Sometimes It's Not You, It's Them

By Jewel Leann Williams

Statement heard in local American Night Writers Association chapter meeting (paraphrased):

“I’ve written a book, I pitched it, and it was accepted by XYZ publishing house. The editor had big plans, and then strangely rolled everything back and rejected it. I’ve been completely revising it and turning it into a completely different book. I guess my story didn’t have much to offer anyone.”

Let me tell you about the book this author is speaking of.  It is an inspirational memoir about her daughter and their experiences through a leukemia scare. 

I haven’t read the story, and I don’t know if it needs revision for the usual things we all have to revise, revise, revise in our stories. But one thing I can tell you, and I did tell her, is this:

OF COURSE YOUR STORY HAS SOMETHING TO OFFER!!

As a mom, I don’t have to have a child with leukemia to be inspired by another mother’s journey in that space.  I have other trials with my children and can gain insight and inspiration from what she went through.

Sometimes, it’s not YOU, it’s THEM.

Editors, publishers, agents are people. What’s worse, BUSINESS people. They have goals, agendas, business models—and each of them has a different one.  There are as many reasons for a rejection as there are rejections. 

I get it. I had a book I worked super hard on. I’d finished it, pitched it, got a “pages request” and sent it to not just the agent requesting, but every agent I could research who might be interested.  I thought it was ready, and it was rejected (a lot). It is one of the hardest things for me to pick that back up and work on it. But it’s a worthwhile project. The story is still, well, awesome, it has a great voice (says more than one of the rejectors), it just needs work. It doesn’t need the whole thing changed—just lots of polish. But man! It is HARD to put more blood, sweat, and tears into that project when my hopes had been so high, and then been smashed like a clam on a rock.

Mid nineteenth-century depiction of Josephine fainting after being told by Napoleon he will decree a divorce (to seek a male heir and royal alliance) Artist: Bosselman - Chasselat Public Domain in US (Public Domain in source country before 1996; past 75 years from artist's death)

But hear me now and believe me later (bonus if you know that reference):

Just because your book was rejected, does not mean that you need to change it into something different. What you need to do is:

1. Consider the source and the content of the rejection. Sometimes it’s more about timing, marketing, and publishing trends than it is about the story itself.  Did you pitch a self-help book to an agent who only represents fiction? Or to an agent with a full list of authors in your genre?
2. Realize that much of what is accepted and rejected depends on personal taste.  An agent or editor has to believe in your book to properly represent it. The publishing world is highly competitive for agents as well. Sometimes it just isn’t something that strikes their fancy, but there will be someone else out there who won’t be able to resist what you’re offering.
3. Did you query too soon?  This was where my eager little self went wrong. I finished a book, loved it, and like an ugly baby with a doting mother, I thought it was beautiful and perfect.  Beautiful it is, but perfect—not by far. I should have gone through some real edits, beta readers, more edits, etc. and polished it more.  Make sure that what you are presenting is the best you can make it, and that you have had feedback and critiques to help you polish your product.
4. PRAY about the feedback you receive. You have every right to ask for guidance. Don’t change things because some cranky editor who doesn’t like family stories or things that mention God or books with a happy ending (or a sad one, or one with puppies… etc. ad nauseum). Take the criticism, turn it over in your hands, consider it, and pray about it. You’ll know what needs to happen.

Here’s the thing.  I want you to remember this above all else.

Heavenly Father gave YOU the talent and desire to write. He has a purpose for blessing/cursing you with the need to express yourself with words.

He gave you that talent to bless His children.

You may not think that what you have to offer is anything special. But if you wrote it with the inspiration of our Heavenly Father, then you can rest assured that it is special and it does have something to offer the world. As such, you also need to include him in polishing your book, because just as He can transform people, He can guide you to transform your words into what He would have them be.

He will let you know what needs to happen, whether it is not to change a thing, to edit, to rework the whole thing, or to set it aside in a folder marked “Things I Wrote to Hone My Craft.” Or any myriad of other things. You just have to ask the Guy Who Really Knows.

Just remember—

Sometimes, it’s really not you, it’s them. 

Revision Help from the Pros

by Patricia Cates

Yesterday evening was the first ever NaNoWriMo Spreecast. It was intended for those who have a work in progress leftover from the fall, and who are now perhaps stuck in the revision stage. The title of the web cast was fittingly “How to Revise Your NaNoWriMo Novel.” Kami Garcia, NYT best-selling author, served as the host fielding questions for K.M. Weiland and James Scott Bell, as they were the other guest authors in attendance. They shared many great tips in order to help the rest of us. In case you missed this, I thought I would give you a short synopsis of what was shared. There was a ton of great information on how to rewrite, what to rewrite and how to fill in gaps. Questions came in live from viewers. I only wished it were longer. 

When asked what mattered most in revision stage, the authors all agreed that it was structure. Katie M. Weiland, (a.k.a. K.W.) suggests we make sure to have all the major plot points in place. To have the bones of your book be sound is crucial, because everything else is really cosmetic. She asks us to check to see if the beats play out, to look for a midpoint, to check for sign post scenes. Are the critical ones in the right spot?  Jim agreed on structure being key and pointed out that we need to make it very clear on what the character wants, what is at stake and what will stand in their way. He believes the stakes need to be "life or death" either physically or emotionally. He asks us to look at plot points and verify that there is increasing tension happening.

K.W. added that a great hack is to let your book rest. She says to walk away from it in order to gain objectivity and give yourself some space. Jim was in total agreement and feels that writers need to give themselves 3-4 weeks away from the book, and then come back to it and view it as a reader. He says that the worst thing you can do is start on page one and start crossing things out. He likes to print off a hard copy and read it as if it were somebody else’s work and not his own. He’ll then go back and make notes in the margins as he’s reading, or use symbols that let him know what should be done. He makes note of whether it’s too slow, or confusing, or where he might be tempted to put it down and stop reading. When asked about the slow spots, Jim simply wants us to ask ourselves if the scene is necessary. If it’s not...but you don’t want to kill it...he suggests we turn up the heat. He likes to use fear of any kind, and on any level. If there is even just some worry, he feels it will bring emotion to the reader and act as a hook.

Another person asked the question about whether beta readers or critique partners were actually important in the process. Jim feels that it is an extremely important part of revision in that these people can bring about a terrific objectivity that we might not have. Katie adds that this can help an author clean up a manuscript before it even goes on to an editor, which really might only give you one good clean sweep. Jim also mentioned that it is smart to have readers of your genre take a look at your book and give input as opposed to fellow writers. K.W. likes to use craft books to help her revise before going to edit. She enjoys reading screenplay books as they help with structure so much. She suggests a few including the classic “Story” by Robert McKee, as well as “The Anatomy of Story” by John Truby.

When asked how to develop characters that might be a bit one-dimensional, K.W. talked about using internal conflict as a basis, or, the conflict between a want and a need. Perhaps the character is even buying into a lie of the story theme. Jim wants us to use the element of surprise to capture the audience as it adds another layer of interest. He says to "make it unexpected" in action or dialogue. Katie Garcia likes to see evidence of wounds and old baggage which allows the reader to understand why that person might have the world view that they do. She asks us to delve into that “one bad thing” that happened to them, that makes our character think like they do, and do what they do. Another fun tip she suggests we can use on a character is to just make their life miserable.

In order to stay motivated during revision our expert authors suggest we use a calendar or simply remember to show up for work. We can train ourselves by forming good habits and sticking with them. For those who do not have a publisher or agent yet, K.W. suggests we hire a freelance editor. Right now there are a lot of legitimately good ones out there. Katie warns to do your due diligence in researching who they are for now, as anyone can say that they are an editor. K.W. is planning on compiling a list of veteran freelance editors and posting it soon on her blog. (Can't wait!)

When a viewer asked about the amount of backstory that is acceptable, and when or where to add it, Jim had a great idea. He says to use it sparingly at first and then layer it in. By rule of thumb he says that in the first 10 pages you should only allow yourself three sentences. That’s it. Then in the next 10 pages he says to allow three paragraphs. This does allow the reader to gain sympathy and empathy for the character, but he wants to see action first.

Lastly, K.W. advises we avoid “on the nose” dialogue in our books. This would be direct answers that are not surprising or exciting. Also avoid “I love you” and the like. Save the direct statements for later on where they are actually needed. The fewer found, the more impact they will have. Jim says to trim the fat and take out filler words. This is great for those writers who need to get their word count down. If it isn’t necessary, get rid of it.

If you’d like to watch the podcast online you can do so by downloading the Spreecast App. If you don’t have access to that technology you can always purchase one of the craft books that these guest authors have written. You can check out their websites kmweiland.com and jamesscottbell.com.