Query Letter Basics

Since we’re on the subject of query letters, let’s talk basics.

Print your letter on stationery. I don’t mean you have to have special stationery printed on high quality colorful paper. No fancy colors, use white paper. Not some super thick paper with a linen feel to it. Regular paper. You can make your own letterhead as a template. You can design whatever suits you, but include your name, address, and other contact information. On mine I include phone, fax, cell, website, and blog address. I put all of that at the top. You can divide it between header and footer, if you want. Then, whenever you type a query letter, use your template and print it out on your own printer.

If your printer will print envelopes, then use it. No sin in hand writing an envelope, but there’s less chance of the post office misreading the address if it’s been done on a machine rather than by hand.

Include a SASE. It’s becoming more common for writers to include only a reply SASE when they send in pages. In other words, an agent asks for the first fifty pages. You send it in a manilla envelope, but rather than include a stamped self-addressed manilla envelope for the return of all the pages, you send only a regular business envelope for the reply. If you do that, though, then let the agent know that it’s okay with you to discard the pages. If it’s not okay with you or if you want to have the pages back so you can see if there’s any clue that he/she actually read the pages, then send enough postage and the correct size envelope for all of it to be returned.

Don’t do any overnight or signature-required mailings. No need to do that. It’s expensive, and it marks you as an amateur. It also won’t do anything to speed up the response from the agent.

Do pay attention to the really basic stuff like spelling (especially of the agent’s name), grammar, punctuation, and enclosures. Don’t get so involved in sending out multiple queries that you stuff the letter to agent X in the envelope addressed to agent Y. If you can’t tell whether the agent is a man or woman by looking at the first name, then don’t put Mr. or Mrs. or Ms. Use their full name. Or look on the agency’s website to see if there are pictures of the agents. Or do a little investigating on the web to look for articles by or about the agent which might give you a clue. Or call the agency and ask.

That’s pretty much the basics. Oh yeah, don’t forget to sign the letter.

Query Letter Essentials

Yesterday, I wrote about an author, Mark, in my workshop last weekend who asked whether he should mention credentials in a query letter that might “put off” an agent. That same writer had an easy way to remember what essentials should go in a query letter. Don’t know whether he made this up, or got it from somewhere else.

Hook, Book, Cook.

Now that’s easy to remember! Start with the Hook, such as your logline or the first major turning point of the book. Give a short synopsis or copy ad for your Book, then move onto you, the Cook of the book.

Hook, Book, Cook.

Those are the essential paragraphs in a query letter. Except – and there are always exceptions to anything – if you have a connection to the agent you’re querying. If so, then that comes first. If you met the agent at a conference or workshop, if the agent asked for the material you’re sending, if someone the agent knows or would recognize recommended you to the agent, if you’ve taken a class from the agent, or if you have some other connection to the agent, then that goes in the opening paragraph. This is important to remember. This does NOT go in the last paragraph. It goes up front so it’s the first thing the agent (or assistant) sees.

If we kept with the rhyme, you could say this is the Look. This is what you want the agent to look at first. If you have a connection to him or there’s someone who will recommend you (someone he/she would know or recognize), then that comes first.

Look, Hook, Book, Cook.

Those are the Query Letter Essentials.

Query Letter Credentials

One question that came up during the workshop I taught this past weekend concerned giving credentials in a query letter. If you have published books (big house, small press) that have sold well, you’ll want to list those, of course. But the question was really about giving credentials or showing experience in areas that relate to the plot.

The question was from Mark who writes horror. Since the book has an exorcism in it, he wondered if he should mention that he has witnessed an exorcism – or if that would turn off or scare an agent.

My answer was … mention it. First off, he’s going to be querying agents who rep horror, so they’ve probably seen or read it all. Second, not too many people have witnessed an exorcism, so it would be a plus in his credentials, in my opinion. Third, it would show that he can write about the real thing, not what he has seen in movies or on TV or read in other books.

Clearly, if there had not been an exorcism in his book, then he’d have no reason to mention that he has seen the real thing. But since there was and he has, then it lends him credibility. He doesn’t have to make a big deal about it or have it consume his whole paragraph about himself, but a sentence or even just a mention would be a good idea.

Synopsis Workshop

I’m back in Austin after driving up to the Dallas/Ft. Worth area to lead a workshop at the North Texas Professional Writers’ Association’s mini-conference. Had a great time.

Friday afternoon started off with Doris Lakey, president of the NTPWA, taking me to see her office. Via email, she had been describing it to me. I was anxious to see if it lived up to what I envisioned in my mind. It did. Big room, lots of windows for light, ample flat desk space, storage galore, and personalized with all kinds of pictures and mementos.

Later, the NTPWA Board took me out to dinner. It was an opportunity to sit and talk and get to know each other. The NTPWA is a group focused on their work and careers. You have to apply to join. And judging by everyone I met at dinner and at the conference, a great group of writers.

Saturday morning I was first on the line-up. Had a full room of writers, from beginners to multi-published authors. All of them with great questions and a few with really wild imaginations. Everyone was eager to participate. My topic was The Synopsis: Four Steps to the Ultimate SALES Tool. We discussed the basics of writing a synopsis, took time to do some work on synopses, then moved into ways to use the synopsis to promote and sell your manuscript.

I had two and a half hours, but this could be a full day workshop, easy. The time goes by quickly, especially with such a fun topic. And everybody knows what fun writing a synopsis can be! If you don’t, then come the next time I teach this workshop – in May for the Brazos Writers in College Station.

Dialogue Primer

If you’re having trouble writing dialogue that sounds natural, but not too natural (it sounds like a real person but not so real that it includes the uhs and wells), sometimes it helps to channel your characters.

You know the people living in this world you’ve created better than anyone (other than the characters themselves). Each person is different. They have different backgrounds, grew up possibly in different parts of the country, show different quirks, and so on. They will NOT all sound alike. So you can’t just write the same words in the same cadence for every character. Each character has a different personality.

One way to channel a character is to write a scene, then read the conversation aloud. Do both characters sound the same? Try reading the conversation without any tags or descriptions. Read only the “spoken” words. If possible, record yourself. Now listen back to it. Can you tell which character is speaking just by the words and the way they speak? (The way the character speaks, not the way you read it.) If you can, try giving just the spoken words (no tags, no filler) to someone else who’s never read your manuscript. Can they identify the speaker?

Can you go back and cut extraneous verbiage, like the uhs and ers? Yeah, we all say them, but it can be very annoying to read that in pages and pages of dialogue. You want your “people” to sound real, but not annoying. Sometimes even though a character would say a contraction like “don’t,” we find ourselves typing “do not.” See if you can catch those. Most of us use contractions. Of course, there are times when you might deliberately have a character use no contractions. If that’s the way that person speaks and if there is a viable reason for him/her to speak that way.

Be careful of using too much slang. What is popular today may not be in two years, let alone ten. And be careful of using spelling to indicate dialect. It can be difficult for readers and can get old quickly. Find other ways like cadence to show dialect.

Also, remember that just like a scene should move the plot forward, so should the dialogue between characters. It should have a purpose. That purpose doesn’t always have to be visible to the reader, though. People in real life and in your book don’t always directly answer questions. They have their own agendas and tend to direct the conversation where they want it to go, not necessarily where the other person wants it to lead. Their answers may have double meanings, meanings that they understand and that hedge the question, but that the other person and the reader may not understand until later.

Work on the dialogue in your book. The manuscript will be better for your efforts.

Note from Helen: I probably won't blog again until next Monday. Tomorrow, I leave for Bedford, Texas, to lead a workshop for the North Texas Professional Writers Association.

The Synopsis: Four Steps to the Ultimate SALES Tool

It’s interesting how much time it takes to prepare to lead a workshop, even one you’ve done before.

You have to research to make sure you’re up-to-date on your information. You try to get new examples to share with the attendees. All of that, of course, causes changes in your handouts so those have to be re-worked then printed out.

For the workshop on writing the synopsis that I’ve been preparing to lead at the North Texas Professional Writers Association this weekend, the examples include different books, so I’ve been going through some of my novels. That takes a while, especially since my books have been in flux, what with a lot of them still boxed up in the storage room, and others scattered or hidden away while we’ve been building the bookcase in my office closet. Then there are current magazines and publishers’ catalogs to gather.

Plus, I did a new evaluation form to hand out. I like to have feedback so I know what to change or work on, and so I get an idea of what writers are looking for when they attend a workshop, such as topics and participation.

I’ve been doing something just about every day for the last month. Of course, it gets more intense as the workshop date gets closer. Today I ran to Kinko’s and made copies of the handouts. Wouldn’t you know it – I forgot to copy the evaluation form. Guess I’ll do that here.

And of course, when you’re going to be talking for two to three hours, you have to practice. Every time I do that, I change things around, which means changing my talking notes. I’ve printed out my notes for the last time today – maybe. I put it into a bigger font so I won’t have to squint at it. Hopefully, I won’t have to look at it too often, since I have no idea if I’ll have a table or lectern.

Even though it takes a lot of work to prepare for a workshop, I always look forward to leading one. It’s fun to meet writers, hear what they’re doing and what questions they have, and hopefully make new friends.

If you’re coming to the workshop this Saturday, I’ll see you there!

Friends

It is so wonderful to have close friends. Had lunch today with a couple of good friends. What fun. The older I get, the more appreciative I am of friends.

One is an ESL teacher. ESL stands for English as a Second Language. She hasn’t told any “stories” about students, but it’s easy to imagine an ESL teacher as a lead character in a novel. I could see how such a protagonist could get into funny situations, thus a romping comedy. Or you could write a mystery with an ESL lead. Perhaps a romance.

The other friend is a freelance writer. She’s definitely into the writing scene. It was fun to hear about an article she’s working on now and the research she’s doing for it. There’s such a quick turnaround on articles. Quite different from working on a novel. I would think that would be rewarding, being able to see your words in print within a relatively short time after you’ve gotten the assignment or after you’ve finished writing the piece.

I would advocate for a Be Thankful for Friends Day, but I’ve decided that will be an everyday occasion for me. Thank you to all my friends, those close, those far, those new, and those who’ve stuck with me all these years.

What I'm Reading

I’ve started reading Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. Ross. One thing I should note is that it’s not a cozy mystery, as I thought. When I went to the bookstore where I had it on hold, I went looking for Ross’s other books in the series. They weren’t on the mystery aisles. I found them under fiction.

I was told they’re funny. So far, this one is not. But, to be fair, I was told the books after the first one were funnier than the first. Not to say they’re bad. This one is good. A strong southern voice with a very uptight lead character. So uptight that you know she will change as the book goes along.

The first major turning point happened in the first chapter – that event that changes the lead’s life and sends her off on a path she never expected. What she does from this point will reveal her true character – both to the reader and to herself, I suspect.

It’s an easy read and I’m looking forward to taking the journey with her.

Celebrate Your Climax

We all know how tough it is to write a book, don't we? Man, those beginnings are hard. You have to grab your reader on the first page, hopefully the first sentence. Then you have to keep them hooked through the opening scene. And, boy, then comes the middle. That's when things start to sag (I'm talking writing here, not age). It's difficult to keep the tension, action, and interest.

Then there's the climax. Those are really hard to write. The climax has to be, well, climatic. It has to wrap up things, bring a sense of finality to the plot, closure to your theme. The bad guy gets whupped or the danger is fought through and conquered. Decisions are made; lives are changed.

You've brought your readers this far, from your opening line, through the turns and twists of the middle, right up to the end. Now it's time to tell 'em how it all erupts in a volcanic spew.

Wrong.

It's tempting to try to wrap it up quickly ... or to make sure you've tied up all the loose ends by re-capping those threads ... or to avoid writing the emotional, action-packed scene by glazing over the climax. If you do that, you cheat yourself and your readers.

Don't tell the climax. Always, always show the climax. Put your readers in the scene so that they're living it along with your characters. Make the climax vivid and dramatic. Use dialogue and action. Let the readers feel what the characters are experiencing. Put the readers into
the characters' heads.

This holds true whether your climax involves two men/women duking it out ... or one woman fighting against a raging tornado ... or the townsfolk rallying in support of the ousted principal ... or a man finding his inner center and refusing to commit suicide.

Whatever your climax is, it will be more believable, heart-wrenching, and satisfying if you show me, you let me live it. I want to see the chaos, feel the blows, cry over the decisions.

Don't tell me that her tears were salty. I want to taste them as they drip onto her lip. The bomb doesn't explode inside the nunnery -- if you tell me that then I've missed seeing it happen. And I do want to see it. I want to see the shrapnel ripping through the surrounding shrubbery; I want to feel the heat of the fire, smell the burning pews, hear the screams, taste the smoke filling my lungs. I want to experience the joy of running from the collapsing building, the panic of realizing someone is still inside, the terror of racing headlong back through the flames.

As a writer, you have worked so hard to get to this point in the book, don't slack off now. It's time to celebrate. This is the fun part. Enjoy the writing (and the re-writing).

On My Reading Table

I seem to be on a “cozy” reading spree. For a while, I was reading action suspense. Read Lee Child’s entire list. Now, I’m trying cozies. Although not a big fan of cozies, I’m finding I like them. They’re fun. They’re fast reads. They’re entertaining. I see them as puzzles.

I read Karen MacInerney’s books then picked up Nancy Bell’s first book, Biggie and the Poisoned Politician. It’d been on my shelf for years. I even started reading it a long time ago. This time I started over from the beginning and read it through. Nancy has such a true Southern voice. Her books have quirky characters and a warm point of view character, J.R.

As soon as I have my bookshelves completed, I’m going to dig out my books from storage and find the other books by Nancy Bell and read them, as well. I discovered she has a whole new series I didn’t even know about.

In the meantime, my cousin emailed from Tennessee and told me about a new author she’d found – Ann B. Ross. I’d never heard of her Miss Julia series, but Rhonda just loves her books. So, I’ll start reading them. I’ve ordered Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind, which I believe is the first in the series.

It’s chilly here today. A perfect day to take an hour and read.

Technology Snafu

I would scream, “I hate technology,” but that would do no good. If I thought it would, I would run around the room waving my arms while I screamed.

Alas, I’m doomed to try different things, hoping either something will work or I won’t screw things up too badly. (Envision the village idiot locked in a pitch-black room while a siren alarms “fire!”) Or I call in my youngest child to do it for me. Unfortunately, she doesn’t live at home anymore.

So, I’m on my own most of the time.

For a while I was having problems with my website. It disappeared. No idea why, or I should say, no idea what I did. (Idiot bangs into a wall.) Talked to experts online, fumbled around myself. (Idiot crashes into another wall, breaking big toe.) Daughter steps in, finesses her way through the foreign language that is computer-ese. Website back up and running.

Totally lost email. Managed to get dribbles back. (Idiot sits in middle of room and pats self on the back.) Realized I need a host that offers tech support. This one does not. Daughter helps me sign up with a new host.

I manage to go to my domain registrar and redirect site to new host. (Cheering in the dark room.) Site is up and I think it’s moved to the new host. “Think” is the operative word here since I’m not sure. Managed to fumble my way to my new webmail box. It’s working. One legitimate email and 52 spam. But it’s working. (Idiot dances.) I think getting mail in the new web box (even spam) means the site has been correctly directed to the new host. Haven’t a clue how to create new boxes, so I go to the website and change all links for email to the only web box I have: helen@helenginger.com.

Now I need daughter to unlock the door and show me how to create more eboxes. Until then, I’m just dancing in the dark.

Whisper, Don't Yell

Remember that what a character says and does, judgmental words they use like "stupid" or "evil" or "ugly" or "fat," tell as much about them as what they are describing. Watch some of the day-time talk shows and tell me which guests are more persuasive and believable -- the calm, objective people or the ones screaming slurs and calling names?

Of course, if you have every character who represents your view as a "good guy" and all the "bad guys" are the ones who hold opposite beliefs, then your story becomes lop-sided. In that case, I, as the reader, begin to feel as though you're beating me over the head with your issue.

Whatever it is that you're trying to get across, whether it's a political or religious belief or just the theme of your story, like "Family comes before all others" or "Love transcends death," be gentle. If you can't possibly see anything redeeming about the opposite side of your leanings or the people who hold beliefs contrary to yours, then how can you possibly write about them? And if you can't write those characters, then do some research. Go visit, observe, live, or immerse yourself in that area, lifestyle, religion, political arena, music -- whatever. Keep at it until you learn what is good, believable, likeable, just, acceptable, or at least objectively presentable. And if you still can't write the opposite viewpoint, switch subjects.

Present an almost-balanced offering of all the sides. You can slightly skew it toward your viewpoint, but be subtle and even-handed. That's much more likely to convince me, the reader, than ranting and raving and presenting only your side of the story.

Don't Tell Me What to Think

When I say, "Don't tell me what to think," in a way I'm repeating the old adage of "Show, Don't Tell." But I'm not just advocating that you make use of all five senses so that we "see" what a character is going through or experiencing. I'm also asking that you NOT interpret for the reader -- don't tell your readers what to think or believe.

As a writer, it's hard not to imprint your own beliefs onto your writing, especially if it's an agenda or political leaning you're passionate about. In fact, it's pert-near impossible. But if I'm reading along and begin to feel that you're manipulating me into believing what you believe,
there's a good chance I'll quit reading. I might let you lead me, but I won't let you strong-arm me.

One way to get your point across without losing your reader is to let your characters represent your beliefs. Instead of you, the writer, describing something as "evil" or "stupid," you have your characters do it. For me to agree with them, though, I would need more than just them
using those adjectives. I would want to understand their reasoning, see what they see. I may not agree with their viewpoints, but I can understand why they believe the way they do.

Calling All Mystery Writers

Last month, I mentioned that I’m on the committee for Texas Mystery Month. The event I’m involved with primarily is the Barbara Burnett Smith Aspiring Writers Event. May will have events, book signings, classes, talks and panel discussions going on across Texas. The big event will be here in Austin on May 20th. There will be a speaker, as well as the gathering of aspiring mystery authors and published writers.

To be one of the aspiring writers paired up with a mentor, all you have to do is submit the first 500 words of your unpublished novel or short story, along with no more than a one-page synopsis. It’s first come, first serve and there’s no fee. We’re starting to get submissions, so send in your material before the slots are filled. One thing I forgot to make clear is that you can send in material even if you’re a published author, as long as you’re not published in the mystery genre. Mystery covers areas like cozy, hard boiled, suspense, true crime, etc. But if you’re a romance writer, for example, and want to try your hand at mystery, you can submit.

To read all the guidelines, go to the Heart of Texas Sisters in Crime website. Don’t let the word “sister” fool you. You can be a member of SinC and/or send in material for this event whether you’re a man or a woman. It’s a valuable opportunity to get to discuss your work with a published mystery author.

True Crime Writing

If anyone watched 20/20 last night, you saw true crime writer Diane Fanning. She played a significant role in the story they were reporting. In the process of writing a book about a completely different murder, Tommy Lynn Sells confessed to the murder that no one suspected him of doing. Diane wrote about the confession and, as a result, broke open the other case. Kudos to her.

I know Diane, but have no idea what it would be like to be a true crime writer. Mystery, thriller, and suspense writers get into the mind of their antagonists, which are often killers or really bad sorts. But that’s different from sitting across from an actual serial killer, of talking to one for hours, establishing enough of a rapport that he/she will open up to you. Diane even gets letters from some of her subjects long after the books are done. And when the book is done, she can’t just set aside the case and move on. She has to keep up with new developments so she can write updates in future editions of her books.

And despite that, Diane is a warm, funny, beautiful person. Go figure.

On a personal note, I’m o.d.ing on paint fumes. The only room left in our house re-painting, at least the downstairs, is the closet in my office. We started on it today. Took everything out, ripped out the shelves and clothes rods, measured and marked for the new shelves, then did some sanding and started painting. I’m doing it all in yellow, except the shelves and trim will be a cream/beige color. I’m on a break now because we ran out of paint. But my husband’s on a Lowe’s run, so it’s a short break. I’ll have floor to ceiling shelves along the back wall for books. Yea.

Silly husband thinks we might be done by the end of the weekend.

Wild Things Coming Out

Today’s not a writing entry into the blog. This one is about Spring springing around my part of Texas.

I know it’s still winter up north. My sister in Minnesota is encased in snow. She’s sent pictures of their winter wonderland. But around here, the weather is cool at night and warm in the day. Unfortunately, it’s also dry, dry, dry.

But the animals are out.

A few nights ago, a rabbit hopped across the road from our neighbor’s yard to ours. We have a family or two of rabbits who live in our pampas grass. This one, I swear to you, was bigger than our dog. Admittedly, Ruffles is a small dog, but that was a big rabbit.

Yesterday, I almost hit a fox. I do believe it just stood in waiting at the side of the road in the tall weeds. When I got close, it loped out. Luckily, I was only doing about twenty-five or thirty, so I paused for it. The fox wasn’t in any hurry. He just sort of trekked across, showing off a beautiful coat and tail.

This morning, deer were in our backyard. I watched them out the kitchen window. They munched a while, then climbed through the post fence and sauntered on down the little valley.

Haven’t seen any road runners out yet. They’ll be out, maybe when we get hot weather.

It’s a wild world and people aren’t the only animals on the prowl.

Analyzing the Writing of Others

How often do you finish reading a book and think, “That was good.” It kept you reading and when you turned the last page, you were satisfied and hoping there would be another with the same characters.

Hopefully, you do that a lot. If so, then pick out one (or two) and do an analysis of it. You can decide what you want to study, but here are some ideas:

Make a list of the characters – the lead, the opposition or antagonist, the sidekick or best friend, the red herrings (if it’s a mystery), the character who hinders the lead or blocks her/his way, and those characters who are color for the background.

Note what page the first turning point takes place. Is there a major turning point around the middle or two-thirds of the way through the book? What is the climax point? Now take those page numbers see where they fall in relation to the entire book.

The middle is where a lot of books sag, so note what things happen in this section to keep the book forward, to keep the action up.

We all know there needs to be a hook to get things going in the beginning of the book. How about hooks throughout the book? Does every chapter end with a page turner hook? If not, then how often was there a hook that made you keep reading?

In addition to the action plot line, what was the emotional story? How was it resolved?

There are a lot of other things you may want to look at, like how did the author employ the five senses? Was the setting vivid and memorable? What was the length of the chapters? What was your estimated word count for the entire book? Was there a ticking clock? Did you feel the lead’s live or desire was in danger?

Take the book apart and figure out why you liked it so much. Then apply what you’ve learned to your own writing.

ESP: Exercise Sensory Power 2

Today we pick up where we left off yesterday in talking about Exercising Sensory Perception.

When you are describing that Florida coastline, palm trees swaying, consider letting your readers feel the grit of the sand, taste the brine, smell the car exhaust, hear the pounding surf.

I'm not saying that every time you describe something, you have to include all five senses. But, certainly, try to throw in more than just what can be seen. Yes, this harkens back to the old saying of Show, Don't Tell, but it's more than that. I'm saying, yes, Don't Tell, but also Don't Just Show. At least not in the sense of letting the reader "see" everything. There's more to life than what we can see.

You can write about a small girl in an orchard, picking a fresh peach. You can describe the trees, what the girl is wearing, the color of the fruit. Now, close your eyes and go beyond sight. How does the peach feel in her hands? How does it smell? Is the sun hot? The tree shade cool? How does the peach taste? Does it drip down her chin? Is it sticky? How does the wind sound as it ripples through the leaves? Is it loud? Whispering? Does it tickle her skin?

One way to check whether you have Exercised Sensory Power is to take a hard copy of your story or novel and mark it up. Highlight sensory words. Use a different color marker for each of the five senses. My guess is that your work will be primarily the color you chose for sight.

Count your descriptions of each of the five senses. If you're especially weak in one of the senses, go back and find areas or scenes where you could edit. You don't have to go overboard. A little added here and there will greatly enhance your writing, and the reader's experience of your words.

Transport your readers into another world, then make that world real to them by triggering all of their senses. If you use all five senses, chances are you'll also hook your readers emotionally. And once you do that, they'll want more.

So, Exercise Sensory Power.

ESP: Exercise Sensory Power

Exercise Sensory Power.

The written word shouldn't just be read. It should be felt, tasted, smelled, heard, and seen. It should be experienced.

A lot of the time, as writers, we have movies playing in our heads. Characters talk and move; scenery whizzes by; secrets are whispered; bad guys die; heroes triumph; romantic leads finally get together. We see the stories in our minds and we write the words on the page.

One problem that can occur, though, is that we write what we "see," and we forget that there is a lot in our story to tell with the other senses, like smells, tastes, the feel of things, and sounds.

I bet if you went back through your manuscript or story and marked all the sensory words, you'd find that the vast majority of them are descriptions of the way things or people look. Not too many would be about the way something tasted, or the texture of an object, or the smell, whether it's rancid or flowery, or the everyday sounds.

You don't want your readers to just drift through your book, seeing the movie in your head. A script, even a scratch-and-sniff 3-D concoction, is inferior to a book in the ability of the author and reader to explore the senses. With a book, you have the opportunity to pull the reader in, not only with the sense of sight, but with all the other senses. Make use of that opportunity and your plot will be richer.

Instead of telling the reader that Mary is angry, show us her anger. Let us hear the door slam and the glass shatter. Let us feel the bits of glass etching her palm as she reaches for the door handle. Let us hear the glass crunching under her shoes as she paces, smell and taste the bitter coffee she sips.

More on ESP tomorrow.

What I'm Reading

Yesterday I finished reading The Hard Way by Lee Child. I believe that’s his latest one. It’s just come out in paperback. It’s a typical Jack Reacher novel. By that I mean, it’s got action, Jack remains a loner and a fighter, and he had a woman by his side – not a damsel in distress, but a strong partner, at least for the length of the book. By “typical” I also mean “good.” Lee Child’s books, so far, are good reads. I have noticed though that the last few books haven’t been as action-filled as the earlier ones. The first couple were action from start to finish. The last couple have been action at the end, but it seems to me that the middle of the book involves a lot of searching, walking, going here and there looking for answers. Not quite the page-turners as the earlier books, at least for me, anyway. I’ll most likely keep reading the Reacher novels, though.

Now, I’ve started the first in the series by Karen MacInerney, called Murder on the Rocks. Her second in the Gray Whale Inn Mysteries is called Dead and Berried. It’s on my list of to-be-read, but I thought I’d start at the beginning of the series. I’m not far into Murder on the Rocks, but it’s a good read. I can see already why it’s been nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel. This is a cozy so it’s in sharp contrast to Lee Child’s series.

I have to admit that I probably read more “hard boiled” than cozies. When I’m on a plane, I like something that moves fast and keeps me turning pages. But I’m liking MacInerney’s book. It’s relaxing. I read it and am taken back to the bed and breakfast my husband I stayed at on an anniversary trip. This is not to say nothing happens in the book – just that you’re not so tense reading it as you are with a book filled with action and suspense. It’s a really nice change of pace.

Karen MacInerney's Book Signing

This afternoon, I drove into Austin to the Westlake Barnes & Noble to see Karen MacInerney who was signing there. As a bonus, I also got to see Jo Virgil, the CRM there. Great day when you get to talk to two friends, and have a non-fat Chai Latte, too.

I am just so excited for Karen. Her second book in her Gray Whale Inn series is out. The first in the series, Murder on the Rocks, has been nominated for an Agatha for Best First Mystery Novel. She’ll also soon have a second series in publication. She is hot!

She’s also a great promoter. B&N had set up a table with stacks of books at the front of the store, close to the entrance. From the moment she got there, people stopped at her table. I was several aisles away and I could hear her talking and laughing. She made strangers want to stop and talk. She didn’t sit behind the table, but stood to the side. If no one was at her table, she smiled and asked passer-bys if they liked to read mystery. Then she’d let them know she was a local mystery author and mention that her second book was out. If they stopped long enough, she’d tell them that she did a lot of the writing on the book right there at that store in the coffee shop.

On the rare occasion no one was at her table to talk, she took her postcards and introduced herself to people in close-by aisles.

She was approachable, friendly without being pushy, fun to talk to, and interesting.

When you have the chance, go out and observe authors at book signings. Learn from those, like Karen, who know how to do it so that they make sales and find new readers. Even if you don’t buy a book, go up and say hello and introduce yourself. Authors don’t bite. And if they don’t have a stream of people coming by, they’ll appreciate someone to talk with.

Book Browsing on the Internet

CNN.com had an interesting article today called “Publishers OK Online Book Browsing.” Of course, online book browsing is not new. Both Google and Amazon have had that feature for some time. Barnes and Noble will let you look at the chapter index of some books.

What’s new here is that two publishers are now making browsing available. Both Random House and HarperCollins Publishers now have browse features. HarperCollins is also introducing a browse function to allow the embedding of pages of books onto networking sites like MySpace.

If you look on YouTube, you’ll find authors already putting up “trailers” for their books.

It’s like the Internet is taking over. At the very least, the Internet is changing our world forever. As I told a friend today, I can’t even remember the last time I looked up a phone number in the phone book. Looking up something on the Internet is faster, easier. If I’m looking for a book online and the site has browsing features, I do read the pages offered. Not the same as holding the book in my hand and turning to random pages, but we have to adjust. Or get left behind.

It’s difficult to keep up. Do you have a MySpace to promote your book? Have you created a fabulous video launching the book? Do you have pages on your website for visitors to browse? Do you even have Internet hook-up? I know a few authors who are completely unplugged.

Statistics for Romance Sales

Romance writers tend to take a lot of flap. Some people won’t even admit to reading romance. But there are a lot of people reading romance. Look at the statistics for romance fiction on the Romance Writers of America website:

• $1.2 billion in sales each year
• 54.9% of all popular mass-market fiction sold
• 39.3% of all fiction sold

You can find other statistical information on the RWA site, about the romance fiction market and about book publishing in general. For example, the “consumer book publishing industry as a whole grew 24.9% to $6.32 billion in 2005.” If you check out their 2005 Market Research pdf file, you’ll notice that romance takes the biggest chunk of market sales, with mystery/thriller coming in second with 29.6%.

The RWA has always been known as an organization very supportive of their writers, especially in the area of marketing. But even if you don’t write romance, the site can still be quite informative. It’s one of those sites worth checking out, no matter what genre you write … or read.