Hi! My name is Leah Silverman, the Greatest Unpublished Writer in the World!

[taste_is_sweet]

And I'm spamming my FList today! Do-dah, do-dah.

I'm also psychic. I was just thinking to myself, 'wouldn't it be awful hilarious if, just as I've finished writing my brigits_flame entry for this week, I get an e-mail from my agent telling me another publisher turned me down?'

And I got an e-mail from my agent telling me another publisher turned me down.

Now, I have to say that as rejections go this one was awesome. I won't indulge my whorish need for self-aggrandizement myself here by actually posting it, but it was seriously about as good a response one could hope for except for the obvious wee problem that they didn't actually want my book.

They thought it was too slow. Again. I'm wondering when my agent will crack and finally tell me to go back and re-edit the damn thing.

Anyway, I am definitely disappointed, but considering how nice this e-mail was, not to mention how sweetly my agent talked me up to these people in the first place, I'm not as miserable as I might otherwise be. However, since this was another big-name publisher that turned me down, I'm getting worried that eventually the only one left to take me will be Bob's Basement Sci-Fi. And my advance will be about fifty bucks in pocket change and a gift-certificate for a slice of pie at Denny's the next time I'm in Albuquerque.

Not that I'm in it for the money, but, well, I'd rather be an author people actually know about. And the money would be really, really nice. I won't lie about that.

But! There's at least one press left in this round, and hopefully there will be another round if this one doesn't work out, either. Just, wish me luck, guys? I fear I'm needing it.

Comments

[miscellanny.livejournal.com]

SO MUCH LUCK, dude.

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much. :D

[caras-galadhon.livejournal.com]

Good luck! My fingers and toes are crossed!

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Thank you kindly. :D

[innana88.livejournal.com]

Puh! You mean you actually want to get PAID and be read? What's up with that shit? :p

Hang in there! I'm glad that this was a nice letter, but I'm sorry it wasn't better news. I have total faith in you and your writing.

Question, so what's to stop you from editing it now? Is it that your agent doesn't think it needs it and you would just feel better having something you could do to improve it or does it actually need editing? I have to ask. :)

I'll be OMMMMMMMMMing for you! As opposed to ohming for you. How exactly would that work?

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Hee! Ohm or, um, Omm away! Very much appreciated.

As is your comment, of course. What is stopping me from editing it now is basically what you've said--my agent doesn't seem to think that the book actually requires it, just that it needs to find the right editor.

It might need editing. In all honesty I'd be just as happy if I never had to look at it again (except on the best-seller lists or to have a published copy in my hot little hands, of course), but if I constantly get back the same criticism that it's too slow, there may come a point when my agent does tell me that I have to edit again. ::Sighs:: I hope not, but of course I will. :)

[niamh-sage.livejournal.com]

Good luck! I hope your book finds its home soon!

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much! I certainly hope so, too. :)

[springwoof.livejournal.com]

luck, Luck, LUCK!! (& sloppy doggie kisses)

and KEEP WRITING. Sometimes publishers suddenly discover a need to publish your first book after someone's taken a chance and published your second, or even third book and that one's well-received. Remember, if they decide to publish you, they're taking a big gamble with a lot of money (literally) on someone they don't know, who doesn't have a track record to provide any predictions of success. That, as much as anything, is why publishers might like a book very much and *still* not be willing to take the risk of publishing it. And it's the Catch-22. Once you're published, you're more likely to be published.

So keep writing. Write MOAR. Write another book or three for your agent to shop around. Sometimes if you have a couple of more books "in the vault" it gives publishers more confidence to publish you, because if the first book sells well, they can follow it up directly with another book--they don't have to wait for you to get around to writing it. Publishers like a sure thing...or as close as they can get.....

(besides, I'd *love* to line my bookshelves with your novels! ♥ )

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Thank you, on all counts. And when my novel gets published I am certainly sending you a copy of it. :D

I agree about writing more stuff to prove myself, but it's been really hard lately. I want to just get over myself and move on, but so far it's really not working like I want it to.

[springwoof.livejournal.com]

Nope. I'm BUYING a copy to drive your sales figures up on Amazon. ;D Want you to be RICH as well as happy!

As to writing more, I feel your pain, darlin'. The Spouse is a big fan of incremental progress--especially to get over the hump of not being able to build up the momentum to do something. And I think that's your major problem right now--momentum. When the writing is humming along sweetly, one is barely aware of 10,000 words flying past. When the going gets slow, one slogs through 100 words, all of them painful.


What slows *me* down is revisions. Constant revisions, even as I'm writing the first draft. (and now you blink in surprise, because my first drafts can be really not-pretty, and that's *after* me fiddling with it constantly) If I didn't fiddle with it as much in the middle of writing, and I just let everything go and revised *later*, I think I'd progress a lot faster. sigh.

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

I don't know, SW--I revise constantly as I go along as well. I often can't continue unless I've done that first!

I appreciate your sympathy very much. I don't know how long this slump will last, but I'm really not happy right now. Luckily I'm seeing my counselor tomorrow. Hopefully that'll perk me up a bit. :)

::hugs you::

[lacombe.livejournal.com]

Hang in there. 1,000 failures before one success. :-)

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :) God, I hope I don't actually have to go through 1,000 failures. I know I'd give up.

[lacombe.livejournal.com]

Don't- we won't be giving up on you! ;-)

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :D

[lavvyan.livejournal.com]

You know all the best authors gather rejection slips before they finally get the recognition they deserve. *snuggles*

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

I know, thank you. :) But some days the disappointment is particularly bad.

I'd love to hug you in person. Thank you.

[lavvyan.livejournal.com]

Maybe one day. ♥

[taste-is-sweet.livejournal.com]

That'd be awesome!