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Post by nicholai441 on Jun 18, 2008 14:36:12 GMT -5
thanks i'll check it out, although i think i'll pursue a agent maybe after one or two edits first. i want to story to be perfect without any mistakes. and so that it can be published right away, i want to finish the first book first so if they say they want to see the whole thing by a curtain date, i'll be able to go: "i have it right here, i can give it to you now."
so i guess will try getting that book probably sometime next year
thanks again
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Post by lisajane on Jun 18, 2008 16:55:23 GMT -5
although i think i'll pursue a agent maybe after one or two edits first. i want to story to be perfect without any mistakes. and so that it can be published right away, i want to finish the first book first so if they say they want to see the whole thing by a curtain date, i'll be able to go: "i have it right here, i can give it to you now." That's what all writers do... there's no point sending a half-completed manuscript...
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Post by nicholai441 on Jun 19, 2008 6:46:35 GMT -5
i've been told before that when starting it's best to send in maybe about 5 chapters of the story and hope it catches the interest of the agent or publisher or what not.
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Post by Chris Wooding on Jun 19, 2008 8:09:09 GMT -5
That's true, but you still need to have the rest of the manuscript ready to send to them as soon as they say they're interested. What lisajane said is right. Writer's Yearbook, read the section on how to present manuscripts, then pick a suitable agent from the list and get sending! It doesn't matter where the agent is in relation to you, tho it probably helps if they're located in a major publishing city (LA, New York, London, etc etc) Answers to other questions in the thread sometime soon! Honest!
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Post by Aryeec {E.F. Forester} on Jun 19, 2008 9:59:45 GMT -5
Go with London! Waaaaaay better!
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Post by lisajane on Jun 19, 2008 17:17:22 GMT -5
That's true, but you still need to have the rest of the manuscript ready to send to them as soon as they say they're interested. Exactly. A lot of agents and publishers usually ask for the first three chapters, or 30 pages (once you pick an agent/publisher, you'd need to check their guidelines about that and follow the guidelines exactly - they won't pick you if you can't follow some simple rules). That's enough to know whether the story can hook a reader in. But if they like it, you have to have the rest of the novel ready to go. I also suggest you look at this website - www.winningwriters.com/contests/avoid/av_avoid.php It seems to deal with a lot of poetry sites, but there are publishing companies there, but there is a better site than this (I forget where it is) which outlines which publishers to avoid. Also, if you write short stories, may I suggest entering some competitions? I entered a few when I started writing, rather than send my first stories straight to publishers and getting rejected. Winning the competitions confirmed for me that the stories were of a publishable standard. (I don't actually use the Writers Guide/Yearbook, as I have my own contacts, but most writers I know use it).
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Post by bluephoenix on Jul 8, 2008 1:52:27 GMT -5
interesting stuff. I'm really curious to get started trying to be published, but I need to polish up first, heh.
I'll wait for the rest to filter out before I ask anything...
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Post by nicholai441 on Jul 10, 2008 16:23:30 GMT -5
thank you for the information, i'll try to finish at least the first book before i get send in anything (the story i'm writing is about... three to four books long unless it's good (not expecting harry potter-ish but at least to where i have some people asking for more to the story). although, i'm guessing there are standards to the age groups you write to. with my current story (it's an entirely different story from the one i brought up when i first started here -i gave up on that one since it was really just bits and pieces from different story idea and re formed to my image, this new one is totally my idea, because it's based of a childhood fantasy/belief i had-)
so i was wondering.. how you decide what age group you write to. i guess i can find the limits of what not to use for age groups online or something (out of pure laziness and procrastination) does anyone have a site address that tells that? also about the writer guide/yearbook. they come out with one every year right? in that case i'll wait till i finish my story before using it to search for publishers, incase informations change by the time i'm done. i'm guessing though, that, that will also answer the question i just asked. although it i don't understand the information it gives then it probably won't help anyway.
as for short stories, i don't think i can write a short story.. i did it before when i was younger but now i try to explain everything in the story so that the reads will get a better idea of what i see in my "minds eye" and that usually results in the short story no being so... short. heck i had to write a letter (where we were supposed to leave room for an image)and i did it in the form of a story. the thing too up the whole page and almost then some. it was that long. so that i don't think would do.
by the way, about how it was said (i forgot who it was said by -you or another writer (Joshua Braff)- that when your story first hits paper (not in those words) that it's all ready copy write. i think it was more, once you start writing your story on paper it's already copy right (still, or something like that). i had asked how i would know that the person i send it to won't just take the story as their own and run(i added that last part in). anyway, i was wondering if that includes computer or if it HAS to be on written paper?
well thanks.
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Thunderous
Full Member
They Have Pulled Down Deep Heaven on Their Heads
Posts: 210
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Post by Thunderous on Jul 10, 2008 17:21:08 GMT -5
it's just the principle. Your post is copyright. If I copy/pasted it into a question thread on another forum, it'd be plagiarism. And if something like what you said happens, it should be easy to prove you wrote the story and file a lawsuit. That might even get you enough publicity to attract another publisher
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Post by Chris Wooding on Jul 11, 2008 12:04:44 GMT -5
Copyright's slippery. In general, the more detailed your story/proposition/whatever, the easier it is to argue if some publisher stole the idea. But in the end, anyone can steal your basic idea; in a world where people are coming up with new ideas all the time, it's inevitable that occasionally two people are going to invent VERY similar stories... and it's difficult to prove that they intentionally stole it. In practice, however, I'd say this almost never happens. Publishers don't have enough time and energy to publish all the good ideas in the world, much less steal yours. And it's a rare idea indeed that's so mind-blowingly fantastic that they'd risk plagiarising it (not to mention that they'd have to find a writer willing to write that stolen idea). Remember, nobody really knows whether a good idea is going to sell. Much easier for them to a) pay you not very much as a new author and work with you to develop the idea or b) forget it and go commission a new James Patterson novel. Very few ideas are good enough to risk a lawsuit, when there's so many more out there. If you send out your book/film/idea into the industry you expose it to the possibility of plagiarism. But really, that's just the game. You shouldn't worry about it. Incidentally, I have been dreadfully plagiarised several times, and all of them were ideas and stories I had never shown to anyone!
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Post by Chris Wooding on Jul 11, 2008 12:38:05 GMT -5
Um, can't remember actually. I think I'd googled myself (being a horrendous narcissist) and I was reading stuff that Maliris was blogging about me, and then I found out about the forum. I didn't post on it for ages cos I wanted to let it do its own thing without any influence from me (similar reason to why I'm not putting my tuppence worth in about the title of the new site) but eventually I decided it needed some traffic so I linked it from my site, and it became my little net-home ;D No, I'm really bad at it. Pandemonium only exists as a script as yet. I keep hearing bits from Scholastic US about artists they're trying to get but it's actually quite hard to find someone who'll commit to a 192-page graphic novel as it takes soooo long to draw. The last guy was really good, he was just about to start, and then he went off to join the army and go fight in Iraq. Sheesh. Lol, people keep asking me this. No, not at all. Believe me, people I know in real life are far weirder than those I know on the net. Two things: Spirited Away and the cover of the Fantasy Masterworks copy of M. John Harrison's Viriconium. The first, because I wanted to set a story within an enclosed environment like the bath-house in Spirited Away; second, because the painting gave me the inspiration for Orokos. Funny how things work out... Sorry, that's a loooooong story. Each one's different. Most of them you can get by reading the blurbs about each book on my site tho. The short answer is yes. Landscapes and environments are what give me the most inspiration of anything, I'd say. You mean, would I rather live in the opening scenes of a Japanese RPG on the Playstation, or in the real world? Undoubtedly the first one, the real world sucks Pombar answered this one. Sure. Still do. Maybe I'll go one day. Nope! Cos there's lots of you and only one of me ;D Too many answers!!!! There's a publisher that's very keen on it, so it's looking good. Another one has the Braided Path too. I'll let you know. As to the cover, no idea: that's their choice. I've seen it, but I didn't base anything off it. S of the L was a good movie, but I'm bored with that whole franchise. I think Hannibal Lector is WAY overrated. People, he's not THAT amazing, he's just a common or garden serial killer who has a bit of culture *wooo, spooky noises* ;D The guy from SAW is better... Haven't been yet, sorry! Nothing's really happening. Someone just got in touch and is after the option, and New Line were up for it at one point, but right now it's way unlikely. There were reasons why almost all the main characters in TBP were female (nature vs destructiveness theme); with the Fade it was largely about loyalty and that meant motherhood was a big theme, hence female; Poison... don't know why she was a girl, she just was ;D And in Alaizabel the main character was Thaniel, at least to my mind. I think I saw writing males as a bit too unchallenging back then. Then I got a bit sick of it, so Ace Of Skulls and Malice right the balance nicely, with an overwhelming majority of male characters Lol, well that'll happen! After all, there's only two options to pick from
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Post by Aryeec {E.F. Forester} on Jul 11, 2008 17:08:36 GMT -5
Sweeeeeeet! Thanks for all the answers! ^_^
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Post by zemira on Jul 11, 2008 18:23:08 GMT -5
Here's a totally random question: About how long does it take for you to answer all these questions?
Just wondering how much of your time we steal.
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Post by nicholai441 on Jul 14, 2008 2:55:17 GMT -5
sweet, if you do and i haven't moved off the state. then could you drop me a line and let me know? ------------------------------- i was just watching some videos (via youtube) and i was wondering if you would do a video blog or reply or something of that sort? it would probably... most likely be a treat for all us fans of yours to see and hear you via video at least. so that we could put a voice to the face we all love... hm is that a good word to use?
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Post by Maliris on Jul 21, 2008 5:23:44 GMT -5
Um, can't remember actually. I think I'd googled myself (being a horrendous narcissist) and I was reading stuff that Maliris was blogging about me, and then I found out about the forum. I didn't post on it for ages cos I wanted to let it do its own thing without any influence from me (similar reason to why I'm not putting my tuppence worth in about the title of the new site) but eventually I decided it needed some traffic so I linked it from my site, and it became my little net-home ;D ;_; Sweet! (Though I suspected something like that because everybody googles their names once in a while. XD)
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