On Spec or Proposal?

Would you like to buy my book?

A second way to write is to create the concept, a couple sample chapters and put together a book proposal. This is common for experienced writers, nonfiction topics and series.

What goes into a proposal?

A proposal includes a clear concept and samples of the writing that will appear in the finished manuscript. Let’s look at non-fiction and fiction separately.

Fiction Proposal

Concept: For fiction, a book proposal a high-concept catchy one-liner is helpful. “Boy meets girl” isn’t enough. You’ll need something interesting enough to carry the proposal, so think about how to phrase the one-liner, the hook.

A love affair with a twist: she wants his bite, but he wants her humanity.

Chapter Breakdown: Usually the first book in a series must have a couple lines per chapter. The editors will want to know that you can, indeed, plot a tight story. Each chapter should include a couple lines about the major actions of the story.

Characters: Sometimes, it’s helpful to include short sketches of each major character. Nothing long, a paragraph at most. Make sure each is unique and interesting and contributes to the story.

Series Outline: If you’re proposing a series, then you’ll need half a page or so on each title. Include an overview with the main problem, major complications and a resolution.

Your Bio: Why are you the best person to write this story? What are your past publications, etc. Keep this specific to the proposal, yet general enough to cover your career.

Writing Sample: You must include a sample of the writing for this book, so the editor has a clear idea of what they will get for this contract. Don’t be skimpy. Write three solid chapters and polish them, put your best foot forward.

Letter: This is the usual business letter that you would include with any query or submission letter. Be sure to include the series hook and a hook for the first book.

NonFiction Proposal

The nonfiction proposal includes everything above, except maybe the character sketches. For a biography, though, you’d include it as well. The extra for a nonfiction proposal is the bibliography. You course, you’ll uncover many more resources as you write your story, but you need enough here to let the editor know you have material to write about.

Especially important here is your access to sources. If an editor gets two similar proposals for stories about George Washington, s/he’ll look at the access to sources. Writer A has done online research and has uncovered interesting info. Writer B, though, has contacted Mount Vernon and has an invitation to stay in the VIP suite while talking to staff about the research.

Which writer would you give a contract? Writer B, every time!

With competition so stiff these days, make sure you have the best access to sources possible. It will make your proposal more likely to be accepted.

How Well Do Proposals Work?

Some do, some don’t.

After a successful book, an author might just need to hand an editor a two-page proposal to get a contract. A new author might need to write an entire 100,000 word novel on spec. And everything in between happens in publishing. You’ll have to decide how much you want to do on spec and how solid your relationship is with your publisher. But keep in mind that as your career grows, your book proposals could shrink!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

If you’re doing NaNoWriMo, the National Novel Writing Month, you’ll be starting at midnight tonight or first thing in the morning. You’ll be opening your story with a great scene, right?



Here are resources for those first lines, opening chapters of your novel.

1. 10 Opening Line Strategies, illustrated with the top 100 opening lines of novels.
2. 4 Goals of Opening Chapters
3. 5 Ways Openings Go Wrong
4. Backstory’s Emotional Weight, or Where Do I Put the Emotional Backstory if It Doesn’t Belong in the First Chapter–Which it Doesn’t
5. 4 Ways to Deal with Narrative Summary, Or How to Deal with Another Common Opening Chapter Mistake
6. Still trying to decide on the POV for your novel? 5 Questions About First Person POV
7. Round-up of Links for Opening Chapters
8. Prophetic Openings: Foreshadowing the Story’s Ending in it’s Beginning
9. Improve Your Weak Opening. No, you’re not revising yet, but read this one to see what to avoid.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

I am thinking about doing NaNoWriMo this year, joining with thousands of others in trying to write 50,000 words–a novel–during the month of November.

You can’t count any words written before November 1, but I know I can’t do this if I don’t work on a plot before the mad rush officially begins. So far, I only have a situation.

What’s the difference in a plot and a situation?

A situation is a single event, a strange combination of story elements. For example, there’s an annual contest called Stuck on a Truck. The idea is for selected people to put their hands on a truck and keep them there. The last one standing–and still stuck on that truck–will win the truck. It usually takes 100 hours for the last ones to drop out. That’s 4-5 days with no sleep.

It’s an interesting situation and one that I’d like to write about. But it’s not a plot.

Transform a Situation into a Plot

For the situation to become a plot, I need to add characters with real problems they must overcome. I am sifting through the ideas for characters, looking for flaws, quirks and a heart for readers to connect with. I also need to add a setting, ground the story in a particular historical period (contemporary, historical, fantasy, etc.), a particular geographical place. And finally, I need to be mean, cruel, despicably unfair to my characters; in other words, I need intense complications that force my characters to make decisions they don’t want to make. Tension on every page.

Fortunately, there are 29 plot templates I can follow when considering options.

Also of interest:

• 30 Days to Stronger Scenes
• 30 Days to a Stronger Novel
• Villains: A 3-part series
• How to Create Whacky, Interesting Character Descriptions that Stick with a Reader
• The Mesh of Plot and Subplot
• 4 Ways to Deal with Narrative Summaries

Need help with something else? Use the Search Box to look for more information. Or ask a question in the comments or send me an email at darcy at darcypattison dot com.

Are you doing the NaNoWriMo? Why is it right for you this year?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

I wrote a first draft of a picture book this week. Except, I didn’t finish. And that’s a good thing.

This often happens to me when I’m writing the first draft of a picture book or the first draft of a chapter. I write and write and write, then suddenly stop. Why stop?

When something says, "STOP!", you need to listen.

Research Needed. Often, I need to research some detail. For nonfiction, it probably means I need more resources to answer specific questions. And, well, the same thing for fiction. Yes, you need solid facts upon which to build a fictional story. It must be believable. For example, I might need to know exactly how long it takes robin eggs to hatch before I can finish my plot timeline.

Voice Needs Tweaking. Sometimes the voice needs to be tweaked, or totally overhauled. I may need to try it from another POV, another attitude, or switch from a picture book to a short chapter book. Something is just off in the storytelling. To remedy this, I need to stop and play with format and voice to find where this story fits best.

In other words, the first draft is to tell you what your story is. Second and following drafts are about finding the most dramatic way to tell the story so that it will reach your target audience. That’s the fun part. So, when I suddenly stop before the end of a draft, I know the fun has just begun.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

When you’re writing do you tell people what your working on or not?

Darcy, the Storyteller!

It’s helpful to do this because you can orally narrow down a topic, rehearse details, ask for more details, and even do oral revisions before they ever put pencil to paper. I like this as a prewriting strategy for student writers.

But then, I thought about my own writing. Do I tell others about what I’m writing? Do I rehearse the story orally, decide to add/subtract details, look for weak areas and shore them up with an oral revision? No!

Why not? I don’t know. Certainly, I tell real events over and over and hone the details, presentation, delivery of the punch line. But fiction? Somehow, it’s different? I don’t like telling the story before hand?

Would I benefit from doing that? Maybe. I’m working on a science fiction story and realize the scientific basis of a couple things must be meticulous. So, I am discussing those things, trying to get it straight what might and might not happen, not using pure invention here. But that’s nonfiction stuff again.

The question is this: for your fiction, do you tell people what you’re working on? Why or why not?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Celebrate Milestones of Writing

This week, I finally have 1574 words done, a solid draft of Chapter 1. I’m celebrating. It’s been a struggle to get this one started. And I have a plan for what comes next, even better.

Do you celebrate small steps along the way of writing and publishing your work? What’s your favorite way to celebrate? What milestones do you celebrate?

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Random Acts of Publicity Begins Next Tuesday

Next week is the Random Acts of Publicity week. Join us at the Facebook Event page. Invite some friends to join us.

I have posts ready on word-of-mouth, reviews, links and social media.

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Character Links

Seems like everyone is talking about characterization lately. Here are some links from around the blogosphere:

• Characterization Exercise: No Two Characters Are Created Equal
• Characterization Exercise: Make a Wish
• The Dreaded Mary Sue (the perfect in every way character)
• Janni Talking to her Characters
• Poor Ole Secondary Characters

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

My first draft writing is a messy process. I know–my DH tells me all the time–that I sound very left-brained about writing. Organized. Logical. Structured.

And I am.

BUT once I have that structure, I’m VERY right-brained.

Unexpected. Once I know the direction that I need to go, I don’t mind letting go and doing the unexpected. When I understand the function of a particular scene, then I’m free to be creative about how I accomplish that. One librarian recently told me that The Wayfinder (now available for Kindle, Nook, iPad/iPhone) continually surprised her; the actions/plot took unexpected turns and kept her reading. (WOW! I like THAT librarian.)

I like doing the unexpected and telling the story in a surprising way. I can only do that when I’m structured to an extent.

Uneasy. Sometimes, though, I’m uneasy about a section. Or a quick read by a friend points out a weakness. Then, the process gets very messy. I try writing something, then think, oh, this or that reference book says something about this, so I find the book and read a bit until–something strikes me and I’m off writing again. The rhythms of writing at this point are anything but smooth: staccato, jerky, speeding up or slowing down. I usually find that by the end of the day I’ve solved the problem(s). But I have no idea how I got to that point. It’s an uneasy process sometimes, but it’s the only process I have and I have to trust it.

I like the structure and organization at the beginning of the process, at the beginning of the day. But after I’ve set up the structure, I very much trust the messy right brain to pull through for me.

What does YOUR process look like? Do you organize first, then write messy? Or are you organized all the way? Or messy all the way?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

First Drafts are Uncertain, by Nature

I’m at that fragile stage of the first draft when I’m not totally committed to this story. I’m still feeling my way and haven’t yet gained confidence that I will like the story, or that my readers will like it. I’m walking on eggshells.

What can I do to GET committed?

Play with voice.

The main thing I’m doing is to continue to play with voice, making sure that I’m not tied into one way of telling this story yet. I’m doing first person, third person, omniscient. Different narrators are popping up. I’m trying a loose collection of short scenes and trying longer, more connected things. Playing.

Keep writing.

Though it feels like I’m swimming upstream against a heavy curtain, I’m still writing. Just bits and pieces each day, but pages are starting to accumulate so that I can start to see the shape of things. I’m writing.

Embrace uncertainty.

Hardest for me personally is to embrace the uncertainty of this stage of a first draft of a novel. I’m liking the main event and the characters and even most of the plot (so far). But I’ve found that there are two things I need to know. First, what is the story that I want to tell. Second, what is the best way to tell that story.

I’ve found the story, at least I’ve caught it and am wrestling with it. What this draft will tell me is whether I’ve found the best way to tell that story.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Searching for Plot Events

I’m evaluating the outline for my WIP novel and realize that I need more events. It takes place at one big event that spans 98 hours. Within that time period, though, I need some exciting things happening. I’ve sorta mapped out the emotional changes (Wow, what a change for me!), but now it’s the events themselves that matter.

In Roz Morris’ Nail Your Novel book, (a great book to use when writing your first draft!) she suggests that you use a box and just throw in ideas. The ideas can come from brainstorming or from research about a topic. Don’t worry about where the bit of action goes in the story, just write it on a card and throw it into the mix.
When the box is full, or when you’ve done enough research, then you can sort through ideas and evaluate if they will fit into your novel. You’ll want to toss some of them as unsuitable for your story. The rest, though, you can start to sort and put into a reasonable order.

Because my novel has a tight time line, I’ve done a modification. As shown in the picture here, I’ve created three envelopes. As I’m doing research and brainstorming, I’m slotting events loosely into Act 1, Act 2 or Act 3 of my novel. So, use one big envelope or box or several envelopes based on whatever division works for your novel. For example, you might want to use one envelope for each subplot, or perhaps for each major setting of your novel.

In any event, I’m still trying out voices and still plotting. What stage is your WIP at?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Time Line Helps You Plot

I know that my new novel will take place over a 98 hour span of time. So, I’m working with those 98 hours, creating and structuring the time line of the story in these ways.

Divide the Novel into Acts

The idea of 3 acts is old, but still useful. Some divide a story into four acts. In 3 acts, the structure is the opening, the middle and the conclusion. In 4 acts, the middle is divided into two sections and can have various structures. For example: conflict/resolution, trying to solve a problem/learning to accept the problem. It is useful to think about some sort of twist or change at the midpoint of a story, something that escalates the story or twists it in a slightly new direction.

For example, in the movie Lion King, in Act 2:part 1, Simba is living the good life, makuna matata. But at the midpoint of the story, he sees his father in the stars and realizes he must return to take his rightful place. Act 2:part 2 is about Simba struggling to take back the pride.

While that sort of midpoint change is helpful, I still like to think of a story as 3 acts, instead of four because it helps me keep the middle integrated better.

Act 1: In the opening act, I want to introduce the main events and characters and explain exactly what is at stake. The act ends with something that forces the characters to commit to solving a problem in a certain way.

Act 2: Emotional Heart This act has been called the emotional heart of the story. I’m learning to make sure that the emotional arc of the characters is clear here. At that midpoint, the character inevitable faces what s/he fears the most and there is some sort of character growth.
Act 2: Solving the problem. Also in Act 2, the main character tries a number of strategies for solving the problem and most of them end in a disaster which makes everything worse. Oh, he learns things and has a few successful moments. But they are illusions.
Act 2 ends with another disaster which sends the story into Act 3, with the potential for a lot of action.

Act 3: Here, the story events build to a climax. The story can actually end one of four different ways.

• Failure, but that’s good.
• Failure, and that’s bad.
• Success, but that’s bad.
• Success, and that’s good.

In other words, the main character of your novel can succeed in his/her goal. But the story events will tell the reader if that success or failure is a good thing or not.

Slot Novel Events into Time Line

Besides dividing the time line into acts, I’m also trying to slot in events. I know certain events are possible given the setting and characters, but the order of events has some flexibility. I’m finding the combined time line and division into acts useful. Originally, I wanted two characters to star gaze at a particular point in Act 2, that is in the structure of the story. But when I consulted the time line, it was mid-afternoon. Won’t work. If they star gaze, they’ll have to have a different dynamic going on than I had planned because they’ll be at a different point in the act structure.

Track Emotional Arc through Time Line and Events

Once I have the time line divided into acts and have slotted in some events, I’m looking at the emotional arc of the main characters and of the subplots. How do the stages of the emotional arc fit into the structure I’m building?

Whew! Seems like a lot of prewriting. Yes, but my weakness is making sure the emotional arc is strong and I’m trying harder to solve problems in the planning phase. Also, the event can not stretch out any longer. This story must resolve in 98 hours. So, the nature of the beast requires more planning this time. Lots of planning. But I’m also starting to try out some voices, and when I get to that, it’s starting to be way more fun. That’s when the structure will allow me to turn loose and be very right-brained about the story, secure in the knowledge that the skeleton is right.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win