For anyone with a heart for children, check out my friend's (Carlene Singleton) new book.
goo.gl/x44TlL
252 2016-12-09 04:32:18
Topic: Win a $50 Amazon gift card (0 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card. Purchase any of my books from Amazon & email me your confirmation # to janettaylorperry@gmail.com Random drawing December 16, 2016. Details on www.janettaylorperry.com
253 2016-12-06 04:04:06
Re: You Only Love Twice cover art (27 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I didn't mean use red, Tom. I meant print your possible covers and go somewhere like I did and see which one you see or have your wife go find them.
254 2016-12-05 22:17:41
Re: You Only Love Twice cover art (27 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Tom, for my first book, I was told to try orange rather than red. I got my guy to do a mock of of each, with the back included. I printed them off and took them to my local bookstore where I had the owner wrap them around a book of the size I intended, and she placed them on her shelves without me knowing where. I went through the store to find my book. I walked right past the orange and didn't even notice it. Needless to say, I chose the red. You might try a similar experiment.
255 2016-12-04 04:44:32
Re: You Only Love Twice cover art (27 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
#2, but NJC is correct. I like the color of #1 though. Any chance of making a 4th option with #2 and the bright yellow? Having read the story, #2 just fits.
256 2016-12-01 15:01:47
Re: Great new review (1 replies, posted in Romance Inc.)
And I got this one last night!
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Wow! Wow!
By DragonParadox on November 30, 2016
Format: Paperback
Wilted Magnolias has something for everybody. It has appeal that knows no boundary—no gender, race, age (over 13) bias. Beyond that, it also raises social awareness about cancer survivors and what they endure.
The story has some likable and some unlikely heroes. April and Russell burn up the pages with just enough "steam" without becoming raunchy. And the antagonist is someone I just wanted to climb into the pages and strangle.
I'm not much of a writer, but this book makes me want more—and there's a promise for just that with a second April Chastain Intrigue in the works. I can't wait!
257 2016-12-01 14:59:59
Re: Great new review (5 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
And I got this one last night!
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Wow! Wow!
By DragonParadox on November 30, 2016
Format: Paperback
Wilted Magnolias has something for everybody. It has appeal that knows no boundary—no gender, race, age (over 13) bias. Beyond that, it also raises social awareness about cancer survivors and what they endure.
The story has some likable and some unlikely heroes. April and Russell burn up the pages with just enough "steam" without becoming raunchy. And the antagonist is someone I just wanted to climb into the pages and strangle.
I'm not much of a writer, but this book makes me want more—and there's a promise for just that with a second April Chastain Intrigue in the works. I can't wait!
258 2016-11-30 22:36:09
Re: Exposure opportunity for published TheNextBigWriter authors (6 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Send away! I'd love for my books to be part of this. TNBW is what got me out there.
259 2016-11-30 18:34:39
Topic: Great new review (1 replies, posted in Romance Inc.)
I have never completely read a 300+ page book in one day -- until yesterday! A day off and 3 snuggle cats was perfect for spending time with Janet Taylor-Perry's "Wilted Magnolias." A modern-day romantic suspense, with flashbacks to a life-changing incident 16 years previously, kept my attention to the final word last night. Janet will be part of our celebration of MS authors on Sat, Dec 10 from 10 to 4 when she will present this Pirates' Alley Faulkner Wisdom Competition Semi-finalist book as well her 5 other publications for gift giving and personal reading pleasure!--Suzanne Hatch, Owner, Bay Window Books, Brandon, MS.
260 2016-11-30 18:32:40
Topic: Great new review (5 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I have never completely read a 300+ page book in one day -- until yesterday! A day off and 3 snuggle cats was perfect for spending time with Janet Taylor-Perry's "Wilted Magnolias." A modern-day romantic suspense, with flashbacks to a life-changing incident 16 years previously, kept my attention to the final word last night. Janet will be part of our celebration of MS authors on Sat, Dec 10 from 10 to 4 when she will present this Pirates' Alley Faulkner Wisdom Competition Semi-finalist book as well her 5 other publications for gift giving and personal reading pleasure!--Suzanne Hatch, Owner, Bay Window Books, Brandon, MS.
261 2016-11-29 02:15:38
Re: Unaffixed dialogue, part one (12 replies, posted in Literary Fiction)
My humble opinion b/c I know it carries no weight among many on this site, but s/he said gets BORING.
262 2016-11-17 22:54:37
Re: Word 2010: Something I discovered today (10 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Yep, it's always been there, even in older versions. Glad you've discovered it. You can also set your margins and tabs and insert a running head and page numbers. I have 2016 and I love it.
263 2016-11-13 21:20:35
Re: submission to publisher of work on TNBW (21 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
rhiannon wrote:
Sol looked up the legalities and shaped the site accordingly. Posting to a private writers' workshop is not considered to be published or freely available. You are ok. We all are. In fact, a lot of publishers won't consider works from writers who don't have agents, unless they have workshopped their material.
Excellent point.
264 2016-11-13 18:31:16
Re: submission to publisher of work on TNBW (21 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I'm not sure about selling access per chapter. That would definitely not by free. I do know that if I submit to the Faulkner competition, I take it down from this site. But Randall has had publishers tell him what their interpretation means. Why not ask the publisher your considering without naming the piece in particular.
265 2016-11-06 02:36:09
Topic: Spirits' Desire--final rewrite (0 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Okay, guys and gals,
I've begun the final edits and rewrite on Spirits' Desire. Several of you have read all or part of it. I'm now marking as applied feedback. If you are still reading, I'm shooting for an Easter release. It's a long story, and will take a good bit of time to edit. If you're still reading, I just wanted to let you know that there is a deadline for when it'll be coming down. Those of you who have read all of it, tell me how you'd like me to acknowledge you--your TNBW screen name, your pseudonym, or your real name.
266 2016-11-06 01:31:13
Re: The imperfect use of Past Perfect (19 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
j p lundstrom wrote:
Norm d'Plume wrote:JP, are you saying that people are using past pefect when they should be using simple past? I seem to be the exact opposite. I prefer simple past for a few of the questions where past perfect is the "correct" tense. Language evolves, and I write the way I speak, which is pretty gooder.
Did anyone notice the missing comma before the coordinating conjunction in question 3?
Don't mess with me.
DirkYes, I'm saying that people are using past perfect in place of simple past. For example: My mother had gone to the store instead of my mother went to the store.
In my opinion, it's safer to use the simple past. We should remember to KISS, not over-complicate.
(I hate to admit it, but I got two wrong, myself. I have a tendency to answer questions too quickly. In my defense, I don't understand number 10 at all. It didn't make a bit of sense to me. I guess whoever wrote the test didn't use a proofreader.)
I made a 100! The English teacher should. Yeah, #10 was nuts. I'm sure the verb should have been studied. I hear people use the past perfect incorrectly ALL the time. Drives me nuts.
268 2016-10-28 21:09:31
Re: Faulkner Winner in the Poetry Competition (2 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Awesome!
269 2016-10-28 20:28:51
Re: Faulkner Winner in the Short Story Competition (6 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I never get past the dang short list! One year!!!!!
270 2016-10-28 20:16:49
Re: Faulkner Winner in the Short Story Competition (6 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Congrats!
271 2016-10-26 21:13:24
Re: The Query Letter: short and sweet, or "Be my friend" (43 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Norm d'Plume wrote:
ronald quark wrote:On the other hand, if you can express all of the essential details outlined above in a more compact way, I’d love to hear it. Let’s see your rewrite!
I would but I'm busy critiquing everyone else's. :-) Seriously, I don't know enough about the book (what's important, what's not) to attempt one. My own is in my book summary, but it's much shorter than two hundred and fifty words, so I have room for more. Sor far, I included only the main characters, the overall story arc, and the stakes. I end with a major mystery. I left out all secondary characters, including several villians. I also left out subplots and settings, although I do mention the (sci-fi) story is of galactic scale. Now that it's come up, I'm going to try expanding on my summary to see if I can add anything that would make the book more appealing.
This is your summary. IT IS LONG ENOUGH!!!! You don't need anymore than this. But you might want to make it more "active."
Into the Mind of God is the story of Joseph and Apollo, teenagers who live worlds apart but share a common bond — both are visited by a being who calls himself God. God takes each of them on an incredible journey to fulfill their destinies. With God’s help, one leads a holy crusade to conquer a perilously divided galaxy, while the other founds a radical new religion to steer mankind away from the Apocalypse. Ultimately, their destinies will collide, something neither may survive. But is God a real deity, or the imagination of two mentally ill boys?
(Joseph and Apollo live worlds apart but share a common bond--both are visited by a being who calls himself God. God takes each of them on an incredible journey to fulfill their destinies. With God’s help, one leads a holy crusade to conquer a perilously divided galaxy, while the other founds a radical new religion to steer mankind away from the Apocalypse. Ultimately, their destinies will collide, something neither may survive. But is God a real deity, or the imagination of two mentally ill teenagers?)
272 2016-10-26 14:19:21
Re: The Query Letter: short and sweet, or "Be my friend" (43 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Charles_F_Bell wrote:
Janet Taylor-Perry wrote:I do remember reading this way back when. Research which agents/publishers go for a story with as much eroticism as I remember being in this story. Send out half a dozen queries and see what kind of response you get. And remember the query should be one page single spaced. And make sure the query is free of grammar nits. No agent or potential publisher wants to fix grammar. If you can't write a query without mistakes, they'll just say, "No thanks."
Suppose I promote my Remembrances and Reconciliation as a story of Sex! Hot, hot sex! Homosexuality, bi- and heterosexual adultery, and transgenderism, too, and create a 'Strongest Start' 3-5 pages of irrelevant material to show the agent. Well, it is about sex (and love and death), but it is a lamenting satire on the whole rather necessary business, and without romance that is always what it is. A reader has to read the whole damn book--and carefully--(what a concept!) to get that, of course.
I don't quite get the comparison. If you marketed your book like that, you would be dishonest to yourself. Yours is an attempt at literary work. Yes, readers need to read the whole book, but that is not what you put into 150 words on the back cover or in a query. If the agent responds to your query (see if they want an initial submission with the query, usually the first 5 pages or sometimes the first three chapters), then send them what they ask for next. Sometimes they respond b/c the query piques their interest. Then they ask for the stuff in parentheses above. Then IF they're really interested, they reply with a "send me your manuscript." At that point the thing should be 99% ready. It can never be 100% ready b/c, invariably, they will want some sort of changes.
I can't compare AT's work to mine. They are quite different. I sure can't compare it to yours since yours is in a class by itself. I'm not trying to sell my material in this thread. I'm trying to give AT some pointers that I've learned, not from reading articles, by the way, but from attending conferences and/or actual contact with agents. I will mention that the hardest thing I came up against was the varying opinions of those agents. That's why it's necessary to research which ones work in your genre. For example, AT would NEVER submit this to Pelican Press b/c they don't publish anything that might be rated more than PG. However, Pink Flamingo Publications might actually give this a real hard look. (Hint, AT.) They have published some things by our own TELawrence under a female pseudonym, Daphne Chennault. AT should definitely NOT send this book to any agent/publisher that won't even take time to think about it. In the words of The Last Crusade, "Choose, but choose wisely." Nothing is so disheartening than those ugly rejections.
273 2016-10-26 03:12:49
Re: The Query Letter: short and sweet, or "Be my friend" (43 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Blurb:
Shadyia, a daring and passionate courtesan of the Silver Rose, finds herself caught between an enigmatic magician who searches for an ancient labyrinth, and a devious zealot who conspires to further a twisted agenda. Concealing both a forbidden romance with a fellow sister and a vengeful past, Shadyia must choose which man to favor. Her madam demands she please the zealot to keep the sisterhood safe from the wrath of his order, but Shadyia’s integrity requires she aid the magician. Will she follow him into the labyrinth and face the shadows of death, or betray him to save the sisterhood she cherishes above all?
This very good. Much more succinct and it plays up the MC.
That being said, this is STILL what would be on the back of the book to get a reader's attention. Follow this up with something like this:
Shaydia of the Sliver Rose is the first novel in an intended series of (how many). This adult fantasy stands at X-number of words.
Next paragraph should give a little bit about you as the author. Why should the agent want to represent you? What gives you the unique ability to be able to tell this story?
Then end with a little flattery--it never hurts. Something like: Having read your list of authors, I feel we would be a good match for each other. Thank you in advance for your consideration, and I look forward to hearing from you in the near future.
Sincerely,
Your typed name
Know this is not set in stone as the way to go, but it's a general template of a sort.
Good luck. Trial and error might be the best teacher of all, so go for it!
I do remember reading this way back when. Research which agents/publishers go for a story with as much eroticism as I remember being in this story. Send out half a dozen queries and see what kind of response you get. And remember the query should be one page single spaced. And make sure the query is free of grammar nits. No agent or potential publisher wants to fix grammar. If you can't write a query without mistakes, they'll just say, "No thanks."
274 2016-10-24 03:43:48
Re: Anyone want to play again? (60 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Tom Oldman wrote:
I thought the instructions said "Write the closing SENTENCE of a story inspired by this image." Was I wrong? Although I enjoyed the entires, I think that a sentence should just be a sentence.
~Tom
It is more challenging to write one sentence.
275 2016-10-24 00:25:05
Re: The Query Letter: short and sweet, or "Be my friend" (43 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
A.T.Schlesinger wrote:
After some feedback from my editor, father and the folks here, I have rewritten the blurb. I would be curious if this hits the spot:
The great city of Anderholm dangles at the edge of ruin. Demos Azari has bound a devious evil inside an enchanted box. As a fanatical advisor to the Innocenti, Demos longs to release mankind from its obsession with absent gods, but the imprisoned fiend has its own agenda and the slaughter of humanity is but the least of its goals. Hope resides in Aaron, a magician who searches for an enchanted ruby which holds the knowledge to prevent this evil from escaping the box. Between these men stands Shadyia, a passionate and daring courtesan of the Silver Rose. Concealing both a forbidden romance with a fellow sister and a vengeful past, she must choose which man to favor. Her madam demands Shadyia please Demos to keep the sisterhood safe from the wrath of his order, but Shadyia’s integrity requires she aid Aaron. Will she follow him beneath the Silver Rose and face the shadows of death, or betray him to preserve the sisterhood she cherishes above all?
Also, regarding my OP, I am leaning toward "be my friend" over the efficient, cold letter.
Anyone long for the years, so long ago, when finding a publisher was very hard? Now just to find an agent is very hard and a publisher impossible.
It's POD all the way, baby. Your fate is in your own hands.
This is a pretty good backbook blurb. My only suggestion--Don't use enchanted twice.
