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East Gorteau22261 Posts
I really want to get published. To anyone that knows me even a little, that shouldn't come as a monumental surprise. The search is arduous and really difficult, and having more eggs in a basket is always beneficial. While my feelers are out for other projects, I've sent out queries for a new project I started mid-2015. It's called WINGS OF STARS (and Olli really hates the name), and it's probably the most fun I've ever had writing anything.
Dear Editor
Consider a time where humanity records no history, remembering little of what has come before, and forgetting more by each year that passes. Imagine countless worlds, where cities of glass and walls that reach the sky are unremarkable, linked together in an empire that has inherited all of its greatness. Where the magic that fuels every factory and home is ancient and far from understood, but commonplace all the same.
In the Manifold Empire, humanity is not alone. Ruled by the Amarinthos Dynasty, hoarders of knowledge and resources. Protected by the Tachyoni, superhuman beings hailing from a bygone age of technology and conquest. Always threatened by the Secandi, a tribal race intent on the death of humanity, slowly reaching out across the Empire, sending millions into exile. The Orbitus and the Planetarum, the rival factions of the Tachyoni, struggle for power in an endless cycle of assassinations and political coups, striving to steal the power held by the Regent they are tasked to protect and serve.
Drakin Joan has served the Planetarum for years, toiling away under Tachyoni rule. So when Drakin Dianon, leader of the Planetarum and Joan's adoptive father, offers to negotiate lasting peace, she sees an opportunity to prove her worth and gain respect in the army that scorns her. Invictus Caine accepts the offer as leader of the Orbitus, but has an agenda at odds with the pretense of negotiation. And his estranged grandchild, spiteful, wants revenge.
WINGS OF STARS is a 165,000-word novel, a fusion of all that I love in Fantasy and all that tickles my imagination in Sci-Fi. I have two more stories planned in the same setting, and have already begun working on a sequel. I am 20, living and working from Trelleborg, Sweden, with a burning passion for speculative fiction in all its forms. I grew up on a diet of fantasy, horror and philosophy, and write in a hopeless attempt to eventually blend all three.
I've attached a synopsis below, and the first five pages of my manuscript below that.
Thank you for taking time to review my query. I look forward to hearing from you.
-contact info out.-
Best,
Victor Lloyd
So there you have it! The 4-8+ weeks of estimated wait time is a killer, so I thought I'd share. I'm still tentatively looking for beta readers (I've received some very valuable help from other TL users), so if this sounds like something up your alley, please PM me.
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Sounds a bit Gene-Wolfe-esque. Interesting.
Good luck, man!
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Papua New Guinea1059 Posts
Imo way too many names in that short email, feels overwhelming.
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East Gorteau22261 Posts
On May 09 2016 04:23 HornyHerring wrote:
Imo way too many names in that short email, feels overwhelming.
It's an issue I've considered. The hope is that most of them carry themselves and don't need further clarification. The Amarinthos Dynasty, for example, could also have been called just "the ruling dynasty" or some such, and it would have been neither here nor there. But definitely, the query is on the heavier side and I'm banking on the synopsis/excerpt that come attached to convince. I am, flatly, not good at queries (yet).
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i don't like the name of your novel.
good luck though!
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165,000 words is really long for a novel (from an author with no prior reputation that is), even for sci-fi/fantasy. You really need to impress the editor if you want to get something that long published. Best of luck.
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Mute City2363 Posts
Is this a new one or the one that's coming out Soon™? Let me give you my money ffs
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Johto4991 Posts
Hell i want to read this already :D
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Could beta read this if you're looking for some.
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You've been working hella hard haven't you  . Gonna be good!
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As a former editor and published novelist, I wish you all the luck in the world, but be prepared for a lot of rejections and heartbreak. It took me 6 years and several rewrites to get my first novel published. Don't give up (never ever give up!!) and be open to any critique or advice they give you, because in the end it will help you become a better writer.
Don't be afraid to pick your work apart (piece by piece if necessary) and keep reworking or even reinventing parts of the story.
edit: BTW don't get scared by that number. (it includes 2 years of researching /drafting and 1 year and 8 month(ish)s of actual writing/reading/recomposing)
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Good luck! The more SF/Fantasy books, the merrier.
@first comment: I agree, a bit of Gene Wolfie is a good break from the usual, if that is the case. It helps you grow as a reader.
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pretty cool, best of luck zeal!
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I work in the publishing business (graphic design and acquiring rights), and I hate to say this, but at the moment your synopsis is way too complicated. As mentioned above, there are too many names that an editor doesn't need to know just yet. In the letter you must try to sell your work, tell why your work is new and refreshing, make the reader WANT to read your synopsis and first few pages. Right now I fear that the ones you send this letter to will simply, put it in the pile of other hopefuls. Spend some time on this letter, it is your gateway into publishing and will pay itself back for every minute you spend on it.
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1001 YEARS KESPAJAIL22272 Posts
i'd criticize your thing alas i don't like reading
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On May 10 2016 16:24 lichter wrote:
i'd criticize your thing alas i don't like reading
Ironic...oh wait is that the joke?
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Finland964 Posts
On May 10 2016 16:24 lichter wrote:
i'd criticize your thing alas i don't like reading
Explains your edits really well tbh
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Mute City2363 Posts
On May 10 2016 21:10 hexhaven wrote:Show nested quote +On May 10 2016 16:24 lichter wrote:
i'd criticize your thing alas i don't like reading Explains your edits really well tbh
K.O.
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I lack the creative energy and work ethic to bring out a 165,000 word novel, but I do know what it feels like to be a writer and struggle to get your work out without feeling dread of having it dumped in the rejection pile immediately. Being honest, I don't expect anything more than lots of denials and rewrites for you, but every writer had underwent this trial by fire. Either way, I wish you the best of luck, if I believed in luck and could impart it.
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Why would anyone care for that letter and didn't just read the thing itself? 165000 words sounds like a whooping number, but how much that is in normal print, 300 pages? I can read that during one (albeit transoceanic) flight.
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I'd like to know the speech Ayn Rand gave Random House to get published. If I were an exec at Random House I would have insta-fired who ever green-lighted her first book. "You agreed to publish a book written by a woman? A WOMAN? !?!?!!?? YOU ARE FIRED!". Her novels are more believable than her real story. How many female authors got published in 1936?
If Ayn Rand can get published in 1936 any one can get published.
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Austria24422 Posts
Terrible title, won't buy, will instead download illegally so you don't make any money off me reading your horribly titled words
Don't ignore my advice again
PS: Also rated 1/5, WHAT NOW
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As a particle physicist, I'm quietly chuckling at the name Tachyoni 
But otherwise it sounds like an interesting story! Good luck getting it out there.
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East Gorteau22261 Posts
On May 12 2016 01:00 opisska wrote:
Why would anyone care for that letter and didn't just read the thing itself? 165000 words sounds like a whooping number, but how much that is in normal print, 300 pages? I can read that during one (albeit transoceanic) flight.
It's probably closer to 600, give or take. Agents and editors have a lot on their plate, so for better and worse I need to sell the idea in a letter and an excerpt.
On May 18 2016 01:26 eonrulz wrote:As a particle physicist, I'm quietly chuckling at the name Tachyoni But otherwise it sounds like an interesting story! Good luck getting it out there.
I suppose I might harmlessly spoil that + Show Spoiler +the name is directly based on the particle, in-universe, because Tachyons are real and useful in the story 
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Would definitely beta read this if yo uneed someone !
GL
Edit : waaaaah 200 posts already lmao
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Wow just saw this, good luck man. I'm getting closer and closer to finishing my book, but going to self publish it. Did you have an editor go over it, or are you planning on the publishing to do that?
Just curious cause I know that's what I am looking for. good luck on the publishing, I have heard it's a pain in the arse. I mainly just want to say I finally finished a book and have a physical copy .
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are you 100% set on it being called Wings of Stars?
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East Gorteau22261 Posts
On May 25 2016 05:33 blade55555 wrote:Wow just saw this, good luck man. I'm getting closer and closer to finishing my book, but going to self publish it. Did you have an editor go over it, or are you planning on the publishing to do that? Just curious cause I know that's what I am looking for. good luck on the publishing, I have heard it's a pain in the arse. I mainly just want to say I finally finished a book and have a physical copy .
I have had a professional go through a good chunk, but their opinions (predictably) led to a lot of changes, so it's certainly due for another check-up. I'm hoping for an editor with whatever publisher I might end up with to deal with that.
The pain is part of the fun! Nothing worth doing is easy, or some such 
On May 28 2016 01:17 blkcoffee wrote:
are you 100% set on it being called Wings of Stars?
Not 100% set, but fairly close. I have titles in mind for sequels that follow a theme of sorts, and it fits with that. The title also actually makes sense in an in-world context. I really like it, anyway, but it's not 100%.
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Austria24422 Posts
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East Gorteau22261 Posts
On May 30 2016 07:26 Olli wrote:
Title sucks
So do you but that doesn't prevent people from liking you
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I feel you, I've been working on the first of a series of political fantasy novels for a few years on and off. I have around 115,000 words, but only the first ten chapters or so are completely edited. It is such a huge undertaking, being I had to design the skeleton of all four books before beginning to write the first, as I want to know where everything is heading (This one will be around 130,000 words, hopefully a bit less when finished and edited, second book will be longer of course, as you want to keep the first the shortest to make it easier for agents to decide to read it, unless you're an established author that is). I designed entire world maps, kingdom charts, banners, countless backstories and overly in depth histories: a lot of which will probably never be used, but still aids me while writing to better get into the mind of the world and each character.
I sent a lot of queries for a 120 page children's book I finished a year and a half ago, and the waiting is a pain in the butt, I can relate on that. Several agents liked it a lot, but said it was a bit too long for the genre, and urged me to shrink it down a bit. As I mainly wrote it as a break from my main novel series, I have yet to go back to it, but hopefully will in the future.
I'd like to read some of your novel, it sounds very interesting. PM me if you'd like, I doubt I can read it in a timely manner though, as I have a lot on my plate atm, but will definitely make some time for it and let you know my thoughts. ^_^
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Austria24422 Posts
On June 01 2016 23:19 Zealously wrote:So do you but that doesn't prevent people from liking you
Touché
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EPT
