Hi!

Jim Nelson

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Hello everyone!
I'm finally de-lurking and becoming an official member of the community. I truly appreciate the quality and quantity of useful information that I've found through all the very useful threads and conversations throughout the Water Cooler. I wish that I had found this site sooner.

So, as an introduction, I'm a professor of information systems at a large university. I have published quite a few research papers in academic journals, but I've grown weary of writing articles that few people will read and even fewer will understand. I still enjoy the work and the teaching, but playing the game isn't fun any more. Looking back at some of the rejections I've had from academic journals, they all seem to say "the writing is wonderful but your theory goes off track here...". Great. What if I skip the theory, just tell a story, and and we'll see where that takes me. So far it's been a LOT of fun.

I've finished my first novel. It's a 101,000-word contemporary romance with a paranormal twist. Now I'm in the hunt for an agent. I've probably done everything wrong in my query letters (still wish I'd found this site sooner!) but it's been less than a month since the first set went out. Six form rejections so far and a whole bunch of quiet. It's early yet, and all I need is one accept. I guess. Maybe.

I have a wonderful wife (also a professor) and three rescued dogs. I love the early morning walkies for clearing my head and figuring out what the day's writing will bring. I'm a private pilot, but I'm shifting to sailing because the wind is free. I paint, work, and write. I think that's it.

Thanks again for being such a wonderful resource!

Jim
 

Griffin Hayes

One evil little baby step at a time
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Welcome to AW! Good luck on the agent hunt.
 

pabroome

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Hello Jim,

I too am a newbie here. I'm a totally new newbie! I'm also a retired University person. I served as chair of an English Dept. I think you have done the right thing.

I have only short stories going right now. One is out there...still in a pile of brown envelopes in the corner of someone's office? I'm working on several other stories.

Good luck to you.

Paul
 

Eric Smart

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Trying in more ways than one.

Hi Jim,
Welcome. Stick in there. I had 25 rejections for my novel and thought it was about time to move on to something else when three agents requested copies of the full manuscript. I'm not holding my breath but it shows how the game shifts. Good luck.
Eric
 

KellyAssauer

The Anti-Magdalene
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Hi Jim!

Welcome to AW!

Don't forget to read about AW basics in the Newbie Guide!

Questions about this software can be found in the FAQ's menu in the handy blue bar at the 'top' of this page.

This common acronym list helps identify our mystifying abbreviations.

Before you ask that Newbie question!!
See if Katiemac has the answer here.

Check out: Sara's 10 Basic Writing Tips.

If you're looking for critiques please read the 50 Post rule.

Questions about posting writing to the Share Your Work (SYW) area
and explained here. This link covers the most common problems found in the Share Your Work *Worth reading no matter how long you have been here!*

AW is a community built on the foundations of respecting your fellow writer and helping each other, it's the basic building blocks of how and why AW works.

Welcome to our community! =)

-kelly-
 

L. Y.

Thread surfer and virtual bartender
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Hello. :welcome: to the Water Cooler!
 

rwm4768

practical experience, FTW
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Welcome. Good luck with the querying.
 

regdog

The Scavengers
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