Happy New Year!

Dream Big This New Year-you may just find yourself in print!
Anon,

Nancy

Happy Holidays!

The Day The Music Died

On December 8th, 1980, Howard Cosell interrupted the play-by-play of Monday Night Football to announce that John Lennon had been gunned down outside his apartment building in New York City. I was asleep when the news hit, so I didn’t find out until the next morning-December 9th.

In 1980, I was a junior in high school. The teachers in my school district went on strike from mid-November through December which meant that I stayed home from school. I didn’t miss going to school everyday, but I did miss seeing my friends and since this was a crucial time in the swim season, I was losing valuable training time. To make up for it, myself and some of my teammates got up at the crack of dawn to swim at the local Y.

On the morning on December 9th, I swung by to pick up my friend Kelly. Her family lived in the same subdivision as my family. Most houses already had up their holiday lights so the streets looked festive that cold snowy morning. As Kelly got in the car, the DJ announced that John Lennon had been murdered. We looked at each other-- in shock and then we both looked up at her house and realized that the huge pine tree in her front yard was nothing more than a stump. Apparently In the middle of the night, someone had cut it down. We looked at each other and broke out laughing.

For me, that tree and John Lennon are forever linked. It's sad though--two beautiful things cut down in their prime, the same night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYhaZ2pV0CQ&feature=player_detailpage


 
Happy Christmas

May we all give peace a chance this holiday season...

Anon,

Nancy

Harry Potter has come to the blogosphere...

Nathan Bransford has declared the week: Harry Potter Week. Check it out here.

Having What it Takes

One writer suggests that the two qualities a writer needs are determination and denial. You can read more about it here. Happy NANOWRIMO!

the picture is from this awesome site.

Halloween Approaches

Bailey here, I've commandeered the blog again like I did last year at this time.. I just want to remind everyone to be especially kind to the hyper-pigmented cats out there. As I have said before, we are not the devil's minions and we don't bring bad luck just by crossing some human's path. Frankly, for some of you bookstore people out there, this is a concept I can get behind, but I digress. Halloween tends to make normal humans act strange this time of year--you dress weird and you go around begging for candy. What's up with that? Anyway, please be kind to us cats--especially us hyper-pigmented ones.

-Bailey out.

A Week of Banned Books and Bullying

I had intended to write a post about the recent tragedy at Rutgers University but there have been some great posts from people who have done a much better job of articulating the issue and the necessary response than I could ever do, so I'm going to link to them instead. If you haven't seen the Ellen DeGeneres video, please watch it. It's quite powerful. In the news this week.

Life = Risk

This is amazing. Listen with the sound on though to get the full effect. Thanks Diana for posting this first!

Censorship, Seriously?

Author Ellen Hopkins was uninvited to the TeenLit Festival in Humble, TX.

a middle school librarian, concerned about her students hearing Hopkins' presentation, voiced her worries to parents, who went to Humble Independent School District Superintendent Guy Sconzo. He then told organizers to remove Hopkins from the event.

Other authors pulled out the event when they heard about the situation with Hopkins. Kids hear and see worse things on the news and on reality television. I can't believe stuff like this still happens...

You can read the full article here: http://www.slj.com/slj/home/886402-312/ellen_hopkins_uninvited_to_lit.html.csp

Anon,

Nancy

Things Overheard at Work

1.   Poland, is that in Asia?

2.   If he said he'd hit you upside the head--then that's a threat!

3.   I am not giving you that editor's home phone number!

4.   No sir, I don't think you should call all the agents you want to
      query to see if you're compatible. Finding an agent is not like
      dating (in this instance).

5.   Sir, if you don't have a computer then you really shouldn't
      sign up for an online subscription--perhaps you should
      purchase the book. 

How's your week going?

Anon,

Nancy
     

Cautionary Tale

In the last two days at work, I've received two calls from literary agents. Now that doesn't sound like a lot, but keep in mind in the last three years these are the first two calls I've had from literary agents. The first agent wanted to know the proper way to query a publishing company. Huh, don't they teach that in agent school? She honestly didn't have a clue, (The second one was equally clueless).

To me, this is a huge red flag. Is it worth having an agent if the agent is just going to page through the market guide to find publishers? My thought is probably not.  I now understand how important it is to ask questions, to make sure that the agent who wants to represent me, is someone I want to representing my work.

These agents, I'm sure are exceptions. Most agents are competent and possess a breadth of publishing industry knowledge- and have established contacts in the business. It's important, though, to keep an eye out for the ones who aren't competent and who don't know the business. Anyone can give themselves the title, literary agent. It's important to find one that's doing it for the right reasons and knows the business.

Anon,

Nancy

The Bear Cub and the Cougar

Today, I watched this video and it dawned on me that in less than four minutes, it successfully creates a beginning, middle and an end to a very exciting story.

I’ll start with the beginning; you have a young bear cub (our Protaganist), hanging out in his world- just rubbing his backside on the grass. It’s like any other day.

Then enter the Cougar- our Antagonist, hungry for a meal. The Cougar spots the young bear cub before the Bear Cub spots the Cougar. The Cougar, smacks his chops and slowly makes his way toward the Bear Cub- now his prey ( The Inciting Incident). When you think the Bear Cub is in serious peril, he stands up sees the Cougar and tears off running. But he’s small-- his legs aren’t as long and he’s not as fast as the Cougar. He looks back and sees the Cougar gaining on him. He climbs onto a branch that has fallen and is wedged between two cliffs. For a few seconds, the Bear Cub, you think, is going to be okay.

 The Bear Cub gets to the end of the branch and has no way to get to the other side. Meanwhile, the Cougar is heading toward him. The Cougar climbs on the branch just as the branch snaps, the Bear Cub plunges into the water. (Just when you think the Bear Cub is safe, he finds more trouble- the stakes get higher). He escapes the Cougar but now he struggles to keep his head above the water. The Bear Cub grasps part of the branch. He clings to the branch as he’s pulled downstream by the current.

(Thus giving the Bear Cub and you the viewer a false sense that he’s going to be safe). But as he goes downstream with the current, the Cougar follows his path along the river’s edge. The Bear Cub gets to shallow water. As he does, so too does the Cougar. The current carries the Bear Cub to where the Cougar is waiting for him, the Bear Cub swims away with the Cougar close behind.

(The Climax) The Bear Cub climbs up on to jutted rock. The Cougar climbs to one next to him. The Cougar strikes out with his claws and bloodies the Bear Cub’s snout. The Bear Cub roars and you see the Cougar back down and walk away.

(The Denouement)What you don’t see until after the Cougar is out of the frame is that Mama Bear is standing behind the Bear Cub. She’s on her hind legs and is ready to take out the Cougar if necessary- it isn’t. Instead, Mama Bear calls her cub to her. The Bear Cub goes over to his Mama, nestles close to her and she licks his wounds. Exciting stuff.

You can check it out here:
The Bear

Anon,

Nancy

Baby Steps

Since I moved into the condo, anytime I turn on the ceiling fan in the living room, Lucky gets real low to the ground- like it's Viet Nam, and runs under my bed and stays there the rest of the night. I stopped using the fan for that reason. Tonight, I turned on the ceiling fan- it's so hot in here, I had to.

Immediately, Lucky ran for the bedroom, then caught the cool breeze and stopped. He stood in the doorway for about 15 minutes and stared at the fan, cooling himself. He finally ran through the living room to the front hallway.

It's a step in the right direction! Good boy, Lucky!

Stay cool...

Anon,

Nancy

Happy Fourth of July

"We find these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these, are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

Happy Fourth of July- may we someday live in a world where all men and women are free.

Anon,

Nancy

Grammar Lesson

On her awesome blog, Editor Cheryl Klein reviews the proper usage of the semicolon and the comma.
Useful stuff!

Also since this month is Adopt-Shelter-Cat  Month be sure to check out the Itty Bitty Kitty Committee website to see some adorable kittens. While you're there why not donate to a worthy cause?

Anon,

Nancy

Lucky the Cat

About six months after I adopted Bailey, it came very clear that she was getting restless being home by herself when I was working. So, I decided it was time to expand our feline family and made a trip to the Warren County Animal Shelter. I looked at a couple of the kittens but Lucky caught my eye. He was very active and played with all the toys in the kitten room but he was also attentive to me as well. I knew he'd be a good match for Bailey and me. When I was completing the paperwork for his adoption, one of the workers mentioned that he was almost adopted the day before, but when they were placing the id chip in his neck, the lady balked. She thought id chip was the mark of the beast and refused to take him home. He's named Lucky, because it was luck that saved him from having to go home with that lady. He came home with me instead and I think we're all better for it!

Don't forget June is Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat Month!

Anon,

Nancy

Last Night At the Bookstore

A lady walked into the bookstore holding a chihuahua in a shoulder bag while at the same time a monk walked in the other side of the door. I think I can say with a large degree of certainty that this has never happened before and may never happen again. It was an interesting evening. There was also a lady who had a huge tattoo in the middle of her chest(she was was scantily clad in a camisole), that when viewed from far away looked like an enormous lowercase 'e'.

How was your evening?

Anon,

Nancy

Adopt-a-Shelter Cat Month

Since June is Adopt-a-Shelter Cat Month, I thought I would spend some time this month highlighting some of the favorite cats in my life. The first one up is Bailey. Some misguided human left Bailey and her siblings in a dumpster when she was just a wee kitten. Some nice humans found them and took them to the Warren County Animal Shelter where they were fostered by one of the veterinarians on staff. I went to visit the kittens and Bailey looked up at me with those big green eyes and well the rest as they say is history.

Some of you may remember the Halloween post where Bailey hijacked the blog. You can read that entry here

Meow,

Nancy and Bailey

At the Bookstore

Last night at the bookstore, I had a customer (he was of middle eastern descent) ask for a book on how to make a bomb from office materials.  We didn't have it...

Anon,

Nancy

Memorial Day

Agent Janet Reid has a wonderful post about Memorial Day on her blog.

I only want to add an excerpt from my grandfather's journal from when he was setting sail to France. He was a chaplain in the Army and served in France during WWI.

What mingled emotions come as the great drama of life unfolds! Here we are on board the U.S. President Grant bound for "somewhere in France..."

We have left old New York far behind. How hard it is to see the glorious harbor for the last time- for perhaps years! How one does love one's country when leaving it under such conditions as these. It stands for life as each one delights to live it, for happiness which comes through the great normal channels of divine ordination; for service unto others as God gives us opportunity. The men have been silent, thoughtful and serious. They realize also what it means. Yet not one of us would be elsewhere.

Anon,

Nancy

Pep Talk

Writing the novel? Feel like giving up? Don't, read this instead from Neil Gaiman.


Anon,

Nancy

Creatures of Habit

Every morning after my shower I find my cat Bailey sitting  at attention on my bed. She’ll let me pet her on the head two times and then she lets out a meow and leaps from her perch and scampers toward the kitchen. This is my cue to feed her breakfast. It happens every morning. On weekends, she does the same thing but she’s come to realize that if I sleep in, there may not be a morning shower to delay her breakfast. She’s a creature of habit that’s for sure.


I’ve realized that I’m a creature of habit when it comes to writing. When I begin a story, I don’t write it down right away, I like to think it through before I put pen to paper. I think about the major plot points to make sure that I have a clear direction and to ensure that I have a beginning, middle and an end to a piece. Once I think it through, I write the story longhand and then type the pages into the computer. I find I edit myself as I type to it gives me an extra revision.

What about you? Anybody out there a creature of habit like Bailey and me?

Anon, (yep another habit I’ve formed)

Nancy

Developing Voice

About eight years ago I was looking for a local SCBWI group to join. When I discovered that there wasn’t one in my area, I emailed the SCBWI listserv for my state and started one. The group is a small but supportive group of writers, many of whom are published or are on the cusp of becoming published. Because we are small, we are always on the lookout for speakers for the meetings and often rely on our members to give a presentation or two. When I heard that one of our newer members, Dee Garretson had her first Middle Grade novel coming out in August, I naturally ambushed her and asked her to speak to the group. She graciously agreed. She spoke at our April meeting and was amazing.


Dee talked about her road to publication as we tend to ask each speaker to discuss. It’s interesting to hear the different path each writer seems to take as few paths are exactly the same.

Dee also gave a great presentation on Voice. She began by defining the three different types of Voice.

-Author Voice: Relates directly to the overall writing style.

-Grammar Voice: Passive v. Active voice

        Passive: The dog was bitten by the boy.
        Active: The boy bit the dog.

-Narrative Voice: Narrative Voice draws the reader in and brings the story alive. Writing in 1st person or close limited 3rd person are the easiest ways to develop a good narrative voice. In Close limited 3rd person,
the world is seen through the character’s eyes. This should not be confused with Limited 3rd, which has a more distance- still through a character’s eyes, but it reads more like a narrator is telling the story.

When developing the narrative voice, word choices are very important. Word choices start with character development, in particular reactions and observations.

“I felt a drop of sweat trickle down my side like a spider and disappear into the waistband of my itchy brand-new suit pants, which I hoped never to wear again.” (excerpted from Roland Smith’s book, I.Q.)

When you introduce other characters, put their descriptions in terms of the main character’s perceptions. What does the character think is important. Dee warned that description can trip up voice because characters-especially kids won't describe everything. She listed some examples from books that really used a good narrative voice.
 
      Example: "She was German and made brilliant meatballs" (from GIDEON, THE CUTPURSE by Linda
                      Buckley-Archer).

Description of Places: "The fog hung over Booker Mountain like an old ragged coat." (from Cinda Williams
                                    Chima, The Dragon Heir).

Dialogue: "He ain't regular sick. He's been devastated." (A SHORT HISTORY OF A SMALL PLACE).

Like I said the presentation was amazing, so much so we are continuing our discussion on Voice this month.

Dee's book is entitled: Wildfire Run and is due out August 31st, 2010. It definitely deserves a read! Her website is: http://www.deegarretson.com/ and she blogs at http://deegarretson.wordpress.com/

-Anon,

Nancy

New Agent at Fineprint

Happy Monday!

It looks like the good folks over at Fineprint Literary Management have added an agent to their staff. Her name is Marissa Walsh...

Marissa specializes in pop culture, humor, narrative non-fiction, memoir, and children’s books (picture books/middle grade/YA).

http://fineprintlit.com/about-the-agents/marissa-walsh/

Anon,

Nancy

Your Help is Needed

My friend and co-worker, Robert Lee Brewer is in a tight race for Poet Laureate of the Blogosphere and he needs your vote. There are just a few hours left to vote for him- so please Vote for Robert!

Vote


And then when you are done voting, check out this blogpost, It's Alot of fun.

 
 
Anon,
 
Nancy

Awesome New Contest

And easy to enter. Jim McCarthy, one of the good folks over at Dystel and Goderich Literary Management is running a contest right now for the best first line. You can find more details here. The winner gets their full manuscript considered by Jim. Not a bad deal!

What a Week

-I spoke to a woman who thought we were messing with her account. Apparently, she forgot she actually had to login. Did I mention she was about 2 1/2 sheets to the wind? Seriously, it was 1:00 in the afternoon.

-I also spoke to not one but two different people who were hired by writers to help them find an agent. Hiring an agent to find an agent. Is this a new trend? If it is, it's a bad one. It makes me wonder if these people are lazy or clueless.

Anon,

Nancy

New Contest

To celebrate the one month anniversary of her blog, writer-editor Deborah Halverson is giving away a free edit of a MG or YA manuscript on her blog. You can find details here. Hurry though, the deadline is April 14th. Even if you don't enter her blog is worth checking out!


Anon,

Nancy

Cats and Writers...

Cats and writers. The two go together like margaritas and tortilla chips on a Friday night. While you certainly don’t need to have a cat to be a writer, it does make the journey less boring. Lots of famous writers obviously agreed because many of them kept cats as companions.

Raymond Chandler referred to his black Persian cat, Taki, as his secretary and even read his work aloud to her. I wonder how she critiqued his work.

While in Key West, Ernest Hemingway apparently made the acquaintance of a ship captain who had a six-toed cat. It’s said that Hemingway became so enamored of the cat that when the captain was to go back out to sea, he gave Hemingway the cat. The result, a generation of 6-toed cats inhabits the grounds of the Hemingway House in Key West, Florida.

Charles Dicken’s cat sat in his study as he wrote and when she wanted his attention, she would snuff out the candle he used to write by.

When Author/Artist Edward Lear moved to Italy, he constructed an identical house to the one he resided in so that he would not traumatize his beloved cat, Foss.

As for me, I can't imagine writing without my feline friends by my side, or by my computer.

Authors like cats because they are such quiet, lovable, wise creatures, and cats like authors for the same reasons. ~ Robertson Davies

"A catless writer is almost inconceivable. It's a perverse taste, really, since it would be easier to write with a herd of buffalo in the room than even one cat; they make nests in the notes and bite the end of the pen and walk on the typewriter keys.” author Barbara Holland

Anon,

Nancy

No foolin'

There's another contest that was announced this week. Editor and rock star Chuck Sambuchino announced a contest on the Guide to Literary Agents blog yesterday. You can get there from here. Good Luck!

New Contest

Moonrat, the curator of the Editorial Ass Blog, is celebrating.

Check out these contest details--they are quite easy. I'm entered and all I did was post this on my blog!


From Editorial Ass.

Ed Ass got its 500,000th hit today. This makes me feel old and venerable.

Naturally, I wanted to celebrate. I mean, with you guys, since you made it happen. But how?! No one has yet invented a giant internet pie.

Jamie Harrington, clever thing, had the idea that I have a giveaway contest, the prize being a first 20 pages crit. So that's what it is! I'll give away one crit of a book's first 20 pages (size 12 font, double spaced, .5 margins for you sneaky sneakies out there).

You'll be automatically entered to win if you do any or all of the following things:

1) repost this on your blog

OR

2) retweet my Twitter announcement

OR

3) link to this post on Facebook (make sure you include @Moonrat in the post so I'm notified of it)

I'll close the contest at 11 pm EST tomorrow (March 31). The Rally Monkey will randomly select one winner without my input (as if I could make him listen to me, anyway).


See, easy to enter...

Anon,

Nancy

Obviously!

I was at work a few days ago and I fielded a call from a lady (and I use that term very loosely). One of her family members had written a book and this lady was sure there was nothing like it on the market. Her plan was to drop off the manuscript to a publisher so that they could read it and of course publish it. It was an interesting call.

Her: “The world needs this book!” She became a bit nasty when I told her that she could NOT drop off a manuscript to a publisher—that she would need to put together a book proposal and submit it to an editor or agent and if they liked it, they would request to read the manuscript. “So it’s come to that, you can’t just drop off a manuscript?”

Me: “Just like you wouldn’t show up at a potential employer ready to get to work- you would send a resume first and they would call you for an interview. That book proposal is the book’s resume.”

Her: “That’s just ridiculous. What about an agent- I’ll just hire an agent. What agents can I send the manuscript to."

Me: “You need to submit a book proposal to agents as well.”

Her: “That’s crazy. Then I'll send it to a publisher. What publishers can I send it to?”

Me: “Ma’am, off hand I don’t have that information. Not all publishers accept un-agented and unsolicited submissions.”

Her: “You’re not helping me at all. Why do you work there if you can’t give me advice?”

Me: “Ma’am, you can purchase xxxxx book and research which publishers are best suited for the manuscript your family member has written.

Her: “Why the h@ll would I want to do that. I’m calling that guy at the bookstore. He said you could help me and well obviously you can’t."

Me: "Obviously!"

So how was your week?

-Anon,

Nancy

While I was away...

I had time to surf the internet. I found a couple of cool sites I thought I would share.

The first site is a blog by Kathleen Ortiz, an agent with Lowenstein Associates. She has some great contests, it's definitely worth checking out. The Neverending Page turner

The next site is the website for Mem Fox. Check out her 20 tips for writing Picture Books.

Finally, check out this great interview with Agent Holly Root over at the Mother.Write blog.

Anon,

Nancy

Movin'

The moving part of moving is complete but I’m still working on the settling in part.

Here are a few statistics on the move:

Number of vehicles used to move: 5

Number of trips from apartment to condo: 17

Number of boxes used: 40

Number of boxes of books: 28

Number of times cats ran under bed terrified: 10

Number of times cats ran under the bed terrified of a ceiling fan: 4 and counting…

Number of pieces of furniture heaved into dumpster: 7

Number of days my new sofa has been in the condo and not been used as a scratching post: 10 and counting...

Hightailin' It

Bailey, Lucky and I are hightailin' it to some new digs. So, posts during the next few weeks will be a bit spotty while we pack up everything and move to the new place.

Anon,

Nancy

Attention Kid Lit Authors

Chuck Sambuchino is running another contest over at the Guide to Literary Agents blog, this time it's for Middle Grade and Young Adult manuscripts. You can get there from here. He's got some awesome prizes lined up! Good Luck.

Anon,

Nancy

What to Include in a Query

Over at Chuck Sambuchino's Guide to Literary Agents' blog, he includes advice from Janet Reid regarding what to include and what to cut from your query letter. It's definitely worth a read. Check it out here.

While you're at it, Cynthia Leitch Smith has posted some great agent interviews on her blog Cynsations. (Agents Sarah Davies and Laura Rennert among others).

Anon,

Nancy

What Do Agents Want- The Sequel

Today I found a listing on the http://www.verlakay.com/ site from Linda at the McVeigh Agency, listing what Mark McVeigh is interested in when it comes to representing kid lit. Check it out here.

Anon,

Nancy

What Do Agents Want?

How many times have you asked that question? If you're like me, A LOT. Over on the Upstart Crow Literary Agency blog, agent, Chris Richman recently posted a detailed wishlist. If you write middle grade or young adult it's definitely worth a look. You can get there from here.

Anon,

Nancy

Attention Non Fiction Writers

Hoping to some day get some valuable feedback on your manuscript from an agent?

I have a contest for you! My friend Chuck is running a "Dear Lucky Agent" Contest over at The Guide To Literary Agents blog. The contest is open to Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoirs. You can find out the rules and other pertinent contest information here. Contests can be an easy and fun way to get an agent's attention.

Anon,

Nancy

MLK's Dream

Musician, David Crosby co-wrote a book called Stand and Be Counted about artists and activism. He talks a great deal about concerts and marches for various causes. He, of course, discusses the 1963 March on Washington. Most people think of Kings' "I have a Dream" speech when they think of the March on Washington. In Crosby's book, he talks about how King never intended to include those words in his speech. Apparently, King was to follow a performance of Mahalia Jackson and was so moved by her performance and by the day itself, he had begun to improvise.

The speakers were each limited to seven minutes, including King, but as he began to improvise "his speech took on the cadence he used from the pulpit." He was over the seven minute limit by now and he needed a way to pull the speech to a close. Apparently, he heard Mahalia behind him saying "Tell them about the Dream, Martin!" and so he did.

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the
sons of former slaves and sons of former slave owners will
be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood...
I have a dream my four little children will one day live in a
nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!
When we allow freedom to ring , when we let it ring from every village
and every hamlet, from every state and every city,
we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children-
black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and
Catholics- will be able to join in the words of the old Negro
spiritual, "Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, we are
free at last.

The speech lasted seventeen minutes and was followed with the song, "We Shall Overcome." It was a very hopeful time, but alas, three months later President Kennedy made that fateful trip to Dallas and that hopeful time became less hopeful...

Anon,

Nancy

The Dreaded Query

It's a new year which means the publishing industry is back at work, so agents and editors should be accepting queries again. That means it's time to work on the Dreaded Query Letter. I have a column over at the Guide to Literary Agents blog listing some great articles on query letters. You can get there from here.

I recently (okay it was about 2 minutes ago) discovered a site where you can post your query for other writers to critique. Like Query Shark, the site is public so keep that in mind, having a thick skin is key here. The feedback should be useful but it should also be taken with a grain of salt. The site is http://www.openquery.blogspot.com/ Check out the blogroll on the site for more great information on queries.

Anon,

Nancy

What's New?

It looks like Kate Epstein of Epstein Literary is looking to expand her list. She is now accepting YA and non-fiction. You can read more about her agency here.

Also, Mary Kole of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency is running a cool new contest for YA and MG manuscripts on her website. To enter you need to send up to the first 500 words of your MG or YA manuscript and mention the blog two other places among other things. You can read more about it here.

Anon,

Nancy

Writing like a Fourth Grader

So the parties are over, along with the holidays and my vacation. I didn't meet any of my writing goals. But I did catch up on my sleep and bond with my two feline companions, so it wasn't a total waste.

I had planned to rewrite my synopsis which currently reads like a fourth grade book report. My apologies to any fourth graders reading this. Alas, I spent a lot my time revising my WIP.
I found some great articles on writing that dreaded synopsis. You can read these gems in my guest column called Footnotes over at the Guide to Literary Agents blog. Or click here.

I'm hoping to work on my synopsis this week. Wish me luck!

Anon,

Nancy