Waiting to Process Feedback

I don't know about you, but often when I receive feedback on my writing I immediately want to jump in and start making revisions. I've heard that "you should always wait before making changes" or "give it time to really sink in," but I didn't realize the wisdom behind that advice until recently. I had a valuable learning experience with feedback that I thought I'd share with you all.

First of all, I believe that you should wait before processing or trying to implement feedback, but you should not wait a single second to thank the person who gave you the feedback. I often send emails to my CPs the minute I receive their feedback that look like this: "Thank you so much for getting back to me with your notes! I can't wait to dive in!"

If someone takes the time to read your work and try to help you improve it, you should thank them regardless of whether you agree with all, any, or none of their feedback. Full stop.

On to my experience. I had an agent reject me back in January with some feedback that I thought was valuable. I was working on a revision plan to address that feedback when I got a full request from another agent. Not wanting to make the 2nd agent wait an unreasonable amount of time, I let her know I'd need a week to make a revision. I quickly finished my plan, took scenes out, added new scenes in, and sent it to the agent. I also sent it to one of my CPs who hadn't read the book yet to see what she thought.

A few weeks later my CP got back to me, and the short version is: she did not think that the changes I made addressed the issues brought up by the 1st agent. I was devastated. I felt like I had ruined my book, and worse yet, that maybe it wasn't worth saving. I knew that I had rushed my revision plan, and not sent Agent 2 the best version of my book. Lesson 1: Don't rush the implementation of feedback.

Going back over my CP's notes a week later, however, I started to get excited about her ideas. Instead of feeling depressed at the amount of work I needed to do, I felt confident that I could make changes and improve the book. Lesson 2: If the feedback upsets you, give it some time, then come back to it. It's amazing how much difference even a week can make in your attitudes.

What lessons have you learned about receiving and using feedback?

Permission to Unplug

Let me start with something you all already know: publishing is hard.

This isn't going to be one of Those Posts, though! If you're following us here, chances are you've experienced how hard it is already, and you've kept going. You've committed to keeping up on publishing Twitter and blogs, and you might even have a Publishers Marketplace subscription. You're learning about the business you're trying to break into, and that's awesome.

But even though social media makes it possible for us to maintain this amazing community, it means we have endless opportunities to compare ourselves to one another. Even though things happen at different speeds for different people, it's easy to look at one of your friends and wonder if you're ever going to make it to where they are. You can look at how long it took them to get their agent, or sell their first (or second or seventh) book, or sell hundreds of copies of their self-pubbed book - and then start to feel discouraged about your own process.

If you feel like that sometimes, that is totally okay. No one is a tireless optimism machine 100% of the time, and it doesn't mean you're not happy for your friends. I struggled with this a lot during some of the rougher periods when I was querying, where some days I felt like I'd cry if I typed 'Congratulations' one more time. And it's no coincidence that, at that point, I also felt like I had to stay plugged into the publishing world 24/7, so I could feel like I was doing something.

So let me just state, for the record, that when you start feeling like this, it's okay to give yourself permission to unplug. It's more than okay, it's necessary. I can be a better writer when I can focus on my story instead of the new genre craze, and I can be a better friend to my fellow writers if I don't bring my own baggage into their good news party.

The literary landscape is frantic and quickly changing, and I know I wouldn't have it any other way - but a little quiet and distance is good for the soul. So next time you feel overwhelmed, remember that you don't have to force yourself. Take a step away for a little while. We'll be here when you get back.

Publishing Summer (and How to Survive It)

TGIF, everyone!

Somehow it is already the final day of May. The official start of summer is less than a month away, but where I am, summer has already begun, really. *delicately fans self* It also means that we are entering the summer doldrums of publishing.

I have often explained the concept of Publishing Time to excited friends and family members who are dying to know what's going on with my book - but even if we understand it perfectly and are getting used to it, Publishing Time can be a difficult adjustment for writers! After all, when we are in drafting/revising/rewriting mode, that driven, Type A intensity is a good thing... and then we get to querying/submission mode and we must flex our patience muscles a bit. We're entering a period of very little activity until September or so as people take their well-deserved vacations, which means we need to scale it back before our heads explode.

So where do you channel that extra writing-related energy in the interim? Here are some humble suggestions:

1. Read all the things! Sure, some of you might be lucky enough to live in a place without 2000% humidity and the occasional hot breeze. (I kid. Mostly.) And some of you are strong enough to venture outside anyway! But for those of you who would rather pull the shades and camp out at home, this is an excellent time to catch up on your TBR list. I know it's been sitting there for the past few months, staring at you accusingly. Summer is the perfect time to read a good romance... or a good summer ghost story, if you're me.

2. Find something awesome to do (that has nothing to do with writing.) And in the end, you'll usually find that it feeds into your writing one way or the other. I am basically part fish, so my favorite thing about summer is the chance to swim several times a week. Aside from the fact that it's great exercise, when I find a quiet time to do my laps, that often ends up being the best brainstorming fuel.

3. Start a new story from scratch, just for fun. I'm a huge fan of cowriting for this one - it keeps your improv skills sharp, and it shuts off that internal editor that can make drafting so tricky. But this largely depends on finding someone you can really click with, and a shiny new solo project will work just as well. Giving your creativity a workout might add new verve to your pre-existing WIP. Or, while playing around, you might accidentally create the Next Big Thing. It's a win either way, and lots of fun, at that!

4. Take a vacation. Or a staycation. One of the two. Either way, switch up your routine a bit and try to see something new. Even if you're not traveling anywhere this summer (*stares longingly at flights to London, lets out wistful sigh*) there's always something in your area that you haven't seen yet.

Happy writing, all, and stay cool this weekend!

Lies and Statistics

Most of us start writing because we love words. But at some point, some of us become obsessed with numbers.

• How many words did I write? If I need to delete a scene, that will set me back! Is it better to have more bad words than fewer good ones?
• How many twitter followers do I have? I'm following more than that -- do I look like a loser?
• How many queries did I send? What's my request percentage? What is the acceptance rate of the agent I'm querying? How many fulls do I have to send before my odds of an offer are good? How long have I been waiting and how what are the odds that that is a good sign or bad one? 
• What's my lifetime number of rejections? Is a high one a badge of honor or shame?
• How many people visited my blog post? How many commented? Is it worth doing if no one is listening? 
• Google Analytics says someone from NYC visited my blog! Is it an agent? Is it an editor? Are any query responses due (must cross reference with QueryTracker)?
• What's my Klout score? Why does it say I'm influential in zombies and couponing?
• How many "likes" do I have on Facebook?  Oh no, no one "likes" me!
  
• How many adds do I have on GoodReads? How many reviews? How many friends?
• What's my Amazon ranking? So how many books have I sold?
• What's my star rating? Oh no, a one-star review! That will ruin my average!
• When will my royalty statement arrive? What does it mean????

Some of those numbers give us an illusion of control, but only an illusion. Just because you can measure something does mean you control it. Sometimes numbers don't even help you understand something better -- it's easy to get lost in statistics. Lately I've been watching my Google Analytics for signs of life,  trying to read the numbers like tea leaves. It doesn't do any good -- I just have to wait for responses, for my book release, for something to happen. 

And if I can,  while I wait, maybe put some words down. I'll try not to focus to much on how many.

New YA Publisher: Strange Chemistry

A while back, I wrote about my submission to the publisher, Angry Robot. They had an open door month a while back, and I was able to climb my way up the slushy ranks to the editors desk. Well, 9+ months later, I am STILL waiting. Just think, if I were pregnant, I could have already scheduled a C-section and gotten the dang thing over with. But since the birth of a book takes a lot longer than the creation of of a human....I just have to deal and wait.

So it goes a lot of times in publishing. Waiting. We've blogged about it a lot. I'm sure you've all experienced the excruciating pain of waiting for an answer. If not with a publisher, with an agent. If not with an agent, waiting in line at the store. IT. NEVER. ENDS!

Ah, hem.

Anyhow, during all of this waiting, I've learned a few things. If you haven't heard by now, Angry Robot is opening a new imprint for YA. It's called Strange Chemistry. You can learn more about them here.

So while you wait for an answer, you can write. Or, if you are feeling petrified to write, at least find something to do besides click on your email refresh. It isn't healthy. I know. Really. I KNOW.

So for your enjoyment, I took it upon myself to put some creativity to use. I browsed the Angry Robot website and instead of lamenting about an answer, I looked over the cover artwork to see what would inspire me to paint. (I'm a face painter, in case any of you don't know that about me.) Using the cover of Andy Remic's book, Vampire Warlords, I came up with a face paint inspired design.

Here is the cover:

Here is my replication. Enjoy. :o)

The Ambiguous "Soon"

Like most of you, I've been around the rejection block a few times. And, like most of you again, I've waited long periods of time to hear from those rejections. Rejections from agents. Rejections from editors. Rejections from various writing contests. Rejections from publishers. You name it, I've probably been rejected by it. And I'm certain, that most of you can sympathize with me. Rejection is a normal process in the world of publishing.

So it's been seven months since I submitted to a publisher's open door submission. I've waited, and instead of a rejection, my manuscript has slowly ascended to the ranks of the chosen few. Out of nearly 1,000 submissions, mine is one of approximately 24 that made it to the editors desk. I feel great about that accomplishment! However, the waiting tends to drive me a little batty at times.

Sure, I know all the tricks. Write. Do something. But when the publisher posts twitter comments and posts about giving us an answer "very soon", I know-- from my experience--that soon means nothing in the world of publishing. That "soon" was posted over a month ago. And still I wait to know my fate.

A couple of months ago, I also submitted to a twitter contest for Random House UK, for a picture book. They asked if they could take my manuscript to a meeting. "Sure!" I replied. "Next week" has come and gone. A month ago they said that emails were going out "today". Well, "today" has long since come and gone.

(sigh)

It brings me to wonder, is there a secret language only known to editors? Do they have a code that "soon" actually means 3 months?  Or does "next week" actually mean give or take a month or two. I have yet to discover the hidden secrets in the editorial lingo. I have learned though, that one should never take an ambiguous "soon" as gold. Things happen. Meetings are pushed back. Things appear on their desks. And as one of many writers, we must learn patience (dang it). Makes me wonder if agents, editors, publishers, are teaching us to wait. Maybe we'll finally get used to it all when we get that contract. For if/when we do, we have to wait for our books too. :o)

How to Have Fun With the Crickets in Your Inbox

A good friend of mine has just started querying, and another close friend will be soon. I am currently on submission and waiting on responses from publishers, and I have a few other friends waiting on pub responses as well. Which means we are pretty much all basket cases.

Querying and submitting are tough. The hardest part, by far, is the inevitable rejection. However, the WAITING is a close second. How many obsessive email checkers are out there? Come on, raise your hands...you know who you are *she says as her own hand waves proudly* My writers buddies call that sad emptiness inside their inboxes Crickets...'cause that's all you hear when you open the box ;-)

Now, I queried my fiction for a long time. Not intentionally. But, every time I decided to shelve my book, another request would come in, and then some nice rejections with a few revision suggestions will squeak by...so I'd revise, send out a few more queries, get a few requests, get a few rejections, decide to shelve again, get some more suggestions.....well, you can see how this goes. And once I got an agent and we started submitting to publishers, well, the waiting got worse. Like REALLY worse :D Now I get to wait on my agent to send revision notes (or to pass on a book idea completely), and waiting on publishers to say yea or nay to buying your book is nerve wracking in the extreme...especially because it can take soooo lonnnng.

However...

I've been doing it long enough now that I've gotten pretty good at just ignoring the fact that I even have submissions out. The crickets can still get pretty irritating though. So I came up with a few ways to distract myself from them.

1. Spam Your Friends

Now this one is fun :D Especially if they are waiting on responses too. Because you know every time they get a message saying they have email, their heart jumps a little (wicked, ain't I?) ;-)

I dig up funny stories, pictures, etc to put a smile on their faces, so it's not a total evil past time :D I mean, it's fun to get mail, even if it's not from an agent or publisher.

Oh, and this ONLY works on very good friends. Never, NEVER spam an agent. They will not appreciate your message full of funnies. They have enough mail to read. If you send them more, it will just take that much longer to get to whatever query or submission you are waiting on, and that wouldn't be good.

2. LOLcats

Ah, what a wonderful distraction. I am pretty heavily addicted to LOLcats. The dogs, celebrities, political jokes, graphs, and FAILs are pretty hilarious as well. Not only can you spend hours reading (and emailing) these, you can also make your own. Tons of fun!

3. Research a New Project

Okay, this might only be fun for me. And maybe a few select others. So...moving on...

4. Blogs

Read them, write them, search them, comment on them, follow them....you get the picture ;-)

And, while there are many, many, MANY other things you could do to distract yourself from the pesky crickets, the single best way is...

5. WRITE

Pull out a new project and write. Focus on something besides the book you are querying or submitting. Lose yourself in the world of a new character. There is nothing like get swept away in a new story. Get excited about it, swim in it, devote all your available brain space and some that is not so available to it. Pretty soon you'll find that you don't even hear the crickets anymore :)

How do you distract yourself from those crickets?