more on hooks

[Melanie Nilles]

Has anyone here read Rachel Vater's blog? As an agent she has a lot to say. Personally, I keep up with hers, Kristin Nelson's, and Miss Snark. Rachel had a hooks submission going a few weeks ago that was quite interesting and informative, especially since she specializes in the SFF genres. Her personal opinions aside, there are some great tips in her blog for writing hooks. I'm not advertising for her, but want to let others know that there are some great resources out there, by the agents selling the books.

Now, if you want to see how your hooks stand up to criticism and if they are effective, Fangs, Fur, & Fey has a contest going. I won't post the details here, but if anyone's interested--besides me--you can find that info here: Fangs, Fur, & Fey--Urban Fantasy Novelists - Contest!. Entries will be accepted for a limited time--April 13-15.

Good luck to everyone who enters!

 

[Leaf Face]

Yeah, I have read those too. I am too afraid to post my query. Good luck to all who do!

 

[chrispenycate]

Interesting to note that what they refer to as a "hook", is not what I use the word for (for me a "hook" is a teaser buried in the first chapter (frequently the first page) to grab a browser (human, not software) and convince him to lay out his shekels to obtain the entire work.

This is more or less the use of the word in the other thread in this forum.

This competition is to find an attractive synopsis for an already-written book; more what I would consider a "blurb". The same ultimate aim, but a different delivery vector, and only viable if your book is already available for publication.

 

[Melanie Nilles]

Actually, they specify that you just have to have 50 pages written if you win, for Rachel to critique, a service to help writers improve.

As far as the term "hook" goes, I'd use it as the agents and publishing insiders do. It is a blurb--not a synopsis, which includes the ending--but it's also what you would use to hook an agent if you sent them a query. Along those lines, this is a great way to improve the writing of query letters too.

 

[Coolhand]

Sounds cool. Think I might give this a whirl...

 

[Duchessprozac]

I'm going to give this a go. It's not as easy as I thought though, trying to make my story sound anything but generic.

 

[Coolhand]

Whew. Well I just scraped in. I'm going to be Hook number 177 in the contest. The results and feedback go up on Monday 26th April.
Anyone else enter?

 

[JDP]

26th April is a Thursday I think.

 

[Coolhand]

Oops...did I say 26? Coz I meant 23rd...
DOH!

 

[Coolhand]

Weeee!
Well, my hook was 177 and it failed to get through. Ah well. It's interesting to see so many hooks together in one place, it's like some kind of cat-show.
Only with hooks.
Not cats.
Because cats don't sell books.
Unless they work at Borders or Waterstones.
I'll shut up now.