Learning Experiences

So far I have submitted 31 query letters, received 3 requests for material, had 11 rejections (2 after material was requested), and I am still waiting to hear back from several more agencies.

I recently received the nicest rejection letter yet the other day from an agent that read my first four chapters.  He said about my book "There was much in it that I enjoyed, and I admire your writing."  He may have rejected my book in the end, but hot dang!  I'll take that compliment!  I've never been "admired" by an agent before.  He also wished me well in finding "the right agent and publisher."  Maybe I'm reading it all wrong, but I take that to mean he feels like my work should, at some point, be published.  And that is awesome!

So despite rejection, I am learning more about my work and myself as a writer.  Positive criticism (I realize that sounds like an oxymoron, but there is such a thing) is healthy and helps us grow into the writer we can be.  I have yet to have anyone tear me down (not in the writing arena anyway), and overall, even though I am being rejected left and right, this has been a really good experience for me.

I'm still working and tweeking and just waiting for the right agent to come along.  I believe in myself, I believe in Maggie, and I believe that eventually, it will happen....

Query Letter

I have had several people want to see my query letter since I have gotten quite a few responses, so I am including it below.  I have received both good and bad responses, but to me that's better than no feedback at all.  And most of the rejection letters have been quite nice.

I use "Young Adult Novel Query" as the subject to my email.

Query Email:

To Whom It May Concern,
(or Dear Ms./Mr. So-and-so if I actually know their name)

I am writing to request representation for my young adult trilogy entitled The Maggie McCauley Chronicles.  This series follows the life of Maggie, a young girl who learns she has inherited the ability to time travel from her late father.  This discovery reveals many family secrets, including the family’s history with the malicious Van Alstyne.  With the help of her eccentric guide, Philip, Maggie must discover how to handle her new found abilities so she may fulfill her place in the “Travelers Ordinance.”  Within Maggie’s journey to unearth the past and find her future lies a relationship with the father she never knew.

This book has been described as “the Time Traveler’s Wife meets Harry Potter.”  It has fantastic elements that will capture the reader’s attention along with real-life issues that will connect the reader to the otherwise ordinary Maggie.  This series will resonate with readers both young and old.

I would like to submit to you the first four to five chapters of chronicle one.  Once completed, the first book should contain 24 to 28 chapters and be around 300 pages in length.  I truly believe in this book and think it could be great.  I just need someone who can help me along.

Thank you for your time,

Jana Gordon Pettus

It's really short and sweet, gives a quick synopsis of the book, provides a genre and targeted age group, and offers an estimated length.  I also elude to the fact that it is not a completed manuscript when I say "once completed..." but sometimes they request a full manuscript anyway (see post below.)

Oh and DO NOT pay attention to the spacing, because Blogger is stupid and doesn't know what it's doing.  I've tried to fix it like elevendy billion times, and it never works, so whatever.  It's supposed to be spaced like a typical business letter.

So there is a sample you can go by.  I don't claim to be an expert on query letters.  I just googled one and used that a template for mine.

Enjoy!

-JGP

Rejection

I've received several rejection emails, but today I got the my first rejection from an agency that actually wanted to read the first four chapters of my book before lowering the hammer.  I'm a tough girl, and I can take rejection, but this one hurts more since they actually read my story--not just a query letter.

So you know what I did?  I sent out 19 more query letters.  "It only takes one."  That's what my mom told me, and she's right.

I sent one query letter at about 3:00 p.m. and received an email back about 20 minutes later asking for the entire manuscript.

Well, crap. I thought.  I don't have the entire manuscript done yet!!  I've always held the philosphy of "why write the whole thing if no one wants it?"  So now I'm trying to figure out what to tell the agency.  I'm torn between not responding until it's done (but who know's how long that could take?) and telling them it's not done and sending what I've got thus far.  Of course there is a chance they will tell me to wait until I'm finished to send it in.  I already had one agency tell me to contact them again once the manuscript is done.

I figure that after rejection, this is probably a good dilemma to have, so I'll take it.  I'm just trying to figure out what to do next.

-JGP