So You Got Rejected - What Now?

You've taken the plunge, dared to be brave, prepared for the worst and hoped for the best and sent out your baby as a submission to a publisher. But rather than the happy acceptance you hoped for, you've received the worst - and your work was rejected.  Now what?

Congratulations! It isn't a tragedy, it's a rite of passage. We've all been there, done that, it's just a fact of life for a writer, and it happens.  All writers will be rejected in their lifetime, that's simply a given. No need to feel as if the end of the world has arrived, cause it hasn't. No need for doom and gloom and tears, etc.

What is the proper response, you ask? Why, get back up on that horse and ride again!  Metaphorically speaking, of course. The literary world is littered with tales of famous writers who were rejected multiple times before receiving the acceptance and publication they dreamed of.  Don't be discouraged - you're in good company!

So, what do you do now?

You might take a break, recharge those psychic batteries a bit, in preparation for further battle.  Don't kid yourself, it's a battle to be published, and the battle is not getting easier with the advent of e-publishing. True, there are more opportunities to be published, but there are also that many more people who think they can write and are fighting for the limited room to be had. I'll save the rant about those people for another time, let's concentrate on you, the rejected writer.

Before you submitted, did you take a good look at the publisher?  I think the main cause of rejection lies in the writer's not doing that and submitting to a market that his story was never going to be right for, no matter who wrote it. Not everything will fit everywhere, no matter how much you want it to. So rather than trying to force that square peg into that round hole, look at what the publisher has done, see what sort of material they publish. Read the guidelines carefully, they're there for a reason! Take them seriously. A publisher who says they don't accept menage, for example, is not going to look nicely on  your m/m/f story no matter how you dress it. One who asks for no explicitness isn't going to want your steamy cock-laden romance story, no matter how wonderful it is.

Were you really prepared to send in this piece? Did you have anyone else read it?  A beta and a crit partner are invaluable things. One or both, if you can manage it. Your friends are all well and good but seriously, they're more likely to tell you how much they liked it, which isn't what you're looking for. Also, spell check is an invaluable tool, and grammar check. Use them a lot. Don't be afraid to accept criticism, it helps you grow as a writer.

If you have friends that are writers, ask them for suggestions, that is often a good way to find publishers. Those on the inside are more likely to know what a publisher will like or not like. Not that that's a guarantee, but any inside information can't hurt, right? Look for open calls for submissions, see what you have that fits. Sometimes exposure is worth more than mere monetary value, as anthologies don't tend to pay well.

Most of all, don't be afraid to try again with another publisher. And don't be afraid to fail again. Don't look at it as a step back, but rather a step forward. You've eliminated a publisher who isn't interested, now concentrate on the rest and fine tune your search.

Rejection isn't the end of the world, unless you make it that way. So set your mind to success, learn from this failure and move forward!  You'll be glad you did.  Sometimes a rejection is better than an acceptance, and sometimes an acceptance is made to be rejected!

Have any of you later found out you were happy that a publisher rejected you? How do you all deal with rejection?  I'd love to hear what you have to say!

Welcome guest blogger Marie Sexton!

Marie is taking over my blog today, welcome her if you will - she's the author of the Coda series, among other things, and her latest story, Putting Out Fires, will be released on Valentine's Day,  fittingly.  Today she's going to talk about writing, and getting through the third trimester. Comment for a chance to win a selection from Marie's backlist!

Does writing ever get easier?

It’s a question I find myself pondering as I struggle to finish my latest novel. For some reason, I keep thinking that it will. I want to believe that at some point, I’ll be able to finish a story as easily as I started it. But so far, it has yet to happen. So far, with the exception of The Letter Z, the one story that burst from my literary loins with barely a hint of pain, every single thing I’ve written has been harder than the one before.

To date, I have three novels and one novella published with Dreamspinner Press, all part of my Coda series. I also have a short story with Silver Publishing called One More Soldier. On Valentine’s Day, my short story Putting Out Fires will be released, and in April, my novella Paris A to Z (both are part of the Coda series). I have another novel called Between Sinners and Saints that’s in the process of finding its publishing home. And now, I have this latest book.

The working title is Oestend, although I doubt that will be what it’s called in the end. This book is a departure from my comfort zones in many ways, not least of all because it’s not contemporary. Not even close. It’s a quasi-fantasy, not-quite steampunk, old-west haunted house mild bondage tale. After much debate as to how to classify it, I have settled on the rather broad and ambiguous term, “speculative fiction.” If you had asked me about this book two weeks ago, I would have gushed about how excited I was. “It’s going to be amazing!” I would have said. But now?

Meh.

Don’t get me wrong. It’ll be fine. Although right at this moment I’ll tell anyone who asks that this book is going to kill me, the truth is, this is all part of the process (for me, at any rate). This is a stage, and it’s a stage I’ve gone through with each and every thing I’ve ever written (except TLZ). It’s the stage where I I’m so close to the end, I can practically taste it. The finish line is there, in sight. It teases me in the morning and taunts me every night. I write and I write and I write, but I can’t seem to get any closer to the end.

I was whining about this yesterday to my friend Jane Kindred, and she said, “Yeah, it’s the end of the third trimester. It will pass.” And the analogy is so beautifully accurate, I felt suddenly enlightened. It is the end of the third trimester!

When I was pregnant with my daugher, I breezed through those early months. I think I had one day of morning sickness. I worked at an OB/Gyn office and the ultrasound techs would call me every time they had an open slot. I must have had twenty ultrasounds, and I never had reason to worry. “Everything’s perfect!” my doctor told me at each check-up. “You’re the ideal OB patient.”

I was happy. I was glowing. I was absolutely radiant with my fabulous maternity wardrobe and my cute little basketball belly. Until…

THE 38TH WEEK.

In a matter of days, I swear I grew from the size of a normal pregnant woman to something roughly the size of a killer whale. My face, my hands, my feet - everything became bloated and huge. Two weeks away from delivery, and not a single maternity item in my closet could cover my massive girth. My hips suddenly hurt, my back hurt, my feet hurt….

Well, you know. Many of you have been there.

I asked my doctor what to do to speed things on their way, and he said, “Walk, or have sex. But not at the same time.” (Ever practical, was Dr. Ludwin).

So I walked. I walked and I walked and I walked. Around the block, over and over with my mother at my side. Never mind that my legs and back were screaming with fatigue. Never mind that my feet, which were too fat to fit in anything but flip-flips, were so sore I thought I would cry (and sometimes I did). I walked. And yes, I tried the sex thing too, god help me. But mostly, I walked.

That’s where I am right now with Oestend.

Now, please don’t get me wrong. I love my job, and in time, I’ll love this book again too. Once the first draft is done, things will fall into place. Then it’s revisions and edits, and I could do those all damn day! I’ll revise and edit ‘til the Oestend cows come home, and I may even whistle while I do it.

But first, I have to finish this #$%*$#$%# first draft.

*sigh*

So I will walk. With my flip-flips and my tired hips and my poor-me attitude. Eventually, I’ll look up, and I’ll be at the end. But until then, I’ll keep walking. And I dare say I’ll keep whining. Feel free to ignore me. Pat me on the head, shake your head and say, “Tsk, tsk.”

It will all be all right in the end.

*****

Marie Sexton is the author of the Coda series, and One More Soldier. Her books can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/4l73zns

One person will receive an e-book title of their choice from Marie’s backlist. Leave a comment to enter.

Finding the perfect picture to fit your perfect character

Some people can get an image of their characters in their mind, hold on to it carefully, and describe them, bit by bit, in such a way that you too can see them. I am not one of those writers.

Descriptions in general don't come easily to me, and people portraits least of all. I got away with that in To The Max cause Max is telling the story, and he isn't the kind to describe himself. He describes Richard, but in simple terms - long lemon blond hair, and midnight blue eyes. I had to do better than that for the cover artist, and believe me, it wasn't easy.

But I've discovered a way in which to improve on my descriptions, a method which I know other authors use - before we begin, we do a character photo search on the Intenet, looking for guys that match our image of our heroes, and then it becomes easier to describe them, cause you're looking at a model!

Often, I have a hazy idea of what type I'm looking for - say a blond, brunet or redhead, approximate age, stuff like that. Then I google some or part of that, and see what comes up. If you go that route, be prepared for a lot of pictures of totally extraneous and unrelated items (especially if you keep safe search off, as I do. I once wanted a picture of a champagne bottle. Simple enough, yes? Well, I ended up with a picture of a woman, with two bottles, placed in certain orifices, and I was like wtf? Seriously?

Yes, seriously. So be prepared for sights you may not want to see, just because they're tagged that way.

Another place to look is on model sites - you can google those too. Model agencies such as Nass, among others. I found my Avery of my Captivations series by the other method, and I'd never heard of the model I found, but he was perfect - turns out he's like the top model in the world or something. Who knew? What do I know about Dolce & Gabbana? Zilch! But I know a handsome man when I see one, so let me show you my idea of what Avery Deacon looks like:

I have to say it makes me want to find a man that dresses in Dolce & Gabbana!

It's fun to look for guys this way, and very rewarding when you do so. Of course I can't use David Gandy's picture on my novel - I'd hate to think what that would cost. But I did get Jimmy Thomas, who is incredibly awesome and very sexy! In fact he's on two of my covers so far, and I know he'll be on at least another one, just not sure when. I picked out the pic myself, and my lovely editor bought it! Let me show you those covers:

Right now, I'm currently searching for someone, and having a hard time doing it, so I'm going to throw it out there, in case anyone is interested in helping me in my search: I'm trying to find a forty-ish guy who looks like Robert Plant (long waved blond hair, rugged looks) but isn't Robert Plant. Any help in this quest would be appreciated!

Tell me about your experiences in finding your picture perfect guy! I'd love to hear them!