I keep getting rejected (A few of my letters)

Discussion in 'Traditional Publishing' started by Castle Pokemetroid, May 25, 2011.

  1. popsicledeath

    popsicledeath Banned

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    Yeah. Unfortunately, everything so far about this post indicates to me Mr. Pokemetroid (pen name?) is just not ready. Nothing to do with the manuscript, even, just as a writer, it's too soon.

    Just the fact someone is posting emails that, though from a professional exchange, could still be argued to be private, on a public internet forum, asking "how close am I to getting my novel published" makes me think "not close at all."

    Posting such messages invites criticism of the professionals you're trying to work with, which wreaks of naivete at best, or soul-grapes at worst. If you were running a business, would you want to take on a client you found out had posted an excerpt of your communication when you explained you had to pass on their services?

    And by and large people who are successful in the industry learn the industry. The days of being an anti-social genius that never has to worry about anything but letting their brilliance cover a page is long gone. These days, understanding and knowing the industry and how to navigate it is as important as anything else. Already 90% finishing a second novel and starting three more doesn't mean anything when it comes to getting published. You'll need to either learn more about the industry and how to act professionally, or you'll need to understand how it will hurt you and how it could mean you only find posthumous success (corpses are endlessly professional, turns out).

    As for everything Trish said, as well as the other stuff I just mentioned, I'm guessing you're really not close to being published at all, and that it has little to do with the quality of your work. My guess is that the query comes across the same way this entire post and responses do and are a red flag that you're not quite ready for the pressures and demands of being a professional, much less in the publishing industry that is complex to navigate, if nothing else.

    I'm not sure if that long email is just a snarky response, though that agency is well known enough it wouldn't surprise me if they get so many queries where the people didn't even read basic submission guidelines that they just send that as the form response, then, if nothing else, the writer may either get the point or take the time to actually learn about the agency they're submitting to. Either way, it's either such that the query clearly wasn't successful, or it's a scam to simply self-advertise (which it doesn't appear to be, nor need) and the the writer needs to research agents better.

    The more important thing is that instead of looking at one's own query and novel, to see where it can be improved, the response was to post what is effectively business communication to a public forum and open it up for criticism. That's a very bad sign, in and of itself, and I'm guessing that sort of response, as well as the general naivete and lack of professionalism in this post, means the query (a business document) was probably not very good, and certainly should be the first thing to get looked at by the writer. Not opening up private, business communication for criticism and asking how close one is to being published, as that's question sort of answers itself.

    My advice is don't query anymore, take some time to learn more about the industry, particularly thinking about general professionalism, and then take time to revise the heck out of your novel (not start 4 more), and then get some help/assistance perhaps with your novel and/or query, and then and only then start to query again realizing you should be humble when humbled.
     
  2. Leonardo Pisano

    Leonardo Pisano Active Member

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    "Sent from my iPhone" is just a standard label intended to convey the message that the sender is traveling and just does quick replies (speed more important than contents, really).
     
  3. PrestontheMuse

    PrestontheMuse New Member

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    Always JUST that close! I feel your pain. Stick through it and write your heart out. Your time will come.
     
  4. tonten

    tonten Active Member

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    What he should have done, if he wanted to share the responses of a query letter online was remove the agency's/agent's name. I do agree that it is a bit unprofessional to post one's business communication online, but I see a lot of bloggers and other people on other forums who do it. It does help and give us want to be writers in the community glimpses of what the process is like. (although I would never do such a thing myself)

    And like others have said, we don't have a section here dedicated to query letters. If he were to look at his own novel to see if anything is wrong, I would suggest he find a beta reader than posting it online.
     
  5. IfAnEchoDoesntAnswer

    IfAnEchoDoesntAnswer New Member

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    Yup, that's precisely what I found hilarious about it.
     
  6. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    castle...

    i help lots of my mentees with their query letters, so if you don't want to post yours for a public review, you can send it to me and i'll help you fine tune it...

    love and hugs, maia
    maia3maia@hotmail.com
     
  7. skeloboy_97

    skeloboy_97 New Member

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    Ipad's / iPhones, anything like that writes "sent from iPad/iPhone automatically.
     
  8. teacherayala

    teacherayala New Member

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    A writer is someone who can face rejection a thousand times and still keep writing. Keep at it and don't lose hope.

    Good advice.
     
  9. The-Joker

    The-Joker Contributor Contributor

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    But a great writer can face rejection a hundred times and get accepted on the one hundred and first.

    Hehe. Just kidding. But really it's okay to accept rejections at first, but once they start piling up without even the sniff of success you need to reassess your approach.
     
  10. Castle Pokemetroid

    Castle Pokemetroid New Member

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    I thought that I got rid of all the agency and agent names at the end of those messages.

    I apparently forgot one.

    And I should indeed stop querying. I keep thinking that my query is worthy, but it might not be as good as I think it is.

    [link removed]

    It's like this animation I made. It wasn't as good as I thought it was.
     
  11. funkybassmannick

    funkybassmannick New Member

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    So your query was in the form of a video? Or was your query for this video that you linked? I'm confuddled.
     
  12. Saged

    Saged New Member

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    If you've ever heard of Patrick Rothfuss you'll find out he'd been rejected for nine years before getting published. Now he's rollin in cash and providing some great books. It just takes time and a bit of perseverance.
     
  13. kennychaffin

    kennychaffin New Member

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    It's a default message that get's tacked on unless you remove it. (and no I don't don't have an iPad).
     
  14. Bright Shadow

    Bright Shadow Member

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    First off, remember that rejection is part of the process. Seven editors rejected the first Harry Potter book, remember (something tells me they are all hitting the Scotch big time and shaking their heads right now)

    Second, why not try the other way to meet an agent, i.e., the literary convention? A email is an email but if you meet someone in person and can use social skills that are hard to employ in a slush pile you might get somewhere. That's how Jim Butcher got an agent...the same agent who rejected the first Dresden novel book. When Butcher asked why he was interested in him after he rejected his book before hand, the agent replied "well, that was before I met you."

    Worth a shot if at all possible.
     

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