There’s another stop on my blog tour today…I’ll share the link as soon as I hear from Debra that it’s up!

“Mark of the Successor” releases this week! I’ll start uploading it to the various sites (Solstice, Amazon, B&N, Smashwords, Kobo) on Wednesday. Some of the sites will take up to 72 hours to list a new title, though, so don’t panic if you’ve got a Nook and it’s not up for sale first thing Wed. morning!

I’m doing an interview on Authors on the Air on Thursday (http://authorsontheair.com/) from 12 noon to 1 pm PDT (3-4 pm for you East Coast people), and then we’re taking the fun to FaceBook! I’ve got a virtual release party set up for the two hours following the interview, full of fun and giveaways…just go to this page and ask for an invite. https://www.facebook.com/events/200289673452008/

Either Leslie Whitaker (host) or I will add you to the fun!

On to the topic of the week!

You need to have confidence as an author. Both in yourself and in the story you’ve created. Be able to be ‘on’ at a moment’s notice when you’re recognized in a restaurant or the grocery store. 

But there’s a big difference between being confident and having an inflated ego.

Rejections hurt. I know this first hand. They can punch you in the gut. How could the EIC not like my story? I worked so hard on it!

We all have egos. We all want to be admired, liked, get that gold star. The confident author will take any feedback (if any), re-examine their work, and learn. The egocentric author? Well, they’ll go on the attack.

The job of an EIC is different than that of an editor. As EIC, I have to evaluate a manuscript with one main question in my head – will this book sell?. Does it grab me off the start, make me want to turn that next page? It’s not about evaluating the spelling or grammar, though that plays a part in it. Any manuscript that wasn’t even spellchecked before submission is going to make me scratch my head. Spelling and grammar are essential. So is proper sentence structure. But technically perfect writing isn’t going to guarantee a contract. The story needs to have a hook to draw the reader in. It has to be readable. It has to be enjoyable. It has to be good.

So, next time you read a rejection email, think twice before sending off a scathing remark to the EIC about how much of an idiot they are by refusing your story. Take a deep breath, leave your ego out of it, and wait. Take their critique (if provided) and see if there’s any real merit to it. Read your story aloud and get a new perspective on it. Keep writing.

The EIC is there to evaluate manuscripts that have potential for the publisher that employs them, not to rubber stamp books. Stay confident, and move on. The next place might be the one that says yes.

BB