Poor me!

macandal · Nov 22, 2005

Well, poor all of us who are experiencing the same thing as I.

So, I just can't catch a break. I have 4 full manuscripts with agents. I guess, that's the good news. One came back last Friday saying that, while there's some good writing there, in the end, the many voices and points of view (this is how my story is told) made it too difficult for him to follow. The jury is still out on the other three requested mss. I had two short stories rejected on the same day (yesterday, Nov. 21), two stories for which I had strong feelings of getting them in those journals (ok, so they were Glimmer Train and Tin House, you can't blame me for having high expectations). A couple of weeks ago, a partial ms came back saying that even though I had created a cast of memorable characters who lived in a realistic world of their own (that is a compliment, isn't it?) and she enjoyed reading my work she hadn't fallen in love with the ms the way she needed to fall in love with it to take me on as a client. This is so confusing. Really it is. I've heard of horror stories of writers getting letters to the effect of, you should consider another career, etc. At least with those they are telling you the way they really feel. Anyway, this is going nowhere, I just wanted to vent. Is it time to consider self-publishing yet? (And I don't mean Lulu et al. I mean actually owning my ISBN.)

September skies · Nov 22, 2005

You should be commended for having that many manuscripts out circulating at one time. Wish I did! As to the rejections, don't take it too personal, accept the suggestions and criticisms and learn from it. Change your manuscripts accordingly and send them right back out.

I'm proud of you for doing so much! Like I said, wish I had that many out.

Good luck to you!

stormie · Nov 22, 2005

No, no, no! Don't give up and go the self-pub route. Every agent, every editor, responds differently to every ms. they receive. That goes for short stories, essays, poems.... Keep submitting. If after a time, no one bites, then put the ms. aside for a few weeks, then look at it again. Still love it? Okay, resubmit to other places. Needs revamping? Go for it. And remember, after reaching for the stars (the big mags or publishers or agents) there are the smaller ones who are reputable but will get your work out there.

One time I had a very reputable and published person critique (gratis) my query letter before I sent it out. He said it stunk (well, not in those exact words). Many corrections were made on the hard copy. Unfortunately I had already sent out six copies of that query to book publishers. I panicked. Guess what? Three of those six liked my original query so much, they asked for full ms.

I have to say, yes, there are days when I say what in the *&&^%%$ am I doing in this profession? It happens. Just don't give up and go that self-pub route (my opinion).

Anyway, rant away. That's what this board is for!

Now I'm off my soapbox.... :gone:

triceretops · Nov 24, 2005

Macandal--having that many fulls out at once, especially to agents, during this glut, is truly an astonishing feat, and I really mean that! You must have a killer query and synopsis to get that kind of response. Use the rejections for what they are--they are subjective decisions. However,if you notice a trend that screams re-write in a particular area, then by golly use that info to your advantage. Sometimes we have to throw out our babies so that someone tells us their ugly and need plastic surgery. It's all part of it.

Don't go the self-pub route. I think you need to continue on. It sounds like you have a multiple viewpoint conundrum, but I would wait it out for more comments to verify this.

Tri

maestrowork · Nov 24, 2005

I agree with Tri. Having 4 full ms. out there is something to celebrate! It takes time and the right opportunity. Don't give up just yet. The fact that you have people requesting full or partial means your story is interesting. Just keep at it and eventually you will find nirvana.

TwentyFour · Jan 7, 2006

I was told by Robert Morgan to submit to smaller press when not able to get into a big New York publishing house. Try to find a smaller press and see if the guidelines fit your work.

Jamesaritchie · Jan 8, 2006

Self-publishing

Self-publishing, no matter what form it takes, doesn't improve the quality of the writing one little bit. Bad stays bad, unpublishable stays unpublishable, and the world already has more horrible self-published novels than it will ever need.

Mike Coombes · Jan 8, 2006

Jamesaritchie said:
Self-publishing, no matter what form it takes, doesn't improve the quality of the writing one little bit. Bad stays bad, unpublishable stays unpublishable, and the world already has more horrible self-published novels than it will ever need.

But at least they aren't cluttering the shelves of bookstores. Small mercies.

blacbird · Jan 8, 2006

Jamesaritchie said:
the world already has more horrible self-published novels than it will ever need.

The world also already has more horrible traditionally-published novels than it will ever need.

caw.

TwentyFour · Jan 8, 2006

I don't think owning an ISBN is really what you should be striving for at this moment. You need to find a publisher who is going to be able to promote your book and not ask you to pay them. You not only need an ISBN but a LOC and someone who is going to edit (not just spell check) and make your book their priority. You need to find either a small press or have your ms critiqued and your query letter critiqued-just for good measure.

Poor me!

macandal

September skies

cloud watching

stormie

storm central

triceretops

maestrowork

Fear the Death Ray

TwentyFour

practical experience, FTW

Jamesaritchie

Mike Coombes

Guru

blacbird

TwentyFour

practical experience, FTW