June 2011

Newsflash: Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies Virtual Book Launch

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Dear Readers…

My new book Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies hits stores July 5, and I’m hoping you can help me spread the word about my 7-day virtual book launch June 29-July 5 on DearEditor.com.

Daily giveaways, free downloads, excerpts from the book… read my full post for more.

7-Day Virtual Book Launch!

To celebrate the publication of Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies, from June 29-July 5 here on DearEditor.com, I’m featuring daily “Free First Chapter Critique” giveaways, free downloads, excerpts from the book, and profiles of the 13 amazing authors, editors, and agents who so generously contributed sidebars to the book. As the grand finale, I’m giving away a “Free Full Manuscript Edit” on the final day.

The book itself is filled with great features, including:

  • tips for targeting an audience, finding an angle that’ll make the story stand out, and writing a killer hook
  • an extensive chapter on self-marketing to help writers move boldly into the realm of self-promotion
  • techniques and exercises to shape plot, create teen-friendly characters, develop a convincingly youthful voice, write natural dialogue, and use setting to illuminate characters and plot
  • 13 National Book Award winners and finalists, Newbery medalists and honorees, and other award-winning luminaries sharing their insights in sidebars
  • self-editing tools to transform a first draft into a strong submission-ready final draft
  • insider tips for finding the right agent and/or editor and preparing a stand-out submission package
  • answers to common book contract questions
  • advice on self-publishing for YA writers

Above all, I aim to guide writers in developing a style that appeals to young readers. Finding one’s own voice and style is especially important to me.

I’m really proud of Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies. Writers of all levels will get a lot out of it—and have fun along the way. I sure had fun writing it.

Shout-outs via social media, your blog, email to friends, posts in your writers forums… any mention you could give the book and the launch would be hugely appreciated. You can send the curious to:

Thanks ever so much!

The Editor

How Do I Revise a Third Draft?

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Dear Editor…

Now I’m ready to work on the 3rd draft of my YA novel. I’ve never been here before. How do I do this? Should I start over for the 3rd time or just edit parts of it that need work? Is this still the cutting down on characters/bettering the plot time? How do you know when you’re done?

Sincerely,

Melody

Dear Melody…

Time for outside input. Get into a YA fiction critique group, sign up for a critique with an author/editor/agent at a conference, or hire a freelance editor. Fresh, knowledgeable eyes can see what you’ve become blind to. In the meantime, work out the kinks item by item. Do a pass just for characters, making sure they grow through the story; a pass for plot, ensuring that all events build upon each other to move the plot forward; a pass for dialogue, checking the flow and the balance between talking and telling; a pass for setting, giving readers enough to picture the place and characters to act on or react to; and a pass for word choice, replacing dull words with dynamic ones.

Happy writing!

The Editor

Leave Self-Marketing to the Young?

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Dear Editor…

Can you be too old to write for kids? I’m older and I finally have time to write. I have lots of experience with kids, my stuff is funny, and editors have good things to say. But I’m afraid I’m seen as too old to help market a book effectively, especially by young editors.

Sincerely,

Margery

Dear Margery…

Heck no! You’re never too old to write—for kids or anyone else. Lots of successful writers got their starts after their kids left the nest or after they retired and could focus on publication. There are plenty of marketing opportunities that don’t involve physical travelling, if that’s your concern. You’re already online—promote yourself through social networking and online writers forums, create a website and blog, write guest blogs for other sites, write articles for magazines/journals/newspapers that target your audience…. Savvy authors self-promote right from their writing nooks. This game is about passion and willingness, not age.

Happy writing!

The Editor

Guest Editor Theresa Stanton re: Author Blogsite v. Website

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Dear Editor…

I read an interview where you refer to your website as a “blogsite.” How does a blogsite differ from a regular website? Should authors have a blogsite instead of a website?

Sincerely,

R.

Dear R….

The Editor asked me respond to your question because I’m her “web guru” and set up this site as well as her blog at deborahhalverson.com. You are correct in referencing this site as a “blogsite”, but before I answer your question as to what that is and how it differs from a “website”, we should first establish what a “blog” is.  (Don’t worry, it’s just a few sentences of semi-techie stuff.)

The term blog came from shortening the word “weblog”, which in essence is an online journal. The beauty of journals is that they are date-based, so sifting through archives is easy. The main difference between a blog and a website is that a blog is organized into dates or category archives whereas a website does not have to be. On top of the organizing aspect of a blog, the dynamic nature of allowing visitors to comment on journal entries makes blogs much more interactive than a standard website. Websites (which are usually written in html language) are by nature static, or non-changing. By contrast, you don’t need to know html to use a blog. The CMS, or content management system, that “drives” blogs uses something called php language scripting, which frees up bloggers from web programming and gives them a user-friendly interface in which to write and publish posts and pages. Sure, there are template programs out there for creating websites even when you don’t know html, but all those are really good for is creating static pages.

So we have a blog and a website. What is a “blogsite” then? Well, a blogsite is a blog made to function as a website with the added benefits of archiving and commenting. Instead of the visitor going from a website then to a blog to read the latest news from their favorite author, they just go to one all-inclusive blogsite that contains pages AND blog entries.

As a writer, would you benefit more from a blogsite than a website? Absolutely! I encouraged Deborah to add the blog aspect because I knew a) she’s a great writer and b) if there’s anyone who would find blog functions useful, it would be her. How much of your writing you put “out there” through your blogging is up to you. You don’t want to go and publish entire books on a blog, but “teasers” certainly entice readers to purchase your new novel. I can go on and on about the positive aspects of blogsites, but in terms of readership and “creating buzz” for your writing, being able to set up a subscription system and other plugins (i.e. social networking buttons) to drive the buzz are just some of the things you can easily add to your blog to make it function and work for you. Once you start marketing your book, a blogsite will help streamline the flow of potential fans, as well as streamline your thoughts and the organization of information on your site.

Content Management Systems (CMS) like WordPress, Blogger, and Typepad are just a few sites that offer free blogs for those just starting out, but if you want to create a real brand for yourself, you can register a domain name like “deborahhalverson.com” or “blogsforphotogs.com” and have it hosted with a web hosting company so that the CMS can be installed and run independently on your hosted site. Running CMS this way gives you (and your web designer) full control over the source and design files. Many hosting companies offer “one-click” WordPress installations and there are literally thousands of free themes or skins out there that you can use for the look and layout of your blog with minimal or no coding experience necessary. For more specific design and branding needs, you can hire a web designer like myself to build a theme or customize an existing theme for you. Once it’s all set up, you have full control over your blog and are free to do what you do best, which is writing.

Happy blogging!

Theresa Stanton

Theresa Stanton is a web designer and photographer with a background in architecture. Her blogsite www.blogsforphotogs.com is geared toward building blogs for photographers but she has also built blogsites for a wide range of businesses. Her portraiture work can be found at her photography blogsite www.designfocusstudio.com.

OK to Resubmit After a “No”?

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Dear Editor…

Is it acceptable to revise a manuscript based on an editor or agent’s feedback and then resubmit to that same person?

Sincerely,

Wendy

Dear Wendy…

Indeed it is acceptable . . . under certain circumstances. The best scenario has the editor or agent giving specific revision suggestions along with an invite to resubmit should you revise along those lines. But even without an invitation, if you’ve revised the manuscript significantly (that word is important, because they didn’t say “no” due to surface problems—they’d probably work on those with you if that were the case), you can resubmit it with a note in your query letter saying, “I’ve changed the manuscript significantly since you last saw it and hope you’ll be open to taking another look.” If they’re not, they won’t. No skin off any noses.

Happy writing!

The Editor

Trash It or Tweak It?

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Dear Editor…

I have been sending out my middle grade fantasy. I was writing to my 8-year-old but the 2 rejections I received speak about voice. I myself am moved by the voice in children’s books and can certainly attain A GOOD voice in a new book, but should I throw this one away? Believe the two rejections?

Sincerely,

Gemini

Dear Gemini…

Two is too few, too soon for the circular file. Use the feedback about voice to re-examine your ms instead. Young fantasies often have a more formal narrative style and can feel stilted. Make sure you’ve chosen dynamic, evocative words and phrases even if you’re stringing them together in a more proper style. Does your character “close the door” when he could “use his hand to smother the click of latch against plate” instead? Is he “easily frightened” or does he “fear the worst because small children easily assume the boogie man or fanged creatures”? Enrich a formal fantasy voice by going one step beyond the first phrase that pops into your head.

Happy writing!

The Editor