Hi everyone! It has been a crazy week. That's one of the good things about being a writer with a self-imposed deadline-- some weeks go out the window and that's okay. I did discuss my fully laid-out concept to my writing group and they have all given me the seal of approval. As well as … Continue reading The Journey to Making a Bestseller- Research (Series #2)
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com I spoke last week about an epiphany I had when I realized I was showing other authors how to get published and the things I have learned from working in the publishing business, but doing things my own way. I have decided to take my own advice and write my … Continue reading The Journey to Making a Bestseller: Concept and Planning (Series #1)
Photo by Burak K on Pexels.com This was a hard question. It's completely subjective. The hardest part for me might be your strength. That's why the writing community exists, and it needs to. Authors need to help each other with our own expertise. I wrote my first book with my (30-year) best friend. But when … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty-eight: What’s the hardest part of publishing for you? (Twitter Series #8)
How do I get started on a bestseller?
Te Solvo By Jennifer Haskin “I am special. I am loved. I am worth it.” Milo repeated the words from his self-help podcast, and absently straightened his suit coat. There were a few tiny clouds dotting the sky and the bright sun beat down on his head as he ambled along the sidewalk. People bumped … Continue reading Part two of this week’s blog: Te Solvo (A novelette by Jenn Haskin)
What can I do/say that will get me an auto-rejection to my query? What other mistakes can I make in publishing? These are normal questions for authors. The publishing world is such a mystery, it can feel like walking in a field of land mines. No one knows where to step. I believe once you … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty-Six: Common Mistakes and Automatic Rejections (Twitter Series #6)
Photo by JJ Jordan on Pexels.com Many of the questions I received asked things like, “Are you interested in disabled protagonists?” “Will you take YA fantasy without romance?” And “How often do agents/publishers take a chance on an out-of-trend book, hoping that it’ll make a trend?” First of all, agents are always hoping to find … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty-Five: Do You Take my Genre? (Twitter Series #5)
Twitter question: Is it normal to be able to write a WIP happily for hours but to get major league writer's block when trying to write a summary/synopsis? Absolutely. Many of us struggle with this one. Authors think that they are moving from the creative task of writing a fictional work into a strange uninhabited … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty-Four: Summaries and Synopses (Twitter series #4)
Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com How do I find the right agent? I was asked this question by several people and I wanted to spend some time on it. I was also asked the process of a manuscript from being written to getting published, so I plan to explain how to find the right agent … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty-three: Finding the Right Agent/Publishing A to Z (Twitter Series #3)
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com The first question for this post is: Why query at all? I must say, this one stumped me. I even googled it and found no articles explaining why we query. The simple fact is publishers use agents to filter readers like coffee grounds. I’m not saying it is a bad … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty-two: Why Query at All/ Commercial vs. Literary (Twitter Series #2)
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com I recently had a friend ask her Twitter followers what one question you would ask an agent if you could. I was surprised at the answers. I thought they might be akin to the blog posts I had been writing, but they centered around, "Why don't you love me?" and … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twenty: How Do I Get Representation? And Five More Questions (Twitter Series #1)
"Keron found a small campsite nearby and gathered sticks together, having Fale light a fire. She felt powerful that night for some reason, standing on the mountain top, facing the moon and the endless ocean. She spread her arms out wide and let fire spray from her palms into the rock ring before her. She’d … Continue reading Introducing: The Queen’s Heart- Cover Reveal
Photo by Nick Demou on Pexels.com I overheard an author friend of mine the other day learn to take the word “that” out of his writing and I was surprised he hadn’t heard this before, as we’ve been in writing groups together for several years. So I thought I’d make this week’s blog about words … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Nineteen: 28 Words to Cut From Your Manuscript
MARCH 10, 2019 · 1:26 AM↓ Book Review: The Key of F by Jennifer Haskin This week’s I Love Romance Blog review selection is The Key of F By Jennifer Haskin. With paranormal and sci-fi elements, this full-length novel is a great read. Fale, who is as down-to-Earth as she is incredible, begins a journey to find … Continue reading Guest Blog Review of The Key of F- review by Kevin Ethan
I want to answer this question thoroughly, but I hope not to step on too many toes. If I offend you, please feel free to comment. Photo by Lukas on Pexels.com First, there is no course, no test, no certification to be an agent. This is not known to all aspiring authors. There are bad … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Eighteen: How Do I Choose My Agent?
The story arc, also called the narrative arc, is the journey of a story and its characters from one way of life to something completely different. It is defined as the change that takes place between one cover and the other. Arcs are stories with characters that make life changes that take them from weakness … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Seventeen: What is a story arc and do I need one?
I am often asked if I have marketing ideas... Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com I have a few. Too many to list here. I am currently making a table of websites used for author/book marketing. It's going to take me a while to fill out prices, requirements, and need to know information. I may post … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Sixteen: Sixty Marketing Ideas
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com I was recently asked, when should an author stop querying a project and move on to the next? Great question. The answers you get will be subjective. Meaning, everyone has a different answer and no opinion will work for everyone. Just like you can't get everyone to like your book. … Continue reading Agent Questions Fifteen: When to Stop Querying
My personal writing struggles...
Hey guys, sorry, it's been awhile. I need more publishing questions to answer on this blog. So help me out writers, if you would, and please tell me your biggest questions. Or even your little ones. What could an insider tell you that you want to know? Got a new logo. What do you think? … Continue reading Help needed. Oh, and a contest. Yay.
I have 5 steps to complete your next marketing project. I would like to switch books with another author. As many authors as I can. You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. I've titled my plan the 2 Writer Switch. This is all about it: What do we do? 1} Swap books 2} Give … Continue reading 2 Writer Switch
I have teamed up with 20 fantastic authors to give away a huge collection of Epic Fantasy novels to 2 lucky winners, PLUS a brand new eReader to the Grand Prize winner! Oh, and did I mention you'll receive a collection of FREE reads just for entering? You can win my novel, The Key of … Continue reading Epic Fantasy Giveaway
Hey fabulous readers! I'm participating in an awesome @Booksweeps promo. Enter to win 20 Epic Fantasy novels + a brand-new ereader!! You even get a collection of FREE reads on entry. Http://bit.ly/epicfantasy-nov18 #books #amreading #booknerd
The Books and Questions: (Keep your eyes open, these books are occasionally free, discounted, or up for giveaway!) In The Key of F, name three powers Fale reawakens. https://www.amazon.com/Key-Freedom-Fight-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B079P7DMQ4/ In Lucifer: Soldiers, Serpents, and Sin, what's the name of the place where the Oralians are born? https://www.amazon.com/Lucifer-Soldiers-Serpents-Lightning-Thunder-ebook/dp/B01BX862UO/ … Continue reading Summer Reading Contest 2018- Two months to go!
https://www.amazon.com/Key-Freedom-Fight-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B079P7DMQ4/ https://www.amazon.com/Lucifer-Soldiers-Serpents-Lightning-Thunder-ebook/dp/B01BX862UO/ https://www.amazon.com/Daddys-Baby-Landis-Lain-ebook/dp/B01IS68LQC/ Email HASKIN.AUTHOR@GMAIL.COM with the answers to the following questions from the selected books. Each correct answer equals one entry into the drawing. Tell us if you have left an Amazon review, as each review will equal another entry into our drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card, author swag, samples of upcoming … Continue reading Summer Reading Contest 2018
When do you start the process of getting an agent? What should my expectations be? In my opinion, when the book is fully written, then you begin edits and research for an agent. There are different ways to do this. One, you can look up http://www.manuscriptwishlist.com, http://www.mswishlist.com, http://www.querytracker.net, etc. Search Google. You will be … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Fourteen: When to Get an Agent
I quit smoking after 32 years. I was a light smoker, but I enjoyed the taste. And the relaxing rush of serotonin that never failed to calm my nerves. I quit mid-pack. I put it in my safe and promised myself I would not buy a new one. Yay me. Right. I have done great. … Continue reading For YOU. For Everyone. You need to read this, or you know someone who does.
“Although the story has promise, I just didn’t connect with the voice. It needs to be stronger. It’s a pass. Sorry.” As an agent, I pitched books to acquiring editors at publishing houses. Rejections came concerning connection of the story itself to the editor, but the one I see the most regards voice. So, what … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Thirteen: All About Voice
Question: I write YA. How do I know what to steer away from? Answer: The following YA tropes The Brooding loner that no girl can resist OR perfectly handsome Protagonist full of angst Rebellious princesses- or clumsy princesses with weapons skills that beat the evil master. Inauthentic dialogue- overdoing slang, dumbing-down, including trends, preaching moral … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Twelve: 30 Tropes To Be Aware Of When Writing YA
Releasing today! Source: The Key of F: #YA #Fantasy - Rogue Phoenix Press
This week's author question: What is a pitch? What exactly goes into a pitch, how do you pitch, and how do you decide whom to pitch? As far as a "pitch" goes, let me try to explain. When an author wants to hook an agent, they write a query letter. But when an agent wants … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Eleven: What is a pitch? How do you pitch? And to whom do you pitch?
Do I need more than one bio? Writing an author bio is a daunting task. How do I do it? What goes in it? How long should it be? That all depends. They are widely different, but a writer actually needs three versions of their author bio. A long, or extended, version for your website, … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Ten: Just how many author bio’s do I need?
Hi all! Please excuse my lack of post last week. I will have another volume of Agent Questions very soon. I do ask that you send in more questions! I feel like I have over-run several subjects, but there are so many to choose from, I like to have choices that are relevant to you! … Continue reading Apology~ish
How to write a query letter- or the Haskin Query Formula See the query letter as many things. It is the hook to woo your potential partner in the publishing business, it is partly that blurb that you need to have memorized when someone asks you what your book is about, it is also the … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Nine: How to Write a Query
ARC REVIEW: The Key of F, by Jennifer Haskin FEBRUARY 26, 2018 OLIVIA @ PURELY OLIVIA2 COMMENTS Hello lovely readers! Today I’m here with a very exciting post- a review of The Key of F, a thrilling Young Adult fantasy that I was lucky enough to get an ARC of. This is my first ARC to review for … Continue reading Purely Olivia’s Review of The Key of F
What’s the number one thing I can do to get published? What’s your best piece of advice? Authors ask these two questions the most. Interestingly enough, they have the same long answer. But in short: Strength. Have you heard the words “strong” manuscript yet? If you’re a writer, you will. Why? That’s what agents … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Eight: The Number One Thing You Can Do To Get Published
Comp Titles “Comp” titles, or comparable titles, are often requested or required from agent in their queries. Mostly, I believe, because comp titles are important to publishers. Unless it is required, you do not NEED to have comp titles in your query. Let me be clear here, even if you don’t research and find … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Seven: What Are Comp Titles and How Do I Find Mine?
7 DO’s for Writer Success The bad news is that some writers begin their literary careers doing all the wrong things. How do you know if that’s you? Well, the good news is that making mistakes is important and even beneficial to moving forward. You are going to make mistakes, the question is, are … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Six: 7 Do’s for Writer Success
The Truth About Prologues I was asked this week for the truth about prologues. I gathered up what I had to say, but what I came up with was most easily summed up by the following article by Michael McDonagh. So, this week, your agent advice is not by me, but another author. I apologize. … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Five: Prologue, or Anti-logue?
Why do agents ask for a query, plus a synopsis and a sample of my manuscript? Isn’t one enough? I have had a lot of questions about submissions, so let’s back up and get into some detail. First, and I can’t stress this enough, you need to run your story through beta readers and/or an … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Four: What Goes into Submissions And Why?
Why should I use Twitter and what do I tweet? This is a page that I give to my new clients when discussing the importance of having a social media platform. The entire literary world is on Twitter. I did not like that at all last year (2016) when I made up my account. At … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Three: How to Twitter for Debut Authors
What do I put on my author website? Newsletter sign up- Your newsletter is not just another thing you have to do to maintain status as an author. Many authors will attest to the benefit of having a mailing list, and will tell you that a majority of direct sales come from that venue. Think … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume Two: What to Include in Your Author Website
#MSWL- How Does it Work? The link is to a Twitter grouping. Agents and Editors list what they desire to see in their inbox (their ManuScript Wish List), and mark it with #MSWL. These tweets show authors what an agent is looking for, sometimes on a daily basis. Some agents change their list by the … Continue reading Agent Questions Volume One: What is #MSWL, What agents look for in queries, How long should it take to read a “Full,” What NOT to DO, How to increase your chances of being read, and More…
So, the festivities continue... I am lucky enough to have four Christmases every year. My in-law's farm, our family of seven, my parent's house, and my ex-in-law's. When the kids were little, they were in such gift-shock by the fourth Christmas, they couldn't appreciate anything they got. Now that they are older, it's more fun. … Continue reading Christmas is over… so find your happy place.
Today I am sixteen, and a murderer. “Name?” Bored, relaxed eyelids turn up to see me. The lady in her mid-fifties gently runs a fingernail along her scalp, tucking a tendril of hair back into place. “Ivy,” I whisper. She just stares at me, expectantly. “Oh, ah, Ivy Killian.” Her hands hover over the keyboard, … Continue reading Short Story Contest entry: Unsung Ballad
THE KEY OF F – JENNIFER HASKIN Posted on 18 Nov 2017 by Steph Warren - Bookshine in Apocalyptic / Dystopian, Fantasy, Romance, Series, Young Adult *I received a free ARC of this book. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.* Blurb: Though Fale has never discovered who murdered her parents and left her orphaned as a child, she attempts to lead … Continue reading Review of: The Key of F – from Bookshine and Readbows
http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/new-agent-alert-jennifer-haskin-corvisiero-literary-agency New Agent Alert: Jennifer Haskin of Corvisiero Literary Agency By: Cris Freese | July 24, 2017 1 Reminder: This agent spotlight features Jennifer Haskin of Corvisiero Literary Agency. Remember, newer agents are golden opportunities for new writers because each one is likely building his or her client list. About Jennifer: Jennifer Haskin is an agent, author, and portrait artist … Continue reading New Agent Alert: Writer’s Digest Spotlight
Saturday, November 04, 2017 Meet Jennifer Haskin - Author of The Key of F Jennifer Haskin is an author, and portrait artist who lives in Olathe, Kansas. She began working for The Corvisiero Agency in September of 2017, following a year at Metamorphosis Literary Agency. She assists in a Creative Writing workshop and runs weekly … Continue reading Haskin Author Interview with Crystal Otto
LEARNING THE KEY OF F – AN INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR JENNIFER HASKIN ENTERTAINMENT, INTERVIEWS | OCTOBER 9, 2017 | 0 | BY JAYSANDLINWRITER Jennifer Haskin is a portrait artist who lives in Olathe, Kansas and does contract childcare work. She is a member of Saavy Authors, Missouri and Nebraska Writing Guilds. She won the Young Author’s award two years in a row, … Continue reading An interview of me with Geeks WorldWide…
I am proud to announce my new interns: Amy Brewer and Patty Carothers. They are fantastic humans and will make a smart, honest, and discerning agent team.
