Writing Tips: TIP Sheet

Hey all!

As promised, this week we will be talking about the TIP (Title Information Page) sheet. So, here we go.

TOPIC: TIP Sheet

So what is a TIP, you ask? It is a very handy form an agent may send along to editors with your manuscript. The TIP or Title Information Page gives editors a plethora of information about you and your book. Now, not all agents will have you do this but those that do are doing the editors a real favor. So we'll break down the TIP into its basic components.

The first block contatins the TITLE, Author Name, Reading Line, Age Level/Grade Level, Specs, Subject/BISAC, Agent contact information and author websites/blogs/etc. Most of this information is pretty self explanatory. Title and author name are a snap. You don't have to fill in the agent information either. The Age/Grade level information is generally for children's novels (at least it is for my agent's form). Specs are projected page length and format. The Subject/BISAC relates to the keywords that will be associated with your book. Finally the reading line is a one line phrase that also conveys the essence of your book. Think of it like a movie tagline.

The next section the author needs to consider is the Handle. This is often referred to as the elevator pitch. It is a one to two sentence hook for your book. Think of it as you have 10 seconds to interest a prospecive editor. What would you want to convey about your book?

The next big section is the Description. Treat this like the body of a query letter. So, (as review) it is written in third person present tense and it about 250 words, maximum. Introduce your main character, their dilemma and what is at stake if they fail to achieve their desired goal.

Next comes the selling points. This is more focused on marketing. What do you beleive sets your book apart from all of the others out there? You can list things such as if it provides a new approach to an old trope or if it's geared towards a specific audience. For instance for my current work in progress, my selling points include the fact that it is geared towards a subset of younger readers and provides a prominent historical figure in a new and interesting light.

AFter the selling points section comes the Author's Bio. This is fairly straightforward. Include information about where you grew up and attended school. Mention what postsecondary degrees you hold and some of your interests. To give the editor some idea of where they might focus local marketing efforts, you can include where your family is located.

The second to last section on a TIP sheet is reserved for the author's prior sales. If you haven't sold anything before, don't sweat it. Your agent will remove it. It's there to demonstrate to editors that if you do have prior sales tht you are worth taking on as a contact.

The final piece of the TIP is the Comparative/Competitive Titles. Admitedly, this is my weak spot. It requires the author to conduct research in the genre to determine what other books they will be competing against. You are also asked to provide comments on why you believe your book is similar or diferent to the titles you choose. It's important that you don't just chooose the latest trendy book. If it is an accurate comparison to your book, then fine. Otherwise, try to avoid the latest best seller. You can get the information you need by going to a library or bookstore such as Borders or Barnes & Noble or by using their online counterparts. You may find something in your search that piques your interest.

So, now that we've taken a quick trip through what the TIP includes and how to go about preparing it, we'll talk briefly about when you should complete the TIP. It really doesn't matter whether you do it before you begin writing, while you're in he process of writing or after the book is finished. It really all depends on how you organize your ideas. If you believe working on parts of the TIP, such as the description and handle, before you write will help you focus your ideas, then go for it. Completing it at these various stages of the writing process each have their own advantages and only you can determine what works best in your situation.

As a little side note, my agent gave me an A+ in my TIP prep for my projects. That makes me smile.

I hope you found this a useful and helpful writing tip. I'll see you next week.

Writing Tips: Organization

Hello all!

I'm back with a new writing tip this week. So let's dive in!

TOPIC: Organization

This may seem like an obvious thing for a writer to have but it's not as easy as one might think. Organization doesn't just apply to making sure you have all the elements in a story in a coherent order. It can apply to the story development phase of the process, which is what we will be talking about today.

As a writer, you no doubt have more than one idea floating around in your noggin. Lord knows, I've got several stories fighting for my attention right now. So how do you keep them straight and make sure you don't go crazy trying to keep them all in line? You commit them to a print media and let them stew for a while.

I have found that keeping an Excel spreadsheet allows me to get down the details of ideas in a smei-coherent form and free up space in my head. I recently decided this would be a good idea to keep my latest shiny new ideas from tangling up with one another.

What I've done is set up mutiple sheets within the larger document, each tab relating to its own idea. Each sheet has the same set up. Title, genre short summary and status columns for drafts. This is an easy way to jot down some basic ideas about a storyline and characters without having to spend arduous hours working through every plot detail. That comes later when you're actually ready to tackle that idea and take it through the whole writing process.

A quick note about titles. They are by no means set in stone (as we talked about before). These should be something that will jog your memory down the road so you don't sit there going "now what was this again?" Even with summaries, you can sometimes forget where you were going with an idea. Having a title helps your brain latch on and recall those initial brain sparks that got you interested in the idea in the first place.

Now, Excel isn't required to keep a list of ideas. A simple Word or Text file would suffice just as well. I tend to be a little anal about my organization and the additional separation of Excel sheets suits me. Regardless of how you decide to keep your ideas organized, it's important that you do so. If not for all the wonderful bits and pieces that you come up with, than for your sanity. After all, no one wants to go crazy with a zillion ideas bouncing around in their head.

I hope this little tip was somewhat helpful. See you next week!

Writing Tips: Agent Search

First I want to wish you all a very Happy Holidays (and to those who celebrate, Merry (belated) Christmas). Well, folks, this is the last post on writing tips. At least for now.

TOPIC: Agent Search

So, now you've gotten your writing schedule down, done your research and outlining. You've written a draft and edited it (by yourself and with the help of beta readers). The last step is to find agents that not only represent the genre of your work but are accepting new material.

There are severa places you can go to find agents that may be interested in representing your work. The first stop I would take is Query Tracker. They're an etensive database of thousands of agents (as well as publishers). All you need is a free acount and you can do everything from browse agents and add them to your watch list to actually tracking your statistics as you wade through the query process.

Another place to check out is Writer Beware. It is a wonderful site with insightful articles on how the publishing process actually works and what agents to stay away from.

Some things to look at when deciding whether an agent is right for you include how recent their sales are, what genres they represent and what other authors you can find that are represented by the agent. A lot of this information is avialable on Query Tracker. Be sure to do you homework before you start the querying process.

I will be back in January with a post on query letter writing. Thanks for joining me!

Writing Tips: Editing

Hey everyone. We're back for some more writing tip fun.

TOPIC: Editing

You may think it's weird to jump from research and outlines to editing but, that middle step is really up to you. Use the strategies we learned in setting goals to get a working first draft.

Once you've got a draft of your work finished, put it aside and don't touch it for a few weeks. Don't look at it, don't even think about it. Putting it away for a couple of weeks gives you the distance you'll need for this step of the process.

After your two weeks is up, grab that draft and go through. Self-editing is pain but it must be done. During this revision, you'll want to get spelling/grammar problems fixxed. See if there are scenes that need to be added or redacted to make the story flow better. Don't rush on this part. Take your time. You don't have to do it all at once. Setting goals for editing is a good way to pace yourself and keep on track.

Edited that baby so it shines, or at least twinkles a little? Good. Find some people who read the genre of your manuscript and have them read and critique it. These wonderful people are often called beta readers. It's up to you how many you have look over your manuscript and what you want them to look for. IMPORTANT!: You may have family and friends who offer to read your work but finding impartial readers will do you a greater service.

Just because your betas aren't people you necessarily know well, doesn't mean you shouldn't get to know them first. Talk a little bit before you entrust your work to them. You will also want to give them a time frame for when you want the work back. This allows them to fit in reading/critiquing into their own schedules.

What do you do while you wait for your work to return from your wonderful crit-folk? Relax for a litlte while. You've made it this far! You can start on a new project if you want to. But be prepared for another round of revisions once you get the manuscript back.

You may be wondering what you do if you get conflicting comments on parts of the book. Always remember that these are not edits you must make (that comes later with your agent). They are suggestions that you should strongly consider. If comments that one of your betas made doesn't sit right with your vision of the story, then you don't have to use it. Once you are comfortable with your manuscript (that it's the best you can possibly make it), you're ready for the final step; agent searching.

Stop by next week for the conclusion of our writing tips.

Writing Tips: Research and Outlines

Hey everyone! Back for an all new writing tip this week. So without futher delay, here we go.

TOPIC: Research and Outlines

It is probably a safe bet that many people cringe at the word "research" in relation to writing. After all, if you're writing, aren't you just making things up as you go? Sorry to say that no, you are not just making things up as you go.

The level and depth of research all depends on what type of story you are trying to tell. For fantasy and sci-fi, you can check back to my blog post about Fantasy that makes sense. Even with fantasy, you may want to spend some time exploring societal structures that may mirror those in your work. Basing pieces of your world in reality always makes it stronger.

For those who aren't playing with dragons and fairies, the research stage is more about bolstering your believability. Setting something in the "real" world takes just as much energy as creating your own new place to play. You are confined to the way things actually work and where places actually are. Trust me, readers are perceptive and if they know the location where you've plunked your characters down, they may be none-to-pleased to see you put the Starbucks where the Dunkin' Donuts should be.

Of course, the above example is a rather silly one, especially since they are often on opposite corners of the street. Let me share with you a bit of research woe I encountered not too long ago. My next project is a piece of contemporary women's fiction set in Boston. I know I want my characters to be believable and real so I spent quite a bit of time researching businesses and neighborhoods where my characters would be interacting. One of the key places in the story is a yoga studio. Initially I'd found an actual studio (yay for authenticity) but then I realized for legal reasons it might be better to create my own. Yes, I know I said earlier you don't have to create new places in the "real" world. Well, I lied. You can indeed create your own businesses and restaurants and banks, etc. But here's where the research comes in. In trying to find a place to put my made up yoga studio, I had to look up places where there are actually gyms. That way, someone reading the manuscript would say, "yeah, there could be a yoga studio there".

Google is a good place to start if you don't know exactly what you're looking for. Once you've narrowed it down, you can do a more targeted search for the business or organization you want information on. Remember, when using real places, if you're going ot use them for less than savory aims in your work, it may be best to create your own.

Another good place to look for some world building material may be your nearest Barnes & Noble (or other bookstore). You can browse for hours in there without getting weird looks. The library works too if you don't have a bookstore nearby.

Once you've done all of your research, the next step is outlining your work. Don't run away! It's not as hard as it sounds, I promise. Outlines can mean many different things, including character development, chapter outlines and character arcs.

The first kind of outlining deals with character development. This is what it sounds like. You develop your characters. Give them family hisory, birthday, anniversary, a job. Just for kicks, give them some hobbies and dislikes too. The more you know about your characters, the more well-rounded and real they wiill appear on the page. The important thing to remember with charcter devleopment (or background) is that not everything you write down about the character has to show up in the novel. Suzy's dislike of lime jell-o may have nothing to do with the storyline, so there's no need to include it.

Getting into the meat of the story, there are two ways of outlining. The first is the traditional notion of the outline where you map out each chapter in the book. This works for some people. A chapter-by-chapter outline allows the writer to figure out exactly what needs to happen and when. This method can be extremely time consuming and so many people shy away from this step of the process. I know for a long time I skipped right from the idea hitting me to writing. I find now that taking the time to set goals, research and outline makes the story stronger from the beginning.

The second type of outlining is mapping individual charater arcs. This is an ideal method when you have multiple main characters. You'll want to sit down and write out what happens to that specific character at each stage of the story and how it affects those around them. You won't necessarily have a chapter-by-chapter map for your story, but you will know the important points to hit with each character at each point in the story.

I hope you were able to find some nuggets of useful information about doing research and outlining before you start writing. Check back next week for an all new writing tip.

Writing Tips: Setting Goals

Hello everyone. As promised, I'm back with some fun and functional tips on writing.

TOPIC: Setting Writing Goals

For many people, the first hurdle to writing comes in finding the time and motivation to actually do it. Fear not, friends. Even those with the busiest of schedules can find the time to write.

Start small. Writing goals don't have to be huge, grandiose aims. They can be as simple as a certain word count for the day (or week). Beginning with this small step allows you to get a feel for what it's like to write on a schedule. Once you have you desired daily or weekly word goal in mind, sit down with your work schedule and any other obligations you have. This next part is key; find places, fifteen minutes here, half an hour there in your day where you can devote yourself to writing. It can be while on your lunch break, before the kids get home from school. Finding these little slivers of time in your day will put you well on your way to reaching your goal.

Once you've been successful in meeting your smaller goals, you can take the next step and expand it to monthly goals. This is no different than the steps you've already taken. Simply, set a goal for the month and plan out your writing each day or week accordingly. It really is simple once you've got the first building block down.

I'm sure some of you are wondering how you go about finishing an entire novel. Setting achievable goals for yourself is a really good place to start. Remember, your monthly goals can be to get a certain percentage of a piece written. The key to this strategy is to set aside time each day. Those little chunks of time add up quickly and you'll find you can churn out more product in the same amount of time.

On that note, there is a great tool to get you in the writing spirit. The awesome Dr. Wicked has created a program called Write or Die which allows you to write in a confined amount of time. It's a great (albeit slightly high pressure) way to get words written. No reliable or constant internet connection? No worries. He's created a desktop version for $10. No computer? Still no worries. Carry a pad and pen with you EVERYWHERE! Seriously, do it. That way you have something to write on at all times.

The above method of writing a little each day isn't for everyone. Take it and make it work for you. Goal setting really is about getting the push to get things done. And who doesn't love the satisfaction of meeting a goal?

As for me, my writing goals for the new year include writing three new novels. You can bet I've got my monthly goals all set out. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks for dropping by! I'll see you next week for a new writing tip.