Comments on: Give and take

By: D.C. DaCosta

D.C. DaCosta — Sat, 28 Sep 2013 02:01:30 +0000

I agree wholehearted with your assessment of DGLM’s site. This is the only one that really has any value.

By: Kevin A. Lewis

Kevin A. Lewis — Fri, 27 Sep 2013 20:19:20 +0000

I weigh all writing-related advice against observable facts on the ground and the validity of the source before factoring it into my strategy. As a YA/juvenile writer, there’s a very specific set of boobytraps and shibboleths one has to maneuver around, and sometimes it’s worth the effort and sometimes not. As I think I mentioned on this site somewhile back, I dropped a Prince Charming memoir project after comparing agency resistance with writer feedback I encountered while working on it; writers advised me that most agents disliked positive depictions of teen boys as main characters, and my own observation on the ground led me to conclude that most agency’s sense of humor doesn’t extend much beyond the next Wimpy Kid knockoff, so on to the next thing… The project I’m showing around now is a hot potato set in WWII Berlin, an instant dealbreaker among the safe-and-sane gatekeeper set, but collating advice and observation once again, the overall calculus is that it’s ultimately a winning strategy in terms of an agency contract with events to follow. I also observe agency strategies and ambience in terms of who I query; DGLM isn’t heavily invested in YA, and I’ve gotten enough e-mail robojections to drop it from my possibilities file. On the other hand, you guys have one of the only real-time blogs where someone can drop in and talk shop, (as opposed to those agency blogs where they just file an infomercial for their latest properties once every six months or so) so that’s why I keep cluttering up your site with comments and disjointed ramblings…

By: Lynn

Lynn — Thu, 26 Sep 2013 13:01:18 +0000

Great advice by Faulkner, but it just goes to show that not much has changed. That advice still holds true today. Yes, technology has helped tremendously going from quill pens and inkwells to copy and paste on laptops, but the work involved for what a writer must do to pursue his or her dreams continues to be the same.

By: Katie

Katie — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 19:26:55 +0000

We’re hard headed – maybe it’s a characteristic we’ve been given to see a book through. We see it as our responsibility to do everything we can to give our baby breath. It really is so similar to giving birth: the joy expecting new life, the pain of labor.

It’s such a fragile state. I’m sure, a state where true character comes out. I hope I’m the gracious sort.

Seeking wisdom from those I trust and respect, tuning out the noise!