What are you up to?

cooeedownunder

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.... I’m trying to work out what to do next.

I’ve spent since whenever here – mainly critting in the historical SYW, when I wasn’t dancing in the middle of the night alone :D

In October last year a personal thing happened that really knocked the wind out of me. I decided to go away, well avoid AW at least with comments, so I wouldn't rant like a raving lunatic about it, and just finish my last WIP – A Stranger in the Nursery. Sent off three queries in March this year, got an instant rejection on the query, a request for a partial which was rejected last month, and currently have a full out.

I’m at the stage where I’m trying to decide whether or not to revisit – A Woman Transported (and for anyone who doesn’t know – there are only 7 or 8 agents in Australia) I never exhausted those agents last year, but after a rejection on a full which took months, I had already moved on to The Stranger in the Nursery one.

So here I am, really hating the submission process. Really hating that period between works, once the elevation of typing The End has settled. I think I dislike all the uncertainty that comes with submissions that really pulls out all the doubt that can be inside about ones writing ability and the uncertainty if you’ll ever write The End on another story.
 
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Tom from UK

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So here I am, really hating the submission process. Really hating that period between works, once the elevation of typing The End has settled. I think I dislike all the uncertainty that comes with submissions that really pulls out all the doubt that can be inside about ones writing ability and the uncertainty if you’ll ever write The End on another story.
I guess we all do.

Have a hug.

:Hug2:
 

Puma

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Cooee - I don't know how long it's been since you looked at A Woman Transported, but, if it's been a while, I suggest you read it again - as a reader. You wrote it quite a while ago. I know your writing style has changed and improved in the time since I first read part of A Woman here on AW. To me part of the allure of your story is that it's a new story, about a part of the world which is not well represented in fiction - I'd like to see you take another crack at it. But, I think you're going to have to be fairly critical of your story and of your writing. So, my two cents worth. Puma
 

Siri Kirpal

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.... I’m trying to work out what to do next.

I’ve spent since whenever here – mainly critting in the historical SYW, when I wasn’t dancing in the middle of the night alone :D

In October last year a personal thing happened that really knocked the wind out of me. I decided to go away, well avoid AW at least with comments, so I wouldn't rant like a raving lunatic about it, and just finish my last WIP – A Stranger in the Nursery. Sent off three queries in March this year, got an instant rejection on the query, a request for a partial which was rejected last month, and currently have a full out.

I’m at the stage where I’m trying to decide whether or not to revisit – A Woman Transported (and for anyone who doesn’t know – there are only 7 or 8 agents in Australia) I never exhausted those agents last year, but after a rejection on a full which took months, I had already moved on to The Stranger in the Nursery one.

So here I am, really hating the submission process. Really hating that period between works, once the elevation of typing The End has settled. I think I dislike all the uncertainty that comes with submissions that really pulls out all the doubt that can be inside about ones writing ability and the uncertainty if you’ll ever write The End on another story.

Sat Nam! (Literally "Truth Name"--a Sikh greeting)

I had an incident elsewhere on the boards here last fall too. Disappeared for a week or so, then returned, but am avoiding certain parts of the forum.

I've never much liked the word "submission." It sounds so, well, submissive!

Hope you get back in writing mode soon!
 

pdr

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Ah ha!

That's where you've been, cooee! Missed you.

You have all my sympathy and support. I've been trying UK agents because NZ is like one city as far as population and the publishing world. We even use Oz agents and publishers ourselves. But between us, cooee, we only have a tiny publishing industry and obviously the Oz and NZ publishers want to raise their mana, their presence, and be 'seen' in the publishing world. This means a huge emphasis on the literary, with a strongly NZ or Oz setting and characters. Books which can be seen as uniquely ours.

Anyway UK agents have been generally complimentary with comments but one honest one said that I was too old and too far away to deal with and that this would be my problem! How right! It will be yours too.

I would have given up on Jacob's story except that the novel has been short listed in three novel comps and my editor assessors were quite clear and still are that the novel is publishable and marketable. I've made a list of Small Presses and am waiting their answers but so often they only publish a few books a year and have a waiting list.

Small Presses right now, then what?

Puma's advice is good, I think, do your rewrites and start on the Small Presses. The e-pubs are looking very good and Oz, like NZ is beginning to have local e-publishers. Try them.

I'm launching a couple of short story anthologies of stories on Kindle. I published them a while ago and they are stories which won prizes or editor's accolades! If they sell I might well think of launching the novels that way even though it means loss of face in the NZ writing world.
 
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cooeedownunder

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Thanks everyone for their thoughts, and Puma you made me realise how much time flys. I finished A Woman Transported about Sep or Oct - 2010 LOL

And pdr - I wouldn't worry about the losing face in the NZ publishing world. There have been a great deal of self published writers doing well with kindle versions of their book put out in series - where the first is offered free.... at the end of the day the readers using kindle are deciding what they want to read - not any publishers or high marketing budjets. That said, I think Amazon's ranking system works best for the self publishers who are taking advantage of kdp select promotional manager.

I also think that if you are going to publish this way - really a different name might help save face if they don't sell well, I guess.
 

EngineerTiger

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Ah Cooee, I can sympathize. I wandered away from AW four years ago to join a "literary community". It was a disaster and knocked me right off my feet as a writer (well, at least with regard to fiction). I still can't look at the poor little story that was ripped, shredded, and gutted right before my eyes. It was worse than anything I encountered in graduate school seminars and these were supposed to be fellow writers helping each other.

When I got up my courage last summer and took another look at my main historical epic (the one I put away after the last agent turned it down because it wasn't historical romance), I was able to approach it with a fresh set of eyes and was surprised at how well some of the bits and pieces worked. It was also easy to spot and fix some of the weaknesses. I'm in full agreement with Puma that you should take another look at A WOMAN TRANSPORTED. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Here's a thought. Is there a way for you, PDR, and some others to perhaps form a co-op to utilize the Kindle and other eBook platforms since your trade publishing houses and agents are so limited? I realize it's a huge amount of effort but it might work better for you to form some sort of micropress than to self-publish individually. By working together, you can support and edit each other to ensure the quality of work. You can also help each other's market via a main website linked to each other's blogs and social networks. Amazon just opened up CreateSpace for the European market so that U.S. self-published writers can now get paperbacks into those markets as well as eBooks. I suspect OZ and NZ will be added eventually.

Best of luck and try not to despair. We've all hit the doldrums in our writing on occasion (sometimes more than once).
 

Tom from UK

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Some kind of mutual support network might be handy even for those of us who aren't self-published, but who publish with small presses with no marketing presence.

FWIW, I'm happy to support others through my blog, but it's not like I get thousands of visitors (350 pageviews last month). And I have to have read your book and liked it. There's a poet whose work I like and I've featured that occasionally and run an interview with her, which seemed to work nicely.

I'm happy to signpost to other people's blogs if they think that would help them. But there has to be something on the blog that might interest my readers. Let me know if you thing your Internet musings would qualify.
 

angeliz2k

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To chime in with my support, my blog usually gets just under 100 hits per day, mostly because certain popular keywords (for instance Marie Antoinette) appear often.

I'd be happy to plug the works of people in this forum and/or link to their blogs (I prefer linking to blogs over plugging).

ETA: It's at queensransom.wordpress.com (link's also in my signature), but it's actually called Marie-Antoinette's Diamonds, even though the diamonds weren't really hers.
 
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Tepelus

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I just started a blog a week ago, have only made two posts but I'm going to keep it to one to two posts a week at least for now. Mainly just some random musings on writing and my novel in progress (which, btw, I'm hoping to have finished by the end of the year). I work on it a little here and there, and I'll be glad to have the first draft done so I can go through and edit it. If only I could get my butt to work on it everyday, but I guess working on it a few times a week is better than nothing. Maybe having the blog will somehow give me motivation to work on it more--eh, perhaps not! :)
 

pdr

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Yes.

I have been toying with the idea of a cooperative group who self publish as you suggested Engineer Tiger. I'd thought of us editing and beta reading our work between us. Then using either a UK or Canadian co which turns novels into Kindle for a reasonable sum until we'd learned to write our stuff in HTML first.
BUT
and isn't there always a but
the local writers are tea and chat and their work is not yet publishable.
The other writers I know have contracts with NZ publishers and are content with their print runs of 2000 and 50 cents a copy. They are scared that if they use Kindle to self publish or republish they will lose that. And the local Soc of Authors' respect.

Tom, Angeliz and Tepelus yes, I blog, only seriously recently, but lets support each other that way. Can I interview you three, link my blog to yours (Tell me how please!) and post a pic of your books, or mags and journals covers which published your stories and articles? If someone tells me how I will. I have been so slow to post pics and things because I spend hours trying to and it fails!!!!!

Perhaps we can ask Puma and Swordswoman, and cooee if they'd like their novels to be promoted that way too.

Tales of Old is the podcast which broadcasts (is that the right term these days or is it downloads?) historical stories. The editor is very good to work with - mind you he's bought two of my stories and lets me read for him to keep my actor's skills in practice - we could link with him. He gets good traffic and welcomes good links.



Anyone else want to chime in?
 
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cooeedownunder

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Oh, I don't blog no more...couldn't think of anything to say, but I'd be happy to start up a blog if you guys want to provide copy for me to use on the blog - eg excerpts or articles ect
 
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cooeedownunder

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All right - if anyone one wants to email me stuff (web copy) you can do so by the AW contact button and I'll think of how to approach a new blog
 

cooeedownunder

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This year has been pretty much of a bust for me so far. My wip is set in ancient Babylon and I've still got a l-o-o-o-ng way to go to complete it. Drives me crazy that I don't seem to find time for it. My husband's business recently grew something awful and as I'm the administrator (fancy word for taking care of all the bills and payroll and general dog's body stuff) I've been run off my feet. To top it all off I had a couple of agonizing gall bladder attacks and finally had the wretched thing taken out a couple of weeks ago. I feel lousy and am on meds that make me fuzzy in the head, so no writing for me until I'm off all that garbage.
O-o-o do I feel sorry for myself.:D

I hope you feel better soon.
 

Flicka

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I have a history blog, originally focused on the 18th century, that I thought I might turn into a general history/historical fiction writing blog.
I used to have in about a 100 hits average per day too when I was active, mostly because some nice historians with big Twitter followings such as Amanda Vickery tweeted about my posts. Now I haven't written anything for ages but I was thinking of reviving it and I'd be happy to do interviews, take guest posts etc if anyone would be interested.

It's at http://theragsoftime.blogspot.com if anyone wants to have a look.
 

PorterStarrByrd

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I haven't posted here much though my first book (too long to sell until i am a famous writer) was HF. The thing that slows me down here is that it takes so much of my available computer time to research the pair of HF's that I am developing.
What I have found here is quick and sound advice when I have posted a question. What is missing is instant research :) (so I have to do trhe damned stuff myself)
I'm working on a reunion of the 1869 Cinncinnati Red Stocking (first pro baseball team) and another on the legacy of the signers of the declaration of Independance.
 

pdr

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Oh great!

Right all you supportive folk.

You're in as bloggers who will support this Group/Coop/ Indie publishing attempt cooee and I are starting.

And grateful thanks, we'll need your support.
 

BardSkye

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Sounds like a great idea to me. I'll have to resurrect my neglected blog and see if I can help.
 

DianeL

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Hi, I'm a newbie, but I've been querying my novel set in the golden age of Hollywood from 1941-1945. It's about two actresses and their struggles against the studio system that eventually lead them to fall in love with each other. Needless to say finding an agent for such a story is difficult (coupled with my horrible query letter) with the lesbian element to it, but I received a partial request last week from a small publisher so we'll see how that goes.

Watching classic movies has been a hobby of mine since I saw Hedy Lamarr in Samson in Delilah. The era itself is full of hypocrisy and the private lives of the performers weren't always as glamorous as they were portrayed, so I thought it'd be fun to write about.

I enjoy other periods of History such as the Julio-Claudian dynasty, the time of Alexander the Great etc.

Akilli

Hello and welcome! I say that like I'm even a blip on the radar - I have been around AW a few years, but don't seem to say much, and never leave the Historical fora. :) I'm in VA too, BTW.

Hedy is FASCINATING and I've often been amazed she hasn't been novelized before. A scientist and game-changer in WWII? Holy smokes, this woman's contributions resonate still today. And did you know she performed the first cinematic, ahm, "Big O" - she starred very early on in a very odd flick called "Ecstasy".

***

Tom from UK and angeliz2k as well as everyone talking blogs, I'm bookmarking you guys and will talk you up if you'll talk me up. :)

***

Flicka, thank you for this thread!

I have been working on revisions of my 5th/6th century Frankish masterpiece, for the reconsideration of ... Miriam Zimmer Bradley's agent. I will soil my Huggies in a big way if he likes it - but of course I have to FINISH the revisions first.

So tricky, the way getting anything done requires the doing of anything. Sigh!
 

Tom from UK

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The problem is, some writers (mostly inexperienced) take a comment of "I love this" as carte blanche evidence there's nothing more that needs to be done. Some of them will ignore suggestions on how to improve because half of the crits they received were "I love it." And then down the road they don't understand what went wrong when their baby is languishing on the shelf.
RANT It can get worse. A while back, I was drifting through SYW (not History) and I came across a piece so horrible I decided not to offer a critique. It was really, truly horrible. Trust me. And recently I saw a thriller being given away free by an indie publisher trying to promote it on Amazon and I thought, 'Why not?' so I downloaded it. And there was the same opening. It was so bad that the words are seared into my memory and I don't think he'd changed anything. I read a couple of sentences to my wife and she remembered them from the first time I'd shown them to her.

And the book has gushing four and five star reviews, I'm guessing from friends.

The world has gone completely mad. /RANT