"Personal" question(s) to John Jarrold

[Stephen Palmer]

... now all you need is vast amounts of luck!

 

[Triceratops]

I see the majority of the sub requests in RTF (Rich Text Format) or Word, which is the same as a doc. Correct? RTF is a pull-down option in your word processing format.

Tri

 

[The Alamo Avenger]

Sample chapters are usually double-spaced

Ok, here in the States, none of the agents I've dealt with will accept attachments on an initial query due to virus concerns, which is understandable. However, some agents will request the 1st 50 pages of your manuscript in addition to the Query Letter and Synopsis.

I realize that sample chapters should be submitted double-spaced, but since in these cases the portion of the novel is being directly input into the body of the email, should it still be double-spaced? I have left it that way in the past but it seems like that makes for an awfully long email and that perhaps it should be single-spaced......?

If anyone can weigh in on this it would be appreciated.

 

[J-WO]

To the best of my knowledge, you probably want to keep it double spaced. Its industry standard after all. Looks professional. Plus, if you've piqued her interest, an agent may wish to print some of it out and she can make notes in the spaces you've kindly left.

However, the ultimate rule is (drum roll)--read their guidelines. Obvious, I know, but it always bears repeating.

 

[The Alamo Avenger]

To the best of my knowledge, you probably want to keep it double spaced. Its industry standard after all. Looks professional. Plus, if you've piqued her interest, an agent may wish to print some of it out and she can make notes in the spaces you've kindly left.

However, the ultimate rule is (drum roll)--read their guidelines. Obvious, I know, but it always bears repeating.

Thanks, J-WO. That makes a lot of sense. In this specific instance I did go ahead and keep the sample pages double-spaced and will continue to do so in the future (for those agents that request pages from the novel). Now it's on to more submissions--the next few on my list only request a query letter so I don't have to worry about this topic at the moment. Also, just for the record, I did read their guidelines (2 or 3 times) and they mentioned nothing about how the sample pages should be formatted.

Oh, and if you could teach me how to use those psychic powers of yours, that would be fabulouso! Nowhere in my post did I mention this particular agent was a female (though she was) and yet in your response you referred to the agent more than once as a member of the fairer sex. So, either your psychic or else you're a woman and naturally refer to all agents as women, just as I would refer to them as men since I'm a man.

 

[Triceratops]

To the best of my knowledge, you probably want to keep it double spaced. Its industry standard after all. Looks professional. Plus, if you've piqued her interest, an agent may wish to print some of it out and she can make notes in the spaces you've kindly left.

However, the ultimate rule is (drum roll)--read their guidelines. Obvious, I know, but it always bears repeating.

This is often repeated but quoted for truth. Another little trick (courtesy) is to offer a line or two in your opening paragraph, something like, "I have included the query and my bio/credit list in the body of this email, and attached the three chapters in Doc., per your instructions." At least this shows that you did read their sub guidelines, negating the fact that it is a shotgun (spam) submission.

Tri

 

[J-WO]

Oh, and if you could teach me how to use those psychic powers of yours, that would be fabulouso! Nowhere in my post did I mention this particular agent was a female (though she was) and yet in your response you referred to the agent more than once as a member of the fairer sex. So, either your psychic or else you're a woman and naturally refer to all agents as women, just as I would refer to them as men since I'm a man.

Alright, the games up- I live inside your PC.

 

[Anne Lyle]

Does anyone else have problems the RTF format?

I've read that email submissions are usually required in RTF, which is fair enough and understandable, but whenever I try to use it (in Open Office) it will not retain formatting properly.

Time and time again, I set everything correctly, double spacing, etc, but when I save and reload the file, I find eratic double spacing, and centered positions for chapter headings are out of place.

It's driving me mad and taking up time I'd rather be getting with the actual writing than fiddling about with formatting.

Can we not just just submit in *.doc format?

I've had the same problem, exporting from Scrivener then opening the file in OpenOffice to check that I've got what I wanted to export. It looks fine, but when someone else opens it, alternate scenes come out single and double spaced. It drives my critique group nuts! (There was one time it decided to make the last line of a scene ALL CAPS - and since the line was dialogue, everyone wondered if I was having a Terry Pratchett DEATH moment!)

I will stick to TextEdit in future, I think!

 

[Montero]

Pity Adobe Acrobat .pdf isn't asked for. You can do a nice format controlled export of that from Open Office. It comes in a version where you can copy and paste text from the pdf.

Anyone know why .pdfs aren't wanted?

 

[Ian Whates]

Anyone know why .pdfs aren't wanted?

I could be wrong, but I'd imagine it's due to the inflexibility of the pdf format.

The reason editors etc ask for submissions to be double spaced is that this gives them opportunity to make comments and notes above specific pieces of text (perhaps less relevant in this digital age but still the case). I suspect agents are much the same, and pdfs would prevent any screen note-making, editing etc.

 

[darkpowers]

Pity Adobe Acrobat .pdf isn't asked for. You can do a nice format controlled export of that from Open Office. It comes in a version where you can copy and paste text from the pdf.

Anyone know why .pdfs aren't wanted?

I agree. PDFS are not difficult to deal with. They can be read, copied from and edited quite easily. It seems publishing is a business that's slow to change with the times.

 

[Dozmonic]

They are clumsier and slower than their word counterparts

 

[Susan Boulton]

Doesn't matter if PDF's are better or not, you stick to the agents'/publishers' guidelines. If they want it hand-written in the blood of your first born, you do it!

 

[darkpowers]

Doesn't matter if PDF's are better or not, you stick to the agents'/publishers' guidelines. If they want it hand-written in the blood of your first born, you do it!

Yes, I do know that, thank you.

To make myself clear and avoid futher misunderstanding, I always do follow the guidelines, so no problem there.

I was just merely discussing PDFS as a better way of submitting material as they can be set in exactly the required format with none of the issues of files looking different on different machines as can happen with non PDF files.

 

[Stephen Palmer]

pdf stands for portable document format, apparently the idea was to have a format that every computer could read...

 

[iansales]

Doesn't PDF editing software cost money? Whereas most computers have Microsoft Office - or OpenOffice, or access to Google documents - already installed?

Besides, PDFs are only useful because they fix the formatting of the document - and it's the words you should be concentrating on. Approximations to SMF by Word, OO Writer, Wordstar, etc. are close enough.

 

[Brian G Turner]

PDF's are evil and well known for crashing Firefox!

It still flummoxes me that on the world wide web, some websites still insist on presenting documents in PDF rather than HTML. It offers nothing for the general user, except frustration if Firefox crashes or freezes, and how much more often do I have to see the message "Adobe Acrobat did not close properly..."

I think PDF's are a great way to pee people off, and absolutely would not send one to any in publishing.

 

[Montero]

I wasn't intending to send one (unless asked for it ) just wondered why no-one asked.
I find them good for providing a fixed format document - though thinking about it more for sending reports with embedded pictures/graphs in as Word and Open Office can both be annoying in how flaky the picturing anchoring and text flow can be. (So nothing to do with my submissions to agents. )

I like being able to download pdfs from the internet, to store and look at later. They print better than HTML pages as well. Talking tech docs here.

 

[Heterochromia]

I have a few questions about being published that I am hoping you can answer.

Firstly, if an agent liked your writing but didn't like your book, would they still sign you on the promise of something else?

Also, I have just finished one novel and I'm hoping to start on another over the next month. Had a few ideas, but would like to know if one of them is a complete no-no.

You see, it starts with two characters on the run who are having an illicit affair, a local doctor and a fifteen-year-old schoolgirl (I know this doesn't sound very SF/Fantasy, but that comes later!). I wrote two chapters a while back, but no one on my online writing group would even read them because it involved underage sex.

Would this also preclude publishing? I don't want to bother writing any more if this will never even be read. I just want to stress at this point that I am not a pervert, but I had the idea after I read a similar story in a newspaper. Please don't flame me!

 

[The Judge]

I'm not sure if John is around at the moment, so I'll have a go at answering.

Firstly, if an agent liked your writing but didn't like your book, would they still sign you on the promise of something else?

Highly unlikely, I'd have thought. More likely you'd get a 'No thanks, but keep me in mind for the next one', perhaps with some comments about your writing generally.

Also, I have just finished one novel and I'm hoping to start on another over the next month. Had a few ideas, but would like to know if one of them is a complete no-no.

I don't think anything is a complete no-no, but you surely will limit your options with subject matter which many will find distasteful. This is particularly the case, I imagine, if the doctor is seen as the hero and/or isn't punished in any way for the offence. On the upside, if you did get published, the furore from the outraged moralists will almost guarantee you fame and fortune. If you're really lucky, they will even buy your book for the express purpose of burning it!

I wrote two chapters a while back, but no one on my online writing group would even read them because it involved underage sex.

I don't think you'd have that reaction here, if you wanted to put an extract up for critique. Read the stickies at the top of the critiques forum though, and only post a few hundred words to begin with.

Would this also preclude publishing? I don't want to bother writing any more if this will never even be read.

Is there a reason the girl is only 15? Could you make her older in fact, even if you need the doctor and/or the others in the book to believe she is underage? Is the sex happening on stage, as it were? If so, you are more likely to cause offence, and again create problems in selling the book to an agent or publisher, than if it is happening behind closed doors.

I just want to stress at this point that I am not a pervert, but I had the idea after I read a similar story in a newspaper. Please don't flame me!

You won't get flamed on this site - we have very good moderators here.

J