It's Out of My Hands (For Now)

It's official: on Friday at about 1:38 in the afternoon, we submitted Slide and our application for the Nicholl Fellowship. We feel we've submitted the best version of that screenplay that we could, and I guess that's all we can hope to do.

Now we wait. With something over 5000 applications for the Fellowship, it takes months for them all to be read, so we're not complaining. It's a great thing to know that our entry will be read at least once.

Here's the basic timeline for notification:
Quarterfinals: mid-July
Semifinals: August/September
Finals: October
Winners: November

In the meantime, back to work on The Pirate's Bride, and time to start work on our new screenplay, Come Dancing. It should keep our minds off things.

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.

Could It Be? Yes, It Could...

Updates, updates, updates.

Sent out the latest agent query for The Long Black Veil.

Completed the initial edit of Slide. Need to re-read it tomorrow and check accuracy, consistency, spelling, format, etc. Closing in on done, though.

Started the application for the Nicholl Fellowship (which I have been misspelling up to now). Doesn't appear to be terribly hard to get the basic information submitted properly. All online, due no later than 11:59 PM on May 1st. (I thought it was May 3rd; glad I double-checked.)

It's good to have things in motion.

Restaurant Haiku

Burger King's on fire.

I can hear The King screaming.

You want fries with that?

~ Bill Gibson & Bobbi L'Huillier

A Little Less Conversation, A Little More Action

Argh. Spent Tuesday editing and rewriting 65 pages of the Slide screenplay, for a total of 86 pages DONE (out of the latest count of 105).

BUT... Hit a big snag. Have one major bit left to amend, and we're just not sure how to do it so that it

• Doesn't add too much extraneous material; and
• We don't end up "telling" instead of "showing" the action.

The application MUST be postmarked no later than 5/3/09. And I haven't fully read the application materials yet. And it's already 4/9/09.

So why the hell am I wasting time blogging?

Counting All My Blessings

So many reasons to be thankful...

March coming to a close.

Great friends who provided incredibly useful feedback on the Slide screenplay.

The possibilities of a new house.

The extended network of friends all over the country who are always so supportive.

The five kitties and the puppy.

The family members who offer their expertise and tremendous wit in equal measure.

The chance to get to know Dad again.

The way Jeannine, William and I work so well with one another, whether we're on vacation or buying a house together.

Time Tells Everything, Given Time

Not writing much here, but writing elsewhere...

Spent a few days in Dover, Delaware, marking the first anniversary of my mother's death by playing the slot machines at Dover Downs and hanging out with J and W. A strange tribute, some might say, but Mom would have loved that place. And Rehobeth Beach was gorgeous even in March.

Spent the past week or so editing the screenplay for Slide -- first to get it ready for a reading with our great group of friends, and following the feedback from the reading, to prepare the script for the Nichols Fellowship application due by May 3rd. We fully expect not to receive the fellowship, but the act of faith committed in trying for it is a good, good thing.

Holding off on sending to a new agent just now... the time doesn't feel quite right yet. Soon, I hope. By the by, should any of you have contacts in the literary/publishing field, we have no qualms about begging for your assistance. Just let us know you're willing to be groveled to.

And finally, we're house-hunting again. Fascinating stuff. May have found a place we like, though not certain yet. That too will come in time, no doubt.

Why I Love to Read Crap Books

Just finished one last night in fact. Oddly enough, just after I bought the crap book (used), I was flipping through channels and discovered it had been made into a Lifetime movie. You know, Lifetime... Television for Victims.

So why did I enjoy reading the crap book that (no doubt) got made into a crap movie?

'Cuz it gives me hope. The Long Black Veil is not the great American novel, but it ain't crap either.

Wahoo!

Make That a 2-fer

Got the first contact rejection of the year today; a brief but very nice response from the agent who doesn't feel the manuscript (The Long Black Veil) is right for her list.

I hope that's not code for "your writing sucks big time", but if it is, at least she put it nicely.

And at least she responded.

Guess it's time to go for the hat trick...

Maybe Monday.

We're Thinking of Getting Him A Car

Our Maine Coon cat, Jake, turns 16 today. I was in college and broke when I drove to Copenhagen, NY, to get him as a gift for Jeannine on her 25th birthday. We like to say he's a gift that keeps on giving.

We drove him cross-country (with 2 other cats -- Dauntless and Harry) to Oklahoma City when we moved there from Watertown, NY; and we drove him back eight years later with three other cats (Yuri, Fox and the Monkey) when we moved from OKC to Rochester, NY. He's been a faithful friend, always quick to come see what's wrong if any of us is upset, or happy to bitch at us when we're not doing what he wants.

He has a thousand nicknames, or somewhere in that neighborhood: Jacob, Yakov, Grape Ape, Poopoo-Lala (his Indian name), Rodan, Yar, Lion King, the Dragon, the Pooh, Mr. Poopoo, and on and on. And songs. You don't want to hear the songs, trust me. Well, maybe one...

I love the Poopoo-Lala

I love the Poopoo true

I love that Poopoo-Lala

Oh, Poopoo I love you!

Happy birthday, Poopoo-Lala!

Circling

Since deciding to chuck the traditional workforce for writing full-time, I think I've developed ADD or ADHD or whatever the hell one fits. My symptoms include an inability to keep my posterior in the chair for more than a few minutes (unless I'm playing an online game or Spider Solitaire) when I'm actually trying to, oh, you know, WRITE.

I never used to be like this: I used to be able to concentrate for hours on whatever I happened to be working on. And I used to be largely indistractable: for example, I used to do homework in front of the T.V., sometimes with music playing simultaneously, and usually with my parents fighting in the background. And in spite of missing a minimum of 36 days of school each year, I still made good grades -- 37th in a class of 250 in high school, magna cum laude in college in a 3-year accelerated program. Imagine what I might have done if I had actually applied myself!

I don't say any of this to boast; I say it with a deep mourning for what used to be. Nowadays, I have to write a few words,then get up and sweep the floor; write a few more words, then go get a drink; write a little more... you get the picture.

Oddly enough, though, I'm still making progress. At least there's that.

Ambition Can Creep As Well As Soar

In some magazine or another that I was reading on the plane as I came back from North Carolina, Amy Tan said that she was a "late bloomer" because she didn't publish The Joy Luck Club until she was 37.

Wow. That only gives me 7 months to meet Amy's deadline.

Fortunately, I'm not as enamored of (or cowed by) a devotion to youth culture and its illusionary definition of success. I haven't forgotten that Richard Adams didn't publish Watership Down until he was in his fifties; Laura Ingalls Wilder didn't publish The Little House series until she was in her sixties. Likewise, Raymond Chandler didn't publish his first short story until he was 45, and his first published novel, The Big Sleep, didn't appear until he was 51.

Of course, Richard, Laura, and Ray all had their breakthroughs more than 35 years ago when America at large clung a little less to the definition of youth being an essential component of success.

I'd better get cracking.

In Like A Lion...

Back after a busy week-and-a-half with much accomplished, including the Jean-Marie Memorial Garage Sale. It was huge and messy and pretty successful, and now there's a lot more room in this old house.

Lots of ideas percolating too, including the continuation of The Pirate's Bride and an idea for a memoir (thank you, Jennifer, for the original suggestion). Tentative title: The Fred & Jean Show. Mom and Dad continue to loom large within the blurry lines of fiction and nonfiction.

Let's see what happens next.

Stop Worrying Where You're Going... Move On

Finally, FINALLY getting some work done this week. It feels good.

Need to dig out Slide and get to work on that too.

One small step for me & Jeannine, one giant step for... well, me & Jeannine, I guess. Maybe you too if you like the stories we tell.

Success Is Like Failure, It's How You Perceive It...

It was a successful weekend, I think; I succeeded in surprising my husband with a weekend "away" at a hotel downtown. It was nice not to have to drive too far to get where we wanted to be.

The success of the weekend led to a discussion with my dear husband about success in general. What is success? Public recognition? Making a lot of money at something? Having your name on the side of a building?

I don't feel as if I'm having much success these days, at least not professionally. Then again, what is success? Is it just making money, or is it doing what you want to do? I am doing what I want to do, for sure. But is that enough? And does wanting both kinds of success asking too much?

Anyway, it was a lovely weekend with my Valentine.

Think Pink

This does not appear to be much of a writing week... considering that I haven't written anything, that may be an understatement.

It is, however, a week for planning. Planning is good, and I'm hell at it. Planning of Valentine's Day surprises, for one... and family vacations for another. Oh, and Oscar parties, too. And the next agent contact, for sometime next week. No word from the last agent contact, so time to move on.

And maybe... just maybe... I'm planning the next chapter of the book. That would be righteous.

Asking the Universe Part 2

Had to take a break to help some family members last week, but here I am again. And I'm borrowing from an old post format, although the goal this time is somewhat different, so read on...

Wanted: 1 agent (male or female) skilled at shepherding novels and screenplays to critical and financial publishing/production success. Race/religion/location not important but a strong sense of ethics is necessary.

Must have: Book industry contacts; ability to strike and complete lucrative deals; tact; concern for clients; fairness; great communication skills; commitment to assisting clients that he/she believes in; faith in LBV and in our other projects.

Would prefer: A sense of humor; tenacity; moderate politics; an interest in a long-term agent/client relationship.

Must like: Strong women; big dreams.

Must not: Give up easily; take more than his/her share.

Dealbreakers: Dismissiveness; greed; lying.

In return: We offer a mainstream, literary and plot-driven novel, marketable to both men and women, particularly those interested in America's Civil Rights Era. The Long Black Veil, our first novel, recently took second place in the national Xerox Aspiring Authors competition judged by Emily Chenoweth, fiction editor for Publishers Weekly, and Maureen Corrigan, NPR’s book critic. Ms. Chenoweth described The Long Black Veil as “a well-conceived, carefully imagined melodrama [that is] poignant and suspenseful…” and said “[r]eading The Long Black Veil was an absolute pleasure.”

Professionally edited and completed manuscript available upon request. All serious requests considered.

Just Pick A Direction

I've been working on The Pirate's Bride at all hours of the day and night, mostly 'cuz I can't seem to sleep normal hours.

I've also been working on the synopsis for The Long Black Veil... which is to say, I have a synopsis already, I'm just not sure it's quite right, so I'm rewriting it.

And of course, I've been working on the query letter, too. We sent one, but if we hear nothing (as we've done so far... I know, not quite a week, but I'm impatient), then I'll feel compelled to tweak it before we send the next one.

And now I'm working on the screenplay of LBV. Again, I have one written, but I made at least 50 edits so far in just the first 15 pages.

All of which is to say that I'm working, I'm just not sure I'm making an progress.

I think I might need to get out more... just maybe not at 4 AM.

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.

Hope