Top 5 Rejected Titles of NYT Best Sellers

In the heated, competitive world of publishing, a good title is as essential to successful sales as a good cover. It's a common occurrence that publishing houses change the name of a manuscript many times before making a final decision.

But what if...

Here are my guesses at the Top 5 Rejected Titles of NYT Best Sellers.

1. Gone With The Wind Girl, by Gillian Flynn



fanpop.com

A historic psychological thriller about a Southern belle who disappears after her family hosts a BBQ for confederate solders.









2. The Da Vinci Sudoku Puzzle, by Dan Brown



errorstatistic.com

A young professor is hunted down by a secret society after he discovers the Mona Lisa was actually a paint by numbers kit.














3. Harry Potter and the Gall Bladder Stone, by JK Rowling

A boy wizard is shocked to find out he's the long lost son of two successful gastroenterologists.



4. Breaking Wind, by Stephanie Meyer



flickr.com

Young vampires in love toy with the dangerous practice of eating baked beans.









 5. Twenty-Five Shades of Black mix with Twenty-Five Shades of White, by EL James

Things get weird with the rollers and bristle brushes in this paint store tryst between a naive inventory clerk and the guy who runs the mixer-machine thingy.


BONUS!!!!!

The Casual Friday Vacancy, by JK Rowling

A voyeuristic journey into the back stabbing politics of dress down days at the office.

Can you think of any others?

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What Every Villain Needs

As writers we're sometimes so preoccupied with making our protagonist tangible enough to jump off the page that we forget about the antagonist. Villains create conflict, therefore they are essential to any good story, and deserve to be fleshed out as much as your hero.

There's nothing more unsatisfying than reading about a bad guy whose only purpose is to be...well bad. Even though he-who-must-not-be-named was truly evil, J.K. Rowling made sure to show how his past explained his cruelty.

So, does your evil doer have the right stuff? Scroll down to see what every villain needs.

1. A diabolical plan. There has to be a reason for their nastiness—being mean isn't enough.

Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians
photo credit theeclecticgreg.blogspot.com

2. A mysterious past. People aren't born evil, they're made.

Count Dracula
photo credit, lunch.com

3. A slimy sidekick. Usually with dependency issues. However, it's more interesting if their loyalty is from fear, and consequently unreliable.

Scabbers aka Peter Pettigrew with baby Lord Voldemort
photo credit harrypotter.wikia.com

4. An arch nemesis. It's the hero of the story who represents what the villain secretly fears the most.

White Witch from The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe
photo credit allthatweseem.tumblr.com

5. High tech gadgets/special powers. Okay, not totally necessary. It's cool and it helps raise the stakes against the hero.

The Joker from Batman, The Dark Knight
photo credit angolz.com

6. An irresistible charm. A cool demeanor coupled with a handsome figure always helps.

Mrs. Coulter from The Golden Compass
photo credit accesshollywood.com

There you have it, now go make some bad guys and watch your story explode!

Who are your favorite villains? Cheers!

Suspension of Disbelief

Originally posted November, 2011


Run away!
photo credit, villians.wikia.com

Ah, suspension of disbelief, or as I like to say, 'buying into anything Stephen King writes.' Quite simply, it's believing in a premise which you would never accept in the real world. No kidding. Try explaining the plot of IT to someone you meet at a party.

Me: "Okay, there's this clown-thing that climbs out of the sewer and terrorizes little kids in a small town in Maine."

Other person: "Riiiiight."
Stephen King does it much better than that, but you know what I mean. And if you were at that party, you'd run over, probably dripping chip dip down your shirt in all the excitement, and say something like, "Holy crap, I love that book. Remember the big spider? And that poor kid with asthma?!"

So, as writers, how can we make our readers believe in something that they know is impossible?

1. Describe the mundane parts of life in your fantasy world.

In Across The Universe, by Beth Revis, she concentrates on her protagonist eating bland stew served through a metal portal, jogging in a tunic instead of her sports bra and shorts, and how there isn't a real sun, but only lights high above. It is effective because it grounds the reader in that world by comparing the familiar with the fantasy.

2. Ease your reader into the world.

A good way to do this is by using a transitional scene, or down the rabbit hole, named for the beginning of Alice's adventure. It should involve your protagonist, be grounded in the familiar, and have a logical sequence.

We're all willing to board the Hogwarts Express, but if Harry looked at platform nine and three quarters, and then just waltzed through the brick wall, we'd all cry 'shame'. The charming appeal of that scene is that Harry is abandoned at the station, embarrassed to be pushing an owl around, clueless and pathetic looking. When Mrs. Wesley takes him aside and gently explains how it works, we all breathe a sigh of relief because at that point in the story, we're right beside him, feeling clueless and pathetic as well.

3. Make the rules consistent.

If your teenage superhero can only fly at night, then he can only fly at night—even if the girl he secretly loves is dangling from a runaway hot air balloon at high noon. Don't change his abilities near the end of the story to make the plot work.

Give suspension of disbelief a try. Let your characters experience something extraordinary, and see what happens.

What's your favorite writing example of suspension of disbelief?

Next Monday I'll be telling you how Justin Timberlake and myself have started a petition to get Sheriff Graham back on Once Upon A Time. Until then, enjoy the Oscars!

Cheers!

How To Deal With Rejection

photo credit wiredfaxblog.com

It was exactly two years ago, the week between Christmas and New Years, when I received my first request. At that time, I had sent out around twenty queries for my YA paranormal mystery. I remember doing a little dance and then agonising in front of the computer trying to figure out how to e-mail the first three chapters NOT as an attachment—I was completely clueless about the whole process.

I checked my e-mail obsessively until four weeks later I received a form rejection. "Unfortunately the project is not the right fit for me, but this is a subjective business and I'm sure another agent will feel differently."

I was devastated.

I would read that phrase, and others gently rejecting my story, many, many more times. Each stung a little, but as Rod Stewart says, "the first cut is the deepest."

I kept writing and finally landed not one but two agents! If you want the low down on that wacky tale, click here.

After two years, I've become an expert on handling rejection. Here are some of my tips if you need a little boost to your writing ego.

1. DON'T take it personally. Truly, when they write 'it's not a good fit for me', it's because they didn't connect with the story. It doesn't mean you can't write. And why would you want someone working on your novel who doesn't totally love it?

2.  Be grateful to get a response at all. Seriously, I don't know how agents manage to even read queries let alone send a reply. Take a deep breath, file that rejection away, and send out a few more queries.

3. DON'T Google how many rejections Stephanie Meyer or JK Rowling received. It's ridiculously low. I think Twilight got eight in total. Eight! I got eight rejections in one day! It's great when success happens so quickly for some authors. Take comfort that the pressure is off you, and that you're meant to find your agent through a little more time and effort.

4. Check out websites for aspiring writers. My favorite haunt is Query Tracker. Also, you may want to join a local writing group. Sharing rejection stories with other writers is good therapy, and you might get a few beta readers.

5.  Lastly, you are your characters best advocate. If you quit, then who will tell their story? And remember, getting an agent isn't the only way to get published. There are loads of great self-published paperbacks and e-books. Start researching local/small publishing companies that take queries directly from authors.

Now stop reading this and go write something.

Cheers!