Syrell made a good point yesterday with her commenting that she, as an author, would rather have her bad ms. rejected rather than it get bad reviews. I wish every author had that view of their work. And sometimes, in the case of the author I rejected, the writing wasn't that bad. There were some good, fresh descriptions, but there was nothing in it to keep a reader reading. Good writing is not all it takes. It's got to be a story that will interest a wide range of readers.
I have heard so many times an author call their manuscript "their baby" and I admit, I've done that myself, and when it was rejected, I was totally bummed. I let that get in the way of a manuscript I was working on at the time, which was eerily familiar to the Twilight series that's so popular right now. I was so bummed about the other manuscript, I wiped a perfectly good manuscript off my hard drive.
I repeat, I am such a dork. Don't do what I did. Don't let rejection stand in your way. Keep writing well, try your hardest to show and not tell, try your hardest not to use passive voice, and make your story interesting. And the best and only way to grab the editors attention is to make it interesting from the very FIRST sentence. I know some editors who won't read past the first sentence if it doesn't grab them.
Another problem I tend to have is rushing when I get about half way through. The first half of my story is really good, but then I start to rush, and the ending is sloppy. That's what I'm working on trying to fix. One thing I recommend every author do is always try to improve. Usually your first draft and even your second draft can be improved. So, go over it and go over it, adding description where you can, deleting extra words where you can, strengthening the plot where you can, then send it in.
Anyway, that's my thought for the day. My other thought is that I have to go to Wal Mart, because that is the ONLY store that sells frosted chocolate vanilla creme PopTarts, which is the only kind of PopTarts me and my son like. Boo. I hate that place.
Wal-mart is the only place I can find those Reeces cookies. OMG - to die for.
Chiming in just cuz. I do the same thing. Rush through the ending. On the other hand, I often send in a ms even if it's the first draft in hopes of getting it contracted. I know it needs more work and if contracted, I'll do what I can to beef it up before it goes to my editor. It's a bad habit, but the wheels in publishing tend to move slowly and if there's going to be a wait period before the book comes out, then I want to use that time wisely. If I waited until the ms was perfect, it might be three years before publication. This way, I'm forced to make it perfect in a more timely manner.
Name: Mindy Home: Albuquerque, NM, United States About Me: I am Senior Editor for an imprint of Champagne Books. I am married to an Air Force Officer, who is currently serving his country in Afghanistan. I have three bright and beautiful children. See my complete profile
Wal-mart is the only place I can find those Reeces cookies. OMG - to die for.
Chiming in just cuz. I do the same thing. Rush through the ending. On the other hand, I often send in a ms even if it's the first draft in hopes of getting it contracted. I know it needs more work and if contracted, I'll do what I can to beef it up before it goes to my editor. It's a bad habit, but the wheels in publishing tend to move slowly and if there's going to be a wait period before the book comes out, then I want to use that time wisely. If I waited until the ms was perfect, it might be three years before publication. This way, I'm forced to make it perfect in a more timely manner.