77 queries have been sent, 30 have been rejected (26), or withdrawn/closed (4) — 39%
This is the hardest stage. The number of agents to query is getting close to zero, and the rejects continue to mount. Admittedly, my depression and anxiety are working together to make this seem worse than it actually is. I’m not a starving artist, and my financial wherewithal is not contingent on book sells.
What I’ve done is spent a lot of time and energy in planning and writing a novel. First Knight of the Light was a lifetime in development. Reading fantasy novels growing up, then as an adult, made me wonder if I could create a story. I have. The issue is trying to get a literary agent to agree that it could be published.
So my response to my despondency is to write more. I am twelve chapters into the epic fantasy sequel, First Knight of the Light: Migration. I am three chapters into a contemporary, upmarket fiction story Bad Day at Bear Wallow, a story ripped out of the headlines featuring school safety; because, write what you know.
It may be that I shuffle off this mortal coil, leaving my writings behind, and on of my grandkids comes across it, reads it, and it inspires them to be a writer. Or maybe they just read it and enjoy it. Or maybe none of that happens, and it doesn’t matter, because I will be dead.
Either way, I’m going to write. I spent a lifetime not doing it, and I’m happier when I write, so…
Keep reading for updates, comment your thoughts below.
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