My New Project And a Sneak Preview

Over the summer, I started writing a book that had been in my head for a while. Those of you who read the chapters I uploaded from my novel "Royal", will probalby be suprised to see how different this new novel is. However, I must admit....I am enjoying this book much more. It has so much more of me in it. From the characters to the story, I can fully relate. The protoganist from "Royal" was so wholly unlike me, that I had to do everything I could to put myself in her shoes and gain some insight from her perspective.

I've debated over the popular saying "write what you know", but it is only recently that I have discovered merit in that advice. Nevertheless, I still don't consider that saying to be particularly poignant or necessary yet by starting this new book, I can see what all the fuss in about.

In this project it's easy to slip into the world I've created because I feel as if I know it. No more am I hiding behind characters who are more perfect that I could ever dream of being. I'm writing about things that I know, and emotions I've felt. That being said, I wanted to give ya'll a heads up because tomorrow I will upload the first chapter of "A Season of Summerton"!

Just a quick preview: It's a romantic comedy set in the regency era. You could think Pride and Prejudice, althought it's more light-hearted than that. Perhaps more like Emma by Jane Austen. I hope those of you who stick around will enjoy reading it just as much as I've enjoyed wrting it.

Until tomorrow!

How to Deal With Rejection

I have a secret to tell you.

Today, I received my first, non-form rejection. Or at least, the first non-form rejection concerning my entire manuscript, rather than just a query letter. Nine weeks ago, the agent I contacted requested that I send the whole manuscript, which, I did. As stated, I patiently waited nine weeks, or mostly patiently, and today, I recieved this in my email inbox.

Dear Karoline,

Thank you for sending along ROYAL, which Susan and I enjoyed reading this past weekend. You are a talented writer and the world that you have imagined is rich and full of dynamic circumstances and settings. That being said, we felt that the narrative was too scattered in its constant jumping from character to character – so much so that the characters felt thin and underdeveloped. Given these concerns, we are unable to offer you representation at this time. We’re sorry not to have had a more positive response, but another agent may well feel differently. Thank you for thinking of Writers House; we wish you all the best of luck with this project.

Best,

Stacy

Stacy Testa

Assistant to Susan Ginsburg


There are a lot of reasons I could weep and rejoice because of this reply. Which brings me to my first point,

#1: Don't Dismiss the Praise: Despite the fact that the overall message of this email was to say that they didn't think I was quite up to par, they told me I was talented. A bona-fide New York Agent who has obtained publishers for such iconic writers as Alice Walker, told me I was talented. And not only that, she complimented my story itself. I think that's pretty neat.

#2: Don't ignore the advice: You know that part where she said that my characters seemed scattered? Yeah, my brother who is neither a reader nor a writer, told me the same thing a few days ago. Boy, won't he be happy when I tell him why they rejected me. Bunny trails aside, they have given me the gift of profesional critcisim which you as a writer know is difficult to obtain. All the time while writing "Royal" I sensed that something was lacking, but I chose to settle for imperfection. And just maybe, they have given me the key to making my good story great! Instead of taking offense to these kinds of critiques, apply them. 

#3: Move On: This may be my most important tid bit of advice for you concerning this topic. Although I am an optimistic person, I did feel a tiny twinge of hurt when receiving that letter. That kind of feeling isn't bad however, unless you allow it to dictate how/when you continue with your writing. I mean, look at you! You're young and you have the whole world at your feet. Except if you're seventy years old. You might not want to get too fired up, but from what I understand, the majority of my audience are teens like me. Heck, I don't even have my driver's liscense yet! I think that testifies to the fact that just because somebody didn't agree to represent my book, it doesn't make me a failure. We are so young! There is a plethora of material and experience ahead of us! 

Don't let one little rejection bog you down. If you look at it with the right attitude, sometimes this message is so promising you feel better for it! Keep writing my friends, no matter what comes in your way.

Have you ever been rejected? Did these tips help you? Let me know in the comments!

Finding Writing Material In the Everyday

Sometimes our day to day lives seem mundane. Repitious activites like school can send us barrelling into a state of monotony. Things such as friends and the latest movies can sometimes add a little spice to life, but even those kinds of activities will seem unextroidinary. How then can we writers, humans who produce from our romantic intellect, find something story-worthy in our own lives?

I've probably said this before but even so, I'll say it again: you're life is interesting, you just might not realize it. For most of my growing up years I ignored the "scope for imagination" avaliable around me. I've lived in Texas all my life and to me, the long summer months, southern accents and ludicrous country activites appeared dull. Instead I pined for England, or any other British nation which was surely more eventful than any location I had ever known! Recently, however, I have come to appreciate my surroundings and all that it has to offer.

 Let me paint you a little picture.

Last week I was gathered with my extended family to celebrate a 40th wedding anniversary. Cousins, aunts and uncles swarmed in the backyard and gravitated towards the barbecue grill. The sound of sizzling meat and buzzing cicadas filled the wide open landscape. Men wearing cowboy hats and big buckle belts walked with a confident swank in their broken-in boots. Girls young and old chattered and laughed with their sweet southern accents, more colorful than the trees transitioning into fall. A wind promsing colder weather swept through the flat lands and swelled into our picnic. Boys with beards and baseball caps related their thrilling adventures one after the other, almost like a contest, while the girls watched with delighted interest. When looking for a refreshment, I smiled over the fact that the only drink avaliable was sweet iced tea: the staple of the south. Even though I had experienced such occasions before, this time, there was merit in it. Though my travels have been limited I have yet to find more charm and warmth than in the community of the south where our fish stories are the best, our barbecue the finest and our tea the sweetest.

See what I mean? Similar to boredom, romance is not something that relies on the where or the how, it all depends on the who. Your point of view is the key to finding the extroidinary in the oridnary. And as a sweet little bonus, that sort of outlook will make life in general more exciting, even if you don't end up writing about it.

Written by: Karoline Kingley

Have you ever stopped to appreciate the things you normally take for granted? Let me know whether you have written about experience from your life in the comments!
 

How to Excite Yourself About Writing

Have you ever been bored by your own writing? Have you ever

thought about your book, only to feel dread and a want to procrastinate?

Here’s the first thing to do when you meet this predicament: Don’t

panic.

This is normal. In fact, it’s expected. Most writers start to hate their

book by the time they reach the middle, around that 30,000-word mark.

Usually when you begin a book (though not always) you know what’s going

to happen at the beginning, and what’s going to happen at the end. With the

middle, most writers wing it.

This isn’t a bad thing. In fact, this isn’t a good thing, either. It just is.

Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to excite yourself about your

writing again. Here are three options.

1. Change your font.

This is simple, easy, and fun. Anyone would get sick of Times New

Roman after 20,000 words. It’s boring, repetitive, and—well, there’s no

other word for it—blah. Change up your font every couple chapters. Try the

cutesy Kristen ITC or the romantic Blackadder ITC. Or maybe you can go

for something fun, like Jokerman. There are thousands of fonts out there

waiting to be discovered. So go out there and discover them!

2. Make your letters HUGE.

This tricks your brain into thinking you’re making the triple the

amount of progress you’re really making. If you’re using size 12, step it up

to size eighteen. You’d be surprise at the difference you’ll make. (But do not

check your word count. That’ll just set you way back. I mean it. Don’t do

3. Write for You.

Who did you start writing for at the very beginning? I’ll sure as heck

bet that it wasn’t your mom, or your dad, or your little sister, and it definitely

wasn’t for that guy in Ohio that’s been commenting on your blog for a while

now.

A lot of writers lose sight of what really matters. That writing makes

you happy. Why else would you be doing it? If you’re in it for the money, I

hate to break it to you, but there are so many better ways to do it.

Don’t write what you think other people will like. Write what you

like. And if you’re passionate enough about it, other people will like it, too. I

promise.

What are your tricks to falling back in love with your writing? I’d

love to hear them! :D

This post was written by Kate. Be sure to check out her blog here.