Literary Agents

Hello humans!

I want to talk a little today about literary agents. 

If you don't already know what a lit agent is they are the little magical people that know publishers that can get your book published for you. They organize the best deal for you. They do all the leg work between you and the publisher.

If you are going to go traditional publishing route you really need one. And that can be hard. Lit agents get hundreds of submissions every day and you have to stand out from the slop pile (in a good way)

What is the best way to do this?

Your work. You have to have an awesome manuscript. It has to be neat and in their guidelines and as polished as humanly possible. DO NOT send out a first draft. 

But who am I to tell you? Do I have an agent? No. But I can talk about my experiences with them.

Many years ago (pre-50 shades of grey) I wrote a series that was set in a dominatrix parlor. I must stress, it was not erotica ... It had kinky sex in it but not in the "she lovingly cupped Reginald's quivering member" sort of way. It had stuff that was confronting. It was a book about the diversity of human sexuality. It was not like 50 shades... 

I was super proud of these books. I submitted the first to a shit tone of agents. Most of them came back saying "sorry" "not for us" "Good luck in your writing career" that sort of impersonal bullshit.

One agent (no names named) liked it. She asked to read the whole thing. THIS is what you want. You want that email back asking to read the whole MS. 

She read it and got back to me after the longest 8 weeks of my life saying "I liked it, but sorry, kinky doesn't sell"

Three months later ... BOOM! 50 shades came out and went fucking nuts. Kinky doesn't sell my fucking arse!

My point is that Agents are just humans. They may be the magical people that can get your book published, but they are just people, so treat them that way and it should make the process a little easier.

With the novel I have recently finished (Dead Bunnies Make All Eight of Me Cry) I have also submitted that to numerous agents. The first one I sent it to asked to read the whole thing. He actually CALLED me. I was beyond over the moon. 

Then he wanted me to get a manuscript assessment done. I did it. He also wanted me to get a manuscript mentor. Now at this point I was crushed. Because it seemed to me like he didn't actually want my story, he wanted me to spend a lot of money on these services. He had suggested places to get these things done at, that after a bit of looking into, I found that he owned... 

I know I am waffling on a bit ... I am sorry. I just want you to beware of who you send your work to. As I said before, agents are only human, and there are a lot of humans out there that are straight up douche bags. They do fucked up things for money.

Maybe this agent wasn't. Maybe he was trying to be helpful. But it certainly seemed suspect. 

Dear wannabe writers of the void. When submitting your work to agents and publishers, keep your heart sealed tight in a box or in a jar or somewhere it won't get hurt. Being rejected sucks, but don't let it deter you. It is business. And only business. 

If you want to find yourself an agent I highly suggest going to The Publishers Marketplace It is great. It has lots of agents and their profiles. Follow the guidelines that are specific to each agent. I know that some places say to send out multiple submissions, but I personally think this is rude. I submit to one agent at a time. 

If you like the idea of traditional publishing, but you are leaning towards self-pub then there is no reason why you can't start the self-pub process while you are still submitting to agents.

hugs
AMC xxx

Review of Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

(So, before I begin the review I just want to say that I recently got a job reviewing books. I will be placing the views on here too. If you have a book you would like me to review, feel free to contact me.)

Title: Magonia

Goodreads rating: 3.78 stars (3,707 reviews)

Genre: YA, Fantasy

Author: Maria Dahvana Headley

Pages: 320

Publisher: Harper Collins

Formats: Paper back, eBook/Kindle, Audiobook

Aza Ray seems to be your normal teenaged girl. Your normal dying teenage girl, that is. I know what you’re thinking. This is not a “The Fault in Our Stars” re-do. The similarities end with teenage girl with lung condition.

The novel starts off normal enough, but we quickly get the sense that something isn’t all that normal in Aza’s life. Despite the rare, debilitating disease she is inflicted with, there are other oddities that push themselves into Aza’s existence. Like the feather in her lung, the hallucinated ships in the sky or the birds that seem to stalk Aza’s every move, you get a sense that there is something about to happen, a mystery is about to reveal itself. So you turn the page …

“I'm dark matter. The universe inside of me is full of something, and science can't even shine a light on it. I feel like I'm mostly made of mysteries.” 
― Maria Dahvana Headley, Magonia

Although Aza is the main character there are also chapters from the point of view of her best friend, Jason. I enjoyed these chapters almost more than Aza’s. He is a neurotic over-thinker and the only person that believes Aza when she says that she sees ships in the sky.

When things take a turn for the worse and Aza is rushed off in an ambulance to the hospital, the mysteries begin to unravel, slowly revealing themselves and that is where the real fun (and heartache) begin.

Magonia is a beautifully woven tale, full of all the things you want from a Young Adult novel. Maria Dahvana Headley paints the world of Magonia in a way that when you look back on the book, you no longer see inked words on a page, but the images she illustrated in your mind.

Book Covers

Hello Humans!

Today I want to discuss book covers.

Now, in the past I have mostly made my own. I don't think I do a bad job. They are not vomit-inducing, they don't make anyone's eyes bleed ... and people download my short fiction so they can't be all too bad, right?

On the road to self publication I came to the fork with a sign dangling precariously from one nail, swinging, squeaking. It read "make my own cover" one way and "hire a cover artist" ... which way to go?

I have been doing my research and I have come to a solid and basically final conclusion; I am broke.

Now, some of you will be thinking "I hear ya!" but others may be rolling your eyes. But, truly, I am totally poor at the moment. I am super lucky that work pays for my internet or else I wouldn't be typing here. I swear the electricity company will be knocking on my door any day now.

So, what have I have on my research?

There are SO many options out there for self pub authors! SO MANY!

I will give you a list. Some I can personally vouch for, others I have just found on my travels and they seemed pretty awesome. When it comes down to it, you have to find someone that fits you, your style and your book. I just want to point out that none of the people below are paying me to talk about them... I wish they would, but they are not!

• Keith Heptinstall -  I can vouch for this guy! His price is good, his digital art is great and he is amazingly easy to get on with. If you like something a little dark, he is your guy! I would have used him, but as I said I am poor. His price is good, but it isn't free!
• Canva -  Now this is not a bad option to go if you are new to book covers. But don't be fooled. It says free but you still have to pay for some of the stock images. It isn't much so it is still a lot better than some. I suggest ducking over and giving them a try. I couldn't find anything to suit my novel (but my shit is WEIRD) but you would be surprised at how easy the program is to use.
• CreativINDIEcovers - This guy has helped me a lot. If you are like me and just can't afford the expense, then check this out. He GIVES AWAY templates and teaches you how to use WORD. Yes. Word. As in the thing that we write in... I know right! I didn't realise what word could do. And it can do a lot. He also creates covers himself, so if you still don't feel up to the task of DIYing it, then you can just hire him.
• SpiffingCovers -  I have to be honest. I clicked on this link because I liked the name. It kinda looks like "spiffy" - it kinda looks dirty if you have a gutter brain like me. So, I am thankful I did, because these guys don't just do covers (as the name would lead you to believe) ... They do just about everything you will need to self pub. They do page layout, ISBNs, editing, marketing, POD, book launch website! and there is more... I just want you to go check them out.
• CreateSpace - If you don't know who these people are then you should click the link and get nice and familiar with them. Get all cosy and up in their website. Because you will probably spending a bit of time in their vicinity in the near future. They are one of the biggest indie publishing houses for paper back books. It makes me so happy that being an indie author no longer means eBook only. One of the best things about the amazon owned CreateSpace is that they are POD, which is Print On Demand. No more forking out to get 10,000 of your own books printed and then trying to find a place to sell them, like the back of your station wagon and at the Sunday markets. They print them as they are ordered from Amazon. But I am getting side tracked. They have a cover creator too. 
• DesignCrowd - This is a pretty cool idea. I like DesignCrowd. I have used them for business logos in the past. It all runs pretty smoothly and I have never had a problem. If you don't know how they work and you are in business, then this might just rock your freaking world. So, you put in a job request and and pay one of the set amounts up front. Depending on a) how much you want to spend and b) how many responses you want to get. You get a whole bunch of artists competing for your work. Then you pick the one you want. Watch this little cute video ... They describe it better.
• ME! - No this was not a shameless way of saying hey hire me to do your cover design, but ... as I said I am poor! lol ... Feel free to check out my covers, if you like the way I do things, I promise I won't charge much. Just the stock images and a little for my time... (I thought it was worth a shot!)You can even download some of my free short fiction while you are there! I have also done a number of covers for Alex Focus another awesome writer you should check out.

So, I have decided to go the DIY road. The style I wanted to go for my book is basically ... crazy and really hard work because every quote I have received has been $3000 and over... and that is USD not AUD so I don't know how much that works out to, but either way I don't have it.

I want to put a sneak peak of my DIY cover up ... but I am not sure. If you would like to see it, comment below! Also, if you are a cover creator or an artist wanting to get into book covers, comment or contact me on Facebook or Twitter if you would like me to give you a shout out, share your work or hire you, LOL (only if you work for love and words and blog space and love)

I hope I have helped you out, or at least given you a place to start.

Hugs

AMC xxx

Simplification

Hello Humans!

The other day I totally over simplified the self publishing process. I just said, "And then self publish" but it is not as easy as just that.

There is a lot more to it and I suggest you do your own research after reading through my notes. Everywhere I have looked has suggested different things, so do as much research as possible. I have done some of the hard yards for you, so hopefully I can help.

1. After finishing your MS, Editing is number one. You must get your MS edited. Yes, you do. No arguments. If you don't have the money (like me) then find someone that is willing to edit your MS in parts. Mine is getting done 10,000 words at a time, so the payments are small chunks periodically, rather than a big amount at once.
2. Get a web site. If you haven't already, go get yourself an author website. I was once told by a MS assessor to "Dream Big" and go get an author page. So I did. WIX offers free website and have a great range of templates to choose from.
3. Research. Research all your options. At as many different websites as possible.  
4. Choose a self-pub option. Whether it be KDP, or Smashwords, or POD through CreateSpace or, ACX, or the any number of offset printing presses or vanity publishers. Pick one or a few and start researching them. 
5. Tax info. Organize your tax stuff, especially if you are not a US citizen.
6. Hire a book cover designer. Do your research on these too. I have found some as cheap as $69 and some as expensive as $3500. You do get what you are paid for though,so save up and try to get an artist that fits your style and budget. We all judge books buy their covers, People!
7. Hire a MS interior designer (if your chosen method of self-pub doesn't include that service)
8. Apply for an ISBN, copyright, etc. Also the cover info like blurbs, Reviews (ARCs, which I will talk about later) Hashtags, bar codes etc.
9. Set a cover price. Once again this comes down to research. Look at what price books sell for. And think about what you buy yourself. Normally, if I don't know the author, I won't pay any more than $5 for an ebook, or $15 for a paperback.
10. Select a publication date.
11. Develop press materials.
12. Plan and implement a reasonable marketing PR and add campaign. Think about the things you know you will stick to. There is no use in starting a Tumbler account for your author page if you will let it fall into disrepair. Also, do some research on how other Indie authors have done it.
13. Begin the pre-sale of your book. Start promoting to distributors and lining up booksellers and taking out ads and have your book listed with online retailers.
14. If you are not already, get yourself on Goodreads. If you have not published anything at all, maybe think about publishing a few short stories just to get yourself out there and start building a fan base. Offer them for free so it just gets your name out there. Smashwords is awesome for this.
15. Make a book trailer for Youtube. Start a Youtube channel. (I won't be doing the Youtube thing because I am shy. I haven't even got an author photo yet. Oh yeah, get an author photo!)
16. Publish your book! (and ship to people if applicable)
17. Continue to promote yourself. But remember, you are not a dick. Subtle promotion always works better than being shoved down peoples throats. 

I am positive that I have missed some things. If you can think of something I have missed, let me know in the comments or you can contact me on Twitter or Facebook or Google+ or Pintrest or email ... Not on Tumbler though, I do NOT understand Tumbler!

Hugs
AMC xxx 

It is a long, but not lonesome, road ...

Hello Humans,

I have been weighing up the options in my head. I have compiled a kind of "to-do" list for both options. Self-publishing and traditional publishing.

Self-publishing

• Finish book. (der)
• Submit my book to a structural & copy editor. (a must. Anyone thinking of bypassing this step when they are going to self-publish is silly. Rethink. Save up for it.)
• Create a cover image. A GOOD cover image. People judge books by their covers. I know I do.
• Self-publish on as many platforms as possible. (Kindle, Smashwords, ACX, etc.)
• Market the crap out of my book. Tastefully. It is not a dick, I don't want to ram it down people's throats.
• Collect up to 70% of royalties. 
• Continue to work my ass off. 

Traditional

• Finish book.
• Slog my book to literary agents and pray that one of them gets my weirdness.
• If that happens, pray that my agent finds a publisher willing to take on my weird little book.
• Pray that my book does not get torn apart in the editing room.
• Pray that it get given a good cover.
• Market the crap out of my book. Once again, tastefully.
• Collect 10% of royalties after the advance has cleared its mark.
• Continue to work my ass off.

If you are reading this and trying to decide which way to go, hopefully I have shed some light for you. There are lots of us out in the void trying to do the same thing. 

I have had a hang up about self-publishing for years. I didn't think that it was "real" publishing. But I am coming to realize that, these days, a self-pub author has just as much chance of getting themselves out there as a traditional one.

Go into a book store (if you can find one of these rare and endangered beasts) and have a look at the names of the authors that have done all of the traditional list above and still you have never heard of them.

It makes me sad. 

Writing is such a personal thing. And we put ourselves out there, strip ourselves naked to the world, tear our flesh from our bones to bare our mind and soul. Show our scars to the void and for what? For the hope that someone out there in that void will look out and catch a glimpse of something familiar in your scars. And there will be a connection made. 

What if there is no one out there?

But there is ... There are lots of us out here, shouting into the void. Do yourself a favor and check out this amazing woman. Jenna Moreci is a wonderful writer and vlogger that you MUST watch. NOW. She will make you laugh and give you amazing tips. 

It is a long road, the one us writers trudge, but we need not do it alone. We are a community. A weird one, but a community none the less.

Hugs

AMC xxx

My road to publication ...

Hello humans!

So ...
Just to let you all know in advance ... I have no idea what I am doing. I am lost.

I have found myself at a crossroads.

The publishing world is cut throat. I know this. But with self publishing so accessible these days, what is an author to do?

So, I am making this Blog. Maybe I can help other authors out there make these tough decisions. I will be researching both sides of the coin and trying to make my choice. 

First I will tell you a bit about myself. I am a writer. I am many things. A parent, a wife, a florist, a nerd, a hugger. But, for this Blog, I am a writer.

If there is anyone out there in the void reading this, feel free to comment. Let me know your experiences. I am here to listen and help.

hugs,
AMC xxx