I’ve Finished My Manuscript, Now What? Part 1

A few times each month, beginning writers contact me asking for directions, primarily, what to do after they finish their manuscripts. First of all, congratulations are in order. Finishing a manuscript is no small task. 

My initial reaction is to advise the writers to do nothing with the manuscript for a month or so, and in the meantime, begin another writing project and find a critique partner to read the manuscript and offer feedback.

After revising the manuscript and polishing it, make a submission list of appropriate publishers. If a publisher doesn’t accept unsolicited manuscripts or accepts only middle grade and young adult, sending a picture book will garner nothing but a rejection. The goal is to submit to a particular editor or agent. Writers need an individual who will love the work and promote it within the publishing house or literary agency.

Editors and what they are looking for in manuscripts can be found in  Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market, a book that is sold or can be ordered at bookstores or online. Guide to Literary Agents is another source if you choose to go the agent route.

In my next blog, I’ll continue with more tips on marketing a manuscript.

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

SPIDER, a literary magazine for children, features fresh and engaging literature, poems, articles, and activities for newly independent readers. Editors seek energetic, beautifully crafted submissions with strong “kid appeal” (an elusive yet recognizable quality, often tied to high-interest elements such as humor, adventure, and suspense).  

Submission guidelines at http://cricketmedia.com/spider-submission-guidelines

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK. Check out her blog at www.nancykellyallen.com

Query Letter How-To

A writer asked me to discuss the how-to process of a query letter, so here’s my take on it:  

First and foremost, always check the publisher’s website to determine if unsolicited manuscripts and/or query letters are accepted. If not, keep looking for a publisher that accepts queries.

My query letters begin with the date, followed by the greeting. Send to a particular editor (e.g. Dear Ms. Smith) unless the publisher requests a different format, such as an online form, which has become quite common. 

I divide my query letter into three paragraphs. The first paragraph begins with a hook. Keep it short, a mere sentence or two. A query letter than landed me a contract for GONE CUCKOO began: Adoption isn’t just for children. In the animal kingdom, cuckoo birds find foster parents to raise their young. Within this first paragraph, I give a short synopsis of the book, capturing the plot and theme of the story, but don’t usually reveal the ending. (Again, check the publisher’s submission guidelines. Some want to know the ending.) State the title of the book, target audience, word count, and genre.  

Describe your book so the editor will want to read the manuscript. Check out the flap copy or back copy of books in libraries and bookstores to see how books are described.  

Next week, I’ll further discuss the how-to of writing a query.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers

BLAZE MAGAZINE: Ages 8-14. Focus is on horse-related entertainment and education. We get lots and lots of mail! Some are great stories written by our readers. To showcase their talent we’ve started a new department. Send us your short horse story or poem and maybe you’ll be published here too!

Submission guidelines at http://blazekids.com/category/shortstories/ 

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers

CICADA is a YA lit/comics magazine fascinated with the lyric and strange and committed to work that speaks to teens’ truths. We publish poetry, realistic and genre fic, essay, and comics by adults and teens. (We are also inordinately fond of Viking jokes.) Our readers are smart and curious; submissions are invited but not required to engage young adult themes. CICADA does not distribute theme lists for upcoming issues. 

Submission guidelines at http://www.cicadamag.com/node/110

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK. Check out her website at www.nancykellyallen.com