posted by Sun T. on Oct 6
i am still trying to write my biography. i began yet another version of it the other day. i dont know if i will ever get this story down on paper. it’s so mind boggling. i am trying to get all my facts to go into chronological order, but then i am also trying to get all the details straight. GAH who knew it would be this hard? maybe i should just write it like a journal…actual pages from my journals…and then ramp it up. it sounds good in theory anyway.
posted by Sun T. on Jul 17
HOW LONG SHOULD MY MANUSCRIPT BE AND HOW DO I CALCULATE LENGTH?
General Guidelines for Length
The length of a novel, an editor once said, is like a woman’s skirt. It should be short enough to be interesting, and long enough to cover the subject.
Each publishing company has its own length requirements. The category into which your manuscript fits can influence length requirements. The safest way to determine length is to ask for the guidelines of a publisher you have in mind. A 400,000-word manuscript is likely to be rejected on the basis of length. So too would a 20,000-word manuscript presented as a novel. Though there is some flexibility among editors and agents about length, be sure your work fits the generally accepted ranges for your selected category.
· Fiction Work: Minimum of 80,000, maximum of 120,000 words. Any work of adult fiction shorter than this-sometimes called a “novella”-is extremely difficult to sell. “Category” fiction can sometimes be as short at 60,000 words. Category fiction, sometimes called
“series” fiction, is a line of titles, usually released in a series of four to six titles per month. All of the books in a given “line” or series have the same number of pages and the same approximate word length. Category books, such as category romance, typically range between 50,000 and 100,000 words. Each book in the series has a similiar look and feel. A category book also meets certain specific reader expectations. Leslie Wainger, executive editor at Harlequin/Silhouette, defines category fiction, in her book Writing a Romance Novel for Dummies, as having “a strongly defined editorial personality, shared by all the books in the series.” Each category novel has a specific focus, length requirements, characteristics and expectations for the outcome of the story. Mainstream or single-title fiction gives the author more flexibility in storylines and lengths. Single-title projects are marketed as individual titles, so they don’t have to meet rigid editorial requirements or fit a particular look and feel.
Children’s: Length requirements vary widely—from 350 words to 40,000 words—depending on the age group for which you are writing. Carefully research the requirements for the specific publisher you are targeting.
Chrisy Long
Editorial/Administrative Staff
Phone: 972-650-1986
Fax: 972 650-1622
E-mail: admin
@authorlink.com
Divisions: Authorlink Press, Authorlink Literary Group
Join Authrolink for as little as $7 per month. Click JOIN at www.authorlink.com
posted by Sun T. on Jul 11
quoted in entirety from http://authorlink.mindsay.com
How Do I Prepare My Manuscript?
Appearance
One of the most important elements that will help sell your work to an editor or agent is appearance. Many writers overlook the importance of producing crisp, clean error-free pages, with adequate margins and line spacing. When a manuscript arrives in an editor’s office in poor condition or containing misspelled words, the first impression one leaves is that he or she isn’t serious about the work. Manuscript preparation should be high priority, second only to crafting your story. This does not mean you need to “typeset” your work. In fact, fancy fonts and attempts to “design” the work will assure a quick rejections letter. Simply be sure that your manuscript has a professional appearance.
Format for Text Pages
+ Margins, top and bottom of each page: 1”
+ Margins, left and right of each page: 1”
+ Header and Footer: 0.5 “each
+ Font (typ
e) Times New Roman or Courier
+ Font (type) Size: 12 point (not 10 point)
+ Line Spacing: Always double space the work itself; proposals and queries can be single spaced.
I hope this helps!
Chrisy Long
Editorial Assistant/Administrative Staff
Authorlink.com
posted by Sun T. on May 29
go to The MT 1
also hit up my Associated Content
posted by Sun T. on Apr 24
My friends are the best and they have allowed me to reach my $50 goal so I applied last night to the college. I have a mere day or two to wait for approval…
:::In other news:::
My mind has been writing stories without my approval. Reading Margaret George in her perfection has allowed the wellspring of my literary fountain to reopen. I hadn’t been able to write a flowing paragraph in such a long time, I forgot how to do so. I am happy that Brenna allowed me the privilege of sharing in this author’s history. With Margaret George flashing before my eyes and Fiona Apple seeping into my ears, I do believe that I will finally be able to finish my own biography, and maybe get some more art from the tomb of my mind.
Eloquent ecstasy is what I long to become. I have been struggling with writing for quite some time. I have not had the energy nor passion to devote to such a daunting duty. I refuse to write prose dribble. I cannot say that I am the most fluid writer, but I know that I can do better than the staccato thoughts and vanishing dreams that I have been used to sputtering from the end of my pen onto an overly wor
thy piece of paper. I can see that page now, cringing at the bulk of what was violating its face.
I pray that is now remedied and I will have some lucid thought with meaning being poured out onto a forgiving canvas.
xposted to my mindsay
posted by Sun T. on Feb 9
Blue eyes
frozen lightning.
chilling the soul.
beckoning me,
run.
posted by Sun T. on Jan 28
another day spent
another pocket bent
another life made
another track laid
another time out
another random shout
another capped song
another legend gone
another ripped assunder
another going under
….Off the top of my head….
opened a blog, shutting one down… C me
daddy plays tonight. pls touch museum exhibit 2moro. gma is ok. saw an old friend (bro. baldwin). hung out with gina. told a story. laughed. heard a story. cried. cryptic messages left in the breeze of eternity….
feeling somewhat cruddy, and happy, and sad, and frustrated, and jovial, and betrayed, and hungry.
posted by Sun T. on May 6
Writing Kills
from
a lot of us are in biiiig trouble.
not much else right now. i will update more later 
