Welcome to Twitter Treasure Thursday! On Saturday, I will be attending the 2014 Colorado Writing Workshop run by Chuck Sambuchino of Writer’s Digest. Yay! And eeks! I’m a mixture of excited and nervous at this point. I’ve never attended a writing workshop before, so I’m a little out of my element. However, I’m confident I’ll learn a lot!
One of the many sessions scheduled during the workshop is the “Writers’ Got Talent” panel. If attendees wish to do so, they may submit the first page of their manuscript to have it (anonymously) read out loud and evaluated by a panel of agents and editors. As nerve wracking as this is, I plan on submitting my first page in hopes it will get chosen to be critiqued. I’d love to hear what works and what doesn’t by industry professionals.
Ironically, I came upon this article by Margie Lawson this week: Margie’s Rule # 6: Make Your Opening Pop! In it, she discusses the do’s and don’ts of your story’s opening, as well as what turns agents and editors off. As I refine my first page before the workshop this weekend, I will be referring to this article to ensure I avoid making too many general “no-no’s” and blunders.
Margie’s Rule # 6: Make Your Opening Pop!
I’ve talked to dozens of agents and editors about what makes them stop reading submissions. We’ve chatted on planes and on yachts, in several countries, on several continents. We’ve chatted at luncheons and dinners and late nights in bars.
Some agents and editors shared general ideas regarding why they quit reading.
They said things like:
First paragraph didn’t impress me.
Story didn’t hold my interest. I wanted to skim.
Couldn’t connect with characters.
The writing was amateurish.
Many shared the dreaded, “I don’t know why, but it didn’t work for me.”Aack! Not useful for writers.
Writers need to know what to avoid doing, and what to do. They need specifics…
To read the entire article and see all the genres, click here!
For more useful advice, follow Margie Lawson on Twitter!
Photo credits:
http://kristiholl.net/writers-blog/2013/10/organization-why-word-count-matters/
Jen's Pen Den 
Excellent article find! Please join LWI as a contributor!!! I would beg but it would not be professional of me. Pretty please with a battery blanket thingy on top?
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Perhaps in the new year, when I’m not about to go crazy from all the work piled up around me? LOL!
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Hrmph. What EVER!
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There, there *pat on the shoulder*
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Not only that first page, paragraph or line, but the title is also just as important to draw people in. Mind you, saying that, I started reading a new book last night, great title but oh, the start was not good. I stayed with it and a quarter into the book I got more interested. Now I can’t wait to finish it.
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Agree! In fact, if you want to take it one step further, I’d say the cover of a book is important too. I know they say “Don’t judge a book by its cover”, but when it comes to actual books, I do. Hard to ignore a dazzling, vibrant, enticing design 🙂
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I do exactly the same thing with bottles of wine. If it has a nice label I buy it and then sometimes regret it 🙂
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