Writing Tips From Blogosphere

In October, I posted a blog that snagged different ideas from different blog pages and shared a bunch of writing tips with everyone about all the things I'd learned lately. Well, that went so well, I might just make a habit of it. Plus, I'm finding such treasures, I feel the need to pass along all these golden nuggets of information.

This month, I've learned interesting facts about agents, email submission, perseverance, and how to keep a reader reading.

On Submissions

This wonderful piece of advice comes to us from Tess Hilmo on her blog : Tess Hilmo
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 : Wish I Knew Wednesday #1

"Many (not all) editors/agents do not open e mail addresses that are not names. For example hotchick(at)whatever(dot)com or bestmommyever(at)something(dot)com.

Why?

They get a lot of emails and spam and are very cautious about possible viruses or other malware. If they run their mouse over your email address and the name that pops up does not match the address, they will most likely delete the e mail w/out opening it."


On Agents

This wonderful piece of advice comes to us from Jessica Nelson on her blog : BookingIt
Friday, October 30, 2009 : Know Thy Self: Guest Post

"It’s so easy to say: I’m going to research every agent inside and out, read their every blog entry and online interview, talk to their other clients, and ask all the right questions to turn down any agent who answers even one of them wrong. That still doesn’t mean the marriage will be perfect."

This guest blogger goes on to explain how an agent may take a writer on because of a single book they wrote, but they might not represent every genre of literature that author is interested in creating. So, make sure to let a perspective agent know what you like to write and where you want your writing to go, so you'll both know if the "marriage" will have a better chance of surviving.


On Perseverance

This wonderful piece of advice comes to us from Robyn Campbell on her blog : Putting Pen to Paper
Tuesday, November 3, 2009 : Building a writing career

"I'm in this for the long haul. Writing is much harder to do than it sounds. I know it isn't easy. Believe me, I know that. I'm prepared for the ups and downs. But I want it. I can taste it. I can feel it. I wanna BE it. An author."


On Keeping the Reader Reading

And finally, this wonderful piece of advice comes to us from Nancy J. Parra on her blog :This Writer's Life
Sunday, October 25, 2009 : Get the Hook

"You need to write something that catches the reader's attention and doesn't let them put the book down. Each chapter, each scene needs to have two hooks. One at the opening and one at the ending. Your job as a writer is to keep your reader up all night because they HAVE to know what happens next."