Category: Creative Writing

Creative Writing, Epublishing, Jewel Under Siege, literary agents, Society of Authors

Do You Need A Literary Agent?

Christina Hollis
By Antonio Litterio

The obvious answer to that question is–no.Writers have so many options open to them now, the thought of sacrificing 15% or so of your hard-won earnings to a literary agent is enough to send everybody rushing off to do it all themselves. To date, I’ve sold three million novels worldwide, hundreds of non-fiction articles and short stories to magazines–and all without an agent. 

But wait a minute. Most people fit their writing work in around their day job.If your aim is publication, once you’ve finished a book, the business of selling it must begin. Without an agent, you’ll be spending a lot of time online, checking out which publishers are buying in your genre. You’ll be reading the type of books on their lists, and targetting your submissions. If you follow my tip here and start on your next book straight away, all this research will eat into the time you should be spending on your writing. There are only so many hours in the day.  Which would you rather do – write, or spend your precious free time trawling the net in the name of research, and getting distracted all the way by pictures of cute kitties hazzing this or that(we’ve all been there)!

This is where literary agents earn their keep. They lift a lot of the non-writing stuff off your shoulders. They’ve got the inside track on current market trends, and they have ready-made networks. A lot of writers recoil from phrases like that.  This is why agents are vital. They know whose lists are closed, and who’s buying, and most important of all, exactly what those buyers are looking for. Publishers use literary agents as a shortcut. If an agent thinks your work is worth showing around, it’s already been through one roguing process. Think of it as first-stage quality control. When someone who knows the business thinks the mechanics of your work are worth forwarding, a publisher may be more inclined to check out the economics of your project. 

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Once a publisher says yes, the horse-trading starts. Most writers are loners. A certain amount of introversion goes with the job. Can you honestly say you’d feel happy negotiating the best terms for your contract, if you’ve never done it before? Professional bodies such as The Society of Authors will vet contracts for you if you’re a member, but that will take time to arrange. And if you’ve got no experience in the craft, can you really see yourself getting the best deal over publicity arrangements, tour dates, extending deadlines when necessary and sorting out foreign editions and rights? Really?

Writing is a lonely business. A good agent will be on your side. That’s a great feeling. It takes the pressure off, knowing that someone is taking care of business. It gives you the chance to get the “creative” back into your “creative writing”. 

To return to what I wrote at the beginning: yes, I might have sold three million books without the benefit of an agent. But how many more books would I have actually managed to write if I’d had an expert on hand to help me target my work and do all the drudgery, while I got on with the fun stuff?

Have you got an agent? What are your experiences?
Ann Ankers, Christina Courtenay, Creative Writing, Fay Wentworth, Georgia Hill, Joanne Maitland, Marcher Chapter, Marilyn Rodwell, RNA, Romance, Top Tips

RNA Creative Writing Study Day, Hereford, 31st March 2014

Christina Hollis
Hard At Work…

In 2013, The Romantic Novelists’ Association announced a generous donation toward  all its local groups. I’m a member of the RNA’s Marcher Chapter, and we decided to put the money toward the hire of a room at The Courtyard, Hereford. The intention was to have a critique session. As it would be held so close to April 1st, the day was called  “Be A Fool For Love”.

The prospect of spending a whole day with like-minded people talking about writing was irresistible, but we wanted to show we’d taken the RNA’s  aims of promoting romantic fiction and encouraging good writing to heart. One month before the workshop, everyone emailed a ten-page sample of their current work in progress to organizer Ann Ankers. Ann collated them into a document which was then circulated among the group. The extracts were anonymous and we did a critique of every one, including our own. That way, we could make our comments without prejudice and still remain anonymous on the day.

Marilyn and Ann

Nobody likes the idea that their precious literary baby might be torn to shreds in a gladiatorial arena, so Historical novelist Joanna Maitland provided some invaluable advice beforehand. She advised that each critique should contain “three stars and a wish”–that is, highlight plenty of good points for every query or suggestion for improvement you make. This worked really well.

On the day, there were seven of us: Fay Wentworth, Georgia Hill, Christina Courtenay (fresh from winning the RNA’s Historical Novel of the Year Award for The Gilded Fan), Joanna Maitland, Marilyn Rodwell, me and organizer Ann Ankers. Ann also acted as our chairwoman and did an excellent job. She  kept the discussions moving, and made sure the day ran to schedule.

Fay, Georgia, Christina and Joanna

We were treated like royalty by the hardworking staff of The Courtyard. Regular refreshments (including delicious home-made biscuits) and a fantastic lunch was included in the price, and we worked so hard the time flew by. A photographer from Herefordshire and Wye Valley Life came to record the event. This was organised byChristina Courtenay. That gave me pause for thought. As I’d played an April Fool joke on my DD that morning, when a guy tapped at the door and asked for “Christina” I thought for an awful moment  DD had sent a male stripper  to our meeting as revenge. Thank goodness I was wrong!

We all had an amazing day. I learned a lot, and can’t wait until we can do it all again.

Have you attended a workshop? What was the most useful thing you learned?

Beta Readers, Christina Hollis, Creative Writing, publication

Three Top Tips For When You Think You’ve Finished Writing…

Christina Hollis
By Antonio Litterio

1. BE PREPARED: live in hope of publication, and never stop writing. Before you send anything out, make sure you’re well ahead with your next book. When I first started writing fiction I didn’t do this, and I suffered for it. I went back to writing non-fiction instead, which was paying my bills at the time. When my first novel was accepted by a major publisher, they assumed I was already working on the follow-up, and wanted it as soon as possible. That meant I had to write day and night to produce Book Two. I barely had time to eat, much less sleep, or talk to anyone! Never let this happen to you. Always have another book of a similar style on the stocks. 

2. USE A BETA READER – and the emphasis here is on the word “reader”. Editors know what sells and they can perfect your grammar and layout, but someone who can report honestly on whether it swept them away – or how you can make sure your readers are swept away  – is invaluable. You can track down professional beta readers and editors in the small ads of writing magazines. Alternatively, join a creative writing group, and ask for recommendations. Word of mouth is always the best way, and sometimes tutors will offer reading as a service, for an extra fee. Whoever you get to read your work, make sure you can trust them to offer constructive criticism rather than simply telling you what you want to hear. It’s better to find out the truth sooner, rather than later. 

3. LET IT BREW: you need time to think before you print, or hit “send”.  Once your perfect manuscript has been made better still by the help of a beta reader and by your careful (but ruthless) revisions, let it sit for a while before you send it out. Put it aside. Forget about it. Ideally, get right away from your keyboard. Spend time doing activities that have nothing to do with writing. Ok, I’ll let you do a bit of thinking about Book Two, but that’s all. Then, after you’ve been away from your manuscript for a while, read it straight through from beginning to end. You’ll be looking at it with fresh eyes. If you still think you’re on to a winner, that’s the time to send it out. 

My next Top Tips blog will discuss whether it’s better to send straight to a publisher, or get an agent first. To make sure you don’t miss it, sign up using the subscription box above. 
3 Top Tips, Creative Writing

Three Top Tips – How To Give Your Writing Appeal…

Christina Hollis
By Antonio Litterio

Last week, I told you that underestimating the intelligence of your audience is a bad idea. Whether they dropped out at 14 or if they’re looking at their doctorate in the rear-view mirror, everyone knows something about the human condition, even if their field of experience is only a narrow strip. If we’re talking of qualifications for writing or reading fiction, however fantastical the subject you need to germinate it from a grain of reality. Don’t give your landlord-evading private eye a Bugatti Veyron to drive, unless he’s stolen it. Even then, at 3 miles per gallon, he’d better take a Saturday job if the bailiffs aren’t going to be winching it onto a truck. And that’s before he’s paid for the insurance.

Aways do your research, but leave them wanting more. Drip feed information. Coax them to keep turning the pages by revealing only a little bit of what they want to know. Be a literary fan-dancer, but like the best burlesques, know how much to give, and when. Lead your reader up a blind alley or two, distract them with the occasional red herring but give them the pleasure of exposing the odd secret along the way as well. Don’t frustrate them too often, or for too long. When there are so many real-life distractions both on-and-off line, there’s a balancing act to be managed between suspense and revelation. Keep it fresh to keep them reading.
One cliche that no tip-sheet can avoid is “write what you know”. It works. You’re an expert on at least one thing – your own experiences. That’s a rich seam to mine, so get digging.  That doesn’t mean you should regurgitate your life story and nothing else ad nauseum, though. Did Shakespeare murder his wife over a pocket-handkerchief? Did Thomas Hardy hang children from clothes hooks? No, but they used their own experiences of human nature, jealousy and misery to colour their inventions. people are people the world over, and they’ve been like that down all the centuries. Powerful emotions  drove Cain to kill Abel and King David to send Uriah the Hittite away to war, and they’ve throbbed through the veins of thousands since then. Find your story, and make it speak to everyone.
I write both contemporary and historical fiction – when I’m not cooking, gardening or beekeeping. You can catch up with me on Twitter and Facebook, see a full list of my published books at http://www.christinahollis.com and get full details of my latest release, Jewel Under Siege, here.
3 Top Tips, Creative Writing, inspiration

Three Top Tips – Mind Games In Writing

Christina Hollis
By Antonio Litterio
It’s one thing to have a great idea and write about it, but what works for you may not work for other people. That doesn’t matter if you’re only writing for your own pleasure. If you’re aiming for publication, then you’ll have to get crafty. Think like a reader, and keep these three points in mind: 

CONVICTION: Whether you’re writing non-fiction or a novel, a short story or saga you’ve got to Believe in your work – note that capital B. Making up your mind to put your thoughts down on paper is a big decision. You may or may not be aiming to get published one day, but the more faith you have in your idea, the better your work will be. Spelling and grammar can always be tidied up with redrafts and revisions, but if your writing doesn’t have heart,  it hasn’t got a hope. 

CHALLENGE: Don’t do all the work for your readers. Add twists and turns to make them think. Give them clues, drip feed information and build tension, whether dramatic or sexual, all the time. Engage their interest, and they’ll keep reading. Strap them into an emotional roller-coaster, and push them out of their comfort zone. And challenge their beliefs and their assumptions by all means – just don’t challenge their ability to finish your book. 

CARE: Don’t insult your readers’ intelligence. They come from all walks of life. They’re all individuals, too. Your writing could attract either a roadsweeper with a PhD, or a high court judge with no common sense at all. You can’t generalise about your readers, so write as well as you can. Then take care with your editing, to make sure you produce something that everyone can enjoy–whoever they are, and whatever their qualifications 

I’m Christina Hollis, and I write both contemporary and historical fiction – when I’m not cooking, gardening or beekeeping. You can catch up with me on Twitter and Facebook, see a full list of my published books at http://www.christinahollis.com and get full details of my latest release, Jewel Under Siege, here.