Ready to Lash Out? Don't!

Cathy, who writes from Edinburgh, is more than a bit fed up with receiving form rejections. She says: I spend a fortune on postage following agents’ guidelines to the letter. So many of them still insist on paper submissions. God knows why in this day and age, but they do. Not that they reply by post. Oh no, if they reply at all, it’s usually via a form email! I often feel like sending an email in return asking for some feedback in exchange for what it’s cost me to send my work to them, but I manage to stop myself because I know it won’t do me any good. However, just recently I’m finding it really hard to keep my emotions in check. Bloody agents seem to have everything their own way. Most of them don’t even have the decency to tell us why they don’t want the work on offer. I bet some of them don’t even read half the stuff they receive. Sometimes I just want to lash out and tell those agents how bloody rude they are. I bet they wouldn’t like to be treated as they treat writers. I know I’m not the only one who feels like this. Loads of my writing friends say the same.

Dealing with rejection is hard. But it is part and parcel of being a writer. I doubt there is a published author anywhere on the planet who hasn’t had work rejected at some point in his or her career. A certain Mr S. King, who is one of the most successful novelists of our age, claims he was once able to paper a room with his rejection slips. So, when you receive a ‘no thank you’ slip, you’re in good company.

It’s what you do after rejection that is important for your future career. If your manuscript comes back with a form letter saying it isn’t right for a list, you need to look critically at how and why you chose that publisher or agent in the first place. If your subject matter isn’t suitable, then you've wasted their time, and a fair amount of your hard-earned cash in ink, paper and postage.

If you’ve researched properly, but still receive a ‘not right for our list’ letter, although it’s hard, you have to accept it and move on. Agents and publishers receive huge volumes of material every week and sometimes work is rejected without being read. It happens; as writers we have to be thick-skinned and get over it.

Any pointers as to why the manuscript failed to make the grade should be acted on. Agents and publishers are busy people. It is very rare for anyone to take the time to tell you what’s wrong with your work, so treat this information with respect and revise accordingly.

Whatever you do, don’t fire off an angry letter, or email. Your work was rejected – end of story (excuse the pun). Venting your spleen won’t change anyone’s mind, but might make you a powerful enemy in an industry where word rapidly spreads.

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Don't Do This! Do That!

Today, Rose McClelland, a fellow author of Frances di Plino over in Crooked Cat Publishing, gives us the benefit of her advice. Rose doesn’t want others to make the same mistakes she did.

How to approach an agent/ publisher

So, you’ve written your first novel. You’ve typed The End, you’ve given yourself a massive pat on the back and you might even have gone out for a night of dancing to celebrate (good girl!). Now what? Well, it’s time to send it off, of course!

“Off? Off to whom, exactly? And how do I go about that?””

Well firstly, let’s go back to that opening sentence - You’ve written your novel. Just to be sure, you have definitely finished your novel, haven’t you? Sorry to ask, but if you’re a bit over-keen like myself, you might be tempted to submit your novel before it’s even finished. So I’m going to offer you a little “Don’t do as I did” advice. 

Big Mistake #1

You’re halfway through your first novel and super excited about how well it reads. Don’t decide that now would be a good time to submit your first three chapters. Don’t reason with yourself that “by the time the agent gets back to me, I’ll have finished writing the novel” because actually what happens is this: 

You get an email from an agent saying: “Thank you for your first three chapters. Please can you send the remaining manuscript as soon as possible?” 

What then happens is that you have a rush of two extremely conflicting emotions at once: 

(i)                “Oh my good god! This is Amazing! An agent wants to read my book!” and

(ii)             “Oh my good god! This is Amazing! But how can I write half a novel as soon as possible?”

(Yes, this happened to me.) I naughtily sent my first ever (half-written) novel Bottoms Up to an agent and then had a rush job to finish the rest. This is not a good idea. As a result, I have never really felt that book was ready for publication. It’s a case of the cake having risen too early. 

So, let’s say your book is as ready as it will ever be. You have edited it to within an inch of its life. You have asked someone to proof-read it. You may have even arranged for a beta- reader to check it. Perhaps you’ve even hired an editor. Now you’re good to go. What now? 

This is where (I’m embarrassed to say) I need to warn you off Big Mistake #2. (What’s that saying about learning from your mistakes?) 

Big Mistake #2

Don’t pick up a copy of The Writers & Artists Yearbook 2012. Don’t randomly choose 20 agents. Don’t write a standard submission letter to all twenty, simply changing the name and address of the agent. 

Tip: Agents can smell a standard submission letter a mile off.

Be specific.

Who do you want to represent you?

Why?

Look at other authors who write in a similar genre to you. Find out who their agent is. (Authors usually thank their agent in their acknowledgements.) 

Research the agent. Do you like the look of his/her work history? Is your work similar to his/her other clients? Then write and tell them so! 

Make your submission letter specific to the agent. Tell them why you are approaching them. Tell them you like the work they do with author X, Y and Z. Tell them why he/she might be interested in your book – because it’s a similar genre. 

Give them a brief taster of your novel – enough to pull them in and make them read the first three chapters and synopsis. 

First three chapters

For God’s sake, make it good! The first line should pull the reader in. There should be a hook in each chapter that should make the reader want to read on. There should be an issue of conflict which will make the reader wonder how it will be resolved.  And it should be written in your voice; your own easy style that you write in effortlessly – not one that you are trying to emulate. You are YOU. 

Synopsis

Next, the synopsis: Make it brief; plot points only. E.g. Rose writes blog. Rose posts blog. Rose attaches photos. It does not need to be funny or clever or smart. All it has to do is tell the agent how the novel moves along. 

And that’s it! Your letter is ready, your first three chapters are ready and your synopsis is ready. Pop them in the post and wait and see! Next thing is – don’t give up. If it’s not this one, try another. I would say good luck, but I don’t believe in luck. I believe in making things happen. Just keep trying. It will happen eventually. 

Lastly, having no joy with an agent? Why don’t you try to approach a publisher directly? There are some publishers and e-publishers who now accept submissions without needing to go via an agent. Research these on Twitter or Facebook. Keep your ear to the ground. I do have an agent, but I also approached Crooked Cat Publishing directly (who didn’t require me to go through an agent). 

Another tip: If you keep looking, eventually you’ll find the agent/ publisher for you!

DON’T GIVE UP! 

Rose writes chick-lit and is published by Crooked Cat Publishing. Her two novels The Break-Up Test and How to Look Like You are available on kindle and in paperback. 

Find out more about Rose:

http://rosiesrag.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/rose.mcclelland2

 

                

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Paying an agent is never a good idea

Brenda Darling is concerned about her work being used without her permission. She sent the following plea for help, which I answered in the February issue of Words with JAM Question Corner: Hi there, I wonder if you could give me some advice please. Last year Sheila Bugler kindly helped me with my synopsis for my novel HARD KNOCKS. Since completion I have been sending three chapters of my book to agents. Recently an agent got in touch by e-mail saying that they were interested to represent me if I could send them my novel by word document. This I did immediately, without giving any thought to the consequences. After getting no response, I rang and it was explained to me that I had to pay money up front. A published author whom I know, advised me not to go ahead. So I rang the agent and declined his offer.

My question is, the agent now has my complete novel and as I cannot retrieve my word document what do I do now? Is there a way I can stop my work from being used?

First and foremost, your writer friend is absolutely right to warn you off paying a prospective agent. Money should always flow to the writer, not the other way round. The only time an agent should make money from a writer is in commission for selling the book.

The exception to the money flowing to the writer is if you choose to pay for professional editing prior to submitting to an agent, or if you go to an editorial consultancy for advice on improving the storyline and structure.

You don’t have to worry too much about the agent using your work as you own the copyright and any use without your express consent would be illegal. I would, however, suggest sending the agent an email referring to your telephone conversation. Make it plain that you have declined the offer of representation and that you are withdrawing your work. Even if they have kept the file (highly unlikely) you would then have a record of what was said and done.

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