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Articles by Lisa Silverman
| • A Book for Writers: Aspects of the Novel,' by E. M. Forster by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 13-Sep-2008, Article Visits: 7, Article Rating: 3.18 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| I'm about to tell you to read the most useful book of essays I've ever read about fiction--a book that dates from 1927 and refers to works by such authors as Dostoyevsky, Melville, Thomas Hardy, and D. H. Lawrence. The good news: even if you haven't read a single work by those authors, you'll still find "Aspects of the Novel" engrossing, relevant, and helpful ... [] |
| • Sell Your Manuscript? Great! Now What Happens to It? (Part I) by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 17-Aug-2008, Article Visits: 9, Article Rating: 4.15 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| For most authors, the inner workings of a book publishing house are like the inner workings of the computer on which they wrote their manuscript: a big mystery. But if you're lucky enough to sign a contract with a publisher, it's in your best interest to understand the process of turning a manuscript into a published book. The people you'll deal with at your ... [] |
| • Writing Tip: Why Nouns and Verbs Are Your Friends by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 28-Jun-2008, Article Visits: 7, Article Rating: 2.57 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| "The wearily handsome, nervous, stubble-chinned man slowly and carefully got out of bed when he heard the soft, mysterious sound of footsteps in his apartment." OR "The ex-con bolted up, rubbed his eyes and then the stubble on his chin, and crept out of bed. Those footsteps didn't belong in his apartment." Look at the above sentences, and see if you can figure out ... [] |
| • Imprints: Research Your Book's Market as You Write by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 25-May-2008, Article Visits: 9, Article Rating: 4.56 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| If you're serious about getting your manuscript published, whether it's a literary novel, a true-crime book, or a genre romance, it's a good idea to find out who exactly might publish it. "But that's my agent's job," you might say. True. But it's also your job, and your responsibility to your career as an author, to be well-informed about publishing houses. Gather any knowledge ... [] |
| • Books for Writers: The Forest for the Trees: An Editor's Advice to Writers,' by Betsy Lerner by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 20-May-2008, Article Visits: 9, Article Rating: 2.57 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| In her lengthy career, Betsy Lerner has been an MFA student, an award-winning poet, a book editor at major publishing houses, and a literary agent. So in her wonderfully insightful book about writers and the business in which they struggle, she provides a myriad of wise and knowledgeable perspectives. Whether you are working on your first novel or your fifth, you'll read Lerner's book ... [] |
| • Literary Agents: Good or Evil? (Either Way, You Need One) by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 01-Apr-2008, Article Visits: 15, Article Rating: 2.9 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| I spent about five years of my life as an agent, representing both screenwriters and book authors. I wasn't a scumsucking bottom-feeder. Then again, I ultimately decided I wasn't cut out to be an agent. Agents, especially in today's book business, are essentially salesmen. Therefore, many of them are, to varying degrees, sleazy, slippery, or even unethical. On the other hand, most do what ... [] |
| • Writing a Memoir: Do It Yourself or Hire a Ghostwriter? by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 31-Mar-2008, Article Visits: 8, Article Rating: 3.42 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| Some time ago, I was hired by a woman with a harrowing family story to tell. She desperately wanted to share her tale, believing that it would expose truths and help other people, but she recognized that her writing was not at a professional book author's level. So I agreed to ghostwrite the manuscript. I had never done such a job before--editing books was ... [] |
| • Writing a Memoir: Should You Do It? by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 20-Mar-2008, Article Visits: 9, Article Rating: 3.41 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| With the tremendous success of such memoirs as Frank McCourt's "Angela's Ashes," Mary Karr's "The Liar's Club," and Dave Eggers's "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," the 1990s and early 2000s saw an explosion in the genre. The boom was seen in the number of memoirs acquired by publishers, the number of titles shelved in the memoir section in bookstores, and, as a result, ... [] |
| • Book Review: Reading Like a Writer,' by Francine Prose by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 16-Mar-2008, Article Visits: 11, Article Rating: 4.32 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| It may seem like ridiculously obvious advice, but it's one of those bits of ridiculously obvious advice that bears repeating over and over again: In order to be a great, or even good, writer, you have to read. Read a lot. And read good writing. In Francine Prose's recent bestseller "Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those ... [] |
| • Writing Tip: If Only Writers Put the Word "Only" Only Where It Should Go by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 27-Feb-2008, Article Visits: 6, Article Rating: 3.49 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| "Susan only submitted her manuscript to three literary agencies." "Susan submitted her manuscript to only three literary agencies." Ever hear of a "misplaced modifier"? Don't worry, I'll get into those in another article. Today I'm going to briefly explain one example, a pet peeve of mine and of copyeditors everywhere: the use and misuse of the word "only." This is one of those grammatical ... [] |
| • Query Letters: Ten Ways to Hook a Literary Agent by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 25-Jan-2008, Article Visits: 7, Article Rating: 4.48 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| During my years as a literary agent for both screenwriters and book authors, I received query letters by the thousands. Even small literary agencies are so overwhelmed by the influx that young, inexperienced interns weed through query letters from prospective authors before the agents even see those few "diamonds in the rough" with a chance at getting published. So how do you become one ... [] |
| • Writing Tip: Active vs. Passive Verbs by Lisa Silverman |
| Article issued on: 22-Jan-2008, Article Visits: 7, Article Rating: 4.88 of 5, Category Writing & Speaking |
| "Jenny was being served her apple martini by the bartender just as the front window was shattered by a speeding Humvee, and Jenny was thrown from her stool." OR "The bartender was serving Jenny her apple martini just as a speeding Humvee shattered the front window and threw Jenny from her stool." Which sentence jumps off the page? Notice that I didn't alter a ... [] |
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