1 | Cathy C. Hall Writes

Getting your pre-published book out there can be daunting, but as I mentioned when last we chatted, it’s helpful to be armed with knowledge of the publishing world. It’s also exceedingly helpful to know exactly what your book is, genre-wise.

So I thought I’d share agent Jennifer Laughran’s exceedingly thorough post, “The Big Ol’ Genre Glossary.” Because honestly, just because you wrote that manuscript doesn’t necessarily mean that you know what genre in which it fits. And you kinda need to know that bit of info if you’re planning to send out query letters to agents. Agents are funny that way. They expect a genre in the query.

And after you’ve read up on all those genres and your head is about to bust with brilliance, you’ll want a little mental break. You should zip over to the Internet Anagram Server and play around a bit. I put “Finders and Keepers” in the server and came up with a bazillion anagrams. But my favorite is “Endeared Pen Frisks.”

I’m thinking that’s a lovely name for a blog…if the genre were romance.

I’ve been zipping over to Twitter quite a bit the last few days to check out the Book Expo hashtag (#bea11 if you haven’t zipped over yourself yet). I like to feel in the book world know, even though I know there’s tons I’m missing.

And speaking of missing in-the-know information, Harold Underdown passed along this link of publishing terms so that we’ll all know what those BEA folks are talking about when they go on and on about books and such . But don’t wait till you sell your book. A smart writer is an informed writer. Know your publishing terms and jargon and be one step ahead!

The glossary, by the way, comes from Underdown’s The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Publishing Children’s Books. If you’re new to children’s writing, it’s a great read to start you on the right road to publication. And even if you’re an old pro, you’ll probably find something in the newest edition you didn’t know.

Who didn’t know SRO? Or OSI and f & g’s? Besides me, I mean.

See? I learned something new today, thanks to thoughtful Harold. And now I’m ready for #bea12. (Um, assuming they move it to the ATL. Because honestly, Twitter is as close as I get to New York.)