Guest blogger: Lydia Dare

Today’s guest, and our sister blogger, Lydia Dare, writes historical romances with a wild streak. She is the paranormal historical writing team of Tammy Falkner and Jodie Pearson, two very funny and hardworking ladies. Both Tammy and Jodie are active members of the Heart of Carolina Romance Writers and live near Raleigh, North Carolina. Lydia Dare’s latest release from Sourcebooks, The Taming of the Wolf, was released November 2nd, 2010.

Regency England has gone to the wolves!

Welcome Lydia. Tell us a little about The Taming of the Wolf, your fourth book from Sourcebooks.

Lydia/Jodie – The Taming of the Wolf picks up the same night the previous book – The Wolf Next Door – comes to an end. Werewolf Dashiel Thorpe, the Earl of Brimsworth, under the power of the full moon shares a heated kiss with a Scottish lass and bites her, “claiming” her as his mate. Unfortunately, the Scottish lass in question is a powerful witch who isn’t too keen on having been “claimed”.

Lydia/Tammy: Dashiel Thorpe has been raised to believe that he’s a monster, an anomaly, an abomination. He can’t help that his real father was a Lycan, that he never met him, or that his mother cuckolded the the Marquess of Eynsford, the man Dash has always considered to be his father. It’s not until he meets the Westfields that he realizes there are others of his kind. Unfortunately, Caitrin Macleod lands directly in his path and he claims her without even knowing it. Now he’s left with two options, to go and get training as a Lycan, or go after Caitrin who is Scotland-bound. Perhaps he can do both.

We are always fascinated by an authors writing process, and since there are two of you it must take some juggling. How does a typical writing week go for you two ladies?

Lydia/Jodie – There is no typical. It depends on the book and what else is going on. What revisions are due, what copy edits, that kind of thing. We like to get about 1500 words written a day and exchange the book back and forth for edits.

Lydia/Tammy – Our first three books each took two months to write. We find that it’s more difficult to keep that schedule up now, but we still aim for about five pages a day. When I get the pages from Jodie, I read what she wrote, make any edits I think are necessary, then write my five pages. Then it’s off to Jodie again!

What is your favorite form of procrastination, apart from getting lost in research?

Lydia/Jodie – For me, I’d have to say the internet or television. I’m a little addicted to Vampire Diaries.

Lydia/Tammy – Work is a terrible distraction! I also get bogged down in internet searches should I need to look something up. Even if it’s just looking up the spelling of a word, it gets me off track.

We know The Taming of the Wolf is about to be unleashed, but what are you working on now, and what was the last scene you wrote on the story?

Lydia/Jodie – What we just finished working on was book seven in this series, Never Been Bit. So the last scene was the epilogue, which is always one of my favorite scenes to write. I love seeing what has happened months or even years later to the couple in question and realizing that they still love each other as much as they did at the end of the final chapter.

Here’s our question for you – Have you ever had to tame anything? An unruly child? A pet? Your grandmother who likes to yell obscenities out the car window? Anything at all? If so, we’d love to hear about it. A copy of THE TAMING OF THE WOLF will be sent to one lucky commenter. Please include email addresses along with your comments so the winner can be contacted. **Available for only US and Canada residents.

The Lady Scribes would like to thank Lydia for allowing us to pimp her next fantastic romance novel today. Stop by her website at http://www.lydiadare.com/.

Our Guest: Melissa Jeglinski

Today I’d like to introduce all of you to my wonderful agent, Melissa Jeglinski of The Knight Agency. Melissa has a unique perspective in the publishing world – that of both agent and editor. Before joining The Knight Agency in 2008, she enjoyed a successful 17 year career with Harlequin.

So, without further ado – Welcome to Lady Scribes, Melissa! Thank you so much for joining us today and sharing your knowledge.

Over the years, I’ve listened to a number of agent panels at various conferences and read a lot of agent interviews, and it seems everyone always wants to know, “What are you looking for?” I would imagine since you are the submissions coordinator at TKA, you get asked that a lot. So I don’t want to ask you that per se. But rather – since you see countless query letters, what advice would you offer writers who are submitting? Are there any common mistakes you notice that are easily fixed? And would one of those mistakes prevent you from asking for more information from the writer in question?

Lydia, thanks so much for the invite. I appreciate the opportunity to put in my two cents. Yes, as submissions coordinator for TKA I read about fifty query letter per DAY. And I see the same openings over and over. The writer starts out by asking me a question instead of just giving me information that’s compelling. I suggest trying to be less chatty and more upfront. I want to see a brief synopsis, details about the genre and word count and information about the author. Truthfully, I almost always say no to queries that start with a question or series of questions...unless the plot really captures my attention.

Aspiring authors slave over their first fifty pages, polishing them for submission. As agency slush piles can be endless, how much leeway do you give a submission? If they lose you somewhere on page two, do you stop right there? Or do you give them a little time to grab your interest? And if so, how much time do you give them?

I’m going to sound tough, I know it. But I usually know within the first three pages if a project is right for me or not. The author’s voice should really come through from the first sentence. The first line should capture my interest and the first few paragraphs should set the stage for the drama that is about to unfold. So, yes, if a project loses me in those first few pages, I will turn it down. But, that’s only if there’s nothing there to compell me forward. It may not have the best opening line but if the writing is intriguing, I may give it a chance through the first chapter. I’ve sometimes noticed that a manuscript doesn’t need it’s first chapter at all. Often, it is composed of set up and explanation that can easily be included in other chapters.

The other ladies on this blog knew you were coming today and were anxious to hear what you had to say. I was even asked to ask you some specific questions. I wheedled them down. Here’s what’s left:

What do you wish writers knew about the publishing industry?

It’s a tough world out there and publishers are being extra selective about which projects they take on. I know it’s hard to keep in mind, but you can’t take rejections personally. Publishers are less and less likely to take on anything risky, even if they love your writing. So remember, it’s not always about your project, but it’s always about the market.

If a manuscript is rejected and then revised, how much time should pass before a writer should re-submit? Or should they even do so?

A writer should feel free to resubmit their revised project as soon as they want—but only if revisions were requested. If a request was not sent along with the initial rejection, query again, letting the agent know you’ve done extensive revisions, even giving a brief outline about what you’ve done. If they decline to see the revisions, it may be that your writing and or project just wasn’t right for them and may never be right.

What do you think makes for an unforgettable character?

An unforgettable character is one I can really relate to and commiserate with. They don’t have to be the heroine or my age or contemporary. They just have to feel real to me both in actions and words.

Have you ever offered representation to someone from a contest final?

No. Not yet. :)

Well, thank you so much for answering these questions for us today, Melissa. Your insight is much appreicated!