"Waiting For Someday"... and Still Waiting

My latest project is about a 38-year-old woman who has been diagnosed with a terminal disease.  A real feel-good novel, ya know?

The premise was based upon my own childhood friendship. We lived in the same apartment building from age 10 to 16. Then my BFF did something CRAY-CRAY:  she got married at age 16.

Lots of real-life situations in this project  –– especially regarding estrangement (my friend and I went separate ways (only to reconnect 20 years later). 

Querying this project has not been as successful as I'd hoped.  I believe the subject matter is a "Debbie-downer" for a lot of people.  There's a silver lining at the end of this story, but getting a full request from an agent hasn't been easy.  Only two full requests and one partial request thus far (which have all crashed and burned).

During this process, I met a someone online through the QueryTracker.net forum who also writes women's fiction. Okay, and this is weird: we share the SAME birthday.  *cue Twilight Zone music* She has a query that rocks and has had multiple full requests for her project.  Just based on her query alone, I would buy the book if I saw it in a store, so she has a lot going for her.
Recently, we decided to read and critique each other's projects. 


*************
STOP.

We interrupt this program to announce that critiquing her novel is no longer necessary.  She has been offered representation by a New York agent. 

We now return to a jaded view of publishing, already in progress...
*************


Yay for my critiquing partner (seriously, way to go Susan Gloss)!   *WhiteGardenia sniffs, feeling uber sorry for herself*

I will continue to query this project, but in the mean time, on to the next idea.

"LOW Profiles," HIGH Word Count

Another project in my head: "Low Profiles," a suspense/thriller. Low Profiles was an attempt at writing a story completely from imagination and not based on personal experiences. I had no idea about serial murderers, organized crime, nor the FBI, but research on these subjects helped me to shape my idea into a story.

It wasn't until after I finished my first draft that I discovered that my word count was almost 150,000! WAY too long for a never-before-published novelist.

I was able to trim it down to 135,000 words and decided to start my journey into publication. Time to learn the ropes.

Now, to find an agent...

I put together a "query letter." I had no idea what that was until I started reading the Internet for pointers on getting published. After composing the letter (which would ultimately be changed 8 times during the evolution of submitting to agents), I found a wonderful website that specializes on tracking submissions to agents all over the U.S. (and beyond), QueryTracker.net. I researched 20 agents who represented the suspense/thriller genre and snail-mailed my query to them.

After a week, a few rejection letters reached my mailbox. I realized this wasn't going to be a slam dunk.

Two days later, I received an email, requesting my full manuscript.

WHAAAAAAT?

Oh my God, an agent wants to read MY manuscript? I was stoked. The agent interested in Low Profiles wanted an exclusive read for 30 days. Okay. I sent it off to the agent.

Geez, what if I get another request within the exclusive 30-day period?

Pfft. Didn't happen. I waited a month, then another 2 weeks before contacting the agent with my full manuscript. I didn't want to sound anxious--or even worse, pushy--but I was curious to know what he thought since the 30-day period had expired and then some. The agent replied to my email: he couldn't open the Word doc file I'd sent to him... He asked for a .pdf version.

After waiting another 30 days with no response, doubt crept in. If he liked it, wouldn't he have contacted me by now? Was it too long? Was it boring? Was it crap?

I sent an email to the agent. No response. I sent another email a few days after that. No response. Then I sent an email to the agent's assistant. No response. Huh? What the heck? I asked around on a few forums if anyone knew what was going on with that agency. No one knew. I had all but given up hope.

If I can't get an agent to return my emails, how will our relationship be once I sign a contract with that agent?

Now that my feet were wet, I moved on to a new project. Low Profiles will have to sit for a while.

"Until It's Gone" is well...Gone (for now)

Although I have been writing for many years, it was only a few months ago that I got the "courage" to pursue publication.  Thoughts such as "Do I have a good plot?" and "Is my novel really good enough to be published?" crossed my mind, but I was up to the challenge. 

My writing style seems to be that of imagining scenes and conversations in my head, copying down the ideas on paper (on some occasions, spiral notebooks while I drown myself in coffee at a local cafe) or on my laptop, then piecing everything together.  There was no real structure, no outline.  I guess you could say I was writing off the cuff and I was quite disorganized!

It was time to put the puzzle together and fill in the missing pieces to the story. 

One such project-in-my-head, "Until It's Gone," began as a cathartic endeavor. But as the story progressed, I wondered if could indeed complete a novel, start to finish.  The story was a reflection of one woman's fear of losing her husband to a younger woman.  A lot of personal experience helped me along in the set up, with a worst-case scenario turn of events that evolved from my imagination (simply because my husband had not left me for a younger woman!). 

After I finished the first draft, it felt good.  I stood tall, as if atop Mount Everest, beating my chest:  "Me-Write-Novel."  Okay, so I'm no Stephen King or Nicholas Sparks by any means, but I achieved my goal. And writing a complete novel is quite a feat (try it if you dare, and you'll see what I mean).

I had no real idea of manuscript formatting, and I remember numerous trips to Barnes and Noble in the publishing section, taking down notes from many "how to" books.  Double space, New Times Roman, 12-pt type, 1-inch margins, etc.

Okay, I could do this.

I had originally typed each chapter of my novel as a separate document in MS Word and I had to print everything out and piece the manuscript together in a fatty 3-ring binder just for a beta reader (who preferred reading on paper rather than electronic means.  The print-out was a beast.  After two beta readers' comments/suggestions/criticisms, I moved on to a new, upbeat project.  Until It's Gone was put into a deep sleep... 

Contest Time!

Contest time!



Check this out...:


http://we-do-write.blogspot.de/2012/05/three-two-one-pitch-contest.html


...and wish me luck!

Writing Contest 2012

Awesome writing contest coming up on June 7th.  Check it out:


http://we-do-write.blogspot.de/2012/05/three-two-one-pitch-contest.html

Are Blogs a Form of Narcissism?

I've often wondered if blogs are an expression of self-love, a means of speaking your mind and then relishing your own words.

Perhaps if we offer some words of wisdom, some tidbit of useful information for others, that may combat the narcissistic label?

Hmm...

Let me start by offering some words of wisdom so I may relieve my burden of sounding narcissistic.

A quote:

"

"Writing is the only profession where no one considers you ridiculous if you earn no money." ~ Jules Renard


Okay, now I feel better.  I am cleansed, guilt free, ready to blog.