I had queried 48 agents and a handful of editors, and I had gotten very little response. A few had asked for the first three chapters, but mostly I got initial interest from my query letter and then either a form or a personalized rejection. No, however, means no, and I had started to make my peace with that. I wasn’t completely sanguine — sometimes I felt sad that the characters in my novel, who Read more…
Fifty was the magic number. I told myself I was going to query 50 agents and if I didn’t find an agent or a publisher at the end of that time then it was time to move on. My reasoning was this. I had done a lot of research and had read in a couple of places, either on Kristen Nelson’s blog or Miss Snark, or various other industry blogs, that it looked bad if Read more…
A’s in the throes of TAKS testing this week and needed to bring a book to school for when he finished early. For those of you not in Texas, TAKS is the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills. While I’m not against standardized tests per se, the emphasis put on these tests and the process of teaching to the test that occurs even in the best schools, is sobering. Anyway, that’s a rant for another Read more…