“Do what you feel in your heart to be right–for you’ll be criticized anyway. You’ll be damned if you do, and damned if you don’t.”–Eleanor Roosevelt
Today begins the agent round of Pitch Wars. You can learn more about the contest by following this link. I’ll post all the links at the end of this post for anyone interested. Basically, the winning entries are up and literary agents can request as little, or as many, as they’d like. Great news for all involved.
The thing is, for whatever reason, some entries will likely be passed over. Agents, other contestants, and random strangers will all read these entries and pass judgement. It’s what people do. We watch a movie and decide if we like it or not. If we do, we’ll blab about it to all our friends and family. Then the cycle continues. Like Siskel and Ebert, we give everything we experience a thumbs up or a thumbs down.
Does that mean the passed over manuscripts weren’t good? I don’t believe so. Each person has their own unique tastes. What one person loves, another may dislike. Literary agents would call it subjectivity. Even if we, as readers, can’t put our finger on the reason why we didn’t like a manuscript, it’s there. And once that judgement has been passed, there’s no going back.
But the thing is people’s tastes change. They may crave a Sci-Fi novel today but want a thriller tomorrow. Romance today and horror the next. Trends come and go. Markets peak and valley. We shouldn’t chase trends or markets. How many 50 shades of things can writers pump out before nobody’s buying anymore?
As long as writers stay true to themselves and tell a story they would love reading, they have nothing to fear. A good story is a good story no matter how saturated a market may be. If now isn’t the time, don’t despair. Keep your treasured story under lock and key until the time is right. This isn’t no, it’s not right now.
The best part about people passing judgement on your manuscript has to be the fact that they’re reading it. Your manuscript is out there holding its own. It doesn’t matter if people like it, or not. You had the guts to get it out there. The experience will only make you stronger.
Feel free to and have a peek at the winning entries by following this link.
The Adult alternate pitches can be found by following this link. If you write, you may want to subscribe. Fizzy will make it worth your while.
The Middle Grade alternate pitches can be found by following this link.
The first batch of Young Adult pitches can be found by following this link.
The second batch of Young Adult pitches can be found by following this link.
The third batch of Young Adult pitches can be found by following this link.
For all those interested, my pitch can be found by following this link. Feel free to pass judgement on me. I encourage it!
Here’s Red and their forthcoming song, Hold Me Now. No matter what happens, keep writing.
I really like that song. I hadn’t heard it before your post. I really should branch out with my music. Thanks for sharing!
The album doesn’t come out until Feb 5th. You can’t even buy it form I-Tunes yet. Their sound is usually much harder than this. Glad you liked it.
That’s probably why then, lol. Me and the hard music aren’t best buddies.
Nice. Your 250 words are very exciting, and I totally want to read more.
That is so true about your mood influencing what stories you like. There have been many books that I couldn’t get into on my first try, but then I loved them later.
Thanks for the kind words. We’ll see what happens. I’m ready to move along and try MISTS. My goal is to have it ready before the fall. We’ll talk more about secret things and plans.
I’m not sure how to comment on your pitch because I don’t read that genre so I’ll leave that to others more experienced. I do know you are a talented writer. I love the Eleanor Roosevelt quote. It is so true. We only have one person we need to please and when we do that, nothing else matters. I love your posts and look forward to reading them.
Thanks! Eleanor Roosevelt is one of my favorite people to quote. Hope all is well. Happy writing!