Giving the Slip

Rejections, yeah I’ve had a few. Ok, maybe more than a few. Fine, I’ve had dozens of the nasty little suckers. Though, I don’t think I ever quite hit the triple digit mark, I know I had to come close.

Rejections are a part of every writer’s life. If you don’t develop thick skin early on, you will crumble. The majority of my rejections were the coveted form rejections, but I’ve been lucky enough to receive several offering advice and even a couple that were down right inspirational, but all made me more determined than ever to get published.

What seems like a lifetime ago, I wrote the greatest book ever to be unleashed on the human race. How could it not be? I poured my heart, soul and tears into this thing. It didn’t take long to realize (yanno, in publishing time, which was seven or eight months) not only was it not ready to be submitted, but it was crap. Oh, don’t get me wrong, the basic concept was fine; the writing was the problem. Yeah, I was a sucky writer with delusions of grandeur.

I skinned my knees a couple of times early on in the submission process. It sucked, but I began to learn. I developed a vague sense of just how much I didn’t know about the biz. It grew. I queried far and wide. Looking back, even my query letters sucked. I received stacks and stacks of form rejections if I received any response at all. The really cool thing about mass submissions? Walking to your mailbox to find ten or more rejection letters waiting for you. Now if that don’t make your day, I don’t know what will.

So, I read. I learned. I grew. I put my first attempt under the bed. I set out to write another book. As it turns out, it wasn’t quite ready either, but at least with that one, I began to comments and suggestions along with the standard form rejection.

I attended a Con, where my eyes were opened all the wider. Not only did I learn a few things, I made a few new contacts. I also, discovered the joys of having a beta reader.

I wrote a novella, it was accepted. I learned a bit from that. I wrote some short stories. Still more I learned.

I went back and with the help of some encouraging beta readers, tore the original works to shreds, only the idea survived and even that was twisted and changed. I took a break, wrote more shorts, had them accepted. I revisited the books again, one after the other. I put them away.

I made several friends in cyberspace, some of which are accomplished writers. I learned a lot from them. I continued to hone not only my book, but my query letters. I continued to submit and continued to get rejected.

Then a couple of years ago, one of my rehashed babies was accepted and I haven’t received another rejection since. Perhaps I should knock on wood there, but truth be told, I doubt I’ve seen my last rejection slip and oddly enough, I’m alright with that. I know it’s not me they’re rejecting. It’s just part of the game.

"We're sorry. Your book does not fit our needs at the present time."

Ah, the fun part of being an author. Sometimes, no matter how much you love a manuscript, no matter how much your critique group loves it, and no matter how wonderful all your friends think it is, it just isn't right for the market. So you send it out to editor after editor and agent after agent until you have a thick file (paper, electronic, or both) of rejection letters. Sometimes you get useful criticism, and other times a simple, "It's not right for us at this time."

What's really fun are when you get a collection of letters that look like this:

• I enjoyed the plotline, but found the characters a little superficial
• The characters were strong and original, but I wasn't grabbed by your voice
• Loved your voice, but the conflict was lacking in this story
• Great tension between hero and heroine, but found the plot a bit weak

O-o-o-kay. You see where I'm going with this? What do you do when one major editor loves something about your story, but hates something else? And when it's a DIFFERENT something for each one?

Send it to somebody else.

Okay, that was easy. But what about when you run out of somebody else's? Or when you get it to that one house that likes to hold onto things for two or three years without any response? It's a very puzzling business we work in, folks, and I don't pretend to have all the answers.

One thing I do know though, is you have to keep going. If writing books is something you really want to do, then you can't give up. In the spring of 2006, I almost did. I was sick of the submission and rejection cycle, and so I sent the three manuscripts I'd been circulating to three different publishers. "This is it," I said. "If one of these doesn't take, I'm hanging it up."

By September, I'd sold all three. To all three different publishers. (Though one has since closed it's doors.) The resulting books are Curses, The Cowboy's Christmas Bride, and Dragon in the System. All three had multiple rejections, and all three have gone on to receive great reviews. So that's my best advice to dealing with rejection. Sulk, feel bad for a little while, then get right back out there and do it again.

Do published authors still get rejected? You betcha. I have a friend who writes for the house whose name is almost synonymous with romance to some people. She regularly turns in proposals for three book deals and has her editor say yes to two of them and no to the third. It happens. The difference is, she has an agent acting as buffer, and she's at the point where she sells on a synopsis & partial, not on the whole book. So it does get better, but let's face it, it's still rejection. It can happen to anyone, and usually does.

So expect it, deal with it, and move on. That's all you can really do. And if writing is really in your blood, then you're probably going to have to deal with it again and again.

Because when somebody FINALLY says, "We'd like to offer you a contract," the file full of rejection letters is all worth it.

So, Your Baby Has Been Rejected!

Veteran Grip writer Regina Carlysle is here today filling in for Dakota Rebel who is out dealing with a family situation this week. The rest of the Grip crew would like to thank Regina, and send our best wishes to Dakota and her family.

Rejection, huh? Hey, I know a little bit about that and if you’re a writer, it’s something most of us have to learn to live with. Rejection happens in the business. From a logical perspective, we know a publisher is a business and they are looking for things that are right for them but try telling that to a writer. A completed manuscript is your BABY. You’ve conceived it. You’ve nurtured it. You want to see it spread its wings and fly. We want everyone to love our baby as much as WE do. It’s only natural.

The thing is, not everyone is going to see the beauty of your baby the way you do and this can lead to rejection.

I wrote for fifteen years before making my first sale so the topic of rejection is something with which I’m vastly familiar. In those days, we didn’t have the option of internet publishing. It just wasn’t there. If you sought publication, your only alternative was with the giant publishers in New York and we ALL know how hard it is to land a contract with them. That doesn’t necessarily mean your work SUCKS, it just means they are overstocked with authors or the genre you’ve subbed to them.

In the end, it’s not about rejection so much as how you handle it. We all face it from time to time and yes, everyone can say…don’t take it personally but, dang it, it’s hard not to. I normally give myself a day to mope and whine. That’s it. As a writer, it’s important to keep going. Have a work in progress going at all times. So when those rejections come, dive back in. Don’t start second guessing your talents and just know that SOMEWHERE is a publisher who will love it. Immediately send the rejected manuscript elsewhere then go back to the work in progress. In other words, keep plugging, keep typing, keep generating ideas.

Check out Spanish Topaz by Regina Carlysle, released TODAY from Ellora's Cave.

And You Get Up Again

Okay, I'm going to come right out and say it. This week, I cheated. I have a stack of rejection letters. Lots. So I have plenty to say on this topic. BUT rather than try to reinvent the wheel, I'm giving you an article I wrote with Bronwyn Green after a long discussion with a friend of ours who was formerly an editor with one of the New York publishing houses.

Rejections and How to Use Them to You Advantage

Nobody likes rejection. Not even masochists. And yet, as writers, we invite rejection, time and time again by submitting our material for consideration. It’s the nature of the publishing beast.

Every writer has been rejected at one time or another – from Edgar Allan Poe to Steven King to Nora Roberts. Okay, maybe not Nora Roberts, but I’m secretly convinced she’s a robot, so that doesn’t count. Actually, I bet back in the beginning of her career she racked up plenty of rejections. Just like the rest of us mere mortals.

Why was my story rejected, you might ask. What could I have done differently? What does “This story does not fit our needs,” mean? Manuscripts are rejected for myriad reasons, many not having to do with the quality of the writing at all. Let’s look at these reasons before moving on to the writing quality issue.

Here are some of the top reasons perfectly good manuscripts get rejected, from the mouth of a former editor who has agreed to speak anonymously.

***The editors or agents in question have seen too many manuscripts with the storyline in question. It’s simply too similar to novels either on the market or currently in production.

***Your manuscript hits the editor’s desk during a turnover period. I used to be the running joke at my RWA chapter. "Whatever you do DO NOT submit to the person Brynn submitted to." Every time I submitted, the manuscript was returned because the editor had either left the company or switched departments or got promoted or got sent to another country or got pregnant. I'm telling you. I couldn't win. I learned through discussion that, when this happens, the replacement editor is supposed to give all of the previously requested material a fair shot. Due to the nature of the business, this rarely happens. Either the editor who is leaving, the editor who is taking over or an assistant who is helping out in the interim sends out blanket form letter rejections. The manuscripts might be given a cursory glance, but if their interest isn’t caught instantaneously, they won’t read on. The replacement editor already has so many inherited authors to deal with that acquiring new ones at that very moment isn’t a priority.

***You’ve sent your manuscript to a senior editor. All editors are overworked, most with an author load they can barely handle. Senior editors typically have many other duties within the company as well as a large number of authors with no room for more. So, unless a manuscript is positively perfect and brilliant, it’s more likely to get rejected than passed on to an associate or assistant editor. It’s even more unlikely that the senior editor would pick it up herself. When you have a choice of editors to submit to within a certain line or company, always submit to the assistants and associates. They usually have a decent-sized load of authors, but they’re also hungry to acquire. Acquiring new authors is very important for their company status. Therefore, an editor with a slightly smaller workload will have more time to spend on an author who’s “not quite there, yet, but very close.”

***You didn’t do your homework. Know the lines/houses you’re submitting to. Know what elements are “allowed.” Know which authors they currently publish. Know what sub-genres they are currently seeking. For example, submitting a category romance to Dorchester’s Lovespell line would be result in a big fat rejection letter. Despite the amount of homework you’ve done, your manuscript really might not fit their needs. It might not resonate with a particular editor and is rejected because of that.

***Your manuscript arrived during a “housecleaning” period. Now, most publishing houses will tell you there’s no such thing as a housecleaning period. I’m here to tell you, there is. The month before the RWA National Convention and the period of time between Thanksgiving and the New Year are traditionally bad times to submit. During these times, editors are desperately trying to clear out their slush pile in order to prepare for the deluge of manuscripts following the National Convention and to have a clean slate at the start of the New Year.

On to the writing related reasons your manuscript might have been rejected.

***The plotline might not be tight enough. It might wander or drag in places. You definitely want to avoid this, especially during the proposal stage.

***Your characters may lack depth. If your characters don’t come across as three dimensional as your family members, friends and co-workers, you might want to work on them a bit more before submitting.

***There may be glaring spelling and grammar errors.

***The plot was hackneyed.

***The synopsis fell flat.

I could go on and on and on. The point is you must be sure your story is as good as you can possibly make it before submitting. Get feedback from writing friends or contests. Look at it as objectively as you can and polish, polish, polish.

The type of rejection letters people receive vary – from the dreaded form letter to the personalized letter. Generally, unless you’re being invited to revise and resubmit your story or to submit other work, you’re most likely to receive a form letter.

Unfortunately, there is no real way to tell why your story was rejected from reading said form letter. They’re written to be purposely vague to save the editor or agent from having to write out a personal response. There are several reasons for the existence of the form letter.

Time. Thousands upon thousands of manuscripts are submitted to publishing houses and literary agencies every year. If an editor or agent took time to write a personalized rejection letter for every single manuscript, the process would take even longer than it does now.

Suggestions are often taken in the wrong spirit. When an editor or an agent takes the time to give you suggestions for improving your manuscript, the proper response is, “Thank you for your time and consideration.” Even if you vehemently disagree with every last word the editor or agent had to say, the appropriate response is still, “Thank you for your time and consideration.”

I was amazed to discover that many writers write back with a rebuttal to their rejection letters. In fact, I thought the editor I was speaking with was joking, but she explained that it happens all of the time. They receive lengthy missives about why the publishing house is making a big mistake because their book is the best thing that’s ever been written, to personal attacks on their professionalism, intelligence and integrity to threats. Yes, I said threats. Essentially, there are a handful of writers out there who lessen every other struggling writer’s chances of getting decent feedback. Please, don’t be one of those writers.

When you receive a personalized rejection letter, remember this is actually a good thing. The editor or agent thought enough of your work to take the time to write to you. If you receive a request for revisions, celebrate heartily. This is the very best kind of rejection letter. If you receive an invitation to submit other material, do it! Submit more of your work. Not everyone gets that offer.

When you get a form letter, it’s okay to be sad, but remember, this isn’t a personal reflection on you. It’s not necessarily a reflection on your writing. I have a friend who advocates a 24-hour mourning period. When she receives a rejection letter, she allows herself a good cry, commiseration with writing friends, as much chocolate or ice cream as she feels like eating and a bit of moping. After the 24-hour period is up, she rereads her letter and decides where she’d like to submit her story next.

I think this is a healthy response. It’s natural to feel let down, but it’s also important to keep trying. Remember, above all else, publishing is subjective. What one editor may dislike, another may love. It happens all of the time. Don’t give up. Keep polishing your craft and submitting your stories.

Ah, rejection!

I confess that I have NO terrible pile of rejection letters sitting in a drawer somewhere. I have one. Yes, one. The story line for a book I submitted was too similar to a book already released by my publisher. Sigh.

So did it sting? Oh, yeah. It did. Kind of ticked off, I hunted down that other book and read it. And then for a good long while I felt ill at how many similarities there were. Too many. So on top of the rejection, the book was tainted for me. And it still sits in my computer waiting for revisions and possibly some day I'll submit it somewhere else.

Rejection doesn't only come at the hands of a publisher or editor, though. Like most things rejection starts at home. It really doesn't matter how many readers we have across the globe (and I'm always stunned when I hear from a reader who lives overseas), our family is the group we want to be proud of our work. And mine is not.

Oh, its not because I'm not a good writer--although they really have no way of knowing that because they don't read my books. The genre I write offends them. And that, my friends, does sting. A cousin read my mainstream book and commented that it was a good story but had far too much sex in it for her taste. To my knowledge, she's the only member of my family outside of two of my children who has read one of my books.

Rejection can blindside you if you aren't prepared. I carefully considered all the consequences of writing the kind of books that I write and I knew ahead of time what those consequences would be. That's why I use a pen name. But I admit that the rejection still stings at times. Those are the times that I pull out the letters from readers and friends--those letters that tell me how much they enjoyed my books. That's the antidote for rejection. Fan letters are a powerful vindication for our work. Mail 'em in!

anny

The Gallery Comes Out Tomorrow!!!

I cannot tell you how excited I am to finally be able to say that! It seems like I've been waiting forever for this one to come out. And tomorrow it will be available for everyone to read. Yay!

Blurb:

Lana Healy agrees to a blind date with Conner after much nagging from a mutual friend. She knows that Conner is an artist, but what she was not aware of is the fact that he’s also a vampire. This ceases to be an issue for her when their chemistry together becomes undeniable.

Lana soon realises that his being a vampire is the least of her worries when it comes to her feelings for him. She can only hope that he feels the same way.

Excerpt:

I was surprised at how easy the conversation felt with him. We fell into an easy report littered with sarcastic remarks and light, humorous banter. His wit was quick and he matched me dig for dig. It was nice to talk to a guy who didn’t get offended at my mouth. I cuss like a sailor and pass judgement on everyone with no explanation or remorse. A lot of men can’t handle that. But Conner took it all in stride. It was refreshing.

We passed on dessert so the waiter left the bill on the table while we finished our beers.

“So was your opening a smashing success?”

“It was, thank you. This city is full of assholes who couldn’t wait to, what was it? Start blowing smoke up my ass. I practically sold out opening night.”

“Great, then you can get the check.” I smiled sweetly, winking at him over my glass.

“It would serve you right if I went to the bathroom and never came back,” he said. “You had to order the chicken and the foi gras.”

“I was hungry. If I’d known you were going to bogart the steak tips I would have gotten the lobster too.”

He dropped his credit card on top of the check with a dramatic sigh. I laughed. I had been laughing all evening. I couldn’t remember spending such an amusing evening with anyone other than Hugh Grant, Ben and Jerry.

“What are you thinking about right now?”

“I was just wondering if Amanda was right, if I could really bounce a quarter off your ass?” When in doubt, sarcasm works in a pinch.

“Well, I usually don’t pull out the kinky stuff until the third date. But I suppose I could make an exception if you promise to still respect me in the morning.”

“That would imply that I respect you now.”

He smiled, dropping his eyes to the table. He covered my hands with his own causing me to let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. His hand was warm and his skin was just as soft as it looked. It made me wonder about other parts of him, which made me blush.

“What are you thinking about now?” His voice was teasing, making me realize he had looked up at me in time to see the redness creep over my cheeks.

“Nothing you want to hear about.”

“I doubt that very much.”

The waiter brought the check back, saving me yet again from my awkwardness.

“Come on.” Conner dropped the pen on the table before taking my hand, leading me out of the restaurant.

“Where are we going?”

“I want to show you my work.”

“Now?” It was going on ten pm and the gallery was long closed.

His hand tightened a little around mine, I squeezed back. I didn’t know what the hell I was doing, but I liked him touching me, I didn’t want him to stop. In fact, I found myself wanting him to touch me more, touch more of me.

As if reading my mind he pulled me against him and kissed me. It was soft, warm, and much too quick. My panties became instantly damp at the feel of him against me. I looked at him with wide eyes when he pulled back.

“There, now the first kiss is out of the way. We can both relax and have fun.” His logic was frustrating. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hit him or make him kiss me again. Relaxing was now the least of the thoughts flying through my mind. “Let’s go see some art. If you can call it that.”

“Do you have a key?” I followed close behind him, one hand still in his and the other wrapped around his arm. His bicep was firm and flexed slightly as we walked.

“No, but all vampires are experts in breaking and entering. Greg won’t even know. Maybe while we’re there we can loot the safe and run away to Maui together.”

“Isn’t Maui a little…sunny for you?”

“Racist.”

“Maybe a little. But wouldn’t you rather run off to Transylvania or something?”

“You know, just because you’re cute doesn’t mean you can throw racial slurs at me. I’m going to call the ACLU and report you if you’re not careful.”

“Be still my heart.”

XoXoXo
Dakota Rebel

Guest Author: Janet Lane Walters

Today the Grip Crew welcomes author Janet Lane Walters!




Writer's Space:



Since I've been selling since 1968, and I've moved a number of times, a number of spaces have been in my life so I'll share some of my favorite ones. Having a space in which to dream and write is important, but mine have always allowed the flow of family to enter. My children learned early that if Mom had a pen in her hand they should wait quietly until she looked up. Two of my writing spaces were successful but one was not and later I'll tell you why.



In 1968 when I sold my first short story, my space was a room about 8 by 10 lined completely in wood. I didn't have a desk but used a card table and a manual typewriter, complete with carbon paper and white-out tape. There was one book shelf that held mostly my writing supplies. Books were in another room. There have always been books around both for pleasure and for research. The space opened through a walk-through closet into the family room where my two young sons played and watched TV. My table was placed so I could see them, a very necessary thing since they were one and almost three. I haven't thought about this space for ages and remembering the eagerness when I sat down to type what I'd hand written brings that eagerness back. This space was in Pennsylvania.

We moved and the spaces changed, Two were in Ft. Worth. Texas. Neither of these resulted in sales but were learning spaces. An editor rejected a short story and stated that it sounded like a synopsis for a novel. This while in two Texas apartments. I honed my writing skills. One of the studies was in a hall with a desk. The other was in a room that was about fifteen by fifteen. They do things large in Texas. The room was both a writing space and a nursery for my infant daughter. By now the boys were seven and five. Here I wrote and re-wrote the first novel to sell. The book was rewritten seventeen times but didn't sell until I was in another Pennsylvania writing space.

My writing space here was an interesting spot. Situated between the kitchen and the living room, this wasn't exactly a room but a passage way. The steps to the basement were at the rear of my space. My desk sat beneath the window. The only wall without a door had a floor to ceiling bookcase where I had begun to collect my research material. Mostly medical and nursing magazines. My first books were "sweet" nurse romances. I sold three in 1972, one of them the book that was revised again and again. Revision was what helped me learn the craft of writing.

My next writing space was also in Pa. and this was the one that wasn't conducive to writing. The desk, actually a flush door with legs attached sat in front of a massive picture window giving me a vista on the world and too much to see and dream about. Here I wrote some poetry that was published but little else. Dreaming was too easy.

My current writing space is in New York, not far from the Hudson River but the only windows are small and look into the neighbor's kitchen and front porch. The space was once a sun porch that had been converted into a room by the former owner. When we first moved in I had the walls painted pale lavender with a dark purple carpet on the floor. For writing purple prose. Here I completed two more books and worked as a ghost writer for doctors and learned a lot about medicine and how I didn't like to write for doctors. Not all of them were bad and several gave me credit. That was a plus. But a return to work as a nurse to put four children through college interrupted my writing but not collecting ideas.

My writer's space is not pale green with a parquet floor. My computer desk has lots of shelves. On the top shelf are the sixteen dragons in my collection and some other sillies like a feather pen and a kohl stick from Egypt a bear dressed as a doctor and a small cat as a reminder of my familiar who passed away. Across the room is my recliner where I hand write all my stories. Above the chair is my fencing foil, a cane shaped like a serpent and a picture of Robespierre a cat who lives in several of my books. One wall is filled with research books and so is another bookcase. The children are grown and on their own, but the children of my mind live in my space and come out to show their stuff to the world.

Here's a taste of Flight, Book One of The Henge Betrayed by Janet Lane Walters
available now from Mundania Press
(Click the cover to find out more)




Blurb: Awakened late at night, four teens are sent by their parents to seek teachers to show them how to use their awakening powers. They have affinities for the elements, Earth, Fire, Water and Air. As they leave the henge, they witness the destruction of their home and family. Can they find their teachers before the mage, Dom Senet, He Who Walks With Evil, finds them?

Excerpt:
Flight - Book One of The Henge Betrayed by Janet Lane Walters published by Mundania Press

A flash of lightning brightened the sleeping chamber. Ash woke with a start and burrowed into the pillows. The scent of trouble rode the air currents that threaded through the open window slats. Her heart thudded in her chest. Like the beating of a giant’s club against a massive drum, thunder sounded. Again, lightning flashed and cast green, red, white and blue slashes across the sky.

The air held no threat of rain. ‘Twas like the heat storms of summer, unnatural at this time of year for the waning days of autumn marked the season.

Ash calmed her racing thoughts and tasted the air for that was her element. A frown formed within and without. From the land beyond the four walls of the henge, she caught the odors of fires, animals and men. From inside the keep, there was little except the aromas of her parents and siblings. Something was wrong. Where were those who served the Dom and Doma of Wesren? Ash propped herself against the pillows. If she had her younger brother’s affinity for things of earth, she could read the stones of the ancient tower and know what had passed while she slept. Where were the men servants and maids? ‘Twas as though the henge had been abandoned by those who lived within the four walls.

The chamber door creaked. Ash froze until a familiar scent reached her. “Mama, what’s wrong?”

The Doma Calanda slipped across the room and sat on the bed. “Ashlea, still your thoughts.”

Ash struggled to obey the sharp command. Her mother seldom spoke this way. “Why?”

“Thoughts travel on the wind and may be read by those who wish us ill.” She grasped Ash’s hand. “Dress in your warmest clothes. As soon as you’ve finished, go to the inner room.”

The urgency in her mother’s voice raised fear. “What’s happening?”

“We’ve been betrayed. An army surrounds the henge. Your father and I believe the secret of the openings in the walls is known by those who seek to force us to use our powers for their ends.”

Click the book cover for more, or go look for the book on Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble.

Visit Janet at Dame Amber, Jewels of the Quill, Books We Love Author Janet Lane Walters, Books We Love Spice Author Janet Lane Walters , Nothing Binding, or her blog, Eclectic writer.