Blog Archive

#BookEnds Chat on Thursday!

Sep 28, 2016

All of us at BookEnds will be hosting a Twitter chat Thursday (9/29) afternoon from 1:00-2:00 EST. Come talk to Jessica F, Kim, Jessica A, Moe, Tracy, and Beth and bring your publishing questions. We promise we won’t bite. Be sure to use the hashtag #BookEndsChat so we see your questions!

An Author’s Vision Board

Sep 28, 2016

At the beginning of the month you went ahead and took a careful look at your goals. You did some updating, some revising and maybe even some deleting. All of that is good. Did you do the same with your vision board? For those who are new to the blog, a vision board is collage […]

Another Liv and Di in Dixie Mystery #PubDay

Sep 27, 2016

I absolutely love everything about this series. I love the series title: Liv and Di and the clever book titles. The latest is It’s Your Party, Die if You Want To and Vickie Fee has done it again. If you haven’t read about Liv and Di you should now! Between a riverboat gambler-theme engagement party […]

The Use of Prologues in Your Writing

Sep 27, 2016

A few weeks ago I did a post on Trilogies and Series that elicited a number of great comments, and when I say great I mean they gave me ideas for new blog posts (something I ALWAYS need). One reader made this comment: I’ve read an author (maybe David Eddings?) who had prologues at the […]

The Growth of a Literary Agency

Sep 26, 2016

When I first started Bookends over 15 years ago I had big dreams. I had visions of an agency that was bustling with agents representing many different types of books. I had dreams of not just mystery, romance and nonfiction (which we were already doing), but also science fiction, fantasy, and children’s books of all […]

Laurie Helgoe visits Japan for her book INTROVERT POWER

Sep 23, 2016

It’s always wonderful when a book of ours goes overseas, but it’s a real treat that Laurie Helgoe went to see her book in person! She met with her Japanese editor and found INTROVERT POWER on the shelves in bookstores in Tokyo and Kyoto. Congrats Laurie!

Yes, I Do Believe the Query System Works

Sep 23, 2016

While waiting for the 12,000+ emails to download after my vacation I decided to spend some time tackling my query inbox. It was something to do on a Sunday morning while watching politics on TV, drinking coffee, and enjoying the post-vacation relaxation I still felt. There are still a lot of queries to tackle, but […]

A New Season, A New Source of Inspiration

Sep 22, 2016

Even Queries Embrace Your Voice

Sep 21, 2016

At BookEnds we do a lot of brainstorming, critiquing and advising, especially when writing pitch letters (the agents version of a query letter). The one thing I’ve noticed during this process is how distinct each of our voices is. Every single BookEnds agent, like every single author, has her own unique writing style and it […]

When Did We Become So Intolerant

Sep 20, 2016

The other day I was making a left out of the Starbucks parking lot. I let one car pass and started to go when I noticed there was a car right behind it. I stopped and waved as both an apology and to let her know I saw her. The woman’s response was to angrily […]

Pretending to Be Erica Optioned for Film

Sep 19, 2016

Finally being able to announce this makes a dreary Monday morning so much brighter… 2016 winner of the International Thriller Writer‘s award for Best YA novel Michelle Painchaud’s PRETENDING TO BE ERICA, about a young teen raised by her foster father to become the world’s best con artist and another disguised as a girl who’s […]

Managing Revisions

Sep 19, 2016

Revisions and revision letters from an agent or editor can be a tricky thing. You usually know they’re coming so you’re mentally prepared, but you’re also a little hesitant. Any author who has ever received revisions knows that a simple letter can require you to do something as simple a few tweaks or you might […]