She’s a novelist. She’s a talent scout for a major literary agency. She’s a contest judge and many-time winner. She’s a designer in the consumer crafts industry. She’s come a long way from the twelve-year-old girl who dreamed of being an astronaut. Now, Lois Winston is living another dream, one that she’s been working toward for more than 10 years: Talk Gertie to Me, her first published book, was released in April to rave reviews, and she’s got another due out in 2007.
Winston writes chick lit, hen lit, romance, and cozies—and various combinations thereof. Her dozen or so articles tackle reviews, the craft of writing, and her publishing journey, with more to come no doubt. With two sales under her belt, a first runner-up prize for the Dorchester Publishing’s American Title contest, more than three dozen awards, and a stack of manuscripts waiting to find homes, Winston is a definite force to be reckoned with in the publishing world, and she’s only getting started.
R&T: Lois, you’ve said that your first literary effort turned out more like “The Great American Drivel” than the Great American Novel. What problems did you need to conquer in your first manuscript?
LW: When you write a 50,000-word novel that spans thirty-five years, you definitely have a problem with story structure! What can I say? I was totally clueless back then. I also didn’t know about point of view—what it was or how to use it properly.
R&T: That first book you wrote is now going to be your second one published and is due out in June 2007. In addition to the fact that the new draft is considerably longer with a narrower timeframe than the original, how is it different from its original form?
LW: The original story was a straight romance. The book is now a romantic suspense written in a much different voice, a voice very similar in feel to the one I used in Talk Gertie to Me. It’s an edgier voice, often satirical, sometimes humorous, definitely urbane, much like you might find in some chick lit—but the book isn’t chick lit.
R&T: What helped you to effect that transition from “drivel” to something publishable?
LW: Ten years of perfecting my craft. With each book I’ve written, I’ve learned so much, and that knowledge keeps building from book to book. Given that I’ve now sold two books, I guess I’m finally getting it right.
R&T: Although Gertie is your first published book, you’re a pretty prolific writer. How have you found the time, energy, and creativity to pen eleven complete manuscripts—and in multiple genres? Tell me about your projects and your system (or lack thereof!) for writing.
LW: A cellar full of clones chained to computers?
Truthfully, I have no system. I’m not someone who writes every day or who sets a goal of X number of pages per week. There are some weeks where I’ll write eight hours a day, every day. There are other weeks where I have to devote my time to promo or family or freelance work. I’m a very deadline-oriented person, and I find that if I have a deadline, I’m more productive than when I don’t. I’m also terrified of missing a deadline, so I always force myself to finish ahead of schedule.
As to writing in multiple genres, I’m not sure that’s a blessing or a curse. I write the story that’s fighting to be told at any given time. And what I’ve found is that my writing tends to combine genres, probably because I can never do anything the easy way.
R&T: What is the writing life to you?
LW: This is one of those philosophical questions, huh? The writing life is so many different things. To me, it's an extension of who I am. My life has always been about creativity. I was an art major in college and worked for many years as a graphic artist, illustrator, and designer. I'm totally right-brained. My writing is just another extension of my right-brained persona. Whether I'm drawing or painting or sculpting or writing, I'm driven by that right brain. I can’t not be creative. I wouldn't know how to sit at a desk and crunch numbers all day. The voices in my head would die of boredom, and I certainly couldn't let that happen, now could I?
R&T: Do you ever have writer’s block?
LW: I think all writers do from time to time, whether they admit to it or not. As a matter of fact, I'm giving a workshop to Valley Forge Romance Writers [in May] on just that topic. It's called, “Help, I've Lost My Muse!” I discuss various ways to deal with writer's block and get your creative juices flowing again.
R&T: As a writer, what advice do you have for folks looking to break into print?
LW: Don’t write to the market. So many people jump on the bandwagon of the latest trend, but by the time they write the book, the trend has peaked, and the market is oversaturated. Write the book of your heart. There will always be a market for good stories written well, even if it takes time to sell them.
Also, write tight. The best piece of advice I ever received was that every scene and every piece of dialogue must either advance the plot or tell the reader something essential about the characters. Too many writers pad their work with filler and small talk that have nothing to do with the story, pull the reader from the scene, and slow the pacing of the book.
R&T: Tell me about the benefits of your Romance Writers of America membership, particularly what you learned from them in your “wannabe writer” days.
LW: I could probably write a book on this topic. I owe everything to RWA. Their workshops showed me what I was doing wrong and taught me how to hone what I was doing right. I met my agent at an RWA conference. I’ve made friends I expect to keep for the rest of my life. The networking opportunities, both at the national level and within the chapters, are unsurpassed. I’ve never belonged to an organization where the members were so giving of their time and expertise. Every author serious about getting published should attend RWA’s annual conference. What you come away with after four days is worth every penny of the cost.
R&T: As a published author, what keeps you an active member of RWA?
LW: The industry networking is very important to me. Writing is a solitary profession. I don’t go to an office for eight hours during the day and interact with other people in my field. The only time I get to do that is when I attend a writing conference or when I cyber-interact on my RWA chapter loops. Besides the friendship, there’s sharing of industry news—what editors are looking for what types of books, etc. Through my RWA chapter loops, I hear news in a timely manner. For instance, an author might report on something her editor just told her about a new line starting up.
R&T: This past April, you led a six-day course on writing contests for the From the Heart Romance Writers, an online chapter of RWA. Tell me about the course and your contest experience.
LW: I have experience with all three sides of the contest triangle—as an entrant, a judge, and a coordinator. I began entering contests in 2000 and spent the next four years as a Contest Slut/Queen/Diva, depending on whom you ask. During that time, I finaled in three dozen Romance Writers of America chapter contests, winning twelve of them. In 2004, I was a finalist in St. Martin’s Press Malice Domestic contest for traditional mysteries and a double-finalist in RWA’s Golden Heart contest in both the Single Title Romance and Novel with Romantic Elements categories. In 2005, I was once again a Golden Heart finalist in the Novel with Romantic Elements category and was also the first runner-up in Dorchester Publishing’s American Title contest. The results of that competition led to me being offered a publishing contract for Talk Gertie to Me, which was known as Resurrecting Gertie in the contest.
In addition, I spent three years coordinated the Winning Beginnings contest (now The Sheila) for Valley Forge Romance Writers, and for the past four years I’ve served on the Daphne du Maurier Awards committee for Kiss of Death, RWA’s mystery/suspense chapter. I also contributed to the Judging Manual, a comprehensive teaching tool and workshop developed by a group of RWA members. I’m certified to teach the judge training to others and have presented the training workshop to several RWA chapters. And finally, over the past several years, I’ve judged more than 50 different writing contests.
All of this experience gives me a unique perspective into the contest quagmire. Because I believe contests can be a useful tool to help writers achieve their dream of publication, I developed the workshop.
I’d also like to mention that my second book is in search of a title. The title I chose is too similar to that of a recently published book. So I’m running a “Name the Book” contest on my website. The person who submits the title ultimately chosen by my publisher will receive credit on the acknowledgment page and a signed copy of the book when it’s published. I have a blurb and excerpt posted on my website, www.loiswinston.com, along with submissions guidelines. So far most of the title suggestions I’ve received would be perfect for short category romances, but they’re totally wrong for my book. So I really, really need more suggestions.
R&T: Do you belong to any other professional organizations or groups?
LW: I belong to several RWA chapters: New Jersey Romance Writers, Valley Forge Romance Writers, Kiss of Death, Chick Lit Writers of the World, Published Authors Special Interest Chapter. I’m also a member of Sisters in Crime and two of their chapters, Sisters in Crime—Central Jersey and the Guppies. My reasons for joining these groups is to network and gain more knowledge.
R&T: In the summer of 2005, you became a talent scout for the Ashley Grayson Literary Agency, eight years after you signed with the agency as a client. How did that come about?
LW: I met [literary agent] Carolyn Grayson at the first RWA national conference I attended in 1997. She signed me after reading the second manuscript I wrote. Most agents will drop a client after a year or two of not selling their work. Carolyn believed in me and stuck with me through quite a few years of rejections and “almost” sales. The agency believes in growing an author's career, and Carolyn saw in me an author with potential. She offered a lot of encouragement and editorial assistance that helped my writing mature. And her refusal to give up on me helped me get through those rejections and kept me from giving up on myself.
Even though it took me ten years to get published, I seem to have a knack for [helping] other writers get published. Several times over the past few years, I’ve helped fellow authors by critiquing/editing their manuscripts or proposals. These writers then went on to sell those works. Ashley felt this talent of mine could be an asset to the agency, and he made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. People can submit to me by sending a query to lois.graysonagent@earthlink.net
R&T: You’re often the first set of eyes to see a manuscript submitted to the agency. What kinds of things are you looking for?
LW: A captivating voice, tight writing, and an intriguing story.
R&T: What turns you off immediately?
LW: Someone who hasn’t bothered to proofread their submission for typos and errors.
R&T: What advice do you have for writers based on your agency experience?
LW: Write tight. I can’t stress that enough. Verbosity is a no-no. Less is more. Don’t give me a head-to-toe description of every character each time he or she changes wardrobe. Don’t describe each room down to every knickknack. Describe only that which is paramount to the scene at hand. If the point-of-view character won’t remember it twenty minutes later, you shouldn’t be describing it.
Kristen King is a freelance writer-editor from Virginia. Her work has appeared in local, regional, and national publications both in print and online. Visit Kristen online at Kristen King Freelancing, Editing for Everyone, and Inkthinker .
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