Win a partial revision and see lots of useful writing links at the “Dear Editor” site this week. The contest and week are finite, but the links and new info are long lasting! And someone’s gotta win an agent’s eyes on the prize (ie, your soon-to-be-fabulous first chapter.)
It’s spring and the meanies are popping
They’re coming out of the woodwork…..two blogs I follow received nasty comments from strangers–comments unrelated to real life. Just mean spirited, unhelpful insults. (I could post a few of my own “nasty”comments considering the healthcare war on women, but that’s another issue.)
One blogger received a rant about how lame her blog was and how she as an individual was weird. So what is weirder than someone who takes time to insult a perfect stranger? She/he doesn’t like the blog? Why read it, then?
The French blog I follow (American woman married a Frenchman, lives in France) just today mentioned how she was called an unfit mother (and worse) when she talked about doing her family laundry. Apparently she doesn’t wash socks separately and—c’est incroyable–iron the family sheets and underwear! We women just can’t do anything right. Where are the downstairs minions of Downton Abbey when you need them?
The Internet brings out the tiny bullies who have their own psychological issues. Don’t even read their posts–stop when you see where the post is heading. Never respond, unless it’s a legal issue. Think of them as “flashers.” No response and they go elsewhere with their problems.
So you can’t always win when you are in the public eye. Don’t let the nutcases pull you down!
Agent feedback
Check out this agent feedback, Monty Python style. LOFL
Why Teens Love Paranormals….the word according to Tahereh Mafi
Mega author of Shatter Me, Tahereh Mafi, has a great article in the Wall Street Journal about why teens love paranormals.
Didn’t we all feel like outsiders, freaks and weirdos to some extent during our teen years? Fitting in seemed impossible. So keeping a close eye on how those oh-so-real YA characters deal with rejection and fear can help put things in perspective. A little.
And most of us come out the other side. And find that being ourselves is pretty okay.
YA fiction past and present
There’s a great post on the Atlantic Monthly website: How YA Fiction Came of Age. Writer D.B Grady discusses how some YA is morphing into YA “new adult.”
According to Meredith Barnes (Lowenstein Associates), the new adult interest in YA isn’t a literacy crisis but is indicative of the “quality and enduring themes addressed by young adult [fiction].”
However, the huge numbers (books and $) he cites at the beginning of the article have been corrected by a post in the comments section. (See the last comment and link for the updates.)
Although the annual amounts are substantially lower — 4,000 estimated YA books vs. Grady’s 30,000 — the numbers sound pretty good to me.
YA is pulling in not only young readers, but “new adults” and adult adults!
WriteOnCon going bonkers….in a good way
Wow, the current WriteOnCon online conference is loaded with a brain boggling number of live interviews with agents, authors and writers, crits and lots of useful writing craft articles. (Free sign up if you haven’t yet joined.) The conference will be archived online.
And contests. Did I mention contests?
Here’s just one: A great opportunity for a FULL manuscript crit for for YA and MG writers. D4EO lit agent Mandy Hubbard will be judging. A 140 character pitch puts you in the game.
Don’t order that yacht yet, author…
Okay, here’s a depressing post from Mandy Hubbard that lays out what the advances and payouts are for authors. Even if you sell a trilogy to a major house, your payouts after agent and taxes are not enough to quit the day job.
Or buy that yacht.
Here’s the link.
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