Here it is, back by popular demand . . . The Marshall Plan® Story Idea Machine!

Just fill in the blanks, click the button and you’ll have a brief, high-concept story idea ready to be developed into a novel. The Story Idea Machine is based on concepts in The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software by Evan Marshall and Martha Jewett, and also on Evan’s bestselling writing guides.

Give it a try!

This is the first part of the Coaching Call held in October, providing some insider secrets, tips and ideas for getting your novel published.

This podcast covers why a sharp focus on genre is more important than ever to publishers, and what you can do about it. Other topics include:

• How to give your manuscript a special edge that will grab an editor’s attention.
• The key to finishing a dynamite story.
• Selling in the current market: what’s hot, what’s not, how to position your novel.
• Secret methods for submitting your manuscript that publishers don’t tell you.

“I recommend this user friendly software to writers at all levels and, particularly, to new writers.”–Amber Scott

Novelist Amber Scott chronicles her NaNoWriMo experience using The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software on 1st Turning Point:

The National Novel Writing Month 50k November 30th finish line is in my rearview mirror and, thanks to The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software, I crossed this year limp free.  While the software did not ease the pain of getting my butt in the seat and typing every day, it did keep me on track.  Not once did I face a single page, staring, dry-mouthed, and wondering, now what?

“Now what?” is the question that plagues me on every first draft.  Nothing is scarier than getting stuck, particularly when a deadline and a whole lot of bragging rights are on the line.  Thanks to this software, I already had an answer…Read More

Most of what I write has to do with words. But I’m also a designer of websites, software, and printed materials, and these functions have never come naturally to me. Recently my wife turned me on to Robin Williams’ The Non-Designer’s Design Book, and I wanted to let you know about it if you don’t know it already.

Williams bases her advice on four major principles: contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity. Yes, an unfortunately acronym, but one you won’t forget!

I applied these principles recently to a page I was designing around a new piece of flash fiction I’ve written. I’d started out with the usual timid, ho-hum design: boring Times New Roman heading centered at the top, a few lookalike columns of text, and a tiny graphic smack in the middle. Then I methodically applied Williams’ guidelines. The heading became big and quirky. The graphic became huge. Centered alignment turned into right-hand alignment. Related material got grouped. Check out page one of the result above.

This book’s C-R-A-P guidelines are certainly memorable, but the piece of advice foremost in my mind as I design now is “Don’t be a wimp!”

Highly recommended.

A Special Report

All we hear nowadays is that publishers won’t look at unagented material anymore; the legendary slush pile is dead.

But it’s not true! Even if you don’t have an agent (and these days it’s harder than ever to get one), if your novel is completed you can start submitting right now. A number of publishers are not only willing to consider material submitted directly by authors; they’re actively looking and find many or all of the books they publish in this way. Why do some publishers perpetuate the myth that a novelist must submit through an agent? Perhaps because they know that if word gets out, they’ll be flooded. Perhaps that’s why their submission guidelines are often so well hidden on their Web sites.

Martha Jewett (my coauthor on The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software) and I have prepared a Special Report that lists these publishers, the categories in which they’re currently acquiring full-length fiction, and links to their author guidelines. We are constantly updating this list, so you may want to download it periodically to get the latest information. Just return to this blog and click on the link above.

On Saturday, November 7, I attended the first Self-Publishing Book Expo at the Sheraton Hotel in New York City. Accompanying me was Martha Jewett, my coauthor on The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software. We gave out free copies of my book The Marshall Plan® for Novel Writing and demonstrated the software it’s based on. And we met a very talented group of people.

The show is the brainchild of publishing veterans Diane Mancher and Karen Mender. The exhibitors were an interesting mix of publishers catering to the new wave of self-publishing authors (for example, Lulu.com and Smashwords.com), and self-published authors themselves, displaying their books (see below). There were also a number of excellent panels on virtually all aspects of self-publishing.

This show is part of the incredible growth self-publishing is currently undergoing. As an agent I find this especially fascinating. I sell my clients’ books to the major New York publishers who, due to the state of the economy, must adhere more closely than ever to the sure thing. But self-publishing is where edgy new talent and trends appear, where a blend of genres that seems odd today may be the traditional publishers’ sure thing of tomorrow. Indeed, again and again do we hear about self-published books that the majors “pick up.”

The rapid growth of self-publishing is due in large part to the popularity of e-books that can be read on a large variety of commercial reading devices. Because e-publishing is a whole new area in which interesting new ideas and talent are emerging (not to mention where a lot of money is being made), it makes sense that Harlequin, the world’s largest publishers of romance, this week announced the creation of a “digital-only” division called Carina Press. Hired to help run it is Angela James, who comes from Samhain Publishing, a leading “digital-first” publisher. Learn more about Carina and get submission guidelines at carinapress.com.

But back to the show, as they say. Here are four of the many talented authors who displayed their books at the show:

Lisette Brodey, Squalor, New Mexico (Saberlee Books), a coming of age story shrouded in family mystery. www.lisettebrodey.com

Jean Naggar, Sipping from the Nile: My Exodus from Egypt (Stony Creek Press), a memoir by a leading literary agent. www.sippingfromthenile.com

Ayme Butavia, Henry’s Law, “A Novel of Good Exacting Evil” (iUniverse) by a former New York State Trooper. www.aymebutavia.com

E. L. Jefferson, What Do You Fear? Book 1 (Rosedog Books), graphic horror stories by a law enforcement officer who’s seen it all. www.eljefferson.net

October 4, 9 PM EST

You’re invited to a special writer’s coaching call on Sunday evening, October 4 at 9 p.m. EST. This is a chance to pick up some insider secrets, tips and ideas for getting your novel published.

We will talk about why a sharp focus on genre is more important than ever to publishers–and what you can do about it. Other topics include:

• How to give your manuscript a special edge that will grab an editor’s attention.
• The key to finishing a dynamite story.
• Selling in the current market: what’s hot, what’s not, how to position your novel.
• Secret methods for submitting your manuscript that publishers don’t tell you.

You’ll also have a chance to ask your burning questions about writing, literary agents, publishers, etc. We’re not sure how long it will last but we’re thinking about an hour, but it might be longer if there are a lot of questions.

The call is free, but space is limited. You just pay for your normal long distance charges. When you register below, we’ll send the phone number in a follow up email.

If you can’t make it, no problem. If you’re registered for the call, you can access a link so you can download it and listen anytime you want.

To register, provide your info below and include a question you would like us to cover on the call . . .

Like other literary agents, I hear from thousands of writers each year, and accept only a tiny fraction of them for representation. What makes these few desirable as clients? What does an agent look for in a writer? Someone who’s:

Original. You’d think it would go without saying that writers should strive to develop fresh story concepts. However, the majority of the submission I receive are tired and derivative, as if the authors have worked to create something like or as good as currently successful novels. Instead, they should work to develop ideas that are truly their own, unlike anything already on the market. Books like these are usually the result of a writer’s special passion—the book he or she had to write. This passion invariably communicates itself to agents and the editors they sell to.

A good writer. A fresh story concept alone is not enough. A novel must also be well written. Imagine an agent’s disappointment at reading a knockout query letter, requesting the manuscript, and finding that the writing is poor. Good writing is clear, always interesting, and without pretension. Much of what I receive is difficult to follow, dull, or “writerly”—writing that’s trying hard to “sound” like writing. When in doubt, keep it simple; just tell the story. Don’t worry about style, which shouldn’t be consciously applied anyway. If agents tell you your writing needs work, consider joining a critique group or working with a freelance editor or book doctor.

Professional. Even great ideas and top-quality writing are often not enough. Remember that agents seek long-term relationships with their clients. Years of experience teach us that it’s difficult or impossible to have a lengthy relationship with a writer who has no regard for industry conventions. Professional behavior includes approaching an agent in the accepted fashion (books on this topic abound); communicating clearly and honestly, with respect for the agent’s time; setting realistic deadlines and meeting them; and abiding by the terms of the representation agreement between you and your agent.

Reasonable. It’s frustrating for an agent to work hard for a client and bring him or her reasonable deals—only to find the writer simply won’t be reasonable. Agents want to work with people who understand that publishing is an unpredictable business; one writer’s career track usually bears no resemblance to another’s. A reasonable writer recognizes that most careers are shaped over the course of years, and that patience—and a day job—are usually necessities. A reasonable writer understands that you can’t get everything you want all the time, that some elements of the publishing process are beyond even the most aggressive writer’s and agent’s control, and that an agent worth having usually has a healthy client list to service.

Flexible. Like many agents, I work with my clients to set goals for us to reach. We then devise “stepping stones” that will lead us to those goals, and we keep sharply focused on our course. But life doesn’t always cooperate. Editors change jobs. Books expected to succeed brilliantly fail because of a terrorist attack, a devastating hurricane, or a jacket that was all wrong. Agents are flexible when necessary and appreciate this quality in a writer. As disappointing as it may be to have to face reality and readjust goals, it’s often necessary. A flexible writer rolls, as cheerfully as possible, with the punches.

Committed. In order to reach their goals, writers must be prepared to hang in there for the long haul—to write book after book after book on the way to the success they seek. An agent wants to know that a writer is as committed as the agent is to giving a career the time it needs to blossom. Agents are likely to drop clients who show signs of abandoning the fight after the first signs of adversity.

Hard-working. Agents work hard and want to know that the writers they represent are working just as hard. We tend to lose interest in lazy writers who produce inferior work; who put off starting projects and then must rush to reach deadlines; or fail to promote books to the best of their ability.

No relationship is guaranteed, but if you work to cultivate the above qualities in yourself, you’ll give yourself the best chance of success with an agent.

Sure, publishing is feeling the crunch along with every other industry. But that doesn’t mean you should tell yourself there’s no point in working on your novel and put it aside until things get better.

In fact, there’s never been a better time than now to get that manuscript out of the bottom drawer and get back to work in earnest. Here’s why.

Writing is free entertainment. Movies cost you money. Netflix costs you money. Eating out costs you money. Books cost you money. But writing books? That’s free entertainment! And anything we can get for free these days is worth a lot.

You can escape the stresses of the real world into a world of your own making. Have you got headaches at work? Is your job secure? Do you have a job? Is your household feeling the pinch? What better way to escape all of these stressors than into a world of your own making? In your novel, the world is as you create it.

Talented newcomers have never been more appealing to publishers. In this economy, many authors’ book sales are poor. Publishers must entice booksellers with new authors who come without baggage— i.e., a bad sales track records. There’s nothing more appealing than a fresh talent with limitless possibilities.

It is often in a new author’s best interest to accept a lower advance to get that foot in the door. And low advances are another plus for struggling, risk-averse publishers.

So what are you waiting for? Get to work on that novel before too many other writers see this blog post!

Your novel is completed and all of your auxiliary materials—query letter, synopsis, short synopsis, cover letter—are ready. Now what do you do?

You don’t start sending things out helter-skelter, hoping something with hit the target. You take a thoughtful, intelligent, businesslike approach to submission. You plan a campaign.

A Multi-tiered Approach

I always recommend a multi-tiered approach: querying literary agents, querying editors, meeting agents, and meeting editors. If you’ve ever submitted anything before, you know why I recommend this approach. Most agents and editors take a long time to reply to writers’ queries, not because they’re mean or don’t care, but because in the grand scheme of things, material from people you don’t already represent or publish is not as important as material from people you do. A wait of several months up to a year is not uncommon. If you queried one agent at a time, one editor at a time, you could be in your dotage by the time you got an answer. Agents know how slow editors can be. That’s why we often make simultaneous submissions.

To start your submission campaign, make a table with the following headings across the top:

NUMBER
AGENT/EDITOR ADDRESS & PHONE
MATERIAL SENT
DATE SENT
RESPONSE
DATE OF RESPONSE
FOLLOW-UP?
GO TO NUMBER

This is your submission log. Now, based on your research, write down the names, addresses, telephone numbers, and, if they’re listed, the email addresses of the agents and editors you think will have an interest in your novel.

Immediately query all of these agents and editors. On your submission log, keep a record of exactly what you send to whom and when you send it. In the leftmost column, number the entries. If positive responses come in, record those, too: Requested synopsis and first three chapters, or Requested complete manuscript, or whatever the case may be. Then, in the extreme right column, write the number of the next blank row of your log. There you’ll fill in the agent or editor’s address and contact information again, and record what you’re sending this time.

Negative responses, of course, end there, though you should make a note about the response: Not accepting new clients, or Not enthusiastic, or maybe just Printed rejection slip. Or you might simply want to write See letter. Keep all correspondence in a file or folder with your log.

As you’re querying and acting on positive responses, keep your eye you for new names. You might read about an interesting deal in Publishers Weekly or online in Publishers Lunch. You might read a book like yours and see an acknowledgment to an agent or editor not on your list. If so, jot down this person’s name, google his or her contact information, and query! In other words, always keep your material moving. Most importantly, do not allow negative responses to immobilize you.

Don’t Take It Personally

You’ve got to develop a Teflon rhinoceros hide in his business. Never forget that an agent’s or editor’s opinion is that that—his or her opinion—and nothing more. Also keep in mind that agents and editors seldom give reasons for turning material down; they don’t have time, and even if they did, they don’t want to get into a dialogue or critique—unless they see promise and want to encourage you. Therefore, you’ll often get those blasted one-size-fits-all rejection slips or letters that tell you nothing at all.

Sometimes the reasons behind these maddening pieces of paper actually have nothing to do with your material. An agent or editor may not be accepting unpublished writers but does not want to say so. He may not be accepting new clients at all unless they are exceptional, but does not want to say so because then submissions would drop off—a bad situation for an agent. He may already have a novel signed up that is similar to yours. The point is, it doesn’t matter why someone rejects you; make a note of it and move on, knowing that rejection is an inevitable part of the process of getting published.

Keep It Moving

While you’re querying, following up on positive responses, and watching constantly for new agent and editor names, keep an eye on directories, newsletters, and websites such as Shaw Guides (www.shawguides.com) for conferences you feel are worth attending. You may not be able to cross the country to attend a national convention in your target genre, but there’s really no excuse for not showing up at a local conference—even a general writers conference—especially if agents who handle your kind of writing will be attending.

When you meet an agent or editor at a conference or convention, be sure to ask that all-important question: “May I send you my manuscript?” If the answer is yes, record that agent’s or editor’s contact information on your log as soon as you get home, then get that material into the mail, making certain to record the details—what you’re sending and when you’re sending it.

And so it goes. Never hold back from submitting to a new name you’ve discovered; there’s no limit to the number of queries you can have out at the same time. If an agent or editor requests exclusivity, be sure to find out for what period of time (it varies according to the agent), then decide whether waiting that long without submitting to other agents is worth it to you. Obviously, if material is already on submission with other agents, an exclusive look won’t be possible. If you agree to an exclusive submission, a polite letter or phone call is perfectly acceptable if you’ve had no response by the end of the agreed-upon time period.

The key is to keep your material on submission, and to always be on the lookout for new names. Things change over time. Editors change jobs, or new ones appear. The same goes for agents. Publishing is such a merry-go-round that sometimes it seems its entire personnel profile can change over the course of a single year.

Oh, there’s one more thing you need to do while you’re keeping all the submission balls in the air: keep writing. Why? First and foremost, because you’re a writer, and that’s what writers do. On a more practical level, an agent or editor might decline your current project but ask to see something else. You’ll want to have that “something else” ready as soon as possible.

HELPFUL HINT: Very often agents are open to new clients but must be extremely selective because they already have full client lists. Try targeting newer agents at large agencies. You may read (for example, in the People section of Publishers Weekly, that an editor has become an agent, or that an assistant at a literary agency has been promoted to full agent. If you have any reason to believe this person might be right for your novel, query him or her immediately. Another trick is simply to call the switchboards of large agencies and ask if there are any new agents. Very often the receptionist will tell you their names and specialties.

Follow these guidelines and eventually you’ll find yourself on the receiving end of a string of positive responses from an agent or editor who understand and appreciate what you’re doing. He’s out there somewhere, and wants to meet you as badly as you want to meet him. Don’t give up. That person could be the next one on your list.