I'm not depressed, but I am feeling this: ugh. I need more energy, more caffeine, more pep talks, more something to get me through another round of queries. I am fortunate that two of my manuscripts are in the hands of agents who requested Fulls, but it's been a while, and the more time passes, the more I feel grim. I figure I need Russell, from the brilliant film Up, to visit me.
He has a Wilderness Survival Guide that might help me during this Agent Query search.
How to Build a Tent.
Or, How to Survive the Query Process
Step 1: Separate Tent Parts.
Or, Separate your self worth from your manuscript.
(That's harder than it looks.)Step 2: Follow Directions Carefully. Or,
Research the heck out of agents, fall in love with agent, craft a specific letter to agent, get rejection from agent on pitch alone, sigh, and repeat from beginning of Step 2
Step 3: Never Force Anything. Or, Realize that agents have specific ideas about what will be a success in the market--or desirable to publishers--and your manuscript might not "fit" those ideas. Truth be told, they're forced to judge a book by its cover (pitch), right?
So take a deep breath, and just say it: "Tents are hard."
Rejections are hard.
But look at Russell's face. All red-whipped, and he's still not giving up completely.
Getting rejections is an important part of becoming a better writer and determining how much I believe in what I'm doing. Even published authors get rejections. (Yep, there are many of us. I'm not alone.)
Now, it's back to work. I've got a tent to build.
