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Index Interviews: Peter Lance Lyn Hamilton Co-writing Committee-itis The Power of Repetition, Part II Before You Write Return to This Issue's Index Return to Homepage Subscribe
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Reviews of Writing BooksPage Two of TwoThe Marshall Plan for Getting Your Novel Published by Evan MarshallWriter's Digest Books, June, 2003Hardcover, 242 pages ISBN: 158297196X Ordering information: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk 
Literary agent and bestselling mystery novelist Evan
Marshall has once again provided an excellent guide for
writers hoping to get their novel published.
Writers will be motivated after reading Marshall's
many tips to help them avoid
having their novel rejected by an editor or agent
because of an easily avoided mistake. The first part of
Marshall's latest book contains tips and suggestions
for getting your manuscript as perfect as it can before
sending it on its way for possible acceptance by an agent
or publisher. Once you have your dialogue tweaked
and your prose polished, Marshall focuses the writer
on perfecting his manuscript submission techniques; he also
gives instruction as to how and when to approach editors.
In this section, Marshall also provides helpful outlines
for creating the perfect synopsis, query and cover letters.
More rejection pitfalls can be avoided by following
Marshall's plans for perfecting your submission letters
and making them the way agents and editors like to
receive them.
The third part of the book provides advice about contracts
and working with editors. An appendix in the
book provides a glossary and helpful sample query and
cover letters. This book is a follow-up to Marshall's
other two excellent writing books, The Marshall Plan for Novel
Writing and The Marshall Plan Workbook.
Authors will appreciate Marshall's well-planned
strategies and templates, as well as his practical
fact-based advice. Highly recommended.
Writer's Guide to Places by Don Prues and Jack HeffronWriter's Digest Books, December, 2002Trade Paperback, 402 pages ISBN: 1582971692 Ordering information: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk 
You're writing a mystery and your main character
needs to navigate the streets of Seattle and have
a shoot-out at the Pike Place Market. The problem?
You live in Dubuque and you've never been to Seattle.
Enter the Writer's Guide to Places, which
provides detailed information about
states, cities and provinces in the United States
and Canada to help writers quickly find the statistics
or regional information they need.
Each geographic listing in the book includes information
written specifically for writers. For example, the
Sacramento listing includes information about
Sacramento facts and peculiarities your character
might know, local grub your character might love,
pathetically sad things your character is ashamed
of in Sacramento and where your character might
go if they are rich, a nature lover or a middle-class
family man. The book also includes suggestions for
interesting settings or scenes and a list of additional
resources including books and websites.
By offering both basic details about
a location and more obscure information that
only a local resident would know, the Writer's
Guide to Places is a very handy and time-saving
book for writers to have at their disposal.
Writing Book Reviews Page One | Page Two Return to Book Reviews Index ** More information on writing-related books can be found in the Writer's Bookstore. |