Why Rejections Are a Good Thing

I've got plenty of writer-friends on the traditional-publishing path who are going through the soul-sucking process of submitting their books to agents or editors and getting rejections.

What does getting a rejection mean? Is it the end of your writing career before it even began?

Nope, not even close.

The best thing about rejections is that they ensure no one who's not excited and passionate about your work will be in charge of selling it. The only thing worse than no agent is a BAD agent! (or should I say, and agent who isn't your #1 fan!). Same thing with editors!

When we get rejections from a pool of agents or editors, they are actually helping us by weeding out the ones who aren't a good fit for our books. And don't we deserve someone who loves our books? I say, let 'em go! It wouldn't have worked out well anyway if they weren't the right person in the first place. :)

That said, when I sent my second-written novel out for submission to an agent and to Harlequin, I got form rejections from both (this was 2000). I was so completely wounded and emotionally hurt from those rejections that I didn't grow my imaginary balls back for another ten years (when I started submitting again in 2010).

By sending out your work, getting rejections but continuing to go for it, you're already ahead of the game by a long shot. We've never even heard of all of the writers who just give up completely in the face of rejection, as I had done for so long. The ones we do hear about, however, are the authors who just keep on keepin' on. They put the rejections behind them and keep submitting and writing new books.

I always know someone's closer to getting published when the amount of rejections starts picking up -- it means they're really in the game!

Oh, and as a side note, if you are an already-published author, and you found this post because you've gotten a rejection letter despite not being a newbie anymore, I am here to tell you that even published authors get rejections. We're just shielded from them by our agents. I remember in 2011 getting a rejection (and I'd been published since 2010), but when I looked online to see if any published author in the history of the world had every been rejected before, I decided by the lack of evidence, that I was the ONLY one!! 

Obviously this is not true. Published authors just don't want to taint their reputation by publicly saying that they were rejected for something (unless it's in their pre-pub years), so you won't see blog posts about rejection the way you will with writers who aren't yet published. I figured I should add that side-note here so the next time someone Googles it, they'll find out the truth ;)

Best,
Shoshanna

My New Year's Resolutions

Hello Fellow Writers!

Happy New Year!

This past year has been an amazing one for me. Right before my 30th birthday I finally got published, with Ellora's Cave. This year I've had two books come out (Punishing the Art Thief and Ginger Snap), sold a third (Hollywood Spank, releasing sometime next year) and sold a story to Berkley Heat for publication in November!

I've also written four other books which are all in various stages of revision. Some may see the light of day, some may not.

My goal for this next year is to get a literary agent. Now, I can't control whether or not a literary agent wants to represent the single-title erotic romance I wrote, so my resolution will be to submit query letters to agents this year. I've already written a query I think is friggin' awesome, now I just have to get the book ready to match it.

What are your goals for 2011?

Rejection Letter? Get Back on the Horse!

Hello Fellow Writers!

Well, I finally heard back from Harlequin/Silhouette Desire regarding my manuscript "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant". They had requested a partial and I had been waiting to hear what they thought.

They passed.

BUT - it was a very nice letter, and it was not a form letter at all. I could tell that they put actual time and consideration into the rejection, which is awesome of them. And they had some nice things to say! Specifically, they said aspects of the story are compelling and the premise is interesting. So that's a plus.

I also got some more specific feedback relating to the characters. They said it might work for another publisher, so I am going to take that advice and see if another publishing company might be interested in "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant"!

In the meantime, I have no intention of wallowing in self pity or anything. I have another novel polished and ready to send out to Harlequin! So Monday my plan is to mail off my query and synopsis for "Snowed in With a Millionaire" and see if that story strikes a chord.

I also have my erotic romance "The Art Thief's Punishment" almost ready to resubmit to Ellora's Cave. Fingers crossed!

Wish me luck, and good luck to you too!
Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers

Silhouette Desire Requested a Partial!

Hello Fellow Writers!

I have exciting news. Drumroll, please.... five weeks after submitting a query letter and synopsis of "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant" to Silhouette Desire, I got a letter in the mail requesting a partial manuscript!

So I printed out the first three chapters, read through the pages and made a couple tiny changes, and then printed them out again along with another copy of the synopsis. Now I need to buy a couple of envelopes big enough to hold the partial and to use as a SASE. I also need to figure out how many stamps the darn thing needs!

I had originally sent the query to Diana Ventimiglia, but the letter I got said that she wasn't working in that position any longer, and that all the queries sent to Ms. Ventimiglia were forwarded to Shana Smith. So it was Ms. Smith who requested the partial.

I'm very excited about this whole thing. It's a step in the right direction!
Wish me luck, and good luck to you too!
Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers

Submissions

Hello Fellow Writers!

Today is a big day for me. I finally got up the courage to put a query letter, synopsis, and SASE in the mail to Harlequin for my Silhouette Desire targeted romance "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant".

I went over and over that query and synopsis, I showed both to several writers that I trust, and the actual manuscript is ready to go should they decide they want to see it. There was no point in stalling any further. So out in the mail it went. I'm so terrified I feel like I could scream.

I know it's not that big of a deal. If they don't want to see the novel, then I can always try and submit it to some other places. By the time I get a response either way from Harlequin, I'll have another book ready to pitch to them ("Snowed in With a Millionaire"). So it's not going to be the end of the world. At least that's what I keep telling myself.

Here is an excerpt from an article entitled "How to Submit a Manuscript" by L. Shepherd.

Read the whole article here.

Sending a manuscript to a publisher is an exacting task that must be done according to the specific manuscript submission guidelines of each publisher. Each publisher will have a number of requirements that you must follow or risk having the manuscript rejected upon arrival.

1. Find out exactly what the publisher requires. Many publishers require a few preliminary steps before they will accept a full manuscript. Publisher's guidelines can be found in part in The Writer's Market. This is a book that is updated yearly, as well as a website that contains information about thousands of publishers.
2. A query letter is a common first step to getting a publisher to read a manuscript. This is required of most book publishers and many magazine publishers as well. This letter is usually a simple one-page typed letter that details both the contents of the manuscript and the market available for the work. Publishers love to hear exactly who would be interested in buying the item, so any data on successful projects that were similar is helpful. This is also the time to detail your credentials, such as any education related to the material that you may have and anything that you have previously had published. Unless the writer's guidelines say differently, submit these with standard 12-point type in a plain, easy to read font.

Today I have a busy day, but I do have some things I want to tinker with on my WIP. Last night as I was laying in bed I found myself writing scenes in my head for a new piece. I may have to actually get those words on paper.

Wish me luck, and good luck to you too!
Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers

Submitting to Harlequin

Hello Fellow Writers!

Yesterday I went to the last official NaNoWriMo write-in of 2009. I used the time productively, by adding a new opening (and another 1000 words to my word count, bringing my manuscript to 51K) and making all of the little changes I needed to.

While it's still a first draft, it's a first draft that I can now show my writing group. I'm planning on emailing them the first chapter today.

At some point soon, I need to gather up the courage to submit my previous novel, "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant", to Harlequin. Here is an article about important things to consider when submitting to Harlequin, from their website.

Do polish your story before you submit it. Read through your story several times for spelling, grammar, clichés, unrealistic or stilted dialogue, heavy exposition, continuity errors, plot holes, etc. Consider giving it to someone else to read for a second opinion. You want to make sure that the editor that reads your story won't have a single excuse to put it down. For more tips on polishing, read Harlequin Superromance author Helen Brenna's article Polish Until it Shines.

Don't sweat the small stuff. After you've gone through your manuscript very carefully, don't get hung up on things like font or formatting or other stylistic considerations. Ultimately, if you've written a good book, it won't matter whether it's in 10 point Book Antiqua.

Once you do submit, do include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you want to be notified that your manuscript has been received. You may also want to indicate that you would like to be notified on the envelope or somewhere within your submission.

Don't expect a response right away, though. Even if you are just looking for an indication that Harlequin has received your manuscript, this can take several weeks from the time you send your manuscript in to the publisher. It has to be processed by Harlequin staff before being mailed, and the mail delivery in itself could take a while.

It will take longer still before you get a response about your actual manuscript. Often stories are evaluated by more than one Harlequin staff member, and this process takes time. Moreover, the editors like to make sure that they have crafted a useful and appropriate response to your manuscript, and try to put quality over speed of response.

Do have the story completed before you submit it for consideration. If after all of the time you have been waiting for a response from Harlequin you have not been working on your story, the editor will not be impressed that you are then going to make her wait for you. She's looking for a finished product—something that will live up to the potential that she saw in your partial. And if you rush to finish the story, it will likely read rushed and not polished, so when you finally do submit it to the editors, it will likely fall short of their standards.

Don't wait for a response before starting your next project. If the book that you have submitted is already done and is as polished as it's going to get, start the next one. If you are talented enough to get interest from a Harlequin editor, they will want to know that you have more than one good idea and will be happy to see evidence of this. Or if your first manuscript doesn't work out, you can always follow up with another book that may be more to the editor's liking.

Do include the fact that you are working on another book in your query letter. This will indicate that you are committed to writing and that you have many stories to tell. However, you may not want to say that you are working on too many manuscripts at once—this may signal to the editor that you can't finish a project and do not give each one enough attention.

Don't submit to more than one Harlequin series at a time. Only the first manuscript that Harlequin receives will be evaluated. The others will be sent back to you. So choose your targeted series very carefully. Is it really the line that best fits your book?

Do send your manuscript to the appropriate office and the correct editor. There's nothing that turns an editor off faster than reading a submission that clearly doesn't fit her line. This shows that you are too lazy to do your homework, and you probably won't be given very serious consideration. Luckily, finding this information is relatively easy. Each Harlequin series has a writing guidelines page on eHarlequin.com which can be found here. At the top of each of these, there will be an editor, assistant editor or editorial assistant's name. Address your submission to this person—and make sure you spell it correctly! These guideline pages will also indicate which office houses your chosen line. The addresses for the three editorial offices can be found here.

Don't get discouraged. You know that writing is a skill that takes practice, but so does submitting. It may take you a few tries before you find the right tone to use in your query letter, or the right amount of information in your synopsis. Keep writing, keep submitting.

I find it interesting that they want you to mention that you are working on another book in your query. I'll have to add that to my query letter before it goes out.

Today I will be writing a spec advice column and submitting it to a new local newspaper.
Wish me luck, and good luck to you too!
Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers

Do's and Don'ts of Query Letters

Hello Fellow Writers!

Yesterday I worked on my query letter for "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant". It' s tough to do it! I also worked on my two page synopsis. That went pretty well except for the fact that it's a 2 1/2 page synopsis, and they want 1-2 pages. So I need to work on that some more.

While reviewing how best to write a query letter, I looked on eHarlequin.com for their article on query letters. Click here to read the full article on their site, as this is just an excerpt.

The Do's and Don'ts of Querying
Do:

	See revision/rejection letters as an opportunity to enhance your writing by utilizing constructive comments.
	Revise your project following the revision letter and resubmit ONLY if asked by the editor.
	Vent to your friends, not your editor (aka Don't hit the send button on that unhappy email!).
	Take advantage of the support, feedback and guidance offered by the RWA.
	Research the best person to send it to in the line.
	Demonstrate enthusiasm for your project.
	Keep your cover letter professional and one page long.
	Remember a SASE.
	Remember to give all the information in a synopsis — no cliff-hangers, please!
	Help us help you.

Don't:

	Ignore the constructive comments in rejection letters. They are intended to help.
	Depend on spell check.
	Forget that today's editorial assistant may be tomorrow's acquiring editor — treat all EAs and editors with respect.
	Disregard our guidelines.
	Ask the editor to decide what line your book is for.
	Query on an incomplete manuscript.
	Send the same project to multiple in-house editors simultaneously.
	Send more than one project in at a time.
	Include irrelevant information or materials in your letter or your synopsis.
	Pick up the phone and call to ask if your manuscript has arrived. DO re-query and/or send a self-addressed stamped postcard and/or use postal tracking.
	Try to guilt the editor or "trick" them into calling you back.
	Call when a project has been rejected.
	Send bound material.
	Put all your eggs in one basket. DO work on other stories while you wait for a response.
	Handwrite anything.

So there ya have it. Today I may tinker with my synopsis. I'm gearing up for NaNoWriMo, so I may do some character studies for "Snowed in with a Millionaire" to get ready.

Wish me luck and good luck to you too!
Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers

Query Letters

Hello Fellow Writers!

Yesterday I had my writing class, and it looks like I have some work to do on a chapter in "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant". I need to change some details to make it more believable. So I started working on that a bit. No work was done on "Snowed in With a Millionaire" but that will happen today.

I'm reading a wonderful Harlequin Presents book by Katherine Lang called "The Millionaire's Misbehaving Mistress" and I am enjoying it so much! I'm starting to wonder if maybe my stories might be better suited for Harlequin Presents than for Silhouette Desire.

Today I would like to look at how to write the perfect query letter to a literary agent.

From AgentQuery.com, there is an article that goes into detail about writing a query. Here is a small piece of that article:

A query letter is a single page cover letter, introducing you and your book. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s not a resume. It’s not rambling saga of your life as an aspiring writer. It’s not a friendly, “Hey, what’s up, buddy. I’m the next John Grisham. Got the next best selling thriller for ya,” kind of letter. And for the love of god, it is NOT more than one-page. Trust us on this.

A query letter has three concise paragraphs: the hook, the mini-synopsis, and your writer’s biography. Don’t stray from this format. You won’t catch an agent’s attention by inventing a creative new query format. You’ll just alienate your chances of being taken seriously as a professional writer. A query letter is meant to elicit an invitation to send sample chapters or even the whole manuscript to the agent. It’s not meant to show off how cute and snazzy you can be by breaking formatting rules and going against the grain. Keep it simple. Stick to three paragraphs. The goal is to get the agent to read your book, not to blow you off because you screwed up the introduction.

Here is an example of an actual query letter, from pubrants.blogspot.com. This blog is written by a successful literary agent. She posted a query that got her attention (and then they sold the book). Ms. Nelson's comments are in blue, and the rest is the actual query.

Dear Ms. Nelson,

I’m a faithful reader of your blog. I admire your enthusiasm, your humor, and your candor. She reads my blog! Okay, I really shouldn’t be swayed by such flattery but hey, I’m human. Since you represent all subgenres of romance, I’d like you to consider Schemes of Love, my historical romance set in late Victorian England. The manuscript is complete at 100,000 words. Nice orientation to her novel.

Gigi’s marriage is doomed from the moment she decides that she must have Camden, by fair means or foul. How can I resist? Right off we know the fall our main heroine is going to take. Talk about flawed and therefore, immediately interesting. Camden, who has come to adore Gigi, discovers her deceit on the eve of their wedding. Shattered, he responds in kind, gives her a tender, unforgettable wedding night, then coldly leaves her in the morning, devastating her. Ah yes, two souls who have now done two wrongs. It’s a romance; I must know how they will make this right. Seriously though, this is such an intriguing set up and combined with the paragraph below, it’s something I’ve never seen before and folks, I read a lot of romance queries and sample pages. It’s hard to find something wholly original and fresh.

As the story opens, it is ten years later. Gigi has petitioned for divorce in order to remarry. Camden returns to England and sets the condition for her freedom: an heir. I’m sold. Didn’t even need to read more. She wants a divorce. He wants a child. Hum… sounds like an intense conflict to me. Despite the years and the sea of bad blood, the physical attraction between them remains as ferocious as ever. Big hint this work is going to be sensual and boy, is it—in very different ways. There’s a sex scene in the novel (and I can’t give it away) unlike anything I’ve ever read anywhere. That’s saying something. Though they each vow to make the act of procreation a cold, clinical one, the overwhelming pleasure of their marriage bed soon makes it apparent that the enterprise is fraught with emotional peril, for both of them. Oops. Two characters who think they don’t like each other but have great sex. What more could I want? Seriously, notice the wonderful cadence of Sherry’s language here: “Though they each vow to make the act of procreation a cold, clinical one, the overwhelming pleasure of their marriage bed soon makes it apparent that the enterprise is fraught with emotional peril, for both of them.” That’s some gorgeous writing and it’s only her query letter I’m reading. If you notice, the whole query is like that, and the novel doesn’t disappoint either.

In an atmosphere thick with mistrust, desire, and incipient hope, they are torn between the need to safeguard their hearts and the yearning to reach out across the chasm of ancient mistakes. May favorite kind of construct. As they rediscover the easy rapport they’d once shared, they must decide whether to let the bygones rule the future, or to love despite their painful past and forge a new life together. I don’t know about you but I’m totally rooting for them to let bygones be bygones.

Schemes of Love recently placed first in its category at the Merritt Contest, organized by San Antonio Romance Authors. Excellent. It has received recognition. Chris Keeslar at Dorchester has requested the full. And editor interest! This actually isn’t a big deal for me because it seems like editors request everything but hey, it doesn’t hurt. Another one of my manuscripts has won the Romantic Elements category of the 2005 On the Far Side contest, hosted by the Fantasy, Futuristic, and Paranormal Chapter of the RWA. Some other credentials and shows a little diversity from just the Historical stuff.

Thank you for your time. I hope very much to work with you and look forward to hearing from you. And she did, quite quickly. Big smile here.

Sherry Thomas

Well, there ya go. I worry about the fact that I have no writing credits - well, I do write this blog everyday - but that's about it. So that concerns me. I'll just have to hope that my stories speak for themselves.

Today I'm going to work on some revisions for "The Movie Star's Very Personal Assistant" and get some plotting done for "Snowed In With a Millionaire."

Wish me luck and good luck to you too!

Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers

Literary Agents and Form Rejection Letters

Hello Fellow Writers!

Yesterday I once again failed to meet my own Writer's Challenge. I can't do that if I want to write a whole novel in a month for NaNoWriMo! And if I don't get my plot outline for "Snowed In With a Millionaire" finished before November 1st it is going to be very difficult for me to get that first draft done. So I need to get cracking.

I watched this great video on YouTube from StaceyCochran.com. Stacey is actually a guy. He must have sent over 50 queries out to literary agents, and the video is of him going through all of them one after another (he hadn't checked his mail in a while because he and his wife had a baby). You'll notice all of the envelopes look the same, and that is because Stacey sent out SASEs (self addressed stamped envelopes) with all of his queries.

He just plows through those rejections without even batting an eye. I have a lot to learn from him. I got ONE form rejection from an agent and cried my eyes out and stopped querying. Ridiculous, I know.

And then - he gets a bite. An agent wants to see his work.



Today I have a busy day - I have an interview with a nursing agency (I'm an RN although I currently stay home with my baby) to see if I can pick up some weekend shifts. Then I am going to drop the baby at my parents house and go to my Advanced Writing Workshop. I will try to get some writing done, I truly will.

Wish me luck and good luck to you too!
Yours Truly,
Shoshanna Evers