Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Competing for Last Place

So, I've sent off some more queries. That is such a strange feeling. Sending off all my hopes and dreams in an email or a 9x12 envelope, knowing that my heart and soul will most likely be replied to with a form letter. Amazingly, I've already recieved three replies, and I just sent the email ones last night. Rejections of course, but that's ok. I've decided to make this a quest to collect them.

Someone (I really wish I could remember who) told me she had been in a critique group where the members competed to see who could get the most rejection letters. Sounds a little backwards, so if you're not a writer let me explain--if you're not getting rejections, it means you're not sending queries. That simple. Even the biggest, baddest books out there were snubbed by someone behind an agent's or editor's desk. All successful books sales are preceded by a string of rejections. There are those few exceptions, but they are more rare than...well, sorry, can't think of a cheesy analogy right now.

Anyway, I've decided, to get myself sending more of those queries, to aim for getting as many rejections as I can. I may lose at this, of course, by getting an acceptance before I reach my goal. That would make me last place in the race for failure. Either way, I win :).

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