Nicki Elson's Not-So-Deep Thoughts

Hey, hey, here we are at the last installment of Ask the Acquisitions Editor with CK Wagner, acquisitions editor with Omnific Publishing . I'm so glad you've all been enjoying it as much as I have. If you missed any of the earlier posts, you can find them here: Importance of online presence, etc. Query letter do's & don'ts Manuscript Turn-ons & Turn-offs We'll finish up this series with questions from Nick & Donna regarding the type of stories she's looking for:   Nick: Are you looking for fresh ideas? Is another vampire story a turn off or turn on? CK: We are definitely looking for fresh ideas that embrace our “Romance without Rules” tagline. This is bearing in mind, however, that there is nothing new under the sun. Every story will have elements that have been done before, but the way those elements are mixed and matched (and told through an engaging sense of voice) can create a special X-factor that does set a story apart and mak...

Kyra Lennon is wrapping up her blog tour to celebrate the release of her latest addition to the Game On series, Sidelined , and I get to be a stop today. The question I typically ask authors goes a little something like this: If you could choose one song that best captures the essence of Sidelined , what would it be and why? She's already answered this question in her tour post over at Alex J. Cavannaugh's place last week, so I shall send you to there  for the full answer. But I'll give you the video here. Kyra says "How Long will I Love You" actually makes a good fit for the entire Game On series. Go on, stop over at Alex's to find out why. ~.~.~.~.~ At the age of twenty-one, Bree Collinson has more than she ever dreamed of. A handsome husband, a fancy house, and more shoes than Carrie Bradshaw and Imelda Marcos combined. But having everything handed to her isn’t the way Bree wants to live the rest of her life. When an idea to better herse...

CK Wagner is back to answer more of your acquisitions questions. CK is an acquisitions editor at Omnific Publishing  (yes, the Omnific Publising that just signed a sweet deat with Simon & Schuster ). For previous Ask the Acquisitions Editor posts, see: Importance of online presence, etc.   Query letter do's & don'ts And now we get down to today's nitty gritty regarding manuscripts. Jackie: You've read the first chapter of a manuscript... what makes you want to keep reading and what would make you pass? CK: We’re always looking for something fresh and non-formulaic. If we feel like a story’s premise or voice doesn’t offer anything new or intriguing, it’s risky to take a chance on; so much goes into bringing a book into being that it has to be worth everyone’s time and effort. We’re even less inclined if we can’t authentically connect to the protagonist and situation straight away due to shallow character and conflict development. One-dimensional charac...

Welcome to my stop on the  Songs of Summer Bloghop , hosted by The Armchair Squid , Suze at Subliminal Coffee , and Cygnus at Servitor Ludi . Their fabulous idea is for each of us to name 5 songs that scream summer to us for one reason or another. By the end of this hop, we shall have the most awesome summer playlist ever. Please feel free to add your name to the linky below and play along. Here are my contributions (song links open in a new window in case you want to listen while you read): Never Tear Us Apart ; INXS  This one played many a time on my boom box with twenty-year-old me slathered in baby oil, catching maximum rays on my parents' back deck...despite all of my wise father's warnings against the practice. I was in a major angsty, melodramatic phase (dark mood to go with my dark skin coloring, I guess) so this song was my absolute fave. Lava ; B-52s  'Tis hot and not to be taken too seriously, just like summer. I saw the B-52s one summer at the World T...

As promised, I'm back with more answers to your questions for CK Wagner, Acquisitions Editor at Omnific Publishing  ( who just announced a super exciting deal with Simon & Schuster ). You can read her answers to questions about cold querying, crazy queries, and the importance of online presence & past sales in last week's Ask the Acquisitions Editor post . Today's questions are all about queries and synopses. Liz: What do you love to see in a query? Donna: What three things do you look for in a query that piques your interest every time? CK: I personally like to see a query letter that gets right to the point. The fundamentals I care about most are: 1. Summary . Keep it clear and concise (two to three short paragraphs usually suffice. A cover letter shouldn’t exceed one page when printed; the synopsis is your chance to elaborate). Set up your main character and conflicts so we understand what drives the story and can already establish a connection. An effec...

Holy stromboli, it's already time for the July meeting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group , founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh . During the May meeting I took questions from a bunch of you that I passed along to CK Wagner, an acquisitions editor at Omnific Publishing . Sometimes the not knowing fuels insecurity more than anything else, and CK's marvelous answers will definitely shed some light on the querying process and hopefully help alleviate a bit of anxiety. I'm going to post her answers on Wednesdays throughout the month of July, starting with a few choice questions as part of IWSG: Mary: Are you more likely to accept from an author you've met or a cold query? CK: For me, story and style are king, so I’m indifferent to whether I’ve met the author or not. Existing Omnific authors, of course, have the advantage of being a known quantity—we’re familiar with them, their work ethic and cooperativeness—but even they can (and have) been rejected if the story is n...