Writing and Poetry

Query Re-Write

dairsik

I have sent a few query letters and decided that the query needs a tweak or two. I have my manuscript in the hands of a few middle grade students and hope to get their feed-back soon.

I am learning so much in this process and my admiration for published Authors has increased by epic proportions!

There are invaluable sites out there to learn from and the authors and agents that sponsor and share this information are great. I have decided that the really good query letter and synopsis are works of art. I have a ways to go to get mine there.

I am also enjoying the experience that I am gaining by taking a class at the University in creative writing. I enjoy the process and the students. Their feed-back is wonderful and I feel validated by the instructor as well. We are working on poetic form and elements and I had no idea that there was so much to learn. I will post my latest poem here as a example!

 

Change

Morning air crisp and cool

with the crunch, crunch

of leaves curling beneath our feet

coloring our world in shades

red, brown, yellow

down, down they float

spiraling, swirling, blowing

Change

Barren skeletons

against dusky skies

the giants soon will sleep

the air pungent, sharp and sweet

the vee of geese flying south

honk, honking they call to us

as they follow the leader

Change

We bundle up for brisk walks

wind chafing our cheeks

donning our coats and gloves

trading flip flops for socks and boots

storing swim suits and shorts

watching the squirrels hustle

cheeks full of acorns

Change

Like the seasons

we must change

nothing ever stays the same.

Writing and Poetry

Rejection

dairsik

Well it has been awhile. I have received my first rejection from two agents and It is a little discouraging when I have only queried about ten. You have to expect some rejection letters and it is still exciting to know that I am immersed in the process.

I came across a site yesterday called the query shark and was immediately amazed at the way this agent could tear apart a query. I have decided to re-visit mine and take a look from the agent’s perspective. She was harsh but very helpful. A little like the Simon of Queries.

I am also taking a creative writing class and learning so much about poetry. I have always felt that I could write poetry easily but I have a new appreciation for the process and the history behind it. My first presentation was on the Shakespearean Sonnet. Wow, Shakespeare was a rogue!

My book has a pretty defined market so it makes it harder to find an agent but I am setting a goal of sending to at least three more by Sunday. I will go back and follow this outline.

1. Who is the main character?

2.What does he want?

3. What is keeping him from getting it?

4.What must he sacrifice to get what he wants.

Writing and Poetry

Agent search

dairsik

I have begun the search for an agent. In doing so I discovered, that most agents are looking for diversity. I thought about this and decided that my manuscript could use more diversity. It’s not that it was intentionally written without, I just did not specify race, color, or other diversity issues.

I have a young girl being raised by a single mother but after reading the agents desires I have expanded that. She is also from an ethnic back round. Another character has two moms. The play in the story now focuses on not only bullying, but entitlement, a non-traditional relationship and, also, a single mother raising a child with a handicap.

I feel good about the changes because our children live in such a diverse world and they have to deal with all of those situations. It will make it a more well-rounded book. A more inclusive story. Prejudice and injustice come in many forms. I want the young people who read this to understand that being a Christian does not give a license to judge. It is simply a lifestyle of love. Each person will stand before God on their own merit and we never have to compromise what we believe but we can learn to love our enemy even when our beliefs are different. What we say is only words. How we act on those words speaks volumes.

Writing and Poetry

Preparing to Query

dairsik

I just returned from a great get away to St. Louis, where we spent time with my sister and her husband and had a wonderful time. Sometimes we need a little time away from every day to appreciate what we have.

I am listening to my coaching call and making positive changes to my query letter and synopsis. My synopsis was much too short and more like the jacket blurb. Mr. Malatesa said that I need to work on clarity, chronological events and comprehension. The synopsis should be at least two pages. Who knew?

I feel much more confident and ready to research agents and send out a few query letters next week. I am so excited to continue to move toward publishing. My editor, Liz Martel, is to be commended because my manuscript is clean and well written. Crossing my fingers and shutting my eyes when I drop the letters in the mail! I can’t wait to receive communication from agents. Even if it is a rejection, I have started the process. Anyone who would like to be a beta reader, let me know and I will hook you up.

Writing and Poetry

Seeking an Agent

dairsik

I just finished my coaching call with Mark Malatesta and I am excited to make the decision to publish traditionally. Mr. Malatesta was very positive about the manuscript and did not have any criticism of the actual writing. He stated several times that it is well written and had good dialogue, pacing and action.

My challenge now is to take the tips and information that he shared with me and develop a better query letter and synopsis. I have the Best Selling Author list of agents and will begin to send out query’s as soon as I work out some kinks. I feel validated as a writer and my energy to move forward just got a huge boost!

He shared so much information and strategy and it makes sense. One example is that I had suggested that I would start with a middle grade book and then go to YA which would not work well from a publishing standpoint. Each genre is pitched differently and agents would want the series to move slowly into that transition. I will keep at least one more book in middle grade due to his advise.

Paying for a coaching call and all of the tools and information has been a great way for me to continue this journey. It might not work for everyone but I feel like I am on the right track for my book and that feels Great!

Now I have a query letter to rewrite so back to work.

Writing and Poetry

Book II

dairsik

I have all of these ideas swimming around in my head for the second book so I took the initiative and started writing it on Monday at our local write-in.

My protagonist is working as a counselor at church camp and falls for a bad boy. After making up her mind to let her defenses down she learns a difficult lesson and struggles to regain her ground and her faith.

Most of us have had that moment when we wanted something so bad that we sacrifice what we stand for, and Sela, (my protagonist), finds out that even those who are chosen to lead can fall and sometimes fail.

Sela’s admission that she went about things wrong, will lead to her getting involved with her guardian angel and others to help, Chad, (bad boy) to hopefully break free of a dark angel. Meanwhile her friends, Emily and Zach’s romance is blooming. Emily is beginning to be able to catch glimpses of her own Guardian and struggles to share her experience with Zach who is also wondering if he is going crazy because he keeps seeing something out of the corner of his vision that resembles an angel.

The “Angel Brigade,” is unknowingly coming together and may soon learn what God has in mind. Maybe Gloria and Victor, (angels from book 1),will even be called to help in some of the adventure!

 

Wish me luck!

Writing and Poetry

The Waiting Game

dairsik

I have decided that there is no reason to engage in this game.  I refuse to be stagnant while I am waiting for answers on my first book.  I will continue to write and develop the characters for the next book and or educate myself on writing and publishing.

I watched a video today that changed my entire perspective on Literary Agents. It was accessible to me through a weekly e-mail from Mark Maletesta. The video was a interview with several  agents and it helped me to see that they are really interested in the success of their clients and the crafting of great books. I am not so intimidated after watching these people talk about the changing face of publishing and selecting books that will successful.

I was also encouraged to listen to their dialogue on blogging and the importance that it has to promote an authors books and voice.

I have been afraid to really write anything about my book because it is not published yet but there are some creative ways to promote books before publication. My particular book series begins as a (MG) middle grade and jumps to (YA) in the second book. I want my characters to mature with the reader.

Middle grade will be a challenge to promote because the readers are not as engaged in social media. They are not likely to buy a lot of online books or e-books so the author must promote the book through schools, local libraries and book stores. I have found some resources that helped me to gain perspective: teenreads.com, youtube, booktubers.

 

Writing and Poetry

Memorial Day

dairsik

Andrea Poem   A little nostalgic as we come to the Memorial Day Weekend. Eight years ago we lost my beautiful daughter Annie. I want to share a wonderful gift that we received at that time.

After Annie’s wake, several people ask me to give them a copy of a poem that I wrote for her baby book. It is not a stellar piece but it was special to her and to us.  I went to the computer and began typing and for some reason, I couldn’t get the margins to work. I hit center and typed and the result was incredible. Click on the green, Andrea Poem, at the top.

 

I had prayed that God would send me a sign that Annie was okay. Tulips were her favorite flower. This was only one of the tulips that came our way.

God Bless each of you as you remember your loved ones and the fallen soldiers over the Memorial Day weekend.

I worked and worked to find a way to show the poem in color but it kept wrapping the text. I am going to post this and hope that when you click on the link at the top the poem will magically give you a link. Crossing my fingers. This post was meant for Memorial Day but as this is my journey and journeys are sometimes adventures it is a little out of order.Andrea Poem

Writing and Poetry

Woot, Woot!!

dairsik

Finally! I sent my completed questions to Mr. Malatesta and will schedule a coaching call as soon as he has a chance to read it. I am very excited to be closing the gap from writer to author. Everything that could happen has seemed to slow the process down but it just makes each moment sweeter.

Now I am going to concentrate for a couple of days on food and relaxation over the fourth of July weekend. A great time to reflect on how much we appreciate our Veterans and active military.