Welcome to A Novel Approach. If this is your first issue, I encourage you to check out my back issues for more tips on how to write a novel. It's my fondest hope that I can help other writers do the best they can do.

If you have any specific aspects about novel writing you'd like me to address in future issues, please feel free to contact me and let me know what those are. Thank you for your interest, and here's to better writing!

Getting Published - Tips to Raise Your Chances

So, to make up a bit for my lack last month, I'm giving you a look at a topic I know most writers fret about. I hope it's helpful, as always, and I promise I'll try to be back on schedule next month!

So, I'll share what Heather Leavitt Martinez of Arts Perspective magazine shared with us, in hopes it will help you begin to consider publishing your work.

To Trend or Not to Trend

If you go to a bookstore, you'll see trends in what's new. Right now, vampire stories are excessively popular, for instance.

There are two ways to look at this, when you write novels. First, you can jump on the bandwagon and join the frenzy. Or second, you can pick a different niche, knowing you may or may not catch the trend-wave as it crests and disappears.

Yes, many authors have done well jumping on trends, but making your novel (or article) as timeless as possible with a genre that's had long-standing popularity will probably be as good for your pocketbook in the long run. And if it's an article, you'll be much more likely to be able to revise and resell it again to other venues.

No matter what you choose, research carefully what's already out there, so you don't write a copycat piece no one will be interested in.

The Good and the Bad Query

If you write novels, you will also need to have a query letter to send to any agent or publisher that you want to consider your work.

Two things are important here:

1. Do Your Research! Don't just choose a publisher (or magazine) at random without finding out what they publish and who to contact. Call to be sure the agent or editor is still with the company you choose, and for goodness sake, ask how to spell his or her name correctly!


2. Research Good Query Letters! Find a resource (or three) that explains what a good query letter consists of, and what mistakes to avoid (like spelling the editor's name incorrectly). Then follow the rules and create the best query letter you can.

If you follow those two relatively simple rules, you should do well. But see the last section about rejection, just in case.

Why Are They Called DEADlines?

Ever wonder why the word deadlines has the word "dead" in it?

I think it's because if you miss very many, you'll be dead as a writer.

You may think novel deadlines are more flexible than magazine article deadlines, but you'd be wrong. A deadline is just that: time's up, it better be done. The publisher is waiting for that manuscript, has already booked time at the printer, listed the book in their catalogs. If you don't cough up, you've screwed up badly, and they won't be excited to work with you again.

So, NEVER miss a deadline!

The Thing About Rejections

What do you do if you've gotten rejected?

Keep pushing yourself to do your best. It doesn't matter what others think of your writing. Continuing to write is what matters. Many well-known authors have been repeatedly rejected, and yet once they found the right outlet, they became bestsellers.

If you think it's personal, think again. The editor may have had a bad night's sleep. Or have a spouse who's driving her nuts. Or an emergency with his beloved dog. Bad days happen to editors, too, and believe me, when your mood is rotten, you're a lot more likely to reject anything but gold in front of your nose.

So, don't let a rejection stop you doing what you love. If you really need to write, you'll find a way to do it.

I know. I've done it for years.

Until next month!

Since we're talking about publishing, I wanted to find a good quote from a well-known author that says something important about why you need to let go in your writing to get published. Here you go.

The thing is, emotion - if it's visibly felt by the writer - will go through all the processes it takes to publish a story and still hit the reader right in the gut. But you have to really mean it. ~ Anne McCaffrey