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The Publishing Road So Far: 1/20/14
Jan. 20th, 2014 05:00 pmIn the last update, I started digging into learning what I need to learn in order to get my book published.
It seems to start with the query letter. Let me tell you, query letters scare the crap out of me. They're a one page distillation of an entire novel, and I have to be frank. I don't know how to write one. At. All. All my research had me spinning in circles, trying to figure out just what is the right advice and what is wrong.
So, I took the basics I learned from the various articles I read, and I'm starting with the opening of a query letter---or the hook.
Every source I looked up on writing a hook mentioned the backs of books and looking at how they sell you the book. That's basically what you're trying to do in order to get the agent/editor/publisher to even want to look at your book.
Lucky for me, I have a stack of back book covers to read over and study. I think that's the task to do this week and perhaps next in order to get the hook I want.
Even if it seem like a waste, it might do some good to practice writing a hook for a different book, too. Not as pressured to distill my whole book into a single sentence or two---and not as close to my heart then.
I'm thinking of perhaps doing a bit of both for the next couple weeks. I'll share whatever I think is the best in the next update---along with some of the hooks I find on the backs of books that I particularly liked.
I wanna get hooked! How about you? (I know. Groan away.)
It seems to start with the query letter. Let me tell you, query letters scare the crap out of me. They're a one page distillation of an entire novel, and I have to be frank. I don't know how to write one. At. All. All my research had me spinning in circles, trying to figure out just what is the right advice and what is wrong.
So, I took the basics I learned from the various articles I read, and I'm starting with the opening of a query letter---or the hook.
Every source I looked up on writing a hook mentioned the backs of books and looking at how they sell you the book. That's basically what you're trying to do in order to get the agent/editor/publisher to even want to look at your book.
Lucky for me, I have a stack of back book covers to read over and study. I think that's the task to do this week and perhaps next in order to get the hook I want.
Even if it seem like a waste, it might do some good to practice writing a hook for a different book, too. Not as pressured to distill my whole book into a single sentence or two---and not as close to my heart then.
I'm thinking of perhaps doing a bit of both for the next couple weeks. I'll share whatever I think is the best in the next update---along with some of the hooks I find on the backs of books that I particularly liked.
I wanna get hooked! How about you? (I know. Groan away.)
