I had to wait a day. I needed to be calm before the phone call . A few things had to be done first. Was I procrastinating? No. I took a deep breath – I seem to be doing a lot of them these days – and called. Yes, she was going to be my agent. Yes, we got on well. Yes, she had overseas contacts. She had great suggestions and … she wants me to lose 19,000 words! 19,000! Where from? Did I have to cut sections out? No, just. go through word by word and make sure that every word is needed. Make some of the sentences shorter. Cut down the descriptions Don’t have so much introspection by the characters. No sweat. I’ll do it tomorrow. Joke! ‘I know you can do it’, she said. That was nice. She has faith in me. I know I can do it too. There’s just a few things I have to do first. Oh, by the way ... this will make getting the prologue posted take a little longer, but it's coming. … [Read more...]
Step one achieved
There it is. The email I’ve been waiting for for nearly two weeks. The one I stopped checking my emails for. Why? Because, so long as I don’t know what the answer is, a positive outcome is still a possibility. Does the agent like my novel? Take a deep breath, drop the hope – fear slides away with it – and click. I leap off my seat and spin around. I laugh and jump up and down. I really do. Then I text daughter Kimberley and husband Chris. Hubby sends a message back – whoopy do, bananas and cream! That’s an in joke for those who’ve read the ms ( manuscript in publishing world speak). Kimberley sends lots of WOWs and other Neanderthal syllables that mean roughly the same thing. Here’s the cause of the excitement. I have read the ms and think it could be for me. It was hard to put down! Please note that it is a very crowded and difficult market and it is hard to get publishers to read manuscripts in a timely manner. I'd like to talk to you about the ms and how we should … [Read more...]
The Waiting Game
I hate the moment before I open an email from a prospective agent. Hope and fear come together, churning my stomach, so I try to have no expectations; that way I’ll have no disappointments. At least that’s the theory. I do hope though and I do fear. I want to be published. I want people to enjoy my characters and their story as much as I do. At least I don’t get stuck in the hope or incapacitated by the fear. I tell myself that what will be, will be. The story of the search so far… In July and August 2009, I sent submissions to the six Australian agents that were accepting them at the time. After a period of time that ranged from one to six weeks, all of them rejected me. I wasn’t surprised. I’d done my research and knew that it was almost impossible for new writers to get agents before they had had something published. Nevertheless, I had hoped that someone would want to represent me. The next step was to try Australian publishers. Once again, I rewrote my short blurb (the one … [Read more...]
What if you knew Stephanie or JK before they got published?
What if you knew Stephanie Meyer or JK Rowling before they became famous? What if you had the opportunity to support them on their journey into print? What a buzz that would be, to share the excitement, the hope and the fear. What a special relationship you would have with them, their first fans. Maybe that will happen here, with my novel, Lethal Inheritance, or maybe not. It's up to you. See my previous post below or the 'Make it happen' page to find out how you can make it happen and read the 'Lethal Inheritance' page to find out about the story. … [Read more...]
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 81
- 82
- 83
