I have to admit I’m wondering this myself right now. I submitted my second novel for consideration of representation a little over a month ago. I do multiple submissions after reviewing the biographies and type of work each of the literary agents represents, and like you, sit back and wait anxiously. Well, that isn’t totally true. I do try to busy myself with other projects while I wait, but the thoughts are never far from my mind.
After submitting the initial queries, I got a request for a full proposal. This was something I’ve never done before, at least not in the detail that the agent asked. I wrote a blog on this a couple of weeks ago in hopes of giving you a heads up. At any rate, I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for a response. The proposal was a rush job as I thought he wanted it immediately, but apparently not. I suppose I should have asked when he needed it. If I had just a few more days, it would have been so much better. Yes, I battle the same thoughts and second guesses you do đ
Enough babbling now let’s get to the blog.
This is one of my favorite blogs. I wish I could claim it, but the post was actually written by Jerry Jenkins. I love his work. If you haven’t visited him, I would highly recommend you do. He did put a disclaimer at the end of this article saying it was ok to share with friends, so I am in no way stealing his work. Hope this helps someone and hope you consider visiting his site.
It doesnât sound fair.
It doesnât seem right.
But hereâs a dirty little secret of the writing life you need to hear:
Any veteran editor can tell within two minutes whether theyâre going to reject your manuscript.
It takes longer to decide whether theyâll recommend it for purchase, of course, butâsad to sayâit can, and often does, go into the reject pile just that fast.
âWhat?â you say. âBefore Iâve had a chance to wow them with my stupendous villain? Before my mind-blowing twist? Before my plot really takes off?â
Sorry.
And Iâm not exaggerating.
Why?
Because the competition is so stiff and editors have so many manuscripts to read, you have only nanoseconds to grab them by the throat and hang on.
Every writing mentor hammers at this ad infinitum: Your editor is your first reader.
Every word counts. You get one chance. You must capture them from the get-go.
Am I saying editors look for reasons to reject your work?
No, no, a thousand times no! Theyâre looking for the next Harry Potter!
Editors want you to succeed!
Then how can they know so quickly that your book wonât cut it?
In my lifetime in the business Iâve heard dozens of reasons, but let me give you my personal top five from my experience as both an editor and publisher:
- Throat-clearing
This is what editors call anything that comes before a story or chapter finally, really, begins. It usually consists of a page or two of scene setting and background. Get on with the story. Get your main character introduced, establish and upset some status quo, then plunge him into terrible trouble that reveals the engine of your story. Is it a quest, a journey, a challenge, what?
Thereâll be plenty of time to work in all those details that seemed so important while you were throat-clearing that would have cost you a sale. For now, your job is to start with a bang.
- Too many characters introduced too quickly
Iâm usually wary of generalizations or hard and fast rules, but almost any time I see more than three characters within the first few pages, my eyes start to swim. If I feel like I need a program to keep track of the players, I quickly lose interest.
Your reader is trying to comprehend the story, and if you ask him to start cataloging a cast of characters right away, you risk losing him. Keep things simple until the story has taken shape.
- Point of View violations
Maintain a single Point of View (POV) for every scene. Violate that cardinal rule and you expose yourself as an amateur right out of the gate. Beginners often defend themselves against this criticism by citing classics by famous authors or citing J.K. Rowling, the exception who proves the rule.
Times change. Readersâ tastes evolve. This is the rule for today, and itâs true of what sells.
- Clichés, and not just words and phrases
There are also clichéd situations, like starting your story with the main character waking to an alarm clock, a character describing herself while looking in a full-length mirror, future love interests literally bumping into each other upon first meeting, etc.
Also avoid beginning with an evocative, dramatic scene, and surprise, surprise, the main character wakes up to discover itâs all been a dream. Thereâs nothing wrong with dreams, but having them come as surprises has been used to death and takes all the air from the balloon of your story.
Itâs also a clichĂ© to have your main character feel his heart pound, race, thud, or hammer; and then he gasps, sucks wind, his breath comes short⊠If you describe the scene properly, your reader should experience all that and you shouldnât have to say your character did. Put your character into a rough enough situation, and the reader will know what heâs feeling without having to be toldâand hopefully, heâll share his distress.
- Simply bad writing:
This is what I call that special language we all tend to use when we forget to Just Say It. I recently edited this sentence from a beginner: âThe fire drop from the pommel of Tambreâs sword shot past the shimmering silver mist of her involuntary dispersal.â
I had to read a few more paragraphs to have a clue to what it even meant. Thatâs written-ese.
Hollywood screenwriters coined this term for prose that exactly mirrors real life but fails to advance your plot. Thereâs nothing wrong with the words themselves, except that they could be synopsized to save the readerâs time and patience. A perfect example is replacing all the hiâs and helloâs and how are youâs that precede meaningful dialogue with something like: âAfter trading pleasantries, Jim asked Fred if heâd heard about what had happened to Tricia. âNo, what?ââ
Avoid state-of-being verbs. Change sentences like âThere was a man standingâŠâ to âA man stoodâŠâ
The most famous rule in the bible of writing hints, The Elements of Style, is âOmit Needless Words,â which follows its own advice. This should be the hallmark of every writer.
Example: The administrative assistant ushered me through the open door into the CEOâs office, and I sat down in a chair across from his big, wood desk.
Edit: Obviously, there would be a door. And even more obviously, it would be open. If I sat, I would sit âdown,â and naturally it would be in a chair. Because Iâm seeing the CEO, a description of his desk would be notable only if it werenât big or wood.
Result: The administrative assistant ushered me into the CEOâs office, and I sat across from his desk.
Re-examine these 5 common mistakes, and study more self-editing tips here,
-Jan R