More Contests!!

Guess what? The oh-so-fabulous Ms. Heather Webb is hosting an awesome Pitch-ilicious Blog Hop Contest. For more details, please, please check out her website. This is great for writers looking to make new writerly friends and also, to check out other hidden blog gems of the internet.

What are the prizes? Well, I’ll tell you!

First Place: A critique of your manuscript up to 2,000 words from editor extraordinaire (Heather), as well as a FREE WRITER’S WEBSITE/BLOG from professional web designer and developer, Brian Mowell. YES, this is a FREE setup of your author website or blog! INCREDIBLE PRIZE! Already have a site? No problem. Have your existing site revamped for FREE!

Second Place: A critique of your manuscript up to 1,500 words.

Third Place: A critique of your manuscript up to 1,000 words.

Awesome, right?

Go here for more details. You don’t want to miss this!

Also, if you haven’t connected with Heather yet, you can follow her on Twitter or find her on Facebook. She is such a rock-star!

Ciao,

Angela

 

Treading Water

(Inspiration for my newest WIP)

 

 

Is it me, or does time move slower when you are querying agents?

After many sleepless nights, loads of editing, research and rewrites, I am finally querying my newest book, The Scarlett Lullaby a Young Adult twist on Sleeping Beauty. This is my third book and with it, I’ve learned so-so much.

This isn’t the first time I’ve dove into the world of querying, this is though, the first time I’ve entered contests. Man, are there a lot out there and the timing has to be perfect too! The window is small and they only take so many entries. I’ve only managed to actually enter two so far, mostly because my attention isn’t on searching the internet but more on the newest book I’m working on. Think Once Upon a Time meets Sky High with a dash of Wicked but different and fun and full of storybook characters and princesses who are supposed to be good but are really evil.

Right after I sent out my first round of queries the concept bubbled in my mind. The characters were fun and real and I couldn’t stop writing—I’m up to 30 now!

When you’re a writer you surround yourself with writers—and the ones around me? Well, they all seem to be succeeding—finding agents, getting published, requests on queries, winning contests, the list goes on and on. And I’m so so happy for them, I am—really. At the same time you can’t help but be a little jealous. This industry is all about waiting and God likes to test my patience, so here I am, starting from scratch with a new book and burying myself in new characters as I learn to make this book better than the last.

You know what I have learned? My husband pretty much rocks. I mean, he has always been supportive and encouraging, but lately, when doubt trickles into my mind, he rides in on some white horse I didn’t know we owned with amazing words of encouragement. My husband is many things—amazing guitarist, musician, person, friend, father to our two doxins, etc—but he’s never been great with words, that’s always been me. I’m the word person who knows what to say to make someone back off the ledge. But lately he’s been on the ball. The other night his brilliance really shinned through and helped me when I was feeling a little down.

He said: “You wrote three books. Three! How many people can really say they wrote three books? And whether or not you become published, you will always have those books. They belong to you. They are proof of your hard work and effort and just because they don’t end up on some shelf in the bookstore doesn’t mean you aren’t good enough. It just means it isn’t your time yet. Just like with the band. Our songs will always be our songs and they’ll stay with us forever. We may never get signed by a label but we’ll always have fans who love our music and who feel like it touched them in some way, just like you will always have people who will love your books. Don’t lose sight of what you’ve accomplished. There are so many people out there who try and try to write a book and fail. But you haven’t failed, not one but. You have a gift, that’s all that matters.”

Husband of the year? I think so.

I’ll leave it at that because no other words could beat the awesomeness that is my husband.

Ciao~ Angela

P.S. – John Carter came out!! Why am I so excited you ask? Well, beyond the awesomeness the ever-so-sexy Tim Riggins is the MC. Yes…that is so drool worthy.

P.S.S – HUNGER GAMES comes out soon. Who is going at midnight. This girl is!

P.S.S.S (Last one, I promise) – I have a new page devoted to THE SCARLETT LULLABY please check it out and let me know what you think!!!!

Cell Block Tango

I’ve had Cell Block Tango from Chicago in stuck in my head for like a week. Everywhere I go, I’m like “He had it comin’ , he had it comin’” people probably think I’m insane, but at least I haven’t started dancing randomly…yet.

I think writing and constructing a concept from scratch is a lot harder than editing.  I’m working on my first paranormal book. No vampire or werewolf love, lol. But a concept I hope is fresh and new, though it’s rare to find too much now-a-days. And I’m not writing it because of the fad of paranormal, I’m writing it because the idea wouldn’t leave my head. I read a book written in third person. Most of what I read is first, but after reading it, I thought, hrm, maybe I should try it, just to see if I’m any good.

So not only am I branching out from contemporary high school dramas, I’m taking on a new style of writing and it’s a blast. It took me a few months to hammer in the story, bouncing between different ideas until the right one hit me. Think a super twist on my favorite fairy-tale Sleeping Beauty meets Revelation. It’s fun and exciting with character that challenge me daily. Especially the guys I’m writing. Sometimes I wish I didn’t know their back stories, because I’m so excited about them I want to open the can of worms I can’t. lol.

Update on my book out to query THE PROS AND CONS OF BREATHING: Things are going well, and I’m loving the feedback so far. I got a full from a really amazing agent so keep your fingers crossed.

If you haven’t already, check out my book trailers for COLLIDE at www.youtube.com/angelhett and let me know what you think. I put them together with the help of MMJoe with StandAsOne Productions. (I did the voiceovers)

Saturday Josh and I celebrated our 6 year anniversery. just think, if we hadn’t met at one of Carissa’s infamous parties 6 years ago, we might not be getting married in 134 days…I’m not excited or anything…lol

And I saw this at Downtown Disney and i want it so bad, not only for the wedding but it’s so cute!!

Here is a short Teaser Tuesday from THE PROS AND CONS OF BREATHING.

“Actually, Ariel is Owen James’s sister,” Liam said.

Rhea moved her arms on her hips.

“Ew, didn’t you end up in rehab?” she asked. “Ohmigosh, yeah, I heard about you.” She said to me, then turned to Liam. “It’s nice to see you doing charity work now.”

“Just ignore her, Ariel, her thong must be in a bunch.” Rachel gritted her teeth together, but Rhea didn’t seem to notice; instead her brassy eyes were on Liam and me.

“I’m not wearing any, so that wouldn’t be a problem,” Rhea retorted, her eyebrows flashed at Liam and his hand left the small of my back. He shook his head and looked down at the ground. “You always liked that, didn’t you, baby?”

A smile crept across my lips. “Wait, I think I heard about you too! You were the whore my brother dated last fall, right? The one he screwed and dumped in the same night, yeah, that’s definitely you. He was right, you look kindda loose.”

 

I chose this scene because i know how much Ryann loves it. lol.

Ciao~

Angela

Raise Your Glass

“You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.”
—Jack London

Remember back in November I wrote about a really awesome rejection I received on a full? If not, it’s not too far back…go read it.

Anyways, after months of editing and revising—then revising again…and two different endings later…I finally finished. It was critiqued by the amazing Ryann and Dawn. I’m so happy. Seriously, it’s like the sky opened and angels started singing.

I am absolutely in love with the changes. It really took my story to a complete different level and myself, as a writer, was really challenged. I winced a few times after Dawn told me something sucked (not that she’d say sucked, it’s not really the English way lol, but boring or the infamous ‘Angela, I know you can do better than that!’, which I appreciate like crazy.) There’s nothing like being pushed. To have people who know you well enough to tell you the truth and encourage you to do better.

I made changes that needed to get done that might not have otherwise.  So today I am ecstatic and really really really happy. I know it’s not over. I know if I get signed by an agent then this book will go through the ringer again. A book is never done until it’s on a shelf for sale.

But right now, it’s time to celebrate, query, cross my fingers and finish working on my other projects.

Ciao

Angela

Let’s Start at the Very Begining…

….A very good place to start….
Yes, I am now singing Do-Re-Mi from The Sound of Music.

 

A few days ago I received this really awesome rejection letter. I know, funny to have awesome and rejection in the same sentence, but it was. It wasn’t like he was rude or ‘crushing’. It was very detailed—things he thought needed fixing, areas he liked, didn’t, plot shuffling. It opened my eyes to a lot of things that were already in my head but I just ignored them. I thought overall it was really positive. I laughed at a few parts, agreeing with him. Yesterday started day one of revisions. I almost forgot how much I love this story, and why it’s so important to me. I started writing this after my first one, and while my dad was sick. Then I was stuck and decided to put it away, but when my dad passed away I finally pulled it out and found the words to say about death. The pain that really goes through you from losing a parent.

Coming from a big Italian/German family I’ve lost a lot of people, but there’s no other pain like losing a parent. The depression and pain, it can tear you apart. I had two choices, to power through it or let it eat me alive. Myself, I made it through. I had my faith and a strong support system. But Ariel’s story is the exact opposite. Mostly because she’s much younger than I was. I imagine her actions would have been my own at that age. After getting a very helpful rejection I am going back and adding more, taking away, and shuffling my outer plot around to include more conflicts.

I’m really excited about cracking into this story again. Sometimes you forget how much you love something until you’re in the meat of it!

Ciao!

Angela

YOUR Query Style

For the past two months, I’ve sent out queries for my newest book THE PROS AND CONS OF BREATHING (see ‘Books’ for more information). With a smile on my face, I can say the feedback as been pretty good with a nice amount of requests…most of which are still out with the agents, and a few stragglers that sent me a lovely R. But my question to you, the author or writer, is…what do you do?

I’m contemplating whether or not to keep researching and sending out queries. Maybe I’m a little lazy and really busy with the craziness in my life to spend 20-40 minutes researching and perfecting a query letter for one agent, then move on to another. It is a time-consuming process because one letter is all you get. One chance. Maybe it’s wrong of me. But it’s not like I sent out 20 QL and am sitting naively. But I feel like it’s a bridge to cross, like I need to overcome and see the results of these letters before I can continue.

 

 

I know others will say, just keep sending, just keep sending. So I want to know what you do. What is you process? Any words of wisdom?

The Pros and Cons of Breathing…queries?

I worked for months to write a query for Collide. More months I threw away crappy drafts until I found the perfect formula. Now, I’m doing it again. It’s been so long, I feel like I’ve forgotten how to do it all together!!! I hate queries, lol. But I’m doing it. I have to do it, and it has to be good. Any help?? Any thoughts on what makes the perfect query letter?

Agent on the Threshold…

How to find the right literary agent? 

People think it’s easy to find the right agent.
Pick and agency, and send-off the query. 

Back up.

My cast makes fun of me, and says I love dramatic pauses. I do. Good things take time, don’t they? 

Finding the right agent is like a dramatic pause. First, you have to find an agency. Research the agency. Explore their lists, who they publish, what they are working on now, their recent deals? Has the agency had a deal in a while? 

Finding the right agency in a whole takes time, then on top of that, you have to research the agents. Read what they like, what they don’t like. It’s very important to research s specific agent. Do your homework. Look at their list, who they represent, what they are looking for, what books they enjoy, etc. It also helps to read their blog if they have one. From there, you can tailor your letter to their personality too. They like to see that you aren’t sending them a random query, with no knowledge about them. 

Afterward, I like to research the agency on the water cooler. Read what other writers/authors are saying. Sometimes, there will be a link to a certain agents blog, with up to the minute updates on what they are looking for. 

Twitter is GREAT in the literary world. Agents, editors, writers, authors, assistants, etc. they’re all there. In the past, I’ve seen agents closed to queries open for an hour, or a few days, and only announce it on Twitter. I suggest creating an account. You can jump on mine, I follow a lot of agents and editors, and branching from there.

 More on finding the right literary agent next time…. I must run off to rehearsal today!

Publishing tip on Twitter today:

MarleneStringer New Writers: Srsly, don’t write “the end” on your ms then turn around & submit to agts. It is not READY. #pubtips

Check out the COLLIDE trailer page for updates on the trailer. Pictures should be up soon! 

Ciao~
Angela Francis

Queries

Awesome site!

I spent hours reading good and bad queries. I suggest other writers do the same. You’ll learn a lot!

http://queryshark.blogspot.com/

Inside The Fire

…..Inside the literary world….

Today’s playlist?
Mayday Parade. Erica let me borrow their album, and I love it!! Gainesville natives are the best! Hence, Sister Hazel. 

I asked myself that question way back when. It seems, yet again, that people think they can write a novel, and then voila! You’re rich and famous. No..no…no. 

Now, the hard part starts. The query letter. It would physically be impossible to write about a query letter, so I’ll direct you to other blogs for that. 

Nathan Bransford, http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2008/03/query-letter-mad-lib.html

Mary Kole, http://kidlit.com/category/queries 

Those are great sites. You can also Google,  Query Letters and find a lot of information. Some good, some bad. 

While you are breaking into the literary world, I recommend  joining a few sites. 

Publishers Marketplace
This is an amazing information source for agents, publishers, etc. It give you an insight on everything going on in the world. Everyday, if you subscribe, you will receive a Publishers Lunch

 The site says, “Publishers Lunch is the industry’s “daily essential read,” now shared with more than 40,000 publishing people every day. Each report gathers together stories from all over the web and print of interest to the professional trade book community, along with original reporting, plus a little perspective and the occasional wisecrack added in.” 

Subscribe here:
 http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/lunch/subscribe.html 

Another site you should sign up on ….. 

Absolute Write Water Cooler
This is an awesome forum to chat with authors, writers, and the occasional agent and publisher. Here, you can research agencies/agents, and find up to the moment information. Under the proper section you can discuss everything from what playlists you listen to while writing, to what ideas you have for your manuscript. It is a wonderful information source and support system.

For all you, YA writers…this is a MUST add… 

YA Lit Chat
Everything you need to know is on this site. I am new, and as I begin drudging through it, I find it absolutely amazing.

http://yalitchat.ning.com/ 

Another new site, is…. 

Oasis for YA
This is a collaborative blog for YA.  Here is what their site says, “Founded by aspiring authors, we want to create a relaxing sanctuary among the often dry, harsh reality of writing, editing, and querying.” 

Self explanatory. Definitely check them out. I love reading their blog!
http://oasisforya.blogspot.com/ 

Again, there are a million sites for advice. You have to find what works for you, and try to stick to it. It’s all about finding a routine. 

Next blog…..how do I find the right agent???

COLLIDE quote of the day:

“You have to keep going no matter how many mistakes you make, once the curtains have opened there’s no turning back. To me, being on stage is the best form of magic.”

Trailer update:
rehearsal tonight. It’s going really well. The funny parts are funny, and the serious moments are just as I hoped they would be. I have amazing actors. Wait till you see how awesome this will be!

Have a great Tuesday!!
Ciao~
Angela Francis