Friday Flash Fiction - Week 15!

Today is the Day

Today is the day, Samantha thought to herself as she carefully dressed in skinny grey jeans and an electric blue shirt. She’d already blow-dried her shoulder-length blond hair and straightened it. She never wore make-up, but did apply a dab of cherry-red lip gloss. Yes, she thought again, today is the day. 

Across the cathedral city James was walking towards the pub at the top end of the cobbled high street. He and Samantha had been there a handful of times, but tonight he could feel his stomach churning. He pushed open the heavy door and was hit by the sound of a cacophony of clinking glasses, voices and music. Amidst the chaos, he managed to order a drink and walked to a table near the back, under a painting by a local artist of the nearby harbour. 

Samantha immediately saw him and smiled subconsciously at his lopsided haircut that his housemate had done for him and the familiar green polo shirt. Drink in hand she walked over to where he was sitting. 

*** *** *** *** 
Dear Reader, now it's over to you! What do you think will happen next? You need to choose the ending!! 
For Samantha's excitement to play out - Vote A. 
For James' nervousness to be realised - Vote B. 

Please leave votes in the comments box below, or on the facebook link! The most popular ending will be published next week. 

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Flash Fiction diary

This week I was a guest blogger on Penny Freeman's blog, Perpetual Chaos of a Wandering Mind, writing about Flash Fiction and how it can (hopefully) improve your writing. Click here to read the article. 

This week's flash fiction was written on the plane coming back from Bali. I knew immediately that Samantha and James wanted something different out of their meeting, but couldn't decide who should be the one to get it. Now you get to decide for me! 

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Flash Fiction is short enough to read whilst you're waiting for the kettle to boil. It's fairly quick to write too, but with it being so short, every word has to count. 

On 4th May 2012 I decided to embark on a project: to write a piece of Flash Fiction every day. I'm hoping this will keep the creative juices flowing and ultimately help me hone my craft. Every Friday I'll be posting 'the best of the week' onto my blog for you to read. If you have anything to say (good or 'constructive'!), I'm open to comments.  

Thanks, as always, for reading. 

Guest Post with Penny Freeman: 10 Ways To Improve Your Query Letter

10 Ways To Improve Your Query Letter
By Penny Freeman

As the editor-in-chief at Xchyler Publishing, a wide range of query letters find their way to my desk. From the meticulous, Type-A query to the “Yo!  This is what I got,” I’ve seen it all. Over the past few weeks, I have been handing out so much advice and instructions about query letters, saying “don’t do this, do that,” I decided to save some time and go public.

Apparently, few writers realize the importance of this document. The query letter must convince the editor or agent to risk wasting their time and energy on reading your synopsis, which in turn must convince them to read your partial, which in turn must convince them to request the entire manuscript. A long, complicated chain of interconnected links bars your manuscript’s path from the slush pile to the book shelf. The key, your query letter, opens the lock to begin that journey. With talent, persistence, and attention to detail, you too may ascend to the rarified air of authorship.  

Your submission requires curb appeal. A query letter is the doorway into your work. Put out the welcome mat. Paint the porch. Here are ten ways to spritz up the place and make a great first impression.

1. Mean Business. Image is everything. Demonstrate a sound understanding of business correspondence. If you do not know how to format a proper letter, learn. Look professional and educated.

2. “Now, Class...” Follow submission instructions precisely. We all have opinions and preferences. Respect the process, even if you fail to understand it. Thoroughly search the sites of your choice of agent and publisher until you know what they want to see. On the rare occasion no preferences are posted, research writing books, magazines, and websites for instructions on submission technique.  

3. Grammar Nazi. Be meticulous about your grammar structure and syntax. Make sure your formatting is uniform and clear. For good or ill, your query letter tells the publisher what to expect within your work.

4. Show some class. Do not use trendy acronyms. Vulgarity and profanity (even in acronyms) is just plain tacky. Very non-professional.

5. Hang loose, dude. Not. Never attempt to be cute or quirky in your letter, even if your project is.

6. No road blocks. Do not make reading or editing your manuscript or submission difficult.   Unless specifically asked, do not compress files, block editing, or use a .pdf format. Be sure to submit the software platform specified by the agent or publisher.  .doc or .docx files are the most common. When converting files, make sure the formatting translates correctly. (Pay special attention when converting HTML files.)

7. Sell Sell Sell! When explaining your story in your query, write the jacket blurb. Write to the readers of the book. Use the language they would use. Demonstrate to the reader that you not only understand but can communicate with your target audience. Here, feel free to be quirky or cute or funny if that is the voice of the narrative. However, once finished with the blurb, revert to your sharp professional self. You may wish to format this section with a double-indent to make it easily identifiable.

8. Too much information. When adding your credentials, never, ever say what you haven’t done (“although I am as yet unpublished…”). EVER. Do not make excuses for yourself. The acquisition editors will pick out what isn’t listed (no books) easily enough all on their own. Never say, “but I’m taking classes.” Publishers read “not ready for prime time.” If you have no published books to your credit, list any published short stories or vignettes, magazine or newspaper articles, blogs you maintain, blogs where you were a featured writer, competitions you have won or placed, and/or courses you have taken in college or university. If you don’t have a degree, use “emphasis on —” whatever classes you took to improve your writing skill. Include professional associations, such as writers’ guilds.

9. Worldwide What? Agents and editors do not click through URLs in query letters. They barely have enough time to read the submission materials. However, if they want to find you, they will. The point of your query letter is to spark that interest, so put yourself out there. Expose your writing: enter contests, guest blog, publish free e-books, perhaps a compilation of short stories, or poetry is your thing. Let them know you’re out there, but don’t push the URL to annoy them: “I publish a daily blog of book reviews and a writer’s musings, Perpetual Chaos of a Wandering Mind.”  

10. Second opinions. Have other writers you trust read your query letter before you submit your materials, just as you had beta readers give their opinions with the manuscript. Be careful of yes-men. Don’t ask your momma and your great-aunt Tess to tell you what they think. They’ve been telling you you’re wonderful since the day you were born, even when your violin playing woke the dead. Don’t ask your jealous cousin, Butch, either. You want honest, constructive input.

By following this few tricks (primarily what not to do), you will improve your chances of your manuscript making it out of the slush pile for further consideration.  This is not the time to try and raise notice by being “different.” Eliminate the red warning flags which signal rejection and allow your actual work to speak for itself.   

Read more about writing and publishing tips, visit Penny’s personal blog, Perpetual Chaos of a Wandering Mind. Xchyler Publishing currently accepts submissions, with a focus on fantasy, paranormal and steam punk. However, they consider other genres, such as mystery and science fiction, to name a few. Visit our Submissions page for more information.

My first blog award!!

I have been nominated for my first blog award! And twice in the same week: super duper!! This award is a great way for bloggers to support other upcoming bloggers (with fewer than 200 followers). Liebster means dearest, beloved and favourite. Thanks so much to Emily Yu and Penny Freeman for the nomination and various visits to and comments on my blog. 

Here's what you have to do:
1) Post 5 facts about yourself
2) Answer 5 questions the tagger has asked
3) Tag 5 other people (link them to your post)
4) Give them 5 questions to answer
5) Tell them they've been tagged
6) No tags back!

In a Dim Sum restaurant 

5 Facts about me
1) I love coffee and chocolate, preferably together. 
2) I love the beach, even more in the winter than in the summer.
3) I love travelling and seeing new places. So far I've been to over 20 countries in North America, South America, Europe and Asia. 
4) At the moment I'm living in Hong Kong where I work as a teacher of English as a Foreign Language as well as blogging and writing. 
5) My current project is to write one piece of Flash Fiction (fewer than 500 words) per day. On Fridays I post 'the best of the week' onto my blog: Friday Flash Fiction. 



Since I've been tagged twice, it's only fair to answer both sets of questions. 

Emily Yu's blog - Anything in
Fantasy

5 of Emily Yu's questions:
1) What are your favourite TV series? List 4: 
- Grey's Anatomy, Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, Damages.
2) What are 3 most swoon-worthy characters? 
- Mr Darcy (Colin Firth in Pride & Prejudice), 
- Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling in The Notebook), 
- Count Laszlo de Almásy (Ralph Fiennes in The English Patient)
3) How many books are in your TBR pile? Far too many! 
4) What is your favourite single book? List 4: 
- The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, 
- A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve, 
- Rosie by Anne Lamott, 
- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
5) What is your favourite food? Anything Italian.

Penny Freeman - Perpetual
Chaos of a Wandering Mind

Penny Freeman's 5 questions:
1) How many blogs do you own and what made you decide to start blogging? I started on travelpod (Living, Loving and Writing in Hong Kong), but when I got married I wanted to change my name and couldn't. So, I decided to start again on blogspot.
2) What is the cause dearest to your heart? Unfortunately I know too many people who've lost loved ones to cancer, so finding a cure for that is important. I also support Oxfam. 
3) What are you most passionate about? Love. For my family, my friends, writing, reading, travelling, eating...so many things! 
4) Who are your heroes? My mum and sister, but also anybody who has achieved anything against the odds. Michael J. Fox's book, A Lucky Man, is a true inspiration. Eddie Izzard's Marathon Challenge was incredible. 
5) What do you want to be remembered for? For being kind, helpful, supportive, insightful and loving. If I happen to write some bestsellers too, that would be great! 


Tag 5 other people 
1) Caitlin  - The Y.A. Bookworm Blogger
2) Sarah - Three Cats and a Girl
3) Ixachel - Futuresfading
4) Ara - My Book and My Coffee
5) Jill Marie - Little Hyuts


Give them 5 questions to answer
1) Have you always considered yourself a creative person? 
2) Who has been an inspiration to you in your life and work? 
3) Name 3 things you'd like to achieve in life. 
4) If you could travel anywhere in the world (no money, time, visa restraints), where would you go?
5) Do you think the world of art will drastically change in the next 50 years?

Mid-week Interview

Today's post is something a little bit different - it's an interview with Yours Truly! Yep, you read it right. Read on for more...


The online community for authors & bloggers is great! I've 'met' so many nice people through Book Blogs and various other online forums. People are so willing to help each other out, it's really great. Recently I was having trouble adding something to my blog and I asked my online friends; within a couple of hours Alex had answered my question (thanks again, you're a super star!). 


In this post I'd like to introduce Penny Freeman who has a blog: Perpetual Chaos of a Wandering Mind. She kindly took an hour out of her schedule to interview me regarding my writing and my link to the Hong Kong Writers Circle. Please click on the link below to read more about the latest HKWC anthology, As We See It: Hong Kong Stories, and what makes me tick! 


Interview with Penny Freeman