In Pursuit of Patience

Three and a half years ago, in the fall of 2016, I got the impression it was time for Chris and me to try to have another baby. This was kind of monumental. From the time Monster was small--from the time he was born, really--I'd assumed we'd have another. I could almost hear her footsteps pattering around the house, and when I looked for my kids, I constantly looked for a fourth.

The timing had never been right. During most of 2013, spilling into 2014, I'd been majorly depressed. I felt like I SHOULD have a baby, but I didn't WANT another, which just made me MORE depressed. I'd been taught for years and years that children were a gift from God and that having and raising them were two of life's main purposes, so if I didn't want another, I was clearly horrible.

After going to a therapist once or twice a month for more than a year, I went back on medication. That put baby plans on hold, as I was under the impression that you couldn't have a baby while taking antidepressants. I was part relieved, part sad.

By sometime in 2015, I was feeling pretty good. I weaned myself off medication without talking to my doctor. (This was NOT a good idea.) Then 2016 struck. As I detailed in this post, Chris received a job transfer that really threw me for a loop. Still, I came to the conclusion I included in that post:

"I believe God was doing more with my life than I could do with it on my own. It's hard to let go, but I believe He loves and cares for us as a father loves and cares for his children. And because fathers are anxious to see their children succeed, He will help us steer our ships if we're willing to trust Him. In other words, when we let Him in, He won't ever let us down."

Three months after writing that, I was getting the impression it was time for Chris and me to try to have another baby. I was nervous but excited. As I detailed in THIS post, Chris and I had had to deal with infertility before. But this time, I was sure we were definitely doing what God wanted us to do. I was confident that meant the sailing would be fairly smooth.

I smile as I write that now. Hadn't I already learned that God carried out His plan, not what I thought His plan should be? I should have, but I hadn't. I was in for a crash course.

One month went by, then two. A sister-in-law announced that she was pregnant. I was mad despite myself. This sister-in-law had always gotten pregnant on the first or second try. Why had she never had to work? I shared some of these feelings with another sister-in-law, one who's miscarried several times. She completely understood.

Then, a month later, SHE announced that she was pregnant.

I cried a lot that winter, tried to get inside God's head. I hadn't really expected to get pregnant that first month, but what about the fifth or sixth? And why was God dispatching babies to every other family in our family? Was there something wrong with us? Were we less faithful, less deserving?

By the time March rolled around, I thought I was all cried out. Then a third sister-in-law, who'd put off having kids for years, announced that she was pregnant, too.

It was right around this time that I admitted to myself I was probably more depressed than I'd ever been before. I would go on crying jags that would, like, compress my chest and make it difficult to breathe, and my suicidal thoughts were slowly developing into suicidal plans. I spoke openly with Chris about the problems I was having, but they never went away. By April, I conceded to seeking medical help. We scheduled an appointment right away.

Chris went into this appointment thinking our window had closed. We'd tried. We'd failed. Time to move on. That said, I was less convinced. Why had I received that prompting if our family was complete? I know God sometimes allows us to take steps down the wrong path so we can pinpoint the right one, but that answer didn't sit. I was hopeful that the doctor would provide a better one.

Maybe you've already guessed what I learned at that appointment. As it turns out, I was wrong--there IS an antidepressant childbearing women can take from conception to delivery. Multiple studies have shown it has little to no impact on developing babies, and it's safe to take for days, weeks, months, even years.

This changed everything, of course. I walked away from that appointment feeling like I'd found the answer I'd been looking so hard for. And sure enough, a few months later, once this wondrous medication had had time to take effect and I was feeling good again, I got pregnant on the first try.

I could almost hear God's voice speaking softly to my heart: "THIS was the way for you to go. THIS was the path I chose for you. Wasn't it better than the path you would have chosen for yourself?"

What did I say after our house in Mesquite finally sold? "And because fathers are anxious to see their children succeed, He will help us steer our ships if we're willing to trust Him." You see, I ALREADY KNEW that God's way always works out. But when the next storm arose, I forgot and wrung my hands. What will we do, what will we do, what will we do, what will we DO? And yet I already knew: keep calm, carry on, and let Jesus take the wheel.

God allows us to pass through faith-promoting tests and trials just so they'll promote our faith. And if we let them work in us--in us, through us, and around us--then the next time we're confronted with a faith-promoting test, we'll be able to press forward and, if not rest fully easy, then at least rest easier.

Why am I sharing this now? Because I'm waiting to hear back on a non-writing endeavor that would mean the world to me. And because I've been on submission with one project or another for the past almost a year. I HATE being on submission. It's dumb and demoralizing. But as I hope I've FINALLY learned, I know how to handle it.

Have I had difficult days? Sure. Have I prayed for an end? Of course. But more often than not, I've prayed for strength to persevere, and that's made all the difference.

I Sold Another Book!

I'm thrilled to announce that I sold another book!

From Publishers Weekly: Alison Deering at Capstone has acquired Krista Van Dolzer’s middle grade novel Earth to Dad. The story follows an 11-year-old boy who spends his days waiting for transmissions from his Mars-colonizing dad until the daughter of a dead astronaut moves in across the street and he risks missing a transmission for a shot at real friendship, embarking on a journey exploring life, death, and wonder. Publication is planned for fall 2018; Brent Taylor at the TriadaUS Literary Agency sold world English rights.

I can tell I've been delinquent in my blogging of late because I don't think I've even mentioned this manuscript. Suffice it to say that the idea came to me during the excitement of NASA's Pluto flyby. Like the rest of the world, I was mesmerized by the images and the general thrill of space; this book was the result.

This was the first book I've ever tried to sell on proposal, which is to say we pitched roughly the first sixty pages and a detailed synopsis. But literary-minded science fiction isn't the easiest to sell, so when a couple of editors expressed interest in the full, I was more than happy to oblige. After jouncing over a few more bumps and divots, I learned that Ali loved the manuscript as much as Brent and I did, and I couldn't have been happier. Now I get to work with the brilliant team at Capstone, and the book's release is only a little more than a year away!

A huge thank-you to Brent for believing in this project as much as he believed in Clyde the Second, and a huge thank-you to YOU for sharing this journey with me. Once I've got revisions for these two under control, I plan to get more rounds of "An Agent's Inbox" scheduled!

From Submission to Offer with Alison Weiss

I'm thrilled to share my interview with Alison Weiss, an editor at Sky Pony Press. I got to pick her brain about Sarah S. Reida's MONSTERVILLE: A LISSA BLACK PRODUCTION, which comes out on September 20, but we're giving away a signed copy right here. DETAILS ON THAT GIVEAWAY ARE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST, but in the meantime, enjoy the interview!

KV: First off, tell us a bit about MONSTERVILLE. What is it about, and what did you love about it?

AW: If I had to give a one-liner for Monsterville: A Lissa Black Production, I'd call it Boxtrolls meets Jumanji meets Goonies meets Candyland. The novel stars Lissa, who's moved from New York City to Freeburg, PA--a town that might as well be the miiddle of nowhere. Lissa dreams of being a famous actor, writer, and director, and that's just not going to happen in this small town. And then, walking in the woods, she runs into a very mixed up monster. And what do you do with a monster? Make monster movies of course! It's Lissa's ticket to fame and fortune! But when her little sister is taken to the monster realm, Lissa will have to venture Down Below to stage a rescue and become something else--an epic hero.

I fell for Monsterville because it's just brimming with heart. Lissa is a total fish out of water, and she's also a little bit of a snob at the beginning o f the book. But that comes out of a sense of a worry that all of her friends from back in New York will move on without her, and I just couldn't help but feel for her. And I couldn't help but love Sarah's characters. In addition to LIssa, Blue (our beloved monster) and Haylie (Lissa's little sister) and Adam (the ever-prepared soon-to-be-friend) have such wonderful, warm, personalities. They really feel like living beings to me.

KV: Do you recall how quickly you read Ms. Reida's manuscript? Is that pretty typical of your response times, or do those vary?

AW: I really can't remember how long it took me to read Monsterville. Sarah would probably say too long. I try to be prompt on manuscript reading, but there are so many manuscripts and only one me, and despite best intentions, editing and life sometimes get in the way. I try to get back in a month, but I know I miss that more often than I'd like. I never mind a gentle nudge, though. And I try to respond on everything. Even if it's been an eon. 

KV: Once you decided to take MONSTERVILLE to your acquisitions meeting/editorial board, did you inform Ms. Reida’s agent of your interest in the manuscript? Do you typically keep in contact with the agent throughout the process, or do you prefer to have a final decision in hand before you reach out?

AW: Acquisitions at Sky Pony goes a little bit differently than it does at some other houses. We don't have a formal acquisitions board. But we still have to make our case to our editorial director if we'd like to take on a project. In the case of Monsterville, I think I let the agent know I was taking the project to acquisitions. In general, though, I try to play my cards pretty close to my chest. I'll let agents know if I'm reading and really loving something--you don't want them to go take a pre-empt on something you're head-over-heels for--but there's always a strong possibility that an agent will go drumming up other interest if they know you're interested. I guess I decide the best approach with each project. And sometimes that means having to stop my hand from rattling off a gushing email to an agent until I'm ready to go.

KV: How did you prepare to bring MONSTERVILLE to your editorial director?

AW: I put together a pitch for the book thinking about questions like: Where would I position this in the market? Why is it a good prospect for the Sky Pony list? What are some comparable titles and how did they sell? I had a conversation wit my editorial director, as well. I think she read a little bit of the manuscript before we moved it on to the next stage.

KV: How did you present your offer to Ms. Reida's agent, and what was that conversation like?

AW: I think I just sent her a gushing offer letter and the terms I was offering. And we did a little bit of negotiation on terms and then moved forward.

KV: I know Sky Pony Press is open to unagented submissions, so what other kinds of stories are you looking for?

AW: I tend to have quite eclectic tastes. I like to edit all sorts of books across a list. In middle grade, I always love stories that have a lot of heart and a bit of a classic feel, while still resonating with a contemporary audience. Books like Circus Mirandus and The Penderwicks and Savvy. In YA, I love a sweeping romance--I'd especially love a sweeping Southern Gothic. And across the board I really enjoy spies and assassins and thieves--but the Robin Hood-types. You have to have a crook with a heart of gold.

KV: What's the best way to submit to you?

AW: The easiest way to submit to me if you're unagented is to follow the submission guidelines on Sky Pony's website. You can email skyponysubmissions@skyhorsepublishing.com.

Thank you for these helpful answers, Ms. Weiss! It's really nice to know that at least one editor likes to play her cards close to her chest:)

And now on to the giveaway for a signed copy of MONSTERVILLE! To enter, leave a comment below that includes your e-mail address. This contest is open to U.S. and Canadian residents and closes in two weeks, on Thursday, September 1, at 11:59 p.m. EST (or 8:59 p.m. PST). I'll announce the winners the next day!

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Beware what lurks beneath your bed. . . . It could lead to a monstrous adventure.

Thirteen-year-old Lissa Black is anything but happy when her parents force her to move from New York City, the perfect home for an aspiring writer/director/actress, to Freeburg, Pennsylvania, nowhere capital of the world. There’s not much for Lissa to do there, except play Monsterville, a Candyland-esque quest to survive, which Lissa’s little sister, Haylie, has becomed obsessed with, and hang out with her new neighbor, Adam, who is intent to prove to her that Freeburg is a great place to live.

But even Lissa can’t call her new home totally boring when a trek into the woods lands her face-to-face with a sea monster looking for brains to eat and then a Sasquatch that moos! With Adam’s help, she discovers a monster secret . . . or maybe just a monster: a poor little goblin they name Blue, who’s fled the world Down Below, desperate to decide on his scary form.

And what do you do with a creature that can be literally anything? You make monster movies, of course! Lissa is convinced that Blue will be the secret to her big break.

But when Haylie goes missing on Halloween, Lissa, Adam, and Blue must ventrure Down Below to stage a rescue—and face the real Monsterville, which is anything but a game.

Monsterville is a fusion of The Boxtrolls, Jumanji, and Candyland, weaving together friendship family, and monsters into a funny fantasy-horror brimming with heart from a great new middle grade voice.

SOLD

When you sell your first manuscript, you're ecstatic. Your lifelong dream is (finally, always finally) coming true. You did it. You really did it.

But you can't make a career out of selling your first manuscript (unless your name is J.K. Rowling or Stephenie Meyer). You've got to keep selling them, and as I mentioned in this post, that was the one thing I hadn't been able to do.

Until now.

From Publishers Weekly: Brett Wright at Bloomsbury has won at auction Krista Van Dolzer's Don't Solve the Puzzle, a middle-grade murder mystery set at a math camp, with built-in logic puzzles that readers can solve alongside the main character. Publication is scheduled for winter 2019; Brent Taylor at the TriadaUS Literary Agency brokered the deal for world rights.

If you've been a longtime reader, I can guess what you're thinking: What the heck is DON'T SOLVE THE PUZZLE? Only slightly better known as Clyde the Second, DON'T SOLVE THE PUZZLE is a companion novel to DON'T VOTE FOR ME, also known as Clyde, and features Esther Lambert, an art kid from DON'T VOTE FOR ME who ends up at a math camp by mistake.

When Bloomsbury showed up on Brent's submission list, I couldn't have been more excited. Some of my very favorite authors are published by Bloomsbury (hello, Shannon Hale and Lindsey Leavitt!), and when I was browsing my own bookshelves, I was surprised to see how many of my books had that funny-looking archer on their spines. But the first interest in the manuscript came from another press, and when it became clear that neither of these publishers was going anywhere, Brent set up an auction. I'm sure you can guess who won:)

For more information on DON'T SOLVE THE PUZZLE, feel free to check out the "Books" tab at the top of the screen. I hope you'll have as much fun reading it as I did writing it.

When It Feels Like the Race Is Passing You By

I've been writing this post in my head for longer than I care to admit, but a part of me hasn't wanted to come out and just say it. I didn't want to sound like a whiner, and I certainly didn't want to come across as ungrateful. Because I've been extremely blessed. Most writers are still waiting to see one of their books on the shelf, let alone two. But I've been inspired by the insightful, honest posts that my friends have been sharing. When your motivation starts feeling less like circumspection and more like cowardice, you know you have to take the leap.

You probably haven't noticed that it's been almost three years since I announced my last book deal. You probably haven't even wondered what I've been working on because you've just assumed that I've been being a Published Author. But I'm never too busy to write. Writing is just what we do. Even when we don't have time. Even when we want to sleep. Even when we're so hopped up on cold medicine that we can barely string three coherent words together. I'm sure you know what you mean.

It's just that none of the things I've written in the last three years have sold*.

How I feel about this fact changes from day to day (and sometimes from hour to hour). It's unfortunate that the qualities that make us good writers--like empathy and internalization--are the very qualities that make the publishing industry especially difficult to maneuver. Here are several ways I cope:

1. Step away from the computer. There is nothing wrong with taking a few days, weeks, or even months to reorient myself. I usually remember why I love telling stories and crafting pitch-perfect sentences when I'm not actively doing it.

2. Take breaks from social media. I love keeping up with writing friends, but sometimes I do have to turn off Twitter. The constant deluge of good news can get overwhelming, and while I don't think it's okay to succumb to bitterness and jealousy, I do think it's okay to know your limits and stop torturing yourself.

3. Do something nice for someone else. There is absolutely no substitute for genuine service. When I'm focused on another person's needs, I spend a lot less time and brainpower worrying about myself.

4. Pick up a new hobby or develop an old one. When I got into genealogy almost six years ago, I never imagined that it could or would become such an invaluable lifeline. Anytime I need a break from this mentally and emotionally draining business, researching my dead people always fills my well back up.

5. Read, read, read. Most writers were readers first, and that's certainly true in my case. I love digging into a new find or rereading an old favorite. That said, I'll be the first to admit that I sometimes avoid certain books. Some authors are so out of my league that I can bask in their amazingness without feeling threatened, but that brilliant debut that's getting all kinds of awesome press and winning all kinds of awards? Yeah, I'm not going to appreciate that book when I'm down in the dumps, so I hold off on reading it until I've dug myself out.

6. Develop meaningful relationships with other writers. Only other writers can really understand what it's like to be a writer. Also, I've found it's easier to be genuinely happy for a writer I've taken the time to get to know.

What do YOU do to keep your head above water?

*But that's not accurate, either. I probably should have said, "It's just that none of the things I've written in the last three years have sold YET." Against all odds, I'm still plugging away. If insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, then fit me for a straitjacket and book my padded cell.

From Submission to Offer with Kristin Daly Rens

As you may have guessed, I'm a huge fan of historical fiction, so when I found out that Anne Blankman, author of PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG and CONSPIRACY OF BLOOD AND SMOKE, was releasing a third book this spring, I immediately reached out to see if her editor, Kristin Daly Rens, would be interested in answering a few questions about its acquisition. Ms. Rens graciously agreed, and when I sent her the questions, she knocked them out of the park. Enjoy!

KV: First off, tell us a bit about PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG. What is it about, and what did you love about it?

KDR: PRISONER OF NIGHT AND FOG is the story of Gretchen Müller, who has grown up in the Nationalist Socialist Party. Her father sacrificed his life to protect Hitler during the leader’s failed beer hall putsch several years earlier, and ever since, Hitler has kept the Müller family in his inner circle, safe and secure during unstable times. Gretchen is Uncle Dolf's favorite, and everyone in Munich knows it--until the night she receives a mysterious note that indicates her father’s death is not what it appeared to be. And Gretchen joins forces with a handsome young Jewish journalist to uncover the truth.

From the moment I cracked open the manuscript, I found Gretchen’s story absolutely gripping. The writing is lovely, and Anne has SUCH a gift for creating atmosphere--the historical detail throughout lends real authenticity to both the characters and the story. I was also intrigued by the fact that, when the story opens, Gretchen is a National Socialist, and yet as she comes to realize that everything she grew up believing is a lie, the reader can’t help but be on her side--it was a point of view I hadn’t really seen before.

KV: Do you recall how quickly you read Ms. Blankman's manuscript? Is that pretty typical of your response times, or do those vary?

KDR: Pretty darn quickly! I was really fascinated by the pitch, so I couldn’t resist starting to read right after I got the manuscript--which isn’t always the case, simply because I usually try to read manuscripts in the order they come in and so my response times can vary. It was a good thing I started reading PRISONER early, though, because within the week the manuscript already had strong interest from several houses, with one offer already on the table. From submission to end of the auction, the whole process took just about three weeks--which, considering the Thanksgiving holiday fell in the middle of that, was a whirlwind!

KV: Once you decided to take PRISONER to your acquisitions meeting/editorial board, did you inform Ms. Blankman’s agent of your interest in the manuscript? Do you typically keep in contact with the agent throughout the process, or do you prefer to have a final decision in hand before you reach out?

KDR: In part because there was already interest from other publishers as well, I let Anne’s agent know that I was planning to share the ms with the rest of the Balzer + Bray team, and then again when I put the project on our acquisitions agenda--I wanted both her and Anne to know how much I loved the book (and how much the B+B team adored it as well)!

KV: How did you prepare to bring PRISONER to your acquisitions meeting/editorial board?

KDR: The first step in the acquisitions process for me is always to share a submission I’m excited about with the rest of the Balzer + Bray team to discuss at our team meeting. Happily, they were all just as excited about Anne, and about PRISONER, as I was, and we were unanimous in our decision to bring the book to our acquisitions meeting for discussion.

For acquisitions, we generally share the manuscript with the group, as well as a memo detailing all of the reasons we think we should acquire it--and, with Anne’s books, there were MANY reasons!--as well as a tentative p&l form. We try to give materials to the group at least a week before acquisitions, whenever we can, so that they have time to read the manuscript to see how special it is beforehand--though sometimes, depending on the situation, they’re forced to read more quickly.

KV: How did you present your offer to Ms. Blankman's agent, and what was that conversation like? 

KDR: Oh gosh, it’s been about three and a half years at this point, so I’m not sure of the exact details, but I do remember that I called Anne’s agent to make the offer more or less the moment I got out of our acquisitions meeting--and that there was lots of gushing involved! And then I was on pins and needles waiting until the auction was over.

KV: PRISONER sold in a multi-book deal that ended up including its sequel, CONSPIRACY OF BLOOD AND SMOKE, and the just-released TRAITOR ANGELS. Were those books planned from the start, or did you and Ms. Blankman collaborate on the concepts over time?

KDR: From the beginning, we knew that CONSPIRACY OF BLOOD AND SMOKE would be Anne’s second book, though we weren’t sure at that point what book three would be. But when Anne sent in the proposal for TRAITOR ANGELS I knew that was going to be our next project--Anne and I share a fascination with Milton and “Paradise Lost” so it was clearly meant to be!

KV: How is TRAITOR ANGELS similar to PRISONER and CONSPIRACY, and how is it different? 

KDR: Like PRISONER and CONSPIRACY, TRAITOR ANGELS is technically historical, but it’s also a VERY different book--a heart-pounding adventure full of literary clues and puzzles, and an earthshaking secret that both the church and the king are desperate to conceal, so in some ways TRAITOR ANGELS is more akin to books like THE DA VINCI CODE. As always, though, Anne has woven true facts in with intriguing surprises to create an intricate and unputdownable story. With a heroine who is both a brilliant scholar and a fierce swordswoman, and a rich blend of romance, mystery, and historical intrigue, the book is a really compelling mix of historical fiction and code-breaking thriller.

KV: Oh my gosh, this book sounds DIVINE. Can't wait to get my hands on it!

Any last words of advice or encouragement you’d like to share with us?

KDR: Write what interests you, not what is trendy! One of my favorite things about Anne’s writing is how passionate she is about the topics she writes about--whether it’s WW2 Germany or the poetry of John Milton, Anne’s love for her subject matter shines through in every word she writes, leading her to create not only an evocative sense of atmosphere, but also fully-realized characters and rich, complex relationships that make the reader fully, and emotionally, invested. When a writer is passionate about what he or she is writing about, readers can see that passion on the page--and it makes them fall in love with that story as well.

Thank you for this wonderful advice, Ms. Rens, and for an information-packed interview. I'm sure I'm not the only one who will be coming back to refer to it:)

Have a great weekend, all. I'm out!

From Submission to Offer with Alyson Heller

Super excited to share my interview with Alyson Heller, the editor at Aladdin who worked on Dee Romito's THE BFF BUCKET LIST. Ms. Romito's debut is set to drop next Tuesday, so it felt like the right time to get a behind-the-scenes peek into the acquisition process. Enjoy!

KV: First off, tell us a bit about THE BFF BUCKET LIST. What is it about, and what did you love about it?

AH: Skyler and Ella have been best friends since kindergarten, but lately, Ella feels like they are drifting apart. The solution? Ella comes up with The BFF Bucket List, and the girls must complete all the tasks together. As new friends, epic opportunities and super-cute boys enter the picture, the challenges on the list aren’t the only ones they face.

What I loved about The BFF Bucket list is that it speaks to the universal experience of the angst and struggles with friendship, particularly during these tween years. In this story, the girls are about to go off to high school, and the separation in interests and other friend groups starts to become more and more apparent. We’ve all been there, and Dee Romito does a wonderful job of showing this experience.

KV: Once you decided to take THE BFF BUCKET LIST to your acquisitions meeting/editorial board, did you inform Ms. Romito’s agent of your interest in the manuscript? Do you typically keep in contact with the agent throughout the process, or do you prefer to have a final decision in hand before you reach out?

AH: Yes, once we got in the pages from Dee, I shared with our immediate Aladdin editorial team, who read and loved, and we let Dee’s agent, Dr. Uwe Stender, know that we would be taking the manuscript to our acquisitions meeting. I usually let the agents know that I am taking something to acquisitions, just in case the status on their end has changed. Happily, our acquisitions board also loved the pages we presented, and I was able to make an official offer, which is always so exciting!

KV: Any last words of advice or encouragement you’d like to share with us?

AH: In some cases, I have seen a previous submission that hasn’t quite worked for my list or Aladdin’s list overall, but loved the voice and writing of the author--and there are a few instances where I have then signed them up for something down the line, whether it’s a new project they come back with, or a project we approached them for. That is a long way of saying don’t be discouraged if the first submission your agent goes out with doesn’t quite stick--we certainly keep note of those authors who we would love to work with someday on the right project if the opportunity comes along!

Wonderful advice, Ms. Heller. Thanks again for taking the time to answer my questions!

What If Selling a House Were Like Selling a Manuscript?

I've been elbow-deep in house listings for the last couple of weeks, and it's gotten me thinking: what if selling a house were like selling a manuscript?

"Please describe your home in two hundred and fifty words or less. No pictures or attachments, please."

"I'm afraid I'm just not connecting with this house as strongly as I would have liked."

"I liked the exterior, but the kitchen was outdated, the second bathroom was unsightly, and the basement felt too big."

"That said, if you address those issues, I'd love to take another look!"

"I actually walked through this whole house, and though I liked the first floor, the second floor ran out of steam."

"If you decide to sell another house, I'd love to take a look at that one!"

"I love this house. I'm going to run it past my spouse, my kids, my mom, my lawyer, and my accountant. More soon!"

"Unfortunately, my lawyer thinks the market for Dutch colonials is saturated at the moment, so we're going to have to pass."

"We think this home is fantastic and would love to make an offer of seventy-five hundred dollars."

Sold!

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About R&Rs

Or at least some things...

Second only to an offer, a revise-and-resubmit--or an R&R, as they're often called--can be a fantastic opportunity to fine-tune or even completely reshape your manuscript. I've collected eight over the years (seven when I was querying, one since I've been on submission), so I thought I'd share a few thoughts.

What's the difference between a rejection and an R&R?

On the surface, an R&R might sound like a rejection. The agent or editor definitely isn't offering, and he even took the time to point out everything that's WRONG. But as soon as he says, "If you end up making changes, I'd love to see this again" or "If these ideas resonate with you, I'd be happy to take another look," it turns into an R&R. Agents and editors generally don't invite you to resubmit:)

How do you decide whether or not to do an R&R?

It all comes down to whether or not your vision aligns with theirs. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean that you won't have to throw out half the manuscript and draft dozens of new scenes, but the suggested changes should help you tell the story you meant to tell all along. No matter where it comes from, an actionable critique should make you feel excited to dive back into your story, so if you don't feel inspired by the agent's or editor's feedback, it might not be worth pursuing.

What if you decide to do the R&R but you don't agree with all of the agent's or editor's suggestions?

No agent or editor is going to expect you to agree with her on every point she raised, so I think she'll still be interested in taking another look even if you don't address every little thing. That said, she WILL expect you to at least consider every point she raised, so if you decide not to incorporate a specific piece of feedback, you should probably be able to explain--and defend--your decision.

Do you need to tell the agent or editor that you plan to do the revision?

Short answer: Yes. Slightly longer answer: Working on an R&R is a chance for both of you to get a feel for each other's working style, so you want to show him that you're a smart, savvy author who knows how to communicate.

How long should you take on the revision?

Less experienced writers might assume that the faster you turn your revision in, the better, but that's not necessarily the case. If you turn it in too quickly, the agent or editor might assume that you didn't invest as much time and effort as you probably should have. (Keep in mind that if she only expected you to tweak a scene or two, she probably would have offered from the get-go.) But if you take too long, the market might slip out from under you. In general (and these are VERY general guidelines--every revision will be different), I'd say that you should take at least a month on an R&R and no more than three or four.

How likely is it that an R&R will turn into an offer?

It's hard to say. As I mentioned above, I've received eight R&Rs, but I only pursued six of them. Of those six, only one turned into an offer (but luckily, that one came from Putnam!). Based solely on my experience, you might estimate that you have roughly a one-in-six chance of receiving an offer on any given R&R, but there are way too many factors that go into the result to be able to extrapolate from such a tiny data set. Take your time, do the very best job you can, and you'll have no regrets.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask them in the comments!

On Comparison and Confidence

Now that I have a little time for blogging (read: now that I finished my latest revision), I've been thinking about what I might say, and the thing my brain keeps circling back around to is comparison. YA Misfit Maggie Hall blogged on a similar theme not long ago, and I want to add my voice to hers.

The truth is, I've blogged about comparison before. If you click on that link, you might notice that I wrote that post in the first month of this blog's life. You'd think I would have figured at least a few things out in the last four and a half years, and the truth is, I did. There was a time when I was querying when it honestly didn't bother me if other writers got agents or book deals or fill-in-the-blank. I was confident in my own writing, so I knew that, sooner or later (probably later), things would work out for me, too. I just had to stay the course.

But then I signed with Kate (which was FANTASTIC) and went on submission (which was less fantastic). As the days turned into weeks and those weeks turned into months, my confidence dried up. The depression I'd struggled with as a teenager came back in full force, gobbling up the inner calm I'd worked so hard to achieve, and suddenly, I felt like I was right back where I'd started, jealous of anyone's success and secretly satisfied with anyone's failure.

In making this admission, I realize I'm opening myself up to criticism. Even if you're willing to give me the benefit of the doubt, you're probably thinking, "Gosh, Krista, you've sold a manuscript--no, two--for heaven's sake. You should buck up and be grateful!" And I should. Some days, I even think I am. But I'd be lying if I said I haven't felt jealous lately, and at least in my opinion, the only thing worse than feeling jealous is lying about not feeling jealous.

It's occurred to me as I've written this that, at least for me, the reason I feel jealous is because I've lost the confidence I used to have. Now, I don't mean the confidence that looks down its nose at other people and puts itself on a pedestal; I mean the confidence that comes from knowing you've done your best and being satisfied with that. THAT'S the kind of confidence that allowed me to reach out to other writers with genuine warmth and well wishes, and that's the kind of confidence I want to find again.

The great thing about this quiet confidence is that you can acquire it at any step along this path. As I already mentioned, I felt the most quietly confident before I had a book deal or even an agent. I was going through rejections like most people go through toilet paper, but it didn't even faze me. I knew my time would come, and I was content to wait it out.

I haven't managed to lay hands on that quiet confidence again, but I know where to look for it. For me, it usually springs from God, who, when I'm quiet and listening, never fails to reassure me of the infinite worth I have in His eyes. You might also find your quiet confidence in God or in the friends and family who love and support you no matter how many rejections you rack up or manuscripts you set aside. They believe in us.

Now, we just have to figure out how to believe in ourselves.

From Submission to Offer with Meredith Rich

I'm thrilled to start the new year with my interview with Meredith Rich, digital editor at Bloomsbury Spark. I haven't done many interviews in this series, but when Jenny Kaczorowski, who was on my team for "The Writer's Voice" last year, sold THE ART OF FALLING to Bloomsbury's new digital line, I knew I had to get her editor to answer a few questions.

KV: First off, tell us a bit about THE ART OF FALLING. What’s it about, and what did you love about it?

MR: I think I fell in love with FALLING from the moment I read the #pitmad tweet, and then I just crossed my fingers that it lived up to my expectations. I might as well let that tweet speak for itself:

YA - Bria knows exactly who she is - the militant vegan, purple-haired Queen of the Art Room - until she kisses the HS quarterback #PitchMAS

What I love about this book is that it feels so warm, so wistful, and it really breaks out of the typical YA contemporary tropes when it comes to character building. On the surface Bria might look like a stereotype but we quickly get to know that she is anything but. Also the fact that I actually have my own pair of purple Doc Martens didn't hurt.

KV: Jumping in to say I fell in love with FALLING, too, as soon as I read the query, so I know exactly how that feels:) All right, back to the interview!

How quickly did you read Ms. Kaczorowski’s manuscript? Is that pretty typical of your response times on submissions, or do those vary?

MR: I am pretty sure I flew through THE ART OF FALLING after finding it in #pitmad but then I waited for a bit before bringing it to acquisitions, just to make sure that it really stuck in my mind. Response times can really vary for me based on everything else that is going on here at Spark, and the schedules of our team for acquisitions. In preparations for the launch I was juggling a lot and my response time slowed as I was in full on edit mode. Due to the volume of submissions we receive I can only respond if interested in a project, but I try to keep that to a two month window.

KV: After you finished THE ART OF FALLING, did you pass it on to a colleague for a second read? Do you usually do that?

MR: With Spark I have the honor and sometimes terrifying privilege of really being able to fight for a book based on my own judgement. But thankfully, before I move forward with anything I have a great team that reads an excerpt and gives great feedback and perspective, made up of colleagues from editorial, marketing and sales. Incidentally, these folks in my acquisitions meeting are the same masterminds who work on all of our print books as well, so they are absolutely brilliant to work with.

KV: How did you prepare to bring THE ART OF FALLING to your acquisitions meeting?

MR: For all potential Spark titles, I give the manuscript a full read and usually let it sit for a few days. If I can't stop thinking about it, I begin prepping the acquisition proposal, which looks at a variety of factors. I include my pitch for the book, information about the author, a writing sample from the manuscript, competitive titles and their sales. Given that Spark is an eBook line, we also look at an author's digital presence. You don't have to be a twitter maven, but knowing what twitter is certainly helps!

KV: What happened at that meeting? And what might have happened? What are all the possible outcomes?

MR: I would say that FALLING was a pretty easy sell for the whole group. Jenny is fantastic and the book is so easy to love that I think it was one of those, "great, let's do it, what's next?" moments.

It's not always that simple, and sometimes I really fight for books that I love, and sometimes I realize that my team is absolutely right about the flaws in a project and you have to let them go. Sometimes you push for a book and they wind up going in another direction.

One of the best things that I have learned in these meetings and building a line is that not every book that I love is a fit for Spark. You can swoon for something and know that it won't sell, or that a trend is over, or that it just doesn't have enough of a hook, or that there is something similar that has already been published by Bloomsbury. In the end it has to be the perfect combination of a book I love, and something that we feel is timed well with the market.

KV: How did you present your offer to Ms. Kaczorowski, and what was that conversation like?

MR: I made our offer in writing via e-mail, and the only sad part about doing it via e-mail is you don't get to hear the jumping up and down when people accept! Jenny had a few others who were still looking at her manuscript, so I had to wait for a few weeks until I found out that I would be the lucky editor! (See, we worry about rejection too!)

KV: Of course, making the offer wasn’t the end of the road. What sorts of things did you and Ms. Kaczorowski discuss before everyone signed the contract?

MR: We went over the terms of the contract, I clarified a few items, and that was it! I really wanted to make sure she felt comfortable with the terms, especially since she was submitting to me directly rather than through an agent. We also have a great contracts team that is happy to translate any legal-ese, and I completely understand that it is sometimes necessary!

KV: I know Bloomsbury Spark is open to unagented submissions, so what other kinds of stories are you looking for?

MR: I would say right now I am looking for more genre fiction (high-concept science fiction and fantasy in particular) and contemporary romance as long as it has a great hook and feels fresh. We are looking for more male main characters, and also for stories that would do well with an international audience. Right now I am also on the hunt for fun YA/NA romance novellas for various times of the year (think prom, spring break, snowy winter, etc.).

As for my personal taste, I am always drawn to a really strong voice, I love humor, and I am looking to expand our New Adult offerings. I love stories that take you on an adventure and spark your imagination, but also let you get a good sigh-worthy moment in now and then.

KV: What's the best way to submit to you?

MR: You can find all of our submission guidelines here: bloomsbury.com/Spark

Please do include a query and information about yourself including links to your online presence. If I like your submission it makes it that much easier to find out more about you! I am always accepting submissions from agents as well, so if you are interested in Spark and have an agent, please ask them to submit to me directly. 

Thanks again, Ms. Rich, for this helpful information. I've been one of Jenny's fans for a long time, so it was nice to get this glimpse behind the scenes. And for those of you who plan to submit to Bloomsbury Spark in their near future, definitely check out their Facebook page.

I'm also happy to report that THE ART OF FALLING is now for sale! You can purchase it through any of these platforms:

Barnes & Noble
Amazon Kindle
Kobo
Google Play
iBookstore
Audible

Happy reading, and Happy New Year!

There Is No Secret Ingredient

You know that scene in Kung Fu Panda when Po's talking to his dad just before he fights Tai Lung? Po's freaking out about the fact that the legendary Dragon Scroll was blank, that he has to figure out how to defeat the vengeful Tai Lung on his own. In this moment of fear and indecision, his dad finally reveals the secret ingredient in their family's secret ingredient soup.

There isn't one.

Two or three years ago, when I was still slugging it out in the query trenches, I poured over every kidlit book I could get my hands on, determined to ferret out the secret of its success. I eagerly anticipated the release of books from bloggers I admired, certain that their words would reveal the mysterious X factor that mine were so obviously lacking. But the more I searched, the more discouraged I became. I honestly couldn't figure out what their stories had that mine did not.

But that's because there really is no secret ingredient. If you've been trying to get published for a while; if you've had multiple agents praise your work and tell you it's not you, it's them; if you know what to do with feedback and no longer fear revision, then YOU'VE ALREADY ARRIVED. The only difference between your stories and mine--and all the others on the market--is that my stories have been fortunate enough to land their big breaks. I simply queried the right manuscript at the right time to the right agent, who then managed to submit it at the right time to the right editor.

You'll notice how much of that process had nothing to do with me. Of course, if you're the sort of person who likes to be the master of his or her own fate, that may be hard to hear. But on the other hand, the good news is that it really has nothing to do with you. You're already there. You're good enough. Now you just have to wait for lightning to strike...

Clyde Sells to Sourcebooks!

It's been a while since I mentioned Clyde. I guess that's just what happens when a manuscript is on submission and you're waiting, waiting, waiting. Then this happened:

From Publishers Weekly: Steve Geck at Sourcebooks has acquired Krista Van Dolzer's contemporary MG novel Duel/Duet, a David and Goliath story set around a middle-school class election and a musical recital. Van Dolzer writes the Mother. Write. (Repeat.) blog, and is author of The Regenerated Man, which Putnam will publish in winter 2015. Publication of Duel/Duet is set for fall 2015; Kate Schafer Testerman of kt literary did the two-book deal for North American rights.

Actually, this started several months ago. At the beginning of June, Kate sent me an e-mail late on a Friday afternoon. She'd just spoken to Steve Geck at Sourcebooks. He loved DUEL/DUET (the manuscript also known as Clyde) and wanted to take it to acquisitions the following week.

Of course, few things rarely happen as quickly as you want them to in this business, especially in the summer, so it took a few more weeks for Steve's interest to turn into an offer. (Oh, I see you've noticed I now have an editor and a manuscript named Steve. This is going to be all kinds of exciting:) ) By the time Kate called that afternoon, I was convinced he'd turned it down.

Instead, he bought two books.

So that's how Clyde sold. In hindsight, this roller coaster ride wasn't nearly as wild as my last one, but it still felt like it. I think that's just how it goes.

If you'd like to learn more about Clyde, I've changed "My Book" to "My Books" and added an actual summary, so feel free to check that out. And while you're up there, don't forget about Steve. 2015 is shaping up to be one exciting year...

Oh, Look, Another Post About a Depressed Writer

I've started this post a dozen times and never finished it. I've rewritten, rearranged, added, and deleted. In fact, I've seriously considered just deleting the whole thing. I mean, there are only so many times you can read about a writer who's struggling, and I feel like those other posts have been far more insightful.

But for better or for worse, this IS my life. It's what I'm going through, and in that way, it's mine. Besides, I've never been very good at disguising how I feel, so consider this another in the long line of posts in which I wear my heart on my blog.

Being a mom is HARD. Like, write-ten-thousand-words-in-a-single-sitting hard. It seems like it should be doable, but the pace is so relentless. You're on every single minute of every single hour for the next eighteen-plus years, no sick days, no vacation. I suppose that should have occurred to me before I got pregnant, but the reality never sank in until I was knee-deep in kids.

Lately, I've been so jealous of writers who don't have these pint-sized distractions, who can pick up and move to Singapore to finish their revisions. Or write until three in the morning because they know no little hands will tug at their covers a few hours later. I've desperately wondered what it would be like to sit down and write whenever or wherever I wanted because no one was demanding anything of me.

The rational side of me knows that this is only the depression talking. (Have I mentioned I have depression? I haven't had a problem with it since high school, but in the last eight months or so, I've noticed some of the old thought patterns cropping up: the indifference, the negativity, the overall can't-do attitude. It's great.) The rational side of me also knows that EVERY SINGLE WRITER has to overcome one obstacle or another. But knowing and believing are two completely different things.

You'd think these sorts of feelings would have come up sooner. From a writing perspective, 2013 has been a very good year for me. But it's also been stressful (something I've learned about submitting is that it often takes weeks and sometimes months for the first hints of good news to blossom into book deals (if they blossom at all)), and I didn't expect that. Add to this three crazy kids who are just starting to have lives and interests of their own, and you've got one off-kilter Krista.

I want to say for the record that I don't regret being a mom or a writer. I chose to be both, and I stand by those decisions. You don't give up on something just because it gets hard. And it's not as hard as it could be. I'm still mostly functional, still capable of writing more days than I'm not. Hopefully, I'll be able to get a handle on this before I sink too much deeper.

For those of you waiting for the inspirational ah-ha moment these posts often include, I'm sorry to disappoint. I haven't figured anything out yet. But if I don't blog or tweet as often as I used to, I hope you'll understand. I'm trying to slow down, dig deep, get back to the basics. I've got a long climb ahead.

When Enough Isn't Enough

I've been unhappy several times the last couple of months. More than several times, actually, and every time I feel myself succumbing to despair, I also feel guilty. "Buck up," I tell myself. "Why are you so sad? Is it because you're still struggling to achieve your lifelong dream? Oh, wait, you already did that."

Now don't get me wrong--I'm absolutely thrilled that Steve is getting published. But with Clyde still on submission, I've transferred all my worrying to him: "Yep, it's gonna stink if, after everything, Clyde still doesn't sell. You may have succeeded in the past, but you'll probably fall flat with this. And that's gonna drive you crazy, isn't it? That's gonna ruin everything."

Do any of you watch Frasier? I've probably seen every episode two, three, maybe four times, and one of my favorites is when Frasier is the subject of a focus group. He's a radio psychiatrist who hosts a daily call-in show, and in this episode, his station puts together a focus group to critique his program. Frasier watches from the other side of a one-way mirror, but the mirror probably isn't necessary. Eleven out of twelve participants give him glowing reviews. But the twelfth participant is less enthusiastic. He doesn't say anything negative, but he doesn't say anything positive, either. Eleven out of twelve people absolutely love him, but Frasier can't stop thinking about the one guy who (sort of) didn't.

Afterward, Frasier tails the twelfth participant to the man's newsstand and literally begs him for feedback. He's certain he can win him over if only the man will tell him what to fix. Finally, the man admits he just doesn't like Frasier, and through a series of mishaps, Frasier ends up burning down the man's newsstand.

I read this article the other day on this same phenomenon (as well as this article and this one, which the author linked to in her post). I found myself nodding the whole time, because this is exactly what I've been feeling lately. No matter how many things I have, I always seem to fixate on the things I don't (even when what I have is pretty great). I agreed with everything they said, but it was what they didn't say that rubbed me wrong.

All three authors seemed to think this lack of contentment was okay.

Well, maybe not okay so much as inevitable. This is just how writers are, they said, so we just have to accept it and move on. But I don't think it's good enough to say that this is good enough. We're ALL like this to some degree, writer or no, ambitious or not, but it's not okay to roll over and chalk our weaknesses up to human nature. I truly think we're here to become more than what we are.

I'm not there yet, but that's my goal. I want to learn how to be happy with the things I have, how to ignore that awful voice inside my head that tells me I'm not good or smart or brave enough. It's a lesson I've been trying to learn for quite some time, as you can see, but I'm not giving up yet. It's not over until the end.

This Is Not One of Those Overnight Success Stories

This is the post I've written a thousand times in my head but never needed to put down on paper. This is the post I've dreamed about but never dared to hope I'd write. But then, life has a way of surprising you, and as far as surprises go, this one is pretty good:

From Publishers Weekly: Author of the popular blog Mother.Write.(Repeat.) (www.motherwrite.blogspot.com), Krista Van Dolzer, sold her debut novel, The Regenerated Man, to Shauna Rossano at Putnam. Agent Kate Schafer Testerman at kt literary handled the North American rights deal, and the book is scheduled for winter 2015. The middle grade novel is set in postwar California and, Testerman said, has elements of science fiction, as it follows a young girl who becomes the sole defender of “a bio-engineered Japanese soldier.”

Steve, otherwise known as THE REGENERATED MAN for the uninitiated, has had a bumpy road. When they say publishing slows down (read: comes to a standstill) in the summer, they mean it, so by the time fall rolled around last year, I was already feeling down and out. We'd given Steve a college try (whatever that means). Maybe it was time to pack it in and concentrate on the next manuscript.

Thank goodness Kate doesn't move on as easily as I do.

Long story slightly shorter: Shauna read the manuscript in a few weeks last September, then took it to her ed meeting. They liked it but had some issues. A few weeks later, she sent some notes, and I revised, revised, revised. I loved this manuscript so much, so I was grateful for the opportunity to make it even better. By Christmas, I was spending almost as much time revising as I was sleeping. By the end of January, I was (finally) done.

After Kate read the revision, she used words like "wow" and "amazing" to describe it, but we still had to wait and see what Shauna thought. And wait we did. Shauna was already swamped, conference season was just beginning, and in the ensuing weeks, I convinced myself that she was going to say no, that she would like it but not love it, that we'd be right back where we'd started. Even when I heard she was thrilled with the revision and taking it back to ed meeting, I didn't allow myself to hope. And when things didn't immediately come together, I told myself I'd told me so.

Then one morning, Kate sent me an e-mail. It was Putnam's offer.

How did John Lennon put it? "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans"? I've certainly found that to be true, especially in this business. But maybe, just maybe, that's part of its charm. Having everything figured out is kind of overrated. I'd much rather make it up as I go along.

#

A huge thank-you to Shauna for loving Steve as much as I do and fighting for him as long and hard as I would have. Another huge thank-you to the amazing and insightful critique partners who read and commented on early drafts: Liesl Shurtliff, Myrna Foster, Amy Sonnichsen, Jenilyn Collings, Ben Spendlove, Kelly Bryson, Mónica Bustamante Wagner, and Tara Dairman. I also have to give a shout-out to the KT Lit Sub Club, whose cheerleading and encouragement kept me (mostly) sane: Elizabeth Briggs, Susan Adrian, Erin Danehy, Sara Beitia, and our newest addition, Amy Sonnichsen. Last but certainly not least, a tip of my hat and a heartfelt hug to the incomparable Kate, granter of wishes and weaver of dreams. I must say, there's something to be said for boundless optimism:)

Oh, and one last thank-you to Honey Bear, our kids, and the rest of our family, but mostly Honey Bear. I don't know how I always manage to leave you out of these. It must be because you're always there, my only constant, the one person in the world who feels so much a part of me that I sometimes forget you're not. Nothing would be quite as bright if I didn't have you to share it with.

On Life Well Lived

So many things remind me of writing (I’m sure you understand), so when I heard this talk from President Dieter F. Uchtdorf a few weeks ago, I knew I had to blog about it:) The talk was religious in nature, but I thought so many of his ideas were applicable across a broad range of life experiences. Here are a few of my favorites:

“I think of our Lord and Exemplar, Jesus Christ, and His short life among the people of Galilee and Jerusalem. I have tried to imagine Him bustling between meetings or multitasking to get a list of urgent things accomplished.

“I can’t see it.

“Instead I see the compassionate and caring Son of God purposefully living each day. When He interacted with those around him, they felt important and loved. He knew the infinite value of the people He met. He blessed them, ministered to them. He lifted them up, healed them. He gave them the precious gift of His time.”

He then went on to caution us about overusing technology, which is one of those perpetual balancing acts in my life. With so many good things to do with our time, we have to make sure we’re doing what’s best. When everything’s said and done, I want to be able to say I “purposefully [lived] each day.”

“Doesn’t it seem foolish to spoil sweet and joyful experiences because we are constantly anticipating the moment when they will end? …

“We shouldn’t wait to be happy until we reach some future point, only to discover that happiness was already available--all the time! Life is not meant to be appreciated only in retrospect.”

I’ve thought about this a lot lately, about choosing to be happy no matter what, and something I’ve learned is that we can choose to be happy even when our experiences are less than sweet and joyful. For most of us, querying and submitting amount to long months of waiting (seasoned occasionally with heart-stopping spurts of rejection), but we don’t have to let the waiting or even the rejection define us. Those months can be just as happy so long as we fill them with the things that matter most.

Feel free to check out the whole transcript if you feel so inclined. Or you can watch the talk in its entirety below. In another life, President Uchtdorf was the senior vice president of flight operations at Lufthansa Airlines, and I’ve always thought he looked very captain-like. I would have felt very confident after climbing onto a plane and shaking his hand:)

From Submission to Offer with Shauna Fay Rossano

A couple of months ago, I got a hankering to interview an editor. You know how much I like interviews, and it occurred to me that a lot of writers, even a lot of agented ones, don’t really know what happens after an editor receives a submission. It took me a few weeks to work up the courage to ask Kate to set me up (since editors’ e-mail addresses are virtually impossible to find online, and for good reason), but once I did, she graciously agreed (of course). And Shauna Fay Rossano of G.P. Putnam’s Sons/Penguin Group graciously accepted.

To make things more interesting, I asked my questions in the context of a manuscript she recently acquired, Wesley King’s THE VINDICO (which you may remember from my interview with Brianne Johnson). Ms. Rossano acquired it about two years ago, so we are flashing back a bit, but somehow, I don’t think you’ll mind. Enjoy!

KV: First off, tell us a bit about THE VINDICO. What is it about, and what did you love about it?

SR: THE VINDICO is an action/adventure YA novel about a group of super villains who are starting to feel too old to fight the League of Heroes, so they decide to kidnap five teenagers and teach them to be the next generation of evil. The captured teens are each taught a specific super-power--from super-strength, to telekinesis, to advanced computer hacking skills. While at first the decision to escape at any cost seems like a no-brainer, the teens soon question which side of the war they should fight for. Brianne Johnson, Wesley’s agent, first pitched the project as “X-Men meets the Breakfast Club,” which is an amazingly perfect description that I’ve clung to and used in selling copy as the book has evolved!

What I immediately loved about Wesley’s writing was that it didn’t take itself too seriously--he has a very dark sense of humor that is pitch-perfect for this type of story. While the plot is about super heroes, I felt immediately invested in the story because the characters are so complex--you don’t just have to be a super hero fan to like the book. Also, pacing is extremely important to me (I get bored easily if a book is not moving at a fast-enough clip!), and Wesley’s scenes unfold like they were written for a movie. Fast-paced battle scenes, punchy/authentic teen dialogue, and sarcastic humor all make this such a fun read!

KV: Jumping in to say I finished THE VINDICO a couple of weeks ago, and the cinematic nature of the story immediately struck me. I thought so many of the scenes would work ever better in a summer blockbuster; I wanted to see them on the big screen! But I digress…

How quickly did you read Mr. King’s manuscript? Is that pretty typical of your response times on agented submissions, or do those vary?

SR: Uncharacteristic of my slow-paced reading, I read this manuscript in one sitting! I was home sick from work that day and could not put it down.

This is NOT typical of my response time. While I try my hardest to get to things quickly, I often take at least a month (or two if things are particularly busy) to respond to agented submissions. Unless I really Love Love something--but even then, it’s often at least a week (see: “slow-paced reading” above).

KV: After you finished THE VINDICO, did you pass it on to a colleague for a second read?

SR: Initially, Brianne had sent this project to Putnam's publisher, Jen Besser, who offered to let me read it first. I was intrigued by the premise since I do like comic book adventure movies, etc., but I was also a little skeptical because I am not a comic super-fan. But as I said above, I really connected to the voice and humor in Wesley's writing right away, so after reading, I told Jen how great it was--and after reading herself, she agreed! She knew how much I loved it and suggested I take the project on to edit myself. And I'm so grateful to her for that!

KV: How did you prepare to bring THE VINDICO to your acquisitions meeting/editorial board?

SR: We are pretty lucky at Penguin: each imprint handles its own acquisitions. It varies slightly each time--if a project looks like it will go to auction, we’ll all move very quickly to read it. But if there seems to be more time and a Putnam editor loves a manuscript, she’ll send it out to discuss at our weekly department meeting.

It’s on a much smaller scale than some of the other large companies, I think (there are only six of us, total). I really like our system, and imagine it’s much less intimidating than presenting a project in front of a formal board, but I started my career at Putnam, so I’ve never experienced it any other way!

KV: What happened at that meeting? And what might have happened? What are all the possible outcomes?

SR: Luckily, when other editors in the department read this manuscript, they felt the same way I did, and could see potential in this young writer.

The outcome of these meetings can go several ways, but we always have great discussions. If everyone in the group has problems with a manuscript, the editor will go back to the agent/author for a revision. Or, if the editor was on the fence about it to begin with and everyone else had issues as well, she might decide not to offer on the project at all. We all have slightly different tastes at Putnam, which is great, because we can offer each other valuable feedback--everything from validation of our own love for a manuscript, to valid concerns about something that we might have missed. It’s so important to get other opinions!

KV: How did you present your offer to Mr. King’s agent, and what was that conversation like?

SR: I think this project (and process) was particularly special to both of us, because it was my first acquisition and her first sale! So we were both very excited, enthusiastic, probably nervous (I was, at least!).

I know some editors prefer to offer over the phone, but I actually e-mailed Brianne the offer--I find it easier to have a written trail while negotiating. I think the first time we spoke on the phone was right after we came to an agreement, and we were both so thrilled to get to work together with Wesley. We’re probably his two biggest cheerleaders!

KV: Of course, making the offer wasn’t the end of the road. What sorts of things did you and Mr. King’s agent discuss before everyone signed the contract?

SR: An agent’s not doing their job if they don’t come back with a few retorts/sticking points during the negotiations, but Brianne was lovely to work with. We went back and forth on a few things (like territories, royalty splits, subsidiary rights percentages, etc.), and came to an agreement that worked for both parties.

KV: Any last words of advice or encouragement you’d like to share with us?

SR: Again, every publishing company’s acquisition process is unique, but we are all looking for the same thing: a great manuscript! When an editor loves a manuscript, they become cheerleaders almost immediately--whether it’s telling other editors in their department or a larger acquisition board about their love for something they’ve read. Luckily, every editor is different, so if someone is not interested in your project, that doesn’t mean there is not another editor out there who will love it!

Thank you, Ms. Rossano, for sharing THE VINDICO and your editor’s-eye view with us! And thank you for reminding us how subjective this business is. It’s easy to lose sight of that.

As you may have surmised, THE VINDICO came out a couple of months ago, so definitely give it a look-see. (I think it would especially appeal to any reluctant and/or male readers in your life.) Its sequel, THE FEROS, is due out next summer, so make sure to mark your calendars!

Have a great weekend!

"Give Me This Mountain"

I don't like to interrupt rounds of "An Agent's Inbox," but the blogging bug bit me last night, and I couldn't hold this in. Besides, since so many of you are hanging around to see how the contest plays out, I figure I have a captive audience:) Hope you enjoy!

Not long after Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, he sent a small group of scouts to the land of Canaan to see what they could see. All but two of the scouts returned with the report that the Promised Land was crawling with giants and dotted with mighty fortresses that wouldn't easily fall. Caleb and Joshua's report was quite different--they believed that, God willing, they could conquer the Anakim and claim the land of Canaan for themselves--but the children of Israel sided with the other scouts. They wouldn't risk destruction. They would simply wait.

And wait they most certainly did. The children of Israel ended up wandering in the wilderness for the next forty years, waiting for that faithless generation to grow old and die.

Caleb and Joshua did grow old, but unlike their peers, they didn't die. The Lord preserved them so they could inhabit the land of Canaan and reap the rewards of their faithfulness. And even though Caleb was old, as he stood on the edge of the Promised Land, ready to assist in the final offensive against the mighty Anakim, he said, "Give me this mountain."

Give me this challenge.

Let me prove to myself and to my God how very much I want this.

As I read that story last night, I felt very much like Caleb, but on the edge of Publication. After all, I slugged it out in the query trenches for what felt like forty years. I wrote manuscript after manuscript after manuscript after manuscript. I survived. And yet, as I look back on where I've been, then at how far I have to go, it's just starting to dawn on me that the biggest battles are still ahead.

So I say with Caleb, "Give me this mountain!" If mine is not going to be one of those overnight success stories, so be it. I'll dig in and fight. I will not go gentle into that good night. I'll hang on. I'll climb.

Thoughts for a Monday Morning

Querying and submitting aren't exactly alike--the biggest difference, of course, is that you have an agent in your corner when you're on submission, someone whose expertise you get to borrow, someone who believes in you--but they're enough alike that I've been reflecting on both experiences lately. It's nice not to be on the front lines anymore, but because I'm not, I have a lot more time to ponder. Here are a few of the thoughts I've had:

As it turns out, Twitter was right--the waiting never ends. No matter where we are on the path to publication, we will have to wait (and wait and wait and wait, in all likelihood). I've blogged about waiting before, but it seems to be one of those perpetual issues in this industry:) And the waiting doesn't get easier, which means there's no time like the present to learn how to master it. (I'm still learning, by the way...)

No matter where we are on the path to publication, we're always in the middle. A recent article by Dieter F. Uchtdorf totally changed my perspective on the path to publication. If we're always in the middle, then we'll never be too inexperienced--or even too seasoned--to take the next step. I especially liked how he wrapped things up:

"Being always in the middle means that the game is never over, hope is never lost, defeat is never final. For no matter where we are or what our circumstances, an eternity of beginnings and an eternity of endings stretch out before us."

How's that for boundless optimism? :)

Real success takes time. I heard an awesome gardening analogy yesterday that totally made me think of writing. The speaker mentioned that her dad was an expert gardener and had been from the time that she was a little girl. When she was young, her favorite things to grow were radishes because they matured so quickly. At twenty-one days from planting to harvest, they are the garden-plot equivalent of instant gratification.

Then there's the watermelon. You wait weeks to see the seedlings sprout, then baby the young plants along through the heat of summer, then hope and pray the fruit reaches maturity before the first frost hits. In other words, they're much more labor-intensive and require months and months of effort. But they also taste a heck of a lot better than radishes.

Now I don't know what your watermelon-like success looks like, and I'm certainly not saying that all of us should be shooting for the same thing. What I am saying is that, whatever our watermelon is, that's what we should be shooting for. I mean, who wants to settle for radishes when there are watermelons on the table?

And with that, I think I'll go and find a snack...