The Next Circle of Hell, Vol. 2

Goddammit, is it book fair season already??!! I swear it feels like publishing grinds to a halt half the year. Didn't we JUST come out of the holiday slump? Bwaaaahhh! Sorreh, can anyone tell I've just been spending my time waiting and twiddling my thumbs?

Linnet - Editor comments for me have ranged pretty wildly from the vague "Just didn't fall in love with it", to specific "I didn't like that the MC cheated during her test" or "I didn't buy the concept of the guy doing X". I would say most are specific, and they're all pretty contradictory.

Linnet, I didn't really have detailed feedback. My agent said that she doesn't really like to mention specific feedback unless if it pops up again and again which might show an issue with the story. The vague feedback I did get was contradictory, so that just shows it's all down to opinion. So I think it's up to you and your agent to decide how this will work. All agents work differently!

But yes, it's book fair season! I'm wondering if this means I'll get an influx of rejections/interest this week as editors may want to clear their desks before they head off to Bologna? Or maybe it will be the opposite and they'll be too busy to do any reading? I just don't know, but my agent said it could go either way. As with pretty much EVERYTHING in this industry, you just don't know! Haha!

If I was an editor attending Bologna I'd personally stall committing to anything I'd been sent previously, with the attitude that I don't know what I'm going to find at Bologna, but I can also see why editors would want to clear their desks... which isn't helpful! So yeah, could go either way. What I do know was I sent my former agent a complete MS about three weeks before Bologna last year and agent didn't read it before going - too busy - and then took about two months afterwards to get back to me on it. So although everything may not stall next week, we can quite probably expect it to stall in the coming weeks. This may well not apply to pre-existing subs, though, especially if an agent has given editors a deadline to reply.

When on sub I have to say I tended not to get hugely detailed feedback (that was relayed to me by agent, anyway) but I would imagine not everything that was said by editors was passed on to me. Agent only tended to raise the negatives when they were either a) similar, meaning there was a problem with something or b) wildly divergent, to show how subjective the industry is. So, again, basically the two ends of the spectrum!

It's such an uncertain time... but I feel like life is pretty uncertain as a wannabe published author! Haha! We should be used to this by now. I was hoping editors would have wanted to read as many subs as possible in the hopes of picking up some gems before Bologna. Not that I'm saying my book is a gem, but hopefully some editors will think it is!

Also, RaggyCat, I just followed you on twitter. Hope you don't mind!

leewhowrites said:

It's such an uncertain time... but I feel like life is pretty uncertain as a wannabe published author! Haha! We should be used to this by now. I was hoping editors would have wanted to read as many subs as possible in the hopes of picking up some gems before Bologna. Not that I'm saying my book is a gem, but hopefully some editors will think it is!

Also, RaggyCat, I just followed you on twitter. Hope you don't mind!

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Someone will think your book is a gem - they just don't know it yet! With my first book the editor who loved it and offered didn't even look at it until after the deadline, and of course I had been interpreting her lack of response as lack of interest. It all comes down to them being just so very busy. Either way, I'm sure your agent will mention your book to a few more editors at the fair if she is going, so that might create a nice bit of pressure to make the original set of editors get back to you quickish.

Not at all - I will follow you back!

Ooh, did you have a deadline? My agent didn't set a deadline for expression of interest or anything, which I know she has done for another of her authors. So with these book fairs, is it possible that the book will sell AT the book fair, or is it just somewhere for editors to try and sell foreign right etc for books that they've already acquired?

And thank you!

leewhowrites said:

Ooh, did you have a deadline? My agent didn't set a deadline for expression of interest or anything, which I know she has done for another of her authors. So with these book fairs, is it possible that the book will sell AT the book fair, or is it just somewhere for editors to try and sell foreign right etc for books that they've already acquired?

And thank you!

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Former Agent gave the editors a deadline of a month to get back with expressions of interests, but did that knowing it was likely to take longer - a) because Christmas was looming and b) because interested agents need time to gather internal support from an MS. Agent felt a deadline helped focus the editors, but equally when two asked for more time was happy to give it. The downside of a deadline is that editors could start to feel pressured and reject a MS just to get it off their desks, of course. I'd imagine your agent chose not to set a deadline because of the fair, but I could be wrong. Either way, I'm sure she knows what she's doing!

From my understanding Bologna has quite a broad remit. I know sometimes books are sold there, but I don't think it's super common (someone will correct me if I'm wrong) because editors simply won't have time to read a full MS at the fair, which I certainly know I would want to do before committing! I know former agent used the fair to gather interest in books she had upcoming from her authors by delivering short pitches to editors, and then would report interest or not back from the authors. I get the impression the bulk of deals are done in the weeks after, when editors have a chance to read MSs and have a greater idea of what's coming. For example, they might have three MSs pitched to them about a certain topic they're keen to release a book on, but want to look at them all before deciding. I also know my publishing house got expressions of interest for their titles from overseas publishers and followed them up afterwards.

I don't know any more than that, really, but I'm sure your agent will ask the editors who have your book how they're getting on with it (if they're all there, of course!).

Hugs to everybody on the receiving end of rejections

A lot of my rejections have seemed contradictory, but then when I stepped back and looked at the big picture, there were specific threads woven through all of them. It took a good amount of time and perspective to be able to see that. For example, in the previous incarnation of my book (before the scrap and rewrite) the thing editors commented on the most were my two best friend characters, though a lot of the actual feedback didn't match up. In my last revision, I combined those two characters and was sort of horrified by how easy it was because they were serving the same purpose, yet with half the emotional connection with the MC because they had to share it. Is it better now? Who even knows, but I hope so. Anyway, my thinking is that if a certain thing keeps coming up, regardless of how it's actually expressed, it's something to flag and consider.

Then again, I once had two rejections in the same day, and one said my book lacked a strong sense of setting/place and the other one loved how vivid the setting was, so there's no reading into something like that.

Got the feedback from agent on next book project and it was... not what I'd hoped. She wants me to get a little distance from it and prioritize the thing I just finished the first draft of. I get it, but I'm feeling momentarily heartbroken. I love this little book even more than the one that's currently on sub and could picture it getting picked up, but I'm also not the expert and am just too close to it right now. Onward with edits of new thing. Hope that agent likes this better, or this might mark the end of this relationship

((((HUGS POLISH))))

This seems to be happening to a lot of writers around me lately, where their agent is not enthusiastic about their new project and it's heartbreaking. I'm waiting for my agent to get back to me about my new book and I am terrified of this.

It's so astonishing and sad, I hope you take some time to just let yourself be upset. Distance is definitely good but also just ugh. There is nothing that makes that situation better. Just get through it as best you can.

Niiicola - That thing about feedback that seems contradictory but actually isn't makes so much sense. I always ask myself that question too...are they basically being bothered different symptoms caused by the same problem? Of course, my inner editor would immediately go, "Yes, the problem is YOU SUCK."

Polish - Oh nooo. Fuck, I'm so sorry to hear that, Polish. I've been there, and it truly is heartbreaking. Have you had beta readers for the MS? What is it that your agent didn't like about it?

Ooh, Polish, that's painful, especially if you weren't expecting it. Take heart, though - agent sounds like she is keen for you to work on something else, so although it hurts, that does sound constructive. What was it your agent didn't like? Is it something you can see yourself working on or do you sense it isn't worth it?

This situation happened to me last year with former agent. Agent didn't like my new book (despite making promising noises when I shared early chapters). We discussed it on the phone, and agreed on some changes I could make, which ended up in me rewriting about 60% of the book. I felt pretty positive, telling myself that I'd fixed the things agent didn't like, but... guess what, agent still didn't like it. Clearly it was a project agent was never going to get behind - which I wish I'd known earlier! Needless to say I felt pretty low, but as agent had loved the first three chapters of my new project - and said they were the strongest thing I'd ever written - I shelved old project and finished the new one instead. But, guess, what, agent didn't like it, so I decided to leave.

Anyway. I'm sure it won't come to this with you, as your agent does seem to want you to focus on something else. But I wanted to say, an agent having a surprising response is not uncommon.The trick is to try and understand very clearly why, and get an agent to be clear on whether or not they feel positively about a project early on. Else it's a waste of everyone's time.

So nice to come back to all of your comments. Thank you guys-- it really helps.
Specifically, when I revised this book I cut down the POVs from 3 to 1 on her suggestion (which was a good one) and now she's worried that this 1 POV isn't as consistent or strong as it needs to be, which would be an overarching, tone-based issue in the whole book. I reread the letter after taking a deep, deep breath, and feel less defensive. My betas didn't see this as an issue and generally liked the main character, but they aren't the ones who have to sell my book. I don't feel like she's saying "never", but I do see it as prioritizing the next thing, which I literally have NO clue if she'll like because it's a bit of a different genre (although she was supportive in the pitch, so we'll see...). She hasn't seen word one of that yet, so it might be a very interesting Spring here.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Raggy Cat. It's really helpful to hear about all possible scenarios.
(off to buy a chocolate bar)

polishmuse said:

Got the feedback from agent on next book project and it was... not what I'd hoped. She wants me to get a little distance from it and prioritize the thing I just finished the first draft of. I get it, but I'm feeling momentarily heartbroken. I love this little book even more than the one that's currently on sub and could picture it getting picked up, but I'm also not the expert and am just too close to it right now. Onward with edits of new thing. Hope that agent likes this better, or this might mark the end of this relationship

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Just went through this exact thing, and I was very down on myself and writing for about a month. Now I'm being read by new agents and it is rejuvenating. I recommend taking time to reflect on the relationship with your agent. Ultimately, I told myself it would not be fair to me or my book to just move on to the next project because one agent didn't like it. You may have to make the same choice. Not an easy thing to do.

Thanks for the advice on editor feedback, everyone - sounds like it varies. I'm prepared for a lot of contradictory responses, as that's what happened for this MS at the querying stage too...

Polish - Oh no! That sucks. I'm afraid of the same thing, as my WIP is a complete 180 from the last one. Oh well, just have to keep on writing and see what happens, I suppose.

I also got a disappointing email from my agent today in which he didn't like my older manuscript (it's already been on submission twice, so I totally get that he wouldn't want to invest more time in it, but it's still very disappointing since it's the book of my heart). Though he DID couch this "rejection" by approving my pitch idea for a new YA psych thriller. So I can finally dive into that, and on the side I can brainstorm this YA fantasy that I'm still excited about.

I still haven't replied to my agent yet, though, since I'd like to ask for his blessing to self-publish this older manuscript, but haven't figured out how to ask, or if I should wait until knowing if my book on sub gets a deal or not (but that could be over a year! I want a book out there already!). It's all so complicated.

So, anyway, *solidarity fistbump* with all those whose agents responded negatively to their work! We're not alone.

(((((Polish)))))) ((((((Diana))))))

*Hugs* Polish. I'm really sorry.

In an attempt to cheer up this thread...

An oldie but a good one. Make up an outrageous lie about the previous poster!

I'll start.

MartinaMay owns exactly 12 pairs of shoes, and she rotates wearing them based on the total amount of kilowatts used on her previous month's ComEd bill.

LOL! If they're flip-flops, you could be right. And we have solar panels, so the bill is fairly low.

Sorry to hear about the responses from agents on new books, folks. Don't worry, I'm not far from having the same thing done to me, I'm sure, once I wrap this Weird Western up.

Have you guys ever been to a book fair? They seem pretty fun, but I've never had the opportunity to attend one.

I'm in a similar position, revisiting some old books that I want to go on sub with when I'm all done with book 3 of my 3-book deal. I sent an E-mail to my agent about it and hoped for enthusiasm but no response for a while -_-

It's a busy time though, I understand that.

*hugs* Polish. My agent didn't like anything about my third manuscript. It hurts, but I'd rather hear it from her than from 10 Big 5 editors... that's the way I tried to look at it.

Six weeks since I sent my R&R back. I was doing well until recently, when it's started to play on my mind a lot more - probably because I picked up manuscript #4 and started work again. I like #4 a lot, but I still feel like #2 (the R&R) is the best thing I've written. I will be really upset if it doesn't sell.

Bryan, I heard that book fairs are really not fun, though maybe that's because I mostly gravitate to other introverts. By all accounts they are hectic and crammed and nobody really has time to talk much, so unless you have business to conduct it's like being a cow at a cattle market.

diana86, have you thought about asking your agent if you could look for other representation for that one manuscript? I can't remember how it came up, but during The Call my agent said I would have her blessing to do that if she thought she couldn't sell an MS. Or maybe even submitting directly to small presses?

Just a quick one on the subject of the Bologna Book Fair - here's an article with agents (mostly US) talking about trends to watch out for.

I take all of this with a pinch of salt, as ever, but it does seem to echo what I've read elsewhere about MG becoming of more interest.

MG does seem to be the thing now. After the book fair last month, we had the choice of subbing a YA or an MG of mine and agent said everyone wanted MG right now, so that's what we went with. I'm also working on another YA and MG and though she asked me what I wanted to go with next, because she's great like that, she did seem to suggest I veer away from the YA for now.

(((HUGS))) for those who need them!!!! And just keep swimming.