Happy belated new year, all!
I suppose it's worth mentioning that my old computer met its maker over the Christmas holidays- cause of death was hard drive failure and, due to an external hard drive that didn't back up what it was programmed to, I lost my NaNoWriMo novel and about 25 pages of a short story I'd been working on. I'm a bit bummed about it, but otherwise okay- hey, the thing probably needed a rewrite anyway.
I also found out that, while I was computer-less, my query letter was featured on QueryDice, a critiquing blog run by literary agent Lauren Ruth. Naturally, it was horrible- she basically told me that I had no idea what I was doing (and, looking back, I probably didn't), but I respect her all the more for it. Hey, if you're going to tell me that my proposal sucks, then I'd like to know why.... There just isn't enough honesty in this world anymore.
Must....edit....naaoooow.
Showing posts with label How to fail at life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label How to fail at life. Show all posts
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Awesome Novel Trailer!
Two posts, you ask? Oh, yes.
Following the last post's obvious fail, K., M., and I have come to a mutual decision that I should never attempt to write a script, ever again. Then again, it's partly my fault- there is no guitar-solo in Act Five (it's actually in Act Four, but M. wasn't having any of it and is now being quite uncooperative). Fortunately, this trailer:
did not require me to manage any annoying characters, or deal with M.'s endless fits of emo. It did, however, require a great deal of patience- editing the clips, timing everything just right, and countless crashes almost put my poor Task Manager out of business! But it's done, so watch & enjoy!
With love/s laskou,
Laura/e.
Following the last post's obvious fail, K., M., and I have come to a mutual decision that I should never attempt to write a script, ever again. Then again, it's partly my fault- there is no guitar-solo in Act Five (it's actually in Act Four, but M. wasn't having any of it and is now being quite uncooperative). Fortunately, this trailer:
did not require me to manage any annoying characters, or deal with M.'s endless fits of emo. It did, however, require a great deal of patience- editing the clips, timing everything just right, and countless crashes almost put my poor Task Manager out of business! But it's done, so watch & enjoy!
With love/s laskou,
Laura/e.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Silly Writer- Hope Is For People With Realistic Goals.
Somewhere inside, my inner M. is sobbing openly.
I'm trying to be realistic about this. Rejection is a fact of life and, although I'm okay with them, I'm also counting down Jack King's projected twelve- that means there's a 'yes' out there somewhere, with my name on it, right? Of course, if I never hear back from anyone (or if it takes an annoyingly-long time for that agent to respond), how am I ever supposed to know whether it's the idea itself that sucks, or maybe something else?
My theory- it's the query.
Admittedly, I learned how to write one from a sample that I found on a published writer's website; I then filled in the blanks, and used her example as a template, which I'm beginning to think was a bad idea. I recently read that agents want your query to show off your personality, as well as that of your novel- upon rereading my own, of course, I have discovered the missing ingredient: ME!
This letter needs more ME! There's not enough of ME (or K, or M, or anyone else) in it- of course, that doesn't mean that I'm going to write them a note in my own blood, threatening to kill myself if they don't accept the book, or attempt to bribe them with cake and fluffy bunnies. It simply means that I'll change things around a bit, so that the proposal better reflects ME and sounds less like a template- I'm an Aquarius, and everyone knows that we Aquariuses love templates, just as much as we love surprise root-canals and the occasional UTI. You get the picture.
Sorry, K- no cake or fluffy bunnies for you, today.
I'm trying to be realistic about this. Rejection is a fact of life and, although I'm okay with them, I'm also counting down Jack King's projected twelve- that means there's a 'yes' out there somewhere, with my name on it, right? Of course, if I never hear back from anyone (or if it takes an annoyingly-long time for that agent to respond), how am I ever supposed to know whether it's the idea itself that sucks, or maybe something else?
My theory- it's the query.
Admittedly, I learned how to write one from a sample that I found on a published writer's website; I then filled in the blanks, and used her example as a template, which I'm beginning to think was a bad idea. I recently read that agents want your query to show off your personality, as well as that of your novel- upon rereading my own, of course, I have discovered the missing ingredient: ME!
This letter needs more ME! There's not enough of ME (or K, or M, or anyone else) in it- of course, that doesn't mean that I'm going to write them a note in my own blood, threatening to kill myself if they don't accept the book, or attempt to bribe them with cake and fluffy bunnies. It simply means that I'll change things around a bit, so that the proposal better reflects ME and sounds less like a template- I'm an Aquarius, and everyone knows that we Aquariuses love templates, just as much as we love surprise root-canals and the occasional UTI. You get the picture.
Sorry, K- no cake or fluffy bunnies for you, today.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Query-Wh*ring: You're Doing It Wrong!
Okay, so I lied.
Between sleeping, sniffling, and hacking my lungs out, I've been more than a little occupied with things other than my writing. I figure that recovering will give me a bit of a break- at least long enough until my submissions can be considered 'exclusive' again.
Being off from work, of course, I've had time to think about things like query-letters- and the different, conflicting advice that everyone and his/her cat is hitting me over the head with. Looking back on my previous submissions, I've followed each agency's individual guidelines- I even used a template from a bestselling-author's website as a base- and not done anything more or less than what's required: synopses, keeping my rants to less than a page... You name it, it's there. But my novel-writer's-market guide tells me one thing; then, Writer's Digest says something else, and the Writers' Union of Canada, and so on... ad nauseum.
Naturally, I'm beginning to despair more than I should at this point. I realize that it's only 3 weeks into the new year- this means that I still have another 49 (or thereabouts) to find a home for this book, but it's hard not to be disappointed when no one seems to be checking their emails. I was tempted to take my Wall of Awesome/Wall of Rejection signs down today, but I didn't- it would feel too much like admitting failure, and it's too early for that.
As "E" (M's girlfriend) might say: "You can either get a grip on yourself and see this through, or let the negative energy eat you alive- your choice."
Way to go, E.
-
I choose all of the above.
Between sleeping, sniffling, and hacking my lungs out, I've been more than a little occupied with things other than my writing. I figure that recovering will give me a bit of a break- at least long enough until my submissions can be considered 'exclusive' again.
Being off from work, of course, I've had time to think about things like query-letters- and the different, conflicting advice that everyone and his/her cat is hitting me over the head with. Looking back on my previous submissions, I've followed each agency's individual guidelines- I even used a template from a bestselling-author's website as a base- and not done anything more or less than what's required: synopses, keeping my rants to less than a page... You name it, it's there. But my novel-writer's-market guide tells me one thing; then, Writer's Digest says something else, and the Writers' Union of Canada, and so on... ad nauseum.
Naturally, I'm beginning to despair more than I should at this point. I realize that it's only 3 weeks into the new year- this means that I still have another 49 (or thereabouts) to find a home for this book, but it's hard not to be disappointed when no one seems to be checking their emails. I was tempted to take my Wall of Awesome/Wall of Rejection signs down today, but I didn't- it would feel too much like admitting failure, and it's too early for that.
As "E" (M's girlfriend) might say: "You can either get a grip on yourself and see this through, or let the negative energy eat you alive- your choice."
Way to go, E.
-
I choose all of the above.
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