Traveling the Road

Every writer has to journey along her own path toward publication. Some paths are short and straight, while other paths meander, change direction, or simply dead end. Many writers have had help along the way in the form of encouragement, critique groups, or simply someone believing in them. The encouragement from someone who has traveled the road shouldn't be taken lightly, and many of us receive validation throughout much of the process--even if it doesn't feel like it.

Last Thursday, Erica Orloff wrote a blog about beta readers, and I whined in the comments about my lack of CP's and betas since I switched to writing middle grade novels. None of my romance buddies wanted to tackle it, which is understandable if they don't read or know anything about the genre. I belong to SCBWI, the Verla Kay blueboards, and I've visited my local SCBWI group, but I never really hooked up with anyone.

I was alone in a new genre that I thought was my true writing voice, but I didn't really know if I was on track with this genre. I had finished one MG manuscript and queried the snot out of it. I had a few bites, but no takers. I thought TO GNOME ME IS TO LOVE ME (title change from MISSING: ONE GARDEN GNOME) was ready to shove under the bed, until Authoress's Secret Agent contest when an agent wanted to see the first three chapters. (Keep your eyes open, she does Secret Agent contests all the time! Different genres!) I read the first three chapters of Gnome, and thought, "Well, that's a load of crap!" and promptly cut chapters two and three. Oh, I got a rejection two days later, but it opened my eyes about Gnome. Since I had spent the time rewriting the first three chapters of Gnome, I decided to do a last ditch effort by snail mailing about seven agents--packets going out on Monday.

Fast forward back to Erica. Erica offered to beta read two chapters.
WOW! I. AM. SO. STOKED!
Erica Orloff is published in adult fiction (Freudian Slip), but she is also published in middle grade fiction under the pseudo, Erica Kirov (Magickeepers series). Finally someone who writes MG will actually look at my story!
--and I wasn't going to send her Gnome. I had started #2 in the series, THE FAST AND THE FAERIEOUS and sent her the first two chapters. I was 10000K words into this story (1/3 of the way for MG). Plus, Mary Kole, children's agent with Andrea Brown Literary Agency was holding a contest on her Kidlit blog, and she'd already rejected Gnome so I wanted something new to submit.

Would I receive the validation I so desperately needed about writing in this genre?
Would she soft-soap me, telling me I was good when I truly sucked?

I didn't know what to expect, but knowing Erica--albeit only through her blog--I knew I would get straight forward honesty. And I think if I didn't have a MG voice, she would have told me.
Good stuff:
I DID nail the voice of a MG novel/character!
I DID get the MG one-liners and the 'one-off' comments down pat.
I DID have mini-cliff hangers at the end of the two chapters she read.
Bad stuff:
I DID manage to confuse her. :-) She thought the story sounded like the second in a series (it is), but I didn't leave enough clues to make THIS story readable for a new reader.
I DID have too much 'meanness'--I discovered this meanness in Gnome and it's one of the parts I changed.
I DID make the teacher too extreme and full of adult snark--not appropriate for MG--easy to tone her down.

But to me, Erica's best comment was, "Again . . . you have a great voice . . . and voice can’t be taught, I don’t think. It feels very natural."

I might not be published yet, but I'm back on the path.

Write On!

I would love to thank the CP's I've had over the years (Marilyn, Susan, Linda, Cyndi, and many others who have given of your time and talents) Many times I didn't truly appreciate your tough love, but now I do.
Thank you.