Defining key publishing terms

Let’s say you’ve finished your novel and submitted a query letter to Marla Miller for our latest online column, Critique My Query. You’ve addressed her comments and polished your letter. You’ve done your research, so you know which agents might be interested in your book. Now you’re ready to send your query out.

Besides preparing to wait for responses to roll in, what should you do? Familiarize yourself with common literary terms that agents and editors use when giving feedback. Novelist Lynne Griffin put together a handy list of buzz words and standard phrases with their definitions for our August issue, and her article is now available on this site.

You may have encountered these phrases before, but do you really know what they mean? An upmarket novel, for example, has broad appeal because it’s both character-driven and plot-driven, literary and commercial.

Do you know other literary lingo not included in Griffin’s article? Add a comment below.

—Sarah C. Lange, associate editor

Comments

mother's happy child wrote re: Defining key publishing terms on Sun, Aug 29 2010 9:26 AM I find this to be a well received article - thanks. MHC

Sarah C. Lange wrote re: Defining key publishing terms on Tue, Aug 31 2010 12:03 PM Glad you found the article useful!