Brenda Drake . . . under the influence of coffee: February 2011

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

The week after hangover . . . just a few things

It's been over a week since the huge contest with Weronika Janczuk, and I'm so happy that so many of you gained a lot from this blogfest. There will be more. I first have to ~~stalk~~ ~~beg~~ ask a few agents to participate. I'm working on it and will hopefully have a new contest soon.

So coffee around here hasn't been the same since starting my diet. Black. Need I say more? Next week, I finally get to start adding creamer back into my diet. Yay! They say, you gain a taste for black coffee. They lie. I haven't. Anyway, back to what this blog is supposed to be about. GIVEAWAYS!!!

We all love free stuff, right? Well, hop on over to DNA Writers for a chance to win free edits, books, and an Amazon gift card. Also, during my Birthday month of March, I will be giving away free edits from CA Marshall agent intern, freelance editor, writer extraordinaire. The first giveaway will be on March 1st, and you don't have to do anything to win other than be a follower of my blog. I don't care how old I get. I will always LOVE birthdays (I still won't tell you my age, though).

Next order of business is that I received a few awards that I want to pass on.

I'm so honored that the ladies over at Critique Sisters Corner gave me this wonderful award. Linda, Heather, and Karlene are full of awesomesauce so go check out their blog. Thanks guys!

The rules for accepting this award:

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave the award
2. State seven things about yourself
3. Pass the award on to any recently discovered great bloggers

Hmmm, seven things about myself? That you all would want to know? That's going to be tough.

I live in Albuquerque.
I'm sort of a neat freak.
I love to collect old worn books - Ones that feel like they've been read so many times that they were enjoyed.
I was born in Kittery, Maine.
My favorite book of all time is Kings Row by Henry Bellamann. Why? It was my grandfather's book. I love the old movie that stars Ronald Reagan - I cry every time at the end.
I'm an Aries.
I love the color red (which probably has something to do with being an Aries - if I believed in that kind of thing, that is).

Now to pass it forward (to someone who doesn't already have it). I've decided to pass it on to some newer bloggers who could use a boost to their followers' list. Take some time and check out their blogs and follow them.

Lori M. Lee at you are the unicorn of my dreams

Tammy at If You Can Dream It

Samantha Verant at Some Guys Are Toads

Christine L. Arnold at Figments

Mindy at Mindy Ruiz, Young Adult Author

My second award comes from the lovely Beth at Beth's Blog: Beth's New Blog (Life After Project 52) - Bunches of sweet thanks to you, Beth!

And here’s how the award goes:

1. Thank and link back to the person that gave this award.
2. Share 4 guilty pleasures that you have.
3. Pass the award along to 6 other sweet blogs

Since I've been on a diet, I miss my guilty pleasures. So here they are, and yes, they are all food or drink related:

Yummy Starbuck's Caramel Macchiatos
Anything with the name Godiva written on the package
Cheese and onion enchiladas with red chile and cheese smothered all over it
Raspberry Margaritas

Now to pass the award on to those who always make me smile when I'm down or frustrated.

My gals at DNA Writers

Morgan Lee at FantasyFairy

Trisha Wolfe at YA Bound

Kerri Cuevas at Craft Junkie

Michael Di Gesu at In Time . . .

Lorna Suzuki at IMAGO books FANTASY REALM

I sure wish I could give away more awards for this one, because there are so many of you out there that have sweet blogs!

Well, I guess that's all I have to say today. I'll be posting the deets on my new contest soon, so keep an eye out for it. Don't forget to come back on March 1st for my first giveaway!

21 comments

Monday, February 14, 2011

It Was a Dark and Stormy Blogfest Contest - WE HAVE WINNERS!

We have winners!

(actually you all are winners - read on to see why)

Wow, just wow! You all amaze me with your kind words and generous hearts toward your fellow writers. Though I may not have gotten to comment on all your blogs, I did hop around and read lines and comments. We had a few glitches that I feel were straightened out quickly, and regardless of which post you posted your entry on it was read by our fabulous agent judge Weronika Janczuk with D4EO Literary Agency. Go follow her here and here and here and if you want to learn more about D4EO Literary Agency go here.

A few things before I turn it over to Weronika, go to the DNA Writers' blog here to see who won the followers' prize and don't forget to follow me. I will be giving away gifts on the days that are special to me during my birthday month of March. The first prize will be on my son's birthday, March 1st. And you don't have to do anything other than follow me to be entered.

With that said, I turn the blog over to Weronkia *the crowd erupts with applause and cheers.*

Weronika Janczuk

MESSAGE FROM THE JUDGE

One thing that everyone should keep in mind is that first lines are terribly difficult to judge—there are too many factors at work for me to consider every one of them. In many instances, the first line isn’t spectacular, but it fits perfectly into a spectacular first paragraph, etc.

I judged these first lines objectively, in a vacuum, you could say—what first lines left me breathless or particularly curious or were superbly impressive in comparison to the others? I’m sure that many of you have wonderful manuscripts, and this isn’t a judgment about the quality of your writing or your manuscript.

Some suggestions: Don’t force multiple phrases in one sentence if they don’t work together. Watch out for too many adverbs and/or adjectives. Read your sentences out loud; check for rhythm and flow. Be wary of clichés. Be wary of trying to force tension by telling the reader something without showing it—it’s not as effective. Most importantly, trust your gut.

Below are winners. I ask that they email me at weronika(at)d4eo(dot)com with CRITIQUE – DARK AND STORMY BLOGFEST in the subject line, pages and queries attached as Word documents (and if you won a critique of both, please send them in separate documents).

Everyone else, feel free to query me! (I am closed temporarily to queries in general, but contest participants are an exception.) Send your query and the first ten pages in the body of an email to the address above, with QUERY – DARK AND STORMY BLOGFEST in the subject line.

If there are any questions, please ask them in the comments. I’ll check in for the next day or two.

Here goes!

FIRST PLACE—critique of first 50 + query

Name: Tabitha Bird
Title: The exquisiteness of broken glass
Genre: Women's fiction

One thousand black birds dropped from the sky the night I was born.

SECOND PLACE—critique of first 25 + query

Name: Sam Witt
Title: The Bleeding Cure
Genre: Horror

Real friends are up for a kidnapping and won't complain too much when you get down to the bloodletting.

THIRD PLACE—critique of first 10 + query

Name: Taryn
Title: Splashback
Genre: YA Contemp

The Sour Patch Kids in the bottom of Heidi Maverick's sparkly clutch probably bothered him the most.

HONORABLE MENTIONS—critique of query

Name: Christi Corbett
Title: Along the Way Home
Genre: Historical Fiction

Every Wednesday Kate stood on the same front porch, her knuckles poised inches from the door, willing herself to finally do the unthinkable--walk away without knocking.

Name: Kathryn Jankowski
Title: WORSE THAN WICKED
Genre: MG fantasy adventure

Any other morning, one of the scavengers sifting through the white sands of Palanga would have found the jewel first, but today Roze arrived at the beach before dawn.

Name: Heather McCorkle
Title: The First Dragonwatcher
Genre YA Fantasy

Chemier loved it when people ran; it made the hunt that much sweeter.

Name: Stephanie Thornton
Title: Mistress of Byzantium
Genre: Historical Fiction

My life began the night my father died.

Name: Vicki Tremper
Title: Kwizera Means Hope
Genre: YA

I did not want to pick tea for a living.

Name: A.L. Sonnichsen
Title: Seagull Rising
Genre: Contemporary YA

Give me a well-sharpened knife.

Name: RJ Dreyer
Title: Thorn
Genre: YA Fantasy

If you saw her, you would think there was no greater joy than to stand on a roof during a storm.

Name: Nicole Wolverton
Title: Between Seasons
Genre: Commercial Fiction

Anyone who thought dying comes easy had shit for brains.

Happy Valentine's Day!

43 comments

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Post your entry to the contest post now for It Was a Dark and Stormy Blogfest Contest...

Post your first line entries for It Was a Dark and Stormy Blogfest Contest now!

So many of you haven't posted your entry to the contest post comment area yet. Some because blogger decided to wig out and you couldn't post (thanks for contacting me), some because twitter wasn't updating tweets today for some odd reason, or some may have been confused about the contest.

To enter the contest you must post your entry to the comments HERE. To answer a few questions, the reason for posting on the contest post is to make it easier for Weronika Janczuk to read the entries without having to hop to each blog. The blog post was so that you could get your first lines critiqued before entering - double bonus for entering the contest.

The contest will be extended to 8PM EST - So get your posts in.

8 comments

Monday, February 7, 2011

It's on! . . . It Was a Dark and Stormy Blogfest Contest

THE CONTEST IS CLOSED - GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Yay! It Was a Dark and Stormy Blogfest Contest is finally here. So, today and tomorrow, February 7th and 8th, post your first lines on your blog and go hop around to the other participants' blogs listed in the linky below to critique. Polish your first line and post it in the comments below starting now until February 9th at 8am EST EXTENDED TO 8PM EST when the contest WILL BE CLOSED.

Post your first line in the comments below like this:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Name: Brenda Drake

Title: Annika Britanika: Around the World in 80:45:07

Genre: MG Steampunk

Maximillian Drayson didn't quite like girls, but he figured Annika Britanika was different.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Weronika Janczuk's blog

And to remind you, our fabulous judge is agent Weronika Janczuk with D4EO Literary Agency and she's giving out these great prizes:

1st place -- a critique of the first 50 pages + query

2nd place -- a critique of the first 25 pages + query

3rd place -- a critique of the query

To give Weronika plenty of time to read--along with all her demanding agent duties--the winners will be announced on the blog by Monday, February 14th.

Also don't forget that there will be an additional editing prize from CA Marshall given away to a follower at the new DNA Writers blog.

DNA Writers

ONLY POST YOUR FIRST LINE ENTRY IN THE COMMENTS BELOW BY WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9TH @ 8AM EST

DEADLINE EXTENDED TO 8PM EST

110 comments

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Interview with agent Weronika Janczuk . . . our first line contest judge and prize giver...

There's only one week until It Was A Dark and Stormy Blogfest Contest judged by Weronika Janczuk on February 7-9. Click here to join in the fun (or just scroll down to the previous post, whichever). So, today I'm pleased to post my interview with Weronika for you all to get to know her better, which only made me more excited for the contest.

I've been awestruck by the fabulous Weronika Janczuk. Her generosity and talent abounds. Not only is she a wonderful agent where she gives great advice on her blog Lightening + Lightening Bugs (a blog on publishing), but also she writes such beautiful prose on her blog A Room of One's Own. You can read more about Weronika (pronounced Veronika) here.

I'd like to welcome Weronika to my blog *waves*.

I've read that you're a tea drinker and the lover of witty books. If you're curling up on the sofa on a cold winter's night, what tea are you drinking and which witty book is on your lap?

I’m addicted to Earl Grey, with a bit of sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice. As for a witty book, anything by David Sedaris (at this fine moment in time; it changes constantly).

Earl Grey is my fave too (promise I won't stalk you, okay only on twitter here). So, you were a freelance editor and an intern before getting your agent gig at D4EO Literary Agency. How did those jobs prepare you for agenting?

I learned nearly everything there was to know before getting started. Some things you can’t learn without actually doing them, such as delving into the process of editing a book or compiling a submissions list; other things—such as how to read with an editorial/agenting eye (“Will this sell?” “What do we have to do to make this saleable?”), how to write a pitch letter, how to deal with contracts and royalty statements and payments, how to handle the publicity/marketing for clients, etc.—I learned from the variety of pre-D4EO gigs.

I agree. You can sit on the sidelines and take notes, but it's not until you dive into the thick of it and get dirty do you learn the game. You're a writer as well. What genre do you write in and how do you schedule time to write?

I write YA, literary and historical fiction; I’m currently working on a YA. (If you’re curious, I blog about the writing process here.) I don’t schedule time to write—I write whenever I have time, which means I have to be caught up with everything client-related and have enough of a buffer to leave queries or requested manuscripts for a day or two. I try to be expedient with everything on the agenting end, so writing comes after.

And I thought I was busy. You really have to juggle your time. Do you work closely with your clients on revisions before submitting a project to publishers?

Oh, yes. At least one round of revisions, most often multiple rounds—sometimes these revisions take months (and add to that the slowness of publishing; people wonder why it takes months to sell a book).

I can believe that, my revisions have taken. . . Well, anyway, what are the common mistakes you see writers make when querying you?

I don’t read queries. I jump into the pages—with those, it’s starting in the wrong spot; not completely clean writing; cliché scenarios; non-distinctive voice; etc.

Well, that's encouraging to know for those who struggle with the query. Your blog says you represent adult fiction. Is there anytime you'd consider looking at representing young adult or middle grade fiction?

There is some discussion at the agency about this being a possibility in the future, but at this point, I don’t read unsolicited queries. I am, however, actively looking for writers online, for example, whose description of their work intrigues me.

That's wonderful and why being online is important. You never know who's reading your stuff. What are you looking for and what do you see way too much of in the slush pile?

I am still especially looking for a romance, a thriller, a sci-fi, a horror, and some more women’s fiction, but I am always happy to take on great literary fiction, commercial fiction, non-fiction, and fantasy.

Great list, I hope you find some of that here in the contest. Since this is a first line contest, do you have any pointers on how to make a first line zing?

To answer this question entirely, I’d have to spend a lot of time analyzing why existing first lines work. Here are some general tips (and I warn you that there are always exceptions, but unfortunately, most writers aren’t the exception):

- Don’t make the first line a piece of dialogue.

- Consider where you want your first paragraph of exposition/narrative to take the reader, and then focus on writing a first line that draws us right into the middle of that scene.

- Some of the best first lines are a bit vague (“Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself”)—they don’t force details or a ton of information—but they still manage to force relatively specific questions that the reader wants answered (“Who is Mrs. Dalloway?” “Why does Mrs. Dalloway want to buy flowers?” “What flowers?” “Why herself?”).

- The best first lines aren’t generic. If you’ve seen a first line similar to yours, rewrite.

- It’s hard to put into words, but really good first lines are lively; they bring the story and the reader’s interest to life. Immediately from a first line a reader can sense that the writer has control over the unfolding story, so make sure that your decision regarding the first line is as calculated and purposeful as all decisions about a manuscript should be.

Wow, excellent tips. With your editor eye, what's the biggest mistake you see in the full manuscripts that you pass on?

The writer usually doesn’t manage to maintain my interest throughout the manuscript, and I am a very impatient reader. (This also shows, for example, how subjective publishing can be—there are some very popular books that are a bit slower that I couldn’t stand to read entirely.)

These problems include a lack of tension, a lack of build to a climax, a lack of events that harm the main character and/or force them to try harder, etc.

The characters are usually not as proactive as I want them to be; you usually can’t have a book about a character reacting to the world around her. Sometimes the character is unsympathetic for other reasons.

A lot of the times the writing doesn’t hold up.

Sometimes I’m not sure what’s wrong—I just don’t want to keep reading. You have to invest the reader into the world and the characters so deeply that they won’t think twice about not finishing.

Yeah, that tension bit is hard to master. How would you describe your agent style? Do you have teeth like a shark or are you as soft as kitten or somewhere in between?

I’m not sure that I know what both ends of that spectrum look like. Like any good agent, I like to think that I am fiercely protective of my clients’ interests—their number one advocate in the office, when the book is going on submission, when it sells, when it comes to publicity/marketing efforts, etc. No good agent can be soft as a kitten in these situations, not when publishers are taking a long time to get contracts and payments out, etc.

When dealing with editorial letters, I soften the editorial blow as much as I can by outlining what the client has done well (often very, very well!), but I do not hesitate to be blunt in what needs to change—neither the writer nor I will get anywhere with the book unless what needs changing is changed.

When a book is on submission, I remind the client that we have done everything we possibly can. We both think the book is as good as it’s going to get. I don’t think it’s fair to tell someone “It’s the editors, it’s not you” because, whereas that is true in a way, agented writers have to write for the perfect editor. So more than trying to soften the blow—which I will always do—I first and foremost try to encourage the writer in their next pursuit. I am heavily involved in a lot of my clients’ brainstorming and outlining and writing processes, so we are always looking forward.

Great insight on how you handle your business and how you know when you need to be tough or a bit softer. Thank you, Weronika! In closing, can you leave us with your favorite quote?

I have many, so if you’ve read other interviews of mine, you’ve probably spotted a different one or two. Here’s another that I love: “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” – William Wordsworth

And thank you, Brenda! I look forward to judging the contest.

Enter Contest Here

On Monday, post your first lines to your blogs and get critiques from fellow writers and then make sure to post that polished line by 8:00am EST on Wednesday February 9th in the comment section of the contest post. I'll have that post up on Monday so you have plenty of time to enter it.

And don't forget to follow the DNA Writers blog for a chance to win a special free edit (prize to be announced) from CA Marshall! I'll be drawing a name from the followers' list and announce a winner on my blog.

Oh, and one more thing, there's a book trailer contest going on over at my friend's blog FantasyFairy where you can win a free book trailer for your novel. Go check it out!

That's it!

13 comments