tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post1889780095106688814..comments2024-03-28T02:00:11.260-05:00Comments on A Newbie's Guide to Publishing: The Best Promotional Bang For Your BuckJA Konrathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-87559204566557110082008-03-06T21:10:00.000-06:002008-03-06T21:10:00.000-06:00Gives me a little hope that my time writing short ...Gives me a little hope that my time writing short stories in between novels isn't all wasted... :)T. M. Hunterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04315726033990784930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-52011459376102404092008-03-05T19:46:00.000-06:002008-03-05T19:46:00.000-06:00Joe,I'm am so glad that Harry McGlade is finally g...Joe,<BR/><BR/>I'm am so glad that Harry McGlade is finally going to have his own novella. I really think he is funny as hell. I know he's a jerk, but hey...he's like family! Where can we find that novella? I assume you'll post on the blog when it comes out.<BR/><BR/>PatPicks by Pathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03210946161490466694noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-26333256396612683502008-03-05T12:13:00.000-06:002008-03-05T12:13:00.000-06:00Joe,Thanks for this. I have been using the shotgu...Joe,<BR/>Thanks for this. I have been using the shotgun approach with little success. <BR/><BR/>BTW, I found you through the Thriller anthology. I've just finished Whisky Sour and have bought 3 more of the Jack Daniels books. Love your humor.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-45302771789344275792008-03-03T11:21:00.000-06:002008-03-03T11:21:00.000-06:00I was thrilled to read this post, Joe, as short st...I was thrilled to read this post, Joe, as short stories were my first true love. And you're right, it is a different style of writing, so even now, when I take a break from a novel to write a short story (a treat for me) it takes a while to change modes.Conda Douglashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12972790965426924941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-12268799162033356002008-03-02T15:29:00.000-06:002008-03-02T15:29:00.000-06:00Dude. Are you saying I'm not a good writer? :-)All...Dude. Are you saying I'm not a good writer? :-)<BR/><BR/>All righty then. Guess I'll have to prove you wrong...<BR/><BR/>*sigh*<BR/><BR/>Must burn all these putrid short stories first. I can write novels, non-fiction, articles, ad copy, commercial scripts, web copy - you name it, I've written it. Except for short stories. I suck at those.<BR/><BR/>I feel challenged now.s.w. vaughnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102544611773720262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-76624481356172931692008-02-29T16:28:00.000-06:002008-02-29T16:28:00.000-06:00Joe, great advice. And you're right--short stories...Joe, great advice. And you're right--short stories are harder (for me at least!) than full-length novels. But I also love Stephen King's novellas and short stories, and was upset when he said that the art of the short story was dead. I've really tried to learn this lost art, because I lived on short stories when I was younger (Ray Bradbury has some GREAT shorts. The one on the tesseract, "The Sound of Thunder", and others stick out and I haven't read them in more than 20 years. God, I feel old.)<BR/><BR/>One problem with some of the anthos (IMO) is that they want SHORT short stories. If you look at King, for example, he has a few short shorts (less than 5K words) but the bulk of his short stories are between 5-15K, and his BEST work is in novella format (30-50K) My KILLER YEAR antho went over by a thousand words, but fortunately my mentoree Gregg Olsen, went way short so I took his word allotment :) <BR/><BR/>I'm writing, on spec, a story for Thriller2. Don't know if it'll make the cut, but I don't regret trying because it's good practice.Allison Brennanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02872860080644987843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-81931672628558579872008-02-29T10:07:00.000-06:002008-02-29T10:07:00.000-06:00Joe,I told you when I first approached you that I'...Joe,<BR/><BR/>I told you when I first approached you that I'd found your work through the Thriller anthology. This post is absolutely on the mark. That has extended now as I'm reading "These Guns for Hire", the hitman anthology, on the prowl for new authors to read. It may not be the approach of all readers, but it's certainly how some of us find new things to read!<BR/><BR/>nKNick Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04951621700075682249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-22320389231174989192008-02-29T08:48:00.000-06:002008-02-29T08:48:00.000-06:00A lot of writers tell me that short stories are ha...A lot of writers tell me that short stories are harder to write than books than books.<BR/><BR/>I think it's like the difference between ice skating and roller blading. If you can do one, you'll be able to do the other, but you may need to practice and rethink some basics.<BR/><BR/>Writers write. Good writers write everything. <BR/><BR/>No one ever accomplished anything by saying "I can't do that."JA Konrathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-4316721916498899092008-02-28T18:57:00.000-06:002008-02-28T18:57:00.000-06:00Ah . . . but what if one can't write short stories...Ah . . . but what if one can't write short stories to save one's proverbial life?s.w. vaughnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102544611773720262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-62734891018447780502008-02-28T07:31:00.000-06:002008-02-28T07:31:00.000-06:00Thanks for the advice. I'm in the process of tryin...Thanks for the advice. I'm in the process of trying to get my work infront of new readers and now I have another avenue to approach.<BR/><BR/>Much obliged...James Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08807865320537867045noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-26863622006874523602008-02-27T23:37:00.000-06:002008-02-27T23:37:00.000-06:00I'm taking a midline path on write for markets. Fi...I'm taking a midline path on write for markets. First and foremost because I spent two years writing to market and sold nary a one to all those markets. All my sales have been "shotgun" method as Josephine points out above.<BR/><BR/>Many of my misses have also been "We just took a story like this" or an editor has admitted that they are just burned out on seeing those kinds of stories, and while mine was good, they just couldn't stomach any more, good or not. You have no way of knowing if the editors are to that point because there's no way to see into their slush.<BR/><BR/>So sure you should definitely target your stories, but just completely writing just to market often leaves you with a bunch of stories that have Nos attached and no clue where else to send them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-89459163695346889772008-02-27T15:53:00.000-06:002008-02-27T15:53:00.000-06:00JA, great advice. I used to take the shotgun appro...JA, great advice. I used to take the shotgun approach: write whatever I felt like and submit to a gazillion 'zines - with no success.<BR/><BR/>Now I use the sniper approach: write a story geared toward a particular mag - and it's worked - my first story in a print mag - OUT OF THE GUTTER - will be out in April.Josephine Damianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17952030380866201241noreply@blogger.com