Good Thoughts, Y'All

Under the advice of The Soul of Patience (a screenwriter who wrote a major feature film recently and is extremely active in the industry, and who has been interested in developing a movie from the book), I have begun to query agents again this week. We were originally going to try to use his agent, who works mainly with screenplays, and also on a small scale with books, but we don't feel at this point that the book might be up his alley simply in the capacity of a literary agent. Film rights and acquisitions are a different thing entirely; if the book does well, I am positive we can go back and try to woo the Soul's agent on the film level. If nothing else, I got from the Soul of Patience the incentive to create a polished, finished, and revised manuscript and--without bragging, because I put a lot of effort into it and wrote it just a day or two after my sister died--a really dynamite query. My first query was marginal at best and the Soul helped direct me to write a better one--after all, he has to boil down his film ideas into one freaking line, so he was a great help. I was not disheartened in the least about the redirection, because it wasn't a "no," just "what can be done now?"

I have not queried agents for this book since about 2005/2006, and only queried four or five at that. I have happily found that email queries make the process so much more streamlined, though the rejections come quicker--but also the good stuff. A major New York agent--and I mean major, with one of the top literary agencies in the country--asked for the entire manuscript, not even a partial, and told me to contact her immediately "before signing with anyone else." Now, I know that is the business end of things, but it was still a good thing to hear, like finding a cactus flower in the middle of the Mojave. Okay, maybe not THAT dramatic--like the times Mr. Strega brings me flowers unexpectedly, not knowing I've had a challenging day.

BTW, I nearly deleted her initial reply without reading it simply because a few rejections had come my way that day, and it seemed like that particular agency was very much out of my reach--so don't do dumb things like I almost did! I apparently sent to the right person, though, one who has a history of wanting to find new writers. It's hard to submit a memoir in a lousy economy, knowing that houses are being more than selective right now, but I have lots of hope. That I have in abundance!

It may be another rejection, ultimately, but there are really no rejections and no failures, just stepping stones and detours--I always have a conviction that if you really are meant to have something, it does happen. Plus, I do find it astounding that little old me got something good, even if it turns out to be only an encouraging nod. I think encouragement is the lifeblood of being a writer and has to be cherished deeply every time it comes.

Good thoughts, y'all. It means a lot. I will let you know how this process goes.