L.E. Fitzpatrick's Blog, page 9

Rejection Etiquette

Before I embarked on self-publishing I began the lengthily task of appealing on bleeding knee to every publishing house worldwide that would be gracious enough to read my manuscript. This came after two years of writing and perfecting, spilling blood, sweat and tears into my laptop - buying a new laptop after spilling blood, sweat and tears onto the first one and then I was ready. That was last year, February to be exact.

[image error] To start with you have to follow each publishing houses' not necessarily generic guidelines to formatting and etiquette. So I studied each company's bible rules and regulations, redesigned my manuscript accordingly, sourced the companies that dealt in my genre, or may have an interest in my work and off the letters went. Synopsis, samples, emails and bribes all waiting for the plucky publishing house to snap me up.

I know, like any realist in this business, the chances of an acceptance letter would be as likely as the Greek economy making a spontaneous comeback next week. Still I waited, because good things are then obliged to come.

In the months that followed I received an immediate rejection because my religious formatting was not up to scratch, probably because I had mixed up my literary deities. Then there was nothing, just tumble weed and the wind banging the shutters against the window pane. So I did it myself and here I am 85 books sold in less than 6 months, good reviews and another book in the pipeline. I even afforded a little smile.

Then I opened my inbox today and found a rejection email from a publishing house. Smile fading, cue incredible Hulk face. I'm not angry because I was rejected, in fact the publishing house was a long shot (they published Welsh authors rather than fantasy) and I would have been surprised to receive anything more. No what annoyed me was the fact that I wrote to them, harnessing the power of the Royal Mail service and all I got in return was a poxy email at 5.00 pm (just before closing) telling me: "we're sorry, we're not interested in your work. If you would like your manuscript returned please send a SAE to..."

Now I know this is going to sound like sour grapes but I really feel that a two sentence email after nine months is not good enough from a reputable publishing house, not when they specify we write to them by post. There is no notable feedback to explain their decision, I mean I am not expecting a chapter and verse of why they're not interested but a simple: It's not the type of thing we publish, or: Your work is crap, delete it and give your hard drive room to breathe, would at least provide some clarity.

It annoys me that as writers we do the best that we can. We put everything into our work and it's not an easy decision to put ourselves out there. Taking the plunge and deciding to publish is probably the scariest thing we will ever do and it's about time publishing houses remove the sticks from their backsides and at least acknowledge the effort we have put in, by providing us with a proper letter of rejection where the respondent has spent at least a few minutes crafting a reply, rather than copying and pasting their generic email. One of us will make them a fortune, isn't it about time they start appreciating us as the heart of their business.

Yes this is a rant about etiquette. I appreciate my book is not going to be easy to sell (I should know I'm trying to sell it), I also appreciate in this current climate it's not worth publishing companies taking unnecessary risks on unsolicited manuscripts unless they have confidence in them, but at least, as professionals in the literary business, can we still uphold the traditions of our trade, show a little respect for the effort we as writers, successful or not, have put in and respond with a bit more consideration when you bother to respond at all.

Okay now I'm feeling calmer. I still have a dozen or so responses I am waiting for and like Godot I suspect I'll be waiting a while, maybe forever. Perhaps I will sell my first million before I get a response. And perhaps I will sell another million before I reply, by letter of course, I wouldn't want to be a total hypocrite. Above is another picture from Huwzo, another writer waiting for a response.

This is the End

[image error] It's 23.39, which means I have twenty minutes before I turn into a pumpkin. Eyelids are getting heavy and I've had to stop the latest book before I start writing gibberish or fall asleep with my finger on the Z key again. But my latest plot has got me thinking and that spells a sleepless night if I don't divulge a little.

My new book is about the future, not so much flying cars but continued recession and civil unrest (I may throw in a wizard I haven't decided yet). The back drop to the plot is significant only in so far as it encumbers a current feeling which I think we can all relate to. In fact when I wrote this book I have side stepped my usual comfort zone of general fantasy and have tried my hand at something grittier and more realistic. This manoeuvre left me wondering whether I was dancing around genres a little too freely for someone who is barely established in one category, but then it occurred to me, I don't write fantasy stories, I write apocalyptic stories.

If I was a bearded man with crazy eyes I would be marching up and down some high street with a board hung round my neck preaching Armageddon. And why is this my focus? Why do I have at least eighteen contingency plans for when the end finally comes? I honestly don't know, but as I look at the world around me at the moment I can't help but feel, in the pit of my stomach, that something is wrong and something has to change if we're to make it unscathed.

When you think about it we're facing so many threats to our existence our chances of not facing certain doom are probably not worth betting on. Global warming, war, famine, poverty, super volcanoes, asteroids and zombie plagues are all waiting on the touch line screaming "pick me, pick me." The worst cause of all though, the one that captains the team is man itself. Our dominant species rules Earth like mold conquers a bathroom. We are there festering and unwelcome, ruining the white grouting and threatening the rubber duck. We are Armageddon.

In Dark Waters the end of the world comes in a zombie plague but this is instigated by one insane despot. The back drop to the story is the unravelling of existence and my characters battle to stop the end and then to survive it. Whereas in my WIP the end has already happened and we are just trawling through a Tolkein prologue. My characters are survivors, hardened yet still unmistakably human and flawed.

So do I really think our days are numbered and John Cusack is going to take the lead in some implausible, pointless finale? Oh god I seriously hope not, but I think we can all feel an atmospheric change around us. Maybe it's just global warming or maybe it's the fact that we're finally waking up and realising our mistakes. This shift in barometric pressure as far as I am concerned is only an inspirational fuel to my writing, but when I look at the world around me and see men and women rising against the current climate I think, perhaps I've only just scratched the surface.

(Psst - given that "this is the end" (The Doors) you can download Dark Waters for free from Smashwords using this code AX29U)

I Swear to Tell The Truth

I read a label on a CD the other day which warned me the lyrics contained inappropriate and possibly offensive language. I was born in Hull East Yorkshire (which if you're looking on a map is a bit like a coldsore on top of the Humber Estuary) where the language is as rough as the cold Northern lifestyle. F**k is an adverb, S**t a description of the weather and C**t refers to the common man, friend or foe. If I go back to Hull to see old family friends it's not uncommon to hear: "Now then you f**king c**t, how are you?"

I now live in Wales and they don't place the same liberalism on curse words. Perhaps it's Wales' poetic roots, but use of the C bomb in particular leads to formal complaints and written warnings. So this was a habit I had to get rid of unless I wanted to be run out of the country by herds of angry sheep. To a certain extent I now speak like a naive nun in public, polish my halo and never giggle at the word willies. [Stifle smirk].


In my novel Dark Waters I use the F word 67 times, the C word 4 times and the S word (which lets face it should be a staple in every English lesson by now) 26 times. Wow, that's a lot of cussing, I might have to purchase electronic stickers to warn potential readers! I appreciate this may offend some of you, but what can I say my characters are ruthless, cutthroat pirates; they're not exactly going to exchange pleasantries over a cup of tea and bourbon biscuit.

Context as always can make even the most heinous statements appropriate and I promise each and everyone of my swear words is carefully selected to explore character development, emphasise the rough nature of pirate life and engage the reader in a realistic environment [like bollocks it is]... So lets put this in context 180,000 words and I mention "rum" 94 times - yo ho ho - it's no wonder the characters swear like a f**king s**tload of Yorkshire C**ts is it.

Indie Reviews

There is lots of undiscovered indie talent out there and as self-publishing grows more popular so too will the stream of authors desperate to be recognised for their work. It's so hard to be found let alone successful in the indie market and I know myself we have to rely on the kindness of others to give us a leg up and achieve our dreams. The key to success is getting your book out there, which if you've read any of my other posts is about as easy as trying to thread a needle on a roller coaster.

It got me thinking that I have an hour for my lunch where I usually sit at my desk and catch up on the news, getting angry at the world. What if, instead, I spent that time reading? So I did this last month and Captain Huwzo lent a hand. We each took an indie book that caught our eye and have read and reviewed it on my new Reviews page.

Reviewing was a lot more fun than I thought it would be and it is also teaching me to criticise my own writing and products. As I dissected Joseph Kaye's work I started thinking about my own and what I could improve, hence the new cover, which is still a work in progress, but a step in the right direction.

When you're self-publishing you're basically taking trial and error steps each day, but the greatest thing about the adventure is the people you meet in the process. Advice is always on hand and you can discover some really talented people. So put your Indianna Jones' hat on, check out my Reviews page and discover some secret treasures.

P.S. Do you like the new blog look?

Halloween Horrors Volume II

One of the most surprising discoveries I have made whilst embarking on my self-publishing fiasco is the change from grooming a solitary hobby into a community reality. When I write I spend a lot of time in my head mulling over plots, planning and eventually putting things down. At the moment I am "in the zone" and all I can think about is my current story. This is me at my happiest, but it does mean I turn down nights out with friends for midnight sessions at my computer.

Loneliness is never an issue when you're enjoying yourself, but when you're struggling to publish or even work through a plot you suddenly find ten years have passed you by and nobody's around anymore. Self-publishing can, if you're not careful, reinforce the "you're on your own kid" complex. Think about it, how many indie authors are there in the world, watching their Amazon sales teeter on increasing, ignoring texts from their friends, because those sales numbers might change at any minute.


Bring on the forums. There are so many out there and usually they are supportive rather than filled with 40 year old single men banging on about conspiracy theories. I think for some of us there is a stigma revolved around establishing internet relationships, but in the case of meeting and discussing with other indie authors I think forums provide a vital link to a community of blind creatives stumbling up the publishing ladder. I have had so much good advice from forums and discussions with other authors who know exactly what I am going through, or are a page ahead or behind me and can share experiences.
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I really think if you're not doing it already establish yourself in a community. There are so many out there, find one for you and speak to people who only want to talk about writing (as opposed to your other friends who want to discuss themselves and the weather - how dare they!).


The proof forums are good... Last week I mentioned a Halloween Compilation of short stories from Indie Authors and there must be an echo in this freezing office of mine because I am mentioning it again! This was born out of a post in KUF (Kindle Users Forum) by the Administrator Lou who wanted to put a Halloween collection together. After lots of hard work (on Lou's part) it is finished and is now being offered for free from KUF (which is a great forum sight if you haven't already joined). This is getting my work out to a huge expanse of people who might not necessarily come my way and I am very please to be part of it.

Anyway allow me to present to you Halloween Horrors Volume II. An anthology of short stories including my very own Diablo Jack and the Prince of Darkness and The Woods, together with eleven other great spooky stories from indie authors. Did I mention it was free?


http://www.kuforum.co.uk/kindleusersforum/thread-4852-post-35036.html

Enjoy

Yo Ho Ho, Avast and Ahoy!

Arrhhh it be national speaks like a pirate day me hearties, shiver me timbers and rattle me bones and here I be celebrating all tyrannies across the seven seas.

Ode Ye Pyrates Be Warned

Tis a day to remember the fallen brethren,
Hats off to Bartholomew Roberts, got it in the neck and drank only tea.

And to Teach, let us nay forget his black cruelty and his Revenge's demise to the sea.
A mind if you will for old Henry Morgan, a privateer but blaggard still,
Pickled in rum and as dead as they come - a toast for these men if you will.


Drink to the noose, and wenches and gold,
Drink for the wretches of sea,
Yo ho ye dogs, a pox on those,
Who make to steal our liberty.
Drink for England, Bonny and Read,
Drink for Kidd and Low,
Drink for the Rum, toast the cannon,
Drink up me hearties yo ho.


With it being national speak like a pirate day, I will be drinking nothing but rum, wearing my pirate boots and coat - it may look a bit strange in my office but I'm sure the sword will come in handy. I love pirates and romance of sailing the ocean hundreds of years ago, but also swashbuckling, treasure hunting and general evil doing all of which culminated into a book of pure piratical adventure. If you're celebrating piracy today download a free copy of Dark Waters land lubbers and live an evening on the ocean.


Blast, hell and bones, these be good coves of piracy

Flogging Molly and/or the Tossers - The soundtracks to my book - proper pirate jigging for the car or office.The Pirate Devlin and Hunt for White Gold - Mark Keating - Real piracy and none of this fantasy crap I'm trying to sell you.The Lies of Locke Lamora and Red Skies - Scott Lynch - Fantastic fantasy piratish adventuresIf I Pirate I must be - Richard Saunders - so far the best pirate bio I have read.The Pirate Adventure Books - If you haven't read them yet you should hand your head in shame viva la Pirate CaptainPirates of the Caribbean - Yes all four of them - screw the critics - even if Will Turner gets out acted by the plank it's Captain Jack and Barbosa we're watching it for.
There you should have enough piracy for your pirate day. Don't let me down bilge drinkers (sorry I'd use words of endearment but they didn't really have them), all together now: "Heave Ho, hoist the colours high!"

Pirates, Piracy and Stealing Our Books!

Those scarf-wearing, hooked hand, scallywags of the sea, shouting obscenities in a west country accent and drinking too much are as loveable today as... well probably more loveable today than at any other time in history. Glorified tales of piracy and romantic rogues create the illusion that theft, upon a boat at least, is acceptable. Of course now pirates tend to hijack rich yacht owners with machine guns and I think we'd all agree they're taking the jolly out of the roger there.

Then there's the cyber pirates, less eye patch and more double thick glasses (okay that's a bit mean, but I never gave the illusion that I was nice). Having a geeky younger brother I was obviously aware of the evil creatures who stay at home in their bedrooms and steal money off U2 by illegally downloading their tracks. Media corporations, not unlike the East India Trading Company back in ye old days, are basically being bent over a barrel by eight-year-old nerds and maybe this might teach them that over pricing and manipulating the industry isn't going to be acceptable when you are dealing with the generation of "I want it, so I'll have it."

It never bothered me that people illegally download songs and DVD's, not when those losing out are so wealthy they can afford to jet fly their hats across continents. Then I published my work and piracy seems like a dirty word (and when you're advertising a book about pirates it really makes marketing difficult).

So apparently people download copies of your book illegally. What a surprise! And as I write books about pirates it would be pretty hypocritical if I condemned these Word.Doc theives. As far as I'm concerned I'd rather people read my books for free than not read them at all. There's more to life than money, etc, etc. But I appreciate this is a big issue for a lot of indie writers.

I've heard rumours of illegal sites that have drastically cut indie writers' sales and even of sites that make illegal profits from our work. There is nothing we as writers can do except pull our hair out and scream loudly at anyone who will listen. The annoying thing for me is I am desperate for feedback on my work, I want to know if I have any talent for this literacy game and piracy robs me of the interaction I can have with my readers.

So what's an honest trader to do? Amazon will not let me put my book on for free so I have published on Smashwords as well. Here the reader can set the price, give me feedback and scold me for any paragraph they didn't like. The formatting rules initially put me off Smashwords, but once I got my head around them I found the site really easy to use. I think that if I let my readers set the price I might be less affected by piracy than a lot of writers - you can get it for free if you want - or you can praise my creativity with pennies and pounds (or cents and dollars). Obviously I won't be making millions anytime soon, but that never bothered Van Gogh (or maybe it did and that's why he cut his ear off).

What I would say though, is if you are going to pirate a book think about who you're stealing from. A lot of indie writers are juggling jobs as well as writing and are doing their best to keep afloat in this grim and dreary financial climate. When you steal, and it is stealing, you're making a very big difference in an indie writer's career. Indie writing and self-publishing has the potential to change the stifled world of literature for both readers, writers and publishers, do you really want to stop that? Or would you like the I'm a celebrity so I can get published situation to continue, forcing talented indie writers to remain undiscovered?

You can buy my book for £0.86 on Amazon UK, $1.39 on Amazon US or you can set the price at Smashwords (links to the right will guide you), but if you insist on pirating my book, or in fact any indie writer's book I ask two things of you:


1. You give the author feedback and/or a review helping them to advertise their work to people who will buy it.
2. You look the part and wear an eye patch

If you do pay me for my work I whole heartedly thank you, if you read it for free I also thank you and if you make money from my work without my permission I will hunt you down and make an example of you, you scurvy dog.

Current sales 13 (1 from Smashwords within a day of publishing - if you haven't published here might be worth your while fellow wordsmiths).

[ps I think Captain Huwzo's latest image really suits this post]