An Agent Story

You know how sometimes you research an agent and you see something, just a little something, that makes you think, "We could be good together!"?  Well, I thought that a few months ago, when I found the bio of Becca Stumpf at Prospect Agency.  It was this one line in her bio that said, "Fantasy/SciFi is not just for nerds anymore, so let's bring it to the masses!"  Of course, I'm 100 percent nerd, but I'm the kind of nerd that's constantly trying to get people to come see the next Marvel movie with me, not just because they're awesome, but so I can enlighten them.  Know what I mean?

So anyway, I felt that I could really get on board with the whole bringing Fantasy/SciFi to the masses with MISFITS, so I crossed my fingers and sent the query.  Well, guess what guys???  I am now represented by the amazingly bright, helpful and fun Becca Stumpf!

It was a big decision and I had some other things going on, but one phone call with Becca sealed the deal.  Number one, she's really knowledgeable, great to talk to and she loves MISFITS -and let me tell you- I've been waiting a loooong time for that!  Number two, she laughs a lot and makes me want to sit and have coffee with her just to talk about books and other fun things.  But also, I really feel good about working with her.  I think we're really on the same page about my books and my career, not to mention that right when I logged on to my e-mail to tell her I wanted to work with her, she e-mailed me to check in.  Like, at the very same time.

I'm not one to talk about fate or anything... but come on!

So now it's time to get to work.  I'm excited and a little (a lot) overwhelmed, but I'm ready.  Also, anything that can be documented will totally be documented here.  To show people what it's like, of course, but also to serve as proof that this is actually, finally happening.

So my last post about queries and how hard it is?  Totally true, but please don't give up.  Seriously, just don't, okay?  Okay.

On Queries...

Querying is weird, okay?  Let's just get that out of the way.  I've been thinking about this since I wrote an e-mail to the Super Amazing Beta and Human Jennifer Pickrell in which I was whining complaining updating her on my query situation, and I finally decided I needed to get it out.

Querying is weird and hard and awesome and the most hopeful and devastating thing a writer can do.  It's the time where we all at once decide that we've written something good enough for an agent to read and also when we know that we're horrible writers who deserve all of those rejections.  It's just weird.

And yet, here we are, years, months and days into this torture because we want somebody to love the voices in our heads that fought to get out as much as we do.  Weird.

I can remember my first partial request and my first full request.  I also remember my first rejection.  I like to think of myself now as a seasoned querier who lets rejection roll off her back like a duck with water... unless I get a few in a row, because then I know I've been fooling myself with the years I've put into writing.  Of course, two days after I decide to quit and join a circus or something, I get a full request and I remember that there might, just maybe, be some skill left in me, and so what do I do?

I send out more queries.

I'm actually querying two books right now, which is a little weird and involves a lot of organization and e-mail folders, but I'm getting good feedback, despite still getting rejections right along with it.  I've decided with these though, and especially MISFITS because there has been more interest in it than any other book I've written, that I'm not going to give up on it.  I've got a Touch 'Em All mentality with this book that I'm going to send it out to every single agent that will read it (within their guidelines, obviously) and I just have to put up with all of those rejections until someone loves it.

In the past, I feel like I've given up pretty quickly because, let's face it, rejections suck.  And it's very easy to get beaten up by all of them and assume that since X number of agents didn't like it, no one will.  I'm not going to do that this time, so at least I'll know I've done everything I can to find the person who loves my books before I move on.

In the meantime, I'll keep writing, which is actually the most blissful thing I do on a daily basis, and also querying.  Because I like weird, apparently.

Anybody else out there need to vent?  Go for it.

Funny story...

So remember how I was here in January and was all, "Look at me! Getting back on track! Onward and upward!"?  Uh huh, well life happened and so I haven't actually gotten "back on track" with the blog yet, and it's been more about putting one foot in front of the other than onward and upward so far.

So I'm not going to say anything like that at all, you guys.  I'll just say that life has been cra-zay and in order to get everything done that I need to do and write, blogging has fallen off a little.  I'm still writing and working on books, that's a constant at Casa de Brandy but man, the beginning of 2012 has been an ass kicker.

I've reached that luscious, amazing time called spring break in this semester that I'm positive wants to kill me, and so here is an update:

I'm working on MISFITS revisions... the final revisions before I start sending it out to agents!  I'm actually pretty excited about getting the process started, although I guess I always am until the first rejection roles in and then I'm all, "Why do I do this to myself?  I'm such a masochist!" But it's cool.

I feel more prepared with this book than I did with my last.  It feels like a more complete story and I'm really proud of it.  I hope agents like it, but regardless, I'm happy that I wrote it. 

I think what I've realized more than anything else this year so far is that I would write for free forever if I have to.  I'm happy with sending my friends and betas versions of my books and talking to them about it.  And really, that's probably a good head space to be in at the query stage, right?

So remind me that I said that in a month or so. 

Brandy

Can't stop, won't stop.

So, last week, a week before my self imposed deadline to finish my current WIP, I wrote the last word of my first draft.  Exciting!

As I mentioned in my last post, I'd kind of been immersed in writing , so much so that my friends were begging to talk about something else and my first readers were tired of the 20 questions (fine, 100) that followed everything I sent them.  I'm not saying I was mean, really, just... focused on getting answers.

Anyway, I love what I have, although since the book took a little bit of a turn as I wrote it, I know I'm going to have to re-write a lot of the beginning.  After my last revisions on KC, I feel like I have a better idea of my revision process although, (like I do about everything else in the writing world) I worry that it's completely the opposite of what I should do and what everyone else does.

First off, when I'm working on a WIP, I write 2k words a day.  I'm a pantser, so I don't outline or anything, I just jump right in.  I'd like to say that I don't write on weekends but that kind of goes out of the window when I really get into the groove of writing.  I actually took two days off before finishing this WIP and started recapping when I wrote again, like I was starting the second book and needed to remind the reader what happened.  It was a mess and I think I was doing it for me because I felt like I hadn't written in MONTHS but really I just took the weekend off.  Anyway!  I don't like taking time of from writing.

I always read and revise the previous chapter before I write a new one, just to get back into the groove of what my characters are up to.  These aren't in depth revisions or anything, I'm basically catching myself every time I write "my" instead of "me" which I do ALL THE TIME and I don't understand why.

On Wednesdays, a slow day life-wise for me, I double up.  I've dubbed this Double Up Wednesday, which is really just a way for all of my friends and family to know that when it's DUW, I don't want to be bothered.  On these days, I try to write between 4-5k but I split up my writing.  I've got this weird eye thing happening, where my eyes get really sensitive to light if I'm on the computer for a while, so I take a break and go to a bookstore, lunch or even grocery shopping.  Anything to get away from the WIP and the computer.  The bookstore always helps get me motivated to write more because I see all of those fancy, shiny books and I want one to be mine.  I love DUW.

All of this means it normally takes me about a month to write a first draft.  I know a lot of people say to walk away from your WIP for a long time but I can only last about a week, which I'm in the middle of right now.  It sucks.  Next week though, I'll dig back in.

What I feel is weird about me, (in a long list of weird things) is that I don't cut down my word count during revisions, so much as add them.  Sure, I cut scenes that I don't think are needed or that slow down the pacing but I still end up adding words.  I word build a lot during revisions, and add things that only finishing the first draft can show me need to be added.  During my last revision of KC, I added 4k words.  And I cut out a lot.  Weird.

Then, of course, I read the WIP somewhere around 9,849 times.  I read it on the computer, on my nook, printed out, on the comp again, maybe one more on the nook, who knows?  It's just a lot.  And this time, I'm going to send this (as well as KC) out to beta readers.  I'm on the hunt now in fact, so if anyone is interested in reading my stuff, let me know.  I'd totally be willing to swap too.  And then maybe we'll be friends forever.  Probably.  In my head, we will be.

So July is my revision month and hopefully I have a new, shiny idea for another book while that's happening, so August can be a writing month, followed by September being another revision month.  We'll see how that goes with school.  All I know is, November is officially reserved for NaNoWriMo.  I'm so stoked for this because I've never been able to participate because of The Old Job, which maybe I'll talk about soon.  The only thing that will interrupt this will be a day to celebrate my birthday and a day to celebrate my little baby niece's first birthday. (And of course, if an agent wants to sign me before or during November, I will do whatever the hell the ask me to do.)  Other than that, I'm writing.  I need a doorknob hanger for that!

So what's your process like?  And don't forget, anyone interested in being a beta for me, let me know.  Remember the lifetime of friendship, okay?

-Brandy

Adventures in QueryLand.

I have to say that there is nothing more exciting than the query process.  I'm sure there are some aspiring authors out there that hate it, and trust me, there have been times when I've received rejections and hated the whole thing.  But it's just so exciting.  I was talking to a friend about it today and although you are basically putting yourself out there and saying "judge me!" there is still a sense that something big is about to happen.  And that's how I feel.

Here's the back story on... well, my story.  I wrote my current manuscript, KILLER CUPCAKES, over three years ago.  It was my second completed MS and I wrote it in thirty days.  It was the easiest book I've ever written.  My first took a year and a half, I never sent it out and while I love it, it didn't just come together like KILLER CUPCAKES.  I'm a third of the way into my third MS and it feels a lot like KC did, although it's taking more than thirty days.  Anyway, I sent KC out once I'd finished and edited it and got a good response from agents, but then I got a job that took all of my attention away from the book.  I know, not smart at all.  But it's just what life gave me at the time and I accept that.  But I'm back on my game now and I'm getting good responses again, and I've even made it to the final 3 out of 150 in an amazing agency's contest.  It feels good.

There are a lot of differences this time besides my age though.  I feel like I know more about the process now and I also know what it feels like to be in the middle of finishing an MS, sending it out and all the while, trying to continue writing.  You get so wrapped up in the idea of QueryLand with agents who can finally give you your big break.  You're creating a blog, twitter and anything else to get your name out there.  You love this book so much, you're envisioning the cover and what you'll wear to book signings.  It's fun.  What I've learned though, is that you have to stay focused on writing.  You spend so much time loving your finished book that you lose a little bit of that word monster you've been for however long it took you to write your book.

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with getting your name out there because... hello, this is my blog.  And I'm on twitter.  But what is most important when trying to become a published author is that you write.  Period.  Not only because you have to keep your mind off of QueryLand for your sanity (because you totally do) but because you don't want to be a One Book Wonder, ya know?

So write.  And so will I.  Then we'll all put our heads together to figure out what we'll wear to our book signings. :)

-Brandy