Lauren's link love: YA vs. middle grade, commercial vs. literary, writing camp, & Twitter tips

Links to share, collected at @LaurenWaynecom on Twitter:

The Key Differences Between Middle Grade vs Young Adult | @marielamba at @brianklems https://t.co/mtIRPG99GA #writing #childrensbooks

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 29, 2016

Like I need an excuse.

Put Down the Broom: Tidying Up Can Hamper #Creativity | @PassiveVoiceBlg https://t.co/JE5gHZMvan #writing #amwriting

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) March 1, 2016

A question many of us have:

Where Do You Draw the Line Between Commercial and Literary Fiction? https://t.co/MTPaXxNUYP #writing #amwriting pic.twitter.com/QChnpQVNMl

— Angela Ackerman (@AngelaAckerman) March 1, 2016

Lauren's link love: Query letter formula, captivating characters, celebrating diversity, & breaking through blocks

Links to share, collected at @LaurenWaynecom on Twitter:

How to Write a Query Letter | @NathanBransford https://t.co/lnRwW9u7XI #writing #amquerying

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 23, 2016

Making a Dark Character Likable through Vulnerabilities https://t.co/bSjjORvlsX #writing #amwriting pic.twitter.com/7uGHjDwS2J

— Angela Ackerman (@AngelaAckerman) February 19, 2016

Fiction Writing: What Makes Readers Care About Your Characters? https://t.co/TlbqcTPLgO #amwriting

— Alan Felyk (@AlanFelyk) February 25, 2016

Call it a Toni Morrison celebration: #BannedBooksWeek 2016 will honor diverse writers https://t.co/zra8MSA2No

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 25, 2016

Lauren's link love: How to query, writing inspiration, blogs to follow, & micropoetry

Links to share, collected at @LaurenWaynecom on Twitter:

What Agents, Editors & Publishers Look for in a Query Letter | @brooke_warner at @BlogHer https://t.co/eRE1VtK6qw #querying #writing

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 19, 2016

When inspiration strikes, don't wait. Just write...but pull over first. #amwriting #poetry

— Christine Marie (@AWritersWay) February 18, 2016

In thinking of how to use YouTube as an author:

How to Create Blockbuster YouTube Channel Success in Any Niche via @marketingprofs https://t.co/NdmQ8enVlM pic.twitter.com/EPmR4Icydk

— CoPromote (@copromote) February 16, 2016

Secrets to querying literary agents:

"3 most crucial elements to a novel selling: the writing, the writing, the writing," from @thewritelife: https://t.co/AzDZIR8sra #writing

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 23, 2016

Lauren's link love: Query spreadsheet, picture book info, analyze your Twitter persona, & e-publishing at your local library

Links to share, collected at @LaurenWaynecom on Twitter:

You had me at spreadsheet: How To Keep Track of Query Letters #writing #amquerying #amwriting https://t.co/eBJ9TbpH8Q

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 16, 2016

Jennifer Represents...: A whole lot of info about Picture Books https://t.co/6eBeTiphCr @literaticat #writing

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 16, 2016

Reality check from Barbara Kanninen - Can I Make a Career out of #Writing Picture Books? https://t.co/espboodckQ

— Lauren Wayne (@LaurenWaynecom) February 17, 2016

Things I am doing instead of querying

I am supposed to be querying my cozy mystery novel, Poisoned, by God. I have sent a query out to one agent. One.

Here are the other very important things I have been doing instead:

1. I have gone through old blogposts on this blog and made Pinterest-worthy images for them with Pablo by Buffer, my new favorite thing. (See the image on this post as an example. It's free!)
2. I have gone through super-old posts on Hobo Mama to clean up code and add in affiliate-link warnings when needed for FTC compliance. (I'm still working on this.)
3. I have written six blogposts.
4. I have come up with two ideas for middle grade fiction series, and one for a literary novel.

Ready to submit? Use Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript to help!

Here's a glowing review for a seemingly dull book: Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript, by Chuck Sambuchino and published by Writer's Digest Books. It goes into the nitty-gritty, boring old details of exactly how you present your precious writing to a potential agent or editor.

It's all in the details

It covers all major forms of writing, from article writing to nonfiction to short stories to novels to children's books, scripts, and poetry, and it details not just how to present your manuscript itself but also all the essential elements that go along with it: a query letter, a book proposal, an author bio, a synopsis, and more.

You might think the book would gloss over details, like that you'd have to infer from a generalized description of fiction submissions how to cater for a particular genre, but this book is all about details. I love books that are all about details! Are you writing a mystery novel? Covered. A graphic novel? Covered. An author-illustrated (or not) picture book? Covered. Need to know how to submit the acknowledgements page for your nonfiction book? Covered. An endorsements page for your novel? Covered. How about your radio commentary? Dude, it's covered.