What a feeling! I can't believe I'm sitting down and not jumping up and down and squealing right now! I'm sadly rather cynical though, and keep expecting it to be too good to be true. And still, the excitement is just under the surface, bubbling away and trying to break free. I was approached by a publisher today! Hardly believed it and re-read the offer a couple times before I responded. Terrified to Google the publisher and find out maybe they're not legit, but decided I'll only do that if anything comes of this. That way I don't shoot myself in the foot and procrastinate AGAIN on getting that synopsis done. That's the only thing standing between me and getting the proposal in to them. Then there's another publishing house that I've got to get my proposal done for too.
And I'm excited! Who honestly gets approached by a traditional publishing house? I am still feeling slightly unreal. The best part is, I was beginning to think I should just pack it in. I mean, my stories are okay, but clearly none of the agents I sent them to thought they were more than that.
Well, we'll see how this pans out, but again, very excited!
Until next time,
Amy
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Sunday, August 1, 2010
THE END
Wow! It's been a little while since I wrote in this blog. Sorry all. Life's been a mixture of hectic and just away from the computer lately, hence the lack of updates. So, here's my update.
The title of this post does not mean I am calling an end to my writing. Far from it. I am however done this particular chapter of my journey and moving into the next. Just over a week ago I finished book three in my trilogy and actually typed the words The End at the bottom in bolded caps.
What a weird sensation. I looked at those two words and felt a mixture of pride, sadness, stress and exhilaration. First, knowing that I had just completed a trilogy (and no small trilogy, as many of you can attest) in one year and two months made me feel so proud that I had actually managed to accomplish something that my mother and others close to me have assured me is no small feat.
The sadness came when I realized that I will be saying goodbye to Angie and Devon, two characters who I think I have come to know nearly as well as I do myself. Though I intend to have them make cameo appearances in my next two books, and I even plan to do a huge edit on all three books and therefore will see them again, it's just not the same. Day in and day out I have molded my main characters, walked in their shoes, and even dreamt out scenarios for them. Funny thing is, as I wrote them to do what I wanted, I discovered that they began to do what they wanted, jumping off the pages sometimes to tell me what they thought about something or how they would react, and not how I thought they should react. So yeah, I feel sadness at the thought of saying goodbye to two characters that I have come to know extremely well over the past year and two months.
The stress I think is due largely to knowing that at this point I have no editor and I need to get a proposal or two completed soon and get my work (on at least book one) into their hands soon so that the process of getting my books out can begin. It is stressful partially because of what a monumental task getting the proposal(s) done can be, but also because I know I will be receiving many, many rejections from agents, and if I'm lucky, the publishers themselves before the right agent and or publisher comes along. It is never easy to have one's work rejected, whether you are a business person, an artist, a writer, or a janitor. You take pride in your work, and you feel that although there is always room for improvement, you gave your best and presented your best work. Then it is rejected and you start to question the value of it, the main point and sometimes even your own worth, even though you know worth is not in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of God. Clearly, I forget that often. It is very hard to be rejected, and so I guess my stress is a bit wrapped up with fear as well. It's a struggle I know I will have to go through to get out on the other side, and I pray that I will be strong enough and willing to take enough hits and grow from them, not give up when it gets hardest.
And lastly, I feel exhilaration. Knowing that I completed the trilogy when there were times I had such bad writer's block that I got migraines and slept poorly, trying desperately to regain the thoughts I lost and come up with knew ones, is just a huge accomplishment in and of itself. I was told to give up at times by well-meaning friends. I was told that I was wasting my time, and people may still think that. I had lots of support to go along with the naysayers, and I am not published yet. But you know what? I just finished a trilogy with each book averaging 60 thousand plus words, and in some cases 80 thousand plus, and less than two years!
Now, I know there will be tons of editing to do, and lots of work to simply get it into the hands of the right publisher, but having finally gotten most of the story, if not all on paper and having gotten my thoughts and ideas down as I imagined them in my mind has been an incredible feeling. The journey continues, but the development of the trilogy is complete. This chapter has closed and therefore I supposed the words The End are appropriate.
And yet, now I can look forward to the next two books and any other books in separate series or stand alone books and know that, as long as I have a creative mind, and the ability to type, I will be writing books. They may or may not get published, but as long as I have the strength, ability and brain power, the stories locked away in my heart will get out on paper.
The next question is, if I do get published, who will read my books? And yes, that is a question I do not know the answer to as yet. I know of a small group of readers who are already dying to get their hands on my books, but who knows if they will still be there at the end of the road? I will choose to believe they will. I choose to keep my head high, shoulders back and my hands on the keyboard or on a pen poised over a notebook and write until I cannot write anymore.
And so I close this post with some words of encouragement for any other struggling authors out there: You may not write the great Canadian novel. You may not win a Pulitzer, or the Nobel Prize, but if you have a dream to write, write. Don't let anyone ever tell you you can't write. If it is in your heart to write, and God has given you the gifting, then it is a crime to ignore that gift.
Until my next post,
Amy
The title of this post does not mean I am calling an end to my writing. Far from it. I am however done this particular chapter of my journey and moving into the next. Just over a week ago I finished book three in my trilogy and actually typed the words The End at the bottom in bolded caps.
What a weird sensation. I looked at those two words and felt a mixture of pride, sadness, stress and exhilaration. First, knowing that I had just completed a trilogy (and no small trilogy, as many of you can attest) in one year and two months made me feel so proud that I had actually managed to accomplish something that my mother and others close to me have assured me is no small feat.
The sadness came when I realized that I will be saying goodbye to Angie and Devon, two characters who I think I have come to know nearly as well as I do myself. Though I intend to have them make cameo appearances in my next two books, and I even plan to do a huge edit on all three books and therefore will see them again, it's just not the same. Day in and day out I have molded my main characters, walked in their shoes, and even dreamt out scenarios for them. Funny thing is, as I wrote them to do what I wanted, I discovered that they began to do what they wanted, jumping off the pages sometimes to tell me what they thought about something or how they would react, and not how I thought they should react. So yeah, I feel sadness at the thought of saying goodbye to two characters that I have come to know extremely well over the past year and two months.
The stress I think is due largely to knowing that at this point I have no editor and I need to get a proposal or two completed soon and get my work (on at least book one) into their hands soon so that the process of getting my books out can begin. It is stressful partially because of what a monumental task getting the proposal(s) done can be, but also because I know I will be receiving many, many rejections from agents, and if I'm lucky, the publishers themselves before the right agent and or publisher comes along. It is never easy to have one's work rejected, whether you are a business person, an artist, a writer, or a janitor. You take pride in your work, and you feel that although there is always room for improvement, you gave your best and presented your best work. Then it is rejected and you start to question the value of it, the main point and sometimes even your own worth, even though you know worth is not in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of God. Clearly, I forget that often. It is very hard to be rejected, and so I guess my stress is a bit wrapped up with fear as well. It's a struggle I know I will have to go through to get out on the other side, and I pray that I will be strong enough and willing to take enough hits and grow from them, not give up when it gets hardest.
And lastly, I feel exhilaration. Knowing that I completed the trilogy when there were times I had such bad writer's block that I got migraines and slept poorly, trying desperately to regain the thoughts I lost and come up with knew ones, is just a huge accomplishment in and of itself. I was told to give up at times by well-meaning friends. I was told that I was wasting my time, and people may still think that. I had lots of support to go along with the naysayers, and I am not published yet. But you know what? I just finished a trilogy with each book averaging 60 thousand plus words, and in some cases 80 thousand plus, and less than two years!
Now, I know there will be tons of editing to do, and lots of work to simply get it into the hands of the right publisher, but having finally gotten most of the story, if not all on paper and having gotten my thoughts and ideas down as I imagined them in my mind has been an incredible feeling. The journey continues, but the development of the trilogy is complete. This chapter has closed and therefore I supposed the words The End are appropriate.
And yet, now I can look forward to the next two books and any other books in separate series or stand alone books and know that, as long as I have a creative mind, and the ability to type, I will be writing books. They may or may not get published, but as long as I have the strength, ability and brain power, the stories locked away in my heart will get out on paper.
The next question is, if I do get published, who will read my books? And yes, that is a question I do not know the answer to as yet. I know of a small group of readers who are already dying to get their hands on my books, but who knows if they will still be there at the end of the road? I will choose to believe they will. I choose to keep my head high, shoulders back and my hands on the keyboard or on a pen poised over a notebook and write until I cannot write anymore.
And so I close this post with some words of encouragement for any other struggling authors out there: You may not write the great Canadian novel. You may not win a Pulitzer, or the Nobel Prize, but if you have a dream to write, write. Don't let anyone ever tell you you can't write. If it is in your heart to write, and God has given you the gifting, then it is a crime to ignore that gift.
Until my next post,
Amy
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