Rejections

I'm with you Penny, though I'm not nearly close to that number. What gets me down is this insistence on researching, personalising the query, and applying to an agent who you think will 'fit' with your personality -- like, HOW? -- and it's all so time consuming only to find it's a rejection. I've rewritten and polished and tweaked and all sorts and I can do NO more with my novel on my own. But perseverance is supposed to pay off, so I will keep chugging.

However, I joined up for the Myslexia Mad Monday thingy the other day which had live Q&A's with agents and eds and gleaned some extremely useful info. Cover letters are extremely important, as we all know, but a few tips I didn't know or hadn't given enough importance to, or are just worth reiterating:

- Good submissions REALLY stand out above the rest (that is almost verbatim from one agent) and will got to the top of the pile. She also said she wants a submission that stops her in her tracks. Can you say your story will do that? (as I fear that is what a lot of agents want and many stories, although well written, are perhaps just not ambitious enough).

-Show you know where your potential audience lies so the agent can identify if it's an area they know/work in, or how they will pitch it to the publisher/reader. THIS SEEMS MASSIVELY IMPORTANT.

- Let them know you are more than just a one trick pony. If you are working on other projects, or have done, say so. Don't pitch them, and you don't need to go into too much detail, but mentioning them indicates you are serious about your writing. Also, ANY other indicators that you are serious (events/retreats you've been to). Those kinds of details will show you are willing to invest in yourself and be a professional, not just a hobby writer or someone hoping to make big bucks with one hit.

- Don't attempt to put your novel into as many genres as possible, it will come across as messy/confused, like you don't know your own book. Choosing a genre seems secondary to knowing what audience might buy your book.

- Agents expect that submissions won't be perfect but as long as they can see you have taken care over making your MS as good as you can and they see its potential, they will be willing to work with you to polish/strengthen it.

- (From an editor at a publishing house) Narrative structure and character are editorial areas that can be worked on and improved but VOICE is too tricky (this is the problem I have, lots of agents saying they can't get behind the voice -- which...?... where do you go from there? Character's voice, author's voice? ??? AnnOYing).

- An observation of my own: One agent mentioned how she ALWAYS reads her own slush pile because assistants can never know exactly what will grab her personal tastes. This stood out to me, and I am now forging ahead with agencies who ONLY read their own submissions, which will be largely boutique agencies, I should think.But anywhere that has assistants/filter readers -- no-no.

- while you are submitting, move onto the next project (yeah, right, like I've got the time with all the agents interviews I'm reading, googling, plus the novels I should be reading to see if I'll fit on their list (I read a book recently by a long standing editor that you should read at least two novels each potential agent has sold. No wonder the process is so slow!). I do also have a family to attend to and a business to run.)

Anyway, those were the details that stood out most to me from all the agents/editors there (and a wee rant, just to get some frustrations off my chest! :D)

Another thing I noticed in other 'research' I've been doing is that agents do not want to receive blanket queries. They want you to know WHY you'll fit in with them and their list. Much of my fiction comes from the old rave scene of the 1990's, so I feel my choices are limited. I can look at the front covers of books on most agencies' websites and get a pretty solid idea if I will fit in with what they like -- flowery covers and 1950s skirts are a big no-no. I'm having problems building a list of 15 agents, let alone 27! I'm not sure I will fare any better from concentrating my efforts in this way, but if I can't find enough agents who I think will fit in with my kind of fiction, I'll find a small press that will. One author recently told me she applied to 200 agents before she found hers, but that sounds to me like blanketing. IDK -- both approaches seem time consuming to me.

*I know you didn't ask for advice, and you've probably heard all this a dozen times, but I just thought it might be helpful for anyone just starting the process who is reading this thread.*

There's also the possibility that there just isn't a perceived sales market for your work yet. I think this might be the case with mine. I've tried to find books that are similar and have been published in the last five years but can't (fifteen years ago, yes), so maybe my boat has sailed and I need to move onto the next project. I mean, what do you do when you feel your book is too niche for an agent? Start with the small presses, I guess.

If you did get some success with a small press, it might help to win you an agent for your next book.

Good luck!

Sorry to hear the rejections are getting you down Penny. I've had a dozen already for my book and I'm in the process of editing and polishing it as I realised I may have jumped the gun in sending it out a little prematurely. Have you considered entering it in some competitions? I have read anecdotally that people have had some success this was and many offer networking or editorial reviews as prizes.

I also second the idea of self-publishing it. If I get nowhere with mine I fully intend on sending it out into the ebook aether and let it do its thing.

Lastly, just wanted to let you know that you are not alone, we all struggle getting a foot in the door. Writing can be such a thankless and heartbreaking pursuit!

Hannah