Hook 'em in: a three step process to writing a great query

The first thing any writer who wants to be published has to learn is how to put together a good query. Nearly every journal, magazine, editor, publisher, and reviewer wants you to send a query first. Often you'll be asked to include a synopsis.  For newer writers or writer who haven't submitted for a while, these terms can be both daunting and confusing, and they aren't made easier by the fact that words can mean different things in different contexts.

Queries

Think of a query as a proposition. It is the first presentation of you as an author to an editor and you’re proposing that they consider taking the next step and request a whole article or manuscript. Depending on what you’re sending a query for, it can be an idea that you’re pitching as a freelancer, or it can be a single page cover letter which proposes that they request a full manuscript. It must be concise.

Why Do Queries Matter?

Most publishers, agents, reviewers are busy and inundated with requests for their attention. Few will read an entire manuscript without having had a query first. So if you want your manuscript read, you need to query. Queries tend to be used as a first gate to assess how well you can write, how marketable your idea or manuscript is, and your overall professionalism. They are used to demonstrate your ability as a writer, to generate interest in the work, and to convince the recipient that you are professional enough to be a good long term risk. You will be judged by it.

Format 

The format of a query is fixed. It should have three paragraphs: the hook, the proposal and mini-synopsis, and the credentials or biography.

1.  The Hook

A bad or nonexistent hook will end your chances immediately. Generally speaking, it should be a single sentence. If your first sentence doesn’t grab attention, and isn’t well-written, the rest of your query won’t be read. It should be provocative, and ideally, topical.  Here are a few examples of hooks for well-known novels:

House of Sand and Fog: When Massoud Amir Behrani, a former colonel in the Iranian military, sinks his remaining funds into a house he buys at auction, he unwittingly puts himself and his family on a trajectory to disaster; the house once belonged to Kathy Nicolo, a self-destructive alcoholic, who engages in legal, then personal confrontation to get it back.

The Kite Runner: An epic tale of fathers and sons, of friendship and betrayal, that takes us from Afghanistan in the final days of the monarchy to the atrocities of the present.

The Da Vinci Code: A murder in the silent after-hour halls of the Louvre museum reveals a sinister plot to uncover a secret that has been protected by a clandestine society since the days of Christ.

Different types of hooks

• Era and location openers
• Character openers
• When/how/why formula
• Question
• Informative
• Attention grabbing:

2. The Proposal and Mini-Synopsis The proposal is generally one sentence put into the second paragraph. This is where you tell the publisher or editor what you’re offering. You need to be very clear, and include a title, a word-count, and a summary of what you’re proposing.   This is followed by a mini-synopsis, which is your entire novel condensed into 2 or 3 sentences. You’ll want to provide a little information on the protagonist, his or her dilemma, and how the dilemma is resolved. That’s character, conflict, resolution. It should sound exciting and should be brief – one paragraph of about 3-4 sentences is ideal.

3.  The Credentials/Bio This is the simplest part of your query, but get it wrong and all your earlier good work will be undone. Here you have to state your qualifications. This is especially important if you’re pitching a nonfiction book. All credentials must be related to writing or to the topic in your book. Competition wins, kudos of any kind, and publications are all relevant.

Finish with a good clean close that thanks the recipient for their time. If you’re querying for nonfiction, you’ll need to include a full outline, table of contents and one or two sample chapters. Fiction should be complete and as ready for publication as you can get it, and you should let the recipient know that the full manuscript is available upon request.

That's it!  Easier said than done, to be sure, but well worth taking trouble over.  Otherwise it won't matter how good your writing is - it won't get a look in.

Magdalena Ball runs The Compulsive Reader http://www.compulsivereader.com. She is the author of a number of novels, poetry books and a nonfiction book.  Find out more about Magdalena at http://www.magdalenaball.com

Snuck Sneaked In

How did the word “snuck” sneak into the dictionary and into our “approved” form of language?

This word is one of my pet peeves, and if you are an editing client of mine, I will strongly suggest that you use the “proper” form “sneaked” unless it’s in dialogue.

I think my reaction stems from growing up in an isolated rural area where most people were not highly educated (no denigration intended—they were wonderful friends and neighbors and would do anything to help each other in times of need.

But a word like “snuck” that was used as slang by people who also said, “The kids had their pitcher took at school today,” is an indication of that same lack of education or care about proper English.

It’s like “ain’t.” That’s in the dictionary too, but it’s still not “proper” to use, except in slang dialogue.

According to wiktionary.org, “snuck” is an irregular verb form that originated in the late 19th century dialect, but is now listed as the “simple past tense and past participle of sneak.” Merriam-Webster’s Etymology: akin to Old English snIcan to sneak along, Old Norse snIkja.

Here’s a link to an interesting article on “Sentence First: An Irishman’s Blog About the English Language"

And this is a snippet from The Word Detective’s Q&A, who seems to agree with me:
“Yes, ‘snuck’ is a real word, although it has always been classified as ‘substandard English.’ ‘Snuck’ first appeared in the 19th century as a regional variant of ‘sneaked,’ and is still considered colloquial English, but is apparently gaining in respectability among literate folk. Still, ‘snuck’ is not the sort of word to use on your resume, although ‘sneaked’ is usually not a big hit on resumes either, come to think of it. In general, however, my advice is to stick with ‘sneaked.’ Unless you're talking to Elvis, of course. I happen to know he says ‘snuck’."

What are some of your “pet peeve” words that have sneaked into the English Language?

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A native Montanan, Heidi M. Thomas now lives in North-central Arizona. Her first novel, Cowgirl Dreams, is based on her grandmother, and the sequel, Follow the Dream, won the national WILLA Award. Heidi has a degree in journalism, a certificate in fiction writing, and is a member of Northwest Independent Editors Guild. She teaches writing and edits, blogs, and is working on the next books in her “Dare to Dream” series.

Selling eProducts Through PayPal and Common Courtesy

Okay, this is kind of a rant on a couple of issues.

To start, I sell e-products on my website via PayPal. While this is a convenient and normally great selling method, once in a while there’s a problem.

The Cause of the Problem

PayPal, for whatever reason they deem necessary, makes it very unclear as to how to download your purchase once you’ve bought it.

This in no way is the consumer's fault. PayPal just uses a confusing way to provide the ‘instant’ downloadable link to the product you bought.

Once you pay for the product, you’re brought to a PayPal page that shows this:

“[Name of buyer], you just completed your payment.”
It gives the transaction number and notes that they’ll send you a receipt via email.
Under this you’re given three links:

• Return to [the seller’s email address]
• Go to PayPal account overview
• Add funds from your bank

NO WHERE does it say: Click Here to Get Your Product, or other clear call-to-action.

The buyer must automatically know that one of these three links is the product download button.

Just so you know, it’s the first link – the link to “Return to [the seller’s email address].

How is anyone to know that’s the link to get the purchased product?

Because of this confusing process, I’ve had a couple of people who have filed a dispute against me with PayPal over the years. While they have been quickly resolved, it’s annoying and time consuming for me, the seller, and for the buyer.

Fortunately, I was able to get online and check my email to find the problems. BUT, when super storm Sandy hit, I was without electricity for almost two weeks. And, I couldn't drive anywhere for internet access.

What happens then? What happens if you have a problem with your internet service or electricity? Or, if your computer crashes.

PayPal needs to develop an easier method for buyers to be able to quickly find the download button.

People get upset when they can’t immediately get their purchases!

This leads me to the second rant.

When Purchasing Online, Please Use Common Courtesy

My most recent mishap with a PayPal purchase just happened. I promoted a product related to the content in my newsletter, The Writing World. Happily, subscribers found the product to be helpful and I got a number of purchases.

This is GREAT and I appreciate every sale, but . . .

One buyer, after NOT 'being a mind-reader’ and realizing she needed to click on my email address to get the ebook, filed a dispute with PayPal.

Now, I can understand the frustration in buying a product, even at $7, and wanting it immediately. However, I buy e-products online also and my first course of action if there’s a problem with the download is to contact the seller, not file a dispute or complaint.

To add to this, the people buying were buying from a promo in my newsletter. These are people I send useful writing and marketing information emails to regularly and offer free webinars to.

This is where common courtesy comes into play. The buyer who couldn’t get the product not only filed a dispute with PayPal, but also sent me this email:

 Hello Karen,

As you can see by the receipt below, I paid the $7 for the eBook "Editing Books Like A Pro" , however, I have NOT YET received the instantaneous download as promised. Please send immediately!

Thank you,

OUCH!

I, of course, immediately sent an email apologizing for the inconvenience and attached the ebook.

Then I had to go to my PayPal account and let them know I took care of the matter.

Then, annoyed over the matter, I created a test .49 cent product, uploaded it to PayPal, put it on my site, and bought it through my husband’s account, just to test the buying process.

I have to say it’s sorely lacking.

After that, I wrote this post.

What's to Come

I'm sure I'm not the only PayPal merchant this occasionally happens to. PayPal is making enough money from its merchants; they should make the buying process much easier and clear.

Aside from this MAJOR problem, I'll still use PayPal, at least for the time being

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MORE ON ONLINE MARKETING

Authors Need Discoverability More Than Findability
Online Marketing – Commenting on Blogs is an Effective Marketing Strategy
Create an Infographic

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P.S. While you're here, please sign up for The Writing World (top right sidebar). You'll get weekly writing and marketing information, plus updates on free webinars. And, you'll get "How to Create an Optimized Website."

Karen Cioffi
Award-winning author, freelance/ghostwriter
Author/Writer Online Platform Instructor

WritersOnTheMove Author Carefully Considers Time Management

I often channel the woman I used to read avidly because I edited her columns to fit into available space for the Salt Lake Tribune where I used to be a staff writer.  The woman is Ann Landers, doyenne of the "Ask" columns. And most of my "Q and As a la Ann Landers" go into my SharingwithWriters newsletter. On occasion I share them in this blog, too.  This questions is a simple one--oft repeated by writers who are trying desperately to balance their writing time against online networking and marketing:

Question:

 Shirley Corder, an author friend in one of my Yahoogroups asked me, “Would someone please tell me why I should add Google Plus to my long list of social networks?”

 Answer:

 I get it that there needs to be a real reason to join another group.  I think one of the reasons most people are talking about Google Plus are the groups (hangouts) it offers--but What I like is that Google makes it really easy to post notices about our blog posts when/if we use Blogger (and maybe a few others) for our blogs. It also automatically includes images from the blog with the message you send.

 I also like that it lets you categorize your friends there so you don’t send messages to people who couldn’t care less. As an example, resources that may interest readers of my retail books, may not want links to a Web site that will help writers with craft. So, I am very careful to add people to an appropriate circle (or group).

 To make it less time consuming, I don’t actively search out new connections. When they contact me, I put them in a "circle" where I can best reach them with posts (or other things) I think they might be able to use. 

 My address is: https://plus.google.com/u/0/  And, yes, I'd love to hear from you if you are there.

By the way, I still read Q andA columns avidly, some of them written by people who learned the skill at Landers' knee. One learns a lot about life in them. (-:  If you want to read all of mine as they come out, you can subscribe to my SharingwithWriters newsletter by sending me an e-mail at HoJoNews@aol.com  and I'll do it for you. Please put SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.

Do you know of any other reasons why Google Plus is is plus? Or not? Please share with a comment on this blog if you do.  

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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . 

Email Marketing - Your Opt-in Landing Page

 

Landing pages have specific purposes. One might be a sales page and another might be your email opt-in page. Whichever it is, a landing page is a specific page that is intended for a specific purpose and draws targeted traffic. The traffic is drawn to this page to take a particular action . . . to say YES to your offer or opt-in.

One of the most essential landing pages’ is your subscriber or email opt-in page, and it should be designed specifically to garner email addresses.

The reason a separate opt-in page is crucial, as with any landing page, is to eliminate distraction.

While it’s a good idea to have a subscriber opt-in box on your website’s sidebar for stray visitors and those who find your blog through a search for a particular keyword, you need a separate page to lead your targeted traffic in from your ‘outside’ article marketing endeavors. These ‘outside’ strategies include, submitting to article directories, guest posts, and participation in joint ventures. They are the strategies that need a resource box, bio, or tagline that will direct readers to a page designed to let the reader know why she should give you her valuable email address.

It’s on this email opt-in page that you can fully explain the benefits the reader will get if he opts in: relevant information, tips, tools, reviews, news, etc. You also have the space to list the title and description of the ebook you’re offering as an ethical bribe. Or maybe the free ethical bribe is a one-on-one free consultation, or an instructional webinar. This opt-in landing page allows you to fully answer the reader’s WIIFM (what’s in it for me) question.

In addition to the WIIFM information, you can include what you’re qualifications are for offering this particular information, for claiming to be an authority in this niche.

Due to its focus and lack of distractions, your email opt-in landing page allows for a higher conversion rate. This means a higher percentage of visitors will follow your directions and say YES to the action you’re asking them to take.

Just remember that simple always works better in regard to websites and landing pages. You don’t want to make it feel or look busy, or give confusing or complicated steps for the visitor to take action.

To emphasize the ‘simple is better’ strategy, Google’s company philosophy is “Simplicity is powerful.”

While it’s in a writer’s nature to usually write more than is necessary and an individual’s nature to make things more complicated than necessary, follow Google’s lead and keep it simple. Keep your email opt-in page to the essentials, and learn how to write effective copy for it. 

If you're just starting out with your mailing list, you will need an email service and opt-in box. I use Get Response. I love them so much, I'm an affiliate for them. So, if you're in the market for a great email service, get started with them.

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Karen Cioffi
Award-Winning Author, Children's Ghostwriter 
https://karencioffiwritingforchildren.com

Founder and Editor in Chief of Writers on the Move

Use Images Carefully - They May be Copyrighted and You Could be Sued

By Karen Cioffi

It’s funny, a couple of months ago I accidentally deleted a lot of my images in GooglePlus. Because of this accident, the images in the blog posts at Writers on the Move were deleted. The grey generic circle took their place.

At the time, I was annoyed with myself and warned everyone to be careful when deleting photos in their Google+ accounts. Using images is an effective way to make our blog posts more engaging. It’s an effective marketing tool.

Well, I recently read two SCARY articles from bloggers, one a PR company, who were sued for using copyrighted images in their blogs without permission. In both cases, it wasn’t done intentionally, but none the less they were sued for a significant amount of money and had to pay.

I don’t copy images off the internet to post on my blogs, at least not that I can remember doing. For years, I’ve used image services like, BigStock.com and buy images when needed. I also use Microsoft Word’s Clipart. And, lately, I’ve been creating my own images, like the one above. I bought the image of the rabbit holding a sign then added the "Be Aware" and background color.

Going back to the articles I read, it was mentioned that even Pinterest could be problematic. Comments mentioned that Pinterest protects itself and if you are caught repinning an image you don’t have the copyright to, you’ll be on your own.

I haven’t read the fine print on the site, so don’t know for sure. It’d be interesting to find out though. I’m thinking of eliminating my boards that could be a problem, like my Around the World and One Day. I love the images on them, but they’re not worth possibly being sued over.

So, should this concern ordinary, run-of-the-mill bloggers?

YUP!

This isn’t just a scenario heavy-hitter sites need to worry about. It’s something anyone blogging with images needs to be concerned about, unless your 100% sure your images are safe.

I’m including the links to both articles because I think everyone should be warned about this. Ignorance of copyright laws won’t save you. Adding attribution or taking the image down won’t save you. It’s time to rethink image use before it’s too late.

You’ll learn a whole lot more from these articles:

"Bloggers Beware: You CAN Get Sued For Using Pics on Your Blog - My Story"
(Read the comments also for tips on safe images)

"How using Google Images can cost you $8,000"

I love to know what you think of this using images in your posts. And, it'd be great if you share where you get your images from.

What is Flash Memoir

Guest post by Jane Hertenstein

Many of us are looking to write memories—either in the form of literary memoir or simply to record family history, in order to pass down stories to children or grandchildren. In Freeze Frame: How To Write Flash Memoir I look at memoir in small, bite-size pieces. Not all at once, but in small bursts of flash.

Flash is a relatively new genre. Other terms for flash include: Sudden, micro, postcard, short shorts. The roots of flash lie in the vignette or scene. There is no widely accepted definition for the length. Some journals are asking for no more than 100 words. Six Minute Magazine is looking for quality fiction that can be read in under six minutes. The upper limits of flash might be 1,000 words. Much of what I love about flash is about living in the moment. Capturing and seizing a point in time. Freeze framing it—much like a Polaroid snapshot.

Memoir can be defined as autobiography that uses novelesque or literary devices. Perhaps it is better to say that memoir is autobiography that relies less on chronology and facts and more on telling a story.

I like to treat the page like a friend, like a sounding board, or what the poet Frank O’Hara has described as unmade phone calls. The Internet actually makes it easy to record one’s life: Instagram! Facebook! Twitter!

Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way instructs us to “make time,” not wait to “find time” for writing. One of the best ways to make time for writing is through journal writing. She suggests free writing where for 10 – 20 minutes you write whatever comes into your head without editing, without even lifting your pen from the page. Here is a link to how to write what she calls “Morning Pages.”

No matter what it is called or how you view it, the writer needs to be able to slow down, turn off the critical, and turn inward.

EXERCISE: Where you are at, right now, whatever you want to call it: blog, journal, prayer, an unmade phone call, twitter, tweet—send one out. Write it, the flutter on your heart. No more than 500 words.
    
Read the headlines: ever wonder what’s behind them. The newspaper is full of real stories that at some point might alter or connect with our own story. Think tsunami, school closing, threat of e. coli in lettuce.

Ernest Hemingway had a background in journalism where he was embedded in several wars and learned to write concisely and yet place the reader there.

EXERCISE: What’s in the news? Using a headline as a prompt, write a flash.

This can be strictly memoir or you can take any headline and place yourself there as a reporter. Write about what affects you—your flash might also be written as an opinion (op-ed) piece.

Much of memoir is about ordinary life. Despite the fact that nothing important ever happened to you (I’m assuming), if your story nudges the reader to remember, then you will connect. People are interested in ordinary stories if they have the smell and feel of authenticity. An honesty that resonates. A skillful writer will use words like blood, injecting life into a story—and visa versa a story into life.

EXERCISE: Compose a flash built around your to-do list.

Even if you think you have lived a boring life, all of us have anecdotal moments, snapshots that if freeze-framed and cropped can offer entertainment/education/refuge for fellow readers.

About the Author:
Jane Hertenstein’s current obsession is flash. She is the author of over 40 published stories, a combination of fiction, creative non-fiction, and blurred genre both micro and macro. Her latest book Freeze Frame: How to Write Flash Memoir  is available through Amazon. Jane is a 2-time recipient of a grant from the Illinois Arts Council. She can be found blogging about Flash Memoir at http://memoirouswrite.blogspot.com/

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MORE ON WRITING

Is Thinking About Writing, Well Writing?
How to Write a Novel – Start with a Novel Outline
Letting Go of the Novel – How to Deal with Empty Pen Syndrome

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