How to Make a Good Story Worthy of the Gatekeeper
By Karen Cioffi
Just about every author knows about the “gatekeeper.” The dreaded
acquisitions editor who decides if your manuscript is worthy of her
attention and the publishing house’s backing. In other words, the editor
who decides if your manuscript is worthy of a publishing contract.
To make sure your ‘good’ story becomes a ‘worthy’ story, the Writer’s
Digest article, “7 Simple Ways to Make a Good Story Great” gives
excellent tips on just what it takes to create a ‘worthy’ story.
The author of the article, Elizabeth Sims, explains that “there are
subtle differences between fiction that’s passable and fiction that
pops—fiction that shows that you know what you’re doing.”
So what are those 7 strategies or tips?
1. Well, the first tip mentioned is the five senses. Sims says
writers have to go beyond what is expected. Editors and agents want
more. “They want physical business that deepens not just your setting,
but your characterizations.”
2. Next on the list is the use of idiosyncrasies. Each of us has some
idiosyncrasy, some weirdness, some form of irrational behavior that
makes us unique and interesting. Using those characteristics deepens and
broadens your characters.
3. Third up is realism. Sims says, “Forget about being pretty.” Write
it as it is. Don’t worry about it being raw or dark or unpopular. Don’t
go for the popular or expected, make it real.
4. The fourth on the list is to write without ‘dumbing’ down. Readers
are savvy and most are educated. They don’t want to be written down to,
to be told what to think and when. Let them fill in the empty spaces.
5. Fifth on the list is to keep it focused and moving forward. I’ve
read a number of manuscripts that had ‘pausing’ information – content
that wasn’t needed in the story and that would make the reader pause,
wondering why it was in there. Causing a reader to pause while reading
is never a good thing. Pausing causes distraction, which may keep the
reader from turning the next page.
6. Next up is the use of laughter. Wit and understated humor goes a
long way in increasing engagement in a story. And, even if your novel is
on the serious side, there will be moments in it that you can lighten
it up a bit of subtle humor.
7. The final tip is to “make them cry.” Sims aptly notes that, “Lots
of books make readers laugh and lots make readers cry, but when readers
laugh and cry while reading the same book, they remember it.”
The gatekeepers have keen eyes, looking for weaknesses in your
manuscript. Use these seven tips to help get pass those gatekeepers.
====================================================
|