If you were to ask me, as a teacher, what my pet peeves are with students, I could rattle them off in fast order: blatant plagiarism, lack of remorse over said plagiarism, late essays along with lame excuses, texting-in-class, etc, etc, etc...
Similarly, when given the chance to rattle off their pet peeves, literary agents have jumped at the chance in this article (specifically dealing with first chapters they see) - Agent Pet Peeves. It's great, because they're blunt and passionate about it. No holds barred. It's a wonderful list of what NOT to do, for writers who are submitting to agents.
Sometimes, it's just as helpful to know what NOT to do, as what you should do, when submitting your work. Avoiding pitfalls is equally as important as following the right path...
Thanks for the link Traci. All good advice, as I'm attempting to start a new novel.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this Traci! This is something that all of us writers need to read BEFORE we start the querying process.
ReplyDeleteInformative. Nice to see those comments coming from the pros who know exactly what sells, what doesn't, and why.
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