Confession
It has come to my attention that something I have done might shock or offend some of you. Indeed, if you are in the literary world, especially if you are a literary agent, these...
Category: Publishing
Unpopular Writing Tip: Keep Your Day Job
Every writer says it at some point. Actually, just about everyone in the arts–writers, musicians, actors, and so on–says it, maybe multiple times. Every day: “One day I’ll quit my day job and do...
Don’t Wait ‘Til It’s Too Late!
The last month or so has seen the passing of a couple of celebrity authors. Sue Grafton, writer of the “alphabet” mystery series, passed away on December 28, 2017. And then popular and influential...
How NOT to Get a Literary Agent, by Stephen King
I’m coming to the end of my sixth annual read-through of King’s classic work ON WRITING. For any aspiring writer, I consider this book to be must-read material. There is much in this book...
Some Thoughts on Reading and Writing
A while ago, there was a discussion on Janet Reid’s blog around how much you should read in your chosen genre before you write that genre.* The received wisdom is 100 books. Yes, 100...
Writing about Writing
You might notice that the tag-line to this blog says “Reading Writing Music Theology Etc.” If you’ve been following for any length of time (well, not any length–I mean, if you’ve been following for a...
The Manhattan Trip, Day Two
As I mentioned yesterday, the main purpose of this New York trip was so my FirstBorn, Sarah, could audition at Juilliard and Carnegie Mellon. Day Two of our adventure, therefore, started early with a...
Links and Stuff
I know you’re all anxious to hear the latest in the house-hunting news, so let’s get right to it… Last week I said we might be honing in on the house we think is “it.”...
Vanity Press
Traditionally, when an author wants to be published, he or she will query an agent, sign with an agent, and that agent will then shop for a publisher. When the agent finds a publisher...
