Happy Thanksgiving

November 21, 2018November 18, 2018 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 2 Comments

It seems as if a lot of ugly things have happened around the globe and especially here in the good old USA. Sometimes with all the strife and division it becomes harder to see the good things around us. Let us all take this Thanksgiving holiday to stop a moment and think of the good things happening both close to home and throughout our nation.

Make a list, say them aloud, or share them with someone, but for this moment, this season, if only for a while focus on the blessings God has brought your way.

Happy Thanksgiving to each of you and your loved ones. May we all enjoy more positivity, unity, and blessings in the coming year(s).

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our Thanksgiving.” Click to Tweet

W.T. Purkiser

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story. I’m all ears and look for me on Facebook Page at SheilaMcIntyreGood, Pinterest, Bloglovin, Twitter@sheilamgood, Contently, and Instagram. You can follow my reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.

VOTE!

November 5, 2018November 5, 2018 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 5 Comments

I’m thrilled with the accomplishments of this President. I’ve listed just a few of the more significant ones from the headlines.

Imagine what we can accomplished if we all pulled together for the good of the nation!

CNBC: Payrolls Smash Estimates with a Gain of 250,000. Wage Gains Pass 3% for First Time Since Recession.
Non-farm payrolls increased by 250,000 for October, well ahead of Refinitiv estimates of 190,000.
Average hourly earnings increased by 5 cents an hour for the month and 83 cents year-over-year, representing a 3.1 percent gain; the best pace since 2009.
The unemployment rate stayed at 3.7 percent, the lowest since December 1969.
CNBC: Wages and Salaries Jump by 3.1%, Highest Level in a Decade
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: U.S. Consumer Confidence Surged in October to 18-Year High
CNBC: Medicaid Enrollment Declines for the First Time in More Than a Decade as a Strong US Economy Boosts Income for Poor Americans.
BUSINESS INSIDER: US Economy Grows at Fastest Back-to-Back Pace in 4 Years, Boosted by Solid Consumer Spending.
(CNSNews.com) – Manufacturing jobs in the United States increased by 32,000 in October and have now increased by 434,000 during the presidency of Donald Trump, according to data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. (Abracadabra!)
Conservative justices who interpret the Constitution as WRITTEN: including 2 Supreme Court Justices and more Federal judges than any other President appointed.
A President that signed into law The Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018.
And a President that signed the Right to try legislation which gives terminally ill patients the right to use experimental medications that have not yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

I will be voting to continue to promote America first. To keep America Safe and continue a prosperous economy. I will proudly vote RED.

Find Your Polling Station Here:

VOTE.org

What I’ve Learned About Querying

October 27, 2018 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 6 Comments

Querying tips

I’ve been as invisible as a ghost over the last month because I entered the maze of querying agents for my manuscript, Hello Hell. Let me tell you, it can be a scary place if you don’t know what you’re doing or follow the process as outlined by every, single, agent. So, here’s a few tips, I’ve learned aloong the way. Feel free to share your own.

Pick your resources: Writer’s Digest, MSWL, Querytracker, or Writer’s Market.
Identify those agents open for submissions and who are requesting manuscripts in your genre.
Publications don’t always tell the whole story related to a specific agent, so do your reasearch.
Make a list. Note siginifcant specifics about each agent.
Read the agents profile, website, Twitter account and any other site they provide to get a good feel for whether he/she might be a good fit. For example, a profile may list they are interested in womne’s fiction but when you did deeper, there is a very specific type of women’s fiction they are interested in. Unless your manuscipt fits within that narrow scope, mark them off your list.
Read through the agency, research all the agents listed, the books they have published, and their submission guidelines.
Perfect your query again and again. Don’t write one and think it will serve all. Some agents are very particular regarding what they want to see in a querying and the layout. So, be prepared to have numerous versions as you gothrough the process.
Keep track of each query sent to each agent. This is important because you can’t querying more than one agent within an agency. So, pay attention to your list. I use Query Tracker which provides valuable insight into an agent: response times, genre reports, percentage of responses, and the number of negative and positive responses.
Setup reminders to followup (nudge an agent) or to mark a query as closed. Some agents specify that after x number of weeks, “assume we have reviewed your work and are going to pass on it.”
Understand querying is a process. It’s takes time, patience, and a thick skin. Whether an agent likes your work or not is often subjective. So keep things in perspective and don’t take a rejection personally.

Hope these tips help and if you have a tip, please share with us in the comment section. Good luck.

Tidbits and Nuggets – Beats

October 2, 2018September 13, 2018 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 2 Comments

Beats: bits of action interspersed through a scene which tie dialogue to your setting and characters, and provide bits of imagery that guide your readers’ imagination.

“When you describe every bit action to the last detail, yo give your readers a clear picture of what’s going on, but you limit their imagination… Enough detail and you alienate them in the process…Far better to give your readers some hints and allow them to fill in the blanks…”

Self-Editing for Fiction Writers
Renni Browne & Dave King

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story. I’m all ears and look for me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, Pinterest, Bloglovin, Twitter@sheilamgood, Contently, and Instagram. You can follow my reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.