I’m so freaking excited I couldn’t wait until tomorrow to share this cover. <3 Done by the amazing Valerie Tibbs, here’s the cover for Fight or Flight (coming December 10 from Liquid Silver Books)
Blog
In which V tells a little story…
…About a book that wanted to be, rejection, rewriting, R&R, and finally finding a home.
Writing for publication is a crazy business. You kind of have to be a little crazy to want to do this, but it’s not without its rewards. Last winter, I wrote a short novella called Solomon’s Passage about a nebula crossing made by a colony ship in a distant future. I wrote it in response to a particular call for submissions. It wasn’t accepted for that submission call, so I decided I was going to rework it, and see what happened next.
After some heavy revision, I sent it to Nickie and Ed, two trusty beta-readers, to get their thoughts. While Nickie enjoyed the story, Ed really didn’t, and gave me plenty of reasons why it didn’t work for him. (Thanks Ed!) So, I went back to the drawing board.
One of my publishers, Liquid Silver Books, was having a craft chat for us authors, so I brought some questions about this book, and got some great suggestions from Lynn Lorenz about where I went wrong, and how it might be a stronger story. (Lynn, in addition to knowing pretty much exactly where my story needed to go, is an awesome writer in her own right. You can find Lynn’s work here: http://www.lsbooks.com/lynn-lorenz-c173.php and at www.lynnlorenz.com)
So I decided to start the story almost two years earlier in the backstory. I wrote 17000 new words, stripped 6000 away, changed two of the characters to the point where they were barely the same people anymore, and in the end, had a brand new story, which went to two MORE beta readers for their input.
I submitted it to LSB and a little later, I received a revise and resubmit request.
If you aren’t a writer, you might not be familiar with the R & R. It’s not a rejection–nothing like a rejection, actually. It’s a request for changes to the manuscript to make it more publishable. It’s not an offer of a contract, but an encouragement to revise the manuscript and send it back.
So, I did, and last week I announced here on this blog that Fight or Flight has been contracted by Liquid Silver Books. Its blurb can be found on the bookshelf section of this site if you are curious, and it will be released December 10!
Why am I sharing the story behind this book?
Because sometimes, people think there is some secret that the publishing industry holds dear, that if they just stumble across it, they’ll suddenly get a publishing contract, and all doors will miraculously open…and it won’t hurt a bit.
There is no secret. It’s hard work. It’s listening to input and taking your hits. It’s accepting critique and using it to make your story better. It’s honing and changing, and allowing the story to change and grow. It does hurt sometimes, but I try to think of it as growing pains.
So if you’re a writer, struggling to find the perfect home for your manuscript, and you’re not sure why it’s not working… send it to a few beta readers. Get feedback. Accept that rejection happens. (By the way, I have a rejection file in my email–I’ve received over 12 rejections in the last year for three unique projects!) Learn from it and move on.
Sometimes, the first version of your story won’t get published. Sometimes, the second, third, or fourth version won’t. The really awful truth is that most stories never do. But that’s not a reason to stop writing. Never let rejection stop the wordflow. Let it shape it. Learn from it. Hone your skills and try again.
Thanks for reading 🙂
xoxo,
V
Guest Post: George Wilhite on the Power of Point of View
V here: Today I am welcoming horror author George Wilhite to the blog to talk about the power of point of view! George’s book Silhouette of Darkness will be published by Musa Publishing’s Thalia imprint this fall.
THE POWER OF POINT OF VIEW:
GREAT ADVICE FROM THE EDITORS OF MUSA FOR MY NEW COLLECTION SILHOUETTE OF DARKNESS
I am proud to announce that Musa Publishing will be releasing my second collection of horror fiction, Silhouette of Darkness on September 28, 2012. This is my debut with a publishing house and my collection is so much better due to their assistance.
I have learned a lot about writing during the editorial process, especially on the area of Point of View.
I chose to self-publish my debut collection of short fiction, On the Verge of Madness, through Lulu Press. After some success publishing individual stories, I collected eight of my strongest tales and began the long struggle to find a publisher. I found there is a lot of trepidation among publishers, especially the larger ones, concerning publishing collections. Everyone is looking for novels, especially ones that might begin a successful series.
I had many ideas for novels but was not ready for that commitment yet. In the meantime, I wanted to get my writing out there. After much rejection of the collection, I decided to take a leap and publish it myself.
The editing process is always painstaking, but the biggest challenge was knowing when it was “good enough” to go to print. My wonderful and ever patient wife is always my first set of eyes and she went through several drafts of the stories with me, and then I found some other writer friends to do the same.
It was worth the effort to have an actual book to promote, though that is tough on your own as well. I have received eight very good reviews, which are invaluable as blurbs to further promote my writing.
All that said — I am thrilled that Musa Publishing has decided to publish Silhouette of Darkness! It is exciting to have a publisher behind me providing a book cover, marketing and perhaps most importantly—editorial services!
I have to admit that, when I opened the manuscript sent back from my editor the first time around, I almost passed out looking at all that red! Here, I thought these stories were good to go after all the time I spent on them, and the collection was accepted for publication, and still — all this red?.
But as I began surveying all the highlighted sections and editorial comments, I saw some patterns I never noticed my own. It wasn’t necessarily “bad writing,” just lapses of showing not telling, providing too much information at times, that sort of thing.
One major change Musa suggested was that I choose a character’s point of view for each story, and then stay with it throughout. Unless I chose first person, I had been “head-hopping,” figuring: “Hey, if I’m the omniscient narrator, anything goes, right? I know what everyone’s thinking, so I’ll just tell the reader.”
Musa has taught me this cheats the reader. If someone is going to buy your book and invest their time in reading the stories (the goal being they read ALL OF THEM, not skim through) it is more effective to place that reader in one set of eyes, letting them sense everything through that one point of view.
When I followed their advice, I have to admit the stories really flow that way, and more importantly, there is a lot more emotional impact when a character must experience a horrible scene with all his/her senses vs. Mr. Narrator/God of the Text describing it.
This is just one subtle way Musa made my stories so much better. It took a lot of time and effort to go through them and make this change but I thank my Musa editor for the valuable advice. This practice in POV will make my novel in progress much stronger as well.
Please look for Silhouette of Darkness from Musa on September 28, 2012. I hope you enjoy reading the stories as much as I have writing them.
George Wilhite has been an aficionado of the horror genre since his youth, discovering Poe and Lovecraft at an early age while also spending many summer nights at drive-in theaters watching the contemporary scene unfold. His stories have been published in numerous anthologies, genre magazines and web sites. He also serves as editor of Static Movement anthologies and reviews books for The Horror Review web site. For the latest information on his own work, as well as reviews of other writers and exciting guests, follow his blog “Long Intervals of Horrible Sanity” at: http://georgewilhite.blogspot.com/
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“Fight or Flight” announcement!
My science fiction courtroom drama “Fight or Flight” has been contracted to Liquid Silver Books with a release date of December 10, 2012!
*throws confetti*
Happy Sunday everyone!
xoxo,
V
Guest post: Becca Jameson
V here: Today I’m welcoming Becca Jameson to the blog to talk about “Lindsey’s Wolves” the much-anticipated sequel to her book “Kara’s Wolves.” I asked Becca to tell us a little bit about her decision to create a sequel for “Kara’s Wolves,” and this is what she had to say:
So excited about the release of Lindsey’s Wolves! After I wrote Kara’s Wolves, I had no idea it was going to turn into a series. I hadn’t even considered the notion. But Kara’s Wolves was so well-received and fans started asking for a sequel, so I went back to the drawing board. It wasn’t hard. After all, Kara had two roommates, and there were plenty of wolves around! I hope everyone loves Lindsey and her wolves as much as they’ve loved Kara.
And yes, I am in the process of writing Jessica’s Wolves. And in a surprise twist of events, even to me, there will be a fourth book. While writing Jessica’s story, another character waltzed onto the scene and she is demanding her own book. The audacity of these characters. What can you do? I hope everyone enjoys the second as much as the first!
Tagline: Overcoming sexual inhibition can prove incrementally difficult when faced with not one, but two, wolf shape-shifters claiming you as their own.
Lindsey’s Wolves
Lindsey just finished college. She is supposed to start teaching this fall. At least that’s the plan, before she meets a sexy Spanish god named Alejandro and falls head over heels for him.
Alejandro just came to the U.S. to help out on the family dairy farm. He runs smack dab into Lindsey at the grocery store and immediately realizes she is his mate.
Add to the mix, Ryan. He lives on a neighboring farm and happens to stop by Kara’s where Lindsey is showing off her new man Alejandro.
Alejandro and Ryan are stunned and none too happy to realize they are both mated to Lindsey. Lindsey, who was raised in a fanatical religious sect, can’t even begin to wrap her head around a threesome, and that’s before she finds out they are shape-shifting wolves.
While the three unsuspecting lovers attempt to come to terms with their unexpected life changes, Lindsey’s childhood church amps up their attempts to bring her back into the flock. Why won’t they leave her alone and what do they want? The answers are shocking and the results could be life-changing for everyone.
Lindsey’s Wolves is now available at Liquid Silver Books.
Catch up on the series! The first book in the series, Kara’s Wolves, is also available from Liquid Silver Books:
Kara’s Wolves
Kara Shepherd is about to compete in her last gymnastics meet and graduate from college. A week before graduation, her roommates drag her out to a country bar to live a little before entering the real world. She has no idea the course her future is on is about to take a sharp turn.
Justin Masters and his lifelong friend, Trevor Shields, share everything from their home to their women. At twenty-eight years old, neither has met their mate, nor are they in a hurry to find a woman who will end their long-standing arrangement with each other. Their dairy farm, a few miles outside of town, allows them the luxury of shifting to their wolf form any time they want in relative seclusion.
Justin’s world tips when Kara walks into the bar on a random Friday night. Immediately recognizing her scent as that of his mate, he is drawn to her by forces beyond his control. Nervous about sharing the news with Trevor, Justin is relieved to realize Kara is also his best friend’s mate. Now all they have to do is convince Kara she belongs in a permanent ménage and track down a stalker who seems hellbent on taking Kara for himself. Contains: ménage, mfm, wolves
Want more Becca? Find her at www.beccajameson.com and follow her on twitter: @beccajameson