Post your Progress Thread

**Sean Wright** · August 23rd, 2006, 08:38 AM

Who's the publisher? If you don't mind me asking.

**juzzza** · August 23rd, 2006, 08:43 AM

Sigel Press is an academic publishing house, and my contract is with them although their fiction imprint is Kedzie Press.

**Sean Wright** · August 23rd, 2006, 08:50 AM

Cool. Good luck with that. Is it just shorts you write?

**juzzza** · August 23rd, 2006, 08:52 AM

No, I have two novel projects, both Fantasy. One needs some major editing and one needs completing!

I am planning to have a sample chapter of one of the novels in the anthology.

**Sean Wright** · August 23rd, 2006, 09:10 AM

That's a good idea - a kind of showcase for the longer work. I've done a similar thing in the paperback version of my new novel Jaarfindor Remade, where there's a couple of thousand word excerpt from the next novel, just to whet the appetite.

An aside, did you hear about your grades for your thesis?

**juzzza** · August 23rd, 2006, 09:18 AM

Yes, I got a distinction and an element of it has been re-worked into an essay and will appear in an academic journal in October, the essay is called 'Genre Readers are Revolting'!

So I am pretty pleased... it's also how I met my publisher, indirectly.

**Sean Wright** · August 23rd, 2006, 09:20 AM

Excellent! You never know what's around the corner. Who knows what your antho may lead you to next.

**juzzza** · August 23rd, 2006, 09:46 AM

Yea, thanks - fingers crossed!

**BrianC** · August 23rd, 2006, 10:12 AM

All revisions are finished on Rose|Thorn, a basic query letter has been whipped into shape, and all that's needed to start sending out agent queries is to condense 157,000 words into a two-page synopsis. And that, it seems, may be the hardest single task.

**Sean Wright** · August 23rd, 2006, 10:38 AM

Originally Posted by BrianC

All revisions are finished on Rose|Thorn, a basic query letter has been whipped into shape, and all that's needed to start sending out agent queries is to condense 157,000 words into a two-page synopsis. And that, it seems, may be the hardest single task.

Yes, it may be, but here's a few ideas that might help you construct it.

What's your story about? The plot? Overview, not tedious details. (Think blurbs on the back of books).

Who are the main characters?

Ask yourself: why should I read the sample chapters? (Agent's perspective)

Work VERY hard on the first chapter.

Send the first chapter to me, if you like. I'll be blunt but charming. And remember: it's all about folk's opinion. Good luck with it, Brian.

**Holbrook** · August 23rd, 2006, 12:07 PM

Good luck Brian. I agree the synopsis is the hardest part.

Only tip I can give is condense the story down as much as you can, say four pages, then condense again, and again. Look at it from another angle and do the same. It's the one page ones that are killers lol...

Oh thanks for the encouraging words about HofG

Also Sean, Misti and Robert, thanks very muchly!

The only thing out of this batch of critiques I am tempted to heed is to expand the detail round the freeing of the main character. I am not going to put dialogue tags on the first bit unless forced to with a red hot poker.

Good going there Misti. Outlining to that depth is something I envy.

Sean; congrats on the nomination.

Juzzza;

Have I read that story, either I have or seen your thoughts/ outline glad to see it has seen the light of day and that the book is forging ahead....

You are going to finish DB,FH then??? I do hope so......

**Sean Wright** · August 23rd, 2006, 12:28 PM

Originally Posted by Holbrook

Oh thanks for the encouraging words about HofG

Also Sean, Misti and Robert, thanks very muchly!

The only thing out of this batch of critiques I am tempted to heed is to expand the detail round the freeing of the main character. I am not going to put dialogue tags on the first bit unless forced to with a red hot poker.

Good going there Misti. Outlining to that depth is something I envy.

Sean; congrats on the nomination.

Thanks, Holbrook. It was three nominations for Best Novella, Best Short Story, and I published Andrew Hook's Beyond Each Blue Horizon which has made the Best Collection category. I'm very excited.

edited to mend quote tags - Jacquin

**Jacquin** · August 23rd, 2006, 01:18 PM

Originally Posted by roberteggleton

In my opinion, written word is decades behind consumer demands and people who write are torn between tradition and innovation that is actually mainstream. I want to barf on the shelf of every bookstore that stocks another novel with a "sword."

Yeah? As a bladesmith and martial artist I particularly like novels with swords. I once read a great story all about a sword, how and why it was made. Couldn't fault any of the research which was a first for me.

**Holbrook** · August 23rd, 2006, 01:26 PM

Originally Posted by Jacquin

Yeah? As a bladesmith and martial artist I particularly like novels with swords. I once read a great story all about a sword, how and why it was made. Couldn't fault any of the research which was a first for me.

That's why it took nearly five years to research and write... and still not submitted yet to any agent. The writer is more of a coward than normal where this one is concerned, if it's the same story we are talking about. The one you helped with said research...

**Misti** · August 23rd, 2006, 01:33 PM

Originally Posted by Holbrook

Good luck Brian. I agree the synopsis is the hardest part.

Only tip I can give is condense the story down as much as you can, say four pages, then condense again, and again. Look at it from another angle and do the same. It's the one page ones that are killers lol...

Oddly enough, I find it depends on the story I'm telling (not that I've finished any novels to publishable quality yet, but that's partially due to how difficult I'm making it for myself, for example, wanting to build the world so thoroughly for my paranoid narrator so I can fit more in there. That means I have to know how the world began and how it got to where it is now, too. It's only taken me... 27 months to get that started).

One of my novel ideas already has the synopsis written, but because it's going need a very fine balance so the story works (the outcast character must be fully responsible and not a mere victim, among other things), I'm having some trouble writing it.

Originally Posted by Jacquin

Yeah? As a bladesmith and martial artist I particularly like novels with swords. I once read a great story all about a sword, how and why it was made. Couldn't fault any of the research which was a first for me.

Sadly, on some writer sites I've gotten some rather rude replies by smart alec writers who think that asking for personal input on cow behavior is the writer being too lazy to do his own research. :huh: I suspect that attitude might have something to do with a lot of the inaccuracies these days.

And 'grats to all with the publishing contracts. If I don't have anything in three years when I graduate, I'll be envying you.

-Misti