The Tool Box
The Toolbox contains useful articles and links for writers.
If you have an article for use on this page, please let us know. We'll consider any sound advice to make sure that Book Shed writers remain the ones to watch.
Current Articles
Formatting a Manuscript - a few basics
"... Most editors, agents and publishers ask for submissions in an easy to read font. They are not impressed by fancy fonts or strange colours. Using them may make your submission stand out, but not in the way you hope..."
"... above all else, you should be looking for an e-mail address for contact. This can be the biggest key to making sure your work ends up on the desks of the people who might give you a fair crack of the whip ..."
"... Punctuation for dialogue is something that beginner writers often get wrong..."
"... Readers like dialogue - the majority of them demand it - and it is the first thing they will criticize if it doesn't suit them... "
"... what is the difference between plot and story? Is there a difference? ... "
"... Three common areas for mistake are the use of commas, semi-colons and colons. So this document or provided as a refresher... "
"... writers often use more than three dots, but the correct punctuation is only three, no more and no less ..."
E-mail is your friend
The phrase 'time spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted' has been attributed to various figures throughout history, but when it comes to getting ready for submission to an agent, it couldn't be truer.
You've completed your manuscript, toned and trimmed the synopsis, first three chapters and have a killer pitch, now what? Hit the Writers and Artists Yearbook, find the list of agents and start firing off letters? Well you could do that. You could also just throw your money and self esteem out of the window, the end result will be the same.
Rejection hurts, it sets you back, it makes you question why you're even bothering. There are no two ways about it. So setting yourself up for a flood of 'Dear Author' letters is nothing short of masochism. Before you buy a single envelope, do your research.
Not every agent will deal with the type of material you produce. Not every agent will be looking to extend their list. Not every agent will even read your material. Arm yourself with as much information as you can. It will save you money, time and eventually reduce the disappointment.
So where to start? The yearbook is a great place to go, but it is published annually, by the time the year in question starts, some of the content will be as much as six months out of date. Start there by all means, but back this up with the Internet.
A growing number of agents now maintain websites, check these for the latest submission guidelines, client lists and hints about what they might be looking for.
For those agents without websites, type their name into search engines and look at the sites that reproduce information from the yearbook, they may be able to offer more useful nuggets to support your submission. They might even indicate that the agency has changed address. But above all else, you should be looking for an e-mail address for contact. This can be the biggest key to making sure your work ends up on the desks of the people who might give you a fair crack of the whip.
Not so long ago, an author with too much time on his hands (and a general sense of paranoia) submitted a manuscript to a clutch of literary agents, employing techniques that would allow him to prove beyond much doubt scientifically whether his work was even read. Six rejections down the line, he claims to be able to prove not one of the agents he approached turned a single page of his work. This may be well on its way to becoming urban myth, but the smart money is on the writer failing to entice with a great pitch letter and - most likely - not doing adequate research.
If you can find an e-mail address, you're half way there. Although many agents claim they only take postal submissions, most are willing to at least glance at an e-mail query and let you know if you are wasting your time. Why wouldn't they? Time wasting is a two-player sport.
The true advantage to a writer is cost and speed. Send a gutsy, witty and enticing pitch by e-mail and you'll usually get a response within days. The reply will either point you to their submission guidelines, they might be interested and ask you to send your material either by post or mail, or they could simply reply to tell you their list is full or that your material doesn't seem right for them. Every one of these replies is a win. You've wasted no money, invested little time or emotion. Any rejection at this stage is for the concept and not your carefully crafted words. It hurts less.
So what if they ignore your mail? Treat it as a rejection - unless you truly believe in the agency - and write them off. If they can't even be bothered to reply to a simple e-mail, how much effort are they going to put into reading your material?
Who you approach is down to you. Don't just fire off the same mail to every agent with an e-mail address. You'll just get a reputation. Publishing is a small world, agents talk. Research your market. Only approach those agents that specifically cover your genre, try to find who is currently accepting submissions and make sure that when you write to them, you SELL your work. A good place to look is LitMatch, though don't limit yourself to this.
Spend days trawling the web if need be. You have to get this right.
And what do you write? This isn't the time for limp 'would you mind having a quick look, I think it's good' mails. Tell them why you're writing, who you are, then give them a few HOT lines about your work. Ask them if they will let you send them the first three chapters and synopsis. There will be more articles on the Book Shed soon about this crucial pitch. You can also hone your approach by discussing it with other writers in The Bar.
If your chosen agents say no, back off; if they say yes, then send it immediately and in whatever format they ask for. You might even find that some of the 'postal only' people suddenly are up for an e-mail. Mark your work 'requested submission' and address it to the person who said they'd like to see it.
All of this may still come to nothing, but by cutting out the crap at an early stage, you will save money, time and head off the certain rejections before you invest any emotion.
If you end up being rejected, take the positive from the experience. These people bought into your pitch, they liked what you said, so even if ultimately you didn't make it, there must be something there. Next time, you'll do it. If nothing else, you now have a contact to advance mail before your next round of submissions.