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Carolyn Mulford

Carolyn Mulford

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Monthly Archives: September 2011

Why agents and editors stop reading

Carolyn Mulford Posted on September 1, 2011 by CarolynSeptember 2, 2011

Submit a perfect manuscript, advised a panel of agents and editors at Killer Nashville, a mystery writers’ conference held August 25-28, 2011.

The turmoil in the publishing world has made it even harder to persuade anyone to represent or publish your book. Agents and editors who find imperfections on the first page often dismiss the whole manuscript.

What makes them stop reading? Lots of things, according to agents Jill Marr of Sandra Dijkstra and Jeff Kleinman of Folio and editors Deni Dietz of Five Star and Martin Shepard of Permanent Press. A volunteer read aloud eight first pages submitted by conference participants. Each panelist called “Stop” when the reader reached something unacceptable. The reader finished only one full page.

I’ve grouped the panelists’ stoppers  in two categories: mechanics and content.

Mechanics

  1. Incorrect punctuation, usually a misuse of quotation marks
  2. Trite phrases, usually similes
  3. Overuse of adjectives or adverbs
  4. Weak verbs, particularly forms of to be and the passive voice
  5. Use of words the panelist regards as markers of poor writing, e.g., shrugged, just, barked (for said)
  6. Starting several sentences with the same word
  7. Using unfamiliar terms or abbreviations
  8. Calling a character by more than one name, e.g., Bill and William
  9. Overuse of a character’s name in dialogue, usually to remind the reader who’s talking

Content

  1. Beginning with description instead of action
  2. Boring
  3. Telling, not showing
  4. Giving unessential information
  5. Interrupting the narrative with backstory
  6. Incorrect facts and behavior, usually the character saying or doing something a person in that occupation wouldn’t in real life
  7. A lack of emotional engagement in the point-of-view character and subsequently the reader
  8. Giving information from the author’s rather than the character’s point of view, often in dialogue

All of the panelists stressed the importance of that last stopper. Oddly enough, the editors showed more tolerance for lapses than the agents.

All agreed an intriguing opening line could push them past minor faults.

Posted in Uncategorized

Latest Postings


I Am a River

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 19, 2025 by CarolynApril 19, 2025

Each week I lunch with a group of friends and discuss a topic. Last time the coordinator posed this question: What is the shape of your life? The answers included a rectangle, a vase, a cloud, and an octagon. Usually I wing it, but this time I wrote my response. The Shape of My Life I am a river, Birthed in a puddle, Nourished by rain, Pushed to overflow And grow broader And deeper.   Springs and creeks fed my flow. Widening waters gathered force, Thrusting me against unyielding barriers And cascading me over rocky falls.   Other streams joined … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized

Where to Find My Books

Carolyn Mulford Posted on April 1, 2025 by CarolynApril 1, 2025

While only one of my books, Show Me the Sinister Snowman, continues to be published in print and electronic editions, several of my novels are available from online sellers. Most of the copies are used, but columbiabooksonline.com, my supportive local bookstore, has a small stock of new Show Me hardbacks and paperbacks. I also have a few copies of all my novels except The Feedsack Dress, my historical children’s book, and Show Me the Murder, the first in my mystery series featuring a former spy returning   home and solving crimes with old friends. Fortunately e-editions still exist. Barnes and Noble … Continue reading →

Posted in Mysteries, The Feedsack Dress, Uncategorized

Looking Forward 60 Years Ago

Carolyn Mulford Posted on February 28, 2025 by CarolynFebruary 28, 2025

Reminders of my attempts to start my writing career arrived last Christmas. A friend, Joyce Campbell, sent me letters I had written to her while we were serving as Peace Corps Volunteers (teaching English) in Ethiopia from September 1962 to July 1964 and in the months after we returned home (Chattanooga, Tennessee, for her and Kirksville, Missouri, for me) after traveling through Europe. On December 21, 1964, I wrote, “Has anything turned up for you yet? People don’t seem terribly impressed with Peace Corps experience for job qualifications it seems to me. I’m going down to the University Placement Bureau … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing

Mid-Continent Earthquakes, Past and Future

Carolyn Mulford Posted on December 16, 2024 by CarolynDecember 16, 2024

About 2:30 a.m. December 16, 1811, an earthquake threw people in New Madrid, Missouri Territory, out of bed and crumbled brick houses and cabin chimneys, forced the Mississippi River to run backward and change course, disturbed sleep along most of the East Coast, and toppled dishes from shelves in the White House. That marked the beginning of some of the most powerful, prolonged quakes the United States has experienced. These weren’t the first in the New Madrid Seismic Zone, which is centered near where Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky come together. Geologists and other scientists have found indications that powerful … Continue reading →

Posted in Historicals, News, Thunder Beneath My Feet

The Turkey That Bullied Me

Carolyn Mulford Posted on November 26, 2024 by CarolynNovember 26, 2024

I grew up with animals as friends, the first being our dog Roamer. He and I wandered around the yard, the barnyard, and the garden. Roamer barked at squirrels and chased rabbits from our vegetables. He made me ponder one of life’s great puzzles: Is it okay to sympathize with Peter Rabbit in the story but condemn him when your own carrots are at risk? Roamer knew not to chase our chickens or cows or pigs, and he joined me in playing with an orphaned lamb and the kittens whose parents kept the barn free of mice. What he didn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized

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