publishing

Dealing with Rejection

September 24, 2009

We all have a deep-seated need for closure in our lives. We like to know why people have made the choices that they’ve made, whether we’ve done something wrong to bring about that choice or whether acting differently could have somehow changed the outcome. In the absence of answers, we tend to analyze situations and [...]

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Proper Channels

September 14, 2009

This may sound a bit obvious, but when you send a query, please send it to the correct address as specified by a publisher’s submissions guidelines. If a submissions address is listed for a publisher, whether it’s a physical address or an e-mail address, that’s the best address to which you can direct a submission. [...]

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Submitting Partials

June 25, 2009

If publishers want me to have my manuscript completed before I start shopping it around, why do they only want to see my first few chapters? In this electronic age, do you see publishers skipping the “sample chapters” step in the future? If I’m just sending a file, it doesn’t take up that much more [...]

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From Screen to Page

June 1, 2009

A lot of steps are involved in taking a book from a document file to a printed and bound collection of paper. This eleven-minute video demonstrates the bookbinding process. Edwards Brothers, Inc., located in Lillington N.C., binds the C-SPAN book ABRAHAM LINCOLN, with a guided tour to lead the viewer through the process. Then, step [...]

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Parsecs and Philippa and Podcasters, Oh My!

April 27, 2009

There’s a lot going on in the podcasting world lately! First, in general news, Parsec Award Nominations are now open. The Parsec Awards recognize excellence in speculative fiction podcasting. Please go and nominate your favorite podcasts. Closer to home (or, depending on how you’re counting, farther away!), podcaster and author Philippa Ballantine has received a [...]

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Why Hire an Editor?

April 23, 2009

Money should flow toward the writer. You might have heard this phrase before. It’s one of those standard bits of advice you hear a lot in the publishing industry. And, it has a lot of merit. You shouldn’t have to pay someone to represent your book. Reputable literary agents operate like real estate agents, making [...]

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The Crapshoot

April 16, 2009

Authors will often refer to the submission and rejection process as a crapshoot. For those unfamiliar with the term, craps is a dice game of chance. A crapshoot is a roll of the dice, and it’s come to mean a gamble with random and uncontrollable results. You’ll probably have heard, more than once, that getting [...]

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Submission Guidelines

April 9, 2009

One of the recurring themes I heard writers talk about at Ad Astra was the inconsistency or vagueness of submission guidelines, and what to do when submission guidelines are vague. The one issue on which most publishers are clear, is whether submissions are welcome or not. This is usually followed closely by whether they need [...]

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