Never Give Up: More than 200 Rejections Before the Book Deal

The idea came to her when she was only 11 years old: A teenage girl accidentally time travels to solve a murder. Though she may not have realized it at the time, this was the inception of Reckonings, a young adult novel by author Kourtney Heintz.

Author Kourtney Heintz

Heintz and her best friend shaped this intriguing concept a bit further, sketching an outline and character descriptions, but that’s as far as it went.

She didn’t return to the idea until 2006, when she was mourning the end of the Harry Potter series. Now in her late 20s, Heintz realized if she wrote her own book, the characters she loved would always be with her.

Over the next six months, Heintz wrote the sprawling, 123,000-word first draft of Reckonings. She submitted the manuscript after a couple rounds of revisions, only to receive form rejection letters. Setting the work aside, she started writing the next book in the series.

It wasn’t until 2009 that Heintz began to think of herself as a serious writer, reading agent blogs, attending conferences, and truly learning the craft.

She continued sending out the novel in batches of 10. After receiving 30-50 rejections, she’d search for the common threads in the feedback, allow a period of weeks or months to process the comments, then revise.

It’s this valuable feedback that propelled her forward. Says Heintz:

“The personalized rejections can be painful, but they are godsends. It means you are on the right track and almost there. The agent/editor took the time to tell you what wasn’t working, which means they saw something in your work that merited a personal response.”

Heintz revised the manuscript at least 15 times over the years, and received an estimated 230 rejections. At several points she put the work away and turned to new projects.

But she viewed the time away from the novel as a sabbatical, rather than an abandonment. Time and distance were key to improving her craft and determining the solutions to Reckonings‘ problems.

The call from a Harlequin editor finally came in the spring of 2013. Consumed with the launch of her self-published novel, The Six Train to Wisconsin, an offer on Reckonings was the last thing on Heintz’s mind.

The excitement and disbelief were overwhelming. She recounts: “I had to take notes to keep myself grounded. Otherwise, I’d have squealed like a little girl and been incoherent.”

You can read her description of “getting the call” here!

Heintz secured an agent, who is negotiating the contract. Once it’s finalized, she’ll begin the editor’s revisions. She hopes for a long-awaited release in 2-3 years’ time.

In the meantime, Kourtney Heintz will be promoting The Six Train to Wisconsin and turning toward her next project.

Her inspiring story is yet another on the importance of hard work, perseverance, and never giving up.

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Connect with Kourtney Heintz: Website; WordPress blog; Twitter; Pinterest; Author pages on Facebook, Amazon, and Goodreads

Buy The Six Train to Wisconsin, an adult speculative fiction novel, and 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel semi-finalist

Enter The Six Train to Wisconsin Giveaway on Goodreads!

The Scoop on Self-Publishing: One Author’s Journey

The independent sector of the publishing industry has seen exponential growth in the past decade. According to a recent article in The Guardian, the number of self-published books in the U.S. grew by 287% between 2006 and 2011.

This statistic suggests today’s authors have more opportunities in publishing than ever before.

But I’m learning it’s a daunting process.

I wanted to find out more, so I turned to indie author Francis Guenette, who was kind enough to grant me an interview.

Fran’s debut novel, Disappearing in Plain Sight, accompanied me on a recent vacation to Mexico. It was a perfect choice for a holiday read. I lost myself in this intriguing story of real life problems, and fell in love with characters who felt more like old friends than a work of fiction. You can read my full review here.

But what goes on behind the scenes in self-publishing? In her characteristically personal style, Fran’s here to dish the inside scoop for writers considering this publishing option.

Tell readers a little about your assisted self-publisher, Friesen Press, and how you selected them.

When I decided to self-publish, my first stop was Amazon’s publishing site. Formatting sounded complicated. What if I messed up? I’d be stuck with a badly formatted e-book. That seemed like a big risk.

I switched gears and looked into the logistics of contracting everything out – the cover design, e-book formatting, and print formatting. That seemed like complications times ten.

Another change of gears – does anyone hear some grinding? I started looking for companies that promised to do everything for me. Friesen Press popped up. I filled out a form that required my home phone number in order to gain access to their publishing guidelines. One afternoon, a woman from the company phoned me. She lauded the services they could offer that would make my book rise above the thousands of other books self-published every week on Amazon.

I was also regaled with how Friesen is unique, in that it bridges the gap between self-publishers and traditional publishers. My book would come to the attention of traditional publishing houses. (Under circumstances that were never explained).

A few weeks later the Friesen representative phoned again, this time offering additional services at no extra cost. I bit on the hook and off I went, down the path of assisted self-publishing.

I made a number of miscalculations:

• Over-reacting to the complications of doing the e-book conversion or paying someone else a one-time only fee to have it done.
• Not understanding that Friesen Press does assisted self-publishing.
• No understanding of the questions one should ask of an assisted self-publisher.
• Not being more proactive in questioning the process as it unfolded.

In your experience, what was the most unexpected aspect of self-publishing?

The sheer amount of things I should have known before I started, and the time and effort involved at every stage.

Can you estimate how much time you spend each week on the business end of writing? Has becoming a published author reduced the amount of time you can spend on writing?

The amount of time I have for writing is certainly reduced. Marketing and promotion are hugely time-consuming tasks.

Social media upkeep takes hours.

Self-publishing means running your own small business and the bookkeeping and organizational aspects eat up time.

Then there are local appearances to plan and execute. I want to utilize a niche market for my book with parents, educators, and mental health practitioners. This means getting noticed in professional newsletters, magazines, schools, mental health facilities, and parent groups. I grow weary just writing out the task list.

I am fortunate that I do not have another job to go to. Writing, marketing, and promotion are my full time employment.

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Want to know more? Part 2 of this indie-publishing interview will be posted here next Thursday, May 23.

Connect with Francis Guenette:

WordPress blog; Twitter: @FrancisGuenette; Author pages on Facebook and Goodreads; buy Disappearing in Plain Sight on Amazon

Never Give Up: 10 Years from First Draft to Publication

Tanya Chernov isn’t a household name. Like most writers, she hasn’t penned a bestseller, and she’s unable to make a viable living doing what she loves. But her journey to publishing her memoir, A Real Emotional Girl, is an inspiring story of never giving up.

In his dying days, Chernov’s father encouraged her to write about her experience with grief, love, and loss — an essay or article for the university newspaper, perhaps. But she was young and inexperienced, and didn’t take the suggestion seriously.

It wasn’t until she was back at college after his death that she began to consider it, when a  professor recommended an independent study project. She agreed, and spent the next semester writing the first draft of her memoir.

Over the next few years, she rewrote, revised, and edited the manuscript. Eventually, after less than a dozen pages of her original draft remained, she decided to set the work aside.

Chernov’s enthusiasm for the project returned when she met an agent who asked to see the first hundred pages. Embracing the opportunity, she worked 15 hours a day to rewrite those pages entirely. The exhausting effort paid off when agent Gordon Warnock agreed to represent her.

But the work was far from over. The next year of her life was consumed with the long and tedious editing process.

Although they’d shaped the book for marketing, pitching the project brought nothing but disappointment. Her 65 rejections over two years broke the agency’s record.

Failure to sell the work prompted Chernov to set it aside, again. Deciding it was time to move on to her next book, she made peace with letting the memoir go.

And that’s when the elusive offer finally came.

While attending a conference in Seattle, Warnock pitched the book to two different editors. Both offered to buy it.

Skyhorse Publishing released A Real Emotional Girl in September 2012, a full decade after its inception.

Landing a book deal is often about luck and being in the right place at the right time. But Tanya Chernov’s story reminds me that hard work and perseverance are what it takes to get you there in the first place.

More on Tanya Chernov: website; WordPress blog; Twitter: @REmotionalGirl; A Real Emotional Girl on Amazon

Parents: Teach Your Children Manners, Please

My twelve-year-old daughter loves listening to stories of herself as a toddler. Taking those trips down Memory Lane is enjoyable for me, too. One of our favorite tales is the day she learned the value of saying please.

Toddlers are self-centered, demanding little people, and my kids were no exception. On this particular day, Natalie had finished her lunch and was looking forward to dessert. It was dished up and ready to serve. All she had to do was phrase a polite request using the word please.

What I got was a 20-minute tantrum.

Difficult as it was, I went about cleaning the kitchen, ignoring my child, even stepping over her at times as she lay screaming and writhing at my feet. But I was determined not to give in until she asked me properly.

Of course this tantrum was one of many I endured from both of my children, but manners is something I feel strongly about. I suppose it’s because the same was expected of me when I was growing up.

Unfortunately, I’ve learned my expectations are not the norm. I see it firsthand in a local elementary school, where I work as a lunchroom supervisor.

Every day students request my help with various tasks, and the vast majority are sorely lacking in manners:

“Can you open this?”

“I need ketchup.”

“My fork fell on the floor.” (That’s code for: Can I have another fork, please?)

Recently a student thrust an open hand in my direction, uttering a single word, “Napkin.”

In these situations, my retort is always the same. “Try that again with some manners, please.”

This is an affluent community, with highly educated parents who ought to know better. Why haven’t their children been taught?

As with any aspect of parenting, consistent reinforcement is what it takes. Sometimes this generates conflict, but that’s okay.

In the end, the reward is all mine. I’m regularly complimented on how well-mannered my girls are. It’s a shame their behavior is the exception, rather than the rule.

Getting them to this point hasn’t been easy, and they still need occasional reminders. But it’s been worth the effort. I’m proud of my polite, respectful children.

I think I’ve earned my bragging rights.

 

Writing Through the Tough Times

If you’re a writer, you know this life is an emotional ride.

My experience has been largely peaks and valleys, with very little middle ground. One day I’m feeling great, fingers flying over the keyboard, I can’t get it out fast enough. The next I’m tapping a dry well, or plunging into despair.

Last week I was on an emotional high. I’d just finished a short story, one I’d struggled to complete.

A couple writing buddies had given me some pointers on how to improve it. After incorporating their suggestions, I sent it off to my course instructor two days before the due date.

I was pleased with the story and feeling good about myself as a writer.

And then I received my teacher’s feedback.

She tore the story apart — the opening scene started in the wrong place; the closing was weak; the main character failed to solve his original problem. And on and on.

All those positive feelings vanished in an instant.

I cried the blues to my writing friend Rajni, because only another writer truly understands. She helped lift me out of my funk with two important reminders.

1. Tough criticism is the best kind. Even though it’s hard to swallow, I need to know what doesn’t work. Feedback that’s only positive and polite won’t make me a better writer.

2. Just keep writing. It’s hard to carry on when you feel like a failure. Yet oddly enough, writing is often the best cure for writing woes. So I embraced this advice and started researching a new idea. Within an hour I was feeling better.

Time is another remedy. I know eventually I’ll be able to open that piece and approach revisions much more objectively.

We all need writing friends to help us through the tough times, and today I’m feeling grateful for mine.

Thanks for being there, Rajni. You’re the best. xo

Do you turn to writing friends for support? How do you pull yourself up when you’re down?

Never Give Up: From Years of Rejection to Best Selling Author

Anyone who thinks writing is easy has probably never tried it. There are days the words just won’t come, and I feel like giving up. In this crazy art that’s all work and no pay, is it really worth it?

Most writers have experienced this type of frustration. But it’s the ones who persevere that inspire me to carry on. Over the next few Mondays, I plan to feature a handful of authors who have done just that.

Kathryn Stockett is one such example. Her journey from unknown writer to bestselling author carries a clear message: never give up.

Her debut novel, The Help, has been translated into more than 40 languages and went on to become an Oscar-winning film.

Yet Kathryn Stockett was not an overnight success. It took years of writing, revisions, and rejections before the novel came to fruition.

The earliest version of The Help was written in about eighteen months’ time. Six weeks after submitting the polished manuscript to a handful of agencies, she received her first rejection.

Stockett viewed the rejection as an opportunity rather than a failure, and went back to work on the manuscript.

Several months later after the next round of submissions, another stream of rejections poured in.

Friends began encouraging her to move on to her next project, but Stockett remained undaunted. She didn’t want to write another book; she wanted to write this book.

Over the next two years she surpassed 40 rejections. At this point Stockett stopped talking about her work, embarrassed to admit she was still rewriting the same story.

But she refused to let it go.

For Kathryn Stockett, 61 was the magic number. It took 5 years of rewrites and 60 rejections, but she finally sold her novel.

She believed in her story, and her perseverance paid off. It’s what I try to remember when I when feel like throwing in the towel.

Have you ever felt like giving up? What inspires you to continue?

Do You Write Flash Fiction? Check This Out!

Are you looking for a new writing challenge? Ever given flash fiction a try? I recently stumbled across a great WordPress site worth checking out.

Flash! Friday is a weekly flash fiction contest hosted by Rebekah Postupak. Every Friday Rebeka presents a new photo prompt and its unique contest parameters. Writers have until 11:59 PM (East Coast U.S. time) to submit their stories. Winners are announced midday Saturday.

This week’s contest is micro fiction: a 150-word limit, with 5 words grace on either side, not including title. Therein lies the challenge: you must tell a complete story with an identifiable beginning, middle, and end, all within 145-155 words!

If you’ve never tried it, micro fiction is a workout that will exercise writing muscles you never knew you had. It’s great practice in making every word count.

What do the winners receive? Hop on over to Flash! Friday and have a look. Hope to see you there. Happy Friday!

graphic: lancashirewritinghub.co.uk