Update and Contest!
Sep 11, 2010 
Hey guys! It’s been all quiet from me lately, and I apologize for that. Life got hectic for a while, what with WorldCon, followed by the world’s biggest wind storm blowing our garden wall down, and all of us having to run around and fix it and figure out what to do with the dog, etc. And then, since we’ve got company coming Monday, I’ve been frantically Cleaning All The Things. I am more or less back now, but with that friend from the U.S. coming to visit on Monday, I’ll very likely be incommunicado at that point too.
Just wanted to wave my hand around and say I’m not dead! Yay! I wanted to do a blog post following WorldCon about my experiences with it, because I know so many people who would’ve loved to come, but the energy levels just aren’t allowing that right now. I still plan on it–if nothing else, I have to explain how I managed to end the con sitting at a bar with John Scalzi, Carrie Vaughn, Delia Sherman, and Ellen Kushner–but it might take me a little while to organize my thoughts.
I’ve finished Draft 2.5 of THE IRON WOOD. Yes, Draft 2.5. It’s not a big enough rewrite to warrant a new number, just incorporating a few suggestions from my last reader. It’s now getting line edits from yet another reader, at which point, once I incorporate THOSE changes, it will be Draft 3. No, you’re not wrong, this distinction is entirely arbitrary. But then it goes out to my final three readers, one of whom is a writer and can give me suggestions from that perspective, one of whom is an avid reader (but NOT a writer) of YA spec fic, and can come at it from that angle, and the other is a super smart ecology and biology enthusiast who’s going to check my (very limited) science for me. Oof.
But yes–assuming that goes smoothly and doesn’t make me want to tear the thing apart and go back to the beginning again, I’m on track still to meet my goal of querying before NaNo–not that I’ll be participating in it, but it’s a nice set goal. Goals are very important for me, and without them I might just keep revising and revising forever. Plus, it means I can beat the manuscripts that come pouring in to as a result of NaNo.
And finally, I just wanted to give you all a heads up that C.A. Marshall, literary agent intern, freelance editor, and YA writer extraordinaire (I added the extraordinaire, but it definitely seems to be warranted) is having a contest in which she gives away a free manuscript edit, up to 100k words. For those of you (like me) who just can’t get enough criticism, it’s a great opportunity. Plus, she’s willing to wait up to a month for you to finish your manuscript if you’re not done yet! Or, in my case, finish cutting it down so that it rests below the 100k limit. Sigh.
Anyway, contest is here. Good luck!
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Yay for getting through 2.5 drafts! 😀
Thank youuu!
And I don’t think I’ve added my voice to the chorus yet… CONGRATULATIONS to you!!! <3
Thanks! 🙂
Congrats on finishing another draft of your book! Wahoo! That’s always a great feeling, isn’t it?
And thanks for letting us know about C.A.’s cool contest! Sounds like an awesome opportunity.
Thank you! It is a super great feeling. Although at this point, I keep seeing another several revisions on the horizon when I finish, so it ends up being a bittersweet experience. I’m thinking of saying “NO MORE” after the next two, though. At some point you’ve got to let it go… right? 😛
Well done for finishing draft 2.5, and for being braving to ask for so much critiquing on it! I’m still a little bit terrified of letting other people read my work. Then again, if my writing was as awesome as the excerpts I’ve read of yours, I probably wouldn’t worry about that. That was a compliment disguised as bitterness, by the way 😉 Good luck with draft 3!
OMG, <3 your icon!!!
It’s not easy letting other people read your stuff. I started years ago and it’s been a long process getting this thick-skinned about it. I can’t recommend enough the experience I had at Odyssey, which is truly a trial by fire–you don’t just get critiqued there, you get CRITIQUED. But you get critiqued by hugely intelligent, well-read people who want nothing more than to help you, so it’s always in the spirit of constructiveness. And though sometimes I hate to admit it, they’re usually totally right.
Anyway, I definitely recommend finding a friend or two who you wouldn’t mind reading your stuff, just to start out. They’ll be gentle because they love you. I’m not ashamed to admit that the first people to read anything I write are the friends who bolster my ego and tell me I’m awesome. Then I move on to the people who will happily rip my writing to shreds. 😉
You are so sweet. Thank you!
Query Letter
Hi – Just wanted to let you know I think your query letter is amazing – I bow to your query writing skills:)
Best of luck in the contest, Meagan.
Janice
Re: Query Letter
Wow, thank you so much! You’re so kind. This absolutely made my day–I’ve been fretting about every little word choice and comma, tossing and turning all night long.
I think this contest has been absolutely amazing, and so helpful. If nothing else the simple act of having to pare the pitch down to 175 words makes it tight and punchy right away, and leaves plenty of room for personalization.
Thank you for the luck… I’ve been reading over the other entries, and there are a LOT of great ones there! Are you waiting to post yours up? (Or are you “Anonymous, with the rep offer? I’m all a-twitter to know who that is!) Your pitch sounded totally awesome, definitely something I would read.
Go dystopians! Gotta stick together… 😉
Re: Query Letter
I wish I had a rep offer! I just put mine up, I couldn’t do anymore. It’s not as good as I wanted and I had to leave out ‘thank you for your consideration’ to meet the word count, but it’s out of my hands now, and I can breathe again.
This is my first contest and I agree with you, it’s been amazing – so many great entries. No matter what happens I’ve learned a lot.
I’m glad I’m not the only one fretting about commas and word choice.
Let the waiting commence.
Janice
Re: Query Letter
Yeah, normally when people are all like “Just getting to participate was enough, I already feel like a winner!” I roll my eyes. But that actually IS how I feel about this one. The benefits of workshop aspect of the contest has, at this point, far exceeded what I was expecting.
Your query is SUPER exciting. I’m amazed by how much action you’ve managed to get in the 300 words! I hope to be able to pick it up off the shelves some day, because this is 100% the sort of thing I’d read.
Good luck!!
Congratulations
I’m over the moon for you – thrilled. The moment I read your query I knew it’d get through. I’m a bit disappointed, but I knew I tried to pack too much in and didn’t show who my protag was – aw well, next time. 🙂
I really hope you win, Meagan. I’ll send lots of positive thoughts your way.
Janice
Re: Congratulations
Thank you so much, Janice–you’re so sweet. I really appreciate the positive thoughts!
Judging queries is such a subjective thing. I was actually very surprised by the list–many of the queries I thought were really intriguing didn’t make it through to the final round.
That is the nice thing… there’s always going to be another contest to enter! <3
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