Tired in a good way

Writer guy

I spent the day revising the synopsis for the Ridge Runner. There was a rough draft rusting away on my PC, but it was time for a high gloss finish.

A synopsis demonstrates to an agent or an editor that there is a logical plot to the novel. Typically, they are 250-500 words in length. Since it’s difficult to reduce a year’s worth of work to a single page on demand, most editors advise having a pitch worthy synopsis before writing the novel. Great advice, but difficult to implement in practice.

So here’s what I learned today…
1) The query letter shows you can write
2) The synopsis shows you have a story
3) The chapters shows you can deliver the story

Note the order of the items. The query letter gets the agent’s attention. But before the agent dives into the chapters, they have a clear synopsis in hand. Why? Because anything else wastes their time. Reading 50 pages of double spaced 12 point Courier takes roughly 30 minutes. Even if the agent devotes 1 day to reading chapters, they could consider a maximum of 15-20 prospects a week. But with a synopsis, they can evaluate a project in under 2 minutes and then allocate time to read the chapters that pique their interest.

Those were the days

Writer guy

A former colleague got me thinking about this client we used to service. While staffed with the nicest people in the world, this company also held the record for the most ridiculous expectations.

Here’s a sample:

Client: The application can start my car right?
sam: Tragically, no.
Client: Surely this can be implemented.
sam: Never. That’s just not possible. Not an option.
Client: So how long will it take you to make that work?

And another:

Client: Can we have electronic fulfillment for our hardware orders?
sam: Right after I fix the glitches in the teleporter.
Client: I knew the application could start my car!

Ah, those were the days. They started off with Pepto-Bismol and ended with many Newcastles.

Another kick in the teeth

Writer guy

OK, enough entries from the Writing category. In my defense, I plead query mode and that my head is sort of someplace else. Enough of that already.

Let’s kick out the funnies. 4 years ago I woke up at 2am with blood all over my pillow. Gee, that’s not very funny is it? Anyway, the emergency room doctors diagnosed this as a severe middle ear infection and referred me to a specialist.

Enter the insurance company swine who deemed this emergency room visit unnecessary and refused to pay. When blood gushes from your ear at 2am, is it really necessary to consult with your primary care provider first? My first thought was no, so I appealed the decision.

Not to be neglected, the hospital threatened to take me to collections for the cost of the visit. I ate the charges, paid up and moved on.

For 3 years and 11 months nothing more was said about this matter. 2 weeks ago a notice arrived from the insurance company swine. At last the visit to the emergency room was covered! Since they owed me money, they sent the check for the disputed amount to the hospital.

See, life is a highway. And sometimes you’re in a bumper car.

Now this is living

Writer guy

8 pages in one day! Some days the words just fall out, others require a drill bit and a hacksaw. Fortunately, today was the former.

Still in a holding pattern on the most recent round of querying. As I’m working through my list of agents, every month a few more pop up on my radar screen. And that’s a good thing.

An obstacle I’m learning to navigate is the literary agent assistant. Many agents have them, and they are the first line of defense between a writer and the prospective agent.

I was rejected by one agent a few months back, so I tried a different person at the same agency. Being that it was a large shop it seemed reasonable. Lo and behold, the reply came back from the same agent who rejected me before. It turned out that this former agent was now an assistant to 2 agents at the same house. Talk about preaching to the choir!