just like dating, you can't get bent out of shape over one person, even if you thought you guys would be great together and you really just "knew" it was going to happen.

I've thought about this over the last month in great detail. And I've thought of books I have on my shelf that I didn't really like.

Pet Semetary - Meh. Didn't think it was that scary, just really sad. It made me hug my one-year-old son tighter every day, but I didn't feel that "spark".

The Name of the Wind - I picked it up thinking the hordes of people praising it couldn't be wrong. But they were, at least, in comparison to what I like. It wasn't a bad book. It just wasn't that great. I had higher hopes for it.

Divergent, The Hunger Games, and a good many other YA books - They were written in present tense. I disdain present tense, and that's putting it gently. Not that it means the books are bad. They just don't fit into my wheel of cool.

And this is just my opinion, my taste. I am but one individual and there are plenty others with differing views. It's the same with the people you submit to. They're people--fallible, unique.

But that's what makes this journey we've endeavored to begin so magical. It might take you a few tries at the arcane table. You might have to send more than one raven with your potion of awesome.

It's hard. But that doesn't mean it's not worth it.

-- Sean

Book Blast - Kate Brauning

We are extremely lucky to have a author Kate Brauning today! So without further ado, let me hand it over...


How We Fall
Kate Brauning
Merit Press, F&W Media
Releasing November 11, 2014
Hardcover: 304 pages
ISBN-10: 1440581797
ISBN-13: 978-144058179

Ever since Jackie moved to her uncle's sleepy farming town, she's been flirting way too much--and with her own cousin, Marcus. Her friendship with him has turned into something she can't control, and he's the reason Jackie lost track of her best friend, Ellie, who left for...no one knows where. Now Ellie has been missing for months, and the police, fearing the worst, are searching for her body. Swamped with guilt and the knowledge that acting on her love for Marcus would tear their families apart, Jackie pushes her cousin away. The plan is to fall out of love, and, just as she hoped he would, Marcus falls for the new girl in town. But something isn't right about this stranger, and Jackie's suspicions about the new girl's secrets only drive the wedge deeper between Jackie and Marcus. Then Marcus is forced to pay the price for someone else's lies as the mystery around Ellie's disappearance starts to become horribly clear. Jackie has to face terrible choices. Can she leave her first love behind, and can she go on living with the fact that she failed her best friend?

Praise for How We Fall:

Kirkus Reviews: "Debut novelist Brauning tells a touching story of young, star-crossed lovers caught in a drama they have tried hard to avoid.... A sweetly written mix of mystery and romantic turmoil."

School Library Journal: "Heartbreaking and well-paced, this mystery novel challenges readers to look past preconceptions and get to the know characters, rather than focus on an uncomfortable taboo. Brauning's characters are well developed and their story engrossing. An intriguing thriller... this title will raise eyebrows and capture the interest of teens."

ALA Booklist: “…an unusual combination of romance and suspense…There is also something universal about Jackie’s struggles with her feelings and her desires, and readers will identify with her emotions, while going along for the plot’s ride. This quest for identity, wrapped up in an intriguing mystery, hooks from the beginning.”

How We Fall is available through:

Barnes & Noble Indie Bound Walmart.com Book-A-Million Book Depository Powell’s

Amazon.com Amazon.ca Amazon.co.uk

All book lovers are invited to attend #YAlaunch, a giant book party for How We Fall and The Hit List on Monday, November 10th, from 6-9pm central time. Broadcast live over video, the party will allow you to see, hear, and interact with the authors. 10 YA and adult authors will be discussing everything from writing a series to how they write love interests. They’ll also be playing book games with the audience, taking questions, and giving away 100 books to guests attending online. Authors attending include NYT bestsellers Nicole Baart and Tosca Lee, Kate Brauning, Nikki Urang, Kiersi Burkhart, Bethany Robison, Alex Yuschik, Blair Thornburgh, Kelly Youngblood, and Delia Moran. It will be a fun and interactive evening for anyone who loves books and wants to spend some time with great authors. For more information and to sign up to attend, please click here. We'd love to see you there!

How We Fall chapter 1 by KateBrauning

 



Author Bio: Kate Brauning grew up in rural Missouri and fell in love with young adult books in college. She now works in publishing and pursues her lifelong dream of telling stories she'd want to read. This is her first novel. Visit her online at www.katebrauning.com or on Twitter at @KateBrauning.

Agentopia: Renee Nyen

Welcome to the October edition of Agentopia! For more information and to see other Agentopia posts click here.

This month Renee Nyen from KT Literary is in the spotlight.

Several years in the editorial department at Random House’s Colorado division provided Renee with the opportunity to work with bestselling and debut authors alike. After leaving Random House, she came to KT Literary in early 2013. She loves digging into manuscripts and helping the author shape the best story possible. Though this is great for her profession, it tends to frustrate people watching movies with her.

With a penchant for depressing hipster music and an abiding love for a good adventure story, Renee is always looking for book recommendations. Even if that means creeping on people reading in public. Which she does frequently.

She makes her home in Colorado with her husband, their young daughter, and their hygienically-challenged basset hound.

Email: reneequery (at) ktliterary (dot) com

Renee also kindly answered a few questions for our readers...

What are you looking for in YA submissions right now? 

I'm looking for YA and MG. Specifically, I'd love to find a gritty space pirate story! Also, I'm a sucker for deep, meaningful friendships. Especially between females. I see many queries where in the opening pages the boy-crazed, shopaholic best friend dolls up the beautiful-yet-introverted main character and drags her to a party. There is so much more depth to friendships in high school. I want to see that reflected in YA books.

What's an immediate turn-off in a query, something guaranteed to get the author rejected?

I know it sounds basic, but following agency submission guidelines is really important. A lot of our email is automatically sorted. For kt literary, if the word "query" isn't in your subject line, your email may end up in our spam folder. It seems fussy, since every agency has different guidelines, but it's for a reason.

As for personal taste, be specific! It's hard to get excited about a main character's "deep inner struggle with personal demons" or their "journey to enlightenment and self-discovery" because the language is so general. I look at thousands of queries and the ones that stand out are concise, detailed, and interesting. I know that seems impossible, but it can be done!

What's the story got to have to make you want to represent it?

Voice! It's pretty easy to tell upfront if I want to spend 200+ pages with a character. That's the crux of YA and MG for me. I want a character who is relatable or interesting. Someone who will challenge the way I look at the world or put a smile on my face. Those are the books that stay with me, and ultimately, are the books I want to represent!

Loud and Clear: Part 2: The Technical Elements of Voice: POV

Last month, I began this series on voice by defining what it is we mean by “writing voice.”

This month, I’m going to begin talking about the technical elements—the writing mechanics—that play a direct role in voice.

Before we get into the specifics, keep in mind that both the type of story you are writing and the intended audience will influence your writing voice.

The voice for a horror story will be very different from the voice for a picture book (or at least I hope it is!). The voice for a nonfiction blog about finance will be very different than the voice for a fashion blog for tweens. The first might be quite formal and professional, while the second will likely be fun, bubbly, and accessible.

As I go through the technical elements of voice, keep these two things in mind: the type of content and your intended reader.

The Technical Elements of Voice

There are five areas I want to touch on in this overview of the writing mechanics that are core to voice.

1. Point of view or POV

2. Tense

3. Grammar and punctuation

4. Syntax (arrangement of words and phrases), sentence structure, rhythm

5. Word choice (specificity, consistency, and staying true to your characters)

Point of View

This post is all about point of view.

Point of view plays a direct role in voice. It’s a key decision because it sets who’s telling your story and from what narrative perspective the reader is experiencing the action of the story.

In a first-person POV, like that of The Hunger Games, the story is told through the eyes of the main character. We see only what Katniss sees, we feel only what Katniss feels. The voice of your story is the voice of your main character. All the words used and the tone employed come from who that main character is. It’s the clearest example of how voice can come from a technical element.

But then there’s third person POV, which runs on a spectrum from very close, similar to first person, to third person objective and omniscient. As you run along this spectrum, you are increasing the distance away from your main character. Making the decision to tell your story in third person means you’ve made a clear choice to put a bit more space between the character and the reader. This is a voice decision.

The Harry Potter series is told in third person limited, staying very close to Harry in all but a few instances.

While not used much, second person, in which the narrator addresses the protagonist as “you,” as if addressing a younger version of him or herself or perhaps as used in a letter or diary format, is another key decision that affects voice. If your character is writing in a diary, essentially talking to him or herself, the voice is going to be very different from the voice that character would use when in conversation with other people.

Once you have your POV, you need to remain consistent in its use. And while every character, main or secondary, in your novel should have his or her own distinct voice, this idea is especially important in books with multiple points of view. 

Often in books with multiple points of view, the character’s name is used in the chapter title. Or different fonts are used for each narrator. Those are easy ways to tell the reader which character is narrating the chapter, but if a book is well-written, you shouldn’t need those clues. You should be able to tell which character is narrating simply from the language and style used—from the voice.

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell is an excellent example of two very strong, distinct POVs in the same work. You know from their voices if it’s Eleanor or Park narrating that chapter. That’s exactly what you want to achieve.

One of the greatest compliments I’ve ever received on my writing was when a beta reader highlighted a line of dialogue and then added a comment in my Word file that said, “That’s so Henry!” about one of the characters in Becoming Jinn. That she could feel so strongly that a single line truly reflected my character means I drew him well, with a distinct voice that was different from all my other characters’ voices. You can bet I studied that line long and hard to see how I did that and to make sure (hope!) I could do it again!

Next month, we’ll move on to tense, grammar and punctuation, and sentence structure.

Lori Goldstein is the author of Becoming Jinn (now available for preorder; Feiwel and Friends/Macmillan, May 12, 2015, sequel, Spring 2016). With a degree in journalism and more than 10 years of experience, Lori is a freelance copyeditor and manuscript consultant for all genres. She focuses on the nitty-gritty, letting writers focus on the writing.

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I have a book in a bookstore!

When I first started writing, I never really believed I'd see a book with my name on it resting on a shelf in Barnes & Noble, but I fantasized about what it'd look like. It only took five years to see it come true, lol! And here it is, The Zodiac Collector, available at my local Barnes & Noble: After the initial shock wore off of seeing my book under the "New Teen Fantasy and Adventure" section (I kind of stood staring for a while, then I snapped a few pictures, then I stared some more, then I took more pictures--God, I wonder what people thought!), I snatched the copies off the shelf and autographed them. The store manager added The Zodiac Collector to the other autographed books they have at the Info Desk under Noteworthy Selections and invited me to schedule a book signing (which will likely be next year). She and another employee took my picture to commemorate the occasion. Super sweet, right? They totally made my day! I've got a TON of folks to thank for helping me realize this dream, from beta readers, other writers, family, friends, supportive co-workers, and, of course, my editor, publicist, and the team at Spencer Hill Press. MOST importantly, I send a huge

 

THANK YOU

to my readers. I hope you enjoy The Zodiac Collector. :)

* * * * * 

Laura Diamond is a board certified psychiatrist and author of all things young adult paranormal, dystopian, and horror. She’s a lucid dreamer, meaning she can direct her dreams while they’re happening. When she’s awake, she pens stories from her dreams and shares them with her readers. Laura has many published titles including the Pride Series (New Pride, Shifting Pride, and Tsavo Pride), the Endure Series (Endure and Evoke), The Zodiac Collector, a novella Sunset Moon in the Lore anthology, and several shorts stories. When she’s not writing, she is working at the hospital, blogging at Author Laura Diamond--Lucid Dreamer, and renovating her 225+ year old fixer-upper mansion.

If you’re interested in reading more about me, or interacting with me on the web check out the following links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DiamondLB

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLauraDiamond

Author Laura Diamond: www.authorlauradiamond.com

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5815639.Laura_Diamond

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Laura-Diamond/e/B009Y7L432/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1377733776&sr=8-1

Blog: http://lbdiamond.wordpress.com/

50 Ways to Generate Ideas for NaNoWriMo

November is...

National Novel Writing Month!

Or NaNoWriMo. I don’t need to explain what that is because I know you already read Kate's post here on YAtopia a few days ago. (If you didn’t, come on, get with the times.)

As October winds down and you stock up on candy to devour pass out to all the kids dressed as Elsa and Star Lord, you’re probably devising magnificent plans for your NaNo novel. You might even have an outline so thick you could use it as a step ladder.

Or maybe not. Maybe you have nothing planned. Maybe you’ve been staring at the wall, biting your nails until they bleed, eating too much Halloween candy.

Wherever you are on that spectrum, things will change for you starting November 1st. If you have it all planned, your characters will take control and switch things up without your permission. If you have nothing planned, you’ll touch that keyboard and a story will leap from fingers. Either way, a little inspiration can only help.

Which is why I’ve made of a list of 50 ways to generate ideas for your NaNoWriMo novel. Pick one or do all fifty–it’s entirely up to you. Apply these as you wish. Go nuts. That’s the spirit if the month, after all.

1. Order Chinese food. Use your fortune cookie.

2. What’s the next class being offered in/near your city?

3. Check out the “personals” section on Craigslist. (Be careful! Stranger Danger is real.)

4. Go to Wikipedia and hit “random”.

5. Go somewhere public and eavesdrop.

6. Most awkward middle or high school memory.

7. Twelfth Pin you see on Pinterest.

8. In the grocery store checkout lane, pick a magazine headline.

9. On Facebook or Twitter, scroll down to the fourteenth story.

10. Pick your favorite supporting character in your favorite TV show and research the actor/actress. Use something about their life.

11. Repeat, but with your favorite movie.

12. What’s the first thing that pops in your head when I say “animal”?

13. Go ask a child what you should write about.

14. Go to any college or university website. Find the courses offered. Scroll through until you have a lightbulb moment.

15. Who’s the "wild card" in your family or circle of friends? What’s his or her best quality?

16. Who is your personal, real-life hero? What’s his or her fatal flaw?

17.  Turn on the radio and listen to the lyrics of the first song you hear.

18. If you had to change your identity, how would you look? Why?

19. Page fifteen of the next magazine or newspaper you come across.

20. The reason behind the next tattoo you see.

21. The next Vine you watch.

22. Dictionary.com's  word of the day.

23. What’s next on your social calender?

24. What would never be on your social calender?

25. A local job posting.

26. Go to a resale store and find an item that “speaks to you”. What's that item’s history?

27. Look up quotes about life, death, love, and food. Which one would speak to your protagonist the most?

28. What place do you want to visit?

29. Notice the next stranger you see. Why are they dressed the way they are?

30. Go to the spam folder in your last email. Pick one of the most recent ten.

31. Type into you search bar, “Why do people” or “How do you” and pick one of the suggested searches.

32. Use a motive generator. Here are three: RanGen, Chaotic Shiny, Springhole.net

33. Ask Cleverbot for ideas.

34. Go to http://www.theuselessweb.com/ and click the button. (Most are truly useless, but I got a site with a guy saying, “Bury me in money!” Hmm...

35. What pops in your head when I ask, “What if?”

36. Look up some “would you rather” or hypothetical questions.

37. Uselessfacts.net

38. Open to a random page in an old diary or journal of yours.

39. Imagine you're standing in front of a huge bookshelf at the bookstore. Right in front of you is a new book you've never heard of that you're dying to read. What is it? Write it.

40. Take something from the last dream you remember.

41. Think of your favorite person from history. Why do you respect them?

42. Imagine a person from the future.

43. “I would do anything for love, but I won’t do...”

44. What’s the number one song on the charts?

45. Next radio commercial.

46. Make inspiration boards on Pinterest for your characters. Pick out fashion, quotes, and anything else.

47. Your favorite childhood game.

48. Google "weird news".

49. Pull out your psychology book.

50. The Plot Generator

BONUS: If you’re in need of inspiration to keep going at any point, read No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Chris Baty, the founder of NaNoWriMo. It’s a hoot and helpful to boot.

Other random pieces of advice:

Don’t take yourself or your novel seriously. In the words of Chris Baty, “You should lower the bar from “best-seller” to “would not make someone vomit.”

My favorite quote about first drafts is Hemingway’s, “The first draft of anything is shit.”

You'll find lots of pep talks and fellow writers at http://nanowrimo.org.

On the days you feel inspired, write like your life depends on it.

On the days you feel like having Netflix marathons and eating a gallon of ice cream, write like your life depends on it.

Happy rapid-writing,
Jessie

P.S. Go here if you want to be my NaNoWriMo writing buddy!

P.P.S Leave a comment! Were any of these helpful? What would you add to the list?

NaNoWriMo - Come and join me!

No surprises what I'm blogging about this month; that’s National Novel Writing Month to those unacquainted. Quite simply, the idea is to write a novel in the month of November. You join up via the website, set up a little profile, make some buddies if you like, and then write. Every day, or whenever you manage to get your fingers to the keyboard, you copy and paste the text into the verification box in your profile and the website tots up the word count. Then it makes these lovely colourful little graphs and tables and everything; plotting your progress, telling you which days were your most productive and so on.

It’s known as a global writing ‘contest’, but it isn’t. Not really. The only contest taking place is, writer vs a blank page; but in a light, fun and new approach to creative writing. The aim is to write 50k words or more and a lot of people taking part succeed. But at the same time, a lot don’t. No-one ‘wins’ and no-one ‘loses’. Simple as that.

Throughout the month, you receive encouraging emails and pep talks. The organisers cheer you on, they root for you. They want you to win. And if they can help you beat up the word demons that picnic in the middle of your path, they will.

Along with over 700,000 writers, I took part last year, my first time, and loved it. I was a quiet contestant, I buddied with only a handful of participants and approached the entire experience as exactly this, an experience. I’m the kind of writer who walks away, abandons the keyboard when the ideas won’t flow. I refuse to let myself get stressed. So Nano, for me, was a chance to see if I could force through writer’s block and smash through the odd plot barrier.

And after one month of some serious hard graft, I learnt that I could. OK, the manuscript was pretty shabby by the end of November, and there were quite a few ‘XXXX’ and ‘blah blah blah’ and ‘fill this in later’, plus my characters seemed to like shaking their heads and nodding, but my story was complete. 35k words on the page, smiling back at me. A novel, with a beginning, a middle and an end. How cool is that?

On top of this, all my Nano buddies succeeded, too. One didn’t finish her manuscript but she made some great progress. One took part to help her finish a WIP and managed it. And one wrote approximately 90k words! Different outcomes yet, at the same time, just one. Each one of us triumphed.

There’s more information on the website www.nanowrimo.org, including snazzy merchandise to purchase, and you should definitely follow them on Twitter @NaNoWriMo for up-to-date information and a chance to interact with fellow contestants via the hashtag.

My writing approach has now changed thanks to Nano. I’m delighted I took part and I plan to again this year. Other commitments might stand in my way of actually completing this next book, (although, in truth, it's more of a rewrite) but I’m not bothered. If I make it to the halfway point, or finish with plenty of holes in the manuscript, either way, progress will be made, and that’s all that counts.

If you’re not sure about whether to take part, then I nudge you to give it a go. You might decide after a week that you don’t want to continue, so don’t. But you never know. Next year, that book you write might be published! Good luck and see you on the other side.

www.katejfoster.weebly.com

@winellroad