RT Revisited

A year ago, something amazing happened. It started with this, then this, and finally this. A lot has happened since I attended the Romance Times Booklovers Convention in May 2013. And by a lot, I mean A LOT!

Last year, I thought I was ready to publish Hate Jacket. I thought it was THE ONE. The book that would get me on the map so to speak. I mean, it came in as a runner up in the RT Conventions Writer Idol competition. It had even gotten requests from some of the judges.

Then I sent it to Nicole.

And waited.

And waited.

There's a lot of waiting in publishing. Not because they are ignoring you, but I've found out over the course of a year that agents can get an INSANE amount of emails every day. Most of which are not even fit for human consumption.

But I digress.

Anyway, I finally received my first email from Nicole. We chatted back and forth and talked about how we each saw this mentorship working. Once we were both comfortable with how it works, she she sent me an email with her initial critique of my precious baby.

The gist of the email was she loved my writing, but I had no plot. What? How can I have no plot? I got from the beginning to the end and I don't have a plot. What?

Then I read some more of her email and she explained what she meant. Then she gave me "homework". I then did what any author in their right mind (I use the term "right" loosely) and sent it to my CP and a couple other people.

They all agreed, I didn't have a plot. So I did smashed my face into the wall a few times and did what Nicole suggested and tore my story apart.

And this happened.

I have spent since then revising and revising. I'm on my 7th major revision and I'm still working on it. I did take a break in November to start another story, but that's not important.

Anyway, Nicole has been an invaluable resource for me in many ways. Some of which I can't talk about here because it involves my penname. But needless to say, my life changed a year ago. I know I still have a lot to learn, but I owe so much to Nicole, and Louise Fury for everything they've done for me. For that I am eternally grateful.

It is unfortunate that I can't attend RT this year. Not only is it in New Orleans, but I won't be able to see all the amazing people I met last year. Not to mention giving both Nicole and Louise a huge hug for everything.

There is a bright spot. This happened yesterday.

@M_A_Patterson Send a close-up of ur face! We'll mount it on a Popsicle stick. INSTA-PHOTOBOMB! @ericamchapman @Sarah_Nicolas @brendadrake
— Cecily White (@CecilyWhite) May 12, 2014

Anyway, if you happen upon Cecily and she is indeed carrying my face on a Popsicle stick, stop and give her a hug from me and take a picture. You can tweet me, or drop it on my FB page. I'll have to set up a way for you to email me. If I figure that out, I will edit this post.

'Till Next Time

RT Recap Pt. 2: American Writer Idol Competition

Originally this was going to be a guest post, but the universe conspired against me and the hosting blog, so it is here. I'm disappointed, but it may happen another time...universe willing.

I've been hinting and teasing that something awesome happened. Now that I have a moment, I'll tell you about it.

For those of you following my escapades, I attended the 2013 RT Convention and got to hang with Louis Fury for part of it. I also mentioned that I got to read entries at a competition. The competition in question was the American Idol Writing Competition. It started Thursday and ended on Friday.

But it gets better.

I was also an entrant. Now before you freak out. None of the slush-pile readers, nor the judges, knew anybody's name. Also, I wasn't a slush-pile reader. I read at the finals on Friday, out loud, to a room full of hopeful authors and a panel of judges.

To say it was an amazing experience is putting it lightly.

Let's rewind to Thursday. Thursday was the announcement of the twenty finalists (out of 80 entries). I assumed I didn't have a prayer. I was at a writing convention and I submitted the beginning of my novel. And there were 80 other people in the competition. Some of them were self-pubbed. Still, I sate with a couple good friends and tried not to have a heart attack as they read Title and Genre. (no author names...anonymous...remember?) of each of the 20 finalists. They tried to represent each genre present. YA, MG, Historical, Erotica, etc. Each one got a number. Then it happened.

"Hate Jacket, YA4"

I was stunned. Seriously. Stunned. I'd entered competitions before and never been selected. I couldn't believe it.

I was all

  

I went home that night, printed off ten copies of my novel to be read live at the finals. I tried to sleep. It didn't happen. The day was a blur. I tried to distract myself with various activities. I attended an award ceremony and ran into Gretchen McNeil while wearing my 3:59 t-shirt.

I attended a panel on fighting techniques for heroines, taught by a 4th degree black belt and her husband (also a 4th degree black belt). It was awesome. I attended Pitch-a-palooza and pitched (or attempted to pitch) to a couple people. I also cheered on a couple of my friends.

Anyway...Friday...5 pm. We all gather in a room. At the front we had the judges:
Alicia Condon, Kensington
Louise Fury, L. Perkins Agency
Sue Grimshaw, Ballantine/Loveswept
Leah Hultenschmidt, Sourcebooks
Liz Pelletier, Entangled
Lori Perkins, Riverdale Ave Books
Nicole Resciniti, The Seymour Agency
Whitney Ross, Tor
Tessa Woodward, Avon

The entries were read out loud (by me and others) one at a time and the judges commented verbally and scored each one. Sometimes one of the panelists would speak up and say "I want this".

There were some seriously awesome entries. I knew I didn't have a prayer of winning. I just hopped that one of the editors would want to read it. It took longer than anyone thought, reading all 20 entries, but eventually it would get done.

When mine was read (not by me, thankfully). Two of the judges surprised me by saying, "I want this." <insert Joey shocked face>

We took a short break and the scores were tallied...

I didn't win. That honor goes to a story titled "What the Fae". I wasn't upset. It was an awesome story. The judges and spectators loved it. Keep your eye out because that book will get published. I can feel it.

However, even though I didn't win, I did come in as a runner up (and yes, I was wearing my 3:59 t-shirt in the photos. If I ever get them, I'll post them).

So, here is what I "won". I won a mentorship with one of the amazing agents there (the winner got a mentorship with both!). I also walked away with three requests for my novel. I haven't sent it too the requesting editors yet because my mentor now has Hate Jacket and will hopefully love it as much as my betas and my CP have. And maybe, just maybe, I'll get published. We'll see. I'm in an amazing place right now and I couldn't be happier coming in as runner-up.

I'd also like to make a shout-out to my friend Karen Bynum. Her novel "Becoming" came in as the other runner-up. She got several requests and the other agent. There was another winner, but I can't remember the title. Hell, I can barely remember the evening.

So thank you to Louise and Nicole for setting up this wonderful opportunity and thank you to the judges who took time out of their schedule to sit and listen and critique.

'Till Next Time

RT Recap Pt. 1: Hanging with Louise Fury

The RT Convention was such an amazing, and overwhelming experience, that I am going to have to break it down into smaller chunks. So here is the first part (of several).

*****

Louise Fury, Super-powered agent of awesome

I was lucky enough to gain Minion status for a couple days at RT with the amazing Louise Fury. It was an opportunity of a lifetime and I was glad to offer whatever services she required. If you ever get a chance to hang out with an agent of her caliber, do it.

Anyway, I hung out with her, off and on, for three days. Not only did I get to listen to pitches, I also got to see the inner workings of how an agent navigates through a convention the size of RT. I also helped her print a spreadsheet, carry things to her room, and even bring some mini-cupcakes to a contest on Friday. I also got to read, out loud, some of the entries in said contest but that is another post.

Simply put, my time with Louise was fascinating and educational.

I spent a couple hours with her listening to pitches. I don't think she heard a pitch she didn't like. Some got full requests, the others were partials. She was honest with the authors about her process and how she would progress in the off chance they were selected.

Here are some of the things I learned:

1. Don't try to tell the agent what you think they want to hear. Unless they are a greenhorn, they have seen and heard it all. Tell them about your story and ask questions.
2. Don't bring full color mock ups of what you think the cover should look like. This won't help and to be honest, I was slightly put off by it when it happened. The pitch is to pitch your novel not to show off your cover creation skills.
3. If an agent asks why you fired your previous agent, be upfront. Tell them why. This isn't a job interview where you have to pretend that the other agent did a good job if they didn't.
4. Avoid 4 different first person POVs in a novel. It's going to be a hard sell and may not work....unless you are amazing.
5. Even if you have pitched the agent and they want revisions, don't hesitate to make contact at a convention and talk to them. Face time is so important.
6. In any romance, you should have at least three tropes...TV Tropes has an immense listing of them for all genres. Mix and match as you see fit. A unique twist on a classic idea will give an agent chills (and you a full request)...I saw it happen. Also, I want to read that novel if it is any good....Louise knows which one I'm talking about.

I'm sure there are other things I've learned, but at the moment, I feel like this:

 

I will say that Louise is amazing. If you end up as her client, you will be in very capable hands (no I'm not sucking up!). She knows a LOT about publishing and how it all works. She will also do her best to make sure you get the best representation possible. She also talks faster than I do sometimes, and has the most lovely South African accent I have ever heard.

Thank you, Louise for giving me the opportunity to learn from you. You have given me more than I can ever repay you.

'Till next time.