Maureen McQuerry dot com

Titles

maureen.mcquerry — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 20:30:14 +0000

We’ve finalized, I think, titles for my two middle grade fantasy books. Beyond the Door will be released in 2011 and Time Out of Time in 2012. Both are being published by Abrams/Amulet. Notice I said we. Final title selection is collaborative. Remember that wonderful scene in Julie and Julia when Julia Childs and her editor move around words written on 3×5 cards to come up with the best combination? My editor and I came up with a list of possible titles and then polled friends, students and colleagues, did a little mixing and matching, and more head scratching. I had to know what I liked, but also be open and willing to compromise.

Because a title needs to be fresh, it’s important to see what’s already out there. Okay, it’s probably impossible to be completely original, but check and see when a similar title was published and if the title represents a book with a similar theme. I loved the title A Wolf at the Door, but Amazon shows a number of recent books with that title. Datlow’s collection of retold fairtales with that title is a little too close to my genre. It even has a cover I’d love to steal! I couldn’t use it.

So, what makes a good fiction title? Here’s my list. It has to be fresh. The title should have a sense of intrigue, make the audience curious. It should be easy to remember. I like titles with visual appeal, that create an image. It should reflect the genre, tone and theme of the work: humorous, mysterious, literary, smart and snappy. After all, it’s the first of your words a reader reads, and it becomes a promise to the reader of what’s to come.

Houndbite

maureen.mcquerry — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:31:15 +0000

Start your morning with a poem. Houndbite offers poems from The Other Journal read out loud.

February

maureen.mcquerry — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:56:11 +0000

Fav Authors Share 10 Fiction Rules

maureen.mcquerry — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:48:25 +0000

Ten Rules for Writing Fiction contains gems like: Get an accountant, abstain from sex and similes, cut, rewrite, then cut and rewrite again – if all else fails, pray. (Guardian U.K)

I’m excited: Neil Gaiman, PD James and Margaret Atwood are quoted. Do they mean sex and similes at the same time?

The Divas Come to Town

maureen.mcquerry — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 02:35:46 +0000

The best part about conferences are the people you meet there. Lorie Ann Grover, Dia Calhoun, two of the Readergirlz divas, and I share a lunch at the Atomic. Check out their fine YA novels and other books to love at Readergirlz.

Lori Ann Grover, me, Dia Calhoun

Cavalcade of Authors and RadCon

maureen.mcquerry — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:08:12 +0000

Look who’s coming to the Tri -Cities next week! Cavalcade of Authors is bringing Dia Calhoun, Patrick Carmen, Suzanne Selfors and other outstanding authors to the Red Lion hotel in Pasco. For once, we don’t have to travel to Seattle or Portland for an author event! Thanks to Michelle Lane for brainstorming this event!

And if that isn’t enough, Cavalcade is followed by RadCon the fantastic fantasy/Sci-Fi convention. Check out the site for the preview of authors–there are too many to mention. Who will wear the fairy wings this year? Will there be a Steampunk element?

So, Tri-Cities, dust off the red carpet; the authors are coming!!

off to see the wizard

maureen.mcquerry — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 04:14:29 +0000

Tomorrow, very early, I board a plane to NY. Now this may not seem like a big deal to most, but it’s one more step towards a goal I’ve been pursuing for a long time. I’ll meet my new editor, Howard Reeves, at Abrams/Amulet, attend the SCBWI conference and have dinner with the amazing Jessica Bian and her Ted.

So intrepid writer friends, I’ll be keeping you posted on visitng a NY publishing house (this is big news for us West coasties), meeting with my editor for the first time,( and hoping I don’t say anything too goofy), and I’ll be taking notes on the latest publishing buzz at the conference. Of course, I’ll have to take notes on a few good restaurants too. Did you know it’s open table week in NY? Nom!

Do you think three pairs of shoes are enough?

Chelan Pirates

maureen.mcquerry — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 21:52:38 +0000

A photo of some of the pirate-wrtiers at Chelan Middle School after the Map Your Way into Story workshop. I’m hiding in the middle. Watch for their maps and stories here.

Editorial comments

maureen.mcquerry — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 06:59:31 +0000

So what do editorial comments look like? First round. Lots of work to do.

twitterific challenge

maureen.mcquerry — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 20:22:26 +0000

Admit it. You love having the last word, especially if it is the perfect exit line. How many of us turn to the last page of a book and read that final sentence before we should? Here’s the goal. Write one last line a day, a last line that could end a short story or a novel. Happily ever after does not count. Check them out on Twitter @maureenmcquerry.

Nancy@1stsentence will be tweeting first lines. Try your own story using both the first sentence of the day and the last.

To start us off, J.D. Salinger, “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.”

The next ones have to be original.