I sent off another list of queries to different agencies recently and am now playing the waiting game again. It's strange how empty your inbox looks every morning when you log on anxiously to check for a response and find nothing. It's almost like throwing a rock into a pitch black pit with an unknown depth. You just sit next to the pit for what seems an eternity until you hear the thump that tells you that it has finally reached the bottom.
In the meantime to keep myself busy I have been reading books, editing my novel, changing my query letter, and writing book reviews. Also I have just recently started writing another fiction novel. I don't want to disappoint myself by thinking that my career as an author would be over simply because I can't seem to find a literary agent for the first thing I have ever written. So I will keep sending out feelers and waiting for answers while I make myself happy by writing another novel.
I'll end this by saying thank you for reading and for all aspiring authors out there, don't forget to give yourself a break from all the rejection once and awhile. Do something that will make you happy for awhile and then start trying again. Good luck everyone and good night!
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Life is a Vicious Cycle
I recieved more rejection letters today. It seems to hurt just a tiny bit more when they all arrive in a bundle. Just the thought of all those impersonal rejection letters in my inbox makes me dread checking my email somedays. Still I must continue on and persevere. If I want my novel to stand a chance in the world of being published, I must continue to edit and query. Even when my rejection pile reaches three digits I still don't believe that I will be finished. Afterall there are many now best selling authors who have pile upon pile of old rejection letters sitting in their house.
On a happier note I have been able to put some of my creativity to use by writing some book reviews on http://www.readdreamrelax.com. It really is a great place to vent some creativity so if there are any readers or writers out there reading my blog, check the site out sometime. It really gives me a chance to clear my head somedays. Although I guess writing anything in general makes me feel that way sometimes.
As a final note I'm signing out with a passionate holler to every aspiring writer out there. No matter how many times you get rejected, just keep on trying everybody. Afterall it only takes one yes out of thousands of nos to change your life.
Thanks for reading everybody!
On a happier note I have been able to put some of my creativity to use by writing some book reviews on http://www.readdreamrelax.com. It really is a great place to vent some creativity so if there are any readers or writers out there reading my blog, check the site out sometime. It really gives me a chance to clear my head somedays. Although I guess writing anything in general makes me feel that way sometimes.
As a final note I'm signing out with a passionate holler to every aspiring writer out there. No matter how many times you get rejected, just keep on trying everybody. Afterall it only takes one yes out of thousands of nos to change your life.
Thanks for reading everybody!
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Fellow Readers Listen Up!
This post is slightly off topic from my usual but I found a great website that I want to get out there. The site is http://www.readdreamrelax.com This site is full of heartfelt book reviews from every genre. So if you are looking for the next great book to read it is a great site to check out.
It has not reached the recognition of all books but I have one review published there myself right now. So if you want some opinions on your next book choice before you shell out the cash, be sure to check it out!
It has not reached the recognition of all books but I have one review published there myself right now. So if you want some opinions on your next book choice before you shell out the cash, be sure to check it out!
Monday, December 3, 2012
My Journey Continued
I'm back again to continue my story on my quest for a literary agent.
As of today my novel and I are sitting at a standstill. I have been rejected by every agent that I have sent a query. Some of those agents have not even read a single page of my manuscript. I did recieve one request out of thirty to send five pages of my manuscript to an agent. Then I recieved the staggering blow of being rejected based on those five pages.
I emailed the agent again after my rejection to see if they could inform me what they found lacking in my novel. They did respond, but only to tell me that they did not have enough faith in my novel to push it foward. They thanked me but said that the business was too subjective for my work to be considered further.
I was grateful to know that I had at least gotten an agent to respond to my work, but still feel like I let myself down. I do not know what I need to do to make an agent read my sample chapters and say that's the one. I have immense pride in my novel and know that it deserves publication. If I could just find a way to make just one of those agents see what I see in my novel then there would be no problem. Still I know that they have to shuffle through thousands of queries everyday and are trying their hardest to earn a living every day. I do not blame the agents for my failure so far in the writing business. The novel is mine and if it is lacking a voice, then I must be lacking a voice somewhere in myself. There is nothing left to do in this journey but to keep sending out queries, and head back to the drawing board. I am passionate about my writing and I'm sure that the next time someone reads my novel there will be no aspect in which they will find it lacking.
As of today my novel and I are sitting at a standstill. I have been rejected by every agent that I have sent a query. Some of those agents have not even read a single page of my manuscript. I did recieve one request out of thirty to send five pages of my manuscript to an agent. Then I recieved the staggering blow of being rejected based on those five pages.
I emailed the agent again after my rejection to see if they could inform me what they found lacking in my novel. They did respond, but only to tell me that they did not have enough faith in my novel to push it foward. They thanked me but said that the business was too subjective for my work to be considered further.
I was grateful to know that I had at least gotten an agent to respond to my work, but still feel like I let myself down. I do not know what I need to do to make an agent read my sample chapters and say that's the one. I have immense pride in my novel and know that it deserves publication. If I could just find a way to make just one of those agents see what I see in my novel then there would be no problem. Still I know that they have to shuffle through thousands of queries everyday and are trying their hardest to earn a living every day. I do not blame the agents for my failure so far in the writing business. The novel is mine and if it is lacking a voice, then I must be lacking a voice somewhere in myself. There is nothing left to do in this journey but to keep sending out queries, and head back to the drawing board. I am passionate about my writing and I'm sure that the next time someone reads my novel there will be no aspect in which they will find it lacking.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
The Beginning Told in the Middle
Welcome to my first blog. I created this blog to tell my story, a heart-breaking and infuriating story, about my quest for a literary agent.
Before I jump into my long line of rejection letters and futile attempts of editing my manuscript until I was almost too tired to see every night, I believe you should learn a little bit about who I am. I was born and raised in a small town, to a poor family with some issues. So while everyone around me grew up with dreams of college and getting a great job, I dreamed about getting a job so that I could afford to pay the electric bill. I did go to community college for a year, and learned that I could not hold down a full time job and stay awake for a full course load of classes. Still through all of that time I took refuge in writing stories for myself.
Anytime I was angry or upset I would scream it out on paper and the world would be right again. My old outdated laptop quickly became my best friend at a young age. My laptop could take all the harsh and unyielding obstacles from my life and make them seem smaller than I had imaginged.
So through the years my stories sat on that laptop in storage, while I returned to read them from time to time. Then life decided to throw me a curveball and I was laid off from my full time job. I am still having trouble finding a job and paying bills at home, but the time off did give me the time to finally return to writing again. I picked up a story that I had started to write when I was sixteen years old and rewrote the entire thing. The day I finished the story I sat back in satisfaction and patted myself on the back, because even if it never got published I would still have done something that some people never are able to do. I had written a novel. An excellent novel, in my own opinion, but still a novel.
In the process of rewriting the story I fell in love with my characters all over again. I loved how they reacted to the fascinating and exciting things that were happening in their lives, while my own life was at a standstill. In short I began to live vicariously through my characters, because cooking dinner and doing dishes does not exactly seem like the most exciting thing in the world at this point in my life.
In sent my characters to places that I had secretly been dreaming about visiting for years, like Stonehenge and the fairy rings of Avebury. Seeing the world opening before their eyes, like I wished it was doing for my own.
Then after a few nudges from my significant other I decided that my novel might be worthy of being published. Publication was always my ultimate goal for my life. I had loved reading since I discovered that I could escape into a novel and leave the small town life I held behind. So I began the long journey of querying the many literary agents that were accepting fictional fantasy novels.
Now after almost thirty rejection letters I sit here in front of my computer screen, writing my story for anyone who wishes to read it. My novel is still waiting for the right person to find it and say, "Alright this is exactly what we were looking for." So while I sit and wait for however many days, weeks, months, or years it might take to get my first novel published, I invite you to read my blog and wait with me.
I might make it to being published one day and for anyone else out there looking to get published, I advise you to not give up hope. Do not throw the baby out with the bath water and give up on yourself. You and I are sitting in the same boat on the same creek with no paddles. We both just have to wait for a little bit of rain, and hopefully the current will push us on our way.
Before I jump into my long line of rejection letters and futile attempts of editing my manuscript until I was almost too tired to see every night, I believe you should learn a little bit about who I am. I was born and raised in a small town, to a poor family with some issues. So while everyone around me grew up with dreams of college and getting a great job, I dreamed about getting a job so that I could afford to pay the electric bill. I did go to community college for a year, and learned that I could not hold down a full time job and stay awake for a full course load of classes. Still through all of that time I took refuge in writing stories for myself.
Anytime I was angry or upset I would scream it out on paper and the world would be right again. My old outdated laptop quickly became my best friend at a young age. My laptop could take all the harsh and unyielding obstacles from my life and make them seem smaller than I had imaginged.
So through the years my stories sat on that laptop in storage, while I returned to read them from time to time. Then life decided to throw me a curveball and I was laid off from my full time job. I am still having trouble finding a job and paying bills at home, but the time off did give me the time to finally return to writing again. I picked up a story that I had started to write when I was sixteen years old and rewrote the entire thing. The day I finished the story I sat back in satisfaction and patted myself on the back, because even if it never got published I would still have done something that some people never are able to do. I had written a novel. An excellent novel, in my own opinion, but still a novel.
In the process of rewriting the story I fell in love with my characters all over again. I loved how they reacted to the fascinating and exciting things that were happening in their lives, while my own life was at a standstill. In short I began to live vicariously through my characters, because cooking dinner and doing dishes does not exactly seem like the most exciting thing in the world at this point in my life.
In sent my characters to places that I had secretly been dreaming about visiting for years, like Stonehenge and the fairy rings of Avebury. Seeing the world opening before their eyes, like I wished it was doing for my own.
Then after a few nudges from my significant other I decided that my novel might be worthy of being published. Publication was always my ultimate goal for my life. I had loved reading since I discovered that I could escape into a novel and leave the small town life I held behind. So I began the long journey of querying the many literary agents that were accepting fictional fantasy novels.
Now after almost thirty rejection letters I sit here in front of my computer screen, writing my story for anyone who wishes to read it. My novel is still waiting for the right person to find it and say, "Alright this is exactly what we were looking for." So while I sit and wait for however many days, weeks, months, or years it might take to get my first novel published, I invite you to read my blog and wait with me.
I might make it to being published one day and for anyone else out there looking to get published, I advise you to not give up hope. Do not throw the baby out with the bath water and give up on yourself. You and I are sitting in the same boat on the same creek with no paddles. We both just have to wait for a little bit of rain, and hopefully the current will push us on our way.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)