Cody's Has Closed

It’s sad news to hear that Cody’s, a longtime independent bookstore that had locations in Berkeley and San Francisco, has closed. My tour for “Midori by Moonlight” (my first book tour!) had a nice mix of events at both independent and chain bookstores and the appearance at Cody’s on Fourth Street last October was one of the highlights. Many friends came as well as people I didn’t know! I’d always loved the large San Francisco branch of Cody’s as well and had been excited when Hiroshi Kagawa of IBC Publishing in Japan had stepped in to buy the store when it was in trouble of closing in 2006. Kagawa gave it a reprieve but found he couldn’t go on once the rent on the Fourth Street store tripled, the SF branch had to be closed, and the new, smaller branch on Shattuck couldn’t make it.

I will remember Cody’s with great fondness and thank the staff for the wonderful welcome they gave me at my event.

BACKSPACE WRITERS CONFERENCE 2008

For those looking for a writers conference coming up this summer, you should check out the Backspace Writers Conference, which will take place in the heart of the publishing biz world -- New York City -- and will boast many prominent speakers and panelists, including my wonderful editor at St. Martin's, Hilary Rubin Teeman.

Here's some more info:

The 2008 Backspace Writers Conference (August 7 & 8, Radisson Martinique, New York City) brings together literary agents, acquisitions editors, best-selling authors, and publishing professionals for a two-day, two-track program of workshops, panels, and networking in the heart of the publishing world.

In addition to keynote talks by Mark Tavani, a senior editor at Random House, and New York Times bestselling author Lee Child, program highlights include a conversation with Simon Lipskar and Mark Tavani on agents and editors working together, a marketing discussion by M.J. Rose, a workshop from independent editor Jerry Gross on finding and working with a reputable book doctor, a role-playing workshop from Jeff Kleinman: “Buy This Book!”, agent and editor panel discussions, and panels on the young adult market, short stories, memoir, nonfiction, crime fiction, erotica, children’s picture books, and more.

Attendance is limited to 200. $355 for Backspace members; $395 for non-members. In addition, Mystery Writers of America is offering their members a special discount. Register Now and come meet the people who can make a difference in your career!

Literary Agents: Richard Curtis, Simon Lipskar, Jeff Kleinman, Emmanuelle Alspaugh, Paige Wheeler, Laney Katz Becker, Jenny Bent, Maya Rock, Michael Bourret, Scott Hoffman, Ronnie Gramazio, Elisabeth Weed, Stephany Evans

Authors: M.J. Rose, Harry Hunsicker, Jason Pinter, Jackie Kessler, Heather Brewer, Gail Konop Baker, Laurel Corona, Lisa McMann, Jenny Gardiner, Danielle Younge-Ullman, Claudia Gray, Marlys Pearson, Jessica Keener, Elizabeth Letts, A.S. King, Robin Slick, Susan Henderson, Pam Jenoff, Trish Ryan, Leora Skolkin-Smith, Caroline Leavitt, Reed Farrel Coleman, Chris Grabenstein, William Powers

Editors and Other Publishing Professionals: Hilary Rubin Teeman (editor, St. Martin's), Charis Conn (contributing editor, Harper's Magazine), Kristen Weber (senior editor, New American Library), Bella Stander, Jerry Gross, Lauren Cerand, Eileen Winnick


"Backspace is relatively new but it's the real deal - which is amply proved both by the quality of discourse within and the truly amazing hit-rate its members have already achieved." – Lee Child, New York Times best-selling author

"I love being associated with you guys. Such a class act. Backspace is the pre-eminent writers organization because you guys have made it so. Always innovating, thinking outside the box, and just generally doing conferences bigger and better than they have been done before. I'm just honored to have been there from the start." – Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary Agency

"I mention Backspace whenever I teach my writers' workshop around the country. The yearly Backspace conference is an invaluable resource. I've taught there and can’t say enough good things about the information, encouragement, and enthusiasm they provide." – David Morrell, New York Times bestselling author

From Attendees:

"I have never had such an excellent time at a conference! The presenters were uniformly accessible and pleasant. The overall mood was also excellent."

"The workshop was so well organized and run. Bravo to all of you who worked to pull together a truly remarkable event, well worth the price of admission!"

"The superlatives just flow whenever I try to describe my experience at the conference. I can't say enough or thank you enough. Superb. As I keep telling folks, it's impossible to convey what I took away from the experience, because the most valuable things are the intangibles."

"It was the best writing conference I've ever attended on all dimensions - the amount of new information, real contact with other writers and people in the industry, and the level of truth-telling made it stand out."

"I thought the conference was absolutely fantastic. The informal atmosphere and seriousness of intent combined into an exciting, very useful, very enjoyable weekend of talks and panels. I learned so much, met so many wonderful people, and got a far stronger handle on how to market my work. Many, many thanks."

FROM POD TO WD

The June issue of Writer’s Digest magazine has a brief article plugging my novel, MIDORI BY MOONLIGHT. As any author knows, getting into a national print publication is not easy, so I am ecstatic for the coverage. And the only reason I got this coverage was because in 2000 I self-published a book through a new “print-on-demand” (POD) publisher called iUniverse, a novel called NO KIDDING. This was not a popular option—to publish your own book by what some call a “vanity press.” I often argued about this phrase, because in the music business, putting out your own CD by way of a distribution and reproduction service is often lauded, but doing that with a book somehow is a big no-no. At any rate, I had heard about author M.J. Rose who had self-published her book “Lip Service,” and had gotten picked up by a major publisher and was inspired by that. NO KIDDING had been turned down by a good number of literary agents, so I figured that maybe by self-publishing it, maybe it would get noticed by a “legit” publisher. So I went through the program at iUniverse, did some heavy online promotion, got the book on Amazon (no brick-and-mortar store would carry it) and I actually got some sales, some fan letters, and a few positive reviews. But still no agent was interested and no legit publisher. In 2002 I decided, what the heck, and entered the book in the Writer’s Digest Best Self-Published Book Awards. I didn’t win the grand prize, but ended up receiving an honorable mention in the Mainstream/Literary Fiction category, of which there was one award per category. I got a nice letter from WD and a certificate, but this subsequently did not seem to impress any literary agents.

Fast forward to Fall 2007 when I got my “debut” novel published by St. Martin’s, called MIDORI BY MOONLIGHT (actually the *fifth* novel I’d written). I contacted WD and basically said, “Remember me? I won a prize in your contest and now I have a published book!” They invited me to be a guest for a day on one of their online forums, which was a lot of fun, but afterwards I asked, “Would it be a possibility to get a mention in the print publication?” They said they’d try and, to my pleasant surprise, here is my article in the June issue. My Amazon numbers spiked and I started getting emails from all over.

Now, would I advise writers to self-pub through a POD now? For a novel, probably not. The climate is very different now from what it was in 2000, and the amount of writers self-publishing through POD has increased astronomically; there is way too much competition. But my message is to never give up and always look for innovative ways to get your work noticed. NO KIDDING never found a home with a legit publisher, but winning a prize in the contest gave me a confidence boost, which led to my pursuit of improving my craft, learning more about the business, and eventually getting a book contract. You’ll never know if you don’t try.

To MFA or Not to MFA?

In just about a month I’ll be finishing classes in my intensive two-year MFA in Writing program at the University of San Francisco. Then all that’s left to do is to complete the novel that will be my major project, due in early August, and I’ll graduate with my MFA. The time has flown by and I know I’m going to miss the intellectual stimulation and camaraderie of my fellow writers. I couldn’t have been happier with the program, which offers evening classes twice a week, on Tuesdays (writing workshop) and Wednesdays (seminar). I have learned so much about both craft and literature from wonderful instructors, who are passionate about writing and books.

So as an aspiring novelist should you go for an MFA? There are as many MFA programs out there as there are types of writers and it seems that both are increasing at breakneck speed. It seems now more than ever that everyone wants to write a novel, having been told countless times that everyone has a story in them.

An MFA won’t guarantee that you’ll sell your novel or that you’ll even be able to get a teaching job: it’s not the most practical degree in the world. Many programs combine the study of literature with the teaching of craft, giving students a well-rounded education. If you don’t need or want this, you may be better off having your novel critiqued by a manuscript consultant or teacher and not worry about getting a degree. However, I know there are students in my program who went in knowing they would have deadlines and that they would have their novel finished in two years and this was a big motivator for them; it would have been much harder to do it on their own.

There are a number of programs for working adults that include night courses or what is called “low-residency.” Low-residency MFA programs allow students to do the majority of their work online from home, with a couple of 10-day (or so) stints on-campus per year. This would give a student who lives in California, for example, the opportunity to study at a university in Vermont.

There are many resources on the Web regarding MFA programs. Tom Kealey has written a valuable guide called The Creative Writing MFA, which profiles fifty programs. The book has a useful companion blog as well.

Another source is Poets & Writers Magazine, which is filled with ads for MFA programs. Also, The Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) is a great organization that offers The AWP Official Guide to Writing Programs as well as their stimulating magazine, The Writer’s Chronicle.

To all who are graduating soon with their MFAs or who have just been accepted to their dream program—congratulations!

Conferences for Writers

I just received a pamphlet in the mail entitled The Writer’s Summer for the Southampton Writers Conference sponsored by the Stony Brook Southampton MFA program in Writing and Literature. This reminded me that summer will be here soon and now is the time to start looking into writers conferences. Of course, there are conferences all year round and a great resource for finding them by location and month is the Shaw Guides. Poets & Writers magazine is also another good source for conferences.

How can a writers conference be helpful to an aspiring novelist? There are as many answers to that question as there are types of conferences. There are those that focus on hands-on workshops where you can get direct feedback on your writing, and others that emphasize the business side; meeting agents and editors and even having them read excerpts of your work. It is also valuable to network with other writers as well as to meet published authors and learn about their experience on the road to publication.

A writers conference that I found very helpful was the Squaw Valley Community of Writers, which I attended in 2001 and 2002. This conference, now in its 39th year, takes place every August in Northern California and includes workshops, lectures, panels, readings, and individual meetings with agents and editors. What I especially liked was that it required a writing sample as part of the application so the fact of getting accepted equalled encouragement of my writing goals. I felt that the price of the conference, including accommodations and some meals, was quite reasonable. I treasure the writer friends I met at Squaw through workshopping, socializing, and the shared housing.

Another conference I enjoyed was the San Diego State University Writers Conference, which is held every January. This is a more business-focused conference, though they do have some informal workshopping. What I liked was the opportunity to have agents and editors read an excerpt of my novel ahead of time and then be able to meet with them one-on-one for feedback. There were also interesting panels about all aspects of the publishing industry, from securing an agent to book contracts to royalties, with many to choose from.

Writing can make for a lonely existence and it’s great to be able to take some time out to network face-to-face with other writers. You can share your war stories and make some great friendships while getting valuable input on your writing career.

Is 2008 the Year You'll Get Published?

Akemashite omedeto gozaimasu is one way to say “Happy New Year” in Japanese. Literally it means something like, “Congratulations on the opening of the new year,” and I like to think that at this time we’re all open to new possibilities. For those who want 2008 to be the year they get their novel published, here is some info and resources I hope you’ll find helpful.

Before you send out your queries to agents, you should make sure that your manuscript is ready. In an illuminating series of articles in the latest issue of Poets & Writers magazine (Jan/Feb 2008) one agent says that the biggest mistake a writer can make is submitting a manuscript too soon. Do you have trusted readers who can critique your novel who will give you honest, constructive feedback? Have you considered hiring a manuscript consultant to look at your work? A good place to start might be researching writing teachers at your local colleges and universities who may offer such a service. And, you never know, some of your favorite authors may also do manuscript consultations on the side--check out their Web sites. If plot is one of your weak points, you may want to look into Blockbuster Plots.

As far as finding an agent, there are a couple of sites I recommend. One is AgentQuery.com, which offers loads of useful information on the process of querying agents. Another feature is the ability to search for agents who represent particular genres and styles of novels.

Publishers Marketplace is another great site. The first thing to do is to sign up for their Publisher’s Lunch and Deal Lunch e-mail newsletters. These are free and will give you industry news that is useful in finding what types of novels agents are selling. A paid subscription to the Web site will give you even more features, including your own Web page and the ability to search on agents and what they’ve sold over the last several years.

Good luck!

Query Letter for MIDORI BY MOONLIGHT

Every writer knows that a good query letter is crucial in getting a manuscript read by an agent, which is the first step in getting an offer for representation. This is the query I sent for MIDORI BY MOONLIGHT. This letter elicited a lot of requests from agents for the full manuscript and eventually I did sign with an agent who ended up getting me a two-book deal with St. Martin’s. In brackets are my explanatory comments of why I constructed it the way I did.

Dear Agent:

I am currently seeking representation for Midori By Moonlight, a novel starring the Japanese Bridget Jones.

[This opening sentence is short and sweet and to the point. By using the Bridget Jones reference it gives the agent an idea of what kind of book this is.]

Thirty-year-old Midori Saito’s dreams are all about to come true. A strong independent streak has always made her feel like a stranger in a strange land in her native Japan, but now she’s embarking on a new life in San Francisco. She’s about to marry Kevin, the perfect American man—six feet tall, with curly hair the color of marmalade. Unlike a Japanese guy who’d demand she be a housewife, Kevin doesn’t mind if Midori follows her dream of becoming a master pastry chef. Her life is turning out as exquisitely as a Caramelized Apple Tart with Crème Fraiche, until Kevin dumps her at their engagement party in favor of his blonde, ex-fiancée, whom Midori never even knew existed.

Now Midori is not only on her own—with just a smattering of fractured English in her repertoire—she’s entered the U.S. on a fiancée visa that will expire in sixty days. Unable to face the humiliation of telling her parents she’s been dumped, and not wanting to give up on her American dream, Midori realizes she’s “up the creek without a saddle.” Her only hope is new acquaintance Shinji, 30, who long ago escaped Japan after a family tragedy, is a successful San Francisco graphic artist and amateur moon gazer, and who lets her share his apartment as a platonic roommate.

Soon Midori finds herself working at an under-the-table hostess job at an unsavory Japanese karaoke bar, making (and eating) way too many desserts, meeting a charming and handsome chef with his own restaurant who may be too good to be true, and trying to uncover the secret behind a mysterious bar hostess who looks strangely familiar. But Midori’s willing to endure almost anything to hang on to her American dream, and she just might find that the love she’s been searching for far and wide is a whole lot closer than she thinks.

[This was my take on a “blurb” that would appear on the back of a book. It’s a bit long for that and the style is slightly different, but I wanted to cover all the salient plot points without going into a full-blown synopsis. I made various food references to give the flavor of the book. Looking at the back of the book or by clicking on the Books section on the Web site you can see how this description was changed and shortened on the published book.]

I am the author of two children’s non-fiction books published by KidHaven Press (Famous People: Christina Aguilera and Wonders of the World: Niagara Falls), have had short stories published in several literary journals, and currently work as a freelance writer and editor. I attended the Squaw Valley Writers' Conference in 2001 and 2002, and my self-published novel, No Kidding was a winner in the Writer's Digest 2002 Best Self-Published Book Awards in the Mainstream/Literary Fiction category.

[Sometimes it is advised to only offer relevant publishing history, e.g. other fiction. By including my non-fiction books, I felt I was showing an agent that I had real-world publishing experience, even though these books are not novels. I included a reference to the Squaw Valley Writers’ Conference because it is a well-known conference and one where you need to submit a writing sample in order to get accepted, otherwise I would not have included conferences I attended. I mentioned NO KIDDING, my self-published book, because it won an award. However, it’s not necessary to have any other writing credits—don’t worry if you don’t have any.]

I am Caucasian-American—my Japanese last name comes by way of my husband who was born and raised in Osaka. I have lived in Japan and traveled there many times, the first time as a winner in a songwriting contest sponsored by Japan Victor Records. I also speak conversational Japanese and have placed in a number of Japanese singing contests and performed on TV in Japan.

[It is often advised not to give any personal information in a query letter. This personal information, I felt, was relevant to the subject-matter of my book and showed that I had a background in the Japanese language and culture.]

Thank you for your consideration.
---Wendy Nelson Tokunaga