I’ve known quite a few people who’ve hired a freelance editor, and I have even done it myself. I can’t tell you how much it helps. Editing is not something anyone should try to do alone, especially those who self-publish. It can also be a big help if you’re struggling with how to improve a piece that isn’t getting good response from agents and publishers. Even the most experienced writer can’t see all her own mistakes.

So, if you’re interested in hiring a freelance editor, feel free to drop me an email and tell me about your project. I’m happy to have a chat about how I can possibly help. Be sure and tell me your wordcount, genre, and plans!

Have you worked with an editor before? Was it a good experience? Did anything about it surprise you?

But the reality isn’t tinsel and tiaras. I recently read this 2004 article of confessions of a semi-successful author both surprising (because she’s not been living the jet-set life even though she’s reached what most authors aspire to–The New York Times Bestseller List) and at the same time, the article came across as a little whiney. She talks about how many copies she’s sold, the advances that she got, and her struggles with agents and editors. But,  I mean, come’on. She’s made a chunk of money in a profession at which most people who attempt it fail to make a brass farthing. Heck, I remember how thrilled I was at the first publisher that offered to pay me in copies for one of my stories.

A Twitter-friend posted something about this same article called Mopey-Midist-Authors where she said, “A lot’s happened since 2004, but one thing hasn’t changed. That thing is this: There are lots of writers, very few of them are published, and even fewer of those make kajillions of dollars doing what they do. (Okay, that’s three things. It’s Sunday and I don’t have to count if I don’t want to.)” Jen is right. Publishing is changing. But some authors seem more focused on the fact that huge advances are no longer the norm, publishers don’t shell out for publicity tours for most, and contracts are turning into huge grabs for the publishers. The truth is, most authors (even celebs) don’t earn out their advance, so it’s understandable that publishers no longer want to lose money on the majority of books they publish.

I think it’s all about adjusting our expectations as professional authors. Do your research. There are ways to find out sales figures for books, and know that although bestsellers sell millions of copies, a debut author will do well to sell thousands.

But you know what? So what? So, the job doesn’t pay well for 99% of those lucky enough to get accepted, published, and receive actual money. Get over it. As author BobWeinberg said:

Writers are driven. We are obsessive. We are the describers, the explainers, the comforters, the storytellers. We write not for the money, the fame, the fortune, but because it is in our blood, in our genes. We write because we have no choice. We write because if we did not, who would?

I would just add to that: We are the lucky ones.

These are things I have begun to do with books I like, and my author friends have let me know it makes a difference:

1. Buy the book! (Of course!) And although this is a list of DO’s, here’s a DON’T: Don’t ask an author to send you a copy (free). Author friends have ALL told me they’ve had folks say to them, “Oh, your book is out? Send me a copy.” No! Buy the book! This is how authors make their living, and sales figures are important! If you’re asking because you want an autographed copy, buy a copy and ask the author to sign it.
2. If the book isn’t out yet, pre-order on amazon. I didn’t know this, but bookstores can be influenced to stock a title based on pre-order figures. So every pre-order is important!
3. Review the book on your blog. (Now, I don’t review every book I read (or even every book I like) on this blog. Mostly because my blog would turn into a book review blog if I did. I just read too much! However, if you really love a book or really want to help an author, do this!) If you don’t want to do a full-on review, a quick mention and link is always appreciated!
4. Rate and review on amazon. Ratings really influence amazon sales, and reviews don’t have to be long to be helpful. You don’t have to have bought the book on amazon to rate/review it there.
5. Add the book to your goodreads shelf and rate/review it after you read it. Goodreads is a great way for authors to build up enthusiam for their release, and the more shelves a book is on, the better, even if it’s on the “to read” shelf!
6. Interview the author on your blog, or give them space for a guest post.
7. Spread the word. Good old-fashioned word-of-mouth is important. Retweeting announcements on Twitter or sharing the author’s posts on Facebook is a simple thing you can do that’s free and easy!
8. When you’re in your local bookstore, ask if they have the book (even if you don’t intend to buy it.) This will help put it on their radar. Every inquiry helps! If you know the book isn’t out yet, you can simply ask them if they can find out what the release date is for you.

And in the interest of balance, here are some things authors can do to make life easier for folks (like me!) who want to help:

1. Write a bio for your website. If I’m going to review a book, I always try to find an author website to get more info on the author. You’d be surprised how many authors don’t bother to put anything about themselves on their blogs / websites! But if I’m going to interview an author, it really helps if I know a bit about their interests (beyond their own work) so I can think of some questions to ask. Info like day job, hobbies, family, pets, or even favourite books or movies can help me think of interesting questions!
2. Provide (on your website) a photo of yourself and your book cover(s) in a large enough format that I can put one or both in a post and have them look good. A lot of blogs seem to use teeny tiny profile shots. Don’t make me hunt around the web to find your book cover. Sure, I can maybe find it on your publisher’s website or on amazon, but having to search for info like this is one one of the reasons it’s so time consuming to do a review post!
3. If you’re willing to do guest posts, write some ahead of time! That way when I ask you if you want to do a guest post, you can reply saying, “Sure, I have three articles ready. Here’s the first paragraph of each one. Which would you like to use?”
4. Make it easy to contact you. You’d think this would be a no-brainer, but I run into author websites all the time that have no contact method beyond leaving a comment on their blog! I recently wrote to an author this way, wanting to interivew her on my blog, and left my email address. When I hadn’t heard from her a week later, I went back to see if she’d even approved my comment. She had, and she’d replied there, rather than emailing me! She asked me to email her my interview questions, but there was no email address on her website anywhere! I moved on to easier pickings. Sorry, but there are a lot of good books out there, and I’m not going to work that hard to help authors who can’t be bothered.
5. Have blurbs, exerpts, and review quotes on your website. Again, just to make life easier for those who want to write about you!

I know a lot of authors are reluctant to talk about themselves, and they feel like putting together a “press kit” makes them seem pretentious, but honestly, you gotta do it. We love your books! We want to help! But if you make it too hard, we will find something else to blog about.

That’s right. Ordinary Angels has found a home at Lyrical Press.

I submitted to LPI because I read an author interview and I was impressed with how this author was raving about his editor and how glad he was to be working with a small press. I followed the link, read their guidelines and thought, “Hey, they want what I write!” I checked them out on Preditors and Editors, Absolute Write’s Water Cooler, did some google searches, and was impressed with what I found. Even better, I got my reply in about two weeks! But I didn’t stop my research there. After I received the contract, I wrote to about a dozen of their authors (there’s a list of them on the website), and asked what they thought of working with Lyrical Press. Every single one wrote back with positive things to say. By the time that was done, I felt 100% confident this was a place I wanted to be.

It’s all still in the early phase. They offered me a contract last Saturday, and we’ve spent a few days going over the contract and working out the details. Now things are signed and we’re gearing up for the real work! I’ll be sure and keep you all posted as progress is made. I’m sure it will be a fascinating journey, and I expect I’ll learn a lot. Of course, I’ll share it all with you!

After I received the contract, the first person I had to call was my friend Marsha Moore. She’s read at least two versions of Ordinary Angels and she’s been a wonderful source of encouragement every step of the way. (Everybody needs a Marsha, I tell ya!) To celebrate, she wanted to interview me on her blog today, and there you can read me babbling about the process and I also give away secrets like “Donuts or Cupcakes?”

[UPDATE: link to the interview on her fiction blog (Talli Roland) is HERE.]

I just want to take one last minute to thank all of you who have given me such encouragement up to this point. Waiting to get that first novel accepted has been a long and sometimes frustrating road! I couldn’t have done it without the encouragement of my blog buddies, Facebook friends, the Twitteratti, and other friends and family. So thanks for the kind encouragement and for putting up with my “artistic temperment”. I’ll keep you posted!

Even if you aren’t planning your trip to Paris just yet, this book is a delight to read and will set your heart dreaming about all the wonderful things to see and do.

Thank you, Marsha, for sharing Paris with us!

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Paris For Writers – Marsha Moore
(visit marsha’s blog here)

If you’re a writer after a little libation and inspiration, where better to head than Paris? With around-the-clock cafés and bistros galore, rest assured you can keep your muse entertained for hours.

Start the day at Café de la Mairie. An old-school café with a large terrace overlooking Saint-Sulpice church, it’s a great place to stop for some caffeine and a Croque Monsieur (made with the legendary Poilâne bread). The café is said to have been Henry Miller’s favourite and it’s still popular with well-known figures today: Catherine Deneuve reputedly takes her coffee here, too (8 Place Saint-Sulpice, 75006, +33 1 43 26 67 82).

Ready to write? Head over to Cassegrain, where it won’t be a chore to put pen to paper with all the beautiful stationery supplies on offer. Open since 1919, this shop has engraved copper plates for legends like Churchill and de Gaulle, as well as providing less venerable customers with a wide selection of writing utensils and notebooks. Practise your cursive and order up some personalised stationery (422 Rue Saint-Honoré, 75008, +33 1 42 60 20 08).

No writer’s visit is complete without going to Shakespeare and Company, a bookshop (and so much more) just opposite Notre Dame. Started by bibliophile George Whitman, an American who stayed in Paris after World War II and gradually amassed a large collection of English books, the shop has now grown into a platform for new writers to showcase and develop their talents. Weekly readings, film screenings, writing workshops and theatrical performances are held on a regular basis in the cosy upstairs room. Drop in to see what’s on at this iconic writers’ sanctuary (http://shakespeareandcompany.com).

Keep the creative juices flowing and get existential at Café de Flore. A favourite of Sartre and Beauvoir, here you can sit yourself down in the same seats as the great thinkers. The Art Deco interior hasn’t changed since World War II and while the fare isn’t cheap or particularly remarkable, it’s worth a venture in to soak up the past. If you can, get a seat on the terrace and ponder the meaning of life as the world goes by (www.cafe-de-flore.com).

End the day with a drink and pick up your post at The Ritz. In keeping with tradition, writers can have their post addressed to this iconic hotel. Grab your letters, then order Hemingway’s favourite drink – a singlemalt whiskey – at the aptly-named Bar Hemingway. Whet your appetite with the 25 photos he took as inspiration for his book A Moveable Feast and savour the cocktails prepared by Colin Field, voted the world’s best bartender in 2001. Or sip a Bloody Mary, said to have been created so Hemingway’s fourth wife, Mary, wouldn’t be able to smell alcohol on his breath. Whatever your passion, there’s plenty of ways to find stimulation here (www.ritzparis.com).

24 Hours Paris (£9.99) is available from Amazon UK and Amazon worldwide, or from Prospera Publishing (now offering worldwide free postage).

Then around the time I started getting serious about writing again after a few years of geeking out with the coders, I started finding author blogs everywhere. And now it seems that 80% of the writers I run into via Twitter and other blogs are writing YA.

Honestly when I hear a new author-friend writes YA, part of me starts to cross their name off a mental list with a twinge of sadness, even if I’ve never read anything they’ve written. I sigh and think, “Ugh… YA is not for me.” That could be because I like my paranormal smutty, my fantasy dark, and my sci-fi gritty. I like thrillers that scare the bejeebers out of me and mysteries that twist up my brain. And, oh, how I love a good murder.

But some of the YA authors I’ve met really are nice people, and I want to understand what they’re doing. I asked on Twitter: “I’ve not read much YA fiction. What’s the difference besides no sex? Younger protags? But what else? What makes something YA fiction?”

Here are some of the responses:

gamerbabe360 Typically YA Characters, subject matter. Very easy to read, shorter than most other fiction books

cathleenholst I’ve not read much either. But from what I have read, it also seems to be the overall ‘voice’ that is younger.

waltw I listened to an interesting podcast about YA Fiction not too long ago. Might be worth checking out: http://is.gd/bSkdz Apparently there is a fine line between fiction for Young Adult and Teens. Until that podcast I assumed they were the same

MattKelland fairly simple moral or philosophical issues. they can be serious, but not too complex. Oh, and you can have sex in YA, but not explicit, and it must be appropriate & relevant.

Jenstrikesagain When you find out what makes YA fic, plz tell me. I have a 12 yo protag and I can’t even tell you… how many rejects I have saying “We don’t do YA fiction.” Fine, but IT ISN’T. (exasperated)

I’ve also been looking around the web. This is what I’ve learned so far:

• Adolescent Protagonists – anywhere from 12 to 18, but this doesn’t mean children’s fiction with older characters or adult fiction with younger characters.
  
• Subjects within the experience of that age group. This means, I gather, quite a lot in the way of “coming of age” stories, but authors sometimes focus on edgier topics like abortion, drugs, self-harm and suicide, domestic violence and divorce.
  
• It’s shorter. 125-250 pages usually.
  
• Simpler stories, meaning few sub-plots, and the focus really being on one character’s growth and there’s usually a positive outcome.

Although learning more about this has helped me see it as a more complex genre than I’d first thought, I don’t see myself going out and looking specifically for YA fiction to read. As much as I adore my own teenager, I don’t find teen angst particularly appealing. It wasn’t really that enjoyable the first time around, so I have no desire to relive the turmoil and insecurity of those years through fictional characters.

So, why are you reading and writing YA? (And do you read other things as well?)

About the book: An around-the-clock guide from 5 a.m. fishing to midnight swimming. Fancy a hearty English breakfast with East End artists, South Bank skateboarding, or a late night Tower of London lock-up? Perhaps dining in total darkness, drinking in an Edwardian loo, then hitting the floor starkers at a naked disco? There’s always something on, somewhere in London.

So today we have a guest post in which Marsha talks about her promoting the new book:

——————–

Ask and You Might Receive

A Guest Post by Marsha Moore

I’ve never been good at asking people for things. I’d rather do something myself than bother others. But when it came time to marketing my book, I didn’t really have much of a choice. What was I going to do, stand on top of my roof with a megaphone and shout out the news (I did consider this, actually, but it’s cold up there!)? No, I needed to swallow my pride and ask everyone from friends and family to strangers to help me spread the word (and thank you, India; your cheque is in the post).

I started my marketing campaign by asking the Mayor of London to endorse my book. Why not aim high, I thought, so when he doesn’t answer at least I don’t have to take it personally.  But he (or his press office) did answer, and I managed to get a quote. Buoyed by the success, I asked two other expat authors – the lovely Toni Hargis and Michael Harling – for quotes, and they agreed too! Although I did get knocked down by a few who will remain nameless – but who will burn in hell forever – for the most part everyone I approached was responsive and willing to help. Just by asking, I built up a pretty good list of reviewers. I even managed to get some newspaper coverage.

But all that was done in the virtual world, where it’s pretty easy to brush off rejection – or worse, deafening silence. When it came time to hit up London bookstores, I was terrified. Now I’d have to actually look people in the eye and ask them to stock my book! How mortifying.

I decided to start local. Surely they couldn’t reject a local author, could they? OK, I rarely went in to buy books (I can get them for free at the library!) but I did visit regularly to envision my lovely book on the shelf. I practised my pitch, practically hyperventilating as I walked over to the counter. Then, I did it. I asked them to stock my book.

And they said yes!

I should have known that wouldn’t be the end. The next week, I did the rounds of about 15 London bookstores, repeating my pitch (this time with a rep by my side for moral support). And while we did get some gruff ‘I’m busy’ responses, we also got a few positive replies. And I have to say, nothing beats walking into a store and seeing my book on the shelf. Except making the New York Times best seller’s list, of course.

So it never hurts to ask – except your pride, maybe. But if the answer’s a yes, it’s definitely worth it.

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Visit Marsha’s Blog

Buy 24 Hours London in the USA or in the UK).

Look out for 24 Hours Paris by Marsha Moore next year!

Congratulations, Marsha, on your success with the book!

This is what he had to say:

————–

I’ve always had a fairly positive attitude, to writing and life in general, but as I’m sure you and all your readers know (probably from experience!), the world of the unpublished writer can be a pretty frustrating one. Promising comments may abound, but all too frequently agents/editors simply aren’t prepared to follow through and put their money where their mouths are, so to speak.

And, to be honest, it could have continued that way for me. I’ve been doing this for more years than I care to remember (okay, if you insist, 23!) and publication could so easily never have happened. To cut a long story short, I’d submitted If I Never to Legend Press after submitting an earlier piece that didn’t quite fit their list. I got a lot of encouraging comments from the editor but then, as is so often the way, she left the company and, already being familiar with this quite common publishing scenario, I figured that was that. I pretty much forgot all about it until, 18 months later, I received an email from Tom Chalmers — the founder of Legend Press — informing me that he’d been looking through submissions, had read If I Never and wanted to discuss it with me. A telephone conversation followed and, as they say, the rest is history.

The funny thing is, I never actually submitted If I Never elsewhere. Usually I submit widely but for some reason I held fire with this one. And I’m really pleased I did. The Legend team is incredible to work with. I have the creative freedom I need and far more input than I could ever have dreamt of.

Regarding the level of support I get promotionally from Legend… actually, it’s far more than I originally expected. Legend is a small independent. Effectively a team of three (very dynamic!) people. I know of people with larger publishers who get very little in the way of promotional/marketing support — and whilst it’s true that I’ve done a lot myself (something I believe to be very important), the Legend team has certainly done its fair share. For example, there have been magazine interviews and reviews that I simply wouldn’t have been able to get myself — and they’re always incredibly receptive to suggestions. Very refreshing.

Social Media such as Twitter and Facebook etc have been useful promotionally — as have websites such as Goodreads.com. I think it’s incredibly important to use everything available… small independent publishers like Legend simply don’t have the kind of budget that the bigger publishers have, obviously, and competing can be really tough — so, for me, it’s all about finding new ways, ways that level the playing field, if only a little.

——————–

When I asked Gary about his book, here’s what he had to say:

——————–

If I Never is, I suppose, a strange book — in that it’s quite different to the main body of my (forthcoming) work. Yes, there are similar themes and narrative approaches in all my work, themes and approaches that very definitely mark them as Gary William Murning novels, I believe, but there was rebelliousness to the way in which I wrote If I Never that I’ve now abandoned (it was bloody exhausting!) Whilst writing it I was very aware of all the dos and don’ts of writing — the long list of requirements we all have in our heads — and, to be frank, I just said “sod it” and disregarded as many of them as possible! I threw everything in the pot, mixed sweet and savoury in ways that most would not recommend, and had a thoroughly good time in the process!… Come to think of it, maybe that’s why I didn’t submit it to other publishers! I possibly suspected subconsciously that the world just wasn’t ready for it!

As it turned out, however, the world (or certain people in it!) was ready for it. The vast majority of people seem to get it, with only one or two negative comments here and there. It’s pretty edgy and probably not as polished as it would be where I writing it today (though polish might actually detract from what I was trying to achieve!), and the response has been deeply satisfying. I feel incredibly fortunate.
——————
Thank you so much, Gary, for sharing your experience with me and my readers, and we wish you continuing success!

Click here to visit Gary’s website

Click here to buy Gary’s book from amazon.com Highly Recommended! Or here for UK customers.

Click here to visit Legend Press

Next week London Author Marsha Moore will be doing a guest blog post right here! Same bat channel!

Having thought before that being an agent’s reader would be a dream job, I thought I’d go ahead and try my hand, and see how it went. I did decide, by the way, to put my real name on my responses. I don’t trust myself to be anonymous. I find that anonymity brings out the worst in some people, and if I will only say something if no one knows who I am, then I really shouldn’t be saying it.

So, what have I learned so far?

Well, not that I didn’t know this before, but writing up personal responses to 50 queries is hard… and time consuming. Expected that, but since I’m a writer and not an agent, I did decide the least I could do was say WHY their query didn’t grab me. An agent wouldn’t, of course, be expected to or have time to do that. But as soon as I would finish a set of two or three, two or three new ones would come in. Eesh. No rest for wicked faux-agents either!

The thing I found most helpful about the exercise is that having read through 29 /50 queries so far today, two facts stand out:

#1 The biggest problem I’ve had with queries I’ve “rejected” so far is that they’ve meandered or had muddled plot hooks. Sometimes the hooks just went on and on. And on. This made me realise I need to take a look at my queries and hooks and such and make sure they’re concise and punchy, otherwise they’ll get passed over pretty quickly.

#2 The second issue that I didn’t expect was being selective. Out of 50, we’re only allowed to send “requests” for 5. It doesn’t sound that hard, considering how dire most agents say their query email is, but out of 29, I’ve already found 7 that I liked. I sent “requests” for two, rejected two (telling them they would make my top 10, but sadly not my top 5), and I have three on hold, waiting to see what comes in during the rest of the day.

I really hadn’t expected to have to turn down queries that actually were well written and promising. I’m sure part of it is that the quality in this setup is much higher than the normal slush. People wouldn’t submit their queries to be used in the game if they didn’t feel pretty confident they’d have a good shot.

I would encourage everyone to play.  It’s one thing reading a critique of a query letter, but it’s another altogether to actually have to choose projects. It’s not too late to play along. The queries will be open for comments (and therefore the game) for one week (from today). To read the star post go here and this is Query #1.  Just go forward from there! All 50 queries will be posted by the end of the day.  I’m just setting myself the extra challenge of trying to get through all of them in one day (although because of the time difference, I’ll have to pick up the tail end in the morning.)

Are any of you participating? Did you learn anything?

My first response was annoyance, because although I realise that agents get a lot of query letters, I put a substantial amount of time into each letter and in researching each agent that I might write to and making sure I supply exactly the number of pages they want in the format they want, a synopsis, or not, depending on their individual tastes.  So to just hear nothing would be dreadful.  The uncertainty of being a writer is one of the worst parts.  (The best part, of course, is writing itself.  But we all know by now that the days of a writer being able to ignore the business end of authorship and only compose are gone, if indeed they ever did exist.)

However,  I’ve changed my mind. For two reasons.

1:  I recently got a response from an agent upon rejection, even though they said they don’t do that.  Why did they bother?  I wonder if it is because they could tell my letter was personal?  I’m not certain, but I like to think so.

2.  An agent I queried recently explained her “No Response = No Thanks” policy in her Publisher’s Marketplace listing by saying that she’d quit sending out rejections on queries (although she does still on partials and fulls) because she was getting rash, vitriloic responses from overwrought authors who couldn’t take the “no” gracefully.

I used to tell people all the time, “Internet people are crazy.”  It’s a little true.  Not all of us, but a lot of us.  And the worst part is that I’m sure most people at one time or another has sent an ill-advised email.  Of course this behaviour, when talking of agents, editors, and any business correspondance is completely unacceptable, but considering that they’re dealing with the public, it’s hardly surprising.

I doubt any of those folks would have sent her hateful messages if they’d had to put a stamp on it.  Internet people are both crazy and lazy. (Not you, dear readers.  But I’ll bet you’ve met someone who’s gone a little off the deep end online.  I know I’ve met quite a few.  They’re in chat rooms and RPGs and forums.)

It just never occured to me that anyone would send a f*** off message to an agent, but wow, I guess they do.

With that in mind, I’m not going to complain about this “No Response = No Thanks” policy anymore. As a multi-website owner, blogger and forum admin  (on other domains, obviously), I have felt the wrath of the trolls, and I do not blame agents one bit for cutting off this avenue to people who aren’t professional enough to see their queries as business letters, and to see a “no thanks” from an agent as a “no thanks on this project“.  It’s unfortunate, but understandable.