Since I am currently at the Realm Makers conference, which is “all speculative fiction all the time,” I thought today’s video would be irresistible–like a snack.
Define Success
Success. It is a word that has a “sweet smell” for some and is the “gold ring” of achievement for others. But in order to appreciate success, we must first define it. And there is the rub. Each one of us defines success differently, especially writers. Here are some definitions I’ve heard or seen: Getting an agent My first book contract Selling 20,000 copies of my …
Fun Friday – July 12, 2024
While not a new video, the message in today’s presentation is so powerful that I had to share it. The title is “Every life has a story … if we only bother to read it.” The message cuts to the core of why we work so hard in the publishing industry to tell stories, both fiction and nonfiction. To bring redemption, hope, and new life to those around us. You never know who will …
What Is One Thing You Wish You Had Known?
For years, Reg Forder, at his ACW writers conferences, liked to ask his faculty panel, “What is one thing you wish you had known before you became a writer?” Since I joined the publishing side of things after being a bookseller and later became a literary agent, I have given the question some thought. Coming from retail, the hardest thing to grasp was how long it takes to get from a …
Fun Fridays – July 5, 2024
Fill your July with PUNS! I changed my iPhone name to Titanic. It’s syncing now. I tried to catch some fog. I mist. When chemists die, they barium. Jokes about German sausage are the wurst. A soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran. I know a guy who’s addicted to brake fluid. He says he can stop any time. How does Moses make his tea? Hebrews it. I …
Unsolicited Proposals: Aka “The Slush Pile”
All literary agents receive dozens of proposals each week. Most are via email these days, but some still come via the post. Last week was a relatively slow week; my office received only 28 unsolicited proposals via email and two in the post. For the month of June, it was around 170 total unsolicited proposals received. (Unsolicited means proposals that are not from our existing clients. We get a …
Fun Fridays – June 28, 2024
Can you create a sentence, that makes sense, with five “ands” in a row, before watching today’s video? Think about that for a bit. Then see how this clever fellow does exactly that!
Ever Had One of Those Days?
You are going along with your tidy to-do list decorated with empty check-boxes waiting to be marked. And then, WHAM! You get hijacked like the rhino in today’s picture and carried off to some unknown destination. Hours go by, and you are tossed to and fro by this new crisis and that new task. Before you know it, the day is done and your eyes find that tidy to-do list. Still pristine as the …
Fun Friday – June 21, 2024
This video is quite creative. And even if you don’t understand the scholastic elements, just enjoy the pure delight in this professor’s love of teaching biblical languages. Wow.
Write to Publish 2024
The Write to Publish conference for 2024 concluded last Friday and was a wonderful success. We had over 300 in attendance, making for great opportunities to meet new people and develop what will be lasting connections. We heard from a variety of key speakers. Brett Harris gave a “Challenge to the Truly Ambitious.” Trillia Newbell had to cancel at the last minute due to pneumonia. …