Endings. To lead up to chapter 8 I need nervousness in chapter 4. Hymn chapter 5 is romance so misgivings (head talk) precede it. My ch 1 is a bitch. Should open to the two protagonists against a party. One throws it, the other is clueless that she’s going to fall in love on the first page....Jane b nyc
Really helpful! I'm new to submissions in the writing world. Sometimes I've been asked for a Cover Letter to go along with the submission. Do you have any thoughts on/tricks for these? I give a bit of background about myself, not so much the story.
Thanks for your comment Will. The whole submissions grind can be a bit of an admin grind, and the applies across the board, from submitting a flash fiction piece, through to submitting to agents and publishers for a novel. In terms of a Cover Letter, then this is an idea I can expand on in a separate post in Writing Talk, but I would say some top tips would be:
1. Keep it brief and professional, just some brief details about you and your writing credits. A publisher or competition is going to be primarily interested in your writing, so there’s no need to put too much information in there. If they need more they will ask for it.
2. Put in a line about why you are submitting - what it is about the magazine or competition or publisher that you like.
3. Avoid the temptation to ‘explain’ your story. It has to stand on its own merits and if it needs explanation then it’s not doing that.
4. Make sure you edit it with the same level of application as you do your story. Nobody wants to read a cover letter that’s looks like you haven’t given it any thought or care.
The part about openings has me wanting to go back and examine some of mine. I do try to keep things lean, but I think I am quite probably explaining too much at the beginning. Thanks for the pointers!
Thanks for your comment Stephanie. Don’t worry, you are not alone in trying to find that balance between exposition at the beginning and getting the reader immediately into the mood and tone of the story, its style and voice. It’s not easy, but it is worth the extra effort, because that first contact with the reader is so vital. I have a lot of ideas and thoughts on story openings and will be sharing those as Writing Talk develops, both for free and paid subscribers.
Ha, the thing about the endings! I so often find myself disappointed with endings in novels. It must be monstrously difficult to get them right, seeing as how you've got an entire book to wrap up, but I find that it really lowers my opinion of a novel if I feel that the ending doesn't work.
Thanks for your comment Veronica. Finding an ending that does justice to what has gone before is not easy. I’m thinking about doing a post soon on different types of endings and the link between the author ‘knowing’ enough about their story - whether flash fiction, short story or long form - and providing an ending that will achieve that ‘pause’ when the reader finishes the final sentence.
Sounds great! What would also be really interesting is to hear your insider’s view on what makes a ‘winning’ story in a competition, and what judges liked about your winning stories. Anyway, I’m really enjoying your substack so far, looking forward to part 2 of this post!
Good solid advice. Thanks for writing and sharing this.
Thanks Ginda for taking the time to comment, much appreciated. I’ll be adding the second part of this topic this week. Stay tuned. Ken.
Endings. To lead up to chapter 8 I need nervousness in chapter 4. Hymn chapter 5 is romance so misgivings (head talk) precede it. My ch 1 is a bitch. Should open to the two protagonists against a party. One throws it, the other is clueless that she’s going to fall in love on the first page....Jane b nyc
Really helpful! I'm new to submissions in the writing world. Sometimes I've been asked for a Cover Letter to go along with the submission. Do you have any thoughts on/tricks for these? I give a bit of background about myself, not so much the story.
Thanks for your comment Will. The whole submissions grind can be a bit of an admin grind, and the applies across the board, from submitting a flash fiction piece, through to submitting to agents and publishers for a novel. In terms of a Cover Letter, then this is an idea I can expand on in a separate post in Writing Talk, but I would say some top tips would be:
1. Keep it brief and professional, just some brief details about you and your writing credits. A publisher or competition is going to be primarily interested in your writing, so there’s no need to put too much information in there. If they need more they will ask for it.
2. Put in a line about why you are submitting - what it is about the magazine or competition or publisher that you like.
3. Avoid the temptation to ‘explain’ your story. It has to stand on its own merits and if it needs explanation then it’s not doing that.
4. Make sure you edit it with the same level of application as you do your story. Nobody wants to read a cover letter that’s looks like you haven’t given it any thought or care.
Thanks for the in-depth response, KM! This is incredibly helpful. Looking forward to your future posts!
No worries Will, glad to help, that’s what I’m here for.
Ken.
The part about openings has me wanting to go back and examine some of mine. I do try to keep things lean, but I think I am quite probably explaining too much at the beginning. Thanks for the pointers!
Thanks for your comment Stephanie. Don’t worry, you are not alone in trying to find that balance between exposition at the beginning and getting the reader immediately into the mood and tone of the story, its style and voice. It’s not easy, but it is worth the extra effort, because that first contact with the reader is so vital. I have a lot of ideas and thoughts on story openings and will be sharing those as Writing Talk develops, both for free and paid subscribers.
Looking forward to it!
Good read. Thanks.
Thanks Gregory, keep an eye out for the second part!
Ha, the thing about the endings! I so often find myself disappointed with endings in novels. It must be monstrously difficult to get them right, seeing as how you've got an entire book to wrap up, but I find that it really lowers my opinion of a novel if I feel that the ending doesn't work.
Thanks for your comment Veronica. Finding an ending that does justice to what has gone before is not easy. I’m thinking about doing a post soon on different types of endings and the link between the author ‘knowing’ enough about their story - whether flash fiction, short story or long form - and providing an ending that will achieve that ‘pause’ when the reader finishes the final sentence.
Sounds great! What would also be really interesting is to hear your insider’s view on what makes a ‘winning’ story in a competition, and what judges liked about your winning stories. Anyway, I’m really enjoying your substack so far, looking forward to part 2 of this post!
Thanks Veronika, you make an excellent point, that my personal experience can be of value to you and others. I will take this on-board.