Jessica Ferguson

Author, Writing Coach, Speaker

IWSG DAY: TRIGGERS IN BOOKS?

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It’s IWSG Day! Our members are blogging away, posting their thoughts on their own blogs, expressing struggles and triumphs, doubts and fears. You can go HERE  to read what they have to say.  Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG.

IWSG was founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh. He saw a need for encouragement and he filled that need. On September 7, 2011, Alex launched the monthly blog posting of the IWSG and it has been going strong ever since.

 

The awesome co-hosts for the January 8 posting of the IWSG are Rebecca Douglass, Beth Camp, Liza @ Middle Passages, and Natalie @ Literary Rambles!

Every month, we announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG post.

The question is optional! 

January 8 question – Describe someone you admired when you were a child. Did your opinion of that person change when you grew up?

I really can’t remember anyone I admired – well, on second thought, I can. A 6th grade Texas history teacher that disappointed me. But I was a dumb kid. I took everything at ‘face value’ back then. Believed everything I saw and heard. I don’t often make that mistake today. In fact, I’m probably a little too suspicious of everyone. So moving on …

You know I’ve had an agent for the past three or four years. We haven’t accomplished much. She’s been trying to sell my romantic suspense. I don’t like calling my book a romantic suspense. I much prefer labeling it a romantic mystery. Anyway my agent sent the proposal to four publishers: two didn’t like the subject matter since it has to do with bomb threats in a school. They said readers would find that a sensitive subject. The third publisher said I have no platform but she’d be willing to reconsider if I grow my mailing list and social media by 500+. That’s all well and good, but growing it isn’t my real problem – maintaining it is. Maintaining is tedious. And does that mean she expects those on my social media/mailing list to actually buy the book or just pass along info regarding my book?

The 4th publisher my agent sent the book to never responded. Evidently when one doesn’t respond that’s a NO. I think that’s ridiculous in the age of quick emails. All she needed to do is say “No thanks” to my agent and we’d mark them off the list. Instead, they’re just “hanging out there.”

So what do you think? Should this book be self-published even though it might trigger anxiety in parenting readers? I don’t have any triggers that I know of, at least nothing that’s reared its ugly head to date, so I can’t answer this question. I’ve tried to put myself in a parent’s place but I easily separate fiction from reality. This makes me wonder about other triggers: like unwanted pregnancies and hidden babies, and divorce, and abuse, and car wrecks and anxiety in general, cold blooded murder that’s in most mysteries, alcoholism and death. Are those things triggers for readers?

Any thoughts on what to do with my book with bomb threats in the school and two explosions outside the school? I know of two authors who have books out using this backdrop but their books came out before school terrorism got so bad. My characters aren’t harassing the school; rather someone IN the school.

I normally read the blurb on the back of a book. If there’s something that doesn’t appeal to me, I don’t buy/read the book. Come to think of it, I might have a trigger. Airplanes. I hate flying. I mean I truly. HATE. flying. I will not buy or read a book or watch a movie that has to do with flying. Is that my trigger? Oh, and I don’t buy medical romances or watch those kinds of movies either. I don’t even like walking into a hospital. Yeah, that might be another trigger.

My agent is encouraging me to “self-pub” but my heart isn’t in it. She says the story is good and deserves readers. My thought is if a traditional publisher isn’t willing to take a chance, am I? My self-promo skills are sorely lacking.

My agent has a second book I’ve written in a different genre. A romance. After her critique, I’m fleshing it out a little more and rewriting the first few chapters. I did a lot of telling in this book.

And after I do that  …

If this new book doesn’t sell to my targeted publisher, I’m thinking of putting novel writing behind me. I like writing short. Short articles, short stories. More instant gratification. There are so many other time-consuming things I want to do.

So here’s the big question: if you were 76 years old, had an agent, knew that if she sold a novel to a traditional publisher it would be a year or two before it hit the stands, what would be your career plan?  Do you realize how close 76 is to 80? (Yeah, slapping the side of my head.)

Thanks for your help. I’m looking forward to your comments.

JRF

 

How Do You Write?

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I truly envy those of you who can sit down and plot your entire book scene by scene or chapter by chapter, including each character’s GMC. I can’t. Or maybe I should say I don’t plot to that extent. I use a very vague 3-act structure. And pile lots of random notes into my iPhone.

I start thinking about the story when an idea or a character with a goal or a problem pop into my mind. I vaguely map out the little I know —and hope it’s enough to keep me excited. I’ll be able to tell soon enough … when I start writing. The actual writing is where I get to know my characters and my story. Would you call me a pantser?

I’m a fast typist. If I have a soft comfortable chair to sit in, I can write all day. I just think story and let my fingers fly. The problem, of course, is that there’s a heck of a lot of revision.

Once I wrote four novellas in the course of a few days. That was several years back and I often think about those short books, and how I might make them longer. The characters are still real to me. Their stories still excite me, but they’re so rough I’d probably be overwhelmed if I re-read them. I wonder how long revision would take. I used to love rewriting my novels. Now, not so much.

Every writer has their own writing/plotting/revision methods. Plotting is probably second nature to many of you. I’m good with beginnings and endings–meaning they come fairly easy. It’s the middle that stops me cold and hangs me up.

I’m investigating plottr. It seems like an interesting program—and very visual. I’ve never fully understood or caught on to Scrivener so maybe Plottr will work for me. There’s an interesting YouTube interview with bestselling author Deb Kastner, and she shares her plotting a romance template. There are many good instructional videos showing valuable info regarding plottr. You may have already watched them.

Have you used Plottr? What’s your experience with it? Share how you write. I’m curious and interested.

W is for Writing

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When I signed up for A to Z Challenge this year, I had no idea what I wanted to write about. I planned to wing it—the way I did last year. But as soon as I sat down to write that first post, my theme became apparent: I’d write about my childhood and my family. I’ve had fun blogging about my loved ones, but I’m ready to move on and talk about writing again. Family Time is growing old and boring for me. And I’m beginning to repeat myself. I don’t like repetition!

So W is for Writing. This is what I’ve been doing alongside A to Z.
I wrote a short story specifically for Woman’s World. This time I got off my ‘duff’ and put it in the mail. I’m waiting … waiting … waiting … just like in the old days. Complete with SASE.  Woman’s World doesn’t take email submissions.

I’m also working on a pitch to a Harlequin editor on May 8th. This will be sort of like speed dating: I pitch in 100 words or less and they tell me immediately whether they want to see a synopsis, a proposal or the complete novel. I really like this idea. This is the instant gratification thingie working. I’m pretty nervous about it, even though I have the pitch ready. I’ve been working on the first three chapters of the manuscript just in case the editor requests it. It’s a straight inspirational romance—no mystery or suspense. And I still have to write the synopsis. Arrghh!

My mind is working constantly on other things—revising, re-plotting, wondering if anything is any good. There’s so much I want to revamp. I don’t want to give up on any of my stories—even when I know I should move on to something fresh.

My novella came to me so easily. I wish all my stories came that fast—that complete. They don’t. I struggle.

Tell me about your writing. Do you have anything with an agent or editor? Or do you plan to ePub? Do you like today’s publishing world and how things have changed? Tell us about it.

Here’s a market for you just in case you don’t have anything to do:

Family Circle Magazine is now accepting submissions for their 2013 Fiction Contest. Submit your previously unpublished short story of no more than 2,500 words by September 16, 2013. There is no fee to enter and you could win the grand prize of $1,000 and publication in the magazine, plus other prizes. For all the details go here.