Recently in Writer Resources Category

We're not up there yet, but I'm definitely looking at Writer's Digest list of the 101 Best Sites for Writers as something to aim for in the future. From Agent Blogs to Publishing Resources, Jobs and Just for Fun, this is a comprehensive listing of some of the very best sites out there on the web for writers. You don't have to check them all out, but I'm certainly going to bookmark a few and see what I can learn. And next year, if I'm very very good, maybe I'll make the list myself!

Yes, NASA has a pretty sweet system, but all you need as a writer is a simple tracking system. And yes, I firmly believe you NEED one. This is something you should have in place before you send out your first query. I don't want to tell you how many queries I've received that rightly sound familiar -- a quick check of my email archives, and I can see that not only did I already receive the query within the last three months, but I already responded.

Authors, spare yourself the embarrassment of an agent responding to say, "Sorry, my decision to decline hasn't changed in the last month since you first sent me this query."

You may already know about QueryTracker, but you don't need anything even this complicated, really. Use Microsoft Excel, or Google documents to create a spreadsheet. Title it the name of your manuscript, and make columns for Agent/Editor Name, Company, Email or Address, Date Sent, Material Sent, Follow-Up, and Response. Add other columns as you see fit. Before you send an email or a letter in the mail, note all the pertinent information in your log. This way, you'll see before you send anything if you've already tried that agent. When you get a response, note it, and if you'd like, any helpful comments you might have received.

I do the same thing for my submissions to editors of my authors' manuscripts. I don't want to make a fool of myself by bugging an editor for a reaction after they've already declined. Note everything you get as soon as you get it, and you'll be glad you did.

In other news, I'm closing up shop around here for a brief vacation. I'm going to try to set it up that some "Ask Daphne" posts will go up while I'm gone, so feel free to hang around, comment, and send me emails. I'll get back to them next week.

Part of the fun of packing and moving and unpacking and getting my new office set up is finding the strange and wonderful things I decided were worth saving. In a file marked "articles", between pieces on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, I found this article by Elmore Leonard on ten rules for writing. The highlights:

1. Never open a book with weather
2. Avoid prologues
3. Never use a verb other than "said" to carry dialogue
4. Never use an adverb to modify the verb "said"
5. Keep your exclamation points under control
6. Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose"
7. Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly
8. Avoid detailed descriptions of characters
9. Don't go into great detail describing places or things
10. Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip

A writer friend of mine forwarded this delectable link to Daily Monster, where artist Stefan G. Bucher creates a daily drawing of a monster, and invites his blog readers to contribute the creature's backstory. What a great writing exercise! He's up to Monster #152, whom I particularly love for the fabulous spats and shiny black shoes. Bucher has a book coming out with his first 100 monsters, including a DVD, but you can still contribute to his daily site.

Writers are often advised to "write, write, write," so even if you're blocked on your novel, why not set aside some time to write a backstory for a monster? If that's not for you, how well do you work under word constraints? Try 100 Word Stories, which gives you a theme each day and invites you to contribute a short short of just 100 words. Or how about OneWord? This site gives you 30 60 seconds to write as much of a story as you can on a single word -- use it as a theme, as a punchline, or any other way you like.

What other writing exercises do you know of out there? What are your favorites?

EDIT: Seems like OneWord isn't working anymore, which makes me even more eager to hear your ideas for writing exercises!

As an aspiring writer or published author, you're likely already a master of the internets. Here are just a few of my favorite very helpful sites for authors navigating the world of publishing:

• The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
  
• Verla Kay Blue Boards
  
• Preditors and Editors
  
• Pub Rants
  
• Inspirational quotes on writing for children
  
• Publishers Marketplace
  
• The Association of Authors' Representatives
  
• Backspace: The Writers Place
  
• Romance Writers of America
  
• And my favorite authors' websites!