The New "Who is John Galt?" Eponymously Anonymous J.K. Rowling

© Debra Hurford Brown

"Who is John Galt?" was the cryptic question written on walls in Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged.

Galt in Rand's novel is a creative and highly independent individual who becomes the ideological center of the novel's theme of self-sufficiency and freedom. Throughout the novel the question is asked, building to the climax of the novel.

Perhaps J.K. Rowling's name will come to represent that for independent publishers. With her publishing of The Cuckoo's Calling under a pseudonym and subsequent "outing," her novel has shot from relative obscurity to super-fame. Has Rowling betrayed women? Is Rowling's experience in any way instructional for the struggling and obscure writer? Was the project a marketing ploy or really an attempt by Rowling for a brief time of liberating obscurity?

Writers' website and blog Indies Unlimited posted a wryly humorous and timely article entitled "Chris James: I admit J.K. Rowling wrote my books." Later in the article is the revelation that Stephen King has fessed up that he actually is J.K. Rowling. So , let's see . . . that means that actually Stephen King wrote Chris James' books!

This should be the clarion call for all independent, self-publishing authors. We are undiscovered J.K. Rowlings. We are all graduates of Hogwarts and are never muggles. We all have a lightning scar/tattoo. Agent Tom Riddle just turned down our manuscript. We write our interrogatory manifesto on subway walls.

"J.K. Rowling wrote my books."
"I am J.K. Rowling."

Here are some suggestions to pump ourselves up with ink rather than accidie.

• All "About" pages on our webs should include one of the above two quotations. Oh, WTF, use both!
• Dedications for our books should be to J.K., including one of the above quotations.
• Book signings should mention one of the above.
• We should add J.K. to our business checking accounts (any maybe she will add us to hers).
• Photoshopping J.K. and us together should be a no-brainer for marketing.
• "Like" J.K.'s Facebook page (I just did) and post on her wall regularly.
• Name-drop J.K. Rowling regularly in your blog posts to increase the hits your page gets.
• But, by all means, persevere as she did, wish for support of nature, and accept your success with as much grace and dignity as she.

We are all of one family, and finally we have discovered that family's common name--Rowling. Maybe my next novel will be Rowling Shrugged.

Copyright 2013 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

Go with the Action Verb: New Year's Resolution

Not the noun resolve or resolution but the verb resolve.

According to Merriam-Webster, the first known use of resolve was in the 14th century, Middle English derived from the Latin word "resolvere to unloose, dissolve, from re- + solvere to loosen, release."

Here are desires, goals, thoughts, dreams--call them what you will--writing action-steps that I resolve for 2011. That's right, I unloose and release them into the world.

• The Stone Dragon: I resolve to rewrite this novel to simplify and clarify its language. This will be the 7th major revision, with a lot of minor diversions, as in "version 2.1 or 4.3." The rewrite will renew the concept for me, allow me to confidently renew my quest for representation, and lead me to the first rewrite of the first draft of Dragons of Blood and Stone.
• Love Ya Like a Sister and Bare Ruined Choirs: Now that I have accepted the proof of LYLAS, my printer Lightning Source will send me books and place the book on the Amazon and Barnes and Noble websites for sale--within a couple of weeks. I resolve to allocate regular time for marketing these books.
• Ebook publication: I resolve to research ebook publication requirements and to publish Love Ya Like a Sister as an electronic book. My first three ebook publishers to research? Lightning Source, Smashwords, and Kindle. LS, since I already am a publisher with them. Smashwords because of the company's universal publishing strategy, and Kindle because Amazon is such a major player.
• Author "Platform": For a little over a year and a half, I have been developing connections with folks who are interested in writing and reading--and a lot of other things: my Facebook writing page and LinkedIn, the most prominent social networks. That's the way it is with social networks and the whole "friends" phenomenon. I resolve to allocate time to keeping connected. For most of 40 years, I wrote and didn't worry too much about publishing. Time to share my words. 

 These writing goals obviously interconnect. My social networking connects with marketing. Ebooks are a quick and less expensive access for readers for recreational reading--and I feel Love Ya Like a Sister fits that category. Literary agents and publishers look to see if an author is connected and can help in promoting a book. And finally, as a creative writer (in the most literal sense of the word), I want to be passionately interested in my current writing project. I want to create.

These goals seem enough, but I haven't even mentioned the goals for my other profession--teaching (the one that, more or less, pays the bills). Nor have I mentioned personal goals for health and happiness--my marriage, my time in the garden, and riding my bicycle.

At least as I move into the new year of 2011, I won't be troubled about having nothing to do!

Copyright 2010 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

Guest Writer: Genevieve Graham-Sawchyn of Writing Wildly! writes about her book deal

 Genevieve Graham-Sawchyn is a Canadian writer I met on the HarperCollins website authonomy.com. Personable, talented, and dynamic, I found her recent blog post inspiring, and she has kindly allow me to reprint it here. And now she had a two-book deal with Berkley Publishers, a division of Penguin Books.

Worth the Wait

I read a neat blog article somewhere today about ... waiting.

It talked about how a writer spends their days ... waiting. They wait for inspiration, they wait for responses from agencies and publishers, they wait for feedback ... from anyone.

All painfully true.

But it's not just writers. It's people in general. We wait for the bus. We wait for the paycheque (or should), then wait in line to spend it. We wait for the kids to finish swimming lessons. Wait wait wait. Glancing at my watch or calendar, tapping my toes, hurrying so I can wait some more.

But waiting, and thinking about waiting is a waste of time. You can't control time. But ... you can take control of your time.

I figure waiting happens when you let it happen. Over the past year I started taking my writing more seriously. And I decided that waiting wasn't going to happen anymore. Or, if I did have to wait, at least I'd do my best to forget about that 'wasted' time. I filled those hours/days/months with improving my craft. I sliced and diced and polished that poor manuscript until it was shiny and new ... to the point where when I click on some sections, I actually don't remember having written them.

Then I sent it out again. I didn't wait for responses, though. They were usually negative, and usually depressing. So many people moan on and on about how it's impossible to get an agent or publisher. And I was tempted to join in the lament. But what's the point of doing that? I knew the book was ready. If an agent thought so too, then great. If not, well, I'd done my best. I wasn't going to wait around, moping. I started writing a new book and got entirely swallowed up by it. I started editing for people, which also helped my own writing. Every moment I could have spent waiting, worrying and moaning was instead spent ... doing.

One day, a miracle happened. An agent actually called, wanting to represent me. We worked together and did more scrubbing and polishing, then he took it out to some editors. I could have waited and worried. But I didn't. Sure, it was in my mind all the time (and I mean all the time), but what was the point in fussing? Instead I wrote, I edited, I filled my time.

And it happened. The first desk on which “Under The Same Sky” landed was that of an Executive Editor of Berkley Publishing in NY, a division of Penguin Books. And she loved it. She wanted it immediately. There were negotiations back and forth, and I admit I did buzz around my phone and email an awful lot over those couple of weeks. But I also wrote, edited, and filled my time.

And when that moment came – that moment when I received the call saying I was now a Berkley author – I realized it was a moment for which I had waited my entire life. And I hadn't even known I'd been waiting for it.

Who ever would have thought I'd be a published author? Not me. I toyed with it in my mind, dreamed impossible dreams. Wouldn't that be fun? Imagine if my book were actually considered good enough for that. How did those authors ever get onto those shelves?

Now, guess what? We all have to wait. “Under The Same Sky” will be out in bookstores between Jan-April 2012, and six months later it will be joined by its companion novel, “Sound Of The Heart”.

And ... now I have to admit something. I can't wait!

Writing Wildly! blog

Under the Same Sky novel excerpt from authomony.com

Copyright 2010 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved."Worth the Wait" published with permission of the author.

QueryTracker Contest: submitted The Stone Dragon

"Join Our Agent-judged Contest with Literary Agent Kathleen Ortiz of Lowenstein Associates: contest opens June 1st..."
And so I did.

• Agent Kathleen Ortiz of Lowenstein Associates will be judging our next contest.
  
• Opens Tuesday June 1, 2010 at 9:00 PM EST
• Only 100 entries will be accepted
• Genres: Young Adult and Middle Grade only (next month's contest will be adult only.)

To enter the contest:

1. You must have a free QueryTracker membership
2. You must submit a one-sentence pitch (helpful links below) and your first chapter
3. Your submission will be accepted on the submission form (won't be available until the contest opens) 
4. DO NOT EMAIL YOUR SUBMISSION DIRECTLY TO THE AGENT. You will be disqualified if you do.

This contest is not for whiners! It is only open to those who are willing to receive honest feedback. Ms. Ortiz will:

• Treat every entry as a partial submission
• Read every entry TO THE POINT SHE WOULD NORMALLY STOP READING on a partial submission
• She will tell you why she stopped reading
• She will request more of the manuscript only if it is something she would normally request.

I copied to an open file the one-line pitch and the first chapter, removing some formatting features that the submission form probably wouldn't recognize.

I sat before my computer at 7:58 CST, logged on at QueryTracker.

The submission form popped onto the site at 8:00. I entered the data, double-checked, and at 8:02 pressed "submit."

As I saw the "submission accepted" acknowledgment, lightning cracked the sky and thunder shook the window.

"It was a dark and stormy night..."

Copyright 2010 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

Information regarding the contest from QueryTracker.net

Self-publishing: trends for authors, agents, online sites, and traditional publishers (Edgar Wideman, QueryTracker, authonomy, and Lulu and Amazon)

• Traditional publisher HarperCollins has established an internet site for writers called authonomy, where writers can post novels or portions of novels.  The best are reviewed by editors. I have posted my fantasy novel The Stone Dragon on this site.
• Online writer site QueryTracker, in cooperation with various literary agents, hosts contests for its writers to submit their killer queries, short pitches, or first five pages. Winners get the option to connect with a literary agent.
• Award-winning author of more than twenty fiction and non-fiction works, Edgar Wiseman has self-published his collection of flash fiction, Briefs, through Lulu (with heavy recognition and acknowledgment by that publisher). 
• Amazon hosts the Breakthrough novels contest for unpublished and self-published novels. (Create Space, another self-publishing enterprise, is owned by Amazon.com.) My fellow writer Carol Buchanan (with her self-published novel God's Thunderbolt) is a semi-finalist in this contest.

In an earlier post, I discussed how some traditional publishers are now adopting a self-publishing opportunity for authors. Modern technology, both for creating a sales base through social networking and for easy-inexpensive yet high-quality book printing, has created many new and viable options for the writer, the publisher, and the reader.

How will all this shake out? Care for a prediction or two? 

1. I believe traditional authors will gain the ability to self-publish when the book is out of print--or, at the least, will publish with the agreement that the book will be available on Print on Demand after the initial sales die down. This will allow the author to continue to sell books (even in a diminished number) after the book is out of print. Otherwise, it is the used book sellers that receives the profit.
2. I believe more first-time authors will self-publish, and online contests and competitive/cooperative sites will allow the "gate-keeping" process to separate the well-written from the rest. This will create the opportunity for agents and traditional publishers to "discover" talent, for writers to present their work and achieve recognition that can be used for promotion, and for readers to feel more confident that a self-published book is well-written.

I'm sure the process of establishing the means to accomplish these goals will be a joy to behold and a sometimes-terror to endure. It's wonderful to live in exciting times.

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

Traditional Publishers Adopt Self-publishing

In an interesting turn of events, traditional publishers have opened self-publishing divisions: Harlequin has Dellarte and Thomas Nelson has WestBow Press. Harlequin publishes in the romance genre, and Thomas Nelson publishes Christian books. Basic self-publishing for the former is around $600 and around $1,000 for the latter. This decision has caused a stir because these publishers under the new imprints have moved to publishing books for whomever pays the price, rather than as publishers paying writers for books to print and distribute for profit.

There are other possibilities a traditional publishing house could choose. Perhaps something between a publisher choosing to publish a novel or allowing any author to self-publish under its imprint could be possible. A publisher could allow self-publishing under its imprint yet still allow for editorial discretion for who can publish.

A similar situation is already in place with some publishers. Some publishing houses have contests, the winner being published by the house. The writer pays to submit. The publisher makes money and still gets to choose a novel it considers excellent. This isn't much different than self-publishing under a publisher's imprint. Both types of publishers make money by having writers pay rather than the reader.

Publishing houses already establish their reputations (and the house's imprint) on their ability to choose excellent novels. In the future, this may extend to their ability to choose excellent novels of writers who choose (and they allow) to self-publish under their imprint.

Publishing houses would continue to provide credibility and, perhaps, even extend some press for self-published books considered excellent.

Writing associations (and readers) would like some kind of gate-keeping mechanism to sort out the good self-published novels from the bad. Perhaps established traditional publishers moving into sponsoring self-published novels under their imprints will be the answer. Perhaps more will enter the market and begin to compete, lowering the price for publishing a novel with their publishing house name. In the meantime, these new situations stir the publishing world and create interesting reading for both published and unpublished writers.

Note: This post was motivated by 2009 Silver Spur Award winner Carol Buchanan's blog post entitled "Publishers' Shape-shifting" (Dec. 7, 2009). Author of God's Thunderbolt, a self-published novel, Buchanan in her post focuses primarily on the reaction of writer associations to the move by traditional publishers to allow writers to self-publish within their publishing houses. As an award-winning, self-published author, Buchanan's observations are worth reading. http://www.swanrange.blogspot.com/

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

The Writing Life: Agent Request a Full Manuscript

Saturday morning when I checked my emails, I found a request from an agent to look at the full manuscript of The Stone Dragon.

The agent referred my query to an assistant, who has requested the manuscript to look over. The original agent "discovered Tom Clancy" (direct quotation from website), is an agent for Deepak Chopra, the estates of Frank Herbert (Dune series) and Isaac Asimov, and lists The Vatican as a former client, among many other writers.

What a hoot!

Of course, I researched again this agency before submitting my manuscript. The two sites most useful were QueryTracker.com and The Absolute Writer Water Cooler writers' forum. According to these sites, to be picked up by this agency is the equivalent of hitting a homerun at your first Major League rookie at bat.

All that is being asked at this point, though, is for an assistant editor to look at my manuscript. That assistant can say thumbs up or down. I prefer this, though, to the form rejection that states: "Your book does not meet our agency's needs. We wish you the best of luck placing it elsewhere."

There was some discussion in my research that the agent and agency were "too commercial." However, as far as I'm concerned, I want my agent to be wearing a blue pin-striped suit and be willing to stand on a soapbox on a crowded street an declaim my writing prowess.

Part of that "commercial" approach (and a close connection with the cinema industry, according to some) is that I have to sign a release form, stating that the work is mine, that the agency assumes no obligations by reading the piece, and that I can't get ticked off and sue them. Such a form, evidently, is common in the film industry but not common in the book industry. With this agency, it is standard policy, using a standard release form. Something new to learn!

Wish me luck! I submit, wait, and get on with my life during the waiting.

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

The Writing Life: Entering a Contest

It's 8:08 PM, Tuesday evening, and I've just entered a contest sponsored by QueryTracker.com. They have arranged for a literary agent from Curtis Brown Literary Agency to read the first seventy submissions of a young adult novel.

I entered Love Ya Like a Sister: the first five pages of the novel and a one-page synopsis, as requested. The on-line submission was only through QueryTracker and will be read by Anna Webman.

It was interesting entering the contest. QueryTracker announced several days in advance the rules of the contest. The time to submit was 8:00 PM CST, and the first seventy submissions would be considered.

I was on-line prior to the opening of the contest, my first five pages ready for the copy-and-paste. My one-page synopsis that I had polished over the weekend was also opened and ready for the moment. I was as twitchy as my son halfway through a Halo session.

The contest submission form was posted, and I went for it! Title...Word Count...My Name...Sub-genre.... Sub-genre? A quick, frantic on-line search, and I typed in "realistic" rather than "growing up." Then Email...First Five Pages...Synopsis.... Done!

Wish me luck! I've been shopping my fantasy novel The Stone Dragon, but this seemed fun and easy. And I now have a new, improved one-page synopsis for Love Ya Like a Sister. Yeah!

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

My Writing Life: play the next song, dance the next dance

"Thanks for sending along the opening pages of The Stone Dragon. Truth be told, though, I'm afraid these pages just didn't draw me in as much as I had hoped. I'm pressed for time these days and, what with my reservations about the project, I suspect I wouldn't be the best fit. Thanks so much for contacting me, though, and for giving me this opportunity. It's much appreciated, and I'm sorry to be passing. I wish you the very best of luck in your search for representation."

I knew all along, of course, that another rejection letter was possible. Until the book is actually in hand, at any stage prior to its publication, the deal can fall through. Still....

"I think I can.... I think I can...." Meanwhile, I'll continue working on my next book and researching more agents to query. I know I can do that.

The above words ended my last post. They are my plan, actually. So what did I do?

• I replied to the agent with a 100-word query + five pages of Love Ya Like a Sister, since she also represents young adult novels.
  
• I pulled a slip of paper with the names of two agents I had researched from my bulletin board. I emailed the agents query letters.
• I read through my poetry book manuscript of Bare Ruined Choirs, adding three poems and minimally revising others (changing with to within).
• I began work on the blurb for the back cover of Bare Ruined Choirs.
  
• I researched another agent for next Friday.
• I went outside and enjoyed a day in the garden with my wife.
  

Bliss arises from within ourselves. We provide the attachment, for better or worse. I'm not sure what "follow your bliss" means, but at least I am following my own agenda. I think that's for the better.

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

My Writing Life: angels dancing on the head of a pin

"Thanks for your query. Mind sending along the first five pages of your manuscript in the body of an e-mail? I'd be happy to take a look and let you know whether the style is the best fit for me."

Can you see the angels dancing? In the last three weeks, I have sent out nine query letters to literary agents, asking them to represent me and my novel The Stone Dragon. The result? Four "no thanks" (the quickest "no" response in thirteen hours), four not yet responding (if ever), and this morning a short request for additional material.

Remember when I said in an earlier post of "My Writing Life" that seeking publication is a pass/fail proposition? I've just received the following message from a New York literary agent: "I'd be happy to take a second look--no promises," and I'm thrilled. No form rejection letter!

Wish me luck! "I think I can.... I think I can...." Meanwhile, I'll continue working on my next book and researching more agents to query.

I know I can do that.

Copyright 2009 Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

My Writing Life: The Curious Rejection of Tom Kepler’s Query Letter

“I am intrigued by your novel synopsis and I look forward to reading it.”

Thus spake the acquisitions editor of the independent publishing company Turner Publishing. Based on the positive response (as opposed to sending a “cold” query based on internet research), I had sent on July 22 my query letter the publishing company, seeking publication of my fantasy novel, The Stone Dragon.

About three weeks later, I received the following reply: “Thanks for sending us the info on your book. We have reviewed it and it isn't a project we are ready to move forward with. It isn't necessarily a reflection of the work and we do really appreciate your taking the time to send it.”

On the pass/fail scale, my novel was politely failed. Looking at the novels currently in print by the company, my novel would have been a step in a new direction, and , for whatever reason, the company decided in the negative.

The acquisitions editor at least contacted me with a polite comment—and did send information that could be helpful, a website containing information on other publishers. This is not common, and I am grateful.

What now?

I have just sent out four more query letters to literary agents. They are called “multiple submissions.” Through networking, I have been fortunate to be able to gain the endorsement of an author who has published novels and received awards, so I was able to include a short quotation praising my work from this author.

The organization of my query now includes the following:

• Hook: including “Dream magic is the most dangerous of magics because it is so difficult to control….”

• Author Reference: "…The Stone Dragon pulls the reader in right from the start.”

• Direct quotation from the novel: “Like the tightening coils of a constricting serpent, an awful knowingness encircled Glimmer….”

• Information about the novel: “I have written a 97,000-word "consciousness-based" fantasy novel, The Stone Dragon….”

• Information about the author: “I am a career English teacher and also teacher of the Transcendental Meditation Program….”

• Closing: “Would you like to see The Stone Dragon manuscript?”

I now plan to research literary agencies and independent publishers and continue sending out a couple of queries a week. I also intend to ask through my LinkedIn connection whether or not it is acceptable to submit two queries to a single agency: a young adult novel query to one agent and a fantasy novel query to another. I have a feeling probably not….

Wish me luck!

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

My Writing Life: grading on a pass/fail scale

What is the difference between publishing writing out in the world and writing for the classroom? In the classroom, it is possible to earn a "C" grade: yeah, the writing was okay; it got the basic message across. In the world of publishing, the grade is "Pass" or "Fail." Your writing either is printed or it isn't.

Now that I have completed a sixth draft of The Stone Dragon, I have to start sending it around to publishers and agents. It is an extremely competitive world out there in publishing. Let me give you some examples.

Through the professional network LinkedIn, I recently made contact with the acquisitions agent for a small press. Through the network's email system, I sent an email to the acquisitions agent in order to clarify submission procedures.

The email included a two-sentence introduction to my novel: I have written a fantasy novel called The Stone Dragon and the rough draft of the sequel, part of a series of what I call "consciousness-based fantasy." One-line pitch: Dream magic is the most dangerous of magics because it is so difficult to control.

The response back from the acquisitions editor included the one-sentence response to my pitch: I am intrigued by your novel synopsis and I look forward to reading it.

This level of interaction is highly unusual. In fact, on its webpage, this company states they "receive a large number of submissions" and that the company "is under no obligation to provide any communication related to the status of a submission." Many agents even go so far as to state that if they don't like your book proposal, they won't even bother sending an email rejecting it.

I submitted my query letter--a book pitch, basically, to the acquisitions editor, and then realized that by the time she reads the query, she may have forgotten our email interchange, even though the query makes a brief mention of the exchange of letters. I sent another brief note through the LinkedIn email system letting her know that I had submitted.

Her response was the following: Thanks for the note. I definitely have a full inbox at this point, but I am going through and logging them all and I will get back with you as soon as I can.

Again, a response is highly unusual!!

I have also been communicating with an author of four young adult novels. He is now trying to publish a fifth novel and wrote me the following: "I'm finally finding out just how hard it is to market a book. We nearly had a contract twice with Simon & Schuster, and both times it fell through."

My plan now is to submit 2-3 query letters per week to agents and small, independent publishers. (Most large publishers require an author to have an agent.) These submissions are called "simultaneous submissions."

I recently submitted four poems to a college university literary magazine, called a "little magazine" because usually five hundred to maybe a thousand copies are the maximum distributed. I mailed the poems along with a cover letter and a self-addressed, stamped return envelope. Now I will wait maybe three months for a response. And if I'm published, I will be paid with a free copy of the magazine that includes my writing ("pays in contributor copies").

My job this next school year is to regularly submit queries and to get on with my next writing assignment. Pass/fail...and wait by the mail.... I have read that to keep writing is good for the nerves. And that I shouldn't give up my day job!

Copyright 2009 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved