November/December 2013 Issue
November/December Issue
Writer's Digest Magazine
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Author Archives: Chuck Sambuchino
Synopsis Example: “Ransom” (Thriller)
Here’s another example of a fiction synopsis. This time it’s Ransom (1996). One thing to notice here is that, in the movie itself, the five kidnappers all have their own personalities. But here I had to cut all that and just focus on the leader. Tom is the main character here, and we need to see his journey over the three acts. Read more
3 Reasons Why Personally Visiting a Source (or Location) Will Better Your Writing
1. You can ask your own questions. If you use only written resources, you can miss out on key information that could help bring your subject alive to your readers.
2. You can get the personal viewpoint of the people involved in your subject matter. I learned this many years ago, while writing a book about different breeds of horses. I had written to the official organizations representing various breeds for information, and each of them strove to convince me that their breed was the ultimate “all purpose horse.” I couldn’t figure out what to write about for each breed that made it unique and special. Read more
7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Rebecca Serle
This is a recurring column I’m calling “7 Things I’ve Learned So Far,” where writers at any stage of their career can talk about seven things they’ve learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning. This installment is from writer Rebecca Serle.
Rebecca Serle received her MFA in creative writing from The New School and her BA in English from The University of Southern California. ROSALINE, due out May 2012, is her first book. Read more
My Adventures in … Pittsburgh
I just got back from the annual PennWriters Conference, which was held this year outside of Pittsburgh. Great event with wonderful people. And being born and raised in PA myself (mostly in Erie), it was nice to be back in my home state. Read more
How I Got My Agent: David Halperin
“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we’ll talk specifics.
David Halperin was once a teenage UFO investigator. Later he became professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill—his specialty, religious traditions of heavenly ascent. Journal of a UFO Investigator (Viking Press, Feb. 2011) is his first novel. Read more
Is the Second Novel Really Easier?
Of all of the myths I’ve heard about writing and getting published, this one has always intrigued me. After finally nailing my butt to the chair and grinding out the novel that had been floating around in my mind for decades, and after finally getting it published, how can doing it a second time be any more difficult than falling off a log? Or so I thought.
Guest column by Douglas W. Jacobson, author of The Katyn Order (March 2011, McBooks Press). Doug’s first book, Night of Flames: A Novel of World War II, won the 2008 “Outstanding Achievement Award” from the Wisconsin Library Association. Read more
2011 Guide to Literary Agents is Out!
The book is finally out and available in major bookstores! The new 2011 edition of Guide to Literary Agents has more than 20 brand new literary agencies never before listed in the … Read more
Literary Agent Interview: Lisa Leshne of LJK Literary Management
This installment features Lisa Leshne of LJK Literary Management. Lisa joined LJK in 2008 and has over 20 years experience in the publishing business, including co-founding The Prague Post, the largest English-language newspaper in Central Europe.
She is seeking: Lisa is especially interested in nonfiction, memoirs, literary and popular fiction, sports, business, political and popular culture topics, as well as some children’s books.
Read more
New Agent Alert: Jeff Ourvan of the Jennifer Lyons Literary Agency
Reminder: Newer agents are golden opportunities for new writers because they’re likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you’re just wasting time and postage.
He is seeking: His interests are varied; he represents nonfiction works, especially memoirs, histories, biographies, international current events and sports. He also represents fiction works, particularly in the young adult, thriller and international fiction categories. Read more
Does Your Story Have a Hook or Merely a Gimmick?
Agents are always looking for something different inside their massive slush piles. Something unique and original—a “hook.” I became especially aware of this last summer, while querying agents I was invited by one agent to revise and re-submit my novel. Her main suggestion? A stronger hook.
I’ll be honest—the word “hook” has always bothered me. Sure, I understand what it entails—giving your work that extra punch, that unique story idea in order to get the reader interested, and to stand out from the thousands of other trying-to-get-published writers. Read more
How to Find Your Niche in Urban Fantasy
spent 17 years trying to get published in various genres before I discovered urban fantasy at the bookstore. The basic premise was a revelation to me: pick a critter from mythology or folklore, drop it into a contemporary setting amongst clueless humans, and hang on for the ride. When one considers the breadth of human belief and the staggering number of places those old gods and creatures can get into trouble in the modern world, the possibilities are endless—but if you look at the shelves, you’ll see that only a fraction of the territory has been explored so far. Most everything is happening in New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles, and most of it concerns vampires, werewolves, demons, or faeries.
Guest column by Kevin Hearne, author of The Iron Druid Chronicles, an urban fantasy series being released this year back-to-back from Del Rey Books. Hounded, which got a starred review in Publishers Weekly, was released May 3, followed by Hexed on June 7 and Hammered on June 28. Read more
7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Tom Leveen
This is a recurring column I’m calling “7 Things I’ve Learned So Far,” where writers at any stage of their career can talk about seven things they’ve learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning. This installment is from writer Tom Leveen.
Tom Leveen is the author of Party, a young adult novel published by Random House Children’s Books, now available in paperback. His second YA novel, ZERO, is due in Spring 2012. Read more
Synopsis Example: “The Fly” (Horror / Sci-Fi)
Here’s another example of a fiction synopsis. This time it’s The Fly (1986).
I took a crack at this one because my synopsis examples were light on horror stories. The main thing with this synopsis was to streamline Seth’s transformation process (and I left a lot of details on the cutting room floor) so that it could be whittled it down to the proper length. Read more
How I Got My Agent: K.M. Ruiz
“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we’ll talk specifics.
K.M. Ruiz debut sci-fi novel is Mind Storm (May 2011), a post-apocalyptic story that the New York Journal of Books called “…not only the beginning of an exciting new series, but heralds the debut of a notable new voice in the sci-fi genre.” Read more
Gnome Attack Roundup: Free Book Giveaway With New Interview
I had a nice “writer moment” today in a bookstore. I went into a bookstore and spotted several Gnome books in the humor section, so I started to sign them. Then this … Read more
Literary Agent Interview: Howard Yoon of Ross Yoon Literary
This installment features Howard Yoon of Ross Yoon Literary. Starting in 1992 as Gail Ross’s literary assistant, Howard worked his way up to literary agent and principal of the Ross Yoon Agency as an editorial director, ghostwriter, foreign rights manager, book consultant and editor. He is also the co-author of, Begging for Change (HarperCollins), which won the Terry McAdams prize for best book on the nonprofit sector.
He is seeking: nonfiction in the areas of narrative nonfiction, memoir, current events, history, science, cookbooks, and popular culture. Read more
The Art of the Query, Humor Style
But something felt off in those early letters. I realized that rather than showing an agent my sense of humor, I was standing there saying the equivalent of “I’m funny.”
That’s not funny.
My solution? Approach my query letter as a piece of creative writing itself, one that reflected my style while still giving the reader all the pertinent details about my project. This wasn’t an easy proposition, as I could end up coming across as a jackass who didn’t take his work seriously if I went too far the other way. Read more
The Value of Creating Your Own Book Tour
If you’re a New Yorker, you grow up with Yogi Berra-isms. They’re delivered in utero like collective memories, and this one has been coming back to me lately as I hear over and over again that authors “aren’t touring” because “it never pays for itself” and the publishers are only touring “bestselling authors who don’t need it.” I say hogwash. People are touring, they’re just defining it differently.
Guest column by Rosemary Harris, Anthony and Agatha-Award nominated author of Pushing Up Daisies, The Big Dirt Nap, Dead Head andSlugfest. Read more
Contests: The Writer’s Fairy Godmother
With the exception of shoe size and the fact that I don’t do floors, Cinderella and I are basically twins separated at birth. My stepsisters, Query and Rejection, had been hounding me for months and I was starting to lose hope, when one magical day I received a phone call from an editor—suddenly my editor—telling me that I’d won the St. Martin’s Minotaur/ Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition and that my manuscript was going to be published. It was the greatest day of my life—with the possible, though not absolute, exception of the births of my kids (and please don’t tell them I said that).
Guest column by Janice Hamrick, author of Death on Tour (2011, Minotaur), the winner of the 2010 St. Martin’s Minotaur/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition. Read more
Successful Queries: Agent Sara Megibow and “Score”
This series is called “Successful Queries” and I’m posting actual query letters that succeeded in getting writers signed with agents. In addition to posting the actual query letter, we will also get to hear thoughts from the agent as to why the letter worked.
The 53rd installment in this series is with agent Sara Megibow (Nelson Literary) for Miranda Kenneally’s YA novel, Score (which may be retitled), a story about a girl who becomes quarterback of her high school football team. The book comes out in November 2011 from Sourcebooks Fire. Read more
How I Came to Write ”The Floor of Heaven”
The more I read, and the more I thought about all that I was reading, I became fixated not so much on the taming of the American West as I was by what happened after the West was won. Like my childhood “West” that came to an abrupt end at the hands of the developers, I became intrigued by an Wild West that had suddenly grown civilized. In the 1890s the vanquished Indian tribes had settled with dour resignation on government reservations, the wheels of steam engines now clicked and clacked against the metal tracks stretching across the plains where short generations ago herds of buffalo had thundered, and homesteaders pounded sturdy fence posts and plowed the rich brown earth. Read more
How I Got My Agent: Stephanie Barden
“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we’ll talk specifics.
Stephanie Barden is the author of Cinderella Smith (April 2011; HarperCollins), a middle grade novel. Stephanie’s new take on Cinderella story has sequels coming out in 2012 and 2013. Read more
New Agent Alert: Kathryn Beaumont of Kneerim & Williams
Reminder: Newer agents are golden opportunities for new writers because they’re likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you’re just wasting time and postage.
She is seeking: commercial and literary fiction and a range of nonfiction, including memoir, personal growth, women’s issues, history, travel, and current events. Read more
7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Darien Gee
This is a recurring column I’m calling “7 Things I’ve Learned So Far,” where writers at any stage of their career can talk about seven things they’ve learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning. This installment is from writer Darien Gee.
Darien Gee is the author of Friendship Bread: A Novel (Ballantine; April 2011). She’s also the national bestselling author of three novels under the name Mia King (Good Things, Sweet Life, and Table Manners). Read more
Getting to Know All About: Agent Barbara Poelle
Agent Barbara Poelle interviews writer/client Lauren DeStefano Read more