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This is my last prepared #AuthorLingo101. Does anyone want more of these?

MC: Authors, when speaking among one another, tend to abbreviate MAIN CHARACTER to MC, because we're super cool.

HOOK: This can be used in different ways. Sometimes it's a book's premise (centenarian escapes nursing home), sometimes it's about whether those first sentences hook, and it's also used as an adjective (that's hooky) and verb (the premise hooked me.)

HYBRID PUBLISHING: Everything between traditional and self-publishing falls under this umbrella. My fave model is cooperative or CO-PUBLISHING, in which a group of authors share tasks based on their strengths (editing, formatting, cover design, etc.)

VANITY PUBLISHING: Industry pros usually advise to proceed with caution for this model, in which an author assumes the publisher's financial risk for publishing their own book.

#AuthorLingo101

For this episode of #AuthorLingo101,

Logline: A story condensed to 1-2 sentences in less than 50 words. One oft used formula: When MAIN CHARACTER encounters INCITING INCIDENT, this CONFLICT arises. And if she doesn't GOAL, this CONSEQUENCE will happen.

High Concept: Though some use LOGLINE and HIGH CONCEPT interchangeably, not all loglines contain a high concept. Cheating husband murdered: not high concept; Time-traveling husband: high concept.

Today on #AuthorLingo101:

MS: This is shorthand for manuscript. For as much as we authors appreciate words, we can't be bothered to take three syllables to say this one. When speaking and on social media, it's just MS.

MSWL: Agents, editors, and publishers use this abbreviation when referring to their ManuScript Wish List, as in what they want to see more of in their inboxes. It's even a popular hashtag.

This episode of #AuthorLingo101 is dedicated to @LauraBeth

Slush: This is how literary agents refer to the heaps of manuscript queries they receive from author hopefuls. A slush pile is what they wade through to find what they want to represent.

Author Platform: In an increasingly cluttered book market, this is the cross-platform reach of an author (existing readership, website/blog, social media, e-retailer profiles, email list, etc.)

It's #AuthorLingo101 time! Have you heard these before?

Plot Bunny: This term originates with NaNoWriMo (click the hashtag to read my post from 2 days ago about that one.) Plot bunnies are epiphanies about plot chased by authors. They can be fickle, and they haunt our dreams.

Pantsing: Some authors, dubbed PLOTTERS, plot 30K-word outlines before they start writing. Other authors plot by the seat of their pants (PANTSERS.) And some are PLANTZERS.

Today's #AuthorLingo101:

NaNoWriMo or NAtional NOvel WRIting MOnth: Every November, more than 300K authors bleed 50K words, some through their eyeballs, others through their fingertips. It's a bloodbath.

Pitch Party: A newish way to get an agent to look at an unpublished author's manuscript is through participation in Twitter pitch parties. Sell your book in 140 (now 280) characters on the party hashtag, and agents may invite you to query them.

Time for another episode of Author Lingo 101. Do you find this series interesting, or am I boring you?

I think most people can guess the difference between COMMERCIAL and LITERARY fiction, but did you know that UPMARKET is the term to describe a story that blends the two? Some people say commercial means plot-oriented while literary is character-driven. Others say it's more about language & the author's ability to illuminate the human condition.

#OwnVoices: There's a history behind this one, and it's complex, but the intention is that authors who share the same (or close to) underrepresented identity as their main character can be more easily found/identified by literary agents, publishers, and readers. Links to more info in comments.

Repped or repped by: Typically found in Twitter profiles, it's shorthand to identify the name of the literary agent an author is represented by.

Here are today's terms!

WIP: Often preceded by a # around social media, this is when authors are discussing their Work In Progress.

CP: This is social media shorthand for Critique Partner, which is when authors critique the WIPs of their author friends, generally with heavy use of track changes/comments in MS Word.

And if you have a moment, new Litten @SEWhite could use some welcome messages over on their profile. :) #LitsyWelcomeWagon