Learning

Yesterday I wrote about creating the idea for my novel and I mentioned using the internet to learn about writing and publishing. I expected to find writing advice and I was not disappointed. But I was surprised to find useful information about the publishing industry. In particular, I learned that when I finish my novel (thinking positive), the next step will be finding a literary agent. I was thrilled to discover several interesting and useful blogs by literary agents, and I have been following them since January. I will share my favorites in a future post.

Although I am nowhere near ready to query a literary agent, I think it is helpful to know what literary agents want. I don't mean which genres, or vampires vs. zombies. I mean what they want to see in a query letter. I think some query letter advice can be applied to writing the novel itself. In order to have a good hook, interesting conflict, and a strong voice in my query, I need to make sure I have those elements in my novel.

I'm glad I started following literary agent blogs at the early stage of my novel, instead of waiting until my novel is finished. And yes, I'm determined to finish it someday!