Notes from New York: The Importance of Comparative Titles

Welcome back to Notes from New York. Today we talk about a querying tip rather than a writing tip: specifically ‘comparative titles’, or as I always heard them referred to ‘comps’.

Comps are something that a lot of people write in their queries. In many ways, it’s a good idea. If you can compare your book to a certain title, that gives the agent some idea of what to expect and also how they might market your book in the future. If you do get an agent, part of submitting to editors is making a list of comparative titles to show where your book stands in the industry.

However, while comps can be a good thing in a query times they can work against you. So here’s a list of dos and don’ts with comps.

1. Don’t aim to high

Your book is not the next Harry Potter. Even if it somehow, spectacularly, is the next Harry Potter, you have no way of knowing that at the time of querying. Some people comp really well known, best selling titles because they think it shows their books money making potential. Really, all it does is show you don’t know the industry or you way overestimate the selling power of your work. Most books don’t sell like Harry Potter. In fact, just about all books don’t sell like Harry Potter. So don’t aim too high.

2. Do aim at the middle

It never hurts to comp a relatively well known, but not unbelievably popular title. There are a lot more of these, and chances are, it will be easier for you to find an accurate comp to your work in this category. This will better show that you know where your book stands within its genre

3. Don’t comp books your agent already represents

Mostly because, the agent already has a similar book for their list and might be less interested. An agent will love the authors that they have taken on, which means that you’re fighting an uphill battle when you claim they will love your book just as much. Additionally, they might not have room for more similar titles on their list.

4. Do comp an agents favorite books

Most agents have blogs or websites or twitters where they talk about their favorite books and TV shows. They write about these things so that people will know what to send their way. You still may be fighting an uphill battle because they have high expectations, but if they are looking for something in the vein of their favorite work, comping said work can be a way to get you noticed. Just be sure its accurate and back it up with great writing.

5. Don’t feel the need to include comps

Comparative works in the query really aren’t necessary. If you don’t have good ones or you’re not sure what to compare your book to, leave them out. The most important part of the query is the part about your book. If your query is good, you don’t need to add comp titles if you’re not sure what you’d put

6. Do still be aware of comparative titles
When you are querying you should none the less be aware of your genre, category and marketability. This will help you enormously in the querying and publishing process. Read a lot in your genre to find some comparative titles. Even if you don’t put them in your query, they will help you down the line.

Good luck querying and I hope everyone has hit the midpoint of NaNoWriMo :)

A Reflection on Game of Thrones Season 5

Another year, another season of Game of Thrones gone. And this season's finale dealt us a mix of justice, enjoyment and great, salty barrels of tears.

Though I'd hesitate to call the finale shocking (in fact most of the deaths were well foreshadowed throughout the season), it was emotional none the less.

Of course the internet responded in typical overreacting fashion, my favorite of which include the people vowing to quit Game of Thrones (no you're not. You said that after the Red Wedding too. You're a liar), or the people lamenting that there are 'no good characters left on game of thrones' (Yeah, except for Tyrion, Dany, Arya, Sansa, Brienne, Podrick, Bran, Jaime, Sam... Really guys there are still fifty characters on this show and you know it). But, oh well, typical internet.

*Spoilers past this Point*

However this season of Game of Thrones was probably the most controversial yet as the creators had to stray away from the books and invent some new material. For the most part, they did a decent job keeping the characters engaged and maintaining the huge plot (something that the kind of meandering fourth and fifth book failed to do). We got a lot of awesome moments like Dany and Tyrion finally meeting and the white walkers making a big attack with their armies. Stuff like this hasn't happened yet in the books and there it was on the screen.

Of course there were weak points too. The Dorne arc was a little uneven with some of the worst writing of the season. Not terrible, but certainly mediocre, which is a shame. The ending of that arc of course gave it some consequences but they needed to come sooner. A lot of the middle section of the show was a bit meandering and could have been tightened up a bit. But it was no more inconsistent than season 4 honestly.

The deaths were big and controversial as well. Shireen's burning alive ripped out all of our hearts, and we were all so happy to see Stannis go in only the next episode (and by my girl Brienne no less!). Myrcella died in her father's arms right after a sweet moment (And Game of Thrones doesn't allow sweet moments for long). Really, the last few episodes felt like making up for lost time with deaths. There was one more big death too... what was it?

Ah yes. Not going to say I didn't see it coming, but I think there is still hope for resurrection, despite what interviews say. (Seriously if he's still alive, do you really think they're going to tell you?) If he doesn't come back, I'll be more angry for pointless scenes suggesting that he will in the books and show. I guess the blow is softened because I was bored by his character arc until this season so... *shrug*. Rest in peace Jon. For now.

Its also fair to say after this season that while Cersei is still a terrible human being, Lena Heady is amazing and her performance during the walk of shame was so very powerful. Really. Give her an award. Give her all of the awards. 

However, without a doubt, the most controversial of the changes was the additions to Sansa's story. I.E, her marriage to Ramsay Bolton. This was the kind of thing that made many people rage quit the show for real because Sansa, a character dear to all of our hearts, was raped on her wedding night to one of the more terrifying characters on the show.

I'm not saying that this event wasn't awful, because it was. I guess the reaction did surprise me a little bit. For a couple of reasons.

1. The scene was not at all gratuitous

They could have indulged this scene for its nudity. They've done that in the past with sex AND rape scenes. The scene at Craster's house in season 4 had gratuitous, pointless rape that wasn't in the books just to show that the rebel night's watch people were bad. Nothing was shown in this scene. It cut away, and kept it short. Unlike the similar scene in the book. And speaking of which...

2. The scene did, technically happen in the book

In fact it happened worse. Just not to Sansa Stark. In the book the victim was another character called Jeyne Poole was, an old friend of Sansa's cut from the show. The scenes were gratuitous and horrifying and more numerous in the show. And it kind of pisses me off just a little bit that people were okay with this happening to Jeyne but not to their favorite Sansa. The act should be terrible no matter the victim. And some people justify it by saying 'Sansa has been through so much already' and if you researched a bit you'd know Jeyne went through a lot as well. We just don't see as much of it. The show makers didn't make this one up guys. Blame George.

3. There are many more scenes that seem more 'quit worthy'

Remember when I raged last year at Game of Thrones at a rape scene in the show that did not happen in the books? In fact the rape scene went completely against one of the character's arcs and was over all unnecessary? That right there was the scene I thought would make people quit. In fact it was more gratuitous, longer and far more out of character. It made no sense in the context of the story. It didn't need to be there.

There was also the scene in season 2 where Joffery tortures to whores. Or the scene in season 4 that I mentioned earlier at Crasters Keep. Both were longer and unnecessarily terrible.

Why didn't people quit then? Well maybe because Cersei isn't as loved as Sansa, or we didn't know the other victims. Which is kind of sick and twisted. Why should rape be worse or more offensive depending on which character it happens to?

Story wise, it made sense to me why they put Sansa back at Winterfell. They needed new story material for her and we needed a POV character we cared about at the center of the Boltons. If not Sansa, they would have introduced another nameless girl and it would been just as terrible, in my opinion. But it moved the story along.

I get people who don't watch the show because of rape or gratuitous sex and violence. I get people who don't want to keep watching because the show seems like one terrible event after another. Its not everyone's bag. Not everyone is going to enjoy Game of Thrones. Not everyone should. Those people aren't wrong for not watching.

But if you've made it to season 5 of this show without getting offended by all of those things, I kind of wonder what made you decide to care now?

I'm not going to be one of those people who argues, 'well its historically accurate so we have to show the rape' or, 'well we have to see the rape to show that Ramsay is a bad guy' (cause uh... we got the gist of that). I won't even defend the whole 'we have to see the rape to feel the character's struggle' argument, because I think we've seen from Mad Max, that stuff can be implied. I will however defend the show for taking a situation from the books and in many ways improving how it was handled.

That's just my two cents on the matter. At this point I'm kind of bound to keep watching the show, since there are probably only two more seasons. I have to see how it ends. There is a lot of work to be done in our media in how we handle rape on screen and Game of Thrones has faltered plenty of times. But those failing do not permanently mar what is, in most other respects, an excellent show.

Book Reviews: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl is one of those book I put off reading for a while. I heard it was good. It apparently got a terrible movie adaptation that I never saw. And I also knew it came out in the Twilight age of paranormal romance for young adults. But, hey, witches are cool, right? And it will be interesting to see the male perspective for once.

Such high hopes had so far to fall.

I should note that before I get into this review, this is going to be a negative one. I didn't like this book and several parts of it had me scratching my head or raging. Now, all that considered, this is my opinion. I make no judgments about people who like the book or even judgments on the authors. We all have our opinion and this is mine. So let's hop in.

The Plot- Is falling in love the beginning . . . or the end?

In Ethan Wate's hometown there lies the darkest of secrets . . .

There is a girl. Slowly, she pulled the hood from her head . . . Green eyes, black hair. Lena Duchannes.

There is a curse. On the Sixteenth Moon, the Sixteenth Year, the Book will take what it's been promised. And no one can stop it.

In the end, there is a grave.

Lena and Ethan become bound together by a deep, powerful love. But Lena is cursed and on her sixteenth birthday, her fate will be decided. Ethan never even saw it coming.

(Summary according to Goodreads.)

*Note- This is the vaguest blurb I have ever read in the history of ever and it tells me almost nothing about the book. So I guess it wasn’t the best start.

Characters- There are a lot of interesting characters in this book. No really. Tons. Lena’s family is very interesting. The villain is interesting. I have a particular fondness for her uncle Macon. I also enjoyed Ridley. But this book suffers from Twilight syndrome in that it focuses on all of its least interesting characters. That being the leads, Ethan and Lena. They are so very boring and they have the cardboard chemistry. I couldn’t bring myself to care about their dilemma at all. And since this book is mostly about the characters doing nothing for four hundred pages until the plot shows up, this kind of drags the book down.

The Good Points- The writing is well done and the setting properly gothic. The historical element was intriguing. I’m not one for historical fiction, but I can hardly fault the book for my personal preference. I also enjoyed several of the background characters who didn’t get nearly enough focus. Shout out to Macon. He was my favorite and he had all the best lines.

The Bad Points- Alright, this section will take a little longer. First off: pacing. The pacing in this book is pretty lagging. It’s a lot of nothing for several pages. I am a fast reader. In addition I am not easily bored by books. But one hundred pages in, I wanted to put the book down because I could not get into it. I didn’t put it down because I take that as a sign of defeat. But this book needed to be tightened. Then maybe pacing could have upped the enjoyment factor.

This book banks a lot on the small town mindset being intriguing at all. It portrays almost everyone in town as a terrible, cartoonish villain of a person. They don’t like Lena because she’s… pale. And that’s… weird.  I mean they have other reasons later, sure, but its so shallow. And not in a complex, well written way. I am one hundred percent done with painting popular kids as the cartoonish bad guys. It’s been done. It’s old. Worse than that, this kind of characterization is always horribly judgmental toward popular people. Ironic, because we’re supposed to learn not to be judgmental in this book. And we spend so much time on this high school conflict, its unbearable.

The main characters are dull and spend most of their time talking about the ticking clock leading up to Lena’s birthday. And yet no matter how many times they mention it, the book never seems to have any tension.

Here’s the thing: I get that this was written before a lot of these things became cliché (kind of). But the book is just so predictable and bland and, for lack of a better word, soulless. I didn’t hate it with a burning passion. Far from it. It was just a disappointing, nothing kind of book to me. And so...

Final Rating: 2/5 stars.

My Top 10 Reads of 2014

So, I didn't read nearly as much as I wanted to this year, but I did read 35 books, which is more than enough to make a top 10 list out of. It was pretty hard because I read a lot of excellent books this year, but I think I've narrowed it down to my favorites.

Keep in mind, these books were not necessarily published in 2014. Many were published earlier and I'm just now getting around to reading them. So you might see some older books on here. But, without further ado, let's dive in.

10. A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

A clever spin on the tale of Hansel and Gretel, I found this book a darkly charming read, reminiscent of all the classic fairy tales. The book is made up of several short but connecting stories. My personal favorites were the Three Golden Hairs, where Hansel must trick the devil to escape eternal torture in hell, and the Blood Red Smile, where Gretel finds herself taken with a young man who might not be what he seems. I would recommend this book to any lover of Grimm fairy tales.

9. Legend by Marie Lu

I thought I was worn out by the dystopian genre, but I really connected to the main characters of this story. I love me some smart main characters and I liked watching them try to get out of situations with strategy and wit. This was also a fast paced, fun ride. The sequel, Prodigy, is also worth noting. I have not yet read Champion but I look forward to it.

8. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

This is just a sweet love story. A sweet love story that feels very natural between the two leads. This book made my happy, sad and all of the emotions in between but all the way through, it felt very honest. I haven’t read anything by Rainbow Rowell I haven’t liked so I’m looking forward to more quirky love stories from her in the future.

7. The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor

I love me some Alice and Wonderland retellings. I decided to place this book here because, while I did read the sequel to another Alice and Wonderland retelling (Unhinged by A.G Howard) I read the first book before this year. So I thought it would be cheating. But this is a wonderful retelling with charming characters and a zany setting that keeps the spirit of wonderland. I love Hatter Madigan especially. Also worth noting is the sequel Seeing Redd. I look forward to reading the third book soon.

6. Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy by Laini Taylor

I read all three of these books this year. What can I say? They’re gorgeous, unique and I love the characters. When I started reading, I didn’t expect this book to go in the direction it did. It could have easily been cliché but Taylor took the concept in a unique and excellent direction. And the covers are gorgeous, but that’s a superficial love. Crack these books open and see for yourself.

5. Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

This book, a Beauty and the Beast retelling, could have failed so easily. I half expected it to. But the prose were surprisingly gorgeous and our beast for the story was super alluring. And I’m not usually attracted to the love interests in romance stories but, wow. The main heroine is quite interesting as well, and I enjoyed the dynamic of the main couple. Which is important, considering that’s the heart of the story. Rosamund Hodge is definitely on my watch list.

4. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Yes, I know, I should have read this ages ago. But I’m glad I finally did. Long story short, I cried. A lot. And that’s high praise because I rarely cry at books. And the narration from Death’s point of view was fabulous. I’d tell you to read it but, let’s face it, you probably already have.

3. Vicious by V.E Schwab

This is one of those books I wish I could write. It has so many themes and concepts that I adore. I love people with special powers. I love explorations of what makes us human. I love morally ambiguous protagonists. And the book executes these themes perfectly. I adored this book and I think a second read is in my future.

2. The Shadow of the Wind Carlos Ruiz Zaffón

I’ve talked a lot about books with pretty prose. Well this book is the crowning achievement in that. The setting and atmosphere of this book is just gorgeous. It enveloped me in the world of post civil war Spain and I fell in love with its story and characters. This was the kind of huge story that tickled my Les Miserables loving heart. I recommend it to EVERYONE. It’s amazing. Just read it. Please.

But, of course, the crowning achievement must go to…

1. Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

I knew this would be number one as soon as I started making this list. The world is fantastic, the fight scenes heart-poundingly awesome, and the main characters engaging. I am obsessed with Kelsier and Vin. I’m obsessed with the magic system. I am, in general, obsessed with this book. Read it now if you haven’t. And while you do, I’m off to read the sequels!

Those are my top 10 books I read in 2014. What were some of your favorites? Let me know in the comments!