The (Publishing) Empire Strikes Back

Well, no, not really... just another rejection letter. This was more of a form than usual, so that was kind of depressing. And really, the whole process is just depressing. 'Tis the season, I suppose.

Last week was a short one, with appointments & other pressures that prevented a full-out writing schedule. Even so, Bride is coming along; 195 pages now (13 pp over 2 weeks) and Meet You on the Other Side now stands at a total of 6 pages. Really struggling with that one... I hope that we can breakthrough to the next level soon where it will take off with a life of its own. It's not the story's fault; we just have to get our heads in the game.

Here's to a better week, with happier outcomes.

Pounding the (Electronic) Pavement

Quick update on The Pirate's Bride: wrote about 10 pages last week, ripped up 2 last night & today, so the page count is up to 174. Having a bit of trouble going forward, mostly because we have too much to say. This is not a bad thing; just have to get my mind organized.

Other news: had two "thanks-but-no-thanks" replies from agents since last week. At least they're quick and generally polite about responding, although one form letter/email left a lot to be desired in terms of both warmth (and more disturbingly) grammar. I think we're glad that agency wasn't interested...

Bless the Internet; it makes this process much easier. In one of our early forays in seeking representation for our screenplays, we created a form letter & inserts, including a response card. We got a lot of (no thanks) responses (not to mention one interested response that in the end we had to pass on because of the problem of retaining the book rights), but it took forever.

Now we can get kicked in the teeth daily, whenever we decide to check our email. Wahoo!

Nah, I don't mean it, not really... We wrote a good book that's worth reading. If you build it, they will come, right?

Cue the Theme Music from "Rocky"

I am not giving up.

Got the latest rejection from an agent today. Boy, they're so nice. I wish they would read the book, but at least they're nice.

I am not giving up.

I read so many books that are truly crap. We have not written the great American novel, but it's entertaining, and it's as good as so much of the stuff that's out there.

I am not giving up.

We will find someone to read this book. They will find someone to publish it. The public will enjoy it. Hollywood will snap it up. The movie will earn everyone money and maybe a few Oscar nominations. We'll keep writing more and let success breed success. We'll help other people be successful.

I am not giving up.

Tomorrow, I will send out the next query letter.

I am not giving up.

I Am I Don Quixote

Received yet another very nice rejection letter, this time from Agent #3. The courtesy that the agents we've contacted have shown is exemplery, and we do appreciate that. I just wish we could get one of them to read the book. I think they would be pleasantly surprised, enough so that they would actually represent us. What the hell are we doing wrong?

I'd hate to think that it's all about who you know, because if it is, we're screwed.

Well... time to keep tilting at windmills.

Doong Sa... Do Not Be Afraid

If you're a John Irving fan, you may recognize that "Doong Sa" is Vietnamese for the second half of this post-title: "Do not be afraid". I assume John got it right; I never checked beause he used the phrase so effectively in A Prayer for Owen Meany that if he did get it wrong, I don't want to know.

Fear is a subject with which I'm intimately acquainted. Blame it on parents with overactive imaginations, or blame it on my own. Chalk it up to pride, of which I have a wide streak. Attribute it to the chaotic world in which we live, where fear is sometimes considered a gift.

The fears I wrestle with most these days have to do with failure. It's the what ifs -- you know them -- what if it's not good enough? What if we never get it sold? What if I'm just a two-bit hack who doesn't write as well as that [insert derogatory comment & expletive here] Diablo Cody? (I hated Juno. Hated it. On multiple levels. And that was before I knew that woman got her start writing a raunchy blog. Not that there's anything wrong with that, I guess, but writers don't get taken seriously as it is. She's not helping.)

But I started this blog to hold myself accountable, so it's time to face my fears. We sent out our first query letter in three years on Wednesday, January 21, 2009. I wasn't going to say anything here, because almost all query letters end in rejection and getting rejected publicly is supposed to be humiliating, right?

Forget that. Instead, I'm going to take advice from -- of all people -- Bob Dylan, who said: "...Experience teaches us that silence terrifies people the most."

So... no more silence. I'll post about the silence of the agents we contact, if that's all we hear from them. And I'll post about the form letters and the no thank yous and the please send some more followed by more silences if that's what we get. Why not?

Doong sa... do not be afraid.