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Showing posts from 2010

My Reading List for 2010

Since I've switched to reading eBooks, I've found myself reading more and faster. I'm rather impressed by the amount of reading I was able to get in this year considering how busy 2010 has been. I've read 70 books in 2010. Of course, this number doesn't include the full manuscripts I read this year or the books I've forgotten to add to my goodreads.com bookshelves. :D Tigers and Devils by Sean Kennedy An Improper Holiday by K.A. Mitchell Falling by M.L. Rhodes Fur and Fang by Sean Michael Lord of the Shadows (Cirque Du Freak, #11) by Darren Shan Replacement Guitarist by Lori Toland Sons of Destiny (The Saga of Darren Shan, #12) by Darren Shan Joy Ride by J.M. Snyder Caffeine for a Marine by Kiernan Kelly Sons of Destiny (Cirque Du Freak, #12) by Darren Shan Aidan and Ethan (Seeking Redemption, #1) by Cameron Dane Lift Me Up by Rayne Auster Saying I Do (Quinn Security, #3) by Cameron Dane No Fear in Love by Jamie Craig The One That Got Away - Second Edition by R

A Puerto Rican Christmas

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Christmas Music Traditions When I think back on my childhood, the memories are coupled with music. In fact, most of the time, I can remember "eras" in my life when a song plays on the radio or someone sends me a song to hear. I was born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico where music is as much a part of your life as coffee with buttered bread. Music is such an integral part of life on the island that it's odd to drive through any neighborhood and not hear music. Women sing while sweeping the sidewalks. Men whistle and sing as they push their carts to the market. Children sing songs as they play games on the playground. Grandparents sing while rocking on the porch or just pull out their guitars and start playing. Music is part of every festive event and a HUGE part of the Christmas celebration. In Puerto Rico, the holidays start the day after Accion de Gracias , Thanksgiving Day and end on Dia de Reyes , Three Kings' Day (or Epiphany). We celebrate with food, family

So You Want to Write a Novel

I know this video has gone viral and you've probably all seen it but I just had to post it for those who perchance have missed it. It's amazing how many people call me (yes, I've had folks call me) and pitch me their novel saying almost everything stated in this video word-for-word.

What do you do all day?

So much going that I've barely had a chance to breathe, add to it a pesky cold threatening to take over the little oxygen I have left and an A/C unit that chooses the few 80-degree days we have left in Orlando to freeze up on me and you've got the makings of a typical "Life in the Day" of this ePub Agent! What do you do all day?   Working a full-time job as well being a wife and mother usually takes up most of my time. Why would I add more stress and heartache to an already packed daily schedule by doing agent work? Because there's no greater feeling than seeing an acceptance and contract offer in my email for one of my clients or getting a cover mock-up for a manuscript I've spent six months trying to sell... or receiving a royalty statement for a book I fell in love with BEFORE the editor made it even better and seeing how great the sales are for that author. The past two weeks have been full of these experiences. It's been exhausting though and even a

Talking Authors Down

I think many authors find themselves staring at the manuscript they've spent the better part of a year or longer writing, revising, polishing, querying and submitting and find everything wrong they possibly can with it. Not sure why the panic sets in once their baby's out the door and sitting in inboxes all over the world, I mean it's just a bunch of words, right? Ha! If I truly believed that, I wouldn't be in this business. When authors say they put their heart and soul into their work, they're not kidding. Every word, hyphen, comma and period in the manuscript is a very living piece of that author's soul. They bleed over their words, salivate over every accolade and weep over every rejection as deeply as they do over every major milestone in their lives. It's no wonder, I spend a good portion of my time talking many of my clients down off the proverbial ledge. They're probably reading this right now and wondering if they're the only one I talked do

Never too old to fall in love again

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My parents, who have been divorced for several years, remarried on Sunday in a small ceremony and party with a few friends and family in attendance. It was such a beautiful day and they looked so cute that all of us could barely contain our tears of joy and smiles through the whole event. I think hubby said it best on his Facebook status message this weekend when he said "Today I learned that you're never too old to fall in love again." I'm so happy for my parents! They look so happy! Remember to hug your loved ones hard and never be afraid to fall in love all over again.

So what is it you do, exactly?

I've been asked to detail the process of what I do from the moment an author accepts me for representation (yes, we sweat bullets thinking we'll be rejected just as much as the author does when he/she submits their query) to the moment the pub contract is signed... and beyond. Well... here it is in a nutshell... perhaps a walnut shell but a shell nonetheless! Query Received - It really does start with the query! Authors need to make sure the query letter is not just eye-grabbing but stellar in the information it provides. My decision to open attachments (which should include your manuscript) is based solely on the query letter. If I don't like your query, you will receive a rejection e-mail from me. I try to detail why the query is being rejected but as the query pile grows, form letters become the norm. But we're talking about those that I accept, so let's continue, shall we? Read Attachments - I was going to include this as a subtopic to the first step, but

Busy Days Keep Me Busy

I've been meaning to make a real post for several days and just haven't had a chance to breathe long enough to sit down and put my thoughts on screen. Even as I take a minute to write this entry, I'm thinking of a million things I have yet to do and need to do including cleaning my house! LOL Let's see... I guess I can start with the business! I'm going to the Romantic Times Book Lover's Convention in Columbus, OH at the end of the month and everything has just fallen into place for it in a way that I couldn't even DREAM of! I will be taking appointments to talk with authors while I'm there. Have to get my schedule when I arrive for those. Though, if you looked at all of the events I want to go to, you'd think I was crazy! LOL I was able to get airfare, roundtrip, non-stop for $117 (total). Car rental came out to $159 for the week and Lori Toland was able to help me get a hotel (and not just any hotel... but the Crowne Plaza !) 20 minutes away

About Me

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I have always had a passion for the written word. It didn't matter where I happened to be, if there was a book, a newspaper, a magazine, a cereal box, I was going to read it. As I got older, I found myself editing restaurant menus, newsletters, my parents' work memos... anything with text, line spacing and graphics. But it was during a school field trip to the Harcourt Brace & Jovanovich building in Orlando, Florida, that I really fell in love with the industry. Watching and learning how textbooks were made and seeing people working in offices that smelled of printer ink, glue and wax with that slight hint of stale coffee in the air pretty much did me in. When I got home I told my mother that I would one day work in the HBJ building. In college, I pursued a mass communication degree and was the editor-in-chief of the college newspaper. Learning to edit, design and manage a weekly periodical prepared me for the work that was to come... a call from Harcourt School Publis

Two Roads Diverged

Decisions, decisions! Having spent the better part of my day and night reading blogs, articles and twitter chats between literary agents and authors, I'm still unsure of whether what I would like to do for my authors is feasible and tangible. Learning how to traverse the waters of the publishing industry in the trade market after being in the textbook industry (and the production side of that behemoth, to boot) is becoming a full-time job. Not a complaint, mind you. I have always enjoyed learning and researching topics of interest but this topic is not just one I want to know about for the sake of attaining the knowledge. This topic of interest is one I want to eventually make a living out of. A few things I'm still unsure of: Is it possible to be an agent for digital pub (epub) work only? Because print runs in the digital marketplace are traditionally less than in print (as in copies printed), is it possible for the agent to also be the publicist if only working with epub

Lessons Learned Late in Life

I was talking to my best friend via e-mail today and realized that much of what she and I say to one another is what I'd love to tell all of my friends on a daily basis. Friendships, regardless of how or where they are borne are our most treasured assets and losing them, any part of them, makes us feel less worthy. Today's discussion between us was about our "what-ifs". Here's a bit of that discussion: There have been so many times in my life that I've wandered "what-if". What if I'd waited until I finished college to get married, what kind of life would I lead now? What if Millie had never died, would my husband be the same man I love today? What if he'd never lost his job? Where would I be right now? Every answer leads me to an image of a rather embittered woman, alone and possibly heavily medicated. Every bad thing I think has happened in my life has been God's way of reminding me that my life is truly in His hands. I can push and

Can You Feel A Brand New Day

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With the birth of a new decade comes the birth of new possibilities. While many make New Year's resolutions that have likely already been broken (been there, done that, have the t-shirt) I chose to begin the pre-teen years of this new decade with a renewed sense of purpose. Goals for the year include: Selling first manuscript for up-and-coming author. Launch literary agent career. Gain experience and contacts in the coming year. New blog, new direction, a new course set on the path to success! Currently reading: Fur and Fang by Sean Michael.