Last year I queried my novel multiple times, and I submitted several short stories dozens of times, all to no avail. Even though it was depressing, I vowed to keep trying.
I'm glad I did.
I wrote a flash fiction piece after last year's StokerCon called "Another Lady, Another Lake." I originally wrote it for a 48-hour flash fiction contest and it wasn't the winning entry. I then submitted it to literally every single place listed on Submission Grinder that accepted horror flash and all were no-gos.
I just happened to see a listing on Duotrope for Last Girls Club and decided to give the piece one last shot before I shelved it for a while. To my delight, they liked the piece and are publishing it in their spring issue. It's not quite enough to move up a level in the HWA, but it is my first paid fiction publication. I am not ashamed to say that I cried when I opened the email. (Or that I almost didn't open the email because I was sure it was another rejection.)
Another surprise landed in my inbox on Friday. The agent I met at StokerCon (aka my dream agent!) had never replied to any of my emails. In January, I made the sad decision to mark my submission as closed, no response (CNR) on Querytracker. I said that once things calmed down in my personal life and at work, I'd incorporate the feedback from the agent who did do a full request last year and start submitting again.
Then I got a response from the agent at StokerCon apologizing because she hadn't had a chance to read my submission yet because she's been so busy. After discussing it with one writing friend, I thought "nothing ventured..." and explained to her about the feedback. I said that I felt it was all valid and I'd love to have the chance to revise my novel and resubmit it to her in the next couple of months.
Then I sat back and waited for her reply. I kept thinking "she'll probably say no," or "she's going to think I'm so unprofessional." To my utter delight, I got a response a few minutes later that enthusiastically agreed to that plan.
I started incorporating the feedback this weekend and I am positive the changes are improving the novel. And I'm hopeful that once they're finished, I will resubmit the novel to my dream agent and she'll love it... or, at least, ask to see the next thing I write (which is what the feedback agent said).
Sometimes we have to make that scary leap and put our bloody and bruised egos aside to submit once more. And many, many times it feels like a long shot and we're discouraged. But, the next time that happens, I know I can remind myself of the magic that happens when you don't give up.
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