While digging around online yesterday doing some research for a new project, I came across a letter David Mamet wrote a few years ago to his writing staff on the CBS show, The Unit.  The letter discusses the art of writing drama, specifically for television, but I think it holds a lot of instruction for those of us who make our living writing stories, regardless of medium.  Discovered on the A TV CALLING blog, I’ve reproduced it here, just as it was originally written (Mamet apparently likes the Caps Lock key)

TO THE WRITERS OF THE UNIT

GREETINGS.

AS WE LEARN HOW TO WRITE THIS SHOW, A RECURRING PROBLEM BECOMES CLEAR.

THE PROBLEM IS THIS: TO DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN *DRAMA* AND NON-DRAMA. LET ME BREAK-IT-DOWN-NOW.

EVERYONE IN CREATION IS SCREAMING AT US TO MAKE THE SHOW CLEAR. WE ARE TASKED WITH, IT SEEMS, CRAMMING A SHITLOAD OF *INFORMATION* INTO A LITTLE BIT OF TIME.

OUR FRIENDS. THE PENGUINS, THINK THAT WE, THEREFORE, ARE EMPLOYED TO COMMUNICATE *INFORMATION* — AND, SO, AT TIMES, IT SEEMS TO US.

BUT NOTE:THE AUDIENCE WILL NOT TUNE IN TO WATCH INFORMATION. YOU WOULDN’T, I WOULDN’T. NO ONE WOULD OR WILL. THE AUDIENCE WILL ONLY TUNE IN AND STAY TUNED TO WATCH DRAMA.

QUESTION:WHAT IS DRAMA? DRAMA, AGAIN, IS THE QUEST OF THE HERO TO OVERCOME THOSE THINGS WHICH PREVENT HIM FROM ACHIEVING A SPECIFIC, *ACUTE* GOAL.

SO: WE, THE WRITERS, MUST ASK OURSELVES *OF EVERY SCENE* THESE THREE QUESTIONS.

1) WHO WANTS WHAT?
2) WHAT HAPPENS IF HER DON’T GET IT?
3) WHY NOW?

THE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS ARE LITMUS PAPER. APPLY THEM, AND THEIR ANSWER WILL TELL YOU IF THE SCENE IS DRAMATIC OR NOT.

IF THE SCENE IS NOT DRAMATICALLY WRITTEN, IT WILL NOT BE DRAMATICALLY ACTED.

THERE IS NO MAGIC FAIRY DUST WHICH WILL MAKE A BORING, USELESS, REDUNDANT, OR MERELY INFORMATIVE SCENE AFTER IT LEAVES YOUR TYPEWRITER. *YOU* THE WRITERS, ARE IN CHARGE OF MAKING SURE *EVERY* SCENE IS DRAMATIC.

THIS MEANS ALL THE “LITTLE” EXPOSITIONAL SCENES OF TWO PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT A THIRD. THIS BUSHWAH (AND WE ALL TEND TO WRITE IT ON THE FIRST DRAFT) IS LESS THAN USELESS, SHOULD IT FINALLY, GOD FORBID, GET FILMED.

IF THE SCENE BORES YOU WHEN YOU READ IT, REST ASSURED IT *WILL* BORE THE ACTORS, AND WILL, THEN, BORE THE AUDIENCE, AND WE’RE ALL GOING TO BE BACK IN THE BREADLINE.

SOMEONE HAS TO MAKE THE SCENE DRAMATIC. IT IS NOT THE ACTORS JOB (THE ACTORS JOB IS TO BE TRUTHFUL). IT IS NOT THE DIRECTORS JOB. HIS OR HER JOB IS TO FILM IT STRAIGHTFORWARDLY AND REMIND THE ACTORS TO TALK FAST. IT IS *YOUR* JOB.

EVERY SCENE MUST BE DRAMATIC. THAT MEANS: THE MAIN CHARACTER MUST HAVE A SIMPLE, STRAIGHTFORWARD, PRESSING NEED WHICH IMPELS HIM OR HER TO SHOW UP IN THE SCENE.

THIS NEED IS WHY THEY *CAME*. IT IS WHAT THE SCENE IS ABOUT. THEIR ATTEMPT TO GET THIS NEED MET *WILL* LEAD, AT THE END OF THE SCENE,TO *FAILURE* – THIS IS HOW THE SCENE IS *OVER*. IT, THIS FAILURE, WILL, THEN, OF NECESSITY, PROPEL US INTO THE *NEXT* SCENE.

ALL THESE ATTEMPTS, TAKEN TOGETHER, WILL, OVER THE COURSE OF THE EPISODE, CONSTITUTE THE *PLOT*.

ANY SCENE, THUS, WHICH DOES NOT BOTH ADVANCE THE PLOT, AND STANDALONE (THAT IS, DRAMATICALLY, BY ITSELF, ON ITS OWN MERITS) IS EITHER SUPERFLUOUS, OR INCORRECTLY WRITTEN.

YES BUT YES BUT YES BUT, YOU SAY: WHAT ABOUT THE NECESSITY OF WRITING IN ALL THAT “INFORMATION?”

AND I RESPOND “*FIGURE IT OUT*” ANY DICKHEAD WITH A BLUESUIT CAN BE (AND IS) TAUGHT TO SAY “MAKE IT CLEARER”, AND “I WANT TO KNOW MORE *ABOUT* HIM”.

WHEN YOU’VE MADE IT SO CLEAR THAT EVEN THIS BLUESUITED PENGUIN IS HAPPY, BOTH YOU AND HE OR SHE *WILL* BE OUT OF A JOB.

THE JOB OF THE DRAMATIST IS TO MAKE THE AUDIENCE WONDER WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. *NOT* TO EXPLAIN TO THEM WHAT JUST HAPPENED, OR TO*SUGGEST* TO THEM WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.

ANY DICKHEAD, AS ABOVE, CAN WRITE, “BUT, JIM, IF WE DON’T ASSASSINATE THE PRIME MINISTER IN THE NEXT SCENE, ALL EUROPE WILL BE ENGULFED IN FLAME”

WE ARE NOT GETTING PAID TO *REALIZE* THAT THE AUDIENCE NEEDS THIS INFORMATION TO UNDERSTAND THE NEXT SCENE, BUT TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO WRITE THE SCENE BEFORE US SUCH THAT THE AUDIENCE WILL BE INTERESTED IN WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.

YES BUT, YES BUT YES *BUT* YOU REITERATE.

AND I RESPOND *FIGURE IT OUT*.

*HOW* DOES ONE STRIKE THE BALANCE BETWEEN WITHHOLDING AND VOUCHSAFING INFORMATION? *THAT* IS THE ESSENTIAL TASK OF THE DRAMATIST. AND THE ABILITY TO *DO* THAT IS WHAT SEPARATES YOU FROM THE LESSER SPECIES IN THEIR BLUE SUITS.

FIGURE IT OUT.

START, EVERY TIME, WITH THIS INVIOLABLE RULE: THE *SCENE MUST BE DRAMATIC*. IT MUST START BECAUSE THE HERO HAS A PROBLEM, AND IT MUST CULMINATE WITH THE HERO FINDING HIM OR HERSELF EITHER THWARTED OR EDUCATED THAT ANOTHER WAY EXISTS.

LOOK AT YOUR LOG LINES. ANY LOGLINE READING “BOB AND SUE DISCUSS…” IS NOT DESCRIBING A DRAMATIC SCENE.

PLEASE NOTE THAT OUR OUTLINES ARE, GENERALLY, SPECTACULAR. THE DRAMA FLOWS OUT BETWEEN THE OUTLINE AND THE FIRST DRAFT.

THINK LIKE A FILMMAKER RATHER THAN A FUNCTIONARY, BECAUSE, IN TRUTH, *YOU* ARE MAKING THE FILM. WHAT YOU WRITE, THEY WILL SHOOT.

HERE ARE THE DANGER SIGNALS. ANY TIME TWO CHARACTERS ARE TALKING ABOUT A THIRD, THE SCENE IS A CROCK OF SHIT.

ANY TIME ANY CHARACTER IS SAYING TO ANOTHER “AS YOU KNOW”, THAT IS, TELLING ANOTHER CHARACTER WHAT YOU, THE WRITER, NEED THE AUDIENCE TO KNOW, THE SCENE IS A CROCK OF SHIT.

DO *NOT* WRITE A CROCK OF SHIT. WRITE A RIPPING THREE, FOUR, SEVEN MINUTE SCENE WHICH MOVES THE STORY ALONG, AND YOU CAN, VERY SOON, BUY A HOUSE IN BEL AIR *AND* HIRE SOMEONE TO LIVE THERE FOR YOU.

REMEMBER YOU ARE WRITING FOR A VISUAL MEDIUM. *MOST* TELEVISION WRITING, OURS INCLUDED, SOUNDS LIKE *RADIO*. THE *CAMERA* CAN DO THE EXPLAINING FOR YOU. *LET* IT. WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERS *DOING* -*LITERALLY*. WHAT ARE THEY HANDLING, WHAT ARE THEY READING. WHAT ARE THEY WATCHING ON TELEVISION, WHAT ARE THEY *SEEING*.

IF YOU PRETEND THE CHARACTERS CANT SPEAK, AND WRITE A SILENT MOVIE, YOU WILL BE WRITING GREAT DRAMA.

IF YOU DEPRIVE YOURSELF OF THE CRUTCH OF NARRATION, EXPOSITION, INDEED, OF *SPEECH*. YOU WILL BE FORGED TO WORK IN A NEW MEDIUM — TELLING THE STORY IN PICTURES (ALSO KNOWN AS SCREENWRITING)

THIS IS A NEW SKILL. NO ONE DOES IT NATURALLY. YOU CAN TRAIN YOURSELVES TO DO IT, BUT YOU NEED TO *START*.

I CLOSE WITH THE ONE THOUGHT: LOOK AT THE *SCENE* AND ASK YOURSELF “IS IT DRAMATIC? IS IT *ESSENTIAL*? DOES IT ADVANCE THE PLOT?

ANSWER TRUTHFULLY.

IF THE ANSWER IS “NO” WRITE IT AGAIN OR THROW IT OUT. IF YOU’VE GOT ANY QUESTIONS, CALL ME UP.

LOVE, DAVE MAMET
SANTA MONICA 19 OCTO 05

(IT IS *NOT* YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO KNOW THE ANSWERS, BUT IT IS YOUR, AND MY, RESPONSIBILITY TO KNOW AND TO *ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS* OVER AND OVER. UNTIL IT BECOMES SECOND NATURE. I BELIEVE THEY ARE LISTED ABOVE.)

So what do you think?  Are Mamet’s three rules on writing a scene as important for novelists as they are for television writers?

With the digital age upon us, agents and editors have started to accept email queries.  Like with any submission, proper formatting is important when submitting a query via email.  Curtis Brown agent and blogger Nathan Bransford wrote a terrific post this week showing you exactly how to do this by using his post as a query in and of itself. 

You can find the full post HERE

The query he created to illustrate his point is copied below:

Dear Blog Readers,

This is how you format an e-mailed query letter. Note that I did not begin with the recipient’s address or my address or the date, as that is not customary for an e-mail. I also am not indenting because indenting and e-mails do not mix.

I am using block formatting. I double space between paragraphs but otherwise the query is single-spaced. It is written in a default font, it is left-justified, and the font is a normal size. If I have copied from a word processing program or past e-mail I am careful to make sure the fonts and sizes match. I haven’t added pictures or tried to get fancy with anything because I want the agent to see that I’m confident in my words and don’t need any gimmicks to make my query stand out.

Believe it or not, less than 25% of the e-queries I receive are properly formatted. While you won’t get rejected if your query is incorrectly formatted, if you accomplish this simple task correctly you will convey an indispensable aura of professionalism. And remember: the amount of time you spend formatting, coloring, bolding, italicizing, and adding pictures to your query is inversely proportional to how professional it looks when you’re finished.

Sincerely,
Nathan Bransford (note that I didn’t leave space for a signature since it’s an e-mail)

My address
My phone number
My e-mail address
(optional: my website/blog)

—

If you are currently getting ready to send your book or proposal out on submission, I’ve got a special coaching offer designed just for you.

My Book Proposal Review service will give you a comprehensive review of your proposal, from the cover letter to the sample chapters, and help you feel more confident that you’ve got a first-class, professional presented product ready to send out to your agent or editor of choice. Even better, its extremely affordable.

My Book Proposal Review service include:

• A review of your entire proposal package, from cover letter to sample chapters
• A written evaluation highlighting the areas that work well and those that need additional effort
• A 30 minute coaching call that answers any questions your might have about the evaluation
• Specific suggestions on how to research and approach agents and publishers

I’ve sold fourteen novels, all on proposal, so you’ll also be getting the benefit of my years of experience and knowledge focused on you and your project.

So how much does this actually cost?

The introductory price for the next few weeks is only $50.00!

I’ll be making this a regular part of my coaching repertoire in the spring and will be raising prices at that point, but for now you get a smoking deal and a complete review of your book proposal for less than the price of a night out at the local steak house.

So how do you get started?

Use the Paypal button below and include the email you want me to use to contact you. I’ll get in touch, have you send your materials, and give you a quick turnaround date for when you can expect your written evaluation. It’s that simple! Why wait?

Remember that new project I alluded to last week?  Now that the contracts have been signed and the press release has been,well, released, I can talk about it in a bit more detail.

So, here’s what I can tell you.

HELLStalkers

That’s it.  I’ve said more than I really should have.  If I were to continue, you and your whole family would be in danger.  Best that you don’t know any more.  Really.

Yeah, I know.  It’s an old routine.  But that’s why it works.

In all seriousness, the project is entitled HELLstalkers and it is a new action series I’m writing in conjunction with my friend and fellow writer, Jon F. Merz.  BUt I’ll let the press release tell you the details.  (And later this week I’ll be back with how it all came together!)

World’s First English Language Thriller Series Written Exclusively for Mobile Phone Market to Launch at Frankfurt Book Fair

Vienna: Blackbetty MobileMedia GmbH, a small screen publisher (SSP) specializing in mobile marketing and distribution, and Vodafone Group Plc, the world’s leading telecommunications company, have partnered with internationally bestselling authors Joe Nassise and Jon F. Merz to produce the first English language thriller series written exclusively for the mobile phone market.

HELLstalkers will focus on an international cast of characters and a global setting, with the story featuring quantum portals, a mysterious organization known as the Cerberus Group, and an accident at the Large Hadron Collider in Geneva, Switzerland.  The first volume, The Cerberus Protocol, will be released in serial format, with several chapters available free of charge at the Frankfurt Book Fair as a way of introducing the series to its international audience.

“We’re tremendously excited to be working with Joe and Jon,” says Jorg Hotter, CEO of Blackbetty.  “It’s rare to find two accomplished authors who fully embrace the idea of using advanced technology to deliver such an intriguing and exciting storyline.  This is a great step for all involved and we think audiences will love the HELLstalkers series.”

Like all of the mobilebooks published by Blackbetty, The Cerberus Protocol and its companion volumes will utilize high resolution graphical cover art, easy-to-use navigation, high quality fonts, and interactive features such as a feedback function that allows the reader to contact the editor, the publisher, and even the authors themselves.

“I find the idea of interactive storytelling to be particularly compelling,” says Nassise, “and I’m extremely excited to be releasing HELLstalkers to our readership in such cutting-edge fashion.” Co-writer Merz agrees.   “I’m thrilled that we get to reach a global audience with this project.  21st century technology means writers like Joe and I have yet another way to get our stories in front of readers.”  The series will also be supported through a fully-interactive website where fans can find more information about forthcoming volumes and delve deeper into the mysteries at the heart of the story.

Thanks to the partnership with Vodafone, consumers can take advantage of an incredible array of distribution options, from mobile tagging and SMS shortcode ordering to Bluetooth-activated terminals and wireless distribution.  The fact that customers can be charged directly by their cellular service provider on their monthly bill makes the entire transaction even easier.

In addition to Germany and the US/UK, the series will also shortly be available to readers in Finland, Saudi Arabia, India, and Africa.

About the Authors
Joe Nassise (www.josephnassise.com) is the author of fourteen novels including the internationally bestselling Templar Chronicles trilogy.  His latest, Eyes to See, will be out from Pan Books in December. As a writing coach, he helps authors make the most of their careers at RockYourWritingCareer.com.

Jon F Merz (www.jonfmerz.net) is the author of over a dozen novels, including the critically acclaimed hardboiled Lawson Vampire series, which Merz is currently adapting for television through his production company New Ronin Entertainment

For more information visit the series website at http://www.hellstalkers.com or email info@hellstalkers.com.

About Blackbetty MobileMedia GmbH

Blackbetty Mobilemedia GmbH specializes in the publication of texts on small screens (Small Screen Publishing). Blackbetty has developed Mobilebook Technology allowing independent application of mobile phones. Users can read a broad range of high quality texts (including images and audio) on small screens. Mobilebooks meet all publishing and copyright standards and have a wide range of technical properties and an interesting palette of additional functions. Only those functions and extensions relevant to the text are built into the Mobilebook. The Mobilebook possesses characteristics which permit a wide range of individualized applications. Blackbetty’s convergent publishing concept enables companies, publishers and agencies to present their texts and brands on mobile phone screens.

Contact Karsten Sturm at K.Sturm@Blackbetty.at for more information.

I read a number of writing-related blogs on a regular basis, both to keep up on what’s happening in the industry and to see what others are talking about.  One of the blogs I read is The Book Deal: An Inside View of Publishing by editor Alan Rinzler.  For those of you who might not be familiar with him, Alan has been involved in the publishing industry for more than forty years.  He has edited works by writers like Robert Ludlum, Shirley McClain, and Clive Cussler, he’s been the Director of Trade Publishing for Bantam Books, Vice President and Associate Publisher of Rolling Stone Magazine, and an editor at Simon & Schuster, Holt, and Macmillan, among others. He now acts as a freelance editor and speaks to groups all across the country about writing and publishing.

A few months ago Alan began doing a series of proposal critiques on his blog.  He offered to review any proposal sent to him and if he thought it was interesting he would comment about it on his blog in an audio podcast.  Each proposal had to follow a certain format:

1. “Hook” or overview (one page)
2. Chapter outline (three pages)
3. Platform (one page)
4. Writing sample consisting of the first ten pages of the book

At the time, I had a proposal sitting around for a novel entitled LIONS OF JUDAH that I hadn’t been able to do too much with, though I wasn’t certain just why.  I consider myself pretty good at putting together a proposal – of the fourteen novels and two novellas I’ve sold to date, all but one of them have been sold strictly on proposal – which made this one a bit more vexing than usual.  It was a proposal for a novel of spiritual warfare targeted at evangelical publishers, though with a bit more action and violence than they might be used to seeing.  I’d had it out to three or four editors, all of whom commented on the quality of the writing but felt it wasn’t right for their line.  I had been planning on revising it, but hadn’t yet found the time.  When Alan made his critique offer, I jumped at the chance, figuring I’d probably learn a thing or two after hearing how an experienced editor viewed the proposal.

For today’s post, I’m going to attach both the document that I submitted to Alan, as well as the audio file of the critique that he gave regarding it.  He did an excellent job of pulling it apart and while I don’t agree with all of his remarks, I did find the exercise useful.  I hope you can take something away from it as well.

Lions of Judah Sample Proposal

Being able to create a strong proposal is a key element in selling your novel and a skill that will serve you well throughout your entire career. My debut novel, RIVERWATCH, was sold as a manuscript, but each book I’ve written since then has been sold solely on the basis of a proposal and sample chapters. I’ve used the same format each time, from selling my sophomore work HERETIC to my most recent trilogy beginning with EYES TO SEE.

For those of you struggling to find a method that works for you, I’ve uploaded a copy of the proposal that was used to sell HERETIC to senior editor Amy Pierpont at Pocket Books back in 2003. (For the record, Amy is no longer at Pocket, but has moved on to Grand Central.) As you can see, the proposal follows the very same basic format I mentioned in my article on Novel Proposal Basics.

One thing you will note – in this instance I used a chapter outline rather than a synopsis. I did this because I knew that Pocket Books (who I was trying to sell it to) had previously required a chapter by chapter outline from me as a condition of the book’s approval, so I wanted to beat them to the punch and save myself the extra step. Had they required a synopsis, I would have simply stripped out the chapter headers and tied all the paragraphs together into a multi-page synopsis.

Download the novel proposal for Heretic.

This is an absolutely fabulous speech by Elizabeth Gilbert (author of the international phenomenon EAT PRAY LOVE) in which she discusses creativity, the muse, and how to deal with our personal successes and failures as artists in the modern world.  As a writer, or any creative individual for that matter, you need to listen to it and take what she says to heart.

I’m still mumbling snatches of the speech under my breath. “Swallow the sun” indeed!

I’m happy to announce that JUMP START YOUR NOVEL: The Sure Fire Way to Get Your Book Under Control Before You Write It, the first of many future Rock Your Writing Career publications, is now available!

You wouldn’t build a house with a fair amount of preparation and planning. Nor should you try to write a novel without doing the same. JUMP START YOUR NOVEL was designed to help you plan, research, and structure your novel before you write word one of the book itself, assuring that by the time you do sit down to write it you’ll be free to unleash your creativity without worrying too much about where you are going or how you are going to get there. You will already have a custom-made road-map to follow, leaving you to write the best book you can possibly write.

Drawing together techniques that I’ve taught in both online seminars and in workshops around the country, as well as the seasoned advice of other writing teachers, JUMP START YOUR NOVEL will show you the exact process I’ve used to write my last six novels and why I think this process can be used by newcomers and seasoned professionals alike.

To learn more, go to the Jump Start Your Novel page.

Like many trades, publishing has its own language that can often be confusing to a newcomer. I’ve collected some of the most common terms used as an aid to our members:

Advance: The amount of money that the publisher pays up front to an author before the book is published. The advance is an advance on all future earnings, which means that the author has to earn back all of the advance before receiving additional payment in the form of royalties. Advances are generally not returnable, even if the book does not earn itself out.

ARCS: Advance Review Copies. Not the final book, these are advance and unfinalized copies of the book that are sent to reviewers.

Auction: If you are really lucky (and have written an excellent book) sometimes the sale of your novel will turn into an auction. Just like the word implies, this is when multiple publishers bid on your book and ultimately, the one who offers the most lucrative deal wins.

BEA: BookExpo America is the largest book rights fair in the United States. This is where publishers from all over the world gather to share rights information, sell book rights, and flaunt their new, upcoming titles.

Cover Letter: Short and sweet, this is the letter that should accompany any material you send to an agent or an editor. A cover letter should remind the agent that the material has been requested, where you met if indeed you have, and the same basic information that is in your query letter—title, genre, a short yet enticing blurb of your book, and bio information if you have any.

Full: A full manuscript

Genre: The classification of books. Examples of genre in fiction include mystery, romance, science fiction, fantasy, and horror.

Hardcover: A book printed with a hard cover.

Imprint: The name within the publishing house that the book is published under. Usually done as a way to market certain types of books. For example, Pocket Books is an imprint of Simon & Schuster. It is still an S&S book, but by publishing under Pocket you are branding the book part of S&S’s mass market paperback line.

Literary Agent: A literary agent works on behalf of the author to sell her book and negotiate with publishers. A literary agent will also sometimes help with career planning and development. Very rarely will they do any editing, though some do.

Marketing: Marketing is advertising that is paid for, including ads in magazines, display units in stores, and things like postcards or posters.

Mass Market: Also called “rack size,” these are paperback books originally designed to fit in rotating book racks in non-bookstore outlets (like grocery stores and drugstores). Mass market paperbacks are roughly 4” x 7” in size.

North American Rights: These are the type of rights licensed to the publisher, allowing the publisher only to handle and represent book rights in North America. This means that the author and the author’s agent are responsible for selling/licensing rights anywhere outside of North America (and usually a designated set of territories).

Preempt: When a publisher makes an advance and royalty offer high enough to take the book off the auction table. In other words, a publisher offers enough money that the author and agent agree that they will sell the book without asking for bids from other publishers.

Proofs/Page proofs: This is the last stage of editing that a book goes through. They are a copy of the designed pages, and the author is given one last chance to review the typesetter’s “proofs” to check for typos or other small errors. Proofs are also what are used to make review copies for reviewers and sometimes rights sales.

Proposal/Partial: A proposal or a partial is frequently what an agent will ask for when taking a book under consideration. For fiction and narrative nonfiction a proposal usually includes a cover letter, a designated number of chapters from the book, and a synopsis. For non-narrative nonfiction a proposal usually contains an extended author bio, an overview of the book, an expanded table of contents, detailed marketing and competitive information, and of course sample writing material (usually a chapter or two).

Publicity: Advertising that is free. Publicity includes magazine and newspaper articles, radio and television interviews, and of course web-based promotion.

Query: A one-page letter sent to agents or editors in an attempt to gain representation. A query letter should include all of the author’s contact information—name, address, phone, email, and Web site—as well as the title of the book, genre, author bio if applicable, and a short, enticing blurb of the book.

Royalties: The percentage of the sales (monetary) an author receives for each copy of the book sold. These are only received after the author has earned back his or her advance.

Sell-Through: This is the most important number in publishing. It’s the percentage of books shipped that have actually sold. For example, if your publisher shipped 100,000 books (great number!) but only sold 40,000, your sell-through is 40%. Not so great. However, if your publisher shipped 50,000 books, and sold 40,000, your sell-through would be 80%. A fantastic number.

Slush/Slush Pile: Any material sent to an agent or an editor that has not been requested.

Synopsis: A detailed, multi-page description of the book that includes all major plot points as well as the conclusion.

Trade: To make it easy, trade is the shortened name for trade paperback books and is basically any size that is not mass market.

Vanity Press: A publisher that publishes the author’s work at the author’s expense (not a recommended way to seek publication by most agents or editors).

World Rights: When World Rights are sold/licensed to the publisher the publisher has the ability to represent the book on the author’s behalf and sell foreign translation rights anywhere in the world. Keep in mind that the author does get a piece of the pie no matter where the book is published.