The Saturday Slash

Don't be afraid to ask for help with the most critical first step of your writing journey - the query.

I’ve been blogging since 2011 and have critiqued over 200 queries here on the blog using my Hatchet of Death. This is how I edit myself, it is how I edit others. If you think you want to play with me and my hatchet, shoot me an email.

If the Saturday Slash has been helpful to you in the past, or if you’d like for me to take a look at your query please consider making a donation, if you are able.

If you’re ready to take the next step, I also offer editing services.

Amateur jewel thief Lisette Colbert suffers a string of bad luck starting with a heist gone wrong that leaves her injured and unable to make rent. A decent beginning here, but because you mention a string and then backtrack to an earlier event it feels a little awkward. I'd try something more like - "After a heist gone wrong leaves amaetur jewel thief LC unable to make rent...". She stumbles across a haunted house Stumbles across how? Like this is online bait? Or she stumbles upon the actual house? that offers $1,000 to anyone who can make it all the way I'd strike "all the way" through on Halloween night. How scary could it possibly be? Little does Lisette realize, not everyone who enters the 13th Realm of Hell makes it out.

You need more here. I know what she wants and how she's going to try to get it, but where does the humor come in? Is she in this house alone or are there other contenders? I'm confused because the para above reads like straight up thriller or horror but then you mention humor below. You'll need to create a second body paragraph here where you tell us more about the actual house plot. Above, you basically just gave us setup.

The twists and turns and tongue-in-cheek humor of Mind Like a Diamond will appeal to fans of Sara Shepherd and Lev Grossman.

Mind Like a Diamond could stand alone or become part of a series.

A little about me: I perform standup comedy and also showcase my humor on GulfCoastMomsBlog.com where my nonfiction has been shared across the country.

Good bio! Just make sure that you are giving enough info about your actual story.

Overcome Writer's Block: 8 Surprising Effects of Daily Journaling

by Misty Blais

It is now a proven fact that daily journaling is beneficial for physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing. Writing by hand is also great for overcoming writer’s block. It releases inner confidence and motivation. 

The best thing is that you don’t have to write something serious or academic like an essay. You can leave it to professionals at EssayPro. But simply keeping a diary of whatever comes to mind can help you feel less stressed and increase emotional intelligence. Here are several surprising effects of daily journaling.

Increases intelligence

Certainly, the habit of writing is helpful when it comes to learning a language and increasing overall intelligence. Journaling boosts the need to explore language and use new words. It enriches vocabulary and releases creative energy.

Helps to Reduce Stress

Expressive writing helps to deal with stressful thoughts. Putting worries on paper releases the brain from focusing on it. A study has shown that it is helpful for both emotional and physical health. The habit of journaling for 15-20 minutes a day resulted in lowered blood pressure and better liver functioning.

Overall, it is great to deal with overwhelming emotions. When they are not vocalized, bottled feelings can result in stress and anxiety. However, writing about worries helps to make this experience graspable.

Endorses Brain Functioning

Research has proven that there is a direct connection between writing by hand and neurological processes. Writing increases the brain function by providing new neural paths and involving more regions in the brain than typing. The best way to journal is by hand and on paper.

Better Health

This might be one of the most surprising effects of journaling. It actually does improve the immune system and provides faster and better healing, both emotionally and physically. This habit, when practiced constantly, results in improved functioning of the immune system. It lowers the risk of getting sick and improves overall wellbeing.

It also improves the functioning of the liver and lungs. This might be connected to a decrease in stress and stress hormones.

Helps With Depression

Of course, it is not the panacea, but it can help to reduce symptoms of depression and improve your mood. For example, blogging releases dopamine, a hormone that contributes to good mood and a higher happiness level. 

Journaling also helps as it offers an opportunity to be more aware of symptoms and their effects. A person can be more self-conscious about their struggles and thus have more opportunities to react in time.

Increased Memory Capacity

Handwriting trains the brain in many ways. And one of them is the memory boost. Not only does it help to better comprehend the experience and ideas. It also ensures a better remembering capacity. The creation of new neural paths helps to boost one’s memory.

Boosts Creativity

The best way to overcome writer’s block is by writing. It is as simple as that. For example, Julia Cameron has an exercise “morning pages” that helps to release creative powers, even if you are not a writer. It can help any type of artist or creative person to overcome the block and fear of beginning.

The main idea is to write 3 pages per day, first thing in the morning. They do not have to be good or specific, just journal about anything that comes to mind. It helps to clear the head and put off the pressure.

Self-Awareness and Confidence

Journaling about everyday life and things helps to get a better understanding of who you are. It also makes a person more aware of the people and situations in their life. What makes you happy, what makes you confident? Being aware of such things increases the quality of life, as one can nurture what makes them happy and eliminate toxic and stressful things.

And journaling about positive experiences helps to relive them. A person gets to feel the same achievement and satisfaction as in the moment of the experience. It releases dopamine, endorphin and helps to boost self-confidence.

In Summary

Journaling is an amazing habit one can practice. It has numerous benefits to physical and mental health. It reduces stress and anxiety, might helps with symptoms of depression. It also boosts self-awareness and confidence. From the point of physical health, it increases brain function, endorses the immune system and reduces illness risks. Overall, it makes a person more happy, healthy and emotionally adjusted.

Misty Blais is a professional journalist with more than 10 years of experience. She’s worked as a writer and a producer for magazines and radio stations. Misty is currently writing for various media as a contributing journalist.

Dana Alison Levy On Balancing Good Rejections With Painful Ones

If there's one thing that many aspiring writers have few clues about, it's the submission process. There are good reasons for that; authors aren't exactly encouraged to talk in detail about our own submission experiences, and - just like agent hunting - everyone's story is different. I managed to cobble together a few non-specific questions that some debut authors have agreed to answer (bless them). And so I bring you the submission interview series - Submission Hell - It's True. Yes, it's the SHIT.

Today’s guest for the SHIT is Dana Alison Levy, author of several acclaimed books for younger readers. Above All Else is her YA debut. She lives in Massachusetts, at sea level, and really likes air with lots of oxygen in it. Dana loves traveling to Nepal and has stood in the shadow of Mount Everest, but she will never ever climb it.

How much did you know about the submission process before you were out on subs yourself?

I was lucky in that I worked for a literary agent in my twenties, and also have family members who are authors, so I went into the process with open eyes. My path to publication was pretty straightforward and typical: I queried one book that went nowhere, queried a second book and got an agent, she sold that book in a decent but not major one-book sale, and then I kept writing and selling middle grade books. But then I got to my YA… 

Did anything about the process surprise you?

After writing a selling a few MG novels, I felt moderately confident that I knew how to write, and how publishing worked. But then this book damn near killed me. My 2020 book, Above All Else, is my debut YA, and it took over five years of revising and shredding and sewing it back together, sometimes with my agent’s help, often with my (incredibly patient) critique partners’ help.

When we went out on submission I got a lot of really wonderful rejections, most with a very optimistic frame (“I’m sure another editor will snap this up and I can’t wait to see it on shelves.”). But no takers. I kept revising, and kept feeling unsure that I had reached “the end” of the revision, and the rejections I got didn’t help me articulate what I wanted.

(It’s worth noting that sometimes rejections can be really helpful. If you get five rejections from editors who all say some variation of “I liked it except for XX” then you have some good feedback and something to work with!). In this case, however, there was no clear line. So I kept going back to the drawing board, fussing and revising and trying to figure out what the heck I was missing. I wrote and sold a few other books, but couldn’t quit this one. 

Did you research the editors you knew had your ms? Do you recommend doing that?

Usually when my agent and I talked editors, I would ask what they’d published recently, or check Publisher’s Weekly to see recent sales. There were a few times I asked my agent about a certain editor, because I knew another writer who worked with them, but mostly I trust her to find a good match and try to stay out of the way. I definitely think authors can and should do a little research, but the specifics probably depend a lot on your relationship with your agent and how much you trust their judgement.

What was the average amount of time it took to hear back from editors?

Hah! Too long for a neurotic writer to wait! Honestly I think wait times have been increasing, and it’s more common for editors to semi-ghost, where they don’t reject something but don’t pursue it. Then if another editor bites they can still engage. Editors really vary; some respond within weeks and others let things hang out for months. 

What do you think is the best way for an author out on submission to deal with the anxiety?

I try really hard to forget all about a project that’s on sub. The truth is that while some books sell in fast and furious auctions, the vast majority take a long time to sell, and there’s no point in staring at the phone, hoping your agent will call with news. A long wait doesn’t mean it won’t sell. It’s a cliche, but I do try to immerse myself in something brand new, something that’s hopefully in an early stage so it can be weird and messy and ugly and I don’t even have to think about anyone reading and judging it. Basically I try to stay away from publishing (reading about book deals, marketing campaigns, sales, etc.), and instead focus on writing. 

If you had any rejections, how did you deal with that emotionally? How did this kind of rejection compare to query rejections?

Rejections always suck, but I’m also always super-curious, so typically I’ll ask my agent to forward them along as she gets them. That way I can see where we are and what kind of feedback we’re getting. But there are times I’ll ask her to hold off, because I know it will derail me. It feels better to practice a little intentional avoidance.

With both submission rejections and query rejections, I think it helps to remember that this is a business, and that not everyone needs to fall in love with my book. Someone needs to fall in love with it, but not everyone! In some ways it’s easier once you have an agent, because you’ve received that first major validation, but on the other hand…yeah. Rejection is always going to suck a little bit.

If you got feedback on a rejection, how did you process it? How do you compare processing an editor’s feedback as compared to a beta reader’s?

As I said above, editorial feedback on a rejection can be really useful, or, in some cases, can help you feel better. For instance when you get a rejection that says “we already have a similar book but we love this and definitely want to see the next thing!” — that’s a good rejection.

When there’s editorial feedback it can be great, and writers should definitely pay attention, but they should also trust themselves. Unlike algebra, with writing there are a lot of right answers, and while an editor might prefer a certain vision of the story, that doesn’t mean an author has to listen. If the suggestion or critique resonates, that’s great, but it might be that the editor had a different story in mind. (The exception: when you get multiple editors giving similar feedback. Then you should probably pay attention!) 

When you got your YES! how did that feel? How did you find out – email, telephone, smoke signal?

I could not let go of this book. I signed with my agent in October 2012, and I wrote her an email that month (I found it in a file recently) where I mentioned that I was working on a new project, a young adult novel, set on Mount Everest. In June 2018 she called me to tell me we had an offer on the book! And it comes out in October 2020…eight years after I wrote her that email. It was surreal…I was clear-eyed about publishing, and about this project, and knew that not all books get published. But I just couldn’t let go of it, and I am so damn happy it will be in the world.

Did you have to wait a period of time before sharing your big news, because of details being ironed out? Was that difficult?

It’s always hard to wait, but I’m oddly superstitious and I was happy to hold off until everything was signed and sealed!