Rejected by Publishers Weekly! Hooray!

Or: How to properly read a rejection letter.

Dear Ginny,

Thanks for submitting your BookLife project (Zinovy's Journey) to be considered for a Publishers Weekly review. Despite the strength of your project, our editors have decided not to send it out for review.

We hope you won't be discouraged by this, and that you'll continue to take advantage of BookLife's articles, how-tos and self-evaluations to help make your project a success. We also hope you'll submit future projects for Publishers Weekly review consideration as well.

Sincerely,

BookLife

I love this letter!  I'm delighted with it!  Encouraged, even.

Here are three reasons:

1.  I got a response! 

Booklife is the Indie publishing review branch of PublishersWeekly, so it's a big thing that I've gotten any kind of attention from them at all. According to their website, they receive over a thousand books a month for review. Wow!  That's a lot.  Yet they've responded to this one.

Oh, all right, they probably respond to them all.  They pay somebody to send these e-mails.  But still, they've written to me, and they've even called me by my first name.  How sweet is that?  It's almost like we're friends!

2.  I got a compliment! 

"Despite the strength of your project. . ." 

What a great beginning for a rejection!  My project is strong. I mean, I knew that, right?  But it's good to have my expert opinion affirmed, by Publishers Weekly, no less. 

They noticed.  They took the trouble to point out to me that they noticed. They said something good about "the project."

3.  I got encouragement!

"We hope you won't be discouraged by this," they say.  They want me to "continue to take advantage of BookLife's articles, how-tos and self-evaluations. . ."

Of course, they want my "business." They don't want me to go away mad. But I can't help but read a bit of regret in this sentence. In fact, with very little imagination, I can convince myself that the person who rejected my manuscript was wishing they didn't have to. 

And, even more encouraging, they "hope [I'll] submit future projects for Publishers Weekly review consideration as well."  How about that! They're asking me to add more clutter to their pile of submissions.  As if 1000 is not enough for one month!

No matter that I don't have any more projects to submit. This is it. This is the one I have to promote for now, and though Publishers Weekly won't be reviewing it, others will.  Others have, in fact, reviewed this "project." Readers have said good things about the story, and readers are, after all, my target market.

So how do I look at this rejection letter?  With great optimism.  Zinovy's Journey may not be at the top of Publishers Weekly's list, but that doesn't mean it's not on other lists.  As long as the story is on someone's reading list, I'm satisfied. 

There's more than one way to read a rejection letter.

Just Another Whiny Indie Pub Rant

It appears that the American Christian Fiction Writer's Association is jumping on the bandwagon. 

The Indie Author bandwagon, that is.

It's not surprising.  One by one,  industry moguls are moving over to the other side of the Indie publishing debate.  Self-publishing has come of age.  

One of the latest big shifts came when Jerry Jenkins, best-selling author, with Tim LaHaye, of the Left Behind Series finally "saw the light."  

Some months ago, on Facebook, I jokingly suggested to him that he review my indie-published novel in exchange for the pre-publication review I gave one of his new police thriller manuscripts.  He wrote back with a "no" to the review request (surprise, surprise), a passionate diatribe in support of traditional publishing, and a categorical relegation of all indie published books to the file 13 slush pile.  

"If your book is really good," he said, "you should find a traditional publisher."

I thanked him for his advice.  I didn't bother telling him I was foot-sore from pounding the pavement to the doors of traditional publishers, and on crutches from getting that same foot smashed by those doors, which always slammed halfway through the first sentence of my elevator pitch.  

Then, lo and behold, in March, 2013, we get a news flash.  Jerry Jenkins has started his own self publishing company.  He actually said, on Facebook, "I saw the light."  Now he's charging big bucks to help independently published authors "prove their worthiness in the market."

I wish I could say he saw the light because he saw my manuscript.  Alas, he hasn't read it yet, and I can't afford the fee he would charge me to do so. But his conversion experience is indicative of where the industry is going, and has been going for the last several years.  

So back to the ACFW.  Below are excerpts from an e-mail they sent me this morning in response to my recent cancelation of my membership in their organization.  If you're a Christian Indie author you might be interested.
_____________________________________________
Dear Ginny,

It’s great to connect with you again through email. Whether your affiliation with ACFW was long-term or short-term, please know you have been missed.

Life sometimes takes us in different directions than we expect, or even different from what we want. That may have happened to you. But sometimes it brings us back full circle. If you’re still interested in writing Christian fiction, consider joining ACFW again. ACFW continues to offer quality skill training for novelists, as well as education in the industry.

We wanted to make you aware of some recent and upcoming changes in ACFW that are tailored to meet a wider range of needs.

When ACFW first began, the organization focused solely on helping authors improve their craft with the goal of signing with a traditional publisher. Times have certainly changed! Many authors are now either publishing independently or are “hybrid” authors—involved in both independent and traditional publishing. The ACFW Executive Board agreed ACFW needs to be an organization that helps all novelists, regardless of which path they choose.

In full recognition of changes within the industry, independently published books will be allowed entry into the Carol Awards beginning in 2015.
_____________________________________________
This is a good first step.  It might be useful to some Indie authors. But it's only encouraging if you've already done, by yourself, the marketing work a traditional publisher would normally help you do.  

Read on. 
_____________________________________________
In fairness, independently published authors must also meet a certain standard to enter the Carols: a “Qualified Independent Author” status. The QIA status will require the author to show proof of a minimum of $4000 earnings within a consecutive 12-month period on one independently published Christian novel. Once the status is reached, it is permanent.

These requirements are in keeping with standards currently used within the independent publishing industry. And they are designed to level the playing field between traditionally published authors, whose path includes successfully navigating through professional channels, and independently published authors who successfully navigate the challenges of publishing on their own.

The same qualifications for the Carol Awards will apply for those wanting to list their novels on Fiction Finder: traditionally published books must be released by an ACFW recognized publisher, and independently published books must be from an author who has achieved the Qualified Independent Author status.
_____________________________________________
I'm not complaining about these stipulations.  There's still a need to screen self-published books and the ACFW needs such guidelines to maintain professional standards. If they didn't they'd be in danger of becoming bedfellows of vanity presses.  

But it's still hard for those of us who have well written books and don't know how to get them noticed in the marketplace.  It's not our manuscripts that are being screened in this case, it's our marketing success level.  

And that's fair too.  We can't expect anyone to lift us out of the promotion difficulties every author, and publisher--traditional or indie--has to deal with.  And I'm not knocking the ACFW either.  It's a great resource and support for any Christian writer, as Robin points out.   

_____________________________________________
ACFW is the place to be if you’re writing Christian fiction. Veteran writers and relative newcomers are improving their craft, understanding the needs of the market, and going on to publication and award honors.

We’d love to have you rejoin the circle and help form part of this vital community focused on fiction.

Robin Miller
ACFW Executive Director 
_____________________________________________

Next post I'll give my reply to Robin's invitation, explaining in greater detail some of the difficulties Christian indie authors face, and talking about my experiences with editors at ACFW conferences.

What Every Author Should Know About Publishing Options

Here's yet another reason to link up with Randy Ingermanson.

In his article, The Death of Self-Publishing, he's summarized all publishing options and defined publishing terms better than I've seen anywhere else.

This article contains essential information for any author thinking about publishing a book, for the first time, or the next.

No, I'm not fixated on this guy.  Although I am currently in the process of reading his latest release, Transgression.  It's a procrastination ploy. I know I should be writing instead of reading.

Does anyone else ever lose writing momentum so badly that it feels like slogging through quicksand when you try to get back on the writing path?

For months?

Sigh.