Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Editors - What They Had To Say


The editors offered tips and advice. Read it and use it to your advantage. Read between the lines. Don't be naive when it comes to writing, selling and marketing your work. Don't wait around to be spoon-fed by an agent or an organization. Educate yourself. It has been said by one editor that the industry has a very long memory. You can take that bit of wisdom to the bank, as a favorite old detective used to say. Be a smart writer.

Sue Bower
Zondervan
Looking for terrific stories that entertain and change lives from 90,000 - 100,000 words. Contemporary and suspense.

Rebecca Germany
Barbour
Looking for full length romance 85,000 and up.
Tip: Write passionately.

Susan Downs
Barbour Publishing, Heartsong Present, Mysteries!
Looking for cozies only from 55,000 to 60,000 words.
Tip: Study the guidelines.

Anne Goldsmith
Hatchette Book Group USA, Faith Words
Women's Fiction, big stories, dramas 75,000 - 100,000 words.
Tip: Read and write.

Natalie Hanemann
Thomas Nelson Fiction - Seeking historical and Romance - 75,000 + words.
Tip: It's all about the story.

My Note: Someone said, and I think it was Natalie Hanemann, It's important for writers to know who they are and what their brand will be. Have a sense of who you are.

Shannon Hill
WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group. Looking for? I like being surprised.
Tip: Don't just think out of the box, blow it up.

Andrew Meisenheimer
Zondervan - nonfiction, fiction. Contemporary and suspense.
Tip: He agrees that it's all about story and says, Your proposal is a story.

Kim Moore
Harvest House - looking for great writing, soft historicals, good characters and plots. 90,000 to 100,000 words.
Tip: WOW me with a great opening.

Rebekah Nesbitt
Tyndale House - No westerns or scifi. 75,000 and up.
Tip: Write the whole book.

Karen Schurrer
Bethany House Publishers - historicals 90,000 - 110,000.
Tip: Good story, good characters. Let your characters tell me what they want to tell me.

Krista Stroever
Steeple Hill - Contemporary romance and historicals up to WWII.
Tip: The industry has a very long memory.

David Webb
B&H Publishing - David stated that he and Karen Ball have torn down and built up again B&H fiction. They're looking for contemporary women's fiction, suspense thrillers, historcial romance 80,000 words and up. It's a new day at B&H.
Tip: Find a hook.

8 comments:

Deborah Raney said...

What a great offering these posts are, Jess! Thanks for taking such good notes. You really put it in a nutshell for everyone who wasn't there!

Maureen Lang said...

Thanks for taking such great notes! I was depending on my (failing) memory so I'm glad you recapped the info for everyone.

Unknown said...

I missed the beginning of the discussions and appreciate your wonderful notes. Thanks so much for taking the time to post this!

Annette M. Irby said...

Thank you, Jessy, for including this on your blog. Very helpful!!

Anonymous said...

I couldn't attend the conference classes or panel discussions, so this is wonderful. Thanks for posting.

Wandering Writer said...

Jess, I am impressed. What a great help all of this is. It was good to meet you at dinner Friday! Blessings as you write!!

Deb said...

Thanks for the data. I was hoping someone would do this, since I couldn't attend this year.

Now to find that publisher who's gonna be eager to buy my WIP... (G)

Patti Shene said...

Jess, thanks so much for posting this. I was unable to attend conference this year, so this info is most helpful. Thanks for thinking of your fellow ACFWers and taking the time to post this!