tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post2665731986175170687..comments2024-03-26T17:32:38.865-04:00Comments on YA Outside the Lines: Dear Aspiring Writer Me, Shut Up (by Jody Casella)Brian Katcherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15159532800819759917noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-83441475791148103852014-06-23T12:15:14.455-04:002014-06-23T12:15:14.455-04:00Some of the best advice I ever got: "Publishi...Some of the best advice I ever got: "Publishing is a business." <br /><br />I remind myself of that daily --- there are always business decisions we can't understand because we're not the ones who must make them. Trust me, it helps pull you out of the rejection depression.Patty Blounthttp://pattyblount.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-86671767453671309862014-06-17T09:53:29.520-04:002014-06-17T09:53:29.520-04:00I knew about the stamp idea--and tried it. Jennif...I knew about the stamp idea--and tried it. Jennifer's right--didn't work. I've also been through every single one of these scenarios. Once, I got a rejection from an agent for A BLUE SO DARK that consistently referred to the protag as "Margo." I was flabbergasted at the time. "How could you read 'Aura' and think 'Margo'?" I wondered. As awful as it is, sometimes, books are rejected simply because an agent or editor is just plain not paying attention. You are absolutely right--you can't take any great meaning from a rejection--sometimes, there just isn't any.Holly Schindlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16742207239654178917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-65706340871016719782014-06-17T07:45:21.439-04:002014-06-17T07:45:21.439-04:00Never heard of the stamp idea. Thank God. I once s...Never heard of the stamp idea. Thank God. I once spent hours constructing an email query and got a response--I'm not lying--in less than five minutes. Form rejection. My first thought was WOW. How fast is that? The agent IMMEDIATELY knew this project was wrong wrong wrong for him? Later, I sort of appreciated it. Better than waiting for months to hear back. Or never. Jody Casellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17892174349776047862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-326821068658763052014-06-16T19:06:17.429-04:002014-06-16T19:06:17.429-04:00I used to hear about writers trying to use eye-cat...I used to hear about writers trying to use eye-catching stamps on their envelopes, seeking every possible edge. (It never occurred to me to do this back then--I doubt it worked--and now of course everything is done by email.)<br /><br />So much effort goes into a manuscript, and a terse, cryptic response was all we had to go on--so of course we tried to wring extra meaning from it.Jennifer R. Hubbardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03408588432492354248noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-76254732799609221232014-06-16T16:39:35.863-04:002014-06-16T16:39:35.863-04:00Thanks, Jen. Sadly, you are right. Rejections neve...Thanks, Jen. Sadly, you are right. Rejections never get any easier. I do try not to stress about them too much anymore though. "Try" being the key word. Jody Casellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17892174349776047862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-10210707975845361482014-06-16T16:35:59.157-04:002014-06-16T16:35:59.157-04:00Ah, the pen color. Don't get me started, April...Ah, the pen color. Don't get me started, April. Here is a good reason for writers to connect with each other. No one else can truly understand the sick angst we put ourselves through. Jody Casellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17892174349776047862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-66357720811620962972014-06-16T13:34:28.072-04:002014-06-16T13:34:28.072-04:00Great post, Jody! I do the same thing--overanalyze...Great post, Jody! I do the same thing--overanalyze rejection with the intensity I thought I could only muster for bad break ups, or any break, or even just a crappy date. Being happily married now, I no longer waste time despairing about boys (thank goodness), but the manuscript rejection will exist for as long as I write. Why do we do this to ourselves? Of that's right. We love it.Jen Doktorskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16143138396478408692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-51080476847533485192014-06-16T13:33:03.787-04:002014-06-16T13:33:03.787-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Jen Doktorskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16143138396478408692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3388578325782539013.post-24673723650898623802014-06-16T11:27:19.139-04:002014-06-16T11:27:19.139-04:00Some of those examples are painfully familiar. Wh...Some of those examples are painfully familiar. When you want something so badly, you keep examining things from every angle, reading meaning into the color of the pen or some other detail. April Henryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01193292966301864407noreply@blogger.com