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      Chip MacGregor

      When he was in first grade, Chip hurried home one day and announced to his mother, “When I grow up, I’m going to be a book guy!” He clearly could see the future —from high school literary magazine editor to writing bestselling books, from speaking at writing and publishing conferences to representing renowned writers, Chip MacGregor is a book guy.

      Latest posts from Chip MacGregor


      • December 19, 2008

        The Random Stuff in my In-Box

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        People send me interesting stuff, but it usually sits around while I'm answering people's questions, so today I'm trying to empty the random non-question stuff in my box…

        –The good people at Library Journal have just released their list of …

      • December 14, 2008

        Business Questions

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        I've had a bunch of questions about the business side of writing lately…

        Dawn asked about a reprint issue: "I noticed that Amazon allows people to search inside my books — but that  means they've posted a sample chapter. …

      • December 10, 2008

        Some Personal Questions

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        Over the past couple of months, I've received a boatload of personal questions about agenting in general, and my agency in particular. Instead of taking each one separately, I'm going to clump them together and try to answer as many …

      • December 6, 2008

        Talking About Fiction

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        Teresa wrote to me and said, "I'd like to know about creating stronger characters in my novels."

        There are a bunch of books out there on creating great characters, and all of them point to one basic idea: Give your

        …

      • December 3, 2008

        Black Wednesday

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        Ouch. I don't mean to be the bearer of bad news, but today was a really, REALLY lousy day for all of us who work in publishing. Today…

        -Simon & Schuster cut 35 people (2% of its workforce).

        -Thomas Nelson …

      • December 2, 2008

        What’s Happening in the Industry Right Now?

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        I've had a number of people asking state-of-the-industry questions, so…

        — In case you haven't heard, the Author's Guild (along with most of the big New York publishers) finally settled their lawsuit with Google over their Library Search program. Basically, …

      • November 24, 2008

        A Miscarriage of Justice

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        Okay, so the new People Magazine is out on store shelves… The one promoting "The Sexiest Men in America." I'd just like to point out that they list 25 guys in that issue, and they failed to mention me.

        Again. …

      • November 22, 2008

        Authors Getting Paid

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        I've had several questions lately about how authors get paid…

        Deonne wrote and asked, "Can you explain what an advance is, and how it is paid?"

        Happy to. When an author signs a book deal with a publisher, he or …

      • November 18, 2008

        Ten Questions

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        A while back, a website manager said she wanted to ask me some questions, in order to find out more about my role and my life. Most of the time I'm answering questions about the industry on this blog, so …

      • November 11, 2008

        Ten Things Happening Right Now

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        Some good and bad news in the business of publishing…

        1. Bad News: The financials for publishing look awful. I'm not an alarmist, because I happen to think the people racing out of the stock market are simply skittish, and …

      • October 24, 2008

        Writing, Websites, and Craft

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        Here's some cool news: This blog was just given the "Writers' Inclusion Award" from Stepping Stone Magazine…so we're now officially an award-winning blog.  :o)

        Pierce had a question related to my last post: "Do you have specific recommendations for companies …

      • October 19, 2008

        Writers and Websites

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        I've received a number of questions about websites and e-books recently…

        Ellen has a very thoughtful question: "I've become a smarter book-buyer because of the economy. I'm more likely to read three chapters in the cafe at Borders before letting …

      • October 10, 2008

        Ouch.

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        How bad are things on the financial side of publishing? Publisher's Lunch today offered some startling facts:

        -Barnes & Noble stock is down 19% from their high last month.

        -JohnWiley is off 25% during that same span.

        -Scholastic is down …

      • October 7, 2008

        The Art of Fireproofing

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        On this blog, I have regularly commented about art and faith — more specificially, calling for people of faith to do a great job when creating art, since I think it's too easy for believers to be lazy about their …

      • October 2, 2008

        All In Print Is News That Fits

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        I am suddenly awash in questions, so let me jump in with a couple of recent requests…

        1. Tina wants to know, "What steps would you say are important for an author to try and study the market? (I'm trying …

      • September 28, 2008

        Here’s What’s New in Publishing

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        There have been a number of fascinating things going on in publishing recently. Let me catch you up to date…
         
        1. In October, Esquire Magazine will feature something that's never been done before: an animated cover. Their 75th Anniversary issue,
        …

      • September 27, 2008

        I’ll miss you, Swick

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        Celebration of Life for “Swick”

        Michael Swickard

        Saturday – October 4th at 2:00 pm

         

        Mike Swickard passed away after his long battle with cancer, at age 54.  A celebration of Swick’s life will be held …

      • September 14, 2008

        Creating Characters

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        Since many people are about to board a plane for a huge fiction-writing conference, let me continue in that vein… Some people have written to ask about creating strong characters in their fiction. If you're going to establish strong characters,

        …

      • September 10, 2008

        Advice for Novelists

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        Since many of us are heading off to the great ACFW conference in order to rub shoulders with novelists, I should probably take on a "novel writing" question. Somebody wrote to me and asked, "As a first-time novelist, what advice

        …

      • September 3, 2008

        What’s Hot?

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        Ben wants to know, "Are there any genres that are hot right now? If a new writer is trying to break into the market, is there any merit to ignoring the type of books he or she would normally like …