Rejected... and dejected

Aw, so sorry for your rejection! That stinks. Yes, totally wallow, wallowing works. Have lots of junk food and candy! As for the comments on your plot, if you really love the book, I wouldn't put it away just yet - try tweaking it a bit - and if you're done with it, shove it under the bed, you might have more clarity later on after having not looked at it for a while.

I just got a reject on my full, too - so I know how it stinks. Good luck with your writing and future submissions! Getting an offer to look at your next project is really good! That means the agent likes you enough to look foward to something else - I've never had an agent tell me that before! Chin up! Keep trucking! Keep writing!

Good luck!

Well, that sucks but I think I'd take a hard look at my plot if that is a second comment about it. Do you know what the problem is? If so, revise that puppy and send it back out!

Don't give up just yet -- sometimes a plot has so many problems, it looks unsalvageable, and everyone will tell you to junk it. But if you look at it just the right way, you may find that a relatively simple edit (new ending, an added chapter, or a rewritten character) gives a bad plot a whole new gloss.

Give yourself two weeks to think about it -- a solution may reveal itself to you.

I agree with the others--take a look at that plot and see if it can't be tweaked.

Or, ya know, work on that next project that the agent wants to see! That's good news!

I dunno if I'd trunk it - plot is eminently fixable, bad writing would be a bigger problem. You've got something there worth working on, from the sound of it.

Booze and chocolate, booze and chocolate. Wallow in some 'o this; it makes everything better.

Don't lose heart! Yes, the bar is very high for us first-timers!

But at least, writing fiction, you can make stuff up! Writing memoir, well, the options are more limited

speirbhean said:

To be honest, I think if it was the third book by an established author, it'd be published. But it doesn't have the oomph to get there on its own. Know what I mean??

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I hear ya. I think there are "Breaking in books" and there great books that would be published by someone already in the biz, but not by someone trying to break in.

It's frustrating.

Since I don't know the book, I can't say for sure, but before I slipped it under the bed, I'd just reread it and see if there's anything you can do to make it someone "break in", unless you like it the way it is. Because if YOU like the plot, and it's a "good" book and the agents aren't rejecting it because it's confusing/complicated or something else problematic, then I'd save it for later and keep true to the story you wrote.

Just my $.02, again.

I'm sorry to hear about your rejection on a full. I know the pain. I'd give it a few more tries, though, before taking that piece of advice as gospel.

Everyone here has offered good advice. In my experience, time is the best teacher. Leave the manuscript alone for a while and work on something else. This will help you in two ways: You'll go back to the manuscript with fresh eyes AND you'll have time to think about how to fix your plot problem. I ended up figuring out how to fix mine while at work on ANOTHER manuscript.

Good luck!

Sorry speirbhean, but glad that you're pressing onward.

I must have edited my novel, and I'm talking about significant edits, at least 10 times before I got it to the point of becoming publishable. The first ones are always the toughest. It where we make our mistakes, but it's also where we really learn how to write. I know it's hard not to think of this as a failure, but writing is a process that takes a lifetime to learn, and you are taking your first steps into the wonderful world of literature.

I agree with the suggestions about putting your book down for a while and let it grow cold. It is so much easier to see the flaws in your work from a distance than up close. I would also like to suggest that you have someone you know read your manuscript and offer some suggestions that will help you fix some of the plot problems. Just make certain it is someone who knows writing and can offer sound advice. If you have some money, you might even want to consider hiring the services of a professional editor/critiquer. As a professional he/she can tell you exactly where your story falls short, and what you can do to make if publishable.

Mike