Writing Update: Querying #4
I wish I could make some big announcement, but I can’t.
Time for this week’s update!
It’s a waiting game at this point.
After a quiet week, I don’t have much to share. I’ve gotten one more rejection, and that’s it. My full is still with the agent who requested it, and I haven’t heard back (which isn’t unusual since it’s only been a couple weeks). I sent that over on February 9th, so I probably won’t nudge until mid-April if I still haven’t heard anything by then. It was exciting to get a full manuscript request on week 1 of querying, and I’m just crossing fingers and toes now.
THOUGHTS AFTER ANOTHER REJECTION
One of my dream agents rejected me this week. I hesitate to use “dream agent” because I’m really not querying anyone who I haven’t done research on or who don’t meet the criterion I’m looking for in an agent, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that this one was in my top 10 agents. So, that’s a bummer.
I’m still not sure if I’m “supposed” to be feeling worse about things, but I’m not. I watched several videos this week of newly-agented authors sharing their query journeys, and they seem so overwhelmed and stressed by the entire process. It’s once again left me wondering if I’m truly alright with it, or if I’m somehow subconsciously avoiding my negative feelings? I don’t think that’s the case, as my anxiety has NO PROBLEM WHATSOVER with popping up whenever it damn well pleases. So, unless or until my emotions decide to say otherwise, I’m going to assume it’s a good thing that I’m just cruising right along with all this! lol
MORE QUERIES SENT
I sent out 2 more query letters based on agents I found through research. I’ve been looking for any interviews or articles I can find, broadening my scope a bit. I found one this week who I’m very excited about. I’d never heard of her before, so I consider myself really fortunate to have discovered her through a podcast episode. When I went to her website, read her bio, and looked at her MSWL, I knew I had to query her. The other one I queried was already on my list. There was another I was really hoping to query, but they’re not currently accepting submissions, so I selected the option to receive updates if/when that changes. In the meantime, I’ll keep sending out a new query for every one that’s rejected.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
I’ve adjusted my query letter to make it more concise. It’s so much better now! I’d had my previous letter critiqued, so I’d felt reasonably confident with it going into round one of my queries, but now I’m even more so. I was hesitant to revise anything in my query package since the initial package has gotten me a full request, but after a few weeks of querying, and with a 90% rejection rate within my responses so far, I decided to try to polish things up even further. My synopsis also underwent another round of revision, and it’s in much better shape than what I initially sent. All-in-all, I’m eager to see if these changes increase my positive response rate with the new ones going out, and I’m even more hopeful that it’ll do a better job of hooking agents.
I may not continue with weekly updates. Unless I have something relevant to share (actual responses, or thoughts on the ongoing process), I’ll probably give it room to breath in between. Maybe bi-weekly updates? I guess I’ll just play it by ear as I wait to hear back from agents.
Here’s to hoping for some positive responses!
Today’s date: February 26th, 2024
