Published on November 17, 2004
When this service was first implemented, I received up to 5-6 submissions per day that required that I “register.” Now, I don’t bother. If a writer wants to receive feedback from us on the status of his/her submission, they will need to pre-register our domain as one that they will allow mail from or they won’t hear back from us. I have yet to bypass a submission we selected for publication because of this maddening practice, but I am prepared to do so if the need arises.
Published on November 17, 2004
Many writers are so afraid of rejection that they jump at whatever fee an editor offers. Don’t do it! Writers are notorious for not getting paid what they deserve, especially when they are first starting out. We need to think more like my therapist, who advises, “Honor the work you do.” His weekly therapy bill also motivates me to ask for more for my writing work. Whatever your motivation, stand up for the work you do and make more money.
Published on November 17, 2004
In her article, Reality Check on Publishers’ Dismal Marketing Efforts, MJ Rose is saying a publisher invested $175,000 in an author’s book and then failed to market the book? – that is difficult to fathom.
Published on November 17, 2004
When the call came from a publisher, I thought it was a practical joke, someone pulling my leg on my birthday. The message slip said to call Chronicle Books in San Francisco. I dutifully called the 415-area code and was connected to an editor.
“I was wondering if you would like to write a book for us, “said the woman from one of the top publishing houses in the West. “What?,” I stammered.
Published on November 10, 2004
We still don’t have a diagnosis on Blotch’s condition, but expect it this week. He’s not been doing very well and I’ve very sad for him, watching his discomfort day after day. I had to rush him to the vet on Saturday because he got dehydrated again. They’ve let me start doing his sub-Q injections at home now. Poor Blotch. Everytime I walk in the room, he thinks he’s gonna get poked. I’ve spent a lot more time loving on him so he won’t think I’ve turned into the big mommy torture machine. He did finally start purring again on Sunday. That was a relief.
Ali’s doing pretty good this week…much better than I am, in my opinion. I’m getting tired of crying myself to sleep with worry. I hardly ever cry and have always been that way. But I’m making up for it now. I’ve cried more in the past two weeks than I’ve cried in the past 20 years. I’m not exaggerating! Poor Richard can only hug and comfort me, which is about all we can do for Blotch until we know exactly what’s wrong with him.
Wanting to keep busy over the weekend (to keep my mind off my worries), we reorganized our bedroom and Max’s bedroom. That was fun…for me anyway. Richard and the children didn’t look too happy about following my instructions for where to put boxes going into storage and where to move the heavy furniture.
I had to secretly make room in our bedroom for Richard’s birthday present, which is being delivered on his birthday, but I couldn’t tell him that. He just thinks I’m on some kind of maternal fall-cleaning craze. Heh…
Hugs to all!
Ang
P.S. Want to read real query letters that landed these contracts? Woman’s Day – $2,800; Redbook – $3,500; Ladies Home Journal – $3,000; DiscoveryHealth.com – $2,000; Lifetime Magazine – $3,000; Life Extension magazine – $6,480; Natural Remedies $11,300; and many more! See: https://www.writersweekly.com/books/1409.html
Published on November 10, 2004
We received an interesting email last week that brought to light a possible scenario that could have been very bad for us…and completely NOT our fault.
Published on November 10, 2004
I wanted to thank you because, although I’m not as immersed in writing as I’d like to be (had to go back to work full-time), your weekly newsletter reminds me that I am a writer and that I must keep it in order to reach my final goal – become a full-time author.
Published on November 10, 2004
specialty markets for writing
How often do you find yourself reading through the posts of an Internet writing board only to be caught in a series of complaints? We writers sure can write, but sometimes our focus doesn’t seem all that – how can I say this delicately? – productive.
Published on November 10, 2004
Do all writers make mistakes (lack of clarity, weird misspellings after proofing the text more than once, etc) in the beginning of their writing careers?
Published on November 10, 2004
Lin and Larry Pardey told me that they were the first authors who fired their publisher. They’re sailing through life, literally aboard their sailboat and in a literary way as successful authors and publishers. When I fired my own publisher, I learned a lot – the hard way. The book began under contract with an ebook publisher. Just what every author wants – to get published. Except that I didn’t like my contract.
