HOT OFF THE PRESS! We love to share our information with writers, and we’re happy to pass some of our INSIDER’S SECRETS along to you. Feel free to print these posts to use as a reference. Pass the links along to your writer friends. It’s packed with great information this month. DEADLINE-DATED lists of anthologies, theme issues, and contests are included at no charge!

In This Issue:

* * NINE QUESTIONS TO ASK A LITERARY AGENT

* * DO YOU WANT TO COMBINE OUR EXPERTISE WITH YOUR LEGWORK?

* * HOW TO CHOOSE A CRITIQUE PARTNER FOR YOUR WRITING

* * UN-THINK YOUR POETRY: HOW TO WRITE BETTER POEMS

* * PUNCTUATING APPOSITIVES

* * LATERAL THINKING PUZZLES

* * You won’t find a better list anywhere (AND IT’S FREE!) of upcoming ANTHOLOGIES, SPECIAL-THEMED JOURNALS, and CONTESTS.

↓ Scroll Down to Read These Exciting and Useful Articles!! ↓

Has a literary agent offered to represent you and your book? Congratulations! This is an exciting and important milestone on the journey to getting published. It’s also the beginning of a process that can be a little more complex than meets the eye. Below you’ll find a list of questions to ask a literary agent while you’re in the “getting to know you” stage.

At the heart of the agent-writer relationship often lies a legal contract, so you should find out what you’re getting into before you get into it. While it might not be wise to inundate a prospective agent with too many questions, there are certain things that you should consider asking before you sign any contract.

Please note: some of these questions may be answered on the agent’s Web site or in other supporting materials. Be sure you don’t ask questions that don’t need to be asked if the information is already available to you!

* How long have you been in business as a literary agent?
No one goes to school to learn how to be a literary agent, but experience within the publishing industry can give an agent the edge when it comes to selling your book. Agents profit from their intimate understanding of editors’ reading preferences, so you’ll want someone who has strong connections. That said, don’t write off new agents. New agents are always hungry for manuscripts, so if you connect with a new agent at an established literary agency, you both may benefit from the partnership. Just be sure to do your homework and ask the right questions!

* What is your experience with this particular genre?
An agent who only handles romance novels might not have the right contacts to shop a thriller around. An agent might be trying to broaden his or her genre horizons, but you have to ask yourself if you want your book to be the guinea pig. If the agent’s enthusiasm is strong, it might be to your benefit to work with the agent in a genre that he or she doesn’t historically represent. Again, weigh the pros and cons by getting all the necessary information before you make a decision.

* Who will be handling my work within the agency?
Make sure you know who will be familiar with your book and to whom you can go if you have any specific questions down the road. Some agents at bigger companies will assign you to an assistant or a junior agent rather than rep your book personally. However, if you’re working with a boutique agency, you’ll probably be working with the agent you queried. Just be sure you know!

* What is your game plan for this project?
You should always be aware of what an agent has in mind for your book, including how the book will be positioned within the larger market and if there is a possibility of selling secondary rights (film, audio, electronic, etc.).

* How often will I be updated on what you’re doing on my behalf?
No one should do anything with your book that you are not aware of. Writers put a lot of trust in their agents, but what’s at stake here is your career. Communication is crucial. Does your prospective agent prefer e-mail correspondence or a phone call for a quick chat every once in a while? Find out ahead of time.

* Are you a member of the Association of Authors’ Representation (AAR)?
You may take heart in knowing that your agent is part of the AAR; however, if an agent is NOT an AAR member, you probably shouldn’t consider it a deal-breaker. The important thing is that the agent is in line with the AAR's requirements for ethics and handling clients' funds.

* What are your commission rates?
Anything over 15% on domestic sales suggests less-than-honest business tactics. Ditto to agents who require an up-front “marketing” fee or an editorial fee upon contract signing. See our articles Warning Signs: How To Spot A Literary Agent Scam: Part One and How To Spot A Literary Agency Scam: Part Two  for more information.

* What is the minimum time requirement on my contract?
Find out how long you are expected to work with this agent and what happens when one side no longer wants to work with the other.

* How will you be involved in my ongoing career?
Every agent has a different approach to building an author’s career: some are collaborators (working with authors on their projects in a very hands-on way), and others are more aggressively involved in the negotiation process. Ask your potential agent how he or she likes to work with clients.

In the end, your gut might be your best gauge when considering a literary agent. If after all your questions have been answered and you still feel wary of signing, it may be best to gracefully decline the offer. As nice as it is to be offered representation, proper treatment of your work by a trustworthy agent is paramount.

Writer’s Relief would love to help you find the right literary agent for your book! Our submission strategists can help target your book to distinguished literary agents to find which ones are best for you and your work. For more information about our services, please visit www.WritersRelief.com.

If you’d like our expert targeting help but you’re not ready for the commitment of our Full Service program, our easy A La Carte services might be a good choice for you. By combining our research and targeting with your legwork, you can save money AND time.

$100: A La Carte Service — Get started right away! This service combines our expertise with your do-it-yourself perseverance. Writer's Relief will target the best-suited markets for your work and guide you through the process. You'll get one round of 25 to 30 submissions out into the world within three days. It's quick and easy. We provide the best market research available to creative writers. You do not need to apply to our Review Board for the A La Carte Service. Visit http://www.WritersRelief.com/alacarte-submission-help-for-writers.aspx for details.

$200 - $250: A La Carte PLUS Service — Everything that's quick and affordable about our A La Carte Service, with the time-saving benefit of Full Service cover or query letter preparation. We will target the best markets for your work, prepare mailing labels, and create 25 to 30 personalized, professional cover or query letters. You do not need to apply to our Review Board for the A La Carte Service. Click here for more: http://www.WritersRelief.com/alacarteplus-help-with-query-letter-writing.aspx.

Please feel free to contact us with your questions (info@wrelief.com). And when you’re ready to sign up, just give us a call so that we can process your payment and begin gathering information about your writing so we can target your work to the literary agents or editors who are most likely to appreciate it!

If you’ve ever suffered through a bad critique, you know how damaging feedback can be to the creative process. Here are a few simple tips to help you determine how to find and choose a critique partner to help with your writing.

Why do I need a critique?
If you’re looking for an honest and objective viewpoint, a critique partner (or beta reader) may be the answer. Your best friend might shower you with well-intended praise, but a good critique partner will spot problems in your writing that you may be unable to see.

Where can I find a critique partner?
Check your local writers’ groups, libraries, bookstores, and the English department at local colleges and universities. If you live in an outlying or remote area, many online writers’ sites offer the opportunity for writers to connect with beta readers. If you write in a specific genre, check writers’ sites and critique groups dedicated to that particular genre (i.e., horror, mystery, romance, and science fiction).

What should I look for in a critique partner?
First, avoid family, friends, neighbors, or anyone who may be afraid to hurt your feelings. Feedback that showers you with praise and feeds your ego will not improve your writing skills.

Second, choose a fellow writer, someone with experience and credentials—someone who knows the ups and downs of the publishing industry and is familiar with the market, the genre, and the nitty-gritty business of writing. If your partner can’t qualify his or her opinion based on education and/or experience, you may be receiving bad advice. Get a sense of your potential beta reader’s writing in advance—if you don’t respect their writing, you won’t respect their comments.

Third, look for a critique partner who will be respectful and helpful. General comments such as “Pretty good story” or “I hated the plot” aren’t constructive—neither are rude and belittling comments like “Where’d you learn to write, anyway?” Your partner should be able to point out specific areas of concern without leaving you feeling small and stupid.

Above all, be patient. Like affairs of the heart, it might take several partners before you find that perfect fit.

Be clear about your expectations from the start.
Are you looking for an overall opinion on plot and pacing? Worried about your point of view? Concerned about your characters? Or are you simply looking for a line edit to catch grammatical errors and typos? Let your critique partner know exactly what you want and avoid conflict down the road.

Go over your expectations of turnaround times. If you want to submit your novel or short fiction in a specific time frame, will your beta reader be able to deliver?

Will you be expected to critique your partner’s work as well? What kind of volume and frequency will be involved?

Online versus face-to-face critique partners.
Interacting with your beta reader online offers greater flexibility, such as submitting your novel at 2:00 a.m. while in your pj's, and allows for e-mail accessibility at all hours (why wait for next month’s meeting?).

Face-to-face critiques can sometimes get heated; online feedback can be more tactful. Your online reviewer has time to carefully frame his or her comments, and you have time to absorb the feedback in private, giving your ego a chance to recover before you respond.
                                                           
People can be influenced by a physical presence—sloppily dressed, mumbling and muttering people may be perceived as strange and sloppy writers, and witty, charismatic people may offer substandard writing despite their dazzling personalities—while online critiques are based solely on the writing itself.

Interacting in person with a critique partner offers a social respite and often inspires idea-generating brainstorming sessions. Writing can be a solitary business, and many fiction writers benefit from interacting with other writers on a regular basis. Online interaction is less personal, less social.   

Other considerations.
You don’t have to implement every change your critique partner suggests. Think about his or her suggestions carefully before you implement them.

Be prepared for criticism. This is a business rife with criticism and rejection, and thick skin and determination to improve your craft are essential to succeed. If you break down in tears every time someone finds a problem in your fiction, you may not be ready to take your writing to the next level.

If you are critiquing for your partner, give them the same respect and consideration you would expect in return. Provide concrete, specific comments and advice in a respectful manner. And don’t hesitate to point out what you like: well-developed characters, certain passages that really caught your attention, anything that stood out in a positive way. Writers should be aware not only of their weaknesses but also of their strengths. And let’s face it: a little good news is always welcome in this business.

Want to write better poems? Why not try a different technique to become a better poet?:

Stop trying to write better poems.

Because most good poetry comes from a place deep in the subconscious, judging your poems as you’re writing them can be problematic. If you’re worried that your poetry isn’t strong, that your metaphors are wobbly, that no one will be interested in your subject matter, then you’re clipping your poem’s wings at the same time that you’re asking it to take flight.

Here is one way of writing that works for some poets. Feel free to expand and alter this as you please to suit your own writing needs!

1. To write better poems, turn off the part of your brain that is conscious of what other readers might think of your poetry. Let your subconscious do the writing. Don’t go chasing after the words you want to write; instead, follow the words as they come from within you. Don’t censor, second-guess, or hesitate. Just open your mind so that it can make connections that you might not consciously see.

One way of “turning off your inner critic” is to set an intention before you sit down to write. Take a few deep breaths and gently tell yourself that you’re open to whatever it is that your mind is about to do. Consciously allow your subconscious to take over. Intend to follow where the muse leads—even if what you end up with is messy, garbled, clumsy, and unfocused. Embrace that lack of control as part of the process.

2. After you’ve done the brainstorming portion of your poem-writing, put it all down for a while. Don’t rush yourself into creating a masterpiece. Like good food, good writing takes time. When your poem sits quietly for a while, the various flavors of it will mingle and recombine in new ways. You open your poem up to new levels when you leave it alone for a while.

(However, if you’re worried that you’ll lose the “fire” behind your poem, start the revisions right away. You can always put down the revised poem for a while and come back to it later on.)

3. Finally, after you’ve taken the time you need to get a little perspective on your own writing, go back to your poem with your “editing hat” on. Because the creative act is generative and the act of editing is critical, it can help to break those two processes apart and tackle them one at a time. Edit carefully and without judging your own creativity. When critiquing your own writing, always strive to be the generous and sensitive editor that you would be for someone else.

Sometimes writing better poems isn’t a matter of learning more technique or doing more thinking. It’s a matter of NOT thinking. Dig deep to let your subconscious do some writing, and your poetry will grow.

Writer’s Relief helps poets place their poems in literary magazines and journals. For more information on how Writer’s Relief can help you, visit www.WritersRelief.com.

What is an appositive?

An appositive is a noun (or noun phrase) that provides information about another noun.

Appositive:

The man of the hour, Mr. Shoemaker, took his place at the podium.

At the end of the aisle I saw my mother, Ruth, coming toward me.

Appositive Phrases:

A big fan of country music, Sarah was excited to go to the Taylor Swift concert with her friends.

Martha, a gifted artist as well as a patron of the arts, pledged her support of the new gallery.

Her father’s underlying goal, to prevent his daughter’s marriage, was behind his decision to expose the family’s secret.

What is the proper way to punctuate appositives?

The general rule for punctuating appositives and appositive phrases is simple.

If the information is essential to the meaning of the sentence, do not use commas to set it apart:

            In my apartment complex, my neighbor Sam is the most quiet.

For this example, “Sam” is essential to the meaning of the sentence. There are presumably other neighbors, and only one of them is the most quiet.

If the appositive provides extra (nonessential) information, use commas to punctuate it:

In my apartment complex, the landlord, Robby, keeps things neat, tidy, and under control.

For this example, there is only one landlord, and his actual name is nonessential.

One more example of appositives and their proper punctuation:

Mark’s wife, Christine, and his brother Kurt were the only members of his family to show up at graduation ceremony.

From this sentence we learn that Mark has more than one brother, making identifying the brother by name a necessity, and only one wife—we hope—whose name is nonessential and therefore set off by commas. (Don’t tell his wife.)

Below you'll find a number of lateral thinking puzzles to help you think outside the box in writing and in life. These puzzles came to us as part of an e-mail forward, and though we've done our research to discover where they came from, they seem to be unattributed.

Good luck and enjoy!
 
      man 
1. ----------
      board

      stand
2. ------------
          i

3. /r/e/a/d/i/n/g/

4.     r 
     road 
       a
       d

5.  cycle 
     cycle 
     cycle

    0 
6.  -----
    M.D.
    Ph.D.

    knee 
7. light

    ground 
8.  ------------
    feet feet feet feet feet feet

9. he's X himself

10. ecnalg

11. death ..... life
 
12. THINK

13. ababaaabbbbaaaabbbb ababaabbaaabbbb

Answers:

1) man overboard
2) I understand
3) reading between the lines
4) cross road 
5) tricycle
6) two degrees below zero
7) neon light (knee - on - light)
8) six feet underground
9) he's by himself
10) backward glance
11) life after death
12) think big
13) long time no 'C'

REMEMBER TO CHECK OUT OUR LIST OF WRITING CONTESTS and ANTHOLOGIES! You won’t find a better list anywhere (AND IT’S FREE!) of upcoming anthologies, special-themed journals, and contests. Find it by visiting:
http://www.writersreliefblog.com/post/Anthologies-Contests.aspx