Sara Megibow

Reviewers I love to follow on twitter: @SmartBitches @dearauthor @MissDahlELama @GeekandSundry @sfsignal @sljournal @HEAusatoday #pubtip

Great publishing people to follow on twitter: @victoriastrauss @ChuckSambuchino @diversebooks @PublishersWkly @BookCountry #pubtip

2015 #pubtip #5 = keep writing. *clinks glasses* Happy New Year! Go forth and conquer!

2015 #pubtip #4 = write a solid query letter. Research query letters at writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/g… and queryshark.blogspot.com

2015 #pubtip #3 = submit to agents who represent your genre. Research at @WritersDigest Guide to Literary Agents or agentquery.com

2015 #pubtip #2 = know the genre of your book. Do this by reading comparable titles published by major publishers in the past 2 years.

2015 #pubtip #1 = finish the book. In fiction this is essential. In nonfiction it's less essential.

Reading widely in the genres I represent helps me tremendously as an agent - especially reading debut authors. #agenting #pubtip

I will continue to represent debut authors with completed works in these genres: MG, YA, new adult, romance, erotica, SF/F #pubtip

Easy editing #pubtip = watch how many POV (points of view) exist in your manuscript. In general, more than 5 = red flag. #agenting

Yes, I am reading queries in December! Bring 'em on. nelsonagency.com/submission-gui… #pubtip #agenting

#1 thing I learned from @ChuckSambuchino this weekend = reduce backstory and telling in those opening pages. #true #pubtip

For comparable titles, an author can use movies and/or books. #pubtip

I like seeing comparable titles in a query letter. It's not a deal-breaker OR a deal-maker, but I just personally like it. #pubtip

I'll run a #QueryStat later but my best gut guess is a book is released roughly 24 months post-query. #pubtip

Red Flag Query = "I have a book perfect for this Christmas buying season." #yikes #pubtip

Some books go viral out of the gate. However, I think smart publishing strategy is more than, "let's plan to go viral." #pubtip #agenting

If your book is on submission with someone already (from a conference or whatnot), please include that info in your query. #pubtip

Query Red Flag, "The first 55,000 words follow the story of hero coming to the throne..." = seems setup for mostly backstory. #pubtip

Sample Pages Red Flag, "She looked over the vista while sipping coffee and thinking about..." = too passive especially in opening. #pubtip