CONTESTANTS in the First Chapter Crime Contest--PLEASE READ!
November 16, 2007 05:19 PM EST
(Updated: January 07, 2008 01:46 AM EST)
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Comments: 76
10 4 U
I haven't asked you to read personally yet -- because this weekend was when I was going to get around to the personal requests of those I want to be sure will give me good insights. But I'd like to ask now and hope that's okay!
Here's the link:
Two Birds, One Stone
Thanks in advance -- I know from experience how much time and effort this takes to read and comment.
Ann
thanks Lisa. I've added you to the list too. ;-)
Looking forward to reading you all!
Heh...I've had the same problem with dismissive agents and editors. You learn to let it roll off after awhile.
I TOTALLY agree with you. The critiques is the major reason I entered the competition. I realize that the chances of any of us walking away with the grand prize, is about the same as willing a sweepstakes. However, with every constructive comment we win time and again.
As the others, I humbly ask that you read my submission and comment. You may rate as you see fit. The Rhythm of the Streets
Thank you in advance!
I would love for you to critique my entry. I gained much from the critique you did of my romance entry and I truly value your opinion. Thanks in advance.
The Scent of Humanity
You're totally right, critique and feedback are valuable gifts everyone who enters can learn and grow from if they choose. I wasn't even entered but learned a lot reading the critiques some took the time to leave on the entries of others in fcr. I learned a lot, also, from authors in that contest in how they treated the people who left comments for them, as well. It's good to have an ability to hear it all and glean the message you need to from it while behaving with dignity. It's also good to realize if people think you're beyond hope they won't even bother, so if people are taking the time to critique, it's a good thing.
----------------------
In promotion of a friend's entry: Coyotes Remember
Thanks for the offer of help.
thom2007
Kill Me Sweetly
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977174352
Thanks, in advance, for your time!
People....(meaning anyone reading this)....this is a contest for the BEST crime fiction story....don't BS the poor contestants with false hope if the manuscript needs work.
A Great story and strong writing are two different things!! I would love to see every one of these stories get published one day because some of the premises are great and deserve to be told....but help them learn first!! Otherwise you set them up for major disappointments!
Hopefully the top twenty five and subsquent winner of this contest will actually be worthy.
Okay....off my soap box.
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977169428
Bonnie W AKA Sunwanderer The Case of the Curious Cousin
Good luck to both of you!!
Since my ego has been totally deflated, I would love for you to kick me while I'm down. It was very hard to swallow all the mistakes I made in my first chapter of Adam Greene. But I would like to know if the story was at least worth my time. Look forward to hearing from you.
If you enjoyed writing your novel, loved your characters and at the end of the day felt a profound pride in what you wrote....then it was very much worth your time!!
Trust me....I've been raked over a bed of nails (much worse than coals) more times than I can count....and after several hours of binge eating I dust myself off and start again. And the result has been placing in the top 25 of the last contest, having requests from some of the top agents out there and being asked personally by an editor at a major house to write a novella for an anthology (before I'm even published). Doll, if I can do it....it's doable.
The one thing you should always keep in mind is you're writing for YOU....not for THEM.
I'll be honored to read your story....as soon as I get a chance. ;-)
Warm Hugs!
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977151614
I have to agree with you, false comments won't make a novel worth reading in the long run. Besides, if they think comments from you are hard, wait until they get an editor.
As for voting for an author's piece in the hopes they will reciprocate… don't those votes cancel each other out?
Anyway, I would welcome your comments and hopefully vote, but mostly you comment.
Thanks for your post.
JC
Synopsis
The Wages of Sin (are death)
Independence day, July 5, 1995, The Bronx is alight with drug wealth for those tough and ruthless enough to take it, but for others the path is less well lit.
While a Russian diplomat is killed in a bloody attack near the embassy compound, someone else is liberated.
The diplomat's history of drugs and sexual exploitation unravels a plot reaching back over a decade to the village of El Paz del Sol, Nicaragua. An uneasy alliance is formed between Captain Ed Mirden of the NYPD and the head of embassy security Demtri Chenkaro.
The trail leads through the restaurants, projects and neighborhoods of The Bronx and thorough the environs of deceit.
Good people die, bad men pay and a killer walks… The Wages of Sin (are Death)
I wish these points had wider distribution and understanding. We could decrease the griping and increase the learning.
While I'm not in these contests, I comment a fair amount and I learn A LOT from reading good writers' constructive criticism.
I appreciate all the kind comments re this article and my opinions. I know many think I'm too harsh or blunt...and I don't intend to be...it just comes out that way...(residual affects from living in NY...haha). However. I must say...if you can't take the constructive criticism from me (when I'm trying to help) how are you going to mentally survive rejection from an agent or editor??
Thanks again all....now I'm off to get a these other invites read before the deadline.
Good luck again everyone!
Good luck to ya hun.
Thank you.
I love your honesty and hope everyone gets on the same page as you. I would appreciate any comments you have for my entry Jackals. As this is my first novel, I am looking for any words of wisdom to help me improve for the next one. Thank you for all your hard work!
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977174464
Please give this author your support:
Coyotes Remember
Blessings
LOL
Happy holidays
Help me get a publishing deal with a rating and a comment. I comment back.
Email me anytime and if I can help, I'll be more than happy to.
It's best to stay in one pov through out a scene otherwise it's like watching a tennis match and you can get confused by who's speaking and who's character the scene or story is supposed to be about.
That said, I tend to switch pov's within a scene, but since I can do it with a smooth enough transition, my readers don't have a problem with it. ;-)
Would you mind reading the entry titled "Kudzu"... Looking forward to your opinion.
Thanks,
Thanks very much for the open offer; it's a lot of work you're taking on yourself, and I hope you know (as some people have already mentioned) how much we all appreciate it! If there's still room on your to-do list, here's my entry, "Minefield":
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977170676
And thanks again!
Kate
LOL
Thanks for the comments (DRY HEAT), which I will certainly take into account with future submissions. From what I've read so far I'm afraid your concern about awarding undeserved 10s is well-founded. Unfortunately, "The Mutal Admiration Society" appears to be up and running at full throttle, so I really don't expect DRY HEAT to go very far in this contest.
Mac
though. Sorry.
Thanks Alexis...again. Happy to have you stop by.
We're all looking for validation, I suppose, but that doesn't really help us get better. I would appreciate your comments on my entry, Paladin, if you have time.
something I have to rant about though is the comments left by stupid people! If you don't like an entry, pass it by. Don't leave a nasty comment regardless of your reasons. It's just childish and rude and makes that person look like an Ass! I was checking out some of the comments on the stories I like and some igorant chick left a message saying This is BORING! Not my cup of tea. I'm sure it's good...blah blah... Now, tell me....how does that help a writer?? Yeah, I know...it's not like anyone even cares what she thinks but still....it just irriates me! (can ya tell?)
Okay...I have one more entry to read and I'm done until the top 25 are announced. Thank you everyone who read, commented and invited me to read.
Best of luck!
Sure, I'll be happy to read and give you some feedback. It's great that you wrote the novel for you and even greater that you wish to share it with everyone. Regardless of how poorly you feel your story is (right now) you've accomplished something very few people can. If you're next goal is to make it so everyone enjoys it...then more power to you. Don't let criticisms or coming in last in a contest make you feel bad about yourself or your work!
Best of luck to you! And I'll email you soon.
This is unfair to those entrants who have just posted their work and then sit back to hear what others think of their chapter and don't have a "promoter" such as yourself.
Just my personal opinion. I am not enetered in this contest.
Anyone entering these contests should know, unless they themselves point people to their entry, they aren't going to get read. I don't personally know any of the authors of those works I promoted, in fact I only "met" them when they sent me a personal email and asked if I'd read and vote.
Entries such as Minefield and Stacatto, who, in my opinion, are more than deserving of a publishing contract, would not have gotten as many reads if I didn't help them along. I'd do the same for you if your work warranted it.
That said, I have to say (okay, rant), to those who personally asked me to read and didn't get the glowing comments they hoped for...it would be nice, if not polite, to get a reply from you at least acknowledging I took the time to read and comment...or any of us took the time to read and comment.
That said, it doesn't matter how many people love the story...if it's poorly written, it will never be sold. That's why I critique/comment on the FC contests....to give the writers a general idea of why the chapter won't make it past an agents assistant. Not that I'm always right, of course...but I try. =)