By Cam
We’re hitting the home stretch of my one-week GIVEAWAY EXTRAVAGANZA and there are still some awesome prizes to give away. But first, y’all are in for a special treat (<–OMG my Tennessee just came out a little, I think). Anyway, one of my AMAZING critique partners, Martina Boone, is here to talk about social networking and what it’s really about.
For those of you who don’t know her, Martina is one of the founders of Adventures in Children’s Publishing and tweets at @4KidLit. She is a non-fiction writer and editor in real-life, but young adult fiction is her passion. She likes nothing better than diving into magical new worlds, flawed characters, or manuscripts that need to be restructured. (<– Yeah, I can totally vouch for this!)
But what Martina also forgot to include in her bio *ahem* is that Adventures in Children’s Publishing hit their one-year blogiversary earlier this month, and since last March they’ve gained more than 1,000 followers and almost 175,000 hits to their site. That’s CRAZY AWESOME! Her and ACP co-founder, Marissa Graff, offer daily posts that not only provide writers with fantastic contests and critique opportunities, but also wonderful insight, resources, and inspiration. If you don’t already visit their blog, you’re missing out. So please give Martina a warm welcome!
An Idiot’s Guide to Social Networking (for Writers)
This whole social networking thing? Scary as hell. A year ago, I dipped my toes cautiously and fearfully, because I was already overwhelmed with work and family. Life. But the thing I quickly discovered was that getting online was the greatest thing I could have done for my writing. When the going got tough, writing-wise, being online in the company of other writers kept me going.
I’ve read a lot of posts that talk about social networking as a time suck. I believe it can be, but I also think it’s an incomparable gift. Writing posts on craft helps keep me focused on craft. It keeps me reading posts on technique, concept, structure, voice, character…. It gives me insight into how other writers learn. It shows me what they are getting out of the same posts or books I am reading, and the subtle differences of what they picked up versus what I learned points me down paths I might not otherwise have followed.
With social networking as with anything else, I get out of it what I put into it. And then some. That’s the trick to it.
So here’s my nugget of truth for the day. If you go in worrying about what social networking is going to do for you, you’re going to miss out. Because that isn’t the right question. What are you going to give to other writers? Other readers? What can you put out there?
The moment you do that, you get back a hundred-fold.
One of the first things I did on the blog was a query-letter critique feature. Our very first participant was Clara Kensie. And the concept in her query was phenomenal. She and I exchanged manuscripts, and then she introduced me to other writers in her critique group, which, long story short, led me to a writer named Cambria Dillon. Who had another phenomenal manuscript. And taught me so much about voice and writing that I couldn’t have gotten from a book.
You collect people when you expand your writing journey online. These people support you, prop you up, build your craft, shore up your failing confidence. They inspire you to be better, braver. They commiserate with you when you fall on your face, and they give you the opportunity to celebrate when awesome things happen. They let you know there is awesome out there.
Awesome like Cam signing with Vickie Motter.
So, congrats, Cam. And congrats, Vickie.
I’m so thankful to be here celebrating with you!
Thank you, Martina! For your kind words, honest insight, and also for reminding us that social networking isn’t just about ME ME ME but also about US US US. The writing community wouldn’t be a ‘community’ without recognizing we’re not in this alone. If we don’t give back, we’ll stunt growth — and not just someone else’s, but ours. Anyway…enough of me getting all sentimental and Hallmark-y. You probably want to know who won from yesterday, yes?
The winner of a query letter critique from Kristine Asselin AND a signed copy of The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong is:
Alison Miller!!!
And in honor of today’s guest, here are the awesome giveaways for Thursday:
A 30-PAGE CRITIQUE (!) by Martina Boone
AND
A copy of Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr
The rules:
- You must be a follower of this blog.
- If you want to be eligible to win this prize pack, please stop by Adventures in Children’s Publishing and follow them too!
- Complete the entry form below to enter. You can earn extra points for blogging about this contest (include a link in the Comments) or tweeting a link back to this post (@reply me on Twitter — @CambriaDillon — and make sure to leave your Twitter user name in the Comments).
Today’s giveaway will run until 10pm EST tonight and the winner will be announced in tomorrow’s post. All other entrants will be added to the drawing for the Grand Prize Pack on Friday. Unfortunately, I have to limit the contest to US residents only. 
Sorry international folk!
Don’t forget to stop by tomorrow to enter my final giveaway. And in case you forgot…here are the fabulous prizes one more time:
GRAND PRIZE PACK: FRIDAY (3/25)
A premium membership to QueryTracker
A copy of Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr
A query letter critique by me
GOOD LUCK to everyone who enters!
By Cam
Getting to Know Kristine Asselin — one of my fabulous Agent Sisters!!!
Thank you guys for all the great comments about my previous interviews with Ricki Schultz and Carol Valdez Miller AND for entering the giveaway contests! The response has been awesome. Today I have another interview for you — this time with Kristine Asselin, who rounds out our trifecta of Agent Sister Amazingness for the week!
Kris writes contemporary YA and MG fiction and MG nonfiction. Oh, and the occasional picture book. She never turns down an invitation for Chinese Food or Ice Cream, but not together. She is represented by Vickie Motter of Andrea Hurst Literary Management. Make sure you stop by her blog to say hello!
Hi Kris! Thanks for participating in my week of giveaways! You recently signed with fabulous agent, Vickie Motter (Andrea Hurst Literary Management). What’s your book, THE SWEET SPOT, about?
Thank you so much Cambria for having me! I’m so excited to be a part of your celebration this week.
THE SWEET SPOT is my first YA novel. It’s about Kate Anderson, a teenager who decides she’s going to be the first girl to win the Junior State Golf Championship. She thinks it will help attract publicity to the almost-bankrupt family golf course. Her plans get screwed up when her best friend and crush is accused of vandalizing the course with a blowtorch.
The story has cute boys, bad boys, a rarely-explored summer sport, a bit of mystery, and bit of romance.
Nothing better than cute boys, bad boys and SUMMER. Sounds fabulous!!! Another fabulous fact about this book is that it evolved from a short story you had published in Golfer Girl Magazine. What are some pointers for those interested in the short story circuit? How much research about publications did you do before you started submitting?
Funny that you ask that! LOL. Really, I get Children’s Writer Newsletter. One month they announced a new magazine—Golfer Girl—and I happened to have written a short story based on a real life experience playing golf. I didn’t do any research, it just fell into my lap. I think my pointers are the same for any type of writing. Write a good story, revise it, have it critiqued, revise again. Then submit. And don’t give up.
Revisions and stamina are what make the writer’s world go ’round, right? 
So what made you decide to take the leap into expanding this idea into a full-length novel?
When I first wrote the story, it was in first person. It’s chapter four of my novel—in a nutshell; girl wears a white t-shirt while playing golf; it starts to rain, heavily; said white t-shirt gets soaked, exposing said girl’s, um, assets; girl’s crush comes to the rescue by throwing her a sweatshirt. I couldn’t even remember exactly HOW it really happened. I just had this memory of being really embarrassed and then really thankful my very cute friend was thoughtful and not a letch.
When I put the original story up on critiquecircle.com I got some nice feedback. Overwhelmingly people wanted to know what happened to Kate and Scott. In Real Life, nothing happened—this cute boy and I stayed good friends (right, boring!). So it took some time to turn it from a memoir to something purely fictional (i.e., interesting). While keeping it feeling real. Easy peasy, right?
A lot of the family stuff in the novel was inspired by my actual family, and the golf course we ran in the 80s and early 90s.
What a cool story to show that sometimes it DOES help to ‘write what you know.’ Okay, QUICK! Favorite pro-golfer?
I’ll have to go with Phil Mickelson purely for my parents. I’m much more interested in playing golf than watching televised golf. Michelle Wie would be my choice for fave female golfer.
Aside from your YA novel, you’re also a published children’s non-fiction writer. So in the vein of ‘Chicken or the Egg,’ what came first – your love of fiction or non-fiction? What are your non-fiction books about?
My love of fiction definitely came first. It was more a matter of “right place, right time” with the nonfiction. I was submitting picture books manuscripts to agents and editors in 2007. I had a couple of ideas for nonfiction and sent a few queries. A full year after subbing to Capstone Press, they assigned me my first work-for-hire project. I’m just finishing assignments seven and eight this month. So it’s been a really nice relationship. Very different than fiction, but I really like the research and learning new things. Getting to work with editors has also been a great experience—and it’s helped my writing ego a lot to see my work in print, and of course get paid.
My nonfiction runs the gamut from science to history. I’m not an expert, just a good researcher. And thank goodness for professional consultants and editors. They make sure it’s all 100% accurate.
Mother. Novelist. Non-fiction writer. Picture Book writer—Sheesh! How do you balance it all? What’s a typical “Kris Day?”
I’m going to quote Ron Weasley from p. 379 of HP Deathly Hallows. “That makes me sound a lot cooler than I was.” LOL.
+ 
= ???
Yeah…um, I definitely don’t think you’re giving yourself enough credit, Kris (No offense RW!)
I don’t know! It all seems to be sort of coming together. I’ve worked hard for a while to make it work. My daughter is eight, and getting to be more independent. There’s no typical day. Every day is totally different. I write when I can—and my family is very supportive of my writing. The paying gigs help that along a bit. I’m currently a part-time grant-writer for a community college. Honestly, I never thought I’d be at this point and there are days when I look around and wonder how I got here!
Okay, and now for some Mad Libs – Writer’s Edition! List the first word that pop into your head for each prompt:
Adjective: fluffy
Noun (Plural): books (what else)
Adjective: sweaty
Verb ending in -ing: golfing
Adjective: warm
Occupation: writer
Adverb: quickly
And now here are Kris’s words MADLIBBED:
Fluffy Books, Non-fiction books, and Books – OH MY! There’s nothing this sweaty writer won’t try! After querying and golfing through the writer-slush, she found a warm writer who she hopes—one day!—she’ll “meet for lunch.” Send her your congrats and wish her well, for a quickly-placed THE SWEET SPOT sale!
And here are some of Kris’s children’s non-fiction book covers. Aren’t they fun???
Thanks for an Out of This World interview, Kris! (Get it? ‘Cause there are stars and suns on her covers and — oh, nevermind.)
And yesterday’s winner of a 5-page critique from Carolina Valdez Miller AND a signed copy of Feed by M.T. Anderson is:
Kelly Polark!!!
In honor of today’s guest, here are the awesome giveaways for Wednesday:
AND
A signed copy of The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
The rules:
- You must be a follower of this blog.
- If you want to be eligible to win this prize pack, please stop by Kris’s blog and follow her too!
- Complete the entry form below to enter. You can earn extra points for blogging about this contest (include a link in the Comments) or tweeting a link back to this post (@reply me on Twitter — @CambriaDillon — and make sure to leave your Twitter user name in the Comments).
Today’s giveaway will run until 10pm EST tonight and the winner will be announced in tomorrow’s post. All other entrants will be added to the drawing for the Grand Prize Pack on Friday. Unfortunately, I have to limit the contest to US residents only. Sorry international folk!
Don’t forget to stop by tomorrow for a guest post by Martina Boone from the Adventures in Children’s Publishing blog. And there only two more opportunities left to win these fabulous prizes:
PRIZE PACK #4: THURSDAY (3/24)
A 30-page critique by Martina Boone, of Adventures in Children’s Publishing!
AND
A copy of Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr
GRAND PRIZE PACK: FRIDAY (3/25)
A premium membership to QueryTracker
A copy of Save the Cat by Blake Snyder
A copy of Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr
A query letter critique by me
A five-page critique by Vickie Motter, Agent Extraordinaire from Andrea Hurst Literary Management
GOOD LUCK!
By Cam
Getting to Know Carolina Valdez Miller — one of my amazing Agent Sisters!
Carolina Valdez Miller writes YA Paranormal. Usually in the middle of the night. She also reviews kid lit for the Bookanistas. She’s represented by Vickie Motter of Andrea Hurst Literary Management.
Thank you so much for participating in my week of giveaways, Carol! Lots of people may already know you from your blog and/or from The Bookanistas. But for our new followers, tell us a little bit about the book you pitched to your agent, Vickie Motter of Andrea Hurst Literary Management.
Thanks so much for having me, Cambria! So excited to be your AGENT-SISTER!!
As for my book, I can’t say too much about it yet. But I can tell you it’s a YA Paranormal set in Chicago. It’s about a sixteen year old runaway who encounters someone she didn’t expect to meet or fall in love with. He’s the only person who could really help her, while she’s pretty much the only person who could help him, and yet is unwilling to do so, because to help him could kill him.
Oooh…love, suspense, runaways! Sounds fantastic! How did you come up with the idea for it?
The same way I get a lot of my ideas–just at the brink of falling asleep, a little thought popped into my head, sort of like a dream, but…it wasn’t. More like when you let your imagination run wild, knowing it’s not real. Can’t say what that pseudo-dream was yet, but the next day, I saw a boy on a moped with a girl riding behind him, squeezing her arms around his waist, her cheek pressed to his back. They were both wearing sweatshirts with hoods over their heads. I put the pseudo-dream together with that image on the moped, and my book baby was conceived.
I love that – real life inspiration meets pseudo-dream inspiration! What was your writing timeline for this book like?
It was my Nano project for 2009. I wrote it in just under 4 weeks. My first edit was finished in December 2009. And then in the New Year I sent it out to select betas. It’s been a really long process, gone through a lot of revisions and requests, left to sit for a bit while I worked on another project, and then it went through one mega-mondo revision at the end of 2010. When Vickie requested it, I changed one final plot element, so it saw yet another revision in the days before I sent it to her. Honestly, I have to wonder if any book of mine is ever done. I’m a bit of a perfectionist, and I’ll keep reworking my book babies until someone tells me to just stop already.
I hear you on that! Every time I read my manuscript, I want to change something! So you have one of those rare stories where you pitched to an agent in person and she requested your manuscript and eventually signed you! Since you’ve attended several conferences and—in my eyes—are basically a Conference-goer Expert, what are your top five tips for writers attending their first one?
Ha! I don’t know about expert. I have been to quite a few, but honestly, each one has terrified me. But if I were to try and offer 5 tips? Hmm…I’ll give it a shot.
- HAVE CONFIDENCE. And if you don’t? Fake it. Even if you’re quaking inside, ready to vomit at the first glimpse of an agent/editor, kick those shoulders back, paint a smile on your face, and have a firm grip when you shake someone’s hand. I mean, it’s okay to let your nerves show. Just try no to stutter and stumble or become ultra mousy when an agent/editor asks you a question. Just do the best you can. Remember these two things: 1. You have a book you love and believe in and 2. Agents/editors are people, too, doing the exact same thing you’re doing: trying to publish a kicking awesome book.
- BE PREPARED. To meet people and make friends and be social. Come with business cards and a smile. Bring your first chapter (I did have an agent ask me for some pages on the spot once), but not much more than that. And have an elevator pitch ready and rehearsed. It’s not the end of the world if you don’t, but you don’t want to miss out on a potential opportunity.
- DON’T BE A TOOL. Don’t hit up agents or editors in the bathroom or when they’re clearly not looking to be pitched to. This includes at the dinner table while they’re eating. Wait until after dessert, and then let them ask you what your book is about. They know why you’re there—they’re there for the same reason as you.
- RESEARCH YOUR CONFERENCES. Conferences are really great for networking and pitching opportunities, but some are better than others. It’s important you choose conferences that are right for what you want. So be sure to talk to people who have gone to a conference you’re considering. See what you can find with a Google search, too. Choose wisely.
- MAKE FRIENDS. Conferences present a really unique opportunity to commune with other people who get you. You may have a really strong support system at home, but even so, few non-writers will want to sit and talk about writing and publishing for hours on end. After the fifth consecutive hour of discussing trends in YA, your spouse will likely want to tape your lips shut. Also, I’ve met some truly amazing people at conferences, people I know I will be friends with for years to come. So don’t just network; befriend others, and then follow up after the conference.
AWESOME tips! So that begs the question – how do you balance conferences, blogging, family, and writing? What’s a typical “Carolina Day?”
Oh man, I just don’t sleep. I get at best five hours of sleep a night, but usually four. It’s not healthy, and I’ve probably shrunk my lifespan, but I’m really crazy driven. I devote as much time as I can to my family, but I also rely on them to help pick up the slack. I usually take care of blogging related work all day long and then I write at night until I can’t keep my eyes open any more. I’ve also learned how to step over toys on the floor and turn a blind eye to the permanent marker on the carpet for as long as humanly possible. Clearly, I’m no June Cleaver. But I’m okay with that. She could never have been a writer. Thank God my family and friends are so supportive. I take care of the essentials, hang with the family, and write, write, write.
If there was one book you were forced to read over and over until the world ended, what book would that be and why?
Hm, tough question. Probably LOVE YOU FOREVER because it’s one of the best books ever written. It makes me cry every time, and I’m hoping one of these days I’ll be able to read it without sobbing.
Ah, a tearjerker. I must say I do love me a good literary cry every once in a while. Okay, and now for some Mad Libs – Writer’s Edition! List the first words that pop into your head:
Noun: Pillow Lust
Place: Scribble Cave
Plural Noun: TBRs
Shape: Blob
Adverb: Gollumly
Past Tense Verb: Carolfied
Adjective: Truthy
Thanks a ton, Cambria! So excited to be able to celebrate your representation with you. It’s an honor to be interviewed by you.
Aww! Thanks and right back at ya! And now here are Carol’s words MADLIBBED:
Once upon a time there was a Pillow Lust who went to Scribble Cave for a conference. One day, she met up with a bunch of TBRs to see the sites. But Ghirardelli Blob was nothing compared to meeting a gollumly agent who Carolfied her story! And so the agent and the Pillow Lust became truthy friends and business partners as they embarked on a journey toward publication. The End.
Thanks Carol for ROCKING such a great interview!
And before I forget, here’s the winner of Prize Pack #1: A 5-page critique by Ricki Schultz and Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott:
Monica Mansfield!!!
And in honor of today’s guest, here are the awesome giveaways for Tuesday:
AND
A signed copy of Feed by M.T. Anderson
The rules:
- You must be a follower of this blog.
- If you want to be eligible to win this prize pack, please stop by Carol’s blog and follow her too!
- Complete the entry form below to enter. You can earn extra points for blogging about this contest (include a link in the Comments) or tweeting a link back to this post (@reply me on Twitter — @CambriaDillon — and make sure to leave your Twitter user name in the Comments).
Today’s giveaway will run until 10pm EST tonight and the winner will be announced in tomorrow’s post. All other entrants will be added to the drawing for the Grand Prize Pack on Friday. Unfortunately, I have to limit the contest to US residents only. Sorry international folk!
Don’t forget to stop by each day this week for more great interviews and chances to win these fabulous prizes:
PRIZE PACK #3: WEDNESDAY (3/23)
A query letter critique by Kristine Asselin, fellow Agent-Sister!
AND
A signed copy of The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
PRIZE PACK #4: THURSDAY (3/24)
A 30-page critique by Martina Boone, of Adventures in Children’s Publishing!
AND
A copy of Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr
GRAND PRIZE PACK: FRIDAY (3/25)
A premium membership to QueryTracker
A copy of Save the Cat by Blake Snyder
A copy of Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr
A query letter critique by me
A five-page critique by Vickie Motter, Agent Extraordinaire from Andrea Hurst Literary Management
GOOD LUCK!
By Cam
Yay! It’s Monday and you know what that means? Yup — it’s the first day of my WEEK-long fest of awesome giveaways! But FIRST — kicking off my contest in grand style is Ricki Schultz — writer, blogger, online organizer extraordinaire!
In addition to interviewing literary agents for the Guide to Literary Agents blog, Ricki is a contributor to Writer’s Digest Books, with articles in the 2011 Guide to Literary Agents and Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market as well as in forthcoming editions. She speaks at writers’ conferences (most recently, the 2010 Romance Writers of America national conference); has published poetry in The John Carroll Review; has written for St. Ignatius Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, and The Villager; and has won awards for two of her young adult manuscripts. As coordinator of the online writing community, she’s hosting the Write-Brained Network’s inaugural writing workshop this fall in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She’s also a recovering high school English teacher.
To connect with Ricki, please visit her Web site, blog, follow her on Twitter, or join the WB!
First off, thank you SOOOO much for kicking off my giveaway week, Ricki! You’re my absolute favorite Twitsom ever! (And for those of you wondering what a Twitsom is, well, it’s a Twitter Soulmate and yes, her and I are both aware how uber-cheesy that term is…which is probably why we <3 it!)
So okay, you’re a freelance editor, writer, and founder of The Write-Brained Network. For those people who still think The WB is a TV channel airing The OC, can you tell us more about it?
OMG—if there were a channel still airing The O.C., I’d so be watching it right now. I miss me some Seth Cohen! (Although—what am I saying?—I have the DVDs!) What was I talking about? Oh, yes. The WB.
Well, unlike the now-defunct TV channel, the Write-Brained Network is an online community dedicated to connecting writers for the purposes of networking, socializing, honing their craft, and sharing tips with others. It’s kind of like a Facebook, but just for writers. We have several chapters and subgroups being started by Write-Brainiacs according to region, genre, and interest as well as a forum to ask and answer questions, get feedback on queries, post and read reviews of writing and nonwriting books, etc.
And even though we’re constantly growing, it still feels like a close-knit community. It’s a great group of folks.
What made you decide to take on this venture?
When I started it back in December 2009, I had recently moved to a new state and stopped teaching in order to write full time. In short, I went from being in the hub of a school to dressing like a schlub, alone in my home office!
I had attended a few conferences at which I’d met some pretty awesome peeps from other states, and Facebook just didn’t seem quite the right medium to discuss all things writing and stay in touch with them.
And so the idea was born.
At the time, we were Shenandoah Writers Online—since I had also just started Shenandoah Writers (in real life) or SW(IRL), as I like to call them—but when we started getting members from Utah and Washington and Florida and Australia, I recruited a few of my most active members to help me with a bit of a relaunch as the more inclusive WB.
Are there any events coming up for writers to check out?
Yes! On March 22, we will be having our monthly WB Live Chat from 9-10 p.m. The topic is “Plotters & Pantsers,” and the chat will take place right on the Write-Brained Network.
If you can’t make it on such short notice, we do these every month (it’s usually the last or second-to-last Tuesday of the month). Check out our Web site for the latest.
Even more exciting, we will be holding our inaugural workshop—The One-Stop Workshop for the Serious Writer: A Roadmap from “How to” through “I Did” in September, and that’s open to members and nonmembers alike!
For more info—or to register—please visit the WB Web site.
You also interview agents for the Guide to Literary Agents blog – which was a great resource for me when I was querying. How do you approach agents and prepare for an interview?
The key here—just like with querying—is RESEARCH. I go to at least three or four sites (AgentQuery and QueryTracker are usually among the first) before I even contact an agent, just to make sure I have a decent handle on what and whom they represent before I contact them.
There are a few questions Chuck (Sambuchino—Writer’s Digest Books editor, who runs the GLA blog) wants his interviewers to ask every time; however, when deciding what to ask for the rest, I try to think about what I would want to know, were I to query this person. He or she might say they rep YA, but I try to dig a little deeper—what kind of YA? Are they drawn more to dystopian? Edgy? Contemporary stuff?
If the agents have blogs or have been interviewed elsewhere, I soak up all the info they’ve already provided and try to either get clarification about something they’ve written, spin it a different way, or ask questions they haven’t been asked before.
I have a lot of fun with this gig, and I’m very grateful to be able to do it!
How do you balance your writing time with all your freelance projects? What’s a typical “Ricki Day?”
Heh—I never balance it as well as I want to, but I think I sometimes have unrealistic expectations for what I can get done in a day. I mean, writing down 12 things on one to-do list isn’t always possible. Especially not in an hour. J
But, on my more organized mornings, that’s essentially what I do—write lists. I’ll get up, start the caffeine drip, and write out what all I want to get done (from a much bigger, ongoing to-do list that never seems to end!).
If I’m under a strict deadline, I might even write out certain hour allotments for how long I need to be doing x, y, and z. If I’m being really good, I won’t come out until I’m done. Or my husband comes home. Or my beagle starts looking at me with those “I have to pee” or “It’s six—hello—where’s my food?” eyes.
If I’m not being that good, stick Regis & Kelly and Kathie Lee & Hoda in there somewhere. J
What are you working on right now?
At the moment, mostly WB Workshop stuff as well as agent interviews and editing and critiquing for friends. I have a few ideas swirling around for a new manuscript, and I hope to be getting a rough outline down on paper soon to distract me from querying my latest YA contemporary manuscript (which is also what I’m doing on right now).
Okay, and now for some Mad Libs – Writer’s Edition! Tell me the first word that pops into your head:
Adjective: peanut-buttery
Noun: beagle (sorry—as I type this, Molly is working on getting peanut butter out of a Kong)
Adjective: hungry (this is what I am right now)
Present tense verb: types (I am SO BORING!!)
Adverb ending in –ly: (adverbs are THE DEVIL) devilishly
Present tense verb: bounces (Molly’s now trying to bounce the treats out of the Kong)
And here are Ricki’s words MADLIBBED:
The peanut-buttery beagle looks at her query letter one last time. Her manuscript is hungry, but she still types for the little things — like grammar and sentence structure and spelling. Before she can change her mind, she takes a swig of Moscato and devilishly presses the Send button. Little does she know, her future agent may only be a few bounces away…
Thanks for an awesome interview, Ricki!
And in honor of today’s guest, here are today’s fabulous giveaways:
A 5-page critique by Ricki Schultz, founder of The Write-Brained Network
AND
The rules:
- You must be a follower of this blog.
- If you want to be eligible to win this prize pack, please stop by Ricki’s blog and subscribe or follow her RSS feed.
- Complete the entry form below to enter. You can earn extra points for blogging about this contest (include a link in the Comments) or tweeting a link back to this post (@reply me on Twitter — @CambriaDillon — and make sure to leave your Twitter user name in the Comments).
Today’s giveaway will run until 10pm EST tonight and the winner will be announced in tomorrow’s post. All other entrants will be added to the drawing for the Grand Prize Pack on Friday. Unfortunately, I have to limit the contest to US residents only. 
Sorry international folk!
Don’t forget to stop by each day this week for more great interviews and chances to win these fabulous prizes:
PRIZE PACK #2: TUESDAY (3/22)
A 5-page critique by Carolina Valdez Miller, fellow Agent-Sister!
AND
A signed copy of Feed by M.T. Anderson
PRIZE PACK #3: WEDNESDAY (3/23)
A query letter critique by Kristine Asselin, fellow Agent-Sister!
AND
A signed copy of The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
PRIZE PACK #4: THURSDAY (3/24)
A 30-page critique by Martina Boone, of Adventures in Children’s Publishing!
AND
A copy of Radiant Shadows by Melissa Marr
GRAND PRIZE PACK: FRIDAY (3/25)
A premium membership to QueryTracker
A copy of Save the Cat by Blake Snyder
A copy of Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr
A query letter critique by me
A five-page critique by Vickie Motter, Agent Extraordinaire from Andrea Hurst Literary Management
GOOD LUCK!
By Cam
You GUYSSSSS! I got a blogger award! Do you know what this means???? It means 1) I am stylish (it says so right on the award, you know), and 2) I REALLY need to blog more often so I don’t go out of style.
Thank you so much to Chris Ledbetter at The Oracle and The Muse who crowned me with this blog-bling. As part of the award, I’m supposed to reveal seven things about myself and follow these rules:
1: Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award.
2: Share seven things about yourself.
3: Award ten recently discovered great bloggers (except I only listed eight because my brain quit on me!)
4: Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award.
So here are Seven Things about Moi:
- My daily after-school snack in high school was a bowl of frozen strawberries and pickles (not together because Eww!)
- I once was a telemarketer for a cemetary
- I have a debilitating fear of sharks and snakes and won’t swim in water I can’t see the bottom of or go traipsing through bushes or wooded areas without a big stick on-hand
- I once went sky-diving and after watching the video, realized my cheeks flap more than any one human’s cheeks should
- When I was a kid, my living room used to be bare of furniture except for a 14-foot (in diameter) trampoline
- Ball pits at fast food restaurant playgrounds give me a severe case of the heebeejeebees
- I love scary movies but can only sit through them with my fingers plugged in my ears and my eyes clamped shut
Here are the Bloggers I am passing this Award on to:
So there you go. Spread the Stylish Blogger love and remember to check out these FAB writers!
By Cam
Hey! I’m over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing talking about writer’s butt and life after the agent. Come see me!
By Cam
I HAVE AN AGENT!!!!!!!!!
Whew. I’ve been waiting to say that since Friday. But today, I can officially announce that I’m represented by Vickie Motter at Andrea Hurst Literary Management.
SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!
I’ll post a separate entry on my road to getting an agent later this week because right now? It’s still sinking in. I mean, I have an AGENT?!?! Like, a REAL one?
Yeah. I can’t stop shaking my head and checking my glass for suspicious liquids.
In the meantime I’m going to start revising LIFE AFTER SEND (for my agent) (really????). My plan is to read through the whole thing by Sunday, while notating general areas I might want to change, and then layering in the things Vickie and I discussed. I think that process will probably take a couple of weeks. Then I’ll read through again. Tweak. Rinse. Repeat. And then send off for comments and line edits.
Holy moly this is INSANE. I have an agent. Who will be reading my MSS. And pitching my MSS. And then editors will be reading my MSS (hopefully). And tear it apart. Or love it. Or love to tear it apart. I don’t know. This is a total dream. I mean, not to have my poor MSS potentially be viewed and ripped apart over and over, but THIS–this whole journey is a dream.
Pinch. Pinch. Pinch. Pinch.
Yup. A total dream.
By Cam
So I haven’t posted here in weeks and when I do, I do it on a Saturday?!? Yeah, that makes no sense to me either…but I’ve been crazy busy. Here’s a quick rundown of what I’ve been up to over the past few weeks:
- Attended SCBWI NY for the first time — The content of the breakout sessions was so-so, but I hung with wonderful people, and listened to keynotes by the ever-inspirational Lois Lowry, R.L. Stine, Jane Yolen, and Mark Teague. I even had a sentimental moment when I had keepsake books autographed for my daughter. I hope she loves them as much as I do.
- Writing the first draft of my new contemporary YA (told in dual narratives), tentatively titled GRIP
- Writing short stories to submit to online journals and literary publications so I can build up my cred and earn a little $ on the side
- Dealing with a 2 1/2-year-old who is DEFINITELY acting her age Every. Second. Of. The. Day
- Grinning from ear-to-ear about AWESOME news I can’t share yet
So that’s what I’ve been doing. Yeah. It may not seem like a lot, but Toddler Trouble is giving me a run for my money.
Here are some pics from SCBWI to tide you over. I only had my iPhone, so some of these I borrowed from Martina Boone and Carol Barreyre.
Enjoy!
Me and Cici Ramirez on the train to NYC!
Me and Carol Barreyre listening to R.L. Stine
Dinner out at SCBWI NY
Me, Marissa, and Cici at dinner
Ara Burkland & Martina
Carol & Debra Rossi
R.L. Stine's keynote!
A genius at work, signing
Please adopt me, Bob?
THE Lois Lowry. Literary Brilliance in the flesh. (Notice the half-eaten piece of chocolate to the left? A true writer.)
My daughter's fave book signed by Jane Yolen & Mark Teague!
By Cam
You’ve probably noticed the blog has been a bit dusty as of late. But don’t worry — New Year’s is just around the corner, so guess what’s going on my Resolutions list for 2011?
In the meantime, I’ve got a new part-time job. Every Tuesday, you can find me over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing talking about craft and dishing out homework with Martina and Marissa. Today there’s a great post up on the RENNS sensory system and an especially sensory-laden photo meant to inspire your, uh, senses. And there *may* be a giveaway…but you won’t know unless you head over.
Tomorrow, I’ll post more about what I’ve been up to…it’s a doozy.
By Cam
I’ve been quite absent from the blog lately. I’d like to say it was because my NaNo-drunk mind was furiously concocting worlds of literary genius…but, alas. That would be a total fib. I had every intention of doing NaNo this year — signed up, managed to get 3,000 words written in the first two days, tracked and cheered my fellow NaNo buddies — but a funny thing happened in my writing process. I succumbed to something I thought only existed in the minds of fairy-tale-telling writers.
I got hit by the shower.
Now, it might be a combination of the sinus meds I took the night before, or the washing away of 24-hours worth of sick-toddler stress, or maybe my new shampoo really is that good — regardless what magical hands were at work during my morning shower, I was struck with the biggest plot revelation that, so far, answers many of the kinks I had in my NaNo story.
It also raises its fair share of questions, too. But these questions are ones I think I can find… through research.
So that’s where I am now. Instead of churning out 50K, I’m going to focus my efforts this month on making sure I understand how a real person in my character’s shoes would act. Medically and psychologically. It’s much easier to start building the foundation of my story with bricks made of real life nuggets, than with crap that holds no weight. Yes?
That doesn’t mean I’m not going to take liberties, but with this particular plot string in my WIP, I really need to weave in the authentic details and that starts with studying up. College-style. I’ve reserved a whole slew of reference materials from my library, rented movies that seem to have the atmosphere and character mannerisms I’m looking for, and created separate playlists to channel my characters’ energy. And I have more than enough leftover Halloween candy, coffee, and tea to aid in the process.
What about you? What kind of research do you do, if any, to make your story more believable? Do you do it prior to writing the first draft or during revisions to tweak the details?
Cambria Dillon - YA Writer represented by Vickie Motter, Andrea Hurst Literary Management
