Comments on: What Next?

By: Top Picks Thursday – 13 October, 2011 « The Author Chronicles

Top Picks Thursday – 13 October, 2011 « The Author Chronicles — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 19:15:34 +0000

[...] You get a rejection and…what’s next? [...]

By: Rob Kent

Rob Kent — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 14:14:10 +0000

I wish I had remembered this post a few weeks ago:)

By: Sheryl Gwyther

Sheryl Gwyther — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 20:56:45 +0000

Hahaha, sorry about that, Mary! Yes, it will be a difficult thing to dissect because sometimes there are also differences between books that win awards, and books that are absolutely great reads.

Are the award-winning books usually about something ‘deep and meaningful’? And well-written too, of course.

I suppose what I’m saying is – can a book that is a ‘great read’ but not ‘deep and meaninful’ win awards? From what I’ve seen the later is necessary as well.

By: katie

katie — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 07:56:46 +0000

I think the best advice I ever got from a rejection was an indirect “Start the story where the story starts”- this helped me immensely. Mary’s blog says it here too in her post about book beginnings.

Thermocline and Franziska- I’m with you girls. I never had any patience to begin with. It just doesn’t come naturally to me. BUT, I think querying right away did give me that much needed dose of reality and ever since I’ve been taking it a lot more slowly- making cuts and revisions, writer’s critiquing board, gunineau pig readers, and then testing the waters again to see what happens. Good luck to you both!

By: Marice Kraal

Marice Kraal — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 06:13:07 +0000

Thanks for this post, Mary. As always you give such good, solid advice. I particularly appreciated the advice about approaching a different agent at an agency that I’ve already approached. I learnt a lot about the flaws in my manuscript through the (sob) rejection process and have drastically changed it, but I was terribly worried I had forever blown my chances with those agencies. It sounds like I just have to be a bit patient and then try again later. By then, I might have a new project finished anyway. Your blog always gives encouragement to persist and above all, to improve. Thanks as always!

By: Jeanette@Bliss

Jeanette@Bliss — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 05:17:26 +0000

I have to thank you for sharing your posts on revisions. I just read them and had to laugh out loud about the cookie-dough-scarfing despair because that is exactly where I am right now. Proclaiming that I stink and that I should just give up writing forever (as if that were even an option). Thank you for your words. Everything you said was dead on and it makes me feel better to know that I’m “normal”.
I also appreciated your post on changing a manuscript completely during revisions. That’s what my instincts are telling me to do and it is so helpful to know that my feelings are right and that I’m not making a mistake by basically starting over. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Now I can lay off of the cookie dough and get back to work.

By: Tamara Schmidt

Tamara Schmidt — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 04:30:45 +0000

Thanks for your guidance as we navigate through rough and uncharted waters!
Your answers were extremely helpful in decoding the various aspects of rejection.

By: Rachel Heston Davis

Rachel Heston Davis — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 03:59:23 +0000

Thanks for the post! It is a tough road to be on when you get a bunch of form rejections–you’re not sure what’s wrong, and if all you have sent is a query letter, then you don’t know if it’s your story that’s the problem or the way you’ve done the letter.

As I’m currently waiting to hear back on my ms from an agent who sounds very interested, this was a timely post. Thanks, thanks, and thanks!

Rachel Heston Davis
Up and Writing

By: Krista G.

Krista G. — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 22:28:06 +0000

Good advice, Mary, as always.

And you know, I think our writer’s instinct is a good barometer, too. Deep down, we KNOW when something’s not working with the manuscript, whether we admit it or not. Any agent feedback we might get will probably only confirm what we’ve already been feeling.

That said, personal taste does have a lot to do with it. Everybody brings a different perspective to a reading. That’s why querying widely – but smartly – is always a good idea.

By: Mary

Mary — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:01:44 +0000

Sheryl — Oh god. Uh… selling one’s soul to the devil and some kind of elf magic? But seriously, this is a tough question and I’ll have to think on it. Thanks for putting me firmly between rock and hard place.