How to Write a Novel


Book Description

Author and former literary agent Nathan Bransford shares his secrets for creating killer plots, fleshing out your first ideas, crafting compelling characters, and staying sane in the process. Read the guide that New York Times bestselling author Ransom Riggs called "The best how-to-write-a-novel book I've read."




Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapow


Book Description

Out-of-this-world antics in this hysterical middle-grade adventure! Sixth-grader Jacob Wonderbar is a master when it comes to disarming and annihilating substitute teachers. But when he and his best friends, Sarah and Dexter, swap a spaceship for a corn dog, they embark on an outer space adventure. And between breaking the universe with an epic explosion, being kidnapped by a space pirate, and surviving a planet that reeks of burp breath, Jacob and his friends are in way over their heads. Action packed with an added dose of heart, Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapow is sure to captivate middlegrade readers all over the universe.




Editor & Publisher


Book Description




The Elements of Style


Book Description

First published in 1918, William Strunk Jr.'s The Elements of Style is a guide to writing in American English. The boolk outlines eight "elementary rules of usage", ten "elementary principles of composition", "a few matters of form", a list of 49 "words and expressions commonly misused", and a list of 57 "words often misspelled". A later edition, enhanced by E B White, was named by Time magazine in 2011 as one of the 100 best and most influential books written in English since 1923.




From Dissertation to Book


Book Description

How to transform a thesis into a publishable work that can engage audiences beyond the academic committee. When a dissertation crosses my desk, I usually want to grab it by its metaphorical lapels and give it a good shake. “You know something!” I would say if it could hear me. “Now tell it to us in language we can understand!” Since its publication in 2005, From Dissertation to Book has helped thousands of young academic authors get their books beyond the thesis committee and into the hands of interested publishers and general readers. Now revised and updated to reflect the evolution of scholarly publishing, this edition includes a new chapter arguing that the future of academic writing is in the hands of young scholars who must create work that meets the broader expectations of readers rather than the narrow requirements of academic committees. At the heart of From Dissertation to Book is the idea that revising the dissertation is fundamentally a process of shifting its focus from the concerns of a narrow audience—a committee or advisors—to those of a broader scholarly audience that wants writing to be both informative and engaging. William Germano offers clear guidance on how to do this, with advice on such topics as rethinking the table of contents, taming runaway footnotes, shaping chapter length, and confronting the limitations of jargon, alongside helpful timetables for light or heavy revision. Germano draws on his years of experience in both academia and publishing to show writers how to turn a dissertation into a book that an audience will actually enjoy, whether reading on a page or a screen. He also acknowledges that not all dissertations can or even should become books and explores other, often overlooked, options, such as turning them into journal articles or chapters in an edited work. With clear directions, engaging examples, and an eye for the idiosyncrasies of academic writing, he reveals to recent PhDs the secrets of careful and thoughtful revision—a skill that will be truly invaluable as they add “author” to their curriculum vitae.




What Editors Do


Book Description

Essays from twenty-seven leading book editors: “Honest and unflinching accounts from publishing insiders . . . a valuable primer on the field.” —Publishers Weekly Editing is an invisible art in which the very best work goes undetected. Editors strive to create books that are enlightening, seamless, and pleasurable to read, all while giving credit to the author. This makes it all the more difficult to truly understand the range of roles they inhabit while shepherding a project from concept to publication. What Editors Do gathers essays from twenty-seven leading figures in book publishing about their work. Representing both large houses and small, and encompassing trade, textbook, academic, and children’s publishing, the contributors make the case for why editing remains a vital function to writers—and readers—everywhere. Ironically for an industry built on words, there has been a scarcity of written guidance on how to approach the work of editing. Serving as a compendium of professional advice and a portrait of what goes on behind the scenes, this book sheds light on how editors acquire books, what constitutes a strong author-editor relationship, and the editor’s vital role at each stage of the publishing process—a role that extends far beyond marking up the author’s text. This collection treats editing as both art and craft, and also as a career. It explores how editors balance passion against the economic realities of publishing—and shows why, in the face of a rapidly changing publishing landscape, editors are more important than ever. “Authoritative, entertaining, and informative.” —Copyediting




Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Being Good


Book Description

Packed with doodles and cartoons, here is the diary of Loki as he’s trapped on earth as a petulant eleven-year-old—and even worse, annoying thunder god Thor is there, too. After one prank too many, trickster god Loki has been banished to live as a kid on earth. If he can show moral improvement within one month, he can return to Asgard. If he can't? Eternity in a pit of angry snakes. Rude! To keep track of Loki’s progress, king Odin (a bossy poo-poo head) gives him this magical diary in which Loki is forced to confess the truth, even when that truth is as ugly as a naked mole rat. To make matters worse, Loki has to put up with an eleven-year-old Thor tagging along and making him look bad. Loki is not even allowed to use his awesome godly powers! As Loki suffers the misery of school lunch, discovers the magic of internet videos, and keeps watch for frost giant spies, will he finally learn to tell good from bad, trust from tricks, and friends from enemies? Louie Stowell’s witty text and hysterical drawings will keep readers in stitches from start to finish.




Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents 2017


Book Description

Still the Best Guide for Getting Published If you want to get published, read this book! Comprehensive index lists dozens of subjects and categories to help you find the perfect publisher or agent. Jeff Herman’s Guide unmasks nonsense, clears confusion, and unlocks secret doorways to success for new and veteran writers! This highly respected resource is used by publishing insiders everywhere and has been read by millions all over the world. Jeff Herman’s Guide is the writer’s best friend. It reveals the names, interests, and contact information of thousands of agents and editors. It presents invaluable information about more than 350 publishers and imprints (including Canadian and university presses), lists independent book editors who can help you make your work more publisher-friendly, and helps you spot scams. Jeff Herman’s Guide unseals the truth about how to outsmart the gatekeepers, break through the barriers, and decipher the hidden codes to getting your book published. Countless writers have achieved their highest aspirations by following Herman’s outside-the-box strategies. If you want to reach the top of your game and transform rejections into contracts, you need this book!




Getting It Published


Book Description

Since 2001 William Germano's Getting It Published has helped thousands of scholars develop a compelling book proposal, find the right academic publisher, evaluate a contract, handle the review process, and, finally, emerge as published authors. But a lot has changed in the past seven years. With the publishing world both more competitive and mor...




Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents, 28th edition


Book Description

If You Want to Get Published, Read This Book! Jeff Herman’s Guide is the writer’s best friend. The 28th edition, updated for 2019, includes strategies to finding your way through today’s field of publishers, editors, and agents. Get the most up-to-date information on the who’s who in publishing: The best way to ensure that your book stands out from the crowd is to find the right person to read it. In this guidebook, Jeff Herman reveals names, contact information, and personal interests for hundreds of literary agents and editors, so you can find the publishing professional who’s been waiting for you. In addition, the comprehensive index makes it easy to search by genre and subject. Learn to write a winning pitch: This highly-respected resource has helped countless authors achieve their highest goals. It starts with the perfect pitch. You’ll learn the language that publishers use, and ways to present yourself and your book in the best light. Trust the expert that insiders trust: Bestselling authors and publishing insiders recognize Jeff Herman’s Guide as honest, informative, and accurate. New and veteran writers of both fiction and nonfiction have relied on this no-nonsense guidebook for decades. Everything you need to know to publish your book is compiled in this one go-to resource. In Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents you’ll find: Invaluable information about 245 publishers and imprints Independent book editors who can help make your book publisher-friendly Methods for spotting a scam before it’s too late Methods to becoming a confident partner in the business of publishing your book. This guide is an excellent addition to your collection if you have read Guide to Literary Agents 2019, Writer's Market 2019, or The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published.