AUTHORS

Ahhh, the sweet smell of success~

Writers who didn't give up . . .

Nancy Cavanaugh's query letter helped her meet a great agent who was unable to sell her first MG manuscript, and so, switched gears and sold her second story "Ratchet" to Sourcebooks. Then, with one successful book under her belt, Nany's agent was able to convince Sourcebooks to publish her first manuscript, "Always Abigail" in Oct. 2104.
Don't misunderstand how Nancy came to write a query that interested a fabulous agent. She didn't just "whip" it out. Nobody ever does! Nancy revised (with my assistance) diligently through several drafts until she had identified the core of her story and crafted a query letter that captivated the interest of her dream agent.
BTW: Although Nancy writes for mid-grade readers, her stories touch hearts of all ages. In "Abigail," her main character is cast out of the "pompom" girls' inner circle in a saga that is guaranteed to bring back memories for everyone who longed for acceptance by the "in" group, but never could pull it off until it no longer mattered.

Emily Will, a skillful and determined writer, is about to become a published author with her first MG novel, "When Parrots Blocked the Sun: The Story of a Taíno Youth."
    She's an official member of "The Little Engine that Could" club of writers who keep on keeping on until they reach the top of the mountain.
   When, in 2013, I read Emily's first pages, I realized she was a talented story teller with the ability to bring characters from our past to life. But then, whoopsie! I discovered Emily had become entangled in the how, who, and what of her story and had pushed the true beginning to the back of the bus (third or fourth page). Once Emily revised and began her story by jumping right into that moment when the story began, her manuscript shifted into high gear.
    And, she also needed to address a few writing mechanic issues.      Emily comments: "Molli advised me to use simple, rather than continuous, present tense: I stand, rather than I am standing. She also pointed out how certain phrases pulled my narrative out of present tense. Finally, Molli encouraged me to use my imagination to come up with phrases native people might have used, freeing me from my more traditional, journalistic approach."
    Emily researched and found 4RV Publishing in the July, 2013, edition of Children's Writer. She approached them directly and signed a contract for her book which is scheduled for a launch in 2015.
    Emily has become an overnight success after six years of writing, revising, revising, revising . . . and submitting 85 query letters.
    She offers a bit of inspiration: "Don't give up! Find comfort in Thomas Edison's maxim: 'Accomplishment is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.' OK, so I may be a drudge or a plodder with little native talent, but Edison declared he was, too."
    Think about Edison's comment next time you turn on a light.

An Energizer Bunny of the writing world, Fran Orenstein has authored 13 published books, with 7 more in the pipeline.
At some point in her quest to become published, Fran decided her agent quest was futile and shredded the rejection slips in her file cabinet. After she attended one of my query-letter workshops, Fran adapted the marketing techniques to introduce herself to two (2) publishers: one for novels and another for poetry.
Fran's a whiz at self-promotion as she meets and greets writers and readers at book fairs, workshops, and presentations. She describes herself as being “Busy, busy, busy and loving it." She writes non-stop, and participates in the Florida Writers Assoc., Florida State Poet's Assoc., and/or National League of American Pen Women.

Samantha Charles pursued writing, expanded her skills, wrote a great query letter and synopsis, and finally connected with her publisher, Black Rose Writing. Samantha shared her great news in 2014! "Molli, my dream of becoming published becomes a reality today! Thanks again for your help."
Her book REDEMPTION, becomes the first in a series set in Parson's Gap, a small southern town.
Samantha's opening paragraph demonstrates her ability to set a dynamic stage and involve readers in page-turning events that will keep them reading her story from beginning to end.
"Lindy Harrington woke up with the carved wooden grip of her .38 caliber revolver still clutched in her right hand. Nestled between her rib cage and abdomen, the stainless steel cylinder was strangely comforting against her skin. The metallic taste of copper in her mouth reminded her that she was far too familiar with the taste of her own blood."

RMac Wheeler comments, "Molli helped me, early in my career, learn how to tighten up query letters, pitches, and the introductory pages of my novel. Her words stick with me almost a decade later, as I prepare to publish novel 29. Her insightful concepts improved my writing ten-fold. Many kudos for her industry moxy."

Author/illustrator Theodor Seuss Geisel feared he would never locate a publisher for his first children's book. After being rejected by every publishing house in New York, Theodor was introduced to the children’s editor at Vanguard Press who placed "To Think I Saw it on Mulberry Street" under contract.
His hugely popular books continue to sell, especially “Oh the Places You’ll Go” which re-emerges every spring to celebrate graduations and weddings. Dr. Seuss books have sold over 600 million copies worldwide.
(Little known fact: to deal with the stress of writing and illustrating new stories, Theodor relaxed by wearing silly hats while he worked. This influenced him to design the hat now recognized all over the world.)

J. K. Rowlings, struggled in poverty as a single mom on welfare while she completed her first book, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” Rejected by every major publishing house in England, she almost gave up until a small press, Bloomsbury, agreed to publish her first book.
Harry Potter books, written for mid-grade readers (printed in 69 languages), have influenced millions of children to enjoy reading, and have made her one of the world’s richest women.

Are you ready to begin the submission process?
If so, make double certain
your manuscript is ready for prime time. My 77-page book will help you. When you sign up below, you'll receive a FREE link to the book and also will begin to receive a "Molli's Gang" bi-weekly newsletter, crammed with agent alerts, writing tips, and industry updates.

Best-selling author and renowned canine trainer, "Captain" Arthur Haggerty had a publishing deal with Simon & Schuster and a disjointed manuscript. S&S made it clear. Re-write, or else . . . no publishing deal. "Captain" wasn't clear about how to do this, and asked me to help him make his manuscript work. Which I did. His comments: "Molli, without your re-structuring assistance and editing skills, 'How to Teach Your Dog to Talk' might not have made it onto the shelves of Barnes and Noble. Your help is grrrrrr-reatly appreciated!"
Available at Amazon.com.

Heather Ashby traveled the query/synopsis path to contact agents regarding her first romance novel. Heather finally figured out how to craft her query letter using the same captivating "voice" she had used in her story.
Her first agent spent a year not doing much. Sometimes this happens.
So, Heather switched gears and refocused the marketing skills she'd acquired while developing her query and synopsis. She decided to introduce her work to publishers instead of agents. She attended a RWA (Romance Writers' of America conference), pitched her book to Henery Publishing, and signed a four-book deal for her contemporary romance series, "Love in the Fleet." In 2014, Henery Publishing decided to re-focus on mysteries, so Heather moved on to sign with NY Times bestselling author, Teresa Medeiros, at amberhousebooks.com.