Rose & Thorn editor Deborah Andoetoe interviewed Blythe Camenson, co-author of the book, Your Novel Proposal: From Creation To Contract, published in 1999 by Writer's Digest Books. This book is a complete reference for the novelist and gives solid information on how to create a proposal, how to meet agents and editors, and how to sell your novel. After reading the book, Deborah said, "I really enjoyed seeing the quotes from some of my favorite authors. It showed me that they went through the same steps that Camenson recommends. Anyone can follow these steps and get their novel read by the right people." 

ROSE & THORN:  Since each of us has a different story, how did you get started in writing?

Blythe Camenson:  I had always wanted to write, ever since I read my first Nancy Drew. I started writing professionally in 1989, when I lived overseas in the Persian Gulf. I was teaching English there for many years. In between writing novels, I started writing articles and submitting them to publications in the US and in the Gulf, and met with instant success with the articles. I made a lot of beginner mistakes, though. At the time, there was no one to advise me in the Gulf; I had to learn on my own. A colleague had a stockpile of old Writer's Digest magazines and I poured through them. They were incredibly enlightening. When I returned to the States in 1990, after being evacuated out of Baghdad at the start of the Persian Gulf War, I decided I would try my hand at writing full time. Luckily, I had some savings to fall back on. It took about two years of writing and submitting nonstop, but I did it. My first assignment with NTC/Contemporary books (the publisher of all my career books) was to update a book of theirs that had been in print for a number of years, Careers in Education. They were in a pinch. The author who had been scheduled to do it backed out and they needed the manuscript in two weeks. I turned it in in one. After that, I studied their catalog and pitched other books to them that would fit into their series. It's been about eight years now and I have written around fifty books for them. My latest book, Your Novel Proposal: From Creation to Contract, came out recently from Writer's Digest Books.  

R&T:  If you had one, single piece of advice to give a new writer, what would it be?  

BC: I always tell new writers to be persistent and never give up. Coupled with that, though, I stress the importance of learning how to write well, to write for the markets, and to learn how to approach those markets professionally. There are a lot of new writers out there who don't bother to learn the ropes, but if you do, you give yourself an immediate edge.

R & T: How important is a query letter, synopsis and proposal?

BC: The query letter is the single most important piece of writing you'll do. It's your foot in the door, the first impression you make. A synopsis is equally important. It shows that you can "write tight." I always stress the importance of a one-page synopsis, as opposed to longer, rambling ones. A synopsis also shows you can write with style, and have created original characters enmeshed in compelling conflicts, and that you know how to resolve those conflicts with a satisfying ending to your book. A proposal for a novel is the complete package -- the query letter, the manuscript, the synopsis, the cover letter. How you present yourself and your material is as important as the manuscript itself.

R & T: When you look for an agent or editor, does your work need to be perfect?

BC: There are a lot of writers who think that the job of an agent or editor is to polish their manuscripts. I try to tell them the manuscript must be as perfect as it can be before they send it out.

R & T: How long does it take you to complete a book-length project? How does that compare to the time it took you when you began writing?

BC: With nonfiction, depending on the length of the book and the subject matter, it could be anywhere from a week to two or three months. I write fast. Fiction takes me a little longer, in part because I spend a lot of time plotting before I sit down to write, and also because my time to write fiction -- my first love -- is limited because of all the other hats I wear. While I am writing fiction, I edit and polish as I go, so once the manuscript is complete, it's pretty polished at that point. But I still go back and revise my drafts several more times. It is much fussier, writing fiction than nonfiction, at least for me. With nonfiction I write one draft, basically, and it's done.

R & T: You teach writing classes online. What makes these classes unique?

BC: I used to teach several courses through AOL, but for the last year and a half I've been teaching them through FWC. The courses I personally teach (I have other instructors who offer other courses) are: How to Approach Editors and Agents, How to Write Winning Query Letters, How to Write a Novel Synopsis, and How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal. What makes my courses unique is that each student receives a lot of individual attention and feedback. The first course gives students a lot of information and at the end of the course they should be sufficiently market savvy to sell their work. At the end of the other three courses students finish up with a query letter, synopsis or proposal ready to go out.

R & T: I know a lot of new writers are very worried about copyright problems, especially with agents, editors and publishers stealing their ideas and manuscripts. Does this fear have any basis in reality?

BC: Not really. This is a question I get asked all the time. The copyright laws are written to protect writers -- they don't even have to file officially. Your publisher does that for you once your book has been accepted. And the likelihood that an agent or editor would steal your work is very far fetched. They know the copyright laws. I always joke with new writers and tell them they should thank their lucky stars if someone does steal their work. The lawsuit would probably earn them more than any advance would!

R & T: How did you get involved in Fiction Writer's Connection?

BC: It was 1993. I had been back from the Gulf for three years, living in Florida, and working hard on articles and books. In Florida, at the time, there was an organization for freelance writers and a couple of organizations that were genre-specific -- The Romance Writers of America and The Mystery Writers of America. I realized there was a need for a group that could provide help to new writers across all genres. I started with offering seminars for writers, inviting speakers in, mailing out the information, building up my mailing list. From observing what was being offered elsewhere and talking to a lot of writers, I decided what services writers needed, and thus FWC was born. It was local at first, then grew. Our website opened in March of 1998 and membership has tripled since then. Members come from all around the world. Through FWC I offer members free critiquing, free consultation, free newsletters containing interviews with editors and agents open to working with new writers, and discounts on both our email courses and on Writer's Digest books. The website is at www.fictionwriters.com.

Blythe Camenson, FWC Director  

List Price: $18.99 Our Price: $13.29 You Save: $5.70 (30%) Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours.   Hardcover - 256 pages (August 1999) Writers Digest Books; ISBN: 0898798752 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.03 x 9.32 x 6.33

   

Deborah Andoetoe has been writing for many years. She teaches classes online and is currently offering Plot Is A Verb and Speculative Fiction. She began selling in 1988 when her two children were in diapers. She has a background in animal husbandry and spends her free time riding dressage and working with the local 4H club sheep department.