This is how I currently feel. No, I don’t feel like a pie.
I’ll go back to the beginning to put this into context.
When I began writing about vampires, I knew it would be a difficult field to write in for several reasons. Firstly, it’s been done and done. And done some more. So that was a problem – how do you write something original based on an idea that’s been rehashed so many times? Secondly, would an agent even be interested? I chose to put these concerns aside and write what I wanted to write, what I loved. I just had to.
Now, I’ve come to the querying stage. And as I expected, I’ve been rejected a few times. But not because of the writing itself.
Which brings me back to the pie.
Imagine you’d baked a pie. Everyone who tasted it said the same thing – crust is perfect, looks great, smells fantastic but the filling isn’t something they can stomach. I baked a beautiful pie but filled it with Nightshade berries. Or everyone’s allergic to apples. Whatever.
My point is, each rejection I’ve received says essentially the same thing: writing is good, content is not something they can market. Love the voice, not the vampires. You’re a great writer, but the subject is overdone.
How do you deal with that? Knowing that something you have such passion for has been so done that it’s unlikely any agent will want to touch it for a long, long time…when you’ve put as much work in as all writers know goes into a manuscript, one that was a real idea, not a first, crappy manuscript that you never show anybody (those are on my shelf), well, it’s hard. It’s hard to accept that many, many others got there before you did.
So I choose to see this as a positive thing. See, I can change what I write. There are other things I love. It’s not a ‘your writing is terrible, for the sake of the paper, please, just put the pen down’. It just means I have more work to do. Yeah, it’s saddening to find something you’ve put your heart and soul into just can’t find a place in the market. Not yet, anyway. But at least I can write. I have hands, a laptop and people who’ve told me they like my style. And I’m immensely proud of that.
I’m going to keep querying Bloodborn. I have faith that someone, somewhere, will still love vampires as much as I do. I’m not daft – I know that the market has been saturated. But what can a writer do but write what they love?
Of course, some of you who’ve read my excerpt may be thinking:
Which is cool. You’re entitled to your opinion. I’m just going to keep going, keep writing my new idea and keep querying. What else can a writer do?
Thanks for reading,
Blue
Keep at it. My vampire book found an agent. Of course, it has yet to be published, but I got through the first gate. It can happen.
Kristen
I love that you see it isn’t you that they can’t take, it is this particular piece you have done. And that doesn’t mean it will never be marketable. So happy to hear you say that you can write more than vampires, not that they aren’t enough. Explore what you can do and push it.
–Julie
Thanks for the comments, both of you. I could never give up vampires – they’re too much a part of me. Hopefully you’re right, Kristen, and I’ll find someone willing to give BB a chance. Julie, as always, you are inspirational. Much love for my two favourite writer ladies.
Wonderful attitude, I must say. And you have definitely gotten the most important part of it down, the skill itself. Having people like your style is very important. Glad to hear there are other things you enjoy writing about. Perhaps you could even combine them to some extent, something including both these other things and vampires. Good luck with the continued querying though. I hope BB does find a home.
Me too! Thanks for stopping by
and thanks for the well wishes. Positive thinking and all that!
You’re right, as long as people like the actual writing style, I’m golden. Hopefully I’ll be able to work vamps in somewhere in my new WIP, although not as the big stars (sigh).
Honestly, vampires will come around again. I’ve already seen them make the grand tour at least twice since I was a teenager. In the meantime, it’s good to stretch and try new things. You never know what you’ll fall in love with until you try it.
I write a vampire series. I didn’t even try to shop it around because I KNOW the market is saturated and also, not being 20 anymore, I wanted to hold my books in my hands before I was completely old and withered, rather than shop them around for the next ten years. So I self published. It’s early days, hard to get seen when there are so many other vampire books out there. But like you, I love my characters. I figure I probably won’t ever get rich doing this. It would be nice, but heck, I write what I love, so that’s ok. I’ve got a small fan base of people who read my stuff, the print versions because they live in small towns where internet access sucks, but every time I run into one, they ask me if I have anything else out yet, and they snap up the books when I show up with them. So somewhere out there I am confident I have a potential audience. You probably do too. Write what you love. If the gatekeepers won’t have you, then self publish. I think there’s a reason so many people write vampire stories. It’s because they’ve captured our imagination in a big way. And for every writer out there cranking out the stories, there’s probably a thousand regular people who can’t write but are also enthralled by them. Good luck. Tell me when your book comes out. I’ll read it!
Thanks so much for this – words cannot express how much this comment inspired me. It must be amazing to have people love your books and to know that you put them out there yourself. It’s definitely something I’ll look into. I think just one person who loved my work would make it all worth it for me
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Sorry for the lateness of my reply. I’ve had heating issues this week, so haven’t had time for internet stuff. But I’m glad to hear my comment was helpful to you. People who don’t write or create anything that they put out for public consumption have no idea what an act of bravery it is to create something and set it out into the world where people feel free to pick it apart and criticize it. Any creative person, whether a writer or an artist of another type, commits an act of courage when they take that child of their mind and push it out into the hands of others. It is a frightening, and also a wonderful thing. I’m still struggling to find an audience in the greater world, but I have to say it is enormously satisfying to me when my small bands of readers asks for my next book, then reads it and says they liked it. That said, I write first to please myself. That way, regardless of what the world thinks, I have the joy of enjoying my own creation. If you consider self publishing I would recommend Createspace. They make the process very doable. I won’t lie. It’s a lot of work to do all your own editing and then formatting to take your pages and turn them into the format of a book. But it’s worth the work when you hold your book in your hands and can say, I did this!. So good luck and seriously, let me know when that vampire book is ready. I meant it. I WILL read it!