I write stuff for kids...and muse on writing, children's books, and the publishing industry in general

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Twitter Tip Thursday

Here are some of the tips and useful links I've come across on Twitter this week:

Trends

Report from last night's panel on trends in #kidlit @megcabot http://ow.ly/2Wprk @Kid_Lit

Querying

Successful contemporary YA query: Mindi Scott's query to Jim McCarthy (Dystel & Goderich) for FREEFALL: http://bit.ly/aZsPHX @taralazar

"Query until someone puts a ring on your finger." - Kristen Lippert-Martin. Excellent advice at http://tinyurl.com/3y9hnum @RachelMorgan13

EXCELLENT article: http://tinyurl.com/3aenvny My Query Letter Manifesto. Not only great advice but a highly entertaining read :-) Go see it! @RachelMorgan13

To be honest, I DO get to your ms faster if you check in - but I also make a faster decision about it. @Natalie_Fischer

I'd say a quarter of #queries are probably much too long or way too short. The best pitches are usually 2-3 paragraphs. @MandyHubbard

A great & funny blog post about the slush pile from agent Steve Laube: http://bit.ly/9F6bSu @RachelleGardner

Critiquing:

Why GIVE Critiques?: People thank me all the time for giving free chapter reviews. But, I love doing it. Why? Beca... http://bit.ly/9hC5ur @ClarissaDraper

On writing:

New On The Blog: Balancing The First Pages Of A New WIP http://bit.ly/cxdQh4 @CA_Marshall

Newbie writers: watch out for these big writing no-no's. (sorry no pictures): http://bit.ly/hJVmK @Georgia_McBride

What do writers make at different publishers? The famous (and now updated) "Show Me the Money" survey with answers: http://dld.bz/z6f2 @elizabethscraig

Why your beginnings don't really matter. http://bit.ly/a2wOTO @ChristieWild

Great post with awesome examples! Opening Sentences: Reeling Your Reader In: http://bit.ly/d0astJ @jafhedlund

Many of life's failures are people who did not realise how close to success they were when they gave up. Be encouraged.Keep going. @pichetsinparis

Top 3 (posts and reads): http://wp.me/pHil1-c6 @kangaroobee

Use this 2 get ur brain churning on how to make your ms stand out, not just your blog! http://www.copyblogger.com/usp (via @ingridsundberg) @Natalie_Fischer

The Writer's 10 Commandments. Read http://markterrybooks.blogspot.com/2010/10/writers-10-commandments.html @pichetsinparis

New On The Blog: Friday Five: Advice For Writers - 14 Oct 2010 - Formatting A Manuscript http://bit.ly/czxkSE @CA_Marshall

Three essential tips to writing a publishable novel - http://ow.ly/2TUN9 @BubbleCow

Writing a fiction synopsis? Here's what one should look like: "The Big Easy" (crime/noir) http://tinyurl.com/298fen2 @WritersDigest

Here's your top 5% of slush pile. How to rise to the top and not get an automatic rejection. http://tinyurl.com/29qot6p @ChristieWild

Making a Book Stand Out: The Critical Aspect of Having a Compelling Story http://bit.ly/c5s0MR @JodyHedlund

You know you've got a cliché when you see the exact same line in another book. Love the line! Check out the post. http://trunc.it/bx5nz @ClarissaDraper

Do you have a BUSINESS mindset for your writing career? Should you? http://bit.ly/antyd8 @RachelleGardner

The three stages of learning to write successful science fiction: wp.me/pz1mb-6s....I love these snippets...they urge me on. @bamawm

Confusion is not tension. If reader has no idea what u're talking about, they will abandon the book @Georgia_McBride

"Nobody uses large numbers of adjectives when they think..." Alexander McCall Smith @jafhedlund

Do you get frustrated by the Writing Rules? Read this: http://bit.ly/91GS4f @RachelleGardner

Revising

Our 1st drafts are a lump of clay. Beauty comes after we shape & mold & polish time and time again.@JodyHedlund

Recognizing and fixing repetition in your manuscript: http://bit.ly/hJVmK @Georgia_McBride

Knowing When It's Good Enough http://nblo.gs/9b34x @ali_cross

Writing Resources

New stuff on a Tuesday! A resources page! http://kidlit.com/resources-for-writers/ @Kid_Lit

Picture Books

This is good! Must read for PB authors!! http://bit.ly/bp4zbm 12 Common Picture Book Mistakes by Elizabeth O. Dulemba @KatApel

What are picture book editors looking for? http://bit.ly/ck46OG Each story needs to have a twist. Why is your story different? @taralazar

Agents

Agent Spotlight on Elena Mechlin of Pippin Properties, Inc. http://bit.ly/dnJm0Z @Casey_McCormick

Five tips on how to connect with an agent: http://bit.ly/a1wMpY @4KidLit

NEW on blog: exclusive requests: sign of a bad agent? www.adventuresinagentland.blogspot.com @Natalie_Fischer

I blogged about #AgentFail today. Check it out: http://bit.ly/9ZYgB4 @RachelleGardner

RT@4KidLit How to handle "WHO offered you representation?" What to do if you get push-back. http://bit.ly/dA3c6v @auntiflamingo

Dealing with Rejection

3 Steps Writers Should Take After Getting a Rejection: http://bit.ly/dpt3zf (via @JaneFriedman) Excellent post! @JodyHedlund

Branding

What is branding? Guest post by author Karen Witemeyer http://bit.ly/b16JwC @RachelleGardner

Blogging

What is RSS? Reading blogs? Get organized, stay informed, save time, protect your privacy. http://tinyurl.com/3antp96 @ChristieWild

Think in Stories to Write Better http://bit.ly/csEEqN @Kangaroobee

5 Ways Blogging Makes You Better: http://bit.ly/aM7NVB (via @CassFrear) @JodyHedlund

The number ONE way to generate more traffic to your blog: http://bit.ly/9DIsSk @JodyHedlund

NaNoWriMo

L'Aussie Writing : Will I NaNoWriMo or Won’t I NaNoWriMo? Some tips to help you decide: http://t.co/aKJs3t0 @pichetsinparis

Got an idea for NaNoWriMo? How to create a basic outline: http://thegracefuldoe.wordpress.com/2010/10/16/nanowrimo-creating-an-outline/ @gracefuldoe

@the creative penn great post Joanna http://dld.bz/zCRD Nano Notebook @papyri

Miscellaneous

Guest post from Alane Ferguson on censorship http://ow.ly/2U04o @Kid_Lit

WRITERS. New fair deal ePublisher/agent accepting submissions now. http://is.gd/g2ZKu RTs? <3>

8 comments:

Unknown said...

These are awesome! I couldn't help but see my blog listed among the rest. Thank you so much.

CD

Bast said...

More great tips and links! You're awesome Rach!

Julie Hedlund said...

This is a great list. I especially appreciate the info on PBs - seems like you see those less often than MG or YA. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Wow, I can see you've got the blogging bug like me LOL what a treasure trove you have here. Thanks for joining my bloghop :O)

A Pen In Neverland: Angela Peña Dahle said...

Hey look on my blog and let me know if you like the button. When you click on it, it links to the crusader list! Everyone can have one just like it! This way we don't have the long list of everyone slowing down upload time on our blogs!

Let me know what you think guys!

http://a-pen-in-neverland.blogspot.com/

Rachael Harrie said...

Hey Angela. Love the idea, though was wanting to use my Crusader picture for the button. Can't work out how to do it tho :( Do you have a link to a website or something I can use to make one???

Ta, Rach

Rachael Harrie said...

@Clarissa, thanks :) No worries, you have some great articles on your blog!

@Quinn (*blushes*)

@Julie, no problems. Thought it might be useful to sort them out for you :)

@Madeleine, hey thanks :) Yep, it's bitten me bad, LOL! No probs at all, have visited everyone on your blog hop as of today ;)

Ishta Mercurio said...

Great links, as always. Thanks for the PB links - they were SUPER!

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