tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post6036904152677035156..comments2024-03-28T06:59:34.982-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: Is the Publishing Sky Falling? Part TwoDanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-7625093375242167792011-08-31T21:57:01.587-06:002011-08-31T21:57:01.587-06:00This is a post hopeful authors should read. As the...This is a post hopeful authors should read. As the post says, a command of English is important to a novel. If a great story isn't being told well...then it's not that great of a story after all, at least certainly not one people will want to read.Lauren @ Pure Texthttp://www.pure-text.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-3096523167324445892011-08-31T07:46:11.539-06:002011-08-31T07:46:11.539-06:00Maryann, thanks for encouraging words of wisdom. I...Maryann, thanks for encouraging words of wisdom. I will keep on writing and honing my craft, as I have done over the last 50 years as an author and 20 books worth. The shock to my system has been going from decades of traditional houses begging me for mss. to not getting so much as a reading once I took the plunge into full-length fiction. The late Steven Jay Gould said, "The indifferent universe rewards on and only one thing: persistence." Tenacity. Persistence. Success?<br /><br />--Larry Constantine<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lior-Samson/e/B004KDPO9A/" rel="nofollow">Lior Samson, author page</a>Larry Constantine (Lior Samson)http://www.liorsamson.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-32869671510182032282011-08-31T02:09:27.112-06:002011-08-31T02:09:27.112-06:00"It might take (the agent) a few years, with ..."It might take (the agent) a few years, with revisions and submissions, to make a sale. She must love it, because current market conditions often require that she go to the wall for it, time and again."<br /><br />All the more reason to self-publish, prove the market in a few months, and let the agents come to you.<br /><br />Agents sell to publishers. Publishers sell to book-stores. Only the self-published writer sells direct to readers.mark williams internationalhttp://markwilliamsinternational.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-61784673949125570432011-08-30T15:32:34.400-06:002011-08-30T15:32:34.400-06:00Having waded through a slush pile or two, about ha...Having waded through a slush pile or two, about half of submissions are pretty solid. Then a second tier of scoring becomes necessary to eliminate manuscripts. I find contest submissions to be the same. The challenge for the juror or acq. ed. is declining some really good writing, and hoping the author won't be discouraged and stop seeking a home for their writing. Tenacity is the name of the game. Certainly, if a house editor makes some personal recommendations, think about taking the advice. They might just know what they're talking about, and paying attention could result in an accepted manuscript at the next stop.Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-4112104778991663742011-08-30T11:44:59.315-06:002011-08-30T11:44:59.315-06:00Kathryn, you say "Authors complain that their...Kathryn, you say "Authors complain that their manuscript can't be judged by only a query and a few paragraphs. But that’s exactly how I purchase a book—back jacket plus the first few paragraphs and I know whether I’ll buy it." So true. Author readers can get some tips on hooking agents and readers in on "Those Crucial Five First Pages" at http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com.Jodie Rennerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17180607353893233389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-57216720660007596232011-08-30T10:31:34.340-06:002011-08-30T10:31:34.340-06:00Thanks for an excellent two-part, informative, tho...Thanks for an excellent two-part, informative, thought-provoking article, Kathryn!Jodie Rennerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17180607353893233389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-40868552774376208112011-08-30T10:27:57.779-06:002011-08-30T10:27:57.779-06:00Christopher, if "good marketing beats high qu...Christopher, if "good marketing beats high quality every time," that's a sad state of affairs for writers and readers. I've seen way too many half-baked, amateurish novels self-published or e-published on Amazon,that should have had knowledgeable advice and a lot of revisions and polishing (read: hard work) first. That prior effort would have resulted in a book worth marketing, and one that would deservedly sell well. Bestselling authors revise their stories 30 times or more, before they even reach the editing process. Don't put the cart before the horse!Jodie Rennerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17180607353893233389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-11151709555376626672011-08-30T09:46:13.524-06:002011-08-30T09:46:13.524-06:00The issue isn't 'drivel' vs 'quali...The issue isn't 'drivel' vs 'quality' ... the issue is still 'marketing'. Whether is is mainstream, self, or 'e-published, good marketing beats high quality every time. The publishing world is undergoing a sea-change right now, but it will stabilize eventually and marketing will still be the most important element.<br /><br />In Erratum: This dyslexic commenter used 'know' in place of 'no' in a recent comment ... sheeesh!Christopher Hudsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03667548312923348614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-22608060958651647722011-08-30T09:23:01.484-06:002011-08-30T09:23:01.484-06:00I think also the publishing industry is stormy in ...I think also the publishing industry is stormy in some places and sunshiny in others. For a writer like me in Botswana, ebooks are fantastic. The barrier to African literarture is distribution. With ebooks that falls away. We now get fair footing. I think once things settle down all will be well and writers will be more in control than ever before.Laurihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11112458658109887868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-17393463613333484002011-08-30T09:19:43.096-06:002011-08-30T09:19:43.096-06:00Larry, I do hope you keep on writing. Not only wil...Larry, I do hope you keep on writing. Not only will you improve with experience, the difference between writers who succeed in getting published and those that don't often is how much tenacity you have. There are few overnight successes in this business and the only way to "make it" is to keep on keeping on.<br /><br />Kathryn, thanks for the thoughtful and inspiring post.Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-43162066824911507532011-08-30T07:44:52.387-06:002011-08-30T07:44:52.387-06:00Optimism is hardest to sustain for those of us wri...Optimism is hardest to sustain for those of us writing in the cracks between genres or with a style and agenda that does not fit current formula and fashion. My last serious encounter with an interested agent resulted in a plea to write something more "edgy." Not me. My optimism dwindling, I'll cling to hope and keep writing.<br /><br />--Larry Constantine<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lior-Samson/e/B004KDPO9A/" rel="nofollow">Lior Samson, author page</a>Larry Constantine (Lior Samson)http://www.liorsamson.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-88531418011323720992011-08-30T06:50:13.703-06:002011-08-30T06:50:13.703-06:00"...if you have a great story and a decent co..."...if you have a great story and a decent command of the English language, and submit a clean manuscript without dog-eared corners, you are already in the top tier (10%) of submissions." This is scary...(or not!) Thanks for your clear, objective optimism. In what ever form it takes, reading will never go away...so in some regard there will always be a market for good writing.Lizahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16170701034715108039noreply@blogger.com