So this week I sent out six new agent queries. I'll do more next week; it takes a lot of time to explore agents and pick those who you think will connect with your writing. I feel good about it, even though statistically speaking I likely won't end up with any of them as my agent. I am pretty sure I'm not the only one who gets frustrated by this merry-go-round of submissions and rejections. Why do we keep doing it?
I'll tell you why I keep doing it. I am not interested in self publishing. I have nothing against it, per se. It gains more and more credibility every year as a viable path. But I want to write. I don't want to negotiate contracts, pay for my books to be printed, market all by myself. I just want to write my books. So I keep doing it. (I will say that most of the self-pubbed books I've read have not been of the same caliber as traditionally pubbed books. This isn't to say it's not possible, but traditional publishers have teams of people who work on your book. It's bound to improve the quality of the thing. I should also add that I edit for self-publishing authors, and I think those who hire an editor end up with a much better book.)
I have several friends who were almost at the end of their proverbial ropes when they finally signed with an agent and sold one or more books to traditional publishers. Their stories lift my spirits when I want to give up.
Here are a few of things I've learned over my many long years of writing, submitting, being rejected, and trying again.
1. If the same work keeps getting rejected, maybe it's time to set it aside and work on something new. I know for a fact that each book I write is better than the last. And every time, I think this one is it, until it's not. Each one teaches me something I didn't understand before. So don't put all your eggs in that one basket.
2. I am confident that I am a good writer. Maybe even a great writer. I know this because I go to a lot of workshops, conferences, retreats, and critique groups with professionals, and they tell me this. Also because I've been practicing for a very long time. Also because I read by the ton, and I know what's out there. Also, because I have no ego left, so I can assess my own writing in a fairly unbiased way.
3. It's a good thing that some of the agents and editors I've submitted to have rejected me. As mentioned, I been in this rodeo quite a long time, and I've seen the big stall that can happen to a writer with an agent who isn't right for them. Inevitably, that partnership ends, and one has to start all over. As I have gotten to know some of the agents I once thought would be perfect for me, I cry happy tears that they didn't sign me.
4. Agents are just people. Very fallible people. Very nice people. Professional people. But there is nothing to be afraid of. I have given up the role of sweet little author who needs the help of an agent (if that ever was me), and I have started being completely myself when I query and submit. I tell people straight out what I want, what I'm willing to do, and what my vision for a particular book is. I am too old to tiptoe around, hoping my good behavior will get me in the door. You know that saying about well behaved women rarely making history? That.
5. Even when nothing happens, something is happening. I spent the last year hoping to nail down a particular agent. She asked for fulls of two manuscripts, read them, sent back copious editorial notes. I spent two months revising one manuscript per her notes, resubmitted at her request, and waited. For six months. Nothing. All my writing friends said to move on, which I am doing. But that was a good experience, because it gave me more confidence, revision notes to work with, and some good revisions came out of it.
6. Never, ever sit around and wait for that reply. Be working on new things and revising old things and researching and everything else. It gives me so much energy to be working on the next, new, shiny manuscript that I can forget there is ever one making the rounds out there. It keeps me from obsessing or worrying. It keeps me moving forward and writing better books.
I wish us all the best luck this year in achieving our writing and publishing dreams.
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Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: authors, self-publishing, agents, publishers, revisions, rejection, submitting, Add a tag
Blog: Utah Children's Writers (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: submitting, mobile office, tracking submissions, mobile author, Add a tag
- The Mobile Author, Part One: The Portable Office
- The Mobile Author, Part Two: Getting Organized
- The Mobile Author, Part Three: Managing Your Project
- The Mobile Author, Part Four: Planning Your Story
- The Mobile Author, Part Five: Writing
So far in this series about going mobile, we've seen how to set up your mobile office so you have everything you need wherever you are, how to use your mobile devices to organize your projects, plan them, and write them. But once you've written your work, it's time to submit. So, today I'm going to discuss how you can use your tablets and phones to track your submissions.
There are online submission trackers, such as The Writer's Database and Duotrope. They work well, but they are set up using somebody else's system. You are a mobile author. You are free. You can do what you want, where you want. So why would you want to use somebody else's system when you can create a system that works the way you like, and keep it in your pocket, purse, or backpack?
I'm going to suggest three options for doing it your way. You might have something else that works for you. Whichever approach you choose, the important thing is that you have it with you wherever you decide to work today.
Spreadsheet
The word spreadsheet causes fear and trepidation among my fellow office workers everywhere. But a spreadsheet does not have to be feared. Turns out, spreadsheets are actually a pretty good way to keep track of stuff. I use one to track my own submissions.My submissions spreadsheet for each project is pretty simple. I have columns for the agent's name, the agency, the agency's website, contact info (the address or email address I used to submit), the date I submitted, the date I heard back, the date I (fingers crossed!) sent the partial or full, the date I heard back again, and a column for notes or comments. That's it. As I submit, I enter all of that info in the next available row.
Several rows below the submission records, I have a list of agents I might submit to in the future, with all of the info but the submission and reply dates. When it's time from the next round of submissions, if I don't already have somebody in mind, I draw from that list. If you like to sort your spreadsheet by different columns, you might prefer to keep your list of potential submissions on a separate page.
This is easy to do from your mobile office. You can use either a Google Spreadsheet or use the spreadsheet function of your mobile office suite. Google Spreadsheet was made even more viable on April 30 with the release of the Google Sheets app, which eliminates the requirement to be online. I highly recommend Google Docs for this task, but either option works.
Bulletin Board
Spreadsheets work great for tracking submissions, but they are not exactly a delight to use. You might prefer a more visual approach. For that, I recommend Trello, which I've mentioned before. Trello gives you a visual bulletin board where you can easily see the state of your submissions.
Dragging an agent record from "To Submit" to "Submitted" in Trello
I haven't used Trello to track submissions, but if I did, it would be pretty simple. I'd create a card for each agent I wanted to submit to. I'd sort the cards in stacks called something like To Submit, Submitted, Rejected, Requests, and Accepted. I could track multiple projects on one board by color-coding each story. That approach would give me a quick view of what's going on with my submissions. It might be a little harder to see whether I'd already submitted to a particular agent than a spreadsheet would, so I'd have to pay attention to that.
The card approach has advantages over the spreadsheet besides being visual. You could put all kinds of info on the cards, like snippets from websites or interviews you want to use to personalize your queries, or copies of the responses you receive. Bulletin boards are very free-form, so you can pretty much do whatever works for you.
Database
If spreadsheet is a scary word, database might trigger a full-on panic attack. But it doesn't have to. A database is a good way to organize stuff, and once you set it up, can work very well. A database record is really just an index card or Rolodex card with the info you need to keep track of, except that your pile of cards is sortable by any piece of info.The difficult part is setting up the database, but it's not that hard. If you are an uber-organizer, you might not find a better approach.
Android users who are into this kind of fancy-pants thing might try the free Memento Database app to set up a database. iPad users apparently don't have access to Memento, but they have other options. I didn't notice any obvious free choices in the App Store, but there are plenty of database apps.
Next Step
So far, this series has shown how to set up and organize your mobile office, and how to manage your writing project from the planning stages through submission. Next week, we will discuss some apps that will help you manage your writing life.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 5/26/2014
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: dreams, acceptance, writing, children's literature, ideas, picture book writing, submitting, quote, inspirational quote, Add a tag
Visualize this thing you want. See it, feel it, believe in it. Make your mental blueprint and begin. Robert Collier
Visualizing is an important part of a writer’s journey. Mom always visualized opening a letter of acceptance. She walked herself through every bit of how it would feel. The envelope – the weight of it, the uncertainty – that wiggly feeling in the tummy, the zipping it open – the rough edges, and the finally knowing – somebody said yes. Over and over for years and years, she saw it, felt it, and believed it. 
But guess what. When her first story was sold, no letter came. Her publisher called her on the phone and left a message! 
That being said, Mom still visualizes getting an acceptance letter. Over and over. Every detail. Every single day. She says, “This will happen.” and “It can’t hurt.” and “What is going on in that tiny brain of yours?”
What time is dinner?
I visualize, too, of course.
What time is dinner?
I see and feel and believe in tons of treats, piles of toys, 
long walks, and playtime that never ends. 
My mental blueprint shows how I will get onto the table, into the garbage, out the window, and through the door. 
My brain may be tiny, but it’s busy all the time. Visualizing…..
What time is dinner?
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 3/9/2014
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture book writing, submitting, quote, inspirational quote, 12x12, reading, editing, writing, children's literature, waiting, revising, Add a tag
Creativity doesn’t wait for that perfect moment. It fashions its own perfect moments out of ordinary ones.
-Bruce Garrabrandt-
Moments matter – Every single one of them. I try to use each one wisely.
Climbing.
Kissing.
Exploring.
Eating.
Playing.
And helping.
This past weekend we lost 60 moments of sleep for daylight savings. Well, the humans did. I got those moments back in spades 60 times over.
Mom uses one hour of moments each day for work. And by work I mean she sits there and types on the computer and talks out loud to herself. Sometimes the Creativity visits her during that hour. I love visitors. I’m not sure I’ve ever met the Creativity Visitor, though. Maybe tomorrow…..
If the Creativity doesn’t visit at that exact work time, Mom still works. Each month, she makes a new story and fixes up an old story (or two or three) for her 12×12 Challenge. She also reads books about writing books, and reads books like the books she writes. Wait. What?
Writing time is not for blogs, not for Facebook, not for email, not for Words With Friends, and not even for TV.
It’s just working on stories in one way or another – writing them, reading them, fixing them, thinking about them, submitting them to agents and publishers, and giving me cuddles and treats…. (See what I did there?) If the Creativity doesn’t come – Oh well. Maybe tomorrow…..
We’ll be ready.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 1/25/2014
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: contest, kidlit, editing, writing, magazines, ideas, revising, critique group, submitting, inspirational quote, 12x12, Add a tag
When I first came here, I had to be fixed. I wasn’t broken, but getting fixed was about not getting any more puppies in my belly. That’s fine with me.
My puppies were adopted at the shelter where I “lived” (and by lived, I mean barely existed) before I was rescued. Nowadays, I feel that puppies would take away some of Mom’s attention – which belongs 100% on ME. Plus, I use my belly for other things, named treats.
Mom’s story for the Highlights Annual Fiction Contest wasn’t broken, either.
But, boy oh boy, did it need to be fixed. Mom’s cyberclassmates and her cyberteacher from the Contest Magic class gave suggestion after suggestion and asked important questions that made Mom think of important answers and make important changes. At the end of it all, the story was a LOT better than it started out. Like me!
Before
After
Some things Mom learned were:
1. She is a mental case when it comes to commas. (She, kind, of, already, knew, that,,,)
2. The story problem needs to be close to the beginning of the story.
Help!
3. Readers need to learn about characters by what they say and what they do.
4. A problem can’t solve itself. Characters need to work at it and make the solution happen. And it can’t be too easy.
5. Conflict and tension are important. (Mom stinks at both of them.)
6. Sometimes, even your favorite parts of a story need to be cut. It might be scary and hurt a little, but it has to be done.
It’s like getting my nails trimmed. Like it or not, it has to be done….
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 11/3/2013
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, pets, acceptance, writing, children's literature, dogs, ideas, revising, rejection, picture book writing, submitting, Add a tag
Mom and I went geocaching again last week. Geocaching is like treasure hunting. Mom holds the phone that shows the GPS and compass. Then we walk and walk and walk and walk.
Then she decides the phone is upside down, so she turns it around and we start over. We walk and walk and walk and walk some more – the other way.
The phone tells her when we’re getting close, and then we start searching and scanning till we find the treasure.
Sometimes, Mom says, “No acorns.”
and “Don’t eat the pine cone.”
and “Yikes! Hornets!”
Geocaching is fun!
Mom does treasure hunting when she wants to submit a story, too. She has too many stories to count inside her computer and some more inside her head (that’s what’s up in there…). She is sure that one of them is a treasure and will be Book #2. Whenever she reads about a publisher or an agent that seems to be looking for the type of story Mom writes, she starts treasure hunting. She opens up story after story, revises them a little, talks to herself about them, and decides whether she’s headed in the right direction, or needs to turn around and start over.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 9/21/2013
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, acceptance, editing, writing, children's literature, revising, critique group, picture book writing, submitting, writing class, Add a tag
Today, the park was chock full of surprises. I chased a butterfly whose name was Don’t-You-Dare. I tried to eat a bottle cap, which tasted like sand. I ran in circles on the baseball field till Mom was dizzy and my feet and legs turned brown from kicking up dirt. And I even saw a purple jelly bean and a cigar butt.
After all that excitement, I cooled off on a pile of dirt in the shade of a bench.
Mom got a super-fun surprise last week. Back when she was studying in her Making Picture Book Magic class, she wrote a story called What If I Don’t. Her teacher, Susanna, and all of her online classmates helped her and encouraged her while she worked on it. She also brought it to her writing group called DavidLaurieandOtherDavid. They said, “Fix this, change that, move this, cut that, let’s have more coffee.” Last week, Mom got a contract for her story from MeeGenius! What If I Don’t is going to be Mom’s first ever eBook! Surprise!
MeeGenius is a free app with tons and tons of cute books for kids to read on the iPad and iPhone. Pages turn with a swipe, and there’s also a Read to Me option, in case you’re like me and can’t read.
Mom, I don’t think these glasses are working….
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 9/16/2013
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: PiBoIdMo, inspirational quote, 12x12, kidlit, writing, children's literature, ideas, revising, critique group, picture book writing, submitting, quote, Add a tag
But there was one other thing that the grown-ups also knew, and it was this: that however small the chance might be of striking lucky, the chance is there. The chance had to be there.”
― Roald Dahl, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
I struck lucky when Mom found me a few Decembers ago. Purrs n Pups found me in Georgia in a kill-shelter, where my puppies had been adopted…
….and I was left behind.
They brought me to foster care and my foster-mom brought me to an adoption event where Mom found me.
She said some bad words like, “Too small.” and “Too old.” But then she said some good words like, “I’m taking her home!” and “This is my new dog!”
My first day at home, I said, “This is my new couch!”
Mom is always waiting to strike lucky. She works on stories, revises them and revises them, makes cover letters, signs them with her lucky pen, and submits story after story to magazines, book publishers, and agents. Whenever Book #2 gets accepted, that will be her lucky day.
PiBoIdMo is helpful. Mom gets a new idea every single day during that month.
Mom’s 12×12 Challenge is helpful. It keeps her writing new pieces every month.
The class she took named Making Picture Book Magic was helpful. It taught her about planning a story to make sure it has all the parts it needs.
Her writing group named DavidLaurieandOtherDavid is helpful. They help her stories get better and better.
Where’s the work? This looks like a party!
Her computer friends at RateYourStory help her by giving her a reality check about what she writes.
And of course, I help her by taking her to the park to clear her head,
staring at her while she’s working,
and sometimes, I fall asleep on the iPad and type LLLLLLLL with my ear.
By: Linda S. Wingerter,
on 1/31/2013
Blog: Blue Rose Girls (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: writing process, editing, submitting, Add a tag
I've always loved Little Bear (as drawn by Maurice Sendak)
And I also love his mother, in the words of Else Minarik, replying that maybe he is "a fat little bear cub" and "will come down very fast, with a big plop."
I've landed with a big thud: my book is off to its first readers and I'm back in the world of doing my freelance work and getting my taxes done and cleaning my house, those kinds of things. Being OUT OF that world and in another of one's own creation is part of the fun of writing.
But this book reminded me of the other things I love about writing -- things I haven't felt in a long, long time. When I revise, I can just do it -- and for long hours at a stretch; it's very satisfying to be so engrossed and to see something get better. The first draft is usually torture, though: all the waiting, all the times when nothing comes or what does seems (and may well be) completely inadequate. This time, though, sometimes what I wrote in the first draft surprised me and made me laugh out loud, and that was fun, too.
One difference between a book that has life and potential and one that doesn't are those surprises, those ideas that just come....but those moments don't mean the book as a whole is GOOD or even works.
What I enjoyed most, though, was being IN the book: not wanting to do anything else. Not thinking about anything else. Waking up in the morning and wanting to write -- even though it usually took a lot of dawdling before that happened.
This is the first book I've really enjoyed writing in a long, long time -- and whether it all holds together or not (my biggest worry), whatever my first readers say about it, I've had that -- and learned a lot, too, about how to make it happen.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 1/24/2013
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: pets, photo, editing, writing, children's literature, dogs, revising, picture book writing, submitting, Add a tag
Mom’s friend Bob at Northwest Photographer is an artist. He is crazy-skilled at taking pictures, and goes around to a lot of places getting amazing shots of animals and scenery and all sorts of wonderful things….including a cat named Jack! Bob is having a challenge called Frameable Keepers every Sunday at his blog. He wants to see photos that you’d love to see framed, and then he will fix them up so they look perfect.
I have begged and begged Mom to submit a picture of me. She says I can’t compete with all that beauty. That’s a good thing, ….right? I think it means I’m ….um…extra-pretty….??? And she should give me bacon….???
Anyway, I finally talked her into it, so here I am.
I hope Bob will work on my picture and make me look even cuter. (Can I GET any cuter??) He’ll fix and figure and change and correct and enhance and elevate.
Each time Mom finishes a story, she ALWAYS works on it some more, like Bob does with his pictures. I think she’s trying to make her stories even cuter, like me. She rephrases and revises and cuts and clips and elaborates and embellishes. When mom thinks her picture is frameable, then she’ll talk about it at her writing group and maybe submit it.
I wonder what she’ll do when my picture is frameable…. She framed this one, so I guess anything can happen!
By the way, check my Awards Page to see my newest bling. It’s the Shine On Award from our friends at Angels Whisper. Thanks, A.W.!
Shine On, cutie .jpeg?picon=2049)
By: Julie Whelan,
on 10/24/2012
Blog: The Paper Wait (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Rejections, Submitting, The Book Industry, Julie Whelan, Protocol, Add a tag
I tossed my ‘giraffe’ in the air…the rhyming manuscript about which I was so excited went off, exclusively, to two carefully chosen editors.
A month or two later, I had heard nothing; I assumed nothing.
As happens in this industry, it turns out that editor number one, for whom I had high hopes, left the publisher two weeks after I emailed her. Editor number two has sent no reply. Nearly three months have passed since I submitted.
I need to follow up so that I can forward the manuscript to other editors. How should this be handled? While I am out of luck with editor number one, is it as if the manuscript dissolved in cyberspace? Or do I have a responsibility to follow up with that publisher? Editors move frequently. What is the standard practice with manuscripts left unresolved upon that editor's departure?
With editor number two, I have a picayune protocol question: since I submitted by snail mail (as required) must I also follow-up by snail mail? Or can I shoot an email?
Rejection protocol. I know many of you have been through this before. Thanks in advance for your advice.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 9/24/2012
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: writing, children's literature, submitting, pets, photo, Add a tag
Today is my birthday!
I’m SIX years old. I think that is the perfect age. Mom agrees. She says if I could go to school, I’d be a first grader, and would be learning to read. How fun would THAT be? Then, I would help Mom with her writing work. Sometimes, she writes stories that are perfect for first graders, but they’re not books, yet. It’s just as well, since I can’t read yet.
To celebrate my birthday, I will have treats,
and I’ll finally get to play with my new birthday hedgehog, which has been hidden in the closet.
I knew about the hedgehog, because I picked it out at Petco last week. It’s been a looong wait, but I am sure it will be a blast to bite it and throw it and catch it and lick it and cuddle with it.
Mom says, “Writers are experts at waiting.” and “We have to wait for our big break. And then wait for our big break again!” and “Don’t break your new toy!”
I don’t know about Mom, but I’m tired of waiting!
REALLY tired of waiting. Let’s party!!
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 7/22/2012
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, acceptance, writing, magazines, children's literature, rejection, submitting, Add a tag
Things always work out even-steven for me. If I lose a ball, I find another one on the field. If I accidentally eat the wing off my stuffed chicken, Mom buys me a stuffed goose.
Sometimes I fall off the chair. Other times I fall off the couch. Sometimes, I’m naughty, and sometimes I’m super-cuddly. Even-steven.
Mom was even-steven yesterday. Early in the morning, she got an acceptance for her story Too Many Pets from Stories for Children Online Magazine. She printed it out, hung it up on her bulletin board, and said, “Yay!” and “Yay!” and “No, you may NOT eat the thumb tacks.”
Then the mailman brought her an envelope from Highlights Magazine. Mom said, “I bet this is another acceptance!” and “We’re on a roll!” and “Yay!” Then she opened it (insert dramatic music here). I was hoping she would take out the box of thumb tacks (which I’m DYING to taste), to hang it up next to the other one, but nope. No hanging, no tacks, …no yay.
Mom said, “Bummer.” and “Rejection.” and “At least she personalized it with a little note.”
Sometimes, even-steven stinks! But not for me! Later I plan on being super-cuddly….
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 7/10/2012
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, acceptance, children's literature, rejection, submitting, Add a tag
Mom likes holding me.
People at the Veteran’s Home like holding me.
I like holding my toys, sometimes in my paws and sometimes in my mouth.
Holding is good, no it’s GREAT.
Humpty Dumpty Magazine is holding one of Mom’s stories. It’s a little rebus story about show and tell. Holding is not the same as buying. But it’s also not the same as rejection. So, for Mom, holding is GOOD, but not great.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 4/19/2012
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, acceptance, children's literature, rejection, submitting, Add a tag
Today is my 100th blog post! Yay, me! Mom said, “Let’s celebrate with 100 MilkBones.” and “What a fun party!”
and then, “Sorry, Sweetie. You can only eat one of them. The rest are just for the picture.” So the party wasn’t quite as fun as I was hoping.
Mom changes her mind a lot about the number 100. Long ago when she first started writing, she said, “I’ll try submitting this and see what happens.” and “This pile of rejections is starting to grow.” and “When I get 100 rejections, I’ll give up and stop trying to get published.”
Well, she did get 100 rejections, but she changed her mind and kept trying. 101 – still trying. 102 – still trying. I think you get where this is going…. She never did give up. After collecting and counting those rejections for a while, Mom decided they had bad karma. She put them into the shredder one by one.
Now she says, “Each rejection is like a stepping stone that takes me that much closer to a contract for Book #2.”
That’s fine with me, but I’m keeping an eye on that bowl of MilkBones, in case she decides they have bad karma and decides to pour them into the shredder.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 4/9/2012
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: acceptance, writing, children's literature, Easter, picture book writing, submitting, Add a tag
I was dressed up and looking my best for Easter. Seersucker isn’t just for humans, you know! With the bunny ears or without, I think I looked awful pretty (which is way different than pretty awful).
Mom is always careful that her stories are looking their best before she sends them anywhere. It’s almost like every day is Easter Sunday for a writer. A spelling mistake, a missing word, or a wrong homophone would be like a cracked egg.
A slow opening, a lame ending, or an unnecessary sentence would be like a basket filled with Easter grass and nothing else.
Epic fail.
Yesterday, when I was running around in circles and digging in the mulch and sniffing my friend, Lila in some unmentionable places, Mom said, “You can dress her up, but you can’t take her out.” Stories are not like that, though. Mom dresses her stories up in their Sunday best and then sends them out.
Bye-Bye stories. I hope everybody says you’re adorable.
By: Gale Sypher Jacob,
on 2/16/2012
Blog: The Paper Wait (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: The Writer's Life, Gale Sypher Jacob, Editor/Agent Comments, Picture Books, Waiting, Submitting, Add a tag
(Chapters I and II appeared on August 11th and September 28th of last year.)
LAST YEAR - PB truck story finally gets written and goes to a conference, PB truck story appeals to an editor and she takes it with her, PB truck story is revised twice (based on editorial suggestions) and resubmitted in November. Email from editor saying "looking forward to reading it over the long weekend." (Thanksgiving)
THIS YEAR - Email from editor on January 20th, "looking over it now . . . more thorough response soon."
Okay, so what explains nearly a month of silence?
I figure there are three possibilities:
1. My story is circulating among the editors.
2. It's sitting at the bottom of a pile, buried by more urgent business.
3. I didn't hit the mark with revisions and the editor is putting off writing a rejection letter.
QUANDARY - Do I email her now, or do I wait, wait, wait some more?
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 11/26/2011
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: editing, writing, children's literature, ideas, revising, submitting, Add a tag
On Tuesday (not really), Mom took this picture of me. I’m standing by my collection of stuff to wear. There are dresses, coats, collars, bandanas, sweaters, hats, and even a couple of pairs of boots (on account of me having 4 feet). Lots and lots of outfits! Today we went to Petco and I got a new dress and a new coat. Mom says, “You can never have too many clothes.” and “This coat will be nice and warm.” and “Do you have to smell every single piece of rawhide in the entire store?”
Inside Mom’s computer she has a whole collection of stuff, too. There are long stories, short stories, poems, haikus, rebus stories, and rhyming stories (on account of her being an author and a poet). Lots and lots of writing! Mom still writes new things all the time anyway. She says, “When you’re a writer, you write, revise, write, revise, get ideas and write and revise some more.” and “Today I will write a poem about training wheels.” and “Are you eating the Petco receipt?”
Each time I work at the VA Home or at Read to a Pet Night at the library, Mom looks at my collection of clothes and picks the outfit that looks the best. When she works on submitting things to publishers or decides what to send to her writing group named DavidLaurieandOtherDavid, Mom picks a story or poem that she’s worked on for a long time. She says, “This one is ready to go.” and “Get your porcupine ball out of your water dish.”
Then Mom and I wait for the acceptance letter to come. I hope when she gets it, we can celebrate with a trip to Petco. I think I missed sniffing a couple of pieces of rawhide…
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 11/11/2011
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, writing, children's literature, submitting, Add a tag
November is Picture Book Month. Mom LOVES picture books. She reads them and writes them like crazy. Sometimes she even draws them. Mom says, “I love to draw.” and “I can draw ANYTHING.” and “Don’t chew the colored pencils!”
Pictures are NOT my favorite thing at all. To me, it’s a lot of, “Sit still.” and “Be a good girl.” and “Don’t eat your dress.” Pictures can be difficult. On the upside, when Mom takes my picture, she bribes me with Cinnamon Cheerios, which are delicious. They almost make it worthwhile to behave.
This week Mom is working on a picture book about a boy who is determined to build a perfect snowman. He builds it, but then realizes it’s perfectly boring! So he starts playing in the snow with all his friends and his perfect snowman becomes ammunition in a super-fun snowball fight. Mom will send her story to a publisher, and if she’s lucky, it will be a wonderful picture book someday. Personally, I think it would be better if I was in it, instead of a naughty dog named Tiger. He’s not the only one who loves the snow!
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 10/10/2011
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, contests, writing, children's literature, picture book writing, submitting, Add a tag
Well, Cupcake is asleep, so I have a chance to speak. I’ll make it quick, because once she wakes up it’ll be time to play, eat treats, cuddle, and walk around the neighborhood.
I’m entering a contest this week on the web site meegenius.com. The prize? A publishing contract! OK, the book will be published online, but a contract is a contract, so count me in. Once I format the story correctly, tweak a few changes, and upload it, it’ll be time to cross my fingers and hope. There will be voting involved, so stay tuned for that. Winning would be SO exciting! I’ll put the link in the Blogroll, in case any other authors want to compete.
Once when I entered the Highlights Fiction Contest, I lost, but they bought my story anyway. I love winning, but in that case, losing was good with me. I plan to enter again this year. Winning would be great, but losing and selling the story will be fine and dandy.
Cupcake likes contests, too. Last year she won a calendar contest, and got her funny little face on a Page-a-Day Dog Calendar. Super-cute!
Uh-oh. I hear little feet ticking around in there. …And paper rustling! What’s she into now?! Gotta go!
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 10/1/2011
Blog: Cupcake Speaks (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: kidlit, acceptance, magazines, submitting, inspirational quote, Add a tag
Your intentions don’t create footprints, your actions do.
-S.Whyte-
My footprints are the CUTEST! They’re tiny and round with little marks from my little nails. When I walk in the wet grass, I leave perfect footprints in the street. When I get inside, Mom says, “Stand still.” and then she cleans my feet with a baby wipe, and it’s goodbye adorable footprints and hello feet that smell like baby powder.
Mom doesn’t like footprints OR intentions. She remembers a long time ago, when she was reading a story in Highlights Magazine. She said, “Cute story.” and “I totally could’ve written that!” and “What did you step in now? Ugh!” Then she got the baby wipes out - again!
Mom was absolutely right about Highlights. She COULD’VE written a cute story for them, but she DIDN’T and somebody else did. She had intentions, but what she needed was action. After reading and reading in Highlights and intending and intending to write, she finally took action. And guess what – the magical people at Highlights thought her story was great, and they bought it! Ever since then, Mom writes all the time and sends stories and poems to tons of magazines for kids. Then she says, “Yay!” and “Look at my name in this magazine!” and “You’re filthy. Get in the bathtub.”
Goodbye footprints…..
2 Comments on Inspirational Quote of the Week, last added: 10/3/2011
By: J.L. Finnell,
on 9/13/2010
Blog: The Paper Wait (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Rejections, Submitting, The Writer's Life, J.L. Finnell, Add a tag
Here’s a question for those of you who are familiar with the, um, challenging process of querying agents: What do you think about agents’ “no-response rejections,” which seem to have grown in popularity over the years?
Do you think they’re a necessary evil, given how bogged down agents can get with unsolicited queries? Or do you think this don’t-sell-don’t-tell policy is unfair to writers, who, after hearing only crickets for weeks or months, may be left wondering if agents even received and/or read their e-queries to begin with? Who knows? Maybe they got lost in cyberspace or the spamosphere (the queries, that is, not the agents)?
For those of you who aren’t familiar with this particular type of rejection (lucky you), here’s the gist. According to some agents’ submissions guidelines, if you haven’t heard back within a certain period of time after querying them, say eight weeks, you should take it to mean they’re not interested in seeing a submission from you. Once that amount of time passes, you should go straight to your agent query list, maybe on querytracker.com, and select the “query closed/no response” box. Done. Grr.
But here’s what troubles me. Recently, I caught a few posts from agents, some of whom follow the no-response/rejection policy, which gave me pause. In one post, an on-line interview with an agent, the agent invited anyone who’d e-queried him but never heard back during a certain time period the prior year to resubmit. He bravely admitted he’d been so bogged down, he’d fallen hopelessly behind, and had been unable to get to all the e-queries he’d received during that time. Now that he was finally caught up, he wanted to give those queriers a second chance. I just hope they caught this interview, or read it elsewhere, so they knew about it.
Another agent recently blogged that he’d been having computer problems so if writers hadn’t heard back within two weeks of querying to feel free to re-query. I hope his queriers caught his post, too.
Because electronic and human blips like these happen from time to time, does anyone wish that agents would ban the non-response policy, and respond to every query with at least a form rejection, if only to make the rejection official? Or is this simply asking too much of them?
Now, before anyone jumps down my throat, let me clarify: I’m not taking a particular side. Frankly, I’m torn about this issue. I would, however, love to hear what our Paper Wait readers think.
Before I close, a little anecdote. A few years ago, I attended an NJ-SCBWI conference. During the agent panel portion of the morning, after giving their submission wish lists, most agents added that they would only respond to queries if they were interested. The last agent, however, gave her list then added, “Oh, and we respond to every query we receive.”
The entire room broke into applause.
By: Sally Murphy,
on 5/2/2010
Blog: Scribblings (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: wait times, oliver hereford, submitting, response times, inspirational writing quote, Add a tag
A manuscript: something submitted in haste and returned at leisure. Oliver Hereford This morning I commiserated with a writer friend over a rejection - but agreed with her that "at least it only took three months" for the publisher to respond. So, when I was looking for a writing quote for today, the 'returned at leisure' part of this quote spoke to me (I am not for a second suggesting that my
By: Sally Murphy,
on 2/8/2010
Blog: Scribblings (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: writing advice, pass it on, submitting, harold underdown, editor names, Add a tag
On every writer's networking list I am on, or have ever been part of, one of the recurring subjects is that of the names of editors at particular publishing houses. "Does anyone know the name of the editor at XYZ?" someone will ask, or "Is Josephine Bloggs still the submissions editor at ZXY?" Nine times out of ten someone on the list will know the answer and it is duly proferred and the askee
By: Brianna Caplan Sayres,
on 1/10/2010
Blog: The Paper Wait (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Submitting, The Writer's Life, Brianna Caplan Sayres, Editor/Agent Comments, Add a tag
As I sit down to write this post, my first post of last year feels fresh in my mind. Last year, as the entire writing world seemed to be making wonderful productivity resolutions, I was just a few weeks away from giving birth. With expectations of sleep-deprived nights in the months ahead, increased productivity seemed an impossible goal. So I resolved to lower my expectations for a bit and appreciate the wonderful roller coaster my life was about to turn into.
So now as I look back on 2009, I can appreciate:
*the birth of my beautiful baby boy!!!
*my oh so grown-up 3-year-old who is now all potty trained and helps me pick out baby food and bibs for his baby brother
*the many doctors, therapists and generous family members who have helped our baby to make some wonderful progress through a very tough year
* and the WONDEFUL AGENT I just signed with--
Wait! Did I just say agent?
Yes I did!
Somehow in the middle of this crazy year, I managed to revise some old manuscripts, create some new ones and sign with the incredibly awesome...
Teresa Kietlinski of Prospect Agency!
With all her experience designing picture books, Teresa is the perfect agent for me. And for those of you who read about my submission indecision malady,well, needless to say, a smart, energetic agent like Teresa isn't going to let my manuscripts just sit on my hard drive. We're going to revise them and get them out onto editors' desks. Hurray!
Here's hoping next year's New Year's news is even more exciting! (I won't say it out loud, but you all know what I'm hoping for. :o) )
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I’m going to try that – the visualising a job part, although since you mentioned dinner …
Clearly GRRREAT minds think alike…’cos those are things we think and visualise about all the time too!
Wally & Sammy
She should have asked the publisher to send a letter as well. That was a nice message to have left on the phone though!
I know exactly when it’s my dinner time! I give the bipeds five minutes (because I’m so patient) and then I start reminding them!
My Mom says “believing is seeing” (a little different from the usual!)…..and visualizing is indeed part of what an artist and a writer must be able to do – your Mom does it very well and Cupcake, I think you are a “grandmaster” of visualizing (especially dinner!). :)
Hugs, Sammy
Oh indeed Cupcake…and putting the pictures on fridges and seeing them clearly…this is also part of the creative mind…seeing things that are not there and making them appear..the cakes the rugs the things we make all come from a visualisation…and get out of that bin young lady! hugs Fozziemum ;) xx
I agree with your mom, it feels more “accepted” if you can hold the acceptance in your hand. But nothing is more important than the question: what time is dinner? (or the answer on the question of all questions)
I think your mom deserves the paper as well as the call! You sure are good at visualization Cupcake! I visualize treats a lot! Whipped cream and salmon jerky today NOM!
Oh Cupcake – I absolutely LOVE your visualization techniques. This is a most excellent tip – thank you my friend. XOXO – Bacon
P.S. I’m off to visualize an entire box of Cheerios now… yummy!
P.S.S. Conpigulations to your mom… I think she deserves a paper in hand as well :)
I’m fully on board with this one. Maybe it’s just the placebo effect but I’m convinced it works.
I can see you visualizing that dinner Cupcake. You are so cute and adorable. Tell mom to keep going. Thanks for sharing the beautiful photo’s. :D