We need a rejection bell

Paul Whybrow

Coincidence

  • Paul Whybrow
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Marc Joan

Latvia, I feel for you..

  • Marc Joan
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Robinne Weiss said:
Ding! Short story rejection! I'm so pleased they aren't the novel! Wow! I should send out lots of short stories and poems! ;)
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Getting tons of rejections is all proof of being a writer. It builds up your hide to rhinoceros thickness, so you can take anything.

o-RHINOCEROS-facebook.jpg
 
My goodness, someone has spray-painted graffiti on that rhino! Also, he is funny because he looks like he is wearing short-pants.
 
WE'RE GOING TO CANDY MOUNTAIN, CHARLIE... CHARRRRRRRLIEEEEEE....
Hahaha... oh it's been years since I last saw that, thank you...
 
I'm actually quite happy to have rejections coming in, because it means I've been querying, which means I have pieces that are finished. I decided at the beginning of the year that I WOULD publish something in 2016, and this is the beginning of my query blitz. If all else fails, I have a novel that I think is probably perfect for self-pub--it's got a niche market that I'm very well connected to--so if I don't tempt an agent with it in the next couple of months, I'll just dive into the self-pub world with it.
 
Life has been hectic and I've been slack on submissions. I really need to push that again ;)
 
When looking for that photo of a rhinoceros, I noticed in Google Images a lot of shots of plastic toy rhinos on keyboards—writers evidently feel an affinity with this well-armoured beast!

This rather makes me wonder what animals symbolise literary agents and book publishers....

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Lex Black said:
*((GONG))*

Somehow got a rejection today from a company I don't even remember submitting to. My records say it was sent in September, which I thought was after I had given up.

Now they make you wait almost half a year before telling you to f*ck off. I so hate this industry.
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Yeah, I got a couple this week from back in July, and had to laugh. Like, "no sh*t you're gonna have to pass!"
 
Lex Black said:
5D6 months
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I got 16! :D (https://www.random.org/dice/)

Not to make light of your point, but I'm guessing that reviewing new manuscripts from writers falls to the bottom of their project list. I know that at my workplace, new projects take a long time to actually get off of the ground, with most of the attention being paid to the ones already being worked on (or ones that are derivative/a direct result of a previous project). To that end, it makes sense that they're probably paying as little attention as they can manage to new stuff coming in.

Of course, that means that if they do only read the first page/paragraph/sentence of something, they might be missing out (and I'll define "they" broadly because I'm assuming that if I submit my MS to 100 agents, that most might discard it within the first page for some specific reason). Beyond that, I really think it comes down to what we've been discussing in the "What to do if you can't get an agent" thread. Market saturation is making it nearly impossible to take part in the publishing industry unless you have the next big blockbuster. Before long, an author will probably have to go the route of self publishing because the major houses will only want to bring on the next Rowling or Martin.
 
I submitted solidly for the first seven months of 2014, sending off about 160 queries for my first novel to literary agents and publishers who had a brief open submissions window. That was all I did, carefully researching the lives and likes of individual agents to ensure that I chose the best one for my psychological thriller. This joyless quest took up so much time that I neglected creative writing, and I felt about as happy as if I was getting up to go and work mixing wallpaper paste every day.

I received 60 replies, with the quickest taking only a few hours and the slowest 22 weeks. Most of these were form letters, though six agents took the time to write a personalised reply which actually contained some useful advice; all of these were small agencies who value engaging with their clients. I was more impressed with them than the meat-grinding response from huge publishing corporations, so will be submitting my new novel to them first.

My biggest mistake was that my first novel was simply too long for a debut work by an unknown author, something I'm mindful of as I write my WIP.

The aggravating importance given to the opening of a story has been discussed in previous threads. I think it's nuts that a whole book is judged by the first chapters or pages, or even sentences, but if that's the way of the world then we need to jump through the hoop. All the same, it feels as daft as choosing a car by how much you like the look of the radiator grill and mascot, rather than how the whole vehicle performs.

What particularly bewilders me about the disproportionate importance given to a book's opening is that I've never ever chosen what to read in this way! I appreciate that you don't want to put your reader off with a tedious or distasteful opening, but surely modern readers have some patience to give a story a chance to hook them. Personally, I choose novels by the reviews I've read of them, familiarity with the author and whether the subject matter appeals. The only time that I dip into the text is if the story is part of a long series, and I want to see if I recognise the plot.

One of the best books on this subject is the always excellent Noah Lukeman's The First Five Pages

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/263254.The_First_Five_Pages
 
Okay. I just want to tell you all this so you understand that even published authors get rejected.

I wrote a short story for an anthology that Evernight has put out calls for. It's something I've never written before called dark romance. I thought I understood it. I did not. LOL!! The story was rejected for the anthology, but I did receive a ton of notes from their acquisitions editors on revising it for a regular submission.

I will be expanding the story (the antho had a word count cap and it was hard for me to resolve the arcs within it anyway) and using what I've now learned about writing dark romance, and will be doing a series or two soon.

But yes, I got a rejection. :) It happens to all of us, so keep your heads up and your fingers typing. :)
 
Carol Rose said:
Okay. I just want to tell you all this so you understand that even published authors get rejected.

I wrote a short story for an anthology that Evernight has put out calls for. It's something I've never written before called dark romance. I thought I understood it. I did not. LOL!! The story was rejected for the anthology, but I did receive a ton of notes from their acquisitions editors on revising it for a regular submission.

I will be expanding the story (the antho had a word count cap and it was hard for me to resolve the arcs within it anyway) and using what I've now learned about writing dark romance, and will be doing a series or two soon.

But yes, I got a rejection. :) It happens to all of us, so keep your heads up and your fingers typing. :)
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I like this — certainly not because you were rejected, but for the sentiments you offer; it's something that we've all heard very often — rejections are integral to an author's life. Accept it as a normal part of your existence.
 
Ask not for whom the bell tolls...it tolls for you, you lousy writer! *sigh* Three rejections in the past two days, for three different pieces. One, at least, was personalised and very encouraging.
 
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Paul Whybrow

Coincidence

  • Paul Whybrow
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Marc Joan

Latvia, I feel for you..

  • Marc Joan
  • Replies: 7
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