Mo Fanning - British writer and comic

Submission

How to Pitch Your Story in Just 20 Words

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Pitch your novel

One of the hardest parts of selling a new story (to a reader, an agent or a publisher) is coming up with what us marketing geeks call ‘The Elevator Pitch”. It’s also called a log line. It’s your whole story (80k+ words) boiled down into one sentence. Two at most. And coming up with a pitch that works is a journey into hell.

“A young boy wizard comes of age” might be pretty generic, but isn’t too shabby as an elevator pitch.

The words you string together need to tell your story in one breath. They ideally need to suggest conflict. And they definitely need to get the person reading them excited.

Pitch conflict

We’ve all sat through meetings or watched insanely detailed pitches where you know the whole thing is going nowhere. If there’s no conflict in your elevator pitch, odds are there won’t be any in your story either. Your reader/agent/publisher will lose interest quickly and probably not bother to pick it up.

I’ve just completed the Cornerstones ‘Edit your novel like a professional‘ course. Eighteen weeks shared with some brilliant writers – and each of us struggled when asked to condense our work into a 500 word synopsis, let alone a 20 word pitch. Writing a story is one thing – but explaining it in such a way that you get someone excited and keep them reading…now that’s another!

Pitch in secret

Try pitching your own work at home. Keep it short and snappy; no context, characters or backstory. Just the basic premise of your story: what happens, who am I writing about and why should they care? If you can create an engaging pitch like this (and of course, back it up with a great book) then chances are when you’re querying agents later on you’ll have their attention long enough to tell them more. Writing well makes all the difference when selling yourself as much as your work.

  • Know your audience and what they want from you
  • Keep it simple and engaging
  • Give away the best parts of your story

So write me something catchy. What’s your book about?

Where to hunt a literary agent

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This extract is from my latest ‘how to’ book aimed at new and developing writers – Please find attached – A guide to getting your work in front of agents and publishers. It’s available to download from today.

There are many ways to track down a literary agent. A sure-fire hit (and a book everyone tells you to buy) is the Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook. It’s packed with listing for agents (and publishers), some giving advice on what they might be looking for and current client lists. There’s also an associated website. The book itself offers a range of advice articles and ‘state of the market’ summaries to help you bone up on what’s currently selling.

It’s long been the aspiring authors’ bible. The publisher of the Yearbook also offers a range of of ‘companion’ volumes that cover crime fiction, children’s fiction, life writing and historical fiction.

The problem with any reference book is that it goes out of date the second it leaves the printing press. The website is a good place to get a more current overview, but there are much better online tools out there to assist you in your search.

Websites to help find a literary agent

In the UK, I recommend Agent Hunter. If you’re in the US, stick to Agent Query (or Writer’s Market). None of these sites are free. They will expect a small sum in exchange for access to their market intelligence.

This is where you need to take care. There are plenty of insipid copies of the sites out there that don’t work as hard to offer up-to-date information. The ones recommended below have proved good for me (and writers I know).

Create a hit list

Just like when job hunting, you wouldn’t write to every company in the phone book, don’t submit to every literary agent you find. Use the data and intelligence out there to filter your list. The better websites allow you to do just that. They’re updated to show which agents are looking to grow their lists. Use the search functionality on your chosen reference site to find:

  • agents who accept work in your genre
  • agents actively looking to grow their list
  • agents who make it a priority to work with new writers

Search and discover

Supplement your hit list by using any search engine, hunting agents on Twitter. Add to your list until you have a top five or six that you want to approach.

Please find attachedGet your work seen by agents and publishers

There are plenty of books that teach you how to write – or write better. But then what? ‘Please find attached‘ is a guide for writers who are ready to submit their work to agents or publishers. It explains the role of an agent and the publishing process. It helps writers decide if self-publishing might work better. Along the way, there’s solid advice on how to write a killer query letter, tackle a synopsis that sells, and how to present your work at its best. Practical tips cover formatting and the etiquette of approaching an agent or publisher. It’s invaluable help that other guides tend to gloss over.

A must have for any writer ready to take the next step.

Buy my new book now

Submitting to an agent – what not to say

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Please find attachedIf you’ve reached the point where you think you’d like to find an agent or publisher for your writing, there’s plenty of advice online. My own book – Please find attached – is rammed to the rafters with tips on how to attract attention, write a query letter, synopsis, bio and generally convince the gatekeeper that you’re good enough to be let in.

But what about the things you should really keep to yourself? There is such a thing as Too Much Information. The ‘good ideas’ that risk ruining everything. And if that happens, here’s some advice on dealing with rejection. So what do agents and publishers insist are their biggest turn-offs. How can you turn ‘maybe’ into ‘no’?

Don’t send your cover design. Even if you paid a lot of money for it and you know that it’s perfect. Writers get very little, if any, say on the cover design for their books at big publishing houses. Agents less so. Nobody needs it. Never send it.

Don’t try to stand out by writing the query letter in the voice of one of your characters. Professional is your touchstone. Quirky lives elsewhere.

When asked for a bio, don’t be tempted to attach a CV or beef up a few ideas into a puff piece. The one or two short lines in your query letter will be enough.

If you absolutely must include your publishing history, avoid mention of anything that might peg you as an amateur. This usually means flash fiction contests or other competitions run by unpublished authors, disreputable poetry contests or off-the-grid Who’s Who listings. Keep quiet about self-published books – unless you can prove you sold 20,000 copies. Sold, not gave away free.

When you talk about how your work might sit well with other writers, you’re doing it to show you’ve thought about marketing. It helps the agent or publisher understand how you see yourself fitting in. Don’t go too far with this. Never compare yourself directly with other great writers. You’re looking to prove you know how to ‘sit alongside’, not equal or better. Absolutely never say you’re the new anyone, and avoid claiming that your book is ‘just like’ an existing title. Who wants to read the same book twice?

On the subject of knowing your market, don’t claim your novel will appeal to everyone. It won’t. You need to prove you understand the market. A teenage boy and a retired businesswoman are unlikely to read the same books. Claiming wide appeal suggests you have no market in mind.

You might think your book would make a great movie. Hold that thought. And never talk about who you would cast in what role.

Rhetorical questions sound cheesy. Avoid them in your hook and query letter. Stick to the facts of your story and avoid clichés. Too much gameshow host smarm and you undo all the good.

Avoid insincere flattery. ‘I would be honoured if you could spare the time …’ Your query letter functions like a job application. Would you apply for work like this?

Don’t tell the agent or publisher that this is the first book you ever wrote. Inexperience is no turn-on. Equally nobody cares if you’ve been writing since you got into long trousers. ‘Writing is my dream‘ suggests you could well be a nightmare to represent. There’s little value in explaining how your friends, parents or probation officer loves the book – unless the have influential columns in the national press … or notoriety. The only opinion that matters is that of the agent or publisher reading your work.

And never ever slate other writers. It’s a guaranteed rejection.

Finally, it may be good to talk, but don’t for one minute think that calling an agent to pitch is going to end well. You’re a writer. Write!

Please find attachedGet your work seen by agents and publishers

There are plenty of books that teach you how to write – or write better. But then what? ‘Please find attached‘ is a guide for writers who are ready to submit their work to agents or publishers. It explains the role of an agent and the publishing process. It helps writers decide if self-publishing might work better. Along the way, there’s solid advice on how to write a killer query letter, tackle a synopsis that sells, and how to present your work at its best. Practical tips cover formatting and the etiquette of approaching an agent or publisher. It’s invaluable help that other guides tend to gloss over.

A must have for any writer ready to take the next step.

Buy my new book now

Rejected by a literary agent? You’re in good company

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British Writer Mo FanningRejection can be crushing. There’s little joy when you receive an email that wishes you well but declares that your labour of love is ‘just not for me’. If you find yourself rejected, take comfort that you are not alone. I’ve pulled together a list of well-known writers who struggled to find a home for their words. I hope it offers comfort on the darker days. You might also consider vodka and cake.

Agatha Christie enjoyed five years of constant knock-backs. C. S. Lewis had all but given up before ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ found a home. Beatrix Potter gave up trying after receiving rejection after rejection. She self-published and the rest is history. Margaret Mitchell received 38 rejections for ‘Gone With The Wind’.

J.K. Rowling eventually signed to the Christopher Little Agency. This was after being rejected by many others. Even then her agent received twelve rejection slips for the first ‘Harry Potter’ book.

Meg Cabot boasts that she kept all her rejection letters in a bag. Eventually, that bag became so heavy she couldn’t lift it. It didn’t stop her trying, and so the world got to read ‘The Princess Diaries’.

Paulo Coelho sold 800 copies of ‘The Alchemist’ until he found a better publisher who shifted 75 million copies.

‘I recommend that it be buried under a stone for a thousand years,’ was the rather mean (and in no way constructive) feedback provided to Vladimir Nabokov. His novel, ‘Lolita’ went on to sell around 50 million copies.

After 14 agents turned down Stephanie Meyer, she finally found one willing to champion ‘Twilight’. It spent 91 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list.

26 publishers rejected Madeleine L’Engle‘s novel, ‘A wrinkle in time’, before it became an award-winning best-seller. Audrey Niffenegger fared slightly better with 25 rejections for ‘The Time Traveller’s Wife’. 23 publishers and agents turned down ‘Dune’ when Frank Herbert sought publication.

They were in good company, James Joyce heard no 22 times when touting around ‘Dubliners’. Urban legend has it that Joseph Heller named his hit book ‘Catch 22’ in honour of the 21 rejections that came before a publisher finally said yes.

Major league rejection

After 60 rejections Kathryn Stockett finally had good news for her book ‘The Help’. Jason Wallace can beat that. 100 agents and publishers rejected ‘Out of Shadows’ – it went on to win the Costa Children’s Book award.

But the award for sticking at it when everyone suggested he should give up must go to Robert M. Pirsig. ‘Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance’ features in the Guinness Book Of Records. It received 121 rejections – more than any other best-seller.

And if you are a short story writer, take heart. The estate of best-seller Jack London in San Francisco, the House Of Happy Walls has a collection of some of the 600 rejections he received before selling a single story.

This article is an extract from my forthcoming book – Please find attached – A guide to getting your work seen by agents and publishers – due out later this month. Sign up to my mailing list and I’ll send you a discount code to get it half price.

The pure hell of writing a synopsis

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Writer's Block - Mo FanningWho enjoys writing a plot summary – better known in publishing circles as a synopsis?

Nobody, right?

To any non-writer, this aversion probably sounds weird. Indulgent even. Like now you’ve written all those words, and it’s an insult to reduce your art to a few paragraphs. Like it or not, at some stage – if you’re serious about being published – someone will ask for a synopsis.

As documents go, it serves a key purpose. It proves you know how to tell a story. You could turn in 5000 perfectly polished words with great characters and dripping with intrigue. What happens after that?

A synopsis proves that you’re no flash in the pan. It demonstrates that the story that follows delivers on early promise. If you can write 5000 words and show that you also have a story to tell, you’re worth a look.

Frustrated writers like to pick apart the work of best-selling authors (JK Rowling anyone?). They ask how did he or she get published, let alone sell so many books? The answer lies not (just) in the writing – which can always be fixed by a decent edit. It lies in the ability to tell a story. Nobody really recommends that beautifully written book that they never quite finished.

But like I say, nobody likes writing a synopsis. How about if I told you it could actually help you create a better book?

Using a synopsis to guide your edit

When you finally type ‘the end’, that’s when you should start work on a synopsis. Used right, it’s a tool that helps edit your work.

There are two types of edit. The copy edit and the structural edit.

Copy editing is easy. In theory. You read through and fix the typos, smooth the dialogue, wipe out your writing tics.

A structural edit is harder. Good editors charge big money to do this. It’s a task that what most beginning writers neglect.

This is when you should ask key questions. Do events flow? Does a person age six years between chapters? Is it spring one minute, winter the next?

Writing a synopsis is a great way to tackle this crucial edit.

Instead of agonising over every sentence , read your work in progress. Work through each chapter, and write one or two sentences that sum up what happened in each. When you’re done, you have the bones of your book. That’s when you can ask yourself if the story works. Is it worth telling? Are there gaps? Could you flesh stuff out? Could you lose a sub plot? Is it the story you thought you were telling?

Fix your story and update the rough synopsis. And then – just as you should with the novel itself – close the file. Don’t even peep at it again for a few weeks.

When you come back to this rough synopsis, treat it like you’re correcting someone else’s work. Make it read better. Distill the story, cut out any talk of sub plots or minor characters.

Before you know it, you have a killer synopsis for a tightly plotted novel – and that awful task is behind you.