Thanks to some recent pitch contests, I’ve been talking to a lot of new writers who are thinking about approaching literary agents. Below, I’ll break down the basic process of seeking literary agents and explain some of the common vocabulary that trips newcomers up. Note that this post is primarily geared towards writers of fiction and memoir, with a few notes for non-fiction writers to keep in mind.
Read the rest of this entry »Webinar: What A Game of Thrones Can Teach Writers about Multiple POVs
Update: this webinar, and a transcript, for those who prefer reading, is posted here.
If Game of Thrones inspired you to write your own epic fantasy, join me for a free webinar about how to manage multiple points of view. I’m recording live and doing an exclusive Q & A next Wednesday at 3 pm New York time. The main webinar & transcript will be posted afterward.
I’m a huge fan of the show, but for this webinar, I’ll mainly be talking about the first book. Read, or reread at your own risk (I’m now halfway through the audiobook of A Clash of Kings, 40-some hours later). You don’t have to read the book to understand the webinar, but the webinar will certainly spoil the first book, and potentially the whole series. Spoiler alert! You’ve been warned.
I’ll cover the following concepts:
1. How to choose which character narrates a scene
2. How to decide whether a character deserves to have a POV section at all
3. How to avoid confusing your readers
4. How to choose between first person and third person
5. How to make each voice distinct
Thanks to Reedsy for hosting me!
A Guide to First Person from Reedsy
I adore writing and reading in the first person. Escaping into a character’s mind in first person carries me away into fictional worlds. I help a lot of my editing clients navigate writing first person, or decide whether to write in first or third person. Reedsy, a database of freelance editors, designers, and other publishing experts, published some of my thoughts on the matter, along with other great advice on writing in first person.
Free Course on Dialogue Mechanics
Over the years, I have searched far and wide for a comprehensive resource that covers basic and advanced dialogue mechanics all in one place. When do you use periods versus commas? When do you start a new paragraph? What if someone interrupts someone else?
While there are certainly conventions for these situations, they’re not comprehensively covered in typical grammar books and resources.
Thus, I was very excited to draw together many different resources and create a course on dialogue punctuation, paragraphing, and more. Best of all, it is available for free via Reedsy Learning.
You can sign up for this course on dialogue mechanics here. Once you sign up, you will receive a ~750-word email each day for 10 days. Each email covers different elements of dialogue mechanics. If you don’t see the emails, try searching your inbox for “learning@reedsy.com,” as sometimes automated emails are filtered in strange ways.
I know mechanics issues sometimes make writers snore, but I had a lot of fun writing these lessons. Plus, I got to use examples from some of my favorite writers: Rachel Lynn Solomon, Courtney Summers, and Diana Gabaldon. To no one’s surprise, most of the examples I made up are about dogs.
I hope you find the course helpful! Let me know if you have any geeky dialogue questions after taking it.
Seeking Writing and Editing Work: Back From Maternity Leave
I am excited to finally relaunch my writing and editing career after a rough pregnancy and some major post-partum health complications. After struggling with hyperemesis gravidarum (yup, like Duchess Kate), and complications from surgery to remove my gallbladder, I am now looking forward to fewer hospital visits and more engaging work. (Snuggles with my adorable daughter are a given!)
Here is the kind of work I am most excited to dive back into:
- Editing creative writing (fiction and non-fiction)
- Editing business/marketing writing
- Writing marketing content
Check out my services page for a full list of what I can help with, as well as testimonials from some of my past clients. You can read more about my qualifications in my bio, and contact me at tracycgold@gmail.com. If you’re just here for baby pictures (or horses and dogs), check out my Instagram.
Homefront Cooking: Essay and Recipe
I’m very excited about Homefront Cooking, a collection of recipes and essays from military service memories and their families. I contributed a brief essay about my Grandpa Charlie and Grandma Lil, along with Lil’s delicious mashed potato recipe.
Read more about Homefront Cooking in the New York Post.
You can buy Homefront Cooking here.
Welcome, Ava Goldwray
I’m thrilled to update this blog with some happy news! My daughter, Ava Goldwray, was born on March 14th, 2018. I have accordingly been on hiatus from the writing and editing world. Thanks to a gall bladder attack and pending surgery, I will unfortunately be taking the back seat a little bit longer. I will shout it to the rooftops when I am back in full swing! In the meantime, here is Ava, being adorable.
2017 Pitch Wars Potential Mentee Bio: TURNED AWAY
I somewhat can’t believe that I am writing one of these again, but here I am: entering Pitch Wars with a shiny new YA manuscript for the third year in a row! I was a Pitch Wars mentee in 2015, chosen by the awesome Rachel Lynn Solomon, and in 2016, chosen by the awesome Diana Gallagher.
Why am I entering again if I was lucky enough to be chosen twice before, you may ask? Maybe I am tempting fate by seeking ANOTHER mentor as amazing as the first two, or fellow mentees as supportive, wonderful, and generally life-affirming as my friends from 2015 and 2016. Maybe I am a glutton, hoping for more of a good thing. Certainly, I love deadlines, structure, and constructive criticism. I’ll need a lot of help with this year’s book, as I’ve never written a full-length historical novel before, and whew, that’s tricky. Also, I’ve learned enough about this industry to know that the writers who succeed fight for every opportunity, even if it means their hearts could be broken by rejection. I’m not going to let this opportunity pass me by. Besides, I have a lot to give back to the Pitch Wars community, and would love to provide counsel and comfort to a new group of fellow mentees with my perspective from past years.
So here I am. Still unagented, though not for lack of hustle and revision. Still fighting. Ready to teach my battle techniques to the writers fighting alongside me, striking down the foes of rejection and self-doubt.
Advice on Handling Literary Agent Revise and Resubmits
Today I have a guest post on Adventures in YA Publishing about how to approach a revise-and-resubmit request from an agent. The idea from this blog post came from a question a writer asked me on Twitter. If you have a question that would make a good blog post, feel free to comment here or contact me!
What Pitch Wars Mentees Want in a Mentor
Pitch Wars is coming up again, and mentors are preparing their wishlists! When I tweeted about having time to write a blog post, I was asked to consider what a Pitch Wars mentee wants in a mentor. As a two-time mentee who’s had AMAZING mentors, I know a little something about that.
I’ll share my experience, and then include some comments from other Pitch Wars mentees below.
Both years that I have participated in Pitch Wars, I had a very hard time narrowing down my list of mentors. For those new to the contest, there are generally dozens of mentors for each age category, and mentees choose 4-6 mentors to submit a query and first chapter to. Those mentors then ask for full manuscripts if they are intrigued, and choose which mentee they would like to work with.
Both years, there were so many amazing mentors I thought I could learn from, who talked about books like mine on their wishlists, and who were fun to interact with on Twitter. I pored over mentors’ wishlists, analyzed their past mentees, read their blogs and books, and compared mentor picks with other hopeful mentees. Ultimately, I went with my gut, and both years, I chose well. I was picked as a mentee by Rachel Lynn Solomon in 2015 and Diana Gallagher in 2016. I still talk to both of my mentors regularly, and my life is so much richer because they are in it (cheesy but so true!).