Gracious Defeat

Amazon posted the semi-finalists for the ABNA contest. I'm not shocked that I'm not on this list. My Publisher's Weekly review wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great either.  Was I sad to see my name wasn't on the list? Yes. Surprised? Not at all. A lukewarm review won't get you far.

Round Two of QueryKombat begins tomorrow. I'm excited to see the feedback I receive on the revisions. I'm hoping they are for the better.  The judges of the first round gave such pointed criticism, so I think I took my revisions in the right direction. I guess we'll see tomorrow.

I'm actively changing the MS, even while the contests are underway.  I finally gave full copies to a few beta readers.  They have also already offered some very valuable feedback.  I feel like my novel improves every day, and I'm excited to be writing again.  That is probably the greatest reward I've received from these contests.  I have also learned a lesson that I wish I had known earlier in the game. Don't sit on your MS. Share it.  The more readers you have, the more mistakes and plot holes are found before an agent ever sees it. I believe I will present a much more polished novel when I query agents now. My confidence in the MS, and my writing in general, is rising. It feels good.

My first rejection letter

So, it may have been a rejection email, but it still counts.  Received a reply from an agent today that she was passing on the MS.  Word count is too low.  It's not something I haven't heard before.  It looks like I really need to take a look at it, and add some additional scenes, or a sub-plot, to beef up the word count.

I'm surprised that the rejection didn't sting.  Perhaps it was because the agent let me down gently.  Maybe, deep down, I know it still needs work.  I think the criticism I've received from Query Kombat helped open my eyes to some of the MS's weaknesses.

This just mean I need to work harder and whip this thing into shape before I send out any additional queries. I'm so ready to do this.

No take backs!

So, the good news is I made it to Round Two of Querykombat. Still waiting for June 13 to know, for certain, that I'm out of the Amazon contest. Pretty sure that one's a lost cause at this point.

Querykombat allows revisions after round one, which Amazon does not. With the amazing feedback I received from the judges, I've made more than a few changes in my entry. I'm hoping it's more of a clencher. Here it is, for those that want to take a look. Also, it's been brought to my attention that I made need some beta readers, as my word count is on the very low side. I need to beef this puppy up. If there are any takers, let me know! I'm just shy of 60k at this point. Like I said, lower than low.

Soon, I'll have some agents reading this, and maybe even snag a MS request. Cross your fingers for me!

Query:

Jody Sinclair’s grandparents, Samuel and Lillian, have spent their entire married life in the farmhouse her grandfather built by hand. When the house goes up in flames, Lillian barely escapes with her life.  Samuel is not as lucky. Fire crews attempt to control the blaze, leaving Lillian with nothing to do but watch as she loses everything she’s ever cherished.

Jody arrives at the house just after the first fire truck and offers Lillian both comfort and her spare bedroom. In the days following Samuel’s death, Jody struggles to help her grandmother return to a sense of normalcy. Together, they sift through what the fire left behind.  They unearth more than Jody ever expected.  When Jody discovers that Lillian intentionally set the house ablaze, she must decide whether she will seek justice for her recently deceased grandfather, or let the truth die with him.

First 250:

When the phone rings during the opening credits of Doctor Who, I consider letting it go to voicemail.  With a silent prayer of gratitude for the ability to pause streaming video, I jump up to grab it on the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Jody?” I don’t recognize the voice.  I can hear the caller gasp for breath, and worry that this is about to turn into some weird prank.

“Who is this?” I ask, my words sharp, prepared to hang up if the panting continues.

“It’s Gram.” Another deep breath, followed by a sob this time.

“Gram?” I ask, confused.  Gram never calls after five or six. She’s usually asleep by eight.  I glance at the clock on my stove. It’s nearly eleven. She sobs again, and my heart drops down to my ankles. “Gram, what’s wrong? Where are you?”

“I’m at Bonnie’s. Can you please come pick me up?” Her voice is raw and strained.

“Gram, what’s wrong?” I ask again. Emphasizing each word as I spit it out of my mouth.  I hear her take in a sharp breath before she answers.

“It’s the house. It’s burning.”

I sit down. Hard. My breath leaves me in a rush. “Are you okay? Where’s Gramps?”

She takes a few more deep breaths, though I can’t tell whether she’s trying to calm herself down or avoid answering the questions.

“I’m fine.” She answers, sounding anything but.

“And Gramps?” The pause is even longer this time.

“He’s still in the house.”

There's nothing like constructive criticism

I entered Amazon's ABNA contest to get my MS out there and, hopefully, get some feedback from a professional.  Well, I did well enough to get the review, but it wasn't as helpful as I expected. It actually gave me very little to work with.  So, I entered a second contest. Query Kombat. I already raved about how excited I was to be chosen.

(Here's the link to my battle royale.)
http://writersoutworld.blogspot.com/2014/06/qk-round-1-burning-down-house-vs.html

The entries went live today.  I have to admit, I would totally read the book that I'm up against. I love the premise for it.  It made me nervous.  I'm still hanging in there, though.  Two judges have weighed in so far, and we're tied, 1:1.

At this point, I'm not really concerned about making it to the next round.  Each comment I've received in this little battle has been infinitely more helpful that the professional review.  I have so much to think about. I am so excited that this community is so active, and that each reader has taken the time to give such good pointers.  If I do make it to the next round, I get the chance to edit things before the next judges see it. I'll have a lot of work to do.

I'm happy to say, that I'm looking forward to it.

In It to Win It

So, the power cord to my Chromebook mysteriously broke in two.  I'm sure I know where fault lies for this lovely inconvenience, but the culprit is too damned cute for me to be angry with him.  After a failed attempt to replace it with a universal plug, I had to go to Best Buy to exchange the $50 cord for the $85 HP cord.  I'm happy that the new one works, but a bit bitter that it was so expensive to replace.

I found out today that my query and first 250 of the MS have made the cut to be a contender in this year's Query Kombat.  I swear, it's a thing.  The top 32 queries get read by agents. Real agents.  I haven't made it that far yet. I'm in the first round of 64 kombatants though. Happy I made the cut and am in the running to be seen by an agent.  Voting starts on Sunday.  I'm nervous, and can't wait to see if I get any helpful feedback.

So, fingers crossed, yet again.  Maybe all of these contest eliminations will help thicken my skin.  Then, maybe, the rejections won't hurt so much when I begin querying in earnest.

Back in the Saddle

So, I signed up for an online writing course.  I'm hoping the weekly assignments get some creativity running through my tired brain. So far, I have snippets of short stories, but nothing truly promising.  The important thing is, I'm writing.  True, it's not very good, but it's more than a blank page, which is all I'm asking for at this point.

I've been looking into writing conferences, and feel like I am drowning under the weight of so many expensive options.  Who knew they would charge writers (who are notoriously broke, by the way) so much money for a week devoted to their craft.  I get that editors and agents need to be compensated for their time, but I don't have a thousand dollars laying around to spend on the possibility that I might write something of any worth.  It is only a week after all.  Can a group of strangers really give enough valuable feedback in a week to help me hone my craft?  A small part of me also worries that I will pay all of that money just to find out that my writing will never make the cut.  Time to put on my big girl panties and go for it, right? (Thanks for hanging in for my little pep talk.)

I think that if I want to stick with this writing thing, which I love, that I need to get real.  I need to make time to devote to writing.  I need to stop waiting for opportunity to come to me.  Time to go out there and grab the resources available to those who actually look for them.  I begins with this free online course. I hope to register for at least a writer's workshop, if not a full-fledged conference by this fall.  Fingers, get ready to pinch some pennies.

Let's Just Dust This Off

So, I managed to get my stuff together and enter Amazon's ABNA Contest this year.  Miracle of miracles, I made it to the quarter final round.  What does that get me, exactly? It might not seem like much, but it landed me my first professional review of the completed MS. Yes, I let someone else read the whole thing.  A someone from Publisher's Weekly, no less. My review was lukewarm.  It looks like the MS still needs some polishing.  Apparently, it lacks resolution.  I'm going to let it sit for at least a month before I decide exactly how to tackle that obstacle.

In the meantime, I have to muster up the resolve to write something new.  I have to admit, I'm feeling a bit discouraged.  Apparently, blah reviews have an uncanny ability to drain all creative energy from your brain.  Who knew?

It explains the resurrection of this blog though.

My new mantra is: I will find time to write.  I won't lose focus, even with the king of distraction running about the house.  I just have to decide which hours to claim for myself.  Realistically, it can only happen while he's asleep.  He already gets up as soon as there's a hint of sunlight peeking through the window, so I'm pretty sure there are a lot of long nights in my future.  Here's hoping they turn out to be productive.