COVERING LETTER SPOTLIGHT 1

A very good writer I know, with poems and short stories to her credit, has sent me a covering letter for your comment. I know she's been working really hard on this, and she's got it honed down to something very lean and neat. But has she got it right? What do we all think?

Please note that this is for a UK submission, not a US-style query.

 ___________________________________________Dear Ms./

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 13 - CHILDREN'S

A Submission Spotlight for you to comment on. This time, it's a novel for 10-12s and our writer is "Mandy Lemmer". Brave lady!

If you would like to know how this works, and why there's a covering letter and 500 words but no synopsis, please go here, for the guidelines.

Please do be constructive and respectful. "Do as you would be done by" is a pretty good motto, and I think it is especially

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 12 - YA NOVEL

Here's a new Submission Spotlight for you. If you're not sure how to handle these, please go here.

This is from Ashleigh S. She has been brave enough to offer herself to you - treat her kindly and honestly!
____________________________________
Dear Publisher [replace with name],

You can’t have it all. So what do you want to most, and what can you most stand to lose?

At Rainbow's End is a

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 11

OK, folks - you know how this works now, I think. (If not, go back to SS 10 here).

"Margaret Dunlop" (not her real name) offers this for your consideration and she's being very brave in doing so, so please be fair but firm and imagine being in this position: you'd want to know the truth but you'd want it expressed constructively, sensitively and respectfully. Remember that for this I only ask

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 10

I bring you another brave writer's work for a Submission Spotlight. If you don't know how these work, do check out this post here. And perhaps read some of the other SSs (see the label for them on the right in the index of topics) so you can see how people comment.

NB to those on Twitter - if you like, you can also comment there, using the hashtag #submissionspotlight10 I will then transfer

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 9: YA NOVEL

For those of you who don't know how these work: an intrepid writer sends me her covering letter plus the first 500 words of the proposed MS and I put them here for your constructive comments. It is assumed that if this was actually being sent to agent or publisher, a synopsis would be included, and more than 500 words, so please allow for that.

This submission is from Sarah - she can say her

SYNOPSIS SPOTLIGHT

Remember when I used to do those Submission Spotlights? When brave blog-readers would offer part of a submission for public scrutiny and comment? As you may remember, I stopped doing them when I decided to help people more directly by setting up Pen2Publication.

Well, the other day I was contacted by a newish blog-reader, Siena, who was having problems writing a synopsis. Pen2Publication is

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 8: picture book

This is the first picture book submission I've put up for a Submission Spotlight.

 (All illustrations copyright Beverley Johnston)


The 500 word rule doesn't apply for this, so I am showing you the covering letter, synopsis, and half* the text, along with some sample pictures. Please respect Beverley's copyright, particularly for the pictures: you may not reproduce them without her permission

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 7: adult readers

Another Submission Spotlight before I finally stop doing them and launch Pen2Publication. You should know the form by now  -  constructive comments, please. And remember that the synopsis is not actually included for the purposes of thise exercise, so you have to imagine that it is. Similarly, although the letter refers to "chapters", we only have 500 words here. You will see that some names have

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 6: Adult Readers

Because I'm about to start my very own literary consultancy, Pen2Publication  -  gulp  -  I won't be doing many more of these Submission Spotlights. (So please don't send any more.) But I thought I'd try to use a small number of the backlog first.

If you haven't commented on one of these before and don't know the system, please go and read a couple. (Click on the label "Submission Spotlights" in

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 5: Adult Readers

We have another brave writer willing to submit herself to the rigours of a Submission Spotlight. (Apologies to others who have sent in submissions  -  I'm getting there, and promise to produce a few more soon.) Her name is Lynn Michell and she is looking forward to your feedback to help her on her way.

If you haven't commented on one of these before, please look under "Submissions Spotlights"

WANTED: SUBMISSIONS FOR PUBLIC OPINION

Newcomers (and there are many - hello!) to this blog won't know about the occasional Submission Spotlights, so I thought I'd flag up these opportunities to have your Work in Progress mauled in public by readers from all over the world. "Hold me back," I hear you say. Yes, it's a scary thing to do - but here's a thought: getting published is scary too, because then your Work is no longer in

COVERING LETTER - PERFECTION REQUIRED

(It's a long one - settle down with wine, chocolate, anything you need. But there is a competition at the end, so it will be worth it.)"What's so important about the covering letter / query letter? After all, isn't it the book that counts?"Yeah, sure it's the book that counts. But the agent/editor isn't going to get that far if your covering letter isn't good. No, forget that. The agent /editor

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 4: adult readers

Another Submission Spotlight opportunity for an intrepid author to receive feedback.The author, "Devan" tells me that she has had good feedback from an agent, but that the agent decided to pass because she "didn't feel the affinity with my style that she would need to champion my work." (Valid reason). Devan is now trying to work out whether this was just that agent or if there are "issues" to

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 3: adult readers

Hooray for brave authors: we have another intrepid victim - sorry, subject - for a Submission Spotlight. The author, "Redleg", describes this as the scariest thing he's done. So be gentle! (But not too gentle.) I should also point out that in his message to me he worries that the submission may be "too Yankee-centric" (be proud of it, Redleg!). So, let's assume this is for the US market; and for

TRUTH HURTS - SO UNLEASH YOUR HIDDEN MASOCHIST

For a writer, there are sensible ways to take feedback and there are foolish ways to take feedback.I won't add (much) to the vitriol hurled from and at two writers who got themselves into the news this week as examples of extreme(ly bad) ways to take negative criticism. Alain de B and Alice H will make up their own minds how to react to the feedback to their feedback to the feedback (aka reviews)

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 2: younger readers

This is PART TWO of the Submission Spotlight - Annie's submission for younger readers. To see the rules and understand what on earth I'm on about, please go to the previous post here.Please comment - on BOTH submissions if you can.Dear Secret Agent Man (or Woman),I am seeking representation for RAVENSCOURT MANOR, a Middle Grade fantasy mystery novel that takes place in a pseudo-Victorian

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT 1: adult readers

Well, here we are: Submission Spotlight time! I did find it rather amusing - and sweet and touching - how nervous you all said you were. Some of you said this was worse than submitting to an agent or publisher. Yes, because it's public ... Sorry about that.I have picked TWO submissions. One, aimed at adults, is in this post; the second, aimed at younger readers, is in the post above. If yours

SUBMISSION SPOTLIGHT

How brave are you? Are you ready to let total strangers comment on your query / synopsis / proposal for your beloved Masterpiece? Because, I am offering you the chance to do just that.On the basis that I trust that all comments will be given in the spirit of honest opinion with a view to helping rather than hindering or destroying, this is a chance to hold your work up for constructive criticism