author bio – sometimes you will be requested to provide an author bio. While this again, can depend on who is making the request, it’s generally a short blurb about you, written in third person – like the kind of author blurb you find on the cover’s of books. What they’re looking for is a bit of personality, your publishing history (if any), and a little about you.
character growth arch – this is how your character starts out and changes from where / who he was at the beginning of the novel, to where he is at the end. Generally he will have changed for the better, conquering some of his weaknesses / fears, and gets a reward for doing so (in romance, the HEA). For more info on this, try searching “Hero’s journey”.
full – the best kind of request to get! This is the full manuscript that will need to be transmitted to whoever requested it.
genre – essentially, this is what you write. First you need to know whether you write fiction or non-fiction, and then within fiction you have the specific genre and sub-genres: westerns, historicals, romances, etc would be the genre. Historical romance, paranormal romance, inspirational romance – these would be the sub-genre. Choosing a genre shouldn’t be seen as too constrictive or formulaic; many books could be grouped under various genres, but you need to decide which genre your book most fits under. This is important because it helps the publisher and bookstores market and sell your book by putting it near other similar books. That way, they’ll probably be seen by readers who are looking for that “type” of book.
GMC – Goals, Motivation, Conflict – this is how you determine what your h/h wants, what makes them want it, and the conflict they’ll face to get it (or not get it, depending on where you head).
HEA – especially important in romance, this is the Happily Ever After.
partial – this will change depending on the agent or editor you may be submitting to, but a partial is usually a section of your WIP, starting from the beginning. This can range from a few pages to 50 pages, sometimes more. That’s why you need to make sure you’re sending the correct type of partial for each query and request.
query – the process by which you send a letter / email – this is a type of business correspondance – to agents and editors with the hopes of enticing them to want more of your work, and potentially to publish or represent you.
request – what the agent / editor will ask of you. Again, these can vary from a partial to the full manuscript. Either way, getting a request is a good thing. 🙂
synopsis – this is a specific kind of summary of your book that describes the essence of the plot in a few pages. You’re looking at general goals / conflict / character growth arches, and you will reveal the ending as well. These can vary from very tiny, like the blurbs you may include in your query, to more detailed that may be up to 20 pages.
WIP – Work in Progress – this usually refers to your latest novel / story that you’re working on.
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