Blooming Cacti

I've been a bad blogger.

Nothing for more than 20 days - completely ignoring the advice I give my blogging Webinar students. (Like the ones I've been creating a brand new class for).

 Yes, I've been developing new classes, and yes, my family and I also went on vacation. So I (kind of) have reasons.

But. Also.

Been kinda -

Yup. Me and kitty, that's us.

Why? Because - editing.

Got two mss I'm trying to polish, and you know how it is ... eyes crossed, slogging through bad writing you were once very hopeful about .....

And it wasn't until I saw this:

And these:

That I began to feel inspired again.

They reminded me: even prickly things bloom.

Spring in southern Arizona (where I live) is not quite as miraculous as it is in other places - where you've survived Snowtopia and feelings of doom that suggest you'll never be warm again. But even here, in the land of the mundane winter, there is beauty when it's over.

Because things here flower too. Not the things I grew up with: we have no lilac, no forsythia, no hydrangea.

What we have is cacti.

Cacti are not particularly lovely. They're spiky, thorny, unfriendly things that don't need a whole lot of water and thus they live a long time and don't care much if someone doesn't love them.

There's a simile there. (My 8yo is studying simile, therefore I am too).

I think my writing is like the cactus. Not the part where it doesn't need TLC  - all writing  needs that!! But, rather, the part where it's unlovely and unremarkable.

BUT THEN. I remember that similes are only perfect for a small moment in time. Because even the cactus BLOOMS. And then it's remarkable. And everyone stops and looks at it and takes pictures and says, "What an amazing thing this is! How lovely and worth my taking a moment to stop and admire."

So if that can be true of the cactus, it can certainly be true of my writing, no?

Do you ever feel like your writing is like a cactus and you're just desperately trying to coax the blooms from the thorns?

Pitch Critique - Michelle Hauck

Michelle Hauck is with us today - yay!

For those of you don't, you should go follow her on Twitter: @Michelle4laughs. She was the "Snow" half of the "Sun vs Snow" contest last month - a terrific contest that resulted in many requests!! She also hosts Query Kombat and Nightmare on Query Street.

She's a great writer and gives really smart, targeted feedback - I know because I've had the benefit of her critiques!!!


So - get your pitches in! First 10 get critiqued. For those of you getting ready for #PitchMadness, remember your pitches need to be 35 words - that's a little different from the traditional pitch party of 140 words.

After Michelle is finished with her round, feel free to comment as well. The more the merrier!

Here's how this works:

1) Post your pitch in the comments section.  Tell us your genre: YA, MG, or NA. And for reference, tell us your ms title.
2) The first 10 to post will get a critique from Michelle. As I said, after she leaves feedback, I hope others will leave feedback as well - the more the merrier.
3) Use the "reply" button to do this rather than making a new comment - I am hoping that will help us keep the feedback organized and easy to follow. Just to be sure, reference the ms title you're critiquing to minimize potential for mix up!
3) As always, please keep your feedback constructive, not mean.

For those of you polishing pitches for #PitchMadness Clue Edition hosted by Brenda Drake, Sharon Johnston, Summer Heacock, and Rebecca Weston, the contest rules and info are HERE .

Pitch Critique - Amy Trueblood

Amy Trueblood is with us today - yay!

For those of you don't, you should go follow her on Twitter: @atrueblood5. She was the "Sun" half of the "Sun vs Snow" contest last month - a terrific contest that resulted in many requests!! She's also part of Operation Awesome. She's a great writer, and equally as important she believes in staying positive - supporting and uplifting our writing community.

So - get your pitches in! First 10 get critiqued.
After Amy is finished with her round, feel free to comment as well. The more the merrier!

Here's how this works:

1) Post your pitch in the comments section.  Tell us your genre: YA, MG, or NA. And for reference, tell us your ms title.
2) The first 10 to post will get a critique from Amy. As I said, after she leaves feedback, I hope others will leave feedback as well - the more the merrier.
3) Use the "reply" button to do this rather than making a new comment - I am hoping that will help us keep the feedback organized and easy to follow. Just to be sure, reference the ms title you're critiquing to minimize potential for mix up!
3) As always, please keep your feedback constructive, not mean.

For those of you polishing pitches for #PitchMadness Clue Edition hosted by Brenda Drake, Sharon Johnston, Summer Heacock, and Rebecca Weston, the contest rules and info are HERE .

Guest Critiquers Announcement

Getting ready for #PitchMadness?
Planning to be part of the next Twitter pitch party?
Think you might sign up for an agent pitch session at the next conference you attend?

Don't wait until the last minute to get your pitch in order. There's always a good reason to have a good pitch for each ms you're querying.  I even think it's a good idea to have a working pitch for WiPs -- keeps you focused.

I'm excited to tell you that for 3 days this week, we'll have the benefit of some amazing guest critiquers looking at our pitches.
Each guest will critique 10 Pitches - the first 10 to post on his or her day.



Wednesday: @SC Author
Thursday: Amy Trueblood (@atrueblood5)
Saturday: Michelle Hauck (@Michelle4Laughs)

Here's how this works:

1) Post your pitch in the comments section.  Tell us your genre: YA, MG, or NA. And for reference, tell us your ms title.
2) The first 10 to post will get a critique from the guest critiquer of the day. After our guest leaves feedback, I hope others will leave feedback as well - the more the merrier.
3) Use the "reply" button to do this rather than making a new comment - I am hoping that will help us keep the feedback organized and easy to follow. Just to be sure, reference the ms title you're critiquing to minimize potential for mixup!
3) As always, please keep your feedback constructive, not mean.

Wednesday Critiques begin at 11am EST. Not before.


For those of you specifically prepping for the upcoming #PitchMadness Clue Edition hosted by Brenda Drake, Sharon Johnston, Summer Heacock, and Rebecca Weston, the contest rules and info are HERE .

See you soon!

Pitch Workshop

Time for some pitch work!

It's always a good idea to have a good pitch for whatever you're querying. I even think it's a good idea to have a pitch for WiPs -- keeps you focused.

ANYWAY - this workshop was inspired by the upcoming #PitchMadness Clue Edition, the hosted by Brenda Drake, Sharon Johnston, Summer Heacock, and Rebecca Weston.

In case you're not familiar with the contest or need to remind yourself of the rules, I'll give you a second to go HERE to refresh yourselves.

Ok - so now you know you'll need a 35 word (max.) pitch. NEVER easy but totally doable.

Here's how this works:

1) Post your pitch in the comments section.  Tell us your genre: YA, MG, or NA. And for reference, tell us your ms title.
2) While you're here, share the love -- provide feedback on other pitches already posted. Use the "reply" button to do this rather than making a new comment - I am hoping that will help us keep the feedback organized and easy to follow. Just to be sure, reference the ms title you're critiquing to minimize potential for mixup!
3) As always, please keep your feedback constructive, not mean.
 4) I'll keep this running until March 10, when #PitchMadness opens.

Looking forward to some great feedback!
 

#PitchMadness Workshop Opportunity

Workshop Opportunity!

I've been looking for some new eyes on my pitch for the upcoming #PitchMadness Clue Edition (yay Brenda Drake! Such a fun idea.) So I thought, I'm probably not the only one.
Hence, this opportunity to workshop your pitch - give and get valuable critiques.

Here's how it will work (it's easy!):

- I'll open for comments at 12pm EST tomorrow (Saturday, February 22, 2014)
- Post your pitch-in-progress in the comments section.
- Everyone who posts should also leave comments for others -- share the love and the wisdom.
- When you post your pitch, include your ms title and genre to help us critique.
- To leave a critique, use the "reply" button, to try keep each pitch critique grouped within one comment. Hoping this will work in a reasonably organized fashion!


Here's to having shiny-perfect pitches to WOW the agents, and more success stories to share!

A Different Kind of Style Book

It's called Missed Periods and Other Grammar Scares, by Jenny Baranick,  and it's HILARIOUS.

Keep in mind, I'm a complete nerd, so when I say a grammar book is hilarious, it's because I actually enjoy reading those things. I think Eats, Shoots, and Leaves is fun reading.

If you're one of my readers who isn't a grammar book nerd, you may stop reading now and I won't hold it against you.

For those of you still reading, - here's what I love.

First of all, just the subtitle: How to Avoid Unplanned and Unwanted Writing Errors.

Second, the brilliant lesson in writing a compelling opening. Here's how she launches her first chapter - on the importance of spelling:

Spelling can be as elusive as the female orgasm. We spell a word, and we think, "Ooooh, I think that's it. Wait.... no. Let me just. Oh there, maybe that's it. No. Oh, I don't know...I'm exhausted."

Admit it. You laughed. How could you not? You're hooked, right?

In this same chapter, Ms. Baranick, a college professor, goes on to illustrate the bugaboo SpellCheck. I love how she points out that it merely checks the accuracy of the word you THINK you want to use, blithely allowing you to make an ass of yourself with the WRONG WORD. Think affect instead of effect, and other grand mistakes we make. All. The. Time.

Each chapter is full of All The Mistakes that somehow crept into written English over the years. Like the words "irregardless" and "anyways" - when did that happen? They've never been words. NEVER. I love that she addresses this.

In the chapter on Grammar Myth Busting, Baranick takes aim at the old chestnut we all grew up with: that you cannot end a sentence with a preposition.

You can. Really, I promise. I've been trying to demystify that rule in my business writing classes for years and have had students very earnestly tell me that I am wrong, the rule is right, and they know because their English teacher taught them this when they were in 7th grade.

Sigh. So did mine. She was wrong too. Bless their hearts.

The preposition thing comes from LATIN, people. We speak ENGLISH. The rules aren't the same. PLEASE END YOUR SENTENCES IN PREPS WHEN YOU NEED TO.

Anyone heard the old Winston Churchill joke?  The one where he was poking fun at one of his speechwriters who was dutifully and nonsensically burying prepositions. He said, "This is the kind of pedantic nonsense up with which I will not put".

Nuff said.

Finally, the book is a great teaching aide for anyone (like me) who needs fresh new exercises to help keep students interested.

Anyone else seen it already? What was your favorite part?

What other grammar/style aides do you turn to for help?

The Phone Test

I've spent the last 3 weeks or so in critique land. Very little writing, just getting and giving feedback on queries and first 250s.

I've noticed a main theme develop in my comments: Fix the worst writing glitches by following this rule:

Read It Out Loud!

Flow problems? Authentic dialogue? Overwritten?

 When you HEAR your own words, the problems fix themselves. At least 90% of the time. Sometimes they don't, but that's another post.

The thing is, when you use your outside voice, not your internal I-love-these-words voice, you process differently - it's just that simple. Your mouth stumbles over awkward phrasing, overly formal or purply prose.  You know what you would say in "real life". That's what you should actually be writing.

Some of you know I teach writing - business writing. My students work for various US agencies and departments. My job exists because SO many government employees overwrite and crowd their documents with long, fussy, circuitous language. And, for the most part, they know better. But the culture of government writing supports, nay, ENCOURAGES that, so that's what they do.

The truth is, high level leadership wants plainer, simpler language - and certainly taxpayers do too. But the disconnect is huge.  If only I had a dollar for every time I've heard this: "We've always written this way; it sounds more official".

Uh, nope.


So anyway (*forcibly removes herself from her soapbox*), when I help people unlearn bad habits, we chant the Golden Rule. You know it now, say it with me:

READ IT OUT LOUD.

Keep it simple, and they will get it. 

Keep it real, and they will connect.

But, oddly enough, I never thought to apply that to my own creative writing until I read this post from the amazing Authoress, whom many of us depend on for wisdom, truth, and great contests.

She is Dauntless and posts about her own learning curve, so I am going to take a page from her blog and do the same.  Here is what I wrote in one of the early versions of my current query letter:

 It’s also a speculative take on the controversial world of stem cell research.

Say what?

Read it out loud, and you find your tongue stumbling across the consonants. You wonder, now just what does she mean?

But I didn't hear the problems because I didn't SPEAK it, and so, I actually sent it out that way.

So, try it. You'll surprise yourself.

One last note: when in doubt, try what I call the "phone test". When you can't figure out how to word something, pretend you're telling it to someone on the phone. Actually speak out loud. 90% of the time, what you say on the "phone"  is drastically different from what you say when you're staring at the screen.

Be Brilliant!