The Craft
By Andrew Peterson
I thought I'd write a brief article on the subject of "web crawlers" and "spiders." I hope you'll find it useful. If you follow a few simple rules, you can maximize your internet exposure and move your ranking up in the search engine results and help keep yourself near, or at, the top.
In conversation, the subject of "research" often comes up. After offering a quick snapshot of my novel's plot and
its protagonist, I'm often asked, "Is that what you used to do for a living?" My answer is always the same. No, I've never been a sniper or a covert CIA operative. And although they don't put their next question into words, I know what they're thinking: Then how can you write about it? I always smile and answer the unasked question like this: "As far as I know, Anne Rice has never been a vampire." This usually brings a chuckle, but I also see the light go on behind their eyes.
It's a work of fiction, not an autobiography.
Award-winning medical suspense author CJ Lyons is a physician trained in Pediatric Emergency Medicine. She has assisted police and prosecutors with cases involving child abuse, rape, homicide and Munchausen by Proxy and has worked in numerous trauma centers, as a crisis counselor, victim advocate, as well as a flight physician for Life Flight. Publisher's Weekly proclaimed her debut medical suspense novel, LIFELINES. (Berkley, March 2008), "a spot-on debut….a breathtakingly fast-paced medical thriller." Contact her at http://www.cjlyons.net.
I know people often associate world building with science fiction or fantasy, but it's just as important in thrillers. In order to draw the reader into your story you need to create a universe where you both control the rules and where you make a promise to the reader to also follow those rules.
As a debut author, your first relationship with an agent can be like a courtship. The first blush of an offer to represent is followed by the unforgettable satiation of that first deal. You light up a cigarette and revel that nothing will ever be the same again, but in the afterglow, some authors may wonder:
- Did I make the right choice?
- What do I know about them…really?
- Was I sober when I agreed to this?
That first deal can be a heady experience. In the throes of a first-time negotiation, some authors may throw caution aside and grab that first warm bodied agent who comes along. And others may struggle with which agent is THE BEST. I think there is no "best" agent. It's what is right for you—at the time. And one agent might work well for one author, but not so much for another—for many reasons.
So, you wrote and sold your first book. Congratulations! How did you do it? If you were like me, this is what you did:
1) In mid-March, you
visited your long-suffering agent of eight years who tells you to stop
writing stuff no one will read and to get on the stick and write a
“thriller or something.”
2) Mortified, started said thriller on the airplane home.
3) Realized, “Hey, it’s what I most enjoy reading, anyway! Why didn’t I do this years ago?”
Secret One: Write the damn book!
Of course, the all important first step is to finish a manuscript. Maybe not even one, it might take several. Most people don't realize it, but the average published author writes over half a million words before they sell.
Let me repeat that. Half a million words.
We may hear of those "overnight" successes, but they are rare.
Just be prepared that you might not hit a home run the first time out—but that's all right, because you'll be building contacts and learning valuable tips that will help your writing career.
Yet, despite knowing this, agents and editors report that 80% of the manuscripts they request never show up on their doorstep—or if they do, it's months to years later. Why? Because the writer pitched the manuscript before it was finished.
Think elephants have long memories? It's nothing compared to an agent's or editor's memory of the time you wasted!
