Realistic Diversity in Historical Fiction

Readers, today we hear from Jason Henry Evans' latest installment on How to Write and Publish Historical Fiction. This month, Jason addresses diversity in historical fiction, the what, the why and the how.

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It is January of 2018 and having diverse characters is still a big deal in historical fiction. But how do you add diverse characters when the market you write in is pretty, well, white? 
I mean, how much diversity was in the English Regency?  How much diversity was in Ancient Rome? Or Tudor England? How much diversity was in the Highlands of Scotland where my Highland Romance takes place? 
Ah, never fear, gentle reader. Never fear. We will go over this. 
But first, let’s check our privilege at the door and understand what diversity really means. 

What Exactly do we Mean by Diversity?

Diversity is not only about race. 
Diversity is about sex. 
Diversity is about orientation. 
Diversity is about gender.
Diversity is about age. 
Diversity is about ableism. 
Diversity is about thought.
If you are a new writer without a formal education in history, sometimes the world can seem pretty vanilla. Sometimes it can seem segregated, too. But with a little research and a little creativity you can peel that veneer off of the tableau you’re looking at and discover a rich and varied world. 
Also – and let me be blunt – you are writing historical fiction. No one is going to get 3 units transferable to the college of their choice by reading your book. You don’t have to be absolutely historically accurate to write a compelling piece of historical fiction. 
Don’t get me wrong – you do have to get the details right. You gotta know your stuff about horses, crops, firearms and swords. You have to know your way around corsets and fabrics and etiquette and politics. But you do NOT have to be perfect. 

How do We Write Diversity in Our Stories?

So, how do we write diversity into our stories?
Maybe you are writing a romance set in the English Regency. You feel diverse characters would add richness to your story and make it pop. But you can’t bring yourself to make one of the supporting characters from Africa or Asia. That’s OK. What if your character were disabled, in some way? A veteran of the war in the colonies who’s now in a wheel chair? Or, perhaps blind? How many romances have disabled characters?  What about a supporting character who is very old, but wise? Someone who can reminisce about the love of their youth and give good advice to the protagonist. 

Cultural and Ethnic Diversity Occur Natural in Times of Great Exchanges

But if you did want someone to stand out because of their ethnicity and background, please remember, the settings of most of our great pieces of historical fiction have been during times of great exchanges. Many take place in cities or on frontiers where cultures meet, clash and trade. It is there you will find the diversity you seek. 
My first novel takes place in 1590s Ireland, in the Queen’s Army. It is a hotbed of war and culture clash. English Anglicans work alongside Irish and Highland Catholics. There are Italian mercenaries and French smugglers. And the Spanish. Boy, are there lots of Spanish. More importantly, able bodied women who work in and with the Queen’s Army. Sometimes, they fight too. 

Don't Force Historical Characters to Adopt Unrealistic Modern Attitudes

I’ve said this before, but there have always been gay and transgendered people. Why not have a gay or transgendered character in your novel? It would not feel right to me for my characters to adopt modern attitudes about the gay and transgendered. I think that would be going too far. (Although, open minded people always existed.) But wouldn’t it be a lovely subplot to add to your novel if your protagonist discovered one of their friends were gay and have to wrestle with that knowledge? And, as the book moves forward, your character realizes that their friend is their friend and comes to accept them? I would read that book. 

Ethnic Diversity in Historical Fiction - It Comes Naturally

But maybe you really want ethnically diverse characters in your novel. Ok. Then let’s talk about diversity. 
Any story set during the Columbian Exchange is going to have diversity. Native Americans went to Renaissance Europe. (Many, unfortunately, as slaves.) The French, Spanish, Papal and English courts all had ambassadors from the Ottoman Empire. (Turkey.) Those ambassadors brought staffs of servants and slaves from throughout North Africa, the Mideast, and Persia. 
If your story is set later, say the 18^th century, the same thing applies. However, now you can add Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, and people from Southeast Asia as potential characters into the mix. The closer to our modern period you get, the more diversity becomes apparent. Mexican miners in 19^th century Colorado. Black cowboys and buffalo soldiers. Chinese migrant workers who toiled on the railroad and in San Francisco immigrant communities.  
Is your story set in Medieval Europe? Crusaders sometimes came back to Europe with Armenian and Arab Christian wives and servants. Spain before the Reconquesta was a home for Jewish and Islamic scholars and artist for a millennia. People who came from around the Islamic world. As far south as Timbuktu, and as Far East as Jakarta. That is diversity. 
Remember, adding diversity to your story can be as simple as thinking about outside the box about the culture you’re trying to explore. There have always been diverse characters, we just have to illuminate them. 

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Jason Henry Evans:  Life is funny. In 2004 I moved from Los Angeles to Denver, newly married with a desire to be a great teacher and husband. I dedicated myself to public education and realized my heart was not in it. So I moved on. At the same time I stumbled into a creative world of art and literature I now call home. It hasn’t always been easy, but it has been worthwhile.
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Meet Pikes Peak Writers Member Wes Redfield

By: Kathie Scrimgeour

Wes Redfield fell in love with New Mexico when he taught at the University of New

Mexico. He was drawn to [the state’s] old, deep, and sometimes tragic history, which resulted in his series of historical fiction novels. In researching for these, he found books published in the 1840s provided more information on the time period than in modern books and articles. 

KJ Scrim:  Your debut novel, Sangre de Cristo: The Blood of Christ will soon be followed by Santa Fe:  Holy Faith, and the final installment, Santa Cruz:  Holy Cross.  Tell us a little bit about these.

Wes Redfield: My first novel, Sangre De Cristo: The Blood of Christ, is a coming-of-age story about a young American in Spanish New Mexico who must come face-to-face with the slave trade in Indians. It is raw, because I believe that is the only way to treat slavery.  My second is Santa Fe:  Holy Faith.  It has the same characters and deals with abuse of debt peonage, persecution of Crypto-Jews (Jews who faked being Catholic to escape the Mexican Inquisition), and the origins of Penitentes, a secretive religious sect. The third in the series, Santa Cruz:  Holy Cross, is about a short, brutal civil war between Hispanics in New Mexico. Few scholars or fiction authors write about it.

KJ:  What part of this series did you enjoy writing the most?

Wes:  So far, Santa Fe: Holy Faith because of the intrigue and risks taken by Crypto-Jews against the Mexican Inquisition. I also enjoyed debunking myths about Penitentes.  I am one of the few writers to treat them sympathetically.

PPW:  What is the biggest challenge you faced when writing and researching for these, and how did you resolve it?

Wes:  Finding information on the civil war between Hispanics was the most challenging.  Little has been written in modern times about it, perhaps, a big perhaps, because certain groups don’t want the public to know about it. But several books published in the 1840s contain valuable information. One, Josiah Gregg’s Commerce of the Prairies published in 1844, is still in print. Also until the last twenty years little was written about the slave trade in Indians or the plight of Crypto-Jews.

KJ: Do you set daily, weekly, or monthly writing goals? 

Wes:  Yes, absolutely.  Writing is hard work.  At least for me I need a disciplined schedule. I start writing about 8:30 in the morning and go until noon when my brain gives out. Then in the late afternoon I begin revisions of the first draft. I try to not write on weekends. Writing is my new job. I wrote Santa Fe in a year. I think I can maintain that pace.

KJ:  I noticed you used Createspace to publish your first novel. Is this a platform that could be easily used by anyone?  What were the advantages for you to self-publish?

Wes:  I have found CreateSpace to be easy to work with. Self-publishing is worthwhile in my opinion to establish a platform. But the big problem for some people is marketing.  Fortunately, I worked in marketing and sales (they are different) in telecom, computing, and medicine. Initially, I did not market Sangre de Cristo because I knew my writing would improve. Now that I have a series, I will kick off an aggressive marketing campaign. We shall see how it works.

KJ:  Writing conferences, workshops, and critique groups are an important part of all writer’s growth. What have been a few of your favorite experiences?

Wes:  All three have been beneficial, particularly critique groups.  When I first attempted writing, I attended the Capitol Hill critique group in Denver headed by Terry Wright. I had a long way to go, and still do, but several published authors were members. I have attended numerous workshops in Denver and Boulder, and I won first place in a nationwide contest for historical fiction sponsored by the Southwest Writers Group in Albuquerque by submitting an early draft of Sangre de Cristo. Attending the awards banquet was a thrill.

KJ:  Do you have any “self-help for writers” books that you use regularly? Please share your list of your top two or three.

Wes:  I bought many of the usual books until I realized that most of the authors had never written successful fiction. The best book I’ve found is John Truby’s The Anatomy of Story. Several people have excellent series of videos on the Internet. They include John Truby, Robert McKee (of “Write the truth.”), and Stephen King and John Grisham have a series of two videos together. What a powerful team! I also subscribe to Robert McKee’s and Steven Pressfield’s newsletters/blogs. An excellent blog is edittorrent, http://edittorrent.blogspot.com/  The producers of it, Alicia and Theresa, are working editors, and lately their workload has been heavy, and they have made fewer posts.  However their index contains many valuable posts. Alicia has recently begun a newsletter for writing fiction. One can subscribe to it from the edittorrent blog.

PPW:  Does your reading influence your writing? How?

Wes:  Absolutely!  The most influential writing for me is a series set in the West by A.B. Guthrie, Jr. He won a Pulitzer for his second novel The Way West, but his debut novel The Big Sky is his best in my opinion. I have tried to write in his style, which is in deep point of view, in the vernacular, and sudden--danger and risks appear suddenly. I also studied, I mean really studied, John Grisham’s novels to try to understand why they are so popular. My conclusion is that they have conflict and tension on nearly every page. I read a lot of historical fiction such as works by Margaret George, Robert Graves, Michener, Leon Uris, and Anita Dianant’s great little novel The Red Tent. Also works by Steinbeck and Hemingway. Hopefully, I learned something about economy of words from Hemingway. Willa Cather and Cormac McCarthy wrote the two best novels about New Mexico in my opinion. Cather’s Death Comes for the Archbishop is sweet and McCarty’s Blood Meridian is brutal. I’ve tried to split the difference. 

KJ:  If you met someone who was thinking about starting to write, what advice would you give them?

Wes:  Write, write, write. Learn by doing. And read critically. Try to analyze what authors are doing to gain their objectives. Understand that conflict and tension are the essence of fiction. I am amazed at how many people don’t understand that. And definitely join a critique group.

Contact Wes Redfield at:

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Wesley-Redfield-763053273809317/

LinkedIn - Wes Redfield

Email – wes_redfield@hotmail.com


Are you a member of Pikes Peak Writers and interested in being interviewed? Contact Kathie Scrimgeour at K.J. Scrim

PPWs Historical Blog: The Ins and Outs of Self-Publishing

By: Jason Henry Evans

Welcome back to my blog about historical fiction. Today we will discuss the ins and outs of

self-publishing. So, go to the refrigerator and get something cold. While you’re at it, go grab something to write with and something to write on. I’ll wait.

Ready? OK?

We live in an amazing world. I grew up in the 1980s, when a professional author was akin to being a professional athlete and a rock star. There were so many gatekeepers and so many, byzantine steps to go through that writing professionally seemed like a fantasy.

No more. Today you can avoid the industry business model entirely and self-publish your book. (Besides, that business model isn’t working anyways.)

There is one problem though. It’s all on you.

You have no industry professionals who tell you what covers are selling right now for your

genre. There are no business connections who can get your book into Indy bookstores, let alone Barnes & Nobles, or Walmart. The lay-out, the editing, the font choices, the cover art, and a thousand different choices—they’re all on you.

Some people will find these many choices terrifying. Others will be stimulated by all the control they’ll have over the final product. Either way you should seriously consider self-publishing for a couple of reasons.

·       You get more money.

I’ve talked to several traditionally published authors and they tell me they split the profits with their publisher after the expenses of publishing. That could mean anywhere from 10% to 30% of the profits from each sale. If you go with Amazon KDP, you can get up to 70%.

·       You like being in control

Author Jennifer Rose has just self-published her middle grade book, Twins of Orion. Ms. Rose conducted painstaking research on cover artists, color schemes, and font styles. She went through several edits & editors, as well. I could not see her giving—letting someone else make these choices. Her book is a testament to her attention to detail. If you like obsessing over such things, Indy publishing is for you.

·       The old publishing model is withering

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think traditional publishing is dying. It is changing in ways nobody can predict. Independent publishing has grown, by some estimates, to control up to 30% of the market. You would be foolish if you didn’t at least explore the opportunities of Indy publishing.

Let’s make a list of all the things you’ll have to do in order to independently publish your book.

Line editing

Copy editing

Proof readers

Cover design

Formatting

Cost of physical copies

Editing, in all its forms, is key to writing a good novel. But why do you need three of them? A line edit will go over the story as a whole. The plot, the subplots and the character arcs. Are there plot holes? Are the themes you’ve written about too obvious or too subtle? Is it an enjoyable read?

A copy edit looks at language. Do your sentences or paragraphs all start the same way? Do you use crutch words? (Mine is however.) Is your dialogue stilted? These are the questions a copy editor looks at. A copy edit will help the style of your novel.

A proofreader will look at typos, misspelled words, improper punctuation, style errors and formatting issues missed by your formatter.

If you don’t think you need an editor, you are lying to yourself. Everyone needs editing. Your cousin Larry who used to be an English major before dropping out of community college won’t help. Searching the web for advice on how to self-edit won’t help. You need a pro. Someone who is not close to your story. Someone who isn’t afraid to ask hard questions and tell you hard truths.

The one thing you might get away with is using beta readers as proofreaders. But you’ll need a lot of beta readers – as many as a dozen or more – to make sure you get as many errors corrected as possible.

Cover art and book formatting are things better left up to the professionals. I have heard of cover artists asking for as much as $700-$1,000 for cover art. While I’m sure these artists are worth every penny, you can find a better price if you ask your fellow authors in the community. Please remember that cover art can be very personal. You need to be clear with your artist before you sign a contract what your expectations are going to be. (We’ll talk about this later).

The same is true with your formatter. While you can format your book yourself on Amazon KDP, it will be worth your time and effort to do the tedious work of formatting your book — at least the first time you self-publish.

Self-publishing a book is a lot like being your own general contractor when renovating your house. If you’re not an expert in plumbing, landscaping, electrical work, and carpentry you can find yourself over your head rather quickly. Fortunately, there are people who can help.

Popping up all over the country are companies like Rune Wright Press and Spine Press & Post. Companies like these offer competitive formatting and marketing services to get your book in publishing shape. These businesses also have contacts within the Indy world and can make introductions to cover artists and editors, too. Use them to find quality professionals to work on your book.

Remember who the Boss is! (psst, that’s you!)

Again, like a contractor remodeling your home, these professionals you are going to hire will have access to a part of you that is deeply personal —your book. They’re going to be there for a while, too. Just like a contractor, you’re going to develop a relationship with these people. Hell, when completed, you may treat some of them like family.

And this is where the trap lies.

Because your book is so important to you, and these people will come in and share in your story, you’ll forget that this is a business. You’ll trust these people implicitly with your novel. Most will sincerely try to help you with —some won’t.

For every great Indy publishing experience there are two horror stories. This is why you need to be in control. Be clear about your expectations about everything. From communications, to art designs, to editing. Be specific about what you want for your book. Don’t let anybody hound or harass you on anything. You are the boss!

Everything is Negotiable

If you’re uncomfortable with a quoted price ask them — in a respectful way — to come down.

Formatter: “My price for formatting is $250. I can’t wait to get started. Your book looks amazing!”

You: “Wow. Thank You. I really want to work with you, too. However, I wasn’t prepared to pay that much money. I’d love for you to work on my book, but I don’t think I can afford that much. Is there any way we can talk about price? Can you come down some?”

We Americans have gotten out of the habit of negotiating for things. But this is business and everything is negotiable. Author and financial guru Dave Ramsey’s book, Entreleadership, can help you learn how to ask for a lower price without hurting people’s feelings or getting into an argument.

Have a Budget  

It is very easy to get overwhelmed and start pouring money down a pit called your novel. So make sure you have a hard and fast budget you’ve thought about and agreed upon. A budget will clarify what you’re willing to spend at each step of the process. You can always fiddle with numbers if you can justify an added expense later. What you don’t want to do is look back and realize  you’ve spent $5,000+ dollars on self-publishing a book.

Finally – and I cannot stress this enough – never pay your vendors up front and in total. The best thing to negotiate is for your vendors – the cover artist, the formatter, the editors, to be paid in full when work is completed. Now, many won’t agree to this because there are deadbeat artists who refuse to pay for legitimate work done. If you can, always pay after work is completed.

If the professional you work with is adamant they will not wait to get paid, then negotiate several smaller payments. I like paying in thirds. A third up front when we begin business. A third when half the work is done (“half the work,” is a benchmark negotiated between both parties,) and a third when all the work is done. (Again, “work done,” is defined by both parties).

I have a friend who paid a professional author $1,000 to edit her manuscript and paid up front. He claimed some sort of hardship and never did the work. Nor did he return her money. You can protect yourself by never paying all up front. There are enough quality professionals looking to help authors that you don’t have to do this.

Talk to Your Friends in the Writing Community.

Your fellow writers and authors will have great recommendations for you. Ask around. Get feedback. When you find an editor or artist, ask for references. If they can’t give them to you that may be a red flag.

This blog just touches the iceberg of self-publishing. It can be a daunting experience. But if you must self-publish, if you enjoy the control, then all the experiences will be worth it.

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About the Author:  Jason Evans always wanted to be a writer, he just didn't know it. He grew up in Pasadena, California, in the 1980s where he watched way too much television, but was introduced to literature by his grandfather and his favorite middle school and high school teachers. He wasted his youth working at the So Cal Renaissance Faire (a dangerous place because it’s the gateway drug to other historical costumes,). In his leisure time he’s an educator, a writer, and a bon vivant. He is a graduate of UC Santa Barbara, with degrees in History & Renaissance Studies, a teaching credentials from CSU Los Angeles, as well as a graduate degree from the University of Colorado, Denver. He currently resides in Denver with his wife, the fetching Mrs. Evans, their three dogs and a mischievous cat who calls him his thrall. 

Sweet Success Celebrates Patricia Stoltey & her Giveaway

Congratulations to Patricia Stoltey and her new release Wishing Caswell Dead. To celebrate her upcoming release, Patricia is asking people who belong to Goodreads to go over and click the "Want to Read" button -- she'll be doing a giveaway of 5 ARCs August 1-15 and later on will give away at least 5 hardcovers. By clicking on "Want to Read," readers get a notification of giveaways in their email.

This is the link to the Goodreads page:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34479600-wishing-caswell-dead

"In the early 1800s in a village on the Illinois frontier, young Jo Mae Proud wishes her cruel brother dead. Forced into prostitution by Caswell, Jo Mae discovers she is pregnant and vows to escape. When Caswell is injured by a near lightning hit, he becomes more dangerous, and more hated. The flawed residents of the Village of Sangamon harbor many secrets. Caswell knows them all. Will he tell? Jo Mae runs away and eventually finds shelter with Fish, the old Kickapoo Indian who camps by the river. Wishing Caswell Dead is a historical mystery about the evil that hides within a village, one girl who is determined to save herself and her child, and a violent murder no one wants to solve"

Patricia Stoltey

http://patriciastolteybooks.com
Dead Wrong, Five Star/Cengage, November 2014
Colorado Book Award Finalist 2015

Your Path to Publishing

By Jason Evans

Wow.

This is the big one. Today we begin our discussion on paths to publishing. This is a BIG topic. So I apologize now if I forget to mention something, or don’t address a question someone might have.

I remember someone told me in college that people confuse simple with easy and complicated with hard. A hammer, for example, is a simple tool to use, but if you’ve ever swung one for a while, it can be hard on your muscles. The same is true with publishing. So, before we begin, I need to ask a question.

Why do you want to publish your book?

The answer will determine the path you take to publishing as well as how hard you’re gonna work.

I have a mentor who taught at Christian private schools for 40 years. He has self-published five books on Christian scholastic education. For him, writing & publishing gives his small audience something introspective to chew on. It is a service to his community that burnishes his credentials in his field.

On the other hand, I know a writer who has published eight books in four years, has plans to publish at least four more in the next two. He goes to all the conventions and sells books. But for him, fame and the love of the crowd is what he desperately wants. So the bigger the crowd, the better.

Finally, I know a third author who writes schlocky Sci-fi with fart jokes and comic book level violence. He wants to feed his family – and he does. He writes four books a year – each around 100K words – and pays his mortgage with his writing. Is he the next Hemingway, or JK Rowling? No. But his fans love him and buy everything he sells. And that’s enough.

Ask yourself why are you on this journey? Be honest. Talk to your spouse, or closest friend. Talk to your rabbi or shaman. Dig deep for the answers.

For some people, simply having a book published is enough. They had one story in them. It’s a life goal to check off. Others want to write, but aren’t committed enough to figure out how to pay the bills with it. So they write, publish and never sell any books. Some people are passionate about success. They want to write the perfect book. They want people to be moved by their stories, to fall in love with their work. They want it all.

None of these approaches is wrong. Your motivations, however, will determine how hard you’ll work. Just remember that.

OK. Enough with the pre-amble. Let’s do this.

There are essentially, two paths to publishing. Traditional and self-publishing. Both have their struggles, their frustrations and their victories. If you feel like you need mentors along the way, people who know the business and can guide you, then traditional publishing is probably for you.

If, however, you like to learn every aspect of the business. If you are fascinated by color choices and font types (so many font types); if you feel you have to have control of the entire book pipeline – from edits to cover options – then you will want to self-publish.

PLEASE NOTE: There will be a lot of work on either side of the fence – especially marketing.

Traditional Publishing

The one true upside to traditional publishing is about exposure. A publisher can get your book into bookstore chains and stores like Walmart. That kind of exposure is gold, baby. But don’t expect this to happen overnight. I’ve known authors who’ve published dozens of books and their publisher only warmed up to them late in the game. Some never get this kind of love.

But if you’re truly committed to a traditional publisher you have to know about agents and editors.

Editors work for publishers and will take your work, read it, and if they love your story, will fight to get it published with their company. An agent is someone who loves your story so much, they will use their contacts within the publishing world and put it in front of other editors. The editors have relationships with agents and trust them to recommend great stories.

So, how do you find an agent?

Go to conferences such as Pikes Peak Writers.

Agents and editors go to these things to find the next George RR Martin. They want to hear your story. But you can’t be a wallflower here. You’ve got to be charming as hell. You’ve also got to look and act like a pro. Men, put on some slacks and a jacket. Women, get that nice outfit you wear for business stuff out. Dressing well helps.

Also, be clear what your story is about. What’s the hook? In my W.I.P., the Gallowglass, I invert the trope of the rebel Irish being the good guys. My story has the English as the good guys. It’s fresh and different.

When you go, you’ll also want to have your pitch down. What’s your pitch? A short speech about your book. Author Aaron Michael Ritchey’s pitches his Juniper Wars Series like this: “It’s a family of women with machine guns on a post-apocalyptic cattle drive.” When I first heard that, I so wanted to read it.

Blake Snyder’s book Save the Cat has an entire chapter on pitching to agents. Get his book and check it out! He also recommends talking to complete strangers about your pitch. They don’t know you, so they’ll be honest about your pitch. Also, walking up to complete strangers and talking about your book is great practice for walking up to a complete stranger who happens to be an agent or editor, too.

While you’re at this writing conference, make sure to go to classes run by agents on writing query letters. You’ll see the business from the other side and begin to understand why they have the rules they have. I went to a conference a couple of years ago and listened to an agent say that 90% of writers don’t follow their submission guidelines. She then went on to say her staff deletes all of those submissions. This made me extremely hopeful because I know how to follow directions!

Find Agents online and query them

If you can’t afford to go to conference, or don’t have the time, then find an agent online.

The easy thing to do is get a monthly subscription to www.publishersmarketplace.com. Agents on this website want to be queried with new stories. It’s $25 a month and you can cancel any time. Try to find those agents with lots of sells under their name. Sure, you can take your chance with new agent Larry who’s never sold anything, but why when bigger sharks are circling and you can lasso one? Go for the big dawgs!

Do it the hard way

Another option if you can’t afford or don’t want to pay the $25/a month is to do what I did. It will take you about 12 hours to get information on about fifty agents. But it is worth it.

First off start a spreadsheet. Your spreadsheet should have labels for agent names, their agency websites, contact info, and check off boxes for if you’ve queried them and when.

Do you have a Linkedin.com account? There are literally thousands of literary agents on Linkedin. If you don’t have an account, make one, now.

In the search bar, type in “Literary Agent,” and thousands will appear. I know, it sounds overwhelming, but you can do it!

Click on the people tab and start checking these agents out! Find out what agency they work for, open another tab on your web browser and go to the agency website. Read their query policy and find that agent’s bio. Do they represent what you write? If not, move on.

Begin populating your spreadsheet with agents you feel you’d be successful working with. Get their names, email address, when they accept queries, and their query guidelines in your database.

This process took me 12 hours to do over two days but is was worth it. I now have a list of 50+ agents I can query my books to. Agents who accept historical fiction. 

Learn to write query letters

A good query letter can get your foot into the door. Don’t know how to write one? Most conferences offer at least one class about query letters. If you can’t make that class, then visit a couple of websites to help you out.

Super Agent and Pikes Peak presenter Angie Hodapp started a new website called www.tightenyourquery.com. It’s a great resource on how to write query letters. Her information is quite topical and issue specific. If you don’t learn that way and want someone to edit you, then try www.Queryshark.blogspot.com. WARNING: Query shark can be brutal, so make sure to have tough skin. The writing can be very funny and is always insightful.

When you get an agent, do everything they tell you to do

Agents are not perfect. However, they understand the industry in ways we do not. So, if they tell you to make revisions on your W.I.P., DO IT. They already believe in your story, or else they wouldn’t have signed you. Having an agent means you have potential! But now you want to sell your book and make it a product for the market place. You are now in business. So act like it and don’t take revisions personally. Do your job.

One last thing before you sign that contract . . .

Hire a lawyer. Seriously. Hire a lawyer who specializes in copyright and trademark law. They are called literary lawyers. You don’t have to have a retainer, but do cough up the couple of hundred bucks to have them look over your contract. Let them figure out things like royalties, reversion of rights, digital rights and overseas markets. It is worth it for your piece of mind.

If you have an agent or publishing house that doesn’t want you to hire an attorney – that is a red flag.

Susan Spann, author of the Shinobi Mysteries, is also a lawyer. I talked to her about this. Here is what she said about literary contracts.

“Even simple contracts can have missing or sub-standard terms and other pitfalls authors may not notice. Without an experienced publishing lawyer or agent on your side, it’s far too easy to find yourself in a contract you regret.”

If you get the impression the literary world is full of predators, I apologize. That isn’t the point. The point is people make mistakes and errors all the time. Also, some people are predators in the literary world. At the end of the day no one is going to protect your rights but you. Do your homework, hire a lawyer, and always remember to protect yourself.

I know this is a lot to process, but the journey to publication can be labor intensive. This is why I asked you why are you writing a book? I know it is hard because I am in this process right now. But it will be worth it if you put in the work. I promise.

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About the Author:  Jason Evans always wanted to be a writer, he just didn't know it. He grew up in Pasadena, California, in the 1980s where he watched way too much television, but was introduced to literature by his grandfather and his favorite middle school and high school teachers. He wasted his youth working at the So Cal Renaissance Faire (a dangerous place because it’s the gateway drug to other historical costumes,). In his leisure time he’s an educator, a writer, and a bon vivant. He is a graduate of UC Santa Barbara, with degrees in History & Renaissance Studies, a teaching credentials from CSU Los Angeles, as well as a graduate degree from the University of Colorado, Denver. He currently resides in Denver with his wife, the fetching Mrs. Evans, their three dogs and a mischievous cat who calls him his thrall. 

Finishing Your Novel - The Rewrite Blog Six

By: Jason Henry Evans

Since January we’ve been discussing the bare bone basics of how to write a book of

historical fiction. June is the sixth month we’ve been doing this fiction stuff – and it will be our last. After June, we’re going to transition into other topics, like how to self-publish and finding an agent. We’ll also talk about online marketing and email lists and appearances. So this will be our last blog about actual writing.

In May I gave you a list of five things you should do once your W.I.P. (Work In Progress,) is finished. The last three items on that list were as follows:

3.) Join a critique group.

4.) Get a good book on grammar.

5.) Print out and read your book.

All three of these activities are essential to meaningful re-writes.

• A critique group will help you see you’re writing from your readers’ eyes. Things that look awesome to you, will read confused and disorganized to them. In addition, things you think are pedestrian in your writing will instill hope and inspiration to others. Some people might weep. (I’ve seen it happen.) Please join a critique group and take their criticisms to heart. Remember, author Jeff Goins says art needs and audience.

• Get a book on grammar. English has more than 100,000 words in it. Its origins are wacky. Essentially Viking settlers in Britain couldn’t be bothered to learn the language of the Angles properly. You throw in some Roman invasions, one from the Normans, expansion and cultural appropriation from around the globe, and you get a language that beats up other languages and steals their grammar.

• So, again, Get a book on grammar. No one expects you to know everything about English. It’s a process. But you can’t start that process without a primer on the basics. A book on grammar can help.

• Finally, print out your book and read it out loud. The sound of actual words will help clean up sentence structure. You can also make notes right in the margin.

Three kinds of Edits

I looked around on the internet and came across multiple definitions for the same terms. So I’ll clarify as I write. You, the writer, before you hire an editor or query to Penguin Books, must do these three kinds of edits yourself.

A Line Edit:

These have to do with that pesky grammar stuff – and it’s hard, at least for me. Although it needs to be done, don’t sit down with a red pen and begin slashing at your manuscript, criticizing every single sentence. You. Will. Go. Mad.

Go to critique group.

Every critique group has a grammar Nazi in it – at least the good ones do. They will let you know about the minutia of grammar. They will tell you things you wouldn’t pick up in a decent book of grammar. As they slash your ten pages, you take notes and learn what rules you keep breaking. When you begin your structure edit, you will notice the bad grammar habits you’ve picked up. Note and correct them there. Then, and only then, do you do a read through looking only for grammar mistakes.

A Structure Edit:

For me, structure edits are about asking certain questions of my work and figuring out how to make them better. So, as you read through your W.I.P. (after taking at least two weeks off without looking at it,) ask yourself these critical questions.

1. Is the protagonist’s motivation painfully obvious?
2. Is the protagonist likeable? Do you want them to be?
3. Do you have a theme? If so, is the theme obvious to your readers?
4. Does your protagonist have a story arc? Is it clear and obvious?
5. 5 Do any of your supporting characters have a story arc? Are their arcs clear and obvious?
6. Is your protagonist the cause of at least some of his own troubles? If not, why? If so, can he fix them?
7. At the midpoint of the W.I.P., is the protagonist able to reflect upon his or her decisions?
8. Is there a whiff of death in the second half of Act 2?
9. Is there at least a partially satisfying conclusion for your reader? Do the good guys win? If not, is there something satisfying for your reader to grab ahold of at the end of your W.I.P.?

When you come to the realization that you need to re-write some scenes – or add new scenes, please, please, please, open of a new file and keep those scenes there! Keep them separate from your W.I.P. Don’t go deleting stuff willy-nilly all over your book. Do your re-writes and slowly integrate them into brand new copies.

I’ll give you an example.

When I was finished with The Gallowglass, a novel about English soldiers fighting in the Irish Nine Years War, I realized I needed a love story. So I organized one, outlining the scenes I would use. Now, I use MS Word, so I created a separate file folder within my book file folder and called it “Gallowglass Romance.” I made individual word files for every extra scene. You, however, don’t have to do that. You can string them along in one .doc, if you so choose, depending on the length of your scenes.

I added an intro for the extra character. An argument scene. I added a dinner alone together scene. All in all, I wrote 11 extra scenes for my romantic subplot and kept them separate. Then, I went back and added them to appropriate chapters. But I also have that separate romance file – just in case I need to move them again.

An Historic Accuracy Edit:

Do you remember back in April when I said don’t worry about the minutia of the historical accuracy stuff when writing your draft? Just add brackets with [Do specific research later]?

Well, it’s time to worry about that stuff.

This will be the hardest part. You’ll have to research where historical characters physically were. The slang they used, the clothing they wore, even the medicine they had access to.

Start with the big stuff first. If your novel is about a famous historical figure, I really hope you created an outline of the figure’s whereabouts before you wrote your book. If you didn’t, you’ll have to do some major re-writes.

Are your characters in the middle of a major historical event, like the Battle of the Bulge, or the coronation of Kaiser Willhelm I? Then you’ll need maps, pictures (if available,) and probably a spreadsheet of historical characters your protagonist will interact with.

If your story takes place in one of those forgotten spaces in history, you will still need to learn about eating habits, sexual norms, fashions, and etiquette. These are the details that will make your manuscript glow. These are also the points that will trip your story up to readers and agents if you get them wrong. The great news is that the internet has access to all of this information.

The bad news is that the internet is the Wild West, and you’ll have to use your judgment. 

Back in November of 2015 I realized that my W.I.P., The Gallowglass, was awful. Just plain bad. So I made the decision to do a re-write from page one. I literally could not use anything from the first draft, it was so bad.

As I sat there, heartbroken around Thanksgiving about all the work I was about to do, I realized something. As hard as I thought it was going to be, I knew I had a story in me. I knew it was a good story, a story people would want to read. I also knew there was no real physical work to do. I wasn’t shoveling horse manure in the hot Missouri summer sun. Re-writing this story, my story, wasn’t going to be that hard. I could do this.

So I did. It took three months, off and on, to finish my second draft. I did it, and so can you.

If you want to have a deeper discussion about the process of re-writing, click on this link to my website: http://www.jasonhenryevans.com/2017/06/lets-start-re-writes/

Go on Facebook and like my Author Page.

Follow me on Twitter @evans_writer 

About the Author:  Jason Evans always wanted to be a writer, he just didn't know it. He grew up in Pasadena, California, in the 1980s where he watched way too much television, but was introduced to literature by his grandfather and his favorite middle school and high school teachers. He wasted his youth working at the So Cal Renaissance Faire (a dangerous place because it’s the gateway drug to other historical costumes,). In his leisure time he’s an educator, a writer, and a bon vivant. He is a graduate of UC Santa Barbara, with degrees in History & Renaissance Studies, a teaching credentials from CSU Los Angeles, as well as a graduate degree from the University of Colorado, Denver. He currently resides in Denver with his wife, the fetching Mrs. Evans, their three dogs and a mischievous cat who calls him his thrall.