Cover Reveal for BEFORE TOMORROW

I am so excited to share with you the cover reveal for BEFORE TOMORROW by fellow Pitchwars mentor Pintip Dunn, a FORGET TOMORROW novella from Logan's POV!

Title: Before Tomorrow
Publisher: Entangled TEEN
Release Date: Oct. 31, 2016

In a world where all seventeen-year-olds receive a memory from their future selves, Logan Russell's vision is exactly as he expects—and exactly not. He sees himself achieving his greatest wish of becoming a gold-star swimmer, but strangely enough, the vision also shows him locking eyes with a girl from his past, Callie Stone, and experiencing an overwhelming sense of love and belonging.

Logan’s not sure what the memory means, but soon enough, he learns that his old friend Callie is in trouble. She’s received an atypical memory, one where she commits a crime in the future. According to the law, she must be imprisoned, even though she's done nothing wrong. Now, Logan must decide if he'll give up his future as a gold-star swimmer and rescue the literal girl of his dreams. All he'll have to do is defy Fate.

Add BEFORE TOMORROW on Goodreads!

But what if you don't want to wait until Oct. 31?

No problem. Pre-order REMEMBER YESTERDAY, book 2 in the FORGET TOMORROW series, and register your receipt here, and you'll receive a copy of BEFORE TOMORROW to read before anyone else! Plus, U.S. residents will also get a bookplate and bookmark!

Want to learn more about FORGET TOMORROW and REMEMBER YESTERDAY? Click here.

REMEMBER YESTERDAY buy links:

Amazon Barnes & Noble iBooks Kobo

Pintip Dunn is a New York Times bestselling author of YA fiction. She graduated from Harvard University, magna cum laude, with an A.B. in English Literature and Language. She received her J.D. at Yale Law School, where she was an editor of the YALE LAW JOURNAL.

Pintip is represented by literary agent Beth Miller of Writers House. Her debut novel, FORGET TOMORROW, won the RWA RITA® for Best First Book. Her other novels include THE DARKEST LIE and the forthcoming REMEMBER YESTERDAY. She lives with her husband and children in Maryland. You can learn more about Pintip and her books at www.pintipdunn.com.

Getting the Call and Happy Release Day with Liana Brooks

Funny Call story or reason to bury your face in a pillow and scream your head off. I'll let you be the judge. :-)  Either way enjoy and congratulate Liana on her release day!

Did you hear the one about the author who forgot the title of the book she was querying?

Now, that’s a funny story…

Way back in the day I wrote a book I titled JANE DOE. I loved that title! It worked well for the book and I queried it under that title. And that query got nowhere.

So, like every author desperate to get a bite on a query, I rewrote that little sucker. I rewrote it, and edited it, and rewrote it again. In the rewrite the query just happened to end with the words, “… the day before.” It was kind of catchy, so I put it in all caps and pretended that this was the title of my book and all of this was intentional.

____________________________________________________________________

 A body is found in the Alabama wilderness. The question is: 

Is it a human corpse … or is it just a piece of discarded property? 

Agent Samantha Rose has been exiled to a backwater assignment for the Commonwealth Bureau of Investigation, a death knell for her career. But then Sam catches a break—a murder—that could give her the boost she needs to get her life back on track. There's a snag, though: the body is a clone, and technically that means it's not a homicide. And yet, something about the body raises questions, not only for her, but for coroner Linsey Mackenzie.

The more they dig, the more they realize nothing about this case is what it seems … and for Sam, nothing about Mac is what it seems, either.

This case might be the way out for her, but that way could be in a bodybag.

______________________________________________________________

And then I promptly forgot that I had changed the title.

Fast forward a few months (and one revise-and-resubmit) and an email showed up one evening with the subject line: The Day Before- Marlene.

The entirety of the email was something along the lines of, “You did. Let’s talk.”

I almost deleted the email.

What had I done? What was this about the day before? Had something happened yesterday? I had no idea.

Three hours later, I realized Marlene was talking about JANE DOE! She wanted to talk about my book!

I was over the moon. This was it. My big break. THE CALL.

Everything was set up for a Monday morning phone call. I had my list of questions to ask, my phone was charged, the kids were in the basement play room watching My Little Pony… and we ran out of something. Cereal or diapers or something we could absolutely not live without.

There was a full hour between when Marlene was supposed to call and that moment, and the grocery store was five minutes away. My phone’s battery had been on the fritz, so I left it at home to charge, ran to the store, came home, and set everything back up again.

 9:06 A.M. … My phone was upstairs charging, and I felt calm and in control.

Then I looked at the clock again, remembered that Marlene lives in Florida which is an hour ahead of where I was in the Midwest, and ran upstairs.

Yeah.... two missed phone calls.

I had an agent who wanted to talk representation, and I missed her phone calls. Not so professional.

I panicked. Wouldn’t you? She’d tried to call me twice and I’d flaked on her!

After about five minutes, I calmed down, and realized there was still a chance. A million-to-one, last desperate chance to secure my agent. Shaking, I called Marlene Stringer back…

She, being the most wonderful agent on the face of the earth, forgave me. We laughed about the mistake. I learned to always verify time zones. And JANE DOE/THE DAY BEFORE had a champion in the publishing world.

THE DAY BEFORE was sold in a 3-book deal to David Pomerico of HarperVoyager, and released May 2015. The last book in the trilogy is coming out September 13, 2016. Look for DECOHERENCE everywhere ebooks are sold, and watch for the print edition in October 2016. 

Readers of Blake Crouch's DARK MATTER and Wesely Chu's TIME SALVAGER will love Liana Brooks' DECOHERENCE--the thrilling, time-bending conclusion to the Time & Shadow series!

Samantha Rose and Linsey MacKenzie have established an idyllic life of married bliss in Australia, away from the Commonwealth Bureau of Investigation, away from mysterious corpses, and—most of all—away from Dr. Emir’s multiverse machine.

But Sam is a detective at heart, and even on the other side of the world, she can’t help wonder if a series of unsolved killings she reads about are related—not just to each other, but to the only unsolved case of her short career.

She knows Jane Doe’s true name, but Sam never discovered who killed the woman found in an empty Alabama field in spring of 2069. She doesn’t even know which version of herself she buried under a plain headstone.

When Mac suddenly disappears, Sam realizes she is going to once more be caught up in a silent war she still doesn’t fully understand. Every step she takes to save Mac puts the world she knows at risk, and moves her one step closer to becoming the girl in the grave.

Links:

Liana’s Website | GoodReads | Amazon Author Page | Liana’s Newsletter |

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo

Liana Brooks write sci-fi and crime fiction for people who like happy endings. She believes in time travel to the future, even if it takes a good book and all night to get there. When she isn’t writing, Liana hikes the mountains of Alaska with her family and giant dog. Find her at LianaBrooks.com or on Twitter as @LianaBrooks

Website | Twitter | FaceBook

Query Questions with Renee Nyen

Writers have copious amounts of imagination. It's what makes their stories so fantastic. But there's a darker side to so much out of the box thinking. When a writer is in the query trenches, their worries go into overdrive. They start pulling out their hair and imagine every possible disaster.

Here to relieve some of that endless worrying is a series called Query Questions. I'll ask the questions which prey on every writer's mind, and hopefully take some of the pain out of querying. These are questions that I've seen tossed around on twitter and writing sites like Agent Query Connect. They are the type of questions that you need answers from the real expert--agents!

Query Questions is back with a fresh set of questions and more agents. The people have spoken and let me know which questions should stay and which could go. We've got a few brand new situations that writers would like clarified.

Here today is Renee Nyen from KT Literary. Renee is looking for YA and MG, find her full wishlist here.


Is there a better or worse time of year to query?
Not particularly. Sometimes I'm farther behind than others. But that's no one's fault but my own.

Do you look at sample pages without fail or only if the query is strong?
I read at least the first paragraph of probably 75% of the queries that come into my inbox. I really ascribe to the "content is King" school of thought. Novelists write novels. Writing a query is a different kind of writing. It's important for novelists to learn query writing, but I recognize the jump between disciplines can be difficult. So if I liked the premise, I usually read a few lines no matter what shape the query is in.

How open are you to writers who have never been published?
I love debut authors! Publishers tend to prefer it! Not that I can't sell a previously published author, but then the editor has to have the conversation of "low previous sales numbers" when I'm trying to negotiate more money. So "debut novelist" is a really advantageous place to be! (Even if you're querying your 3rd or 4th manuscript!)

The dreaded rhetorical question in a query. Are they as taboo as the rumors say?
Yes. Just. Yes. So much yes. Here's why:

It's a lazy way of trying to garner an emotional connection from your reader. And it almost immediately makes me think the writer might cut corners in the manuscript, too. By asking "What would you do if everyone you ever loved turned into a zombie?" a writer hopes I'm picturing my husband looking a little green, staggering around, and trying to eat my brains. But that's not the purpose of a query. I want to know what your main character does when, presumably, their family becomes zombies!

How important are comp titles? Is it something you want to see in a query? Are movie/tv reference okay as comp titles?
Comp titles are a lot of fun for me! I'm a sucker for a great comp combo. I like to see one or two books in your genre from a big house published in the last year or two. But after that, get creative! Like "The shifting reality of Claudia Gray's A THOUSAND PIECES OF YOU with the high-stakes race plotline of Ryan Graudin's WOLF BY WOLF" or "The Breakfast Club meets EVERYTHING LEADS TO YOU" or "AND I DARKEN meets Game of Thrones". Ok, now I'm just creating a wish list. But you get the picture.


Do you prefer a little personalized chit-chat in a query letter or would you rather hear about the manuscript?
I understand it can feel weird to dive into a query with no preamble, but go for it! We both know why you're in my inbox--I can get your manuscript in front of editors. That's why we're both there. If I love your query, your pages, and your manuscript, then I will ask why you wrote the manuscript and where you see your career going.

If you want to mention my favorite band or a favorite TV show we have in common, it never hurts. Or telling me why you chose to query me. But it isn't necessary. For me, social media is the best place for personal connection! (Shameless Twitter plug: Follow me! @ me! Send me Supernatural gifs. @Renee_Nyen I like seeing familiar social media faces in my query inbox.)

How many queries do you receive in a week? How many requests might you make out of those?
It depends. I've had as many as 200 in a week. But mostly, its about 30-50. I will usually look pretty closely at 25% of the queries in my inbox. Probably requesting partials for 1-3 per week.

How do you feel about writers nudging on full/partial requests? At what point is it appropriate?
I'm not going to say you can't nudge. But I am going to say it doesn't make me read faster. I'm (almost) always aware of what's in my inbox. And if I haven't gotten to your submission, I intend to. That said, if I put out a "I'm all caught up!" tweet, and you haven't received a response? Absolutely follow up. Via email. Please. Nudges on Twitter or, worse, anonymously via Tumblr are not my favorite.

When a writer nudges with an offer, what length of time is helpful to give you enough time to consider? A week? Two weeks?
Usually I see two weeks. That's pretty industry standard. Just be polite and communicative and you'll be fine!

Many agents say they don't care if writers are active online. Could a twitter account or blog presence by a writer tip the scales in getting a request or offer? And do you require writers you sign to start one?
I don't require an author be active online, but if I'm trying to get a sense of someone (especially if I love their pages/partial) it's really frustrating if I can't find them on social media. How else will I internet stalk them? :) It doesn't tip the scales in either direction for me, personally, but I love when writers provide me with their Twitter handle in a query.

I encourage my clients to at least have the social media set up. It's not necessary, but it's a useful tool, and usually one that editors and publicists ask about. And find what works for you. If you have a happy little corner of Tumblr, no need to dump all your efforts into Twitter. Social media works best when there is genuine connection with people. And that connection will work best if you're comfortable with the platforrm. So find what you like and go for it! There's no wrong time to start building relationships!

If a writer makes changes to their manuscript due to feedback should they resend the query or only if material was requested? Does it make a difference if the changes are from an R&R with another agent?
I prefer to only see the query once. Even if you've overhauled it. Typically even a huge overhaul isn't going to change the mechanics of your query too much. So, I say don't switch out at the query level. If it's requested material, give me an FYI. If I'm interested, I'll ask for the update. If not, it's a good way to nudge an agent into a response without actually nudging them. :)

What themes are you sick of seeing?
The dead parent/best friend trope is incredibly overwrought in YA. Grief is a formative human experience, especially during adolescence, but it takes a very special grief story for me to connect with it. I also HATE the vacuous, gregarious, shop-a-holic, sex-crazed best friend trope. Hate. Especially when they drag the main character to a party in the first three chapters. That's not a meaningful relationship, that's a plot device with a name and, likely, a drinking problem. I've seen a huge shift to deep, genuine friendships in YA and I'm really loving it! Teens are complicated, and some of them like to party, but I like seeing the other side, too!

Do you look at trends or editor wishlists when deciding to sign a manuscript?
Do I sign books specifically to fulfill an editor wishlist? No. I have to sign a book because I love it. Not because I think someone else will.

Am I very aware of it while I'm putting together pitches for editors and building sub lists? Absolutely!

Do you consider yourself a hands-on, editorial type of agent? Does a manuscript have to be sub-ready or will you sign stories that need work?
I got into publishing on the editorial side, so I'm very editorially minded. I want my clients to get the best contract possible. If that means we put in a little bit of editorial work before hand, I'm happy to do that!

What is your biggest query pet peeve? Is there anything that automatically sinks a query for you?
I don't like when writers use weird fonts and formatting. It detracts from your content. This goes for your manuscript, too. Just one font in one size, please. If you are really compelled, you can use all caps for character names in your synopsis, but that's it.
Also, please don't pitch the second, third, or fourth book in a series. Or a self published book. Getting a publisher to jump in mid-stream on something like that is pretty rare. Publishers like their intellectual property to be unencumbered by any other contracts.

Finally, queries written in first person "by" the main character are a big no for me. Even if your book is very voicey and in first person, I prefer to see the traditional query format.

What three things are at the top of your submission wish list?
I'm a huge SFF fan. The farther from our world, the better. And I've been reading a lot of historical YA lately and loving it. Magical Realism seems to be a pretty regular thing on everyone's wish list lately, and I'm no exception.

Also, someone, feel free to write me that Kiersten White/Game of Thrones mash-up I pitched earlier, ok?!

That said, Any YA or MG can turn my head if I connect with the characters and the writing!

Several years in the editorial department at Random House’s Colorado division provided Renee with the opportunity to work with bestselling and debut authors alike. After leaving Random House, she came to KT Literary in early 2013. She loves digging into manuscripts and helping the author shape the best story possible. Though this is great for her profession, it tends to frustrate people watching movies with her. With a penchant for depressing hipster music and an abiding love for a good adventure story, Renee is always looking for book recommendations. Even if that means creeping on people reading in public. Which she does frequently. She makes her home in Arizona with her husband, and their two children.

Query Questions with Shannon Powers

Writers have copious amounts of imagination. It's what makes their stories so fantastic. But there's a darker side to so much out of the box thinking. When a writer is in the query trenches, their worries go into overdrive. They start pulling out their hair and imagine every possible disaster.

Here to relieve some of that endless worrying is a series called Query Questions. I'll ask the questions which prey on every writer's mind, and hopefully take some of the pain out of querying. These are questions that I've seen tossed around on twitter and writing sites like Agent Query Connect. They are the type of questions that you need answers from the real expert--agents!

Query Questions is back with a fresh set of questions and more agents. The people have spoken and let me know which questions should stay and which could go. We've got a few brand new situations that writers would like clarified.

And here to take the first interview with the new questions is Shannon Powers of McIntosh and Otis. 

Is there a better or worse time of year to query?

I think people think this magical “better” time exists, but as far as I’m concerned nope! The agents I know all read consistently throughout the year. Just expect to wait up to a few months for a decision, no matter when you submit. Remember that sometimes no response is the decision. Check the agent’s guidelines.

Do you look at sample pages without fail or only if the query is strong?

I make a solid effort to look at least a little bit of the sample pages to see writing. However, if a query really isn’t working for me or if it’s clearly not a book that would be a good fit (for example a genre I’m not interested in), I may skip them.

How open are you to writers who have never been published?

Very! Credentials are great but definitely not necessary in the querying stage.

The dreaded rhetorical question in a query. Are they as taboo as the rumors say?

I feel pretty neutral –to-“meh” about rhetorical questions. I definitely think there are better ways to incorporate a sense of mystery in your query, but I’m not outraged by rhetorical questions to the point where I’d pass on something immediately because of one. That said, in a query you want every line to be better than neutral-to-“meh.”

How important are comp titles? Is it something you want to see in a query? Are movie/tv reference okay as comp titles?

I personally like comp titles and I love to see them in queries. They help me get a sense of where the author sees this book falling in terms of readers’ interests. Comp titles can also help get me really excited about a project. They are a great tool and even if they don’t make it into your query for whatever reason, you should be able to name a few anyway. For me, movies and TV are definitely ok!

Do you prefer a little personalized chit-chat in a query letter or would you rather hear about the manuscript?

No chit chat, and definitely not up front at the start of the query. The strongest queries for me are the ones that read like this book has already been published and I’m reading the jacket copy. If you’re going to chit chat, at the end of the letter is best. And keep it brief!  

How many queries do you receive in a week? How many requests might you make out of those? 

This fluctuates, of course. Right now it’s about 150ish/a week. From those I might request 2-4 things, on average.

How do you feel about writers nudging on full/partial requests? At what point is it appropriate? 

I don’t mind authors checking in via email (don’t do it on Twitter), but I respond personally to all requested material so there’s not a real reason to– they will hear from me either way once I’ve finished reading. However, as a rule of thumb I would wait at least 4 months before nudging. 

When a writer nudges with an offer, what length of time is helpful to give you enough time to consider? A week? Two weeks?

Two weeks is ideal, otherwise you might get passes because of the rush. I wrote a detailed blog post about this whole process here!https://shannonepowers.wordpress.com/2016/05/02/so-you-got-an-offer-of-rep/

Many agents say they don't care if writers are active online. Could a twitter account or blog presence by a writer tip the scales in getting a request or offer? And do you require writers you sign to start one?

Tip the scales, I don’t think so. At the end of the day the work and how much I click with this author are the deciding factors. That said, I definitely strongly encourage authors to beef up their online presence as it’s a great tool for both promotion and learning from others. For those who are social media-shy, I of course am  happy to give tips and tricks to ease them in. A willingness to try with social media can go a long way.

If a writer makes changes to their manuscript due to feedback should they resend the query or only if material was requested? Does it make a difference if the changes are from an R&R with another agent?

Only if material is requested. No.

What themes are you sick of seeing?

I don’t know that I’m sick of any “big idea” themes particularly, though I’m definitely not the best fit for something about say, parenthood or marriage. However are there are few tropes and plot devices I’m a little bored of: conflicts that center around  reputation or “disgracing the family name,” women trying to be the perfect wife (whatever that means), an introverted character “coming out of their shell,” big, vague conspiracies (oppressive government, etc).

Do you look at trends or editor wishlists when deciding to sign a manuscript?

I would never sign a client just because they match a certain trend or editor’s wishes. As they say, if you’re signing for a trend, you’re already too late! However, I’m definitely always trying to be mindful of what is working in the market and listen to what editors say they are looking for. So I do consider these things, but they are never a deciding factor. Again, the writing and connection is most important.

Do you consider yourself a hands-on, editorial type of agent? Does a manuscript have to be sub-ready or will you sign stories that need work?

Definitely. I love the editorial side of things and am not afraid of substantial revisions, which I probably will ask for J  What I look for before that is a solid foundation of story and characters and good writing – the rest can be adjusted as needed as we start to open up the big questions of the story, all the way down to the nitty gritty of the last round.

I’ve never really heard of a “sub-ready” manuscript coming in and needing no revision, and as an author I’d be wary if an agent had no improvements to suggest. Part of an agent’s job is to work with you to make your book better!

What is your biggest query pet peeve? Is there anything that automatically sinks a query for you?

If a query doesn’t follow submission guidelines, I’m instantly turned off. It shows me that the author either is unprepared or didn’t care enough to research them.

What three things are at the top of your submission wish list?

1.      An incredibly smart, plot-driven mystery with great atmospheric writing.

2.      A YA with the dark humor of Heathers.

3.      A YA or MG featuring a Bonnie/Clyde style friendship or relationship.

What are some of your favorite movies or books to give us an idea of your tastes? 

Books (just some of a long list of favorites): anything by Megan Abbott, BONE GAP by Laura Ruby, IN THE WOODS by Tana French, THE FUTURE FOR CURIOUS PEOPLE by Gregory Sherl, GIRLS ON FIRE by Robin Wasserman, REBECCA by Daphne DuMaurier, THE SERPENT KING by Jeff Zentner, WHERE’D YOU GO, BERNADETTE by Maria Semple, THE SONG OF ACHILLES by Madeline Miller, THE TWO PRINCESSES OF BAMARRE by Gail Carson Levine, THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt, CORALINE by Neil Gaiman, WHY WE BROKE UP by David Handler, anything by Bill Bryson.

Movies & TV: My all time favorite movie is THELMA & LOUISE. Others: ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, HEATHERS, IT FOLLOWS. Some TV for good measure: ORPHAN BLACK, PARKS & REC, STRANGER THINGS, THE KILLING, GILMORE GIRLS, HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER.

 

SHANNON POWERS is a graduate of New York University. She began her career in publishing at McIntosh and Otis as an intern in 2011, and then went on to intern at The Book Report Network and W.W. Norton & Company. She has also worked as a bookseller. She returned to M&O in 2014, where she assists Shira Hoffman and Christa Heschke and is also looking to build her own list as a junior agent.

Shannon is interested in representing a range of both adult and children's genres. Above all, she looks for projects with a strong hook, smart plotting, memorable characters, and an addictive voice. She is open to both lighter projects and projects with a darker edge. For adult, her reading interests include literary fiction, mystery, horror, popular history, and romance. In YA and middle grade, she is searching for mysteries and thrillers with high emotional stakes, projects with romantic elements (whether fun or angsty), horror, light sci-fi or fantasy, and contemporary with a unique premise.

Sainthood- Real Life versus Fictional

If you watch the news at all you saw Pope Francis canonized Mother Teresa, making her a saint. Usually the path to sainthood in the Catholic Church takes decades, or even centuries. First the candidate's, called the Servant of God, life has to be examined to make sure they lived and died in an exemplary holy way and the person is worthy of being a saint. So there is a lot of paper work and documentation to reach this state, all their writings and speeches are examined, their whole life is under a microscope. Pope Francis intervened and put Mother Teresa on a fast-track, where instead of having to wait five years, they only had to wait two after her death to being this process. 

When enough information has been gathered, a report of the candidate's heroic virtue will be passed up to the pope. If the report is favorable then the candidate becomes "Venerable."

After this comes the process of searching for verified miracles. Or in the case of the Venerable being declared a martyr, where they gave his or her life voluntarily as a witness for the faith and/or in an act of heroic charity for others, you jump right up to being "Blessed." If the person wasn't a martyr, such as Mother Teresa, then a miracle is needed to become "Blessed." Miracles today usually take the form of a miraculous healing/cure after praying to the candidate. They have to include suddenness, completeness, and long term stability of the cure. Such was the case with Mother Teresa when another nun was healed of stomach cancer after praying to Mother Teresa.

To be declared a saint, a second miracle must be recorded. That came for Mother Teresa in the form of a Brazilian man who placed an icon of Mother Teresa in his home and prayed to her for intercession with his brain abscesses. All of this of course occurred after Mother Teresa's death.

That's the real life way to become a saint. The fictional method for my Birth of Saints series takes a whole lot less time, includes more magic and sword fighting, and the characters are very much alive--for now. It's an invented religion, a mishmash of different pieces of the real thing, but the journey to sainthood does happen in three stages.

The story opens in GRUDGING with the characters standing against an invading army come to enslave them. They are tested again and again as they prove or fail at heroic virtue. The book blurb says it best and doesn't give away the ending.

A world of chivalry and witchcraft…and the invaders who would destroy everything.

The North has invaded, bringing a cruel religion and no mercy. The ciudades-estados who have stood in their way have been razed to nothing, and now the horde is before the gates of Colina Hermosa…demanding blood.

On a mission of desperation, a small group escapes the besieged city in search of the one thing that might stem the tide of Northerners: the witches of the southern swamps.

The Women of the Song.

But when tragedy strikes their negotiations, all that is left is a single untried knight and a witch who has never given voice to her power. And time is running out.


The second book FAITHFUL comes out this November. And as the world falls apart around them and the Northern threat escalates, the major players fight to hold tight to their beliefs and each other.

A world of Fear and death…and those trying to save it.

The Northern invaders continue their assault on the ciudades-estados. Terror has taken hold, and those that should be allies betray each other in hopes of their own survival. As the realities of this devastating and unprovoked war settles in, what can they do to fight back?

On a mission of hope, an unlikely group sets out to find a teacher for Claire, and a new weapon to use against the Northerners and their swelling army.

What they find instead is an old woman.

But she’s not a random crone—she’s Claire’s grandmother. She’s also a Woman of the Song, and her music is both strong and horrible. And while Claire has already seen the power of her own Song, she is scared of her inability to control it, having seen how her magic has brought evil to the world, killing without reason or remorse. To preserve a life of honor and light, Ramiro and Claire will need to convince the old woman to teach them a way so that the power of the Song can be used for good. Otherwise, they’ll just be destroyers themselves, no better than the Northerners and their false god, Dal. With the annihilation their enemy has planned, though, they may not have a choice.


And I'm in the process of writing the third volume for release in 2017, tentatively titled BLESSED. Miracles will happen. Lives will be given. Will it be enough to stop the blood-thirsty Children of Dal? 

Dreamer. Warrior. Politician. Philosopher. Counselor. Who will live to become saints?

Honor Has No Gender, Bravery Has No Race, and Family Has No Limits

Grudging: Find it: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Goodreads
Faithful: Find It: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | HarperCollins | Goodreads


     

Nix the Rhetorical Questions

Does anyone really like rhetorical questions? There's plenty of evidence that agents don't. I've seen them mentioned in rants on twitter, in blog posts, and on their submission pages where they list things to avoid in query letters. I think the rhetorical question ranks right up there with greeting lovely agents with "Dear Agent" instead of their name or sending to multiply agents with one query letter. It may not be as bad as failing to follow their submission instructions, but it won't win you any favors either.

I always thought this was very well-known knowledge in the writing community: Avoid a rhetorical question in a query letter. In fact, avoiding any sort of question at all is the safest way to go.

One agent explained it this way--you really don't want agents filling in their own answers to such questions in your query. If you end your query letter with Can Suzy-Q save the world from a deadly rain of lemon Popsicles? A tired or rushed agent is likely to say "no" and click delete. Don't give agents any reason to say no. 

I was super surprised then to find questions of a rhetorical nature in a large percentage of my Pitchwars query slush. Probably more than 10%. And it wasn't just me. Other mentors commented on the sudden reemergence of  question marks in their query slush also. 

I'm not here to say that ruined anyone's chances for becoming my mentee. Rhetorical questions in a query letter are easy enough to fix. Simply rephrase into a statement or drop them altogether. No big deal, right?

Yeah.

Um. Maybe.

Here's the problem: Besides annoying agents, they send a message. A message you don't really want sent. If it is general knowledge to avoid rhetorical questions and you have them, it suggests you make other newbie mistakes in your manuscript that might not be so easy to fix. It suggests you might not have done research on your craft. Think about that.

This may be your first manuscript, but that doesn't have to show. 

So it's one thing to use rhetorical questions in a letter sent to mentors who plan to help you improve your work, but it's another thing to hit send on them to agents. My friendly advice is to hold a seance and exorcism on those questions right now. Your query letter will thank you for it! 

Release Day for MARK OF THE DRAGON

Rosario Hernandez doesn't ask for much. She'd like to sleep on a bed instead of a sidewalk, to know where her next meal is coming from, and maybe, if she's really feeling optimistic, to get a girlfriend. More than anything, though, she wants her best friend Arkay to not murder anyone— because Arkay is a dragon, claws and all, and she has a penchant for vigilante justice. 

When Arkay's latest escapade goes sour, Rosario gets stuck with a stolen van and a cooler full of human organs. Now they're on the run, and it's not just the cops who want answers. The owner of the cooler is still out there, and they want to replace what they've lost— by any means necessary.

https://www.amazon.com/Mark-Dragon-Urban-Book-ebook/dp/B01H8GI5HS

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mark-of-the-dragon-jw-troemner/1123953377

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1125896020

https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/mark-of-the-dragon-3

https://www.scribd.com/book/316212921

https://www.24symbols.com/book/english/jw-troemner/mark-of-the-dragon---urban-dragon-1?id=1526067

JW Troemner was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States, where she lives with her partner in a house full of pets. Most days she can be found gazing longingly at sinkholes and abandoned buildings.

http://jwtroemner.com/

https://www.facebook.com/authorjwtroemner

https://twitter.com/JWTroemner

Nightmare on Query Street

One...Two...We are coming for you.

Three...Four...There will be a slush war.

Five...Six...Get your query fixed.

Seven...Eight...Make your first page great.

Nine...Ten...Yes, we're at it again.

Nightmare on Query Street

The agents are ready.... are you?



Face your Fear 


October 14, 2016