(no subject)

[jasonandrew]

Friday, I decided to do some more research on publishers and things editors are looking for.

I think the concept of Abigail's Dragon is saleable. I think I have a lot of editing to do with the manuscript, which is fairly logical since it is the first draft. I need to make sure the quality of the manuscript matches the concept.

That said, thinking about my test readers makes my stomach sick. For a very long time, I did not really try with my writing. It is much harder to keep a dream alive if you try and fail. I'm working on my next novel to keep from thinking about it. I can obsess on stuff if I don't have a distraction.

I talked with Lisa quite a bit about my next novel.

I've decided against writing The New Gods of the Lost Children at this time. I love the idea of it, but I think it might be a hard sell and I need to let it gestate.

I looked through my notes and did some brainstorming and I came up with a plot that I think will be fun to write and fit within the “new genre” of occult/supernatural romance. I put in the quotes because this type of story has been around for a long time, but it is one of the new marketing pushes. The tentative title for the novel is Sympathetic Magic. I’m working on my outline this afternoon.

And yes, maybe it is tacky to work on the ideas I think are the most saleable first. However, I think breaking into the novel business is the first priority. Once I have reader and publisher trust, I can work with the more complex and difficult stories. I plan to write for the rest of my life and a good idea will never go to waste.

I think I can write a new novel every three months. My goal is to have at least three novels out in the publisher submission ether at any time. Since it can take up to six months for a single novel submission to get reviewed, having three out there increases my chances.

Comments

[sebbiem.livejournal.com]

By the way, New Gods of the Lost Children is a really great idea. Though I thought the story concluded a bit abruptly. Which is why I agree that it would, even without an incredible amount more, certainly hold up well to a longer, possibly novel length, treatment.

Working on saleable ideas is how you should start. Once you've sold a thing or two, you can play around with what you'd like to do, and your agent/publisher might still get behind it because you've got an audience now. My dad spent years trying to get his dream books published, then when his health got worse, he finally compromised, got published, knew he could get the books he wanted published eventually, but then died.

Don't be that guy.

[highway-west.livejournal.com]

I am indeed looking forward to writing the novel version of New Gods of the Lost Children. I think it will be an excellent choice in the long run. However, it will be a more complex novel than either Abigail's Dragon or Sympathetic Magic.

I even think that New Gods of the Lost Children is saleable. I just think that it will be ever more saleable once I get one of the novels published. My concept for the novel is that it would have multiple protagonists and POV shifts.

I think this is something I need to work up to. I think after my next novel that I will have enough experience to tackle it.

[xjenavivex.livejournal.com]

huge goals - rock on! i think it makes sense to write what you know will sell. you get a fan base. you get a paycheck for others. you build your clout (sp?) and then you have room to move.