Writerly Ways

[cornerofmadness]

Wow, I left myself nothing to say that's original. I've already spilled the beans about my big news for the week and I think I even mentioned busting through the block on Luc and Arrigo's story (and thank you to wildrider for her help with this one). I'm trying to work out the shapeshifter short story since it's due first. it's not going well.

So instead I'll just make this about what other people are doing/saying about the craft.

moschus says things about writing that I want to but can’t seem to get out right

the weekend guest speaker at circletpress has been very interesting, talking more about the technical stuff we all SHOULD know. Pop in and have a look at these.

bad contracts and worse pay scales

author platforms If you're unfamiliar with author platforms, they are in part how are YOU going to do the publisher's work for them. Any more you're expected to do all your own marketing for no pay (so what that publisher's cut of your profits is about any more, it's hard to say). This also came up on moschus's facebook page too. Some of it is easy enough, having your own facebook/myspace/journal pages. However, you're expected to have your own website, etc etc which for some of us is easy, others not so much so. In some cases you're expected to put your platform in your query letter before they'll even look at your work.

I'm not sure I like this. In the first place, I don't really give a crap about knowing that much about most authors. In a couple cases, learning more about them has made me dump them from my flists AND stop buying their books. Others I've come to embrace more closely but on the whole, I don't seek them out. I still find my books the oldfashioned way, by cover art, genre and back cover/dust jacket blurbs.

That seques well into the writing exercise for this week.

1. write a logline (that's that one-line concept summary of your novel)

2. expand the logline into a 'back cover' blurb.

3. write the opening disturbance (writers' digest describes that as the opening chapter)

there's more to this exercise but i think i'll save it for next week. I'll give you my take on this later as lightning is heading my way!

Comments

[silvrethorn.livejournal.com]

I should do this exercise. September is almost over. NaNo...er, November is right around the corner, and I'm putting Maru and Toshiro in the corner for that month and making a start on the fantasy novel "Ever Summer", which is virgin territory for me. This writing exercise would be very useful in helping me get launched. Right now all I have is a handful of characters and a very hazy concept of a plot, so I need to get organized.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

I hear you. In fact I plan to use this (and the next part of this) for my nano as well

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

Author platforms, eh? Whiskey Creek Press calls it a business plan, and I spent two days banging my head against a wall coming up with one.

Can't say I enjoyed it very much -- I'd rather be writing than selling -- but that seems to be the way the industry's headed. In the end, if I want to get a book published there doesn't seem to be much alternative for me.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

Yeah and we really shouldn't HAVE to, at least not without getting more of our royalties for it. Several mega-name authors are fighting this now (since they're the only ones who could possible do anything about it).

The only thing I couldn't and wouldn't find fun to do would be the website (the design. once you show me how to put stuff up I'm okay).

But since it's the publisher's responsbility to market, that's supposedly why their cut is so big, why should they continue to take that big a bite when they aren't doing it any more

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

I would think publishers are budgeting money for publicity when it comes to mega-name authors, aren't they? Or are the big name authors fighting it on behalf of the little guy? I agree, though, if we're expected to do more of it we should get more of a cut -- especially with something like a web site, which costs us money.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

pretty much I assume from some things I've read from publishers themselves is they don't care about midlist authors (in spite of them steadily being money makers) and only bother with that top 10% of mega sellars

Yeah some of the big names DO fight for the little guy

and yes, if I have to incur the cost of doing my own publication getting a few more percentage points of the royalities would be nice

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

Well, at least our costs are tax deductible ... it's a small thing, but it's something. I get a big end of the year hit because I'm a contract worker for the Albion New Era, so I need all the tax help I can get.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

I owe so much student loans that i get back tons of cash...which the loans takes

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

Ouch.