After all that I've learned from #queryfail ... I still queryfail.
I found a spelling mistake tonight on a query I sent to 3 agents.
Yes, I spell-checked, but the computer is not smart enough to know that I meant "form" and not "for."
This makes me very, very sad.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Friday, March 13, 2009
THE UNICORN TAMER Query
Hello! I don't have enough content to post a Friday Five, but Agent Colleen Lindsay tweeted a really cool blog that I wanted to share with y'all:
http://openquery.blogspot.com/
"The Public Query Slushpile: Writers, you can submit your queries to this blog. I'll post them, and then visitors can comment on each query. Hopefully they will leave encouraging feedback and constructive criticism. I'd like to think that at some point, a few agents and/or editors may start trolling these waters and find something they like in this Public Query Slushpile."
I threw caution to the wind and submitted my query for public consumption!
I've been agonizing over my query letters for two weeks now. Every time I get a rejection, I re-write. It's very sad. I currently have 5 queries written, but since it took me about 7 drafts each ... technically, I've written about 35 queries ... eep! Query 1 seems to be the most successful. It was the one that got me 2 partial requests from amazing agents. BUT, it was also the one I've used the most. Query 4 is freshly edited and the one I used to submit to the above blog. I decided to post it here, too. Let me know what you think if you get a chance!
Dear Agent,
With a pro-environemt motif similar to Carl Hiaasen's HOOT, THE UNICORN TAMER is Greek mythology meets Pokémon.
Try being 13 and discovering that your parents spent your whole life lying to you.
Try being 13 and having to deal with a kidnapped dad.
Try being 13 and learning that your mom - yeah, she can create fire with her bare hands.
When Emma Brown's dad mysteriously disappears, Emma is catapulted back to her birthplace - a dimension where fairies are anything but tales. In the wonderland called Drualtys, teenagers study to become Tamers - people who form unique bonds with legendary animals to save them from extinction. Through this bond, Tamers absorb the creatures' majick, special powers ranging from the ability to control lightening, run on water, or see through skin.
Emma embraces her taming lessons to rescue her dad from the Hunters, a ruthless clan of humans hell-bent on proving that man is the most powerful beast of all. Their mission: murder the creatures of Drualtys and steal their majickal abilities. The prize: a unicorn's cloak of invisibility. Together with her newfound friends, including a half-pixie who's too pretty for his own good and a whimsical boy who can talk to animals, Emma must stay one step ahead of the Hunters and save her dad and the unicorns - before she is hunted herself.
THE UNICORN TAMER is approximately 100,000 words and is the first in a middle-grade fantasy trilogy. Upon your request, I'd be more than happy to send you the complete manuscript.
I graduated from Santa Clara University with a Major in Communications and a Minor in Creative Writing. I worked on my university's literary magazine as well as a Children's Storyteller at Barnes and Noble.
Thank you for taking the time to consider representing my work. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Christine
http://openquery.blogspot.com/
"The Public Query Slushpile: Writers, you can submit your queries to this blog. I'll post them, and then visitors can comment on each query. Hopefully they will leave encouraging feedback and constructive criticism. I'd like to think that at some point, a few agents and/or editors may start trolling these waters and find something they like in this Public Query Slushpile."
I threw caution to the wind and submitted my query for public consumption!
I've been agonizing over my query letters for two weeks now. Every time I get a rejection, I re-write. It's very sad. I currently have 5 queries written, but since it took me about 7 drafts each ... technically, I've written about 35 queries ... eep! Query 1 seems to be the most successful. It was the one that got me 2 partial requests from amazing agents. BUT, it was also the one I've used the most. Query 4 is freshly edited and the one I used to submit to the above blog. I decided to post it here, too. Let me know what you think if you get a chance!
Dear Agent,
With a pro-environemt motif similar to Carl Hiaasen's HOOT, THE UNICORN TAMER is Greek mythology meets Pokémon.
Try being 13 and discovering that your parents spent your whole life lying to you.
Try being 13 and having to deal with a kidnapped dad.
Try being 13 and learning that your mom - yeah, she can create fire with her bare hands.
When Emma Brown's dad mysteriously disappears, Emma is catapulted back to her birthplace - a dimension where fairies are anything but tales. In the wonderland called Drualtys, teenagers study to become Tamers - people who form unique bonds with legendary animals to save them from extinction. Through this bond, Tamers absorb the creatures' majick, special powers ranging from the ability to control lightening, run on water, or see through skin.
Emma embraces her taming lessons to rescue her dad from the Hunters, a ruthless clan of humans hell-bent on proving that man is the most powerful beast of all. Their mission: murder the creatures of Drualtys and steal their majickal abilities. The prize: a unicorn's cloak of invisibility. Together with her newfound friends, including a half-pixie who's too pretty for his own good and a whimsical boy who can talk to animals, Emma must stay one step ahead of the Hunters and save her dad and the unicorns - before she is hunted herself.
THE UNICORN TAMER is approximately 100,000 words and is the first in a middle-grade fantasy trilogy. Upon your request, I'd be more than happy to send you the complete manuscript.
I graduated from Santa Clara University with a Major in Communications and a Minor in Creative Writing. I worked on my university's literary magazine as well as a Children's Storyteller at Barnes and Noble.
Thank you for taking the time to consider representing my work. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Christine
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Waiting On A Full
The road to publishing is difficult and depressing. Shiny, happy BUT, it's also exciting! First kiss exciting!
I'm currently on my *first* full request and if you think waiting for a query or partial reply is agonizing, just wait till you're in the spot I'm in right now. Waiting for a reply on a full is COMPLETELY and UTTERLY different than waiting for a reply on a query or a partial. I'm no longer refreshing my Gmail every two minutes. I kind of don't want to ever open my Gmail again. The reason: because if the agent loved my full, I'd be getting a phone call, NOT an email.
Now you can see why Gmail and I currently aren't speaking.
I'm currently on my *first* full request and if you think waiting for a query or partial reply is agonizing, just wait till you're in the spot I'm in right now. Waiting for a reply on a full is COMPLETELY and UTTERLY different than waiting for a reply on a query or a partial. I'm no longer refreshing my Gmail every two minutes. I kind of don't want to ever open my Gmail again. The reason: because if the agent loved my full, I'd be getting a phone call, NOT an email.
Now you can see why Gmail and I currently aren't speaking.
Numb3rs
* 1 full out
* 1 full crit out
* 12 rejected queries
* 4 no-answers
* 2 no-answers that probably mean no
* 7 agents that I really, really want to query
* 4 days till ABNA (Amazon Breathrough Novel Award) quarterfinalists are announced
* 9,000 words that need to be deleted from THE UNICORN TAMER
* 33,000 words that still need to be written to make my March wordcount goal for FRIENDS WITH DEATH
* 19 more days in March left
* 1,740 words need to be written a day
* 0 words written today (#writerfail)
* 9, on a scale of 1-10, on how much do I hate writing hooks? (with 10 being 'a lot')
* 1 full crit out
* 12 rejected queries
* 4 no-answers
* 2 no-answers that probably mean no
* 7 agents that I really, really want to query
* 4 days till ABNA (Amazon Breathrough Novel Award) quarterfinalists are announced
* 9,000 words that need to be deleted from THE UNICORN TAMER
* 33,000 words that still need to be written to make my March wordcount goal for FRIENDS WITH DEATH
* 19 more days in March left
* 1,740 words need to be written a day
* 0 words written today (#writerfail)
* 9, on a scale of 1-10, on how much do I hate writing hooks? (with 10 being 'a lot')
Friday, March 6, 2009
#printingfail
I learned today that printing with an inkjet printer takes a VERY, VERY, VERY long time! Cry. I started at 3PM - thought I had plenty of time to print my whole manuscript out (380 pages/doublespaced) and make it to the post office before 5PM. Wrong. Printing was still going on at 5PM. Fail.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
#queryfail
Can't. Pull. Myself. Away. From. Twitter!
Why?
Because it's #queryfail day!
RT @christinepuddin aspiring authors: today is #queryfail day! it's like a free "do not do" query class from agents - check it out!
The agents are really doing us a HUGE favor! Also, some of the #query fail tweets are HILARIOUS! So go, what are you waiting for? Go glue yourself to Twitter for day.
Why?
Because it's #queryfail day!
RT @christinepuddin aspiring authors: today is #queryfail day! it's like a free "do not do" query class from agents - check it out!
The agents are really doing us a HUGE favor! Also, some of the #query fail tweets are HILARIOUS! So go, what are you waiting for? Go glue yourself to Twitter for day.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Ahh, Book Research
You know what's on my writing-to-do-list for this week?
Sign-up for a Match.com account.
Not for me, no. I've been happily dating the same guy for 4 years. It's research for my book. I need to find my dying girl a boyfriend ASAP. Since my protagonist is under 18, she's not going to be picking up guys at a bar. So she's turning to the interwebs for true love. I'm not REALLY going to create an account but I'm going to go through the motions so I know what it's like.
This should be fun.
Sign-up for a Match.com account.
Not for me, no. I've been happily dating the same guy for 4 years. It's research for my book. I need to find my dying girl a boyfriend ASAP. Since my protagonist is under 18, she's not going to be picking up guys at a bar. So she's turning to the interwebs for true love. I'm not REALLY going to create an account but I'm going to go through the motions so I know what it's like.
This should be fun.
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