I didn’t mean to wait so long to write the final installment of my quest to get an agent. (Sorry about that.) The good news is that I’m revising my tactics and actively pursuing ways to become a new and improved, more competent blogger. More to come on that later, but for now it’s back to the world of agenting. If you’re coming late to the party, grab a snack and catch up…
*The Truth About Getting an Agent – Part 1
*The Truth About Getting an Agent – Part 2
*The Truth About Getting an Agent – Part 3
It’s time to enter the Land of Revision BWWWAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!
Revision is an epic journey, especially the very first time you tackle something that is novel length. I’ve broken my journey down into four steps. I hope it helps you walk that lonely road. The first step is…
SIMPLE: You can start your giggling now…I thought REVISION was going to be simple. The first reason I believed that was–well– because I wanted to. I’d just completed the unthinkable–I’d written a novel from first page to last. I wanted to celebrate. I knew it wasn’t "done"–but I wanted it to be. I’d expended every ounce of my brain power to get that far on my journey and I didn’t really have a next level to take it to.
This is that perfect time to put your work in the drawer and start something new, feed the muse, read some books or do that mountain of laundry. I sort of did that, but I did it with training wheels and a pull-up on. I hired the lovely and talented K.L. Going to critique my manuscript. She was amazing, the experience was fantastic. I had everything I needed to move forward but…
STUPID: I was stupid. I received a wonderful, multipage critique letter from Kelly and I had no earthly idea what to do with it. I was not "developmentally ready" to revise. I hadn’t learned enough. Now that bit of information should not mislead you into thinking that I didn’t try. I really did. But the truth was–I didn’t know I was stupid at the time. *grin* So I made some surface changes and fixes, called it a day and started to send it out to agents.
The good news is that stupid doesn’t have to last forever. Somehow, while submitting to agents and beginning work on book two, I made the decision to always be reading at least one book on the craft of writing. It was a darn good thing I did, because it was the best thing I could’ve done. I took the time to learn what I did not know.
Here are some books that you might find helpful in the daily fight against stupid…
*THE FIRST FIVE PAGES: A Writer’s Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile-Noah Lukeman
-I also recommend his other books…(I’ve currently read two more)
*THE PLOT THICKENS: 8 Ways to Bring Fiction to Life
*A DASH OF STYLE: The Art and Mastery of Punctuation
*HOOKED: Writing Fiction that Grabs Readers at Page One an Never Lets Them Go-Les Edgerton
-Just finished this last night, the quest to avoid stupid never stops.
*WRITING GREAT BOOKS FOR YOUNG ADULTS: Everything You Need to Know, From Crafting the Idea to Landing a Publishing Deal-Regina Brooks
*WRITING & SELLING THE YA NOVEL-K.L. Going
*NOVEL METAMORPHOSIS: Uncommon Ways to Revise-Darcy Pattison
*THE COMPLETE IDIOT’S GUIDE TO PUBLISHING CHILDREN’S BOOKS-Harold D. Underdown
*WRITING IT RIGHT! How Successful Children’s Authors Revise and Sell Their Stories-Sandy Asher
-This book includes advice on PB to YA.
*SELF-EDITING FOR FICTION WRITERS: How to Edit Yourself Into Print-Renni Browne & Dave King
*78 REASONS WHY YOUR BOOK MAY NEVER BE PUBLISHED AND 14 REASONS WHY IT JUST MIGHT-Pat Walsh
*THE FOREST FOR THE TREES: An Editor’s Advice to Writers-Betsy Lerner
*ON WRITING: A Memoir of the Craft-Stephen King
*THE ART OF WAR FOR WRITERS: Fiction Writing Strategies, Tactics, and Exercises-James Scott Bell
*BIRD BY BIRD: Some Instructions on Writing and Life-Anne Lamott
I learned valuable things and found inspiration in every one of these books. I urge you read and re-read these and other books on the craft of writing.
So, now that I did some reading, I was no longer quite as stupid as a I was before, but now I was…
SCARED: I was really scared. Now I knew the truth–revision is a whole lot of work. At about this time I had submitted a query and/or sample chapters to 33 different agents. That number is a grand total, not a mass emailing. I sent a handful of well thought out submissions that were personalized. Sometimes I would get a request for a partial, other times I would get a rejection. Whenever I got a rejection, I would research another agent I thought would be a match. Sometimes there were agents where a lack of reply by a certain date was also considered a no.
I had two agent requests that seemed promising… In August 2009, Michelle Wolfson requested 50 pages. Of course I accidentally sent the document in the wrong format. *head thunk* She was really cool about it and from our brief emails and banter, I felt that this could be promising. The second agent, after reading a partial, requested a full in January 2010. I heard from this agent in March. She was terrific and gave me praise for what I’d done right with my manuscript and then proceeded to give me some advice on what would make it better. She offered to look at it again if I decided to make the changes. I was first and foremost appreciative that an agent had taken the time to point me in the right direction. I was also scared. I pulled out the critique notes that I’d been given by K. L. Going and almost had a panic attack–they were very, very similar. I hadn’t been able to fix it before, so what made me think I could do it now?
SKILL: I had acquired new skills. I’d been reading, writing and thinking like a writer. I’d been learning and growing and as I looked over all the notes and suggestions, something amazing happened–I knew what to do. It wasn’t going to be SIMPLE, but that’s okay, I wasn’t as STUPID as I used to be. I was still a little SCARED, but I think you should always have a little fear in your life to keep you on your toes. Besides I knew I had two things going for me, I had gained new SKILLS and I’d learned that there were always new skills to gain. I began to revise and a funny thing happened–I learned to LOVE the Land of Revision.
It took me about a week of mulling-it-over time, to figure out what I was going to do, then I began to write. About halfway through the revision I heard from Michelle Wolfson. It had been awhile and she apologized for the delay, but she was interested in seeing the full manuscript of TOUCHING THE SURFACE. I explained to her that I was in the middle of a revision and didn’t want to send it out until it was complete. She asked me to keep her in mind. I did. She was on my radar daily because she was on Twitter LOL! As I was writing, I was following and the more I saw of her, the more I liked her.
In October 2010 I finished my revision and sent it out to both agents. A month later Michelle Wolfson loved the story and wanted to have a phone conversation. I honestly didn’t have any idea what to expect. All I knew for sure was that I was so darn excited I could barely sleep. I finally had to do the Jedi mind trick on myself. I convinced myself that she wasn’t really interested and then took it down a notch and waited for the day of the call. We had a fantastic phone conversation. I was nervous, but it went well and she *drum roll* gave me revision suggestions. The recommendations were framed in a very positive way, stressing that she was still very interested and I only felt the tiniest bit of disappointment that she hadn’t made an offer.
In retrospect, I will always be grateful that she never made the offer that day. I know it sounds strange, but sometimes life is like pot roast–if you cook it too fast–you may not enjoy it as much as if you’re patient. I think if she had signed me, and then asked for the revisions, I might have ended up with a stomach ulcer LOL! The people-pleasing component of my personality would have kicked into high-gear and likely undermined the success of the revision. Instead, I mulled-it-over and did what I’ve learned to do–my best–for me. A beautiful thing happened–I knew what to write and just how to do it. I quickly made the improvements and then sent it back to Michelle. She was leaving on vacation and was taking it with her, but she wasn’t sure if she would get to it over the holidays. That left me only one thing to do…stalk her on Twitter.
In the meantime the other agent contacted me and said she still had me on her radar and would be reading after the holidays. I sent her the updated manuscript and then settled into wait.
I learned a lot from my time on Twitter. In light of all the debate about the importance of cyber interactions, I recommend you join the conversation. Not only did I discover a million things about Michelle on twitter, (she has young kids like me and adores Pop-tarts) I also saw first hand, the type of relationships she has with her authors (AWESOME! Kiersten White, Tawna Fenske and Linda Grimes to name a few) It was also evident that she has amazing connections with her followers: other agents, editors, writers, readers and book lovers for starters. As time went on and we bantered back and forth, I came to realize that she was the agent that I wanted. The other agent was wonderful, but I had a relationship with this one. It was so hard to wait for her to read the revisions, but I knew that if this did work out, I was going to be right where I belonged.
Then this happened…she signed another YA client. *head thunk*
I heard the news directly from Michelle and she assured me she was reading and loving SURFACE. She wanted me to know that this had no impact on her interest. Oh, the stress…LOL! I did the only thing I could do…I cyber stalked the new girl! I was fully prepared to dislike Monica Bustamante Wagner, but you can’t. She seemed sweet, her story ideas sounded amazing, she’s the mom of three boys too. To top it all off, she lives in Chile and english is her second language. I started "writer crushing" on her immediately and twittered over to her page and wished her luck with her awesome new agent. Of course, she WAS sweet and she thanked me for the good wishes and we struck up a friendship on the spot. (You may want to read her saga of signing with Michelle Wolfson of Wolfson Literary–it’s on her blog and involves a trampoline!)
On January 6th, I…ME…THE GIRL WHO IS WRITING THIS…signed with Michelle Wolfson!!!!!!! (The excessive punctuation is deliberate!!!!!!!) I did a lot of jumping that day and there wasn’t even a trampoline in sight LOL!
When I stopped jumping I realized, six years had passed since I’d lost my dad. His death at 57 was unexpected and I’d never imagined, at that point in my life, needing to rethink what I thought was written in the stars.
We can’t always win, sometimes we lose–everyone does. But we need to keep in mind, that if we’re lucky, we learn that we write our own story and if it isn’t going as planned–then we revise.
Tags: agent, Dad, K.L Going, Kimberly Sabatini, Kimmiepoppins, query, revision
Just like my Freaky Friday Interviews of aspiring authors, I’ve discovered that there’s a whole world of YA bloggers just starting out. I thought it would be fun to highlight some of these newbie bloggers because-lets face it-bloggers are freaky book lovers too and we should all work together in our quest to take over the world one YA book at a time.
I had the pleasure of meeting Jessica Kassees on Book Blogs. Jessica and I hit it off right away and that’s how the idea of a Baby Book Blogger interview was born. Baby? Born? You’re feeling the humor, right?
First can you tell us a little bit about your blog? What do you like to review and who is your target readership?
Be prepared…Welcome to the Strange Mind of Jessica. 😉
Go for it-we don’t scare easily. Remember who your talking to here. LOL!
On my blog,
The Simple Pleasure of Reading, the main genre that I review is Young Adult (YA) Fiction. I am planning on jumping onto the SteamPunk wagon, but have not had a chance to yet. I really enjoy most fiction books, as long as they have an element of romance…I know…I am SO demanding! I really like "adult" books as well…I promise! When I was in 8th grade my mom could not keep me out of her stash of Jude Deveraux any more, so I started reading those. Then that grew into me reading any and everything I could get my hands on. But I digress…
My blog is entertaining–I think– and I try to be informative on different topics that everyone wants to know about, like how to find advanced reader copies. My target readership is anyone that enjoys reading what I say…I am a bit weird and crazy, so I know not everyone can handle that. 😉
Then of course my second question would have to be…how did you get started as a book blogger and how long have you been doing it?
I am still considered a "baby blogger" since I JUST past my one month blogoversary. I started my blog so that I would have a place to ramble, because you see, I like to do that. Really my older sister encouraged me to start blogging because I really enjoy reading and talking non-stop. Then she showed me her blog and how fun it was and I kind of went on a rampage….as you can tell. I can’t believe that I have made so many friends in just over a month. This has truly been a great month doing two things that I totally love (reading and babbling).
I’m laughing because I can remember all those Jude Deveraux books too! I loved them. I think it is adorable that you’re a baby blogger. I remember what it feels like to be a "baby writer" and lets face it…I still have a lot of growing to do LOL! Hopefully this interview helps more people find you on line. I should also mention that Jessica’s sister, Holly Dodson, my guest for my last Freaky Friday Interview.
Of course I need to ask what you’re all time top 5 favorite books are. We must know that.
PARANORMALCY is my favorite because of
Kiersten White’s writing style. I love how the entire book has a funny overtone with a deep and dark undercurrent. It is so hard to find a book with so many layers that still makes sense.
I’ve got to interject-I love PARANORMALCY too! *jumps up and down clapping hands*
Ok, so my other 4 faves are definitely a trip down memory lane…
2) THE MORE I SEE YOU by Lynn Kurland
3) The TWILIGHT Saga by Stephenie Meyer
4) THE LOVELY BONES by Alice Sebold
5) ANGEL OF MERCY by Lurlene McDaniel
I’m a big fan of THE LOVELY BONES also. It really helped me to learn to think out of the box with my own writing. My next question would have to be–how do you handle reviewing a book that you really didn’t like and have you had that challenge yet?
I have already had to handle the not enjoying a book, I really am hard to please when it comes to my reading selection. Handling reviewing a book that I wasn’t so fond of is challenging to say the least. It puts a lot of pressure on me when I receive an advanced copy or a copy from the author. I always try to find the good and couple that with what I did not like, so that people still see that there were still good parts to the book. I also try to never give to much away in my reviews, I think spoilers are cheating the author out of their plot twist surprise. So even if I don’t like their twist, I won’t call them out on it explicitly…it just isn’t fair.
I think it has to be really hard to give an unfavorable review, but I also think in order for reviews to have meaning, you do have to have that kind of honesty with the people who are looking to you for advice. As an writer on Goodreads-I do not rate books. Everybody I read gets 5 stars and I think if something really turned me off, I just wouldn’t list it. But I’m coming from a very different place than you. So we each have our jobs to do. Speaking of jobs, is it hard to get advanced copies of books and author interviews as a "Baby Blogger"?
As a baby blogger is has not been too terribly difficult to get interviews and ARC’s. I just decided to read people’s books no matter what, self published, not published yet or whatever form they have them in, which has made it a lot easier to get advanced or free copies of books.
Sounds like you are well on your way.
Yes, the first month reader response has been fantastic! I have a great following and have been very happy with what I have accomplished so far.
Thank you so much. It has been really fun to welcome a Baby Book Blogger into the world. If you get a chance, stop by Jessica’s blog THE SIMPLE PLEASURE OF READING.
Do you have any burning questions or suggestions for brand new YA Book Bloggers?
Tags: Kimberly Sabatini, Kimmiepoppins
I’ll admit it…it was tough getting up on Sunday morning. I stayed up until about 2:30 am talking with my roommate Jodi Moore. She’s just launched her web site and her very first picture book, WHEN A DRAGON MOVES IN, will be out May 1st. We had plenty to talk about. *squee*
After dragging our luggage to the lobby to be checked, we headed to the ballroom-wanting to make sure we had great seats for the morning’s first keynote speaker, Sara Zarr.
But before she came out, we got to see the award winning art of our amazing illustrators. Everyone’s work was spectacular and make sure you check out Showcase Winner, Leeza Hernandez’s web site.
We also gave a nod to the wonderful SCBWI Team Blog. If you want to know anything at all about what happened at the conference stop by
The Official SCBWI Conference Blog. You’ll feel as if you were right there. Equally as hard-working and fantastic is the staff at SCBWI…
*insert applause*
All right, now we can get back to Sara Zarr. I promise-you don’t want to miss this. It was special…
This is a hard speech to write about. I’ve refrained from reading any post on the topic because I thought it would be best if I captured my feelings from my perspective. When I critique a MS, I always jot down whatever comes to mind along the way. I want to give the writer, the experience of how I reacted as a reader-I think that’s valuable. The same is true with my response to the keynote. Sara’s words, without a doubt, affected everyone in the room who listened. I can’t tell you what they discovered, but I can tell you what they meant to me…
Standing at the podium was a very emotional experience for Sara. One of those full circle moments when you find yourself standing at the end of something and the beginning of something else. After 5 years of writing, Sara came to the NY SCBWI Conference as an attendee. She came angry and frustrated. She was hoping to figure out the system, network, find the answers.
What she found out was that 5 years of writing just wasn’t enough, her agent wasn’t the right agent and she found herself back at square one. She returned home and did all those things that she thought would finally make her enough. She returned to the NY SCBWI Conference in 2005. I was one of the worst experiences she’s ever had. She left her purse hanging on the back of her chair and lost it. She wondered if being kicked when you’re was down is a sign.
We’ve all been there. My baby is called TOUCHING THE SURFACE and it goes something like this…
Life-altering mistakes are meant to alter lives.
At seventeen, Elliot Turner feels like she’s a failure in life and in the afterlife. She’s died for the third time and until she can remember her past and figure out the growth plan for her soul, she’s stuck at the Obmil Center for Progression…
At a NY Conference a couple years ago I waited in line for two hours to pitch my book to a very wonderful agent who was volunteering his time. He looked at me and said…"Dead girls are out, I’d put that in a drawer for at least a decade and forget about it. What else have you got?"
I had nothing. Damn.
I’m not sure what made Sara, once again back at square one, keep going but I’m glad she did. Just the way I’m glad that I’ve kept going. For me, it’s always been the speeches, made by someone who used to be standing where I am. Other people’s journeys and wisdom keep me going when I find myself back at that lonely little square. I’m addicted to the feeling that the people in the room genuinely care, whether they’re in the seat next to me or on the stage.
Sara, after getting misty eyed with awe at where she was standing and what it took to get her there, announced the following…
She was going to give the speech she needed to hear when she was the one sitting in the audience.
I believe that giving that speech was an amazing act of courage. I want to share it with you, but I can’t duplicate her humor, or effectively illustrate her ability to look within and portray herself honestly. What I can tell you, was that sitting and listening to her made me feel less alone. My neurosis had company.
So I will share with you the many things she said that resonated with me, but understand that bullets, no matter how witty or insightful, can not take the place of the things that sat between the words. It was an honor to have been there.
*The time between when you’re a beginner, but before you are a professional is one of the hardest in your life.
*If you’re blessed with mental health…lucky you! LOL!
*Creative people do it for life-there is no end game.
*We need other people.
*Only other creative people get it when it comes to the joys and struggles of your work.
*It takes a tremendous amount of faith to live a creative life. We have faith that all the good stories haven’t been used up by other artists.
*We have unsustainable habits: It’s not practical to be typing with one hand in a bowl of M&M’s. *giggle*
*Is understanding the business side of writing important? Hell yes-but you need to know the value of that on your life.
*Do things that take your mind off yourself-writing is a solitary business.
*You can start to believe in your rejections more than you believe in your capacity to learn and grow.
*At the end of the day-what do you want to create? Relationships.
I know I feel as if I made a friend…thank you Sara.
No act stood a chance of following the standing ovation that Sara received…except this one. Now it was time to laugh.
Look Who’s Laughing: How to Do Funny for Young Readers and Why.
*Mo Willems
*Lenore Look
*Marvin Terban
Moderator-Leonard Marcus
I wish I could share all the wit and wisdom but I took bad notes. I didn’t want to interrupt the laughing. I was having too much fun. Near the end, Mo said…The fundamental difference between kids and adults is that the kids are shorter. I have to agree…we know they both love to laugh.
I’ve had the good fortune of hearing Linda Sue Park speak at my local Eastern NY SCBWI Conference. She was amazing. I knew what I was getting ahead of time and I still wanted to run up and hug her after she was done speaking. She talked about CONFIDENCE…
*Where things get stressful is in between-the area where you want something, but don’t know if you have the goods.
*Don’t believe in yourself, believe in the work.
*If you read a lot, you begin to build a mental standard in your head-it gives you a vast store house of stuff to compare to.
*How long does anyone spend to be a professional/master at anything? You have to invest a whole lot of time to get good at anything. The training for writing is reading.
*The thing about NOT believing in yourself…is that there are so many opportunities.
*If you’re NOT afraid of a challenge-that is NOT courage-it’s a malfunction in your brain chemistry. Courage is what happens when you’re afraid.
*You never love a book the way you do when you’re a child.
*(After a young boy told Linda Sue that he had read her book 62 times) I try to make every sentence I write worth reading 62 times. *heart squish*
Yes, my friends-she too got a standing ovation and it was well deserved. I swear I could have floated out of that room when everything was over. I was so pumped I didn’t even mind the line for the autograph party…
I needed to get all the way down to that far door before I could get in the "real" line. Who cares-I had plenty to think about on line.
Elephant and Piggy…opps…I mean Mo and Me LOL!
Linda Sue Park…focused on the work. Awesome!
Sara and Me…new friend and inspiration.
Conference over. Well almost…
There is something to be said about daydreaming while having a really good egg, ham and cheese sandwich as you’re sitting on the floor of Grand Central Station. It’s as good a place as any to realize that someday is the very best place for your train to be heading…
So tell me…who inspires you?
