Switching Genres

There’s always a lot of talk, especially among unpublished authors, about switching genres. Many of you are writing in multiple genres and want to continue doing so after you are published. Which inspired this question . . .

Is switching genres with each book a bad thing?

I currently have a Fantasy book finished (final re-editing, working on query perfection, etc.), but I started writing a chick-lit in the first half of the year. I also have some good ideas penned down for a sci-fi and a crime thriller. So, based on your post, should I be focusing on just one genre or continue with my whole "branch out and conquer the world" process? I am not working on all of these things at the same time, but still keeping the ideas for the future.

To some degree, yes, I think it’s a bad thing. Remember, once you decide to get published you are building a writing career and not just writing anymore, which means your goal is to find an audience. While you might find it fun to switch things up from book to book, most readers are fairly loyal to what they read. In other words, few fantasy readers will happily jump to chick lit with enthusiasm. Let’s face it, most readers read within a few specific genres. If your fantasy readers love your first book and look for your second, they might be very disappointed to discover how different it is. Most important, it might turn them off from picking up your third.

Most publishers want you publishing at least 9 months apart, so if you can have two different names and publish each name 9 months apart (writing a book every 4 to 5 months), then you can easily write in two genres. If, however, it takes you 9 months to write a book, you might want to stick with one genre, at least until you’re established.

As for writing prior to publication, I think it’s great to write in various genres and explore your strengths.

Jessica

Author Speed Date

The idea of speed dating is that you get 10 minutes to sit down with a prospective date and get to know them. In that spirit, we present Author Speed Date. A quick 10 minutes for you to get to know some of our clients. Today we'd like you to meet Elizabeth Lynn Casey.

BookEnds Author Speed Date

Name (the one you’re published under): Elizabeth Lynn Casey

Speed date Bio (one or two lines): Elizabeth Lynn Casey is the author of the Southern Sewing Circle Mystery Series with Berkley Prime Crime.

Web Link: www.elizabethlynncasey.com

Next Book, pub date: Deadly Notions, April 2011

Agent: Jessica Faust

About Me

Real Name or Pseudonym: Actually, Elizabeth Lynn Casey is a pseudonym for mystery-writing me. I also write under Laura Bradford (real name) for romance.

Currently Reading: Summer Hideaway by Susan Wiggs

Next on Your Reading List: While I have a sky-high pile next to my bed, I’m eyeballing the calendar for Emily Giffin’s next release date (LOVE her).

Facebook or Twitter (include account name): Both. I have a fan page on Facebook (Elizabeth Lynn Casey) and I tweet under ElizabethLCasey.

Three authors living or dead you would want to have dinner with: Laura Ingalls Wilder, Mary Higgins Clark, Emily Giffin

Jet-setter or armchair traveler: Jet-setter (although my “jet-setting” hasn’t taken me out of the country yet—one day).

Glass ½ full or ½ empty: ½ full. It’s either that or never leave my bed.

Tea or Coffee: Um, can I request a third choice? Hot chocolate, perhaps?

Live to write or Write to live: Live to write and, as a result, I write to live.

About My Writing

When (time of day) I write: Morning.

Writing soundtrack: These days? Silence.

Character Inspirations: The voices in my head decide.

Plot Inspirations: The quick little newsbites on the radio.

Setting Inspirations: Places I’ve been, even if briefly.

Plotter (carefully plot books) or Pantser (write from the seat of my pants): Primarily a Pantser.

Working with an Editor

I am currently working on my first erotic novel (first novel of any kind). I have a question regarding an editor. Once I have finished it is it truly necessary to find an editor? If so, should I be specific in finding someone who deals in erotic editing? If so, any suggestions as to a good editor? I live in Australia, but editor anywhere is no problem.

It’s never “required” to get an editor, unless you feel that your work needs a good edit. There are a number of ways you can have your book edited. You can hire someone, or work with a writing partner or a critique group. If you do choose to hire an editor, I would suggest you find someone knowledgeable in your genre.

I’m not going to give specific editor recommendations, but if any of my readers have any, please feel free to promote them in the comments.

Jessica

Workshop Wednesday

Well we're no Query Shark, but we're going to take a stab at this query workshop thing anyway. So far we've received over 200 entries. We are choosing at random so if you're still interested in participating please read the guidelines in our original post.

Dear Agent,

I toiled endlessly to formulate my "form query letter" before realizing neither my manuscript, nor me as an author, fit any sort of mold. So, it is only fitting that I submit my query in a format as unique as the writing itself.

Do you know what I absolutely hate about this opening? I hate that you say "form query letter" in quotes, as if you are so much better than the other authors who are simply writing to some sort of formula. That kind of thing always sits wrong with me. I've said over and over that there is no formula for queries, there are only guidelines. I think you'll also see through the course of this workshop that the best queries are those with their own voice and can be completely different from one another.

Another red flag about this opening statement is the phrase "neither my manuscript, nor me as an author, fit any sort of mold." What that says to me is that you haven't done your research. You've made the assumption that you are so unique that there's nothing else out there like your book, which, frankly, is rarely the case. And if it is the case, then my first question to you is who is your audience? Where are they going to find your book? If it's shelved in the bookstore, which shelf is it going to be on? If an online retailer wants to sell readers on your book, what list are they going to put it on when they email readers with, "Since you bought this you might also be interested in . . ."

Don't try to pitch me on your book by telling me it is so great or so different it doesn't fit anywhere. That leads me to believe there is nowhere for me to sell it. It also makes me think you just don't know your market.

KATE

My name is Kate Windsor. I've been a vampire for a hundred years. And like countless others before me, I have fallen for my prey. Little did I know that he was infinitely more rare than even I, and posed more of a danger to me than either of us could have ever imagined.


The irony of this first line is that it doesn't at all match your opening paragraph. In other words, it really doesn't sound like something that doesn't fit any sort of mold. It sounds like a fairly typical vampire book. Keep in mind that's not necessarily a bad thing, unless you open your query by implying that your book is revolutionary.


I thought that my biggest problem was deciding whether or not to Turn him. I was wrong.

To complicate matters further, my powers - inevitable but unwanted - decide to show up at the worst time. They're volatile and unpredictable. But if I don't get a handle on them, they could kill me. Not something an immortal typically worries about.

It takes a lot to unnerve a vampire. I've survived tragedy, witnessed the horrific, seen the impossible. But nothing could've prepared me for Lucas Wilde. Nothing.


You hint at a lot in these opening paragraphs, but I have a feeling the really fun and different things about your book are what's missing. I don't mind telling the story from the character's point of view in a query. I think this can work, as long as I am getting an idea of what the real hook of your query is.

LUCAS

My name is Lucas Wilde. A simple guy from Wyoming. I came to Hidden Pines to escape the misery of a recent family tragedy. And I found my literal light in the darkness: Kate. She was sexy, smart, beautiful. Oh, and did I forget to mention, a vampire?

But not just any vampire. Her father - ahem, Maker - is, for all intents and purposes, the king of every vampire in the country. He is none too pleased about me. Not that I blame him. Parents are always trying to get their kids to stop playing with their food.

But you know what? That's not even the HALF of it.

Because not only is the world I believed in nothing like I thought it was . . . neither am I.


I think there are some things here, some elements, that might get requests for you. I would be on the fence. Kate's version doesn't sound that different to me, but I sort of like Lucas's voice. I'm intrigued by some of the more humorous things he says, especially about children playing with their food. That made me laugh. The problem is that I don't know anything about your story or the hook of your story. What about this vampire romance makes it different from the dozens out there on the shelves? What makes it stand out?

The overall format of this query could work if you punch it up a little bit more. My gut feeling, though, is that it's an interesting idea, but it's just not there yet. I would probably pass.

The other thing to keep in mind is that you set me up to be really wowed and you didn't follow through. If you're going to open your query by telling me it's so different from anything else out there that it doesn't fit into a mold, then you better deliver and send me a pitch that sounds mind-blowingly different. This doesn't. It sounds like a typical vampire love story.


Complete at 125,000 words, LUST is a dark and romantic fantasy with series potential. It is my debut novel. The manuscript is available upon request.


This works for me and, believe it or not, I'm not at all scared off by the word count, which I bet surprises a lot of my readers.


Thank you for your time and I look forward to speaking with you.




Jessica

An Agent's Edits

I have a question. I submitted my full ms. to an agent approx 3 months ago, who wrote back that she loved it and would like to show it to a colleague of hers. I told her yes, as I was yet to sign with any other agents. Since this time she has spent significant time editing the ms. and we have spoken on the phone a couple of times. About a month into the process I asked her if she was planning to sign me as her client, and she replied that she would like to represent my ms. but she wanted to get the ms. to a point we were both happy with before signing anything.

Is this usual? I can't see that I have anything to lose, since I haven't had any other offers of representation. From her viewpoint though, it seems like an odd move. Technically I could sign with another agent and she will have wasted a lot of time and effort on her edits (I have no intention of doing so, but still). Can you advise the "normal" process of signing a client (if there is such thing as normal)?

I feel like I need to say this a thousand times over. There is no such thing as “normal” in this business. Each agent is an individual and works very differently. Is it possible that an agent will work with an author before signing. Absolutely. The agent will only offer representation on what she feels she can sell, and if she doesn’t feel she can sell this she won’t offer. That being said, she feels there’s real potential here and is seeing if, by working together, it’s something the two of you can make into a salable product.

Yes, technically you could sign with another agent, and I suspect every agent out there has a story of the author who thanked them profusely for their feedback or edits because it helped secure another agent. So unbelievably frustrating when this happens. Which is why we always ask that if an agent helps you out you consider giving her another look.

A lot of this business is based on faith and trust. We don’t always require you to sign something, we just hope and have faith that the work you’re doing will make you realize that she’s the right agent for you.

Jessica

A Reminder to Always Follow Up

When it comes to finding an agent, I think that authors erroneously feel that they have no power, that they need to capitulate to the agent in order to find one. Most dangerous, though, is how authors will feel this even after an offer of representation comes in, a time when you truly do have all the power and need to use every bit of it to make an important career decision.

I’ve often written about the importance of interviewing as many agents as possible when an offer comes in. You never know how an agent will work for you until you’ve had the chance to talk with a number of agents and get a real feel for how you’ll work together. Which is why, when an offer comes in, you should give any agents who interest you the chance to offer.

On December 17, after we had closed for the year, I received an email from an author who wanted to tell me that she had received an offer of representation from another agent. I had not yet responded to her query, and yet she got in touch anyway. It turns out her query had been lost in my crash, but after looking at it I knew it was a book I would have requested. I immediately asked for the manuscript, read, loved, and offered. On December 22, at 10:30 p.m., I signed my last client for 2010.

I think all too often authors feel that an offer should only be shopped to those agents who have requested material. Let me tell you, it should be shopped to anyone who is on your “A” list, unless of course it’s an agent who has already read and rejected the material.

Jessica

Author Speed Date

The idea of speed dating is that you get 10 minutes to sit down with a prospective date and get to know them. In that spirit, we present Author Speed Date. A quick 10 minutes for you to get to know some of our clients. Today we'd like you to meet Kate Douglas.

BookEnds Author Speed Date

Name (the one you’re published under): Kate Douglas

Speed date Bio (one or two lines): It took me twenty years to get published in NY, so I’m having a ball making up for lost time.

Web Link: www.katedouglas.com

Next Book, pub date:
April 2011—StarFire/DemonSlayers mass market series
July 2011—Wolf Tales 12/final book in the series/Aphrodisia trade paperback

Agent: Jessica Faust

About Me

Real Name or Pseudonym: Kate Douglas

Currently Reading: 8 category romances I’m judging for the RITAs (Romance Writers of America published author contest)

Next on Your Reading List: Master of Smoke by Angela Knight

Facebook or Twitter (include account name):
www.facebook.com/katedouglas.authorpage
www.twitter.com/wolftales

Three authors living or dead you would want to have dinner with: Only three? Jayne Ann Krentz, Stella Cameron, Susan Andersen

Jet-setter or armchair traveler: Motorhome camper

Glass ½ full or ½ empty: ALWAYS half full

Tea or Coffee: LOTS of coffee

Live to write or Write to live: At the moment both, but always live to write

About My Writing

When (time of day) I write: All, with occasional breaks—start early, end late, almost every day

Writing soundtrack: None, though sometimes Ancient Visions (native American album)

Character Inspirations: People in general

Plot Inspirations: Life and fantasy

Setting Inspirations: Places we’ve traveled or want to see

Plotter (carefully plot books) or Pantser (write from the seat of my pants): Pantser all the way. I feel trapped by pre-set plots

The Power of Social Networking

There’s always a lot of talk about Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and other social networking sites. We discuss whether you need to join and how to best use them to build an audience for your books. Well, I have a really cool story about the power of social networking.

BookEnds technically closed December 17 for the holidays and for the year, but that doesn’t mean I fully disappear. As I said to one of my authors, I’m really just in hiding. Just to make sure I’m not going to be too overwhelmed when I return, I still check email and answer those I can answer. And, as a frequent social networker, I also tend to stay active on both my Twitter and Facebook accounts.

On December 23, just before I started a day of cooking, I logged on to Facebook and saw this adorable status by Elizabeth Lynn Casey: “I think I'm finally losing it. I just found myself wondering what the ladies of Sweet Briar are doing for this year's Christmas...” My first thought was that’s a good status. That’s something readers will love.

Apparently Elizabeth’s editor saw the same status, and her first thought was that we should all be thinking about those ladies of Sweet Briar. Within hours of posting the status, Elizabeth’s editor called with an offer for a Christmas book about those ladies of Sweet Briar. So between grating potatoes for latkes and melting chocolate for cookies I was interrupting Elizabeth’s Christmas shopping to negotiate with one of the few editors who was actually still in the office.

And who says nothing happens over the holidays?

Jessica

The Old-Fashioned Way

This blog post over the holiday about our own “agent to the stars” Kim Lionetti made me want to write about my own thoughts on things like Christmas cards.

When it comes to certain things I’m a bit of an old-fashioned gal. I believe in the power of the Christmas card. I love getting them and I love sending them. Okay, I love when they’re sent. Like Jeff, it drives me crazy that we’ve become a world of the assembly-line Christmas card. I get that you’re busy. We’re all busy. But if it’s the one time of year when I hear from you, do you think you could pull out a pen and write a simple “Merry Christmas” on my card?

I remember as a kid being in awe of those families that sent out cards signed by everyone. Old and young all signed their own names. Now it seems I’m in awe of anyone who writes a simple message. I miss the days when people took the time to tell a little about themselves and their year or to just connect on a personal level. Does that mean I’d rather have either a hand-written card or no card at all? No, but I will admit to feeling a little more special when I get a note.

Want to know what other things I do the old-fashioned way? I write and mail thank-you notes, with stamps. I always make a phone call to offer representation, and I send birthday cards, in the mail, with a stamp, to all friends and family.

That’s just me. An old-fashioned girl.

Jessica

Query Workshop

I've had numerous requests for another query contest, something we haven't done in quite a long time. Since these contests typically take time and a lot of work on our part, I've been trying to come up with a way to host them that gives you the guidance you seek without creating too much more work for us.

So here's how it works:

1. Each week (as long as we have time that week) we will post a fully critiqued query on our blog.

2. Queries will be picked at random from those submitted to us on the blog (address below). We will pick those that are good, bad, and ugly to give you an idea not only of what an agent's in-box looks like, but also to really help you all learn what it takes to write a strong query. If your query isn't picked, don't take it personally. We simply ran out of time.

3. No queries submitted to the workshop will be considered queries submitted for consideration. In other words, if you want to query BookEnds, follow our submission guidelines. If you want your query workshopped, follow the workshop guidelines. If you want to submit to both, go right ahead.

4. All authors submitting their query to the query workshop are giving BookEnds permission to post the query, in its entirety, to our blog for critique. We will delete all personal information (name and contact information) if you haven't already.

5. To be considered for the workshop, you should email your query to blog@bookends-inc.com and put "query workshop" in the subject line. All queries submitted to that address without that subject line will be deleted.

Happy workshopping!


Jessica