tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post2776418650589861558..comments2024-03-28T00:28:02.920-07:00Comments on Navigating the Slush Pile: Why your MS is getting RejectedVickie Motterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15791034462866079818noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-62812165467804473802011-02-01T19:29:29.565-08:002011-02-01T19:29:29.565-08:00My Mother, school teacher for 27 years, loves to r...My Mother, school teacher for 27 years, loves to read...ask her to read my MS and dig out her old red pen, to x any error, plot hole, confusing wording etc. I got it back with three words. "Don't like it!" and not another mark on it. <br />Hey, at least I will never make the mistake of putting "My Mommy says its the best book she has ever read!" in a query. <br />After I finished laughing, I asked her if it was really that bad? She said that it was a nice story until it got creepy. Mom, you read King and Koontz. (but she does not Know them.) LOL!HowLynnTimehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07888091432152130146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-89686165634954314612011-01-31T08:40:49.408-08:002011-01-31T08:40:49.408-08:00Great post with lots of insight. I'm not a st...Great post with lots of insight. I'm not a story writer, but I certainly appreciate the information on good writing skills. Certainly, as a book blogger, I think the way we communicate to our followers about books is extremely important, so writing advice is always welcome!<br /><br />-Lindsbibliophile brouhahahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11135625757196944536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-47310697955853707622011-01-22T15:19:22.279-08:002011-01-22T15:19:22.279-08:00Thanks for all of that. And I really, REALLY love...Thanks for all of that. And I really, REALLY loved that 'Editing' Poster! So true. Me and that delete key are still coming to terms.Bklosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15445205221951596010noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-29183802637129998182011-01-14T17:27:02.667-08:002011-01-14T17:27:02.667-08:00I found this very helpful for analyzing my first p...I found this very helpful for analyzing my first pages. You told us which strong elements to look for and what not to do! I'm a new follower of your blog. Thanks for taking the time to help writers!Katrina L. Lantzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06871272394922775923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-82755249734434340362011-01-11T16:40:03.014-08:002011-01-11T16:40:03.014-08:00Query Tracker Forum's "First Five" i...Query Tracker Forum's "First Five" is a good resource to get your first five pages critiqued. And a good place to read and return crits on other first five's. The crit of my first five lead me on a major rewrite (finished today!)which I *think* has finally made my novel (mostly) work!Roberta Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10806214081554970161noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-87110925886671032782011-01-11T08:07:20.232-08:002011-01-11T08:07:20.232-08:00Those first ten to twenty pages are the toughest f...Those first ten to twenty pages are the toughest for me in a rough draft. I tend to take my time getting started and finding the voice of the piece. But once I'm done, I know I need to hack at stuff. Seriously.<br /><br />I think one of the most important things for new writers is, like you said, if you feel like an agent will love your work "once they get past ___", then the beginning probably needs work.<br /><br />Also, I'd never thought of dialogue isolation as a way to gauge writing skill--that is really cool, and something I will definitely keep in mind as I do critiques (and my OWN revisions).Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06089845691023125664noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-18251942179122134292011-01-11T06:44:14.371-08:002011-01-11T06:44:14.371-08:00I can't find a decent beta reader, everyone ju...I can't find a decent beta reader, everyone just hands the book back and asks for another one. Best advice I ever got was from a writer who was mad at me because I gave him my critique first, and I was prehaps, too honest and had no idea what I was talking about. Anyway, he changed the way I looked at my first page. Until that point everyone was oh so kind, but he was rudely kind enough to point out things I would have seen instantly in someone else's work. LOL. Point is, ask your enemies to read your first page, not your friends, and make sure they are avid readers- writers, even better.Tanya Reimerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00293977395016853814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-75988420366495400322011-01-10T21:00:18.664-08:002011-01-10T21:00:18.664-08:00My first complete novel (a YA urban fantasy) is be...My first complete novel (a YA urban fantasy) is being reviewed right now by my beta readers. I've instructed them to focus mainly on the story and let me know what confuses or disinterests them. I hope they'll be brutal and not try to spare my feelings. I can catch most of the grammatical errors myself when I reread it again and again. I wish I had a reading group in this town. What do you think about online critique groups? Are they as good?Plato Kassermanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14876961945377316614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-62254681418686078892011-01-10T20:27:00.163-08:002011-01-10T20:27:00.163-08:00I know that if I find myself skimming in the first...I know that if I find myself skimming in the first chapter, I don't buy the book! There's only one book I forced myself to keep reading even though its just angsty teen girl for 40 pages and the title rhymes with Highlight. <br /><br />www.jenniferalbin.comJen Albinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15334829308218078837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-14708535422268543112011-01-10T17:40:07.985-08:002011-01-10T17:40:07.985-08:00Love the specifics you shared! Thank you for the ...Love the specifics you shared! Thank you for the pointers. I agree, beta-readers often feel like the stereotypical "yes men."Leslie S. Rosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17122865337924270039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-40898905328056116442011-01-10T11:38:54.113-08:002011-01-10T11:38:54.113-08:00Thanks for this post! My critique group has defini...Thanks for this post! My critique group has definitely been invaluable for making my manuscript better. Nothing's more helpful than a comment of, "this doesn't work and here's why." <br /><br />Another thing I've found that's helpful is to take a scene out of my manuscript, plop it in a separate document, and look at it on its own. It's surprising how taking a scene out of context makes me look at it differently. I've been able to smooth out sections I didn't even know were rough.Shalleehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09907680428735740943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-41958759764785851822011-01-10T11:10:20.520-08:002011-01-10T11:10:20.520-08:00Excellent points! Every chapter, every page has to...Excellent points! Every chapter, every page has to serve a purpose in the story. It's good to be reminded of that. Thank you! We must instill the need for the reader to keep reading. Maybe I'll post that next to my writing space... :)Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05130733681254163610noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-23569911272174355792011-01-10T11:05:00.057-08:002011-01-10T11:05:00.057-08:00Reading aloud is the only way to go. Those around ...Reading aloud is the only way to go. Those around you may think writing has finally sent you insane, but it is an excellent way to spot those sections that don't flow.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1597446736200108024.post-14893040415484172232011-01-10T10:37:16.708-08:002011-01-10T10:37:16.708-08:00I'm a book review blogger and I do get people ...I'm a book review blogger and I do get people asking my opinion of their work before they submit to agents. You make great points here and spell it out in black and white. Thanks for sharing your insights.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com