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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Writing Craft » Page 7

Writing Craft

Why I Read to the End

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon May 17, 2018
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I am the world’s worst about abandoning novels I read for leisure. I’ll give a book a fair chance, but as soon as I find I don’t like it, I have no compunction about tossing it aside to pursue a different story. And believe me, as a literary agent, I have many books to consider. In any room we spend time in at home, several books stay within reach. Authors must earn my time and effort. So how does a novelist compete?

I like the characters.

If I can relate to a sympathetic character, I’ll stick with the story. Or if I’m supposed to hate the character and the book will show me his comeuppance, I can deal with that. The main task for you, Dear Writer, is to emote. Why does the character feel this way, why does she act this way, and why should I care? Make me feel emotions, and I’ll stay.

The characters are familiar but not stereotypes.

I don’t mind seeing well-known types for comfort and the sake of shorthand. We all know the helicopter mother, the wise elder, and the prodigal, for example. But don’t make me feel as though I’ve happened upon a terrible “B” film from the forties. If you start with the familiar, add dimension to show why the character fits the stereotype. Unless you’re writing broad comedy, don’t rely on the stereotype alone to carry the story.

I believe the plot.

I’m willing to suspend disbelief, but only to a point. Know your genre so you know how much unreality your audience will endure. For example, fantasy fans will go along with a wild universe much more quickly than romance readers will believe that two addicts spending an afternoon in a shooting gallery is a firm foundation for a happy, long-term marriage. Authors who do want their readers to go along with an improbable plot must display a high level of skill to keep readers invested in the story.

I think about the book.

I’ll stay with a book if I’m thinking about it when I’m not reading it. I’m thinking about the characters as I make dinner and fold laundry. I’m wondering what will happen next.

I can’t wait to get back to the book.

When I’m plotting when I can make time to get back to reading, you’ve won me over. I’ll stick with you until the bitter – or happy – end.

Your turn:

How many pages or chapters do you give a book before you abandon it?

What makes you stick with a book?

 

 

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Category: Reading, Writing CraftTag: Reading, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Never Assume Biblical Literacy

By Steve Laubeon April 16, 2018
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It wasn’t long ago that a reference to a Biblical character or a Bible verse would be widely understood without explanation. That is no longer true. Researcher George Gallup said “We revere the Bible, but we don’t read it.” This was recently illustrated in our local newspaper in an article about a football player named Shadrach. “It is a name his mom found in the Old Testament, the Babylonian god …

Read moreNever Assume Biblical Literacy
Category: Book Proposals, Craft, Trends, Writing CraftTag: Bible, Biblical Knowledge, book proposals, Writing Craft

Editors: Friend or Foe?

By Guest Bloggeron March 19, 2018
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Our guest blogger today is our friend Karen Ball! She runs Karen Ball Publishing Services, LLC and is an award-winning, best-selling author; a popular podcaster/ speaker; and the co-creator with Erin Taylor Young of From the Deep, LLC. She has also been executive editor for fiction at Tyndale, Multnomah, Zondervan, and B&H Publishing Group, and a literary agent with the Steve Laube Agency. …

Read moreEditors: Friend or Foe?
Category: Editing, Get Published, Inspiration, Karen, The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Editing, Get Published, Writing Craft

25 Rules for Writers

By Bob Hostetleron March 14, 2018
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Yes, W. Somerset Maugham famously said, “There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” But that hasn’t stopped many of the best and/or most famous writers in English from suggesting rules for both fiction and nonfiction. So here is a list of twenty-five of my favorite rules for writers, offered for your contemplation, consideration, and maybe even …

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Category: The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Rules, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

A Writer’s Best Friend

By Bob Hostetleron January 31, 2018
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If I asked you what you considered to be a writer’s best friend, what would you say? Please don’t say “Wikipedia.” My clients would probably reply, “Bob Hostetler.” But that can’t be everyone’s answer. You might consider “a fine fountain pen” or “a blank page in a brand new journal” to be your best friend as a writer. Maybe the thesaurus is your best friend (ally, associate, buddy, companion, …

Read moreA Writer’s Best Friend
Category: Craft, Grammar, The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Editing, Grammar, Writing Craft

I Can’t Believe I Wrote the Whole Thing

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon January 25, 2018
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You’re an author with lots of talent and a great idea! You know the market and are confident your story will work. There’s plenty of plot to make word count. So why not sell on proposal? Selling on proposal seems ideal, but might not be a good idea for the new author. Why not? Pacing A new author can’t necessarily gauge how long it will take to write a book. Perhaps the first book rode like the …

Read moreI Can’t Believe I Wrote the Whole Thing
Category: Book Proposals, Craft, Creativity, The Writing LifeTag: book proposals, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Fix These 16 Potholes on Grammar Street

By Bob Hostetleron January 17, 2018
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Don’t worry. I hated grade school grammar as much as the next guy. Still, as a magazine editor and, later, as a freelance book editor and (now) literary agent, I have come across far too many grammatical and usage mistakes in writing submitted to me. Not all of us can be Strunk or White (though every writer should own their valuable book, The Elements of Style). But we can profit from a little …

Read moreFix These 16 Potholes on Grammar Street
Category: Book Proposals, Craft, Writing CraftTag: Grammar, Writing Craft

Fix Your Worst Writing Pitfalls

By Bob Hostetleron November 29, 2017
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Writers should know how to write. Right? But that is easier said than done. “Monsters. . . lie in ambush for the writer trying to put together a clean English sentence,” says William Zinsser in On Writing Well. Numerous dangers line the road to becoming an accomplished and published (and much-published) writer. As a writer, editor, and agent, I see the same mistakes over and over and over (such as …

Read moreFix Your Worst Writing Pitfalls
Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Writing Craft, Writing Pitfalls

The Curse of the Writer

By Steve Laubeon November 20, 2017
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Speaking from an agent's perspective...
I have more conversations with clients about their feelings of anxiety, apprehension or insecurity than almost any other topic. Almost every writer I have ever worked with as an editor or an agent severely doubts themselves at some point in the process.

Doubts occur in the midst of creation.
Doubts occur when the disappointing royalty statement …

Read moreThe Curse of the Writer
Category: Career, Encouragement, Faith, Inspiration, Reviews, The Writing LifeTag: Book Business, Doubt, Editors, Get Published, Pitching, Rejection, Writing Craft, Writing Life

Unnecessary Words

By Dan Balowon November 14, 2017
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From my earliest days writing and communicating, I’ve needed to fit whatever I wrote or spoke into space and time required by the medium in which I was using at the moment. In electronic media, a clock runs everything. If you have 90 seconds to fill before the radio newscast, you actually have 89 seconds to make a point. Not 91 or 105 seconds…89 seconds, so the network feeds are picked up without …

Read moreUnnecessary Words
Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: word count, Writing Craft
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