Publishing and Cataloging in Publication Program

Today I’d like to talk briefly about a program that some authors
may be unaware of. Cataloging in Publication record or CIP  is a
bibliographic record prepared by the Library of Congress. This
process begins before a book is published in the United States.
When a novel is being printed the publisher includes the CIP data
on the copyright page thereby assisting book processing for
libraries and book dealers.   


Certain Libraries will buy a novel based on the CIP data alone. According to many sources, library sales are still holding with over a billion dollars--a real boost to publishers and authors!


For more information visit:  http://www.loc.gov/publish/cip/

Angela Townsend

Author of Amarok, Spencer Hill Press, November 2012

Angela Townsend: Journey of Amarok and Zombies

If you were to ask me, what was the most exciting event of my writing career, I would tell you it was getting the call. Although it actually started with an email and then a phone call.

I came home after a very long day to find an email message from my super-agent, Jill Corcoran. It said I had an offer from Spencer Hill Press. I can honestly say for a fraction of a millisecond, I felt like it just couldn’t be real. So many, many emotions poured over me I couldn’t even think straight.

Gathering myself together, I immediately called my agent Jill. The first thing I wanted to do was to thank her for not letting me give up when I wanted to toss in the towel, for cheering me on and for giving me advice on how to make my manuscript stronger.

Jill Corcoran is truly an amazing agent who rolls up her sleeves and fights hard for her clients. Thank you Jill!

The next few weeks were like a whirlwind. Working with Spencer Hill Press was an awesome experience. I learned so much in the following weeks.

Kate Kaynak, editor in chief of Spencer Hill press, is an absolute genius in the publishing field. She assigned me the fabulous Kendra Saunders as head of marketing for Amarok. Kendra not only provides awesome marketing feedback for Amarok, but she is a positive person filled with encouragement and endless energy for my project.   

After all the blood, sweat and tears and then more tears…My novel Amarok will be in print, November 2012!   

Anyone interested in Amarok Swag? Please email Angela with your snail-mail address and email I’d be glad to send you some.

***

On May 15th, please tune in to my Zombie Radio broadcast. Here is a little more on the program:

Zombie movies have always been a hit, but in the last 10 years they have multiplied. And it's not just TV. Zombies are taking over the television, books, and even ambling down our streets. (Has your town hosted a Zombie walk yet?)

Join us as the Geek Chicks and a special guest host to talk about everything ZOMBIE! It will be a blast. Find out more information HERE.

Agent Jill Corcoran: Activate Your Story

Angela’s agent, Jill Corcoran of the Herman Agency, recently posted an amazing article about how to write an engaging beginning. She’s given Operation Awesome permission to repost it for all you awesome blog buddies.

 

Jill Corcoran of the Herman Agency

 

ACTIVATE YOUR STORY

I have been doing a lot of first 10 pages critiques lately, and I find myself writing…START YOUR STORY and ACTIVATE YOUR STORY on almost 100% of the manuscripts. Choosing where to start you story is so very important in grabbing your reader and willing him to keep reading, captivating him so he cannot put your book down.

Unfortunately, so many writers start in the wrong place. They start in what seems to me like they are taking to themselves, working out what is happening or who their characters are or what the back story is and putting that in the first chapters rather than starting where the book needs to begin. Starting right before everything changes for your main character.

Right before? Yes, I know you have heard so many times to start in the action, to start at the moment your character’s life is about to change, but by doing this we often do now know who your character is so we don’t care that their life is changing. We don’t care about who they are or what is their peril.

Don’t start by describing what is going on. Don’t start by having your main character ‘think’ about/tell us about all that is happening in their life. Don’t start with shot from a gun, waking from a bad dream, dialog of people fighting, random thoughts from your character that does not activate your plot and bring the character and the reader into the character’s world. Don’t write a passive, telling, descriptive beginning.

START YOUR STORY. Show your character in his world, interacting with other characters that give us a glimpse into who your character is, what problem is he facing and why this problem means something to him, and to us the reader.

In one of my favorite books, Gayle Foreman’s IF I STAY, Gayle does not start the book at the moment of the car crash. We first see the family together, we actually fall in love with the main character and her family so when the car crash happens, we are devastated along with the main character. Gayle starts the first line of the book with an intriguing sentence….a sentence that activates us to pay attention to this first meeting with the main character’s family. That foreshadows the doom and gloom to come:

            Everyone thinks it is because of the snow. And in a way, I suppose that’s true.

And then we are back in her world.  A world where the main character is not telling us what is happening but shows us through other characters’ actions and dialog, as well as her own.

Look back at the first pages of THE HUNGER GAMES, SPEAK, LOOKING FOR ALASKA, CONTERFEIT SON, FROZEN STIFF, FYLING SOLO,STARGIRL, the list goes on and on.

These are captivating beginnings that establish voice, character, plot, setting without plunging us blindly into the ‘problem’, the ‘crisis’. They also do not bore us with little details that talk down to the reader to make sure they are going to ‘get it’, that make sure the reader knows everything they need to know so they can follow your story.

Often you have to finish your book so you can rewrite/re-envision your beginning. Often you have to toss out your first couple of chapters. Do not mourn those lost words.  Thank them for helping you get started, for helping you understand where you book is going, for activating you to write rather than spend your years like so many wannabees saying I have a story I want to write but I just don’t know where to start. Congrats. You started. You got to the end. Now rewrite that beginning. Activate your story.

Jill Corcoran represents primarily Chapter Book, Middle Grade, and Young Adult authors. For more helpful writing tips and industry news, check our her blog: http://jillcorcoran.blogspot.com/

Quick Revision Checklist

Quick Revision Checklist

-Watch for repeat words and phrases.

-Avoid passive verbs.

-Make sure your novel is right for the market you’re targeting.

-Have you maintained the correct point-of-view?

-Does your dialogue sound natural or forced?

-Is interior monologue realistic? Make sure they really are thoughts and feeling the character would have.

-Are your characters motivations clear to the reader?

-Are your character names different enough so they don’t all blur together? Henry, Henrietta, Harry, Hampton.  

-Have you offered enough description to give the reader a sense of setting?

-Do you have enough conflict to keep the reader interested?

-Is the story as clear to your readers as it is to you?

-Have you used all five senses where appropriate?

-Have you attended or used an online critique group for feedback?

I hope you find this checklist helpful.  I’m sure you’ll have a few of your own questions as well. Good luck and happy writing!--Angela 

Put It Away...for now

(Photo from thefoodaddicts.com) 

Put It Away

By Angela Townsend

Over the years I’ve learned a lot of great tips for writing.  But the best writing advice I’ve ever received came from an old Italian cook.  

One cold December day, I stopped in to see my old friend, Mike.  I never had to knock as he always expected me at the same time everyday for lunch.  The aroma of a rich pasta sauce wafting from the back room led me directly to him.  

Entering his large antique kitchen filled with beautiful Italian marble, I found him, back hunched over a turn-of-the-century cook stove.   He was vigilantly stirring a delicious pot of freshly peeled tomatoes, standing in the new leather house slippers I had bought him for Christmas.  His crooked arthritic feet always stood in the same worn spot in the tile, just in front of the range.  The exact same location his mother stood forty years before, stirring the same tried and true recipe for spaghetti sauce.  

Mike turned to me and smiled.  “I’ve been thinking about this book business of yours.”  He shook a stubby finger at me.  “You know what’s wrong with you, Angie?”  

I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m Irish instead of Italian?”   

He shook his head and frowned.  “You never take the time to let your sauce simmer; good sauce is never made quickly.  You’ve got to take the time to caress the tomatoes, to handle your onions with care.”  

Without having to ask, I knew what Mike meant.  I always rushed everything, including my writing.  

“When you’re done with your stories,” Mike said, sniffing a spoonful of luscious sauce, “give them time to simmer, put them away, savor them later.”  

This was the best writing advice I’ve ever received, and I hope you will use Mike’s suggestion too.  Put your manuscript away for a while.  Get it out of your sight and try your best not to revisit it while the story is fresh in your mind.  When you’re ready, re-read it and make any necessary changes.  Like a good Italian cook, enjoy the sauce once it’s had time to simmer, maybe even add a few fresh herbs. It will do wonders for the ‘flavor’ of your writing.

Mike is selling his family's Italian recipes in an awesome cookbook that's available for $11. 
Buy your slice of Italy.