Do You Know About Genpuku?

Genpuku is (or, more properly, was) a traditional Japanese coming-of-age ceremony for male members of the samurai class. The timing of the ceremony varied, at the discretion of a samurai boy’s father or the male relative in charge of his training, but it typically took place when a boy was between the ages of 12 and 17. When a samurai youth had attained the requisite skills and maturity to accept the responsibilities of adulthood, he was taken to the shrine of his family’s patron kami (a Japanese term for gods or divinities) where the ceremony was performed. After genpuku, a boy

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The Publishing Timeline: Submission to Contract Signing

This week, we’re wrapping up our Wednesday series on negotiation with a look at the publishing contract timeline. Many authors assume that once a publisher offers a deal, everything happens at once. Contracts are signed. Money is paid. Books are published. Authors rejoice! Not so fast, there, partner. Traditional publishing takes time, and contracts are no exception. The time from offer to contract signing is usually measured in months, not days.The submission and contract process for traditional publication works like this: Step 1: Submission. The author (or the author’s agent) submits a query or a proposal to an editor at the

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Getting Along On the Reef

Some people have the capacity to get along with everyone. I strive to be one of those people, to have genuine compassion for people I meet, and to strive to find common ground. Little did I know I would find an example – and a mentor – on my reef. My smaller male seahorse, Ghillie, spends most of his time in hiding. He’s shy by nature, preferring the shelter of corals to the glare of the overhead lights. But when other residents of the tank decide to interact, Ghillie shows surprising patience and social facility. Red the fire shrimp sometimes

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WANACon, Fear, and an Unexpected Victory

On Saturday I had the honor of speaking at WANACon, the online writers’ conference sponsored by Kristen Lamb’s WANA International. I’ve spoken at many conferences, to authors’ groups, in libraries, and on the radio. I spent five years as a law school professor and almost twice that many in adjunct teaching roles. I long ago passed the point where fear was a factor in public speaking. Until this weekend. As the hour of my talks approached, I found myself increasingly nervous – sick-to-the-stomach nervous, something I haven’t felt in over a decade. I told my husband about it, and (as

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An Interview With Robyn Oyeniyi

Today we welcome Robyn Oyeniyi, author of LOVE VERSUS GOLIATH, a nonfiction work chronicling Robyn’s personal struggle to keep her family intact and alive while obtaining permission for her husband and step-children to live with her in Australia. Robyn Oyeniyi is an Australian IT professional and CPA who spent many Sunday mornings writing her memoir detailing a traumatic battle against the government to be reunited with her husband and four step-children. Nearly forced to flee her homeland to be with the man she loves, Robyn Oyeniyi battled her government and won after committing the cardinal sin: falling in love with

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How the Cat Got Its Claws

It’s no surprise that my debut Shinobi Mystery novel is titled Claws of the Cat. It may surprise some of you, however, to learn that it wasn’t always so. The novel’s original title, SHINOBI, ended up as the name of the series instead. Although the decision to change the title didn’t originate with me, I’m actually very glad it worked out this way. If you’d like to know more about how it happened, and who it was that suggested we call it Claws of the Cat (a hint: it wasn’t me, and it wasn’t my editor either) head over to

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Learning to Find the Middle Ground

I mentioned last week that part of effective negotiation is finding and proposing a middle position both parties can accept. Today we look more closely at how that’s done. Pretend that a publisher offers you 10% royalties on hardback sales (gross royalties on domestic sales) of your book. You, the author, would prefer a higher percentage, but you know that this number is close to industry standard. How do you meet in the middle? You might ask if the publisher would consider escalating royalties at different sales levels. For example, 10% on the first 5,000 copies, 12% on sales 5,001-10,000,

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Worldbuilding for Non-Planetary Engineers

A guest post by Tammy Salyer Long ago in a land far, far away, I began writing a fantasy novel. While the manuscript still sits in bits collecting virtual dust on my harddrive, I fondly remember the enjoyment that came with the process of making up an entire world from scratch. Little did I know when I was writing that trunk novel–creating maps of the geography, developing the culture and the social order, et cetera–that years later I would publish a science fiction trilogy. Yet, when people think of worldbuilding as a writing device, most of us tend to think

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Hey Bud … Be Strong.

While pruning my roses the other day, I found myself pondering publishing. (This isn’t as strange as you may think, and not only because I’m odd.) Traditional publishing is a lot like pruning roses. Roses require pruning in spring, after the dormant period, when the canes start sending out the buds that form the new year’s branches. The buds start small, just little red nubs, but they quickly grow into branches if given a chance. The problem is, a rosebush doesn’t have the strength to let every bud grow to a branch. Someone has to prune the canes directly above

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Shinobi News: February 16, 2013

This week in Shinobi News: – First Pass pages for Claws of the Cat are on their way from New York! For those of you not in the publishing industry, “first pass” is the author’s first look at the “final” printed pages of a manuscript. It’s the final opportunity to catch typos and also my first chance to see the formatting, font and style of the finished book. To say I’m excited would be an understatement! Looking for me this week? On Saturday, February 23 I’m speaking at WANACon, the online writing conference sponsored by WANA International. I’m giving two

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