Getting the NICEST Rejections still means no, thank you....

KTC · Jan 28, 2008

Novel Idea said:
Damn it, damn it, damn it! Could someone pass the tea and sympathy?

Dear ______--

Thanks so much for sending your full manuscript. I read it this week, and really enjoyed it. You write beautifully, and your characters are so vivid. The scenes in ____ are completely believable and haunting. That said, I found the ____ subplot a bit harder to swallow, and the two plot lines never really came together for me. And I'm not sure the premise of the book would draw in a big enough audience for today's publishing standards.

Weighing all of these factors, I think I'm going to have to pass on this project, but I would love to see anything else you're working on, or any revised version of this. You are a VERY talented writer, and I'd love to stay in touch with you, because I think you've got a lot of potential.

All best wishes,
Big Time New York Agent

I hear you LOUD AND CLEAR. As pretty as the nice ones are, they are still saying one thing...NO. But, hey...this one IS particularly nice. Maybe you just didn't find the right fit. Good luck with the next one. And congratulations on putting yourself out there...that's half the battle.

Qui · Jan 29, 2008

Do you like your tea strong or mild?
/brews it perfectly
/presents it in Worcester china
It's a rejection, sure, but you're so close! Get a pedicure, pour that nice merlot you've been saving, pout, rant to the birds in your garden, but then get back out there! I expect to read this beautiful prose (called such by a Fancy-Pants, even!) in print someday.

GJB · Jan 31, 2008

Novel Idea

Janet Evanovich was quoted as saying she queried every agent in NYC four times before one of them took her on.

Stephen King's wife retrieved his manuscripts from the dumpster after many years of useless submissions.

Dan Brown took 10 years to get anyone interested in The Da Vinci Code.

And we all know about that writer from across the Pond who lived out of her car, and is now wealthier than the Queen.

The lesson is not so much, "Hang in there." The lesson is that the self-appointed gate keepers don't know what will sell. There's no customer surveying, no consumer model testing in our business. Every week publishers pay big advances never recovered and tiny advances on future best sellers. The market is the only test. Every year thousands of titles find publishers but modest sales. None is original, none is a blockbuster, none will last longer than a week or couple months.

In the end, writers who do not yet have a following must write for themselves, write as well as they can. All the rest is largely out of our control and unpredictable. I wouldn't change the premise or the subplot just because one of the gatekeepers says so. g.

Honalo · Feb 14, 2008

I agree with Qui. You're very close.

It is an invite to send in the next manuscript and extremely encouraging - providing said agent thinks there's a market for any subsequent books you may send over.

It's frustrating - but you've got someone who loves your writing. I think that's a good start.

Cranky · Feb 14, 2008

Pike said:
It is depressing but at the same time it pits us against ourselves to push the envelope. I'm starting to look into stories and concepts that i might not have even considered just a few years ago. I find that I've been hobbling my creativity by sticking to what i felt comfortable with and that, for me, has been a mistake. I can't speak for eveyone but I believe that we have to step it up and annihilate (thanks Tri!) our own standards as well as the slush pals.

Stomp on the competition? I know it sounds horrible. I don't mean to sound callous or flippant like "I'm better and screw you" because I have no illusions about that. I read quite a lot of outstanding work on these boards and am constantly impressed, and propelled to work my ass off to do better. But we are fighting against other writers - and presumably others here on the boards - to get into print. We have to out do each other in order to succeed. Ugly but true.

I was reading a writer's blog this morning that said the same basic thing: there's a lot of competitors out there so get it in gear and shine brighter then them all! My hope is that all of you find your place in the sun, but it's not going to come without a lot of sticky obstacles and serious let downs. Until then, good luck and good writing!

Pike

I haven't had the guts (or the material) to submit yet, but even I am feeling the same pressures. It's a brutal way to think, as I don't want to "crush" other people...I just want to be awesome on my own, lol. If you see what I mean.

That said, these pressures are a net good, in my view. I like the idea of pushing the envelope, of trying to twist an idea so hard that it just blows you away. I would love to write something that made people go, "Damn, I wish I'd written that." Not because the writing is so perfect, necessarily, but because the idea is that great.

I admire people who can be that creative and still pull off a novel that's an enjoyable read.

Good luck, btw, to the OP. That sounds like a "wonderful" rejection! Sounds to me like it's only a matter of time, so just keep pushing.

Phaeal · Feb 14, 2008

I've had a couple of these nice rejections. They hurt even more than the impersonal ones, because they whisper to us: Yes, you're good. You're very, very good. But due to factors beyond your control, we're not taking you on. There's not much worse than feeling helpless.

On the other hand, you did impress at least one reader, and in a big way. So your work is a success! Put a little celebration into that bout of merlot-swigging, along with the angst-festing.

If I were to get a letter like this, I'd bust my head on the MS to see if the agent was right about the "subplot" and premise. If I could see my way to a workable revision, I'd immediately write back to the agent and say thanks for the advice, I'm on it right now.

If you don't think the agent is right, if her hints are untakeable, I'd at least write back and thank her for the encouragement. Keep that door open between you!

If you have something suitable for her ready to submit, get it in the mail yesterday! If you have a project underway that could interest her, write her and let her know you're working on it.

It looks to me like this agent is pulling for you to take just a few more steps.

Congrats!

Spiral Stairs · Feb 15, 2008

I just got a brief but nice rejection from McSweeney's Internet Tendency on a short piece. I don't feel dejected about it -- in part because I see the truth in the rejection. (He said my piece is "too rooted in short fiction" for the site, although it was "an enjoyable read." I'll gladly take the latter as a compliment and the former is probably true.)

Personally, I like "nice" rejections MUCH more than forms. The forms leave me fantasizing about the editor (or agent) sitting around saying "My god, the gall of this guy to send us this garbage! Let's not expend a solitary precious moment with a personal response."

Give me certainty over uncertainty any day.

Nakhlasmoke · Feb 15, 2008

I got a nice rejection. It was really enthusiastic about my writing, but the idea was a little weird for said agent. On the upside. Agent A did pass the manuscript on to Agent B at same agency, so yeah, I can live with that kind of rejection.

Plus Agent A gave me some super advice, so that was cool too.

arkady · Feb 18, 2008

GJB said:
Janet Evanovich was quoted as saying she queried every agent in NYC four times before one of them took her on...

[...snip...]

GJB is correct, I'm afraid. Talent, perseverance and luck are the three factors needed to get published, and we only have control over the first two.

KikiteNeko · Feb 27, 2008

I know it's devastating, but many agents don't even go to the trouble of responding personally. I think you should keep this agent in your phone list and contact him/her with future problems. Or, if you're feeling persistent, contact that agent and ask if he/she would be willing to work with you to make the story marketable. It's a longshot but hey.

Getting the NICEST Rejections still means no, thank you....

KTC

Stand in the Place Where You Live

Qui

GJB

Oh, what a ride

Honalo

Cranky

Phaeal

Whatever I did, I didn't do it.

Spiral Stairs

Nakhlasmoke

yes

arkady

KikiteNeko

.