I'm so excited! My heart is just a thumpin!
I received a request from a literary agent to send my full manuscript to them!
Of course, it doens't mean that everything will work out, but this is the first time I've gotten a full request!
It could still take months before they decide to represent me. I could have other requests in the same time, too, which is not entirely unheard of.
Since I haven't signed a contract yet, I won't say who they are, but they represent a big New York Literary Agency!
I hope I can sleep tonight!
Showing posts with label Owen Rigsby. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Owen Rigsby. Show all posts
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Friday, August 20, 2010
Jackpot Update
Nothing of real news to report except for an interesting incident.
Literary agent, Rachelle Gardner was conducting a webinar on writing query letters. Rachelle has an incredibly wonderful blog where she gives hints, tips, and other information regarding writing and publishing. If you are interested in writing or publishing, I'd recommend you checking out her blog.
In any case, it was a live 90 minute seminar on the Internet. After logging in, Rachelle spoke for about 45 minutes or so telling how to write a query letter and all the ins and outs of the process.
As advertised, 5 lucky people would have their submitted query letters critiqued live by Rachelle for all the world to see. Everyone else would have their letters critiqued by her, but not live. Five others won a 20 minute phone call from her!
It was an extremely interesting seminar. At the end of the 5 live critiques, she indicated she had a few more minutes to do a couple more critiques.
MINE WAS ONE OF THEM!!!!
My excitement was short lived. She had a few good things to say about my query letter, but then the other shoe dropped. She said that from my letter, my main character didn't look very appealing, being selfish, angry, and self-centered. She said the story line as presented didn't appeal to her being that Owen wastes his money on things that we probably wouldn't want to read about.
At first I was devastated.
However, as I was able to think about it, I got really excited. An agent who I highly respect (and would LOVE to have for MY agent) gave me her insight as to why my query letter didn't appropriately represent what my book was about!
In her words, she said it was about a selfish man who wins the lottery and spends the money on stuff he shouldn't. (obviously not an exact quote)
However, that isn't what my book is really about.
My book is about a revenge, redemption, forgiveness and reconciliation. The lottery just happens to be the catalyst that gets everything going.
My problem in writing the initial query was that I focused on the secondary storyline, i.e. lottery, instead of his journey to redemption.
After giving it a lot of thought, I see this as a huge blessing from the Lord. I was trying to land an agent with a query letter that didn't reflect the essence of my story. Now, I'll be able to "fix" it and query agents based on an accurate representation of my work.
To be honest, the crafting of this query letter has proved to be harder than writing the novel itself. I realize how important it is and why it is necessary. I just don't like this process.
I'd love to have you support this project by becoming a fan of Owen Rigsby on Facebook and/or followoing him on Twitter. As of writing this post, Owen has 198 fans on FB and 284 followers on Twitter, including @RachelleGardner!
Literary agent, Rachelle Gardner was conducting a webinar on writing query letters. Rachelle has an incredibly wonderful blog where she gives hints, tips, and other information regarding writing and publishing. If you are interested in writing or publishing, I'd recommend you checking out her blog.
In any case, it was a live 90 minute seminar on the Internet. After logging in, Rachelle spoke for about 45 minutes or so telling how to write a query letter and all the ins and outs of the process.
As advertised, 5 lucky people would have their submitted query letters critiqued live by Rachelle for all the world to see. Everyone else would have their letters critiqued by her, but not live. Five others won a 20 minute phone call from her!
It was an extremely interesting seminar. At the end of the 5 live critiques, she indicated she had a few more minutes to do a couple more critiques.
MINE WAS ONE OF THEM!!!!
My excitement was short lived. She had a few good things to say about my query letter, but then the other shoe dropped. She said that from my letter, my main character didn't look very appealing, being selfish, angry, and self-centered. She said the story line as presented didn't appeal to her being that Owen wastes his money on things that we probably wouldn't want to read about.
At first I was devastated.
However, as I was able to think about it, I got really excited. An agent who I highly respect (and would LOVE to have for MY agent) gave me her insight as to why my query letter didn't appropriately represent what my book was about!
In her words, she said it was about a selfish man who wins the lottery and spends the money on stuff he shouldn't. (obviously not an exact quote)
However, that isn't what my book is really about.
My book is about a revenge, redemption, forgiveness and reconciliation. The lottery just happens to be the catalyst that gets everything going.
My problem in writing the initial query was that I focused on the secondary storyline, i.e. lottery, instead of his journey to redemption.
After giving it a lot of thought, I see this as a huge blessing from the Lord. I was trying to land an agent with a query letter that didn't reflect the essence of my story. Now, I'll be able to "fix" it and query agents based on an accurate representation of my work.
To be honest, the crafting of this query letter has proved to be harder than writing the novel itself. I realize how important it is and why it is necessary. I just don't like this process.
I'd love to have you support this project by becoming a fan of Owen Rigsby on Facebook and/or followoing him on Twitter. As of writing this post, Owen has 198 fans on FB and 284 followers on Twitter, including @RachelleGardner!
Thursday, August 05, 2010
Jackpot update
I have begun my search for a literary agent in earnest. I have sent query letters to four or five agents and one publishing house. I have already had two rejections.
I am confident that this project is print-worthy. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long until an agent believes in it, too!
I am confident that this project is print-worthy. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long until an agent believes in it, too!
Tuesday, June 08, 2010
Jackpot! Update
I received my manuscript back from Dave Scott, my friend who has been editing it. I drove to Vinita last Tuesday to pick it up.
I was very happy to find that a major re-write wasn't required! In fact, most of the corrections concerned deleting superfluous words, correcting punctuation, and some minor "clean-up" of ideas for the sake of the story flowing.
The only criticism (constructive) came when he suggested that I add four or five chapters, utilizing an omniscient narrator to further develop some supporting characters that the first person point of view wouldn't be able to accomplish. We discussed this because Dave said, "as a reader, I really wanted to know more about these characters."
So, with that, I have completed the clean up and the first of four or five additional chapters.
I'm hoping to be in a position to seek literary representation by the end of this month.
In the meantime, please support me and this work by becoming a fan of the main character, Owen Rigsby, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OwenRigsby. You can also follow Owen on Twitter at www.twitter.com/OwenRigsby.
Thanks for your encouragement; it really means a lot!
I was very happy to find that a major re-write wasn't required! In fact, most of the corrections concerned deleting superfluous words, correcting punctuation, and some minor "clean-up" of ideas for the sake of the story flowing.
The only criticism (constructive) came when he suggested that I add four or five chapters, utilizing an omniscient narrator to further develop some supporting characters that the first person point of view wouldn't be able to accomplish. We discussed this because Dave said, "as a reader, I really wanted to know more about these characters."
So, with that, I have completed the clean up and the first of four or five additional chapters.
I'm hoping to be in a position to seek literary representation by the end of this month.
In the meantime, please support me and this work by becoming a fan of the main character, Owen Rigsby, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OwenRigsby. You can also follow Owen on Twitter at www.twitter.com/OwenRigsby.
Thanks for your encouragement; it really means a lot!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Book Progress Report
I heard from my friend who is editing my manuscript that he is on target to return it to me by the end of this month.
I am very excited about receiving it and evaluating the recommended adjustments and making it presentable for marketing.
Since this is my first one, I have no idea how long it will take me to finalize this process, but I hope no more than a month.
As soon as I finish my corrections, I'll begin seeking literary representation.
Basically, I have to find an agent who believes in my work and thinks they can sell the idea to a publisher.
It doesn't stop there. They have to have marketing meetings, sales meetings and more before they actually accept it for publishing.
It could very well be a year from now before we see it on the shelves.
In the meantime, in my attempt at pre-publication publicity, I have created a Facebook Fan Page, www.facebook.com/OwenRigsby and a Twitter feed, www.twitter.com/OwenRigsby. Owen has 172 fans on FB and 248 followers on Twitter, as of the writing of this post.
I find it interesting the number of people who have mis-understood the intent and think that Owen is a real person. I have had several very interesting conversations with people and in some cases, had to tell them that he is a fictional character.
In any case, I would appreciate your supporting my work by becoming a Facebook fan or following Owen on Twitter.
Thanks in advance!
I am very excited about receiving it and evaluating the recommended adjustments and making it presentable for marketing.
Since this is my first one, I have no idea how long it will take me to finalize this process, but I hope no more than a month.
As soon as I finish my corrections, I'll begin seeking literary representation.
Basically, I have to find an agent who believes in my work and thinks they can sell the idea to a publisher.
It doesn't stop there. They have to have marketing meetings, sales meetings and more before they actually accept it for publishing.
It could very well be a year from now before we see it on the shelves.
In the meantime, in my attempt at pre-publication publicity, I have created a Facebook Fan Page, www.facebook.com/OwenRigsby and a Twitter feed, www.twitter.com/OwenRigsby. Owen has 172 fans on FB and 248 followers on Twitter, as of the writing of this post.
I find it interesting the number of people who have mis-understood the intent and think that Owen is a real person. I have had several very interesting conversations with people and in some cases, had to tell them that he is a fictional character.
In any case, I would appreciate your supporting my work by becoming a Facebook fan or following Owen on Twitter.
Thanks in advance!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Nothing to Report
Friday, March 26, 2010
Jackpot in Manuscript Form
I must admit I am giddy with excitement!
Saturday, March 06, 2010
First Draft Complete
I am extremely pleased to report that I completed the first draft of my novel, Jackpot!
Of course, that is just the pre-publication title that I have given it. The publisher has the option to title the book anyway they please.
Now, the next procedure in this project it to re-write the book, cleaning up messy plot lines, weak verbs and sentence structures and such before I have it edited. Since I've already done some preliminary self-editing, it shouldn't take too long.
Of course, that is just the pre-publication title that I have given it. The publisher has the option to title the book anyway they please.
Now, the next procedure in this project it to re-write the book, cleaning up messy plot lines, weak verbs and sentence structures and such before I have it edited. Since I've already done some preliminary self-editing, it shouldn't take too long.
Friday, March 05, 2010
Update on My Book
Just in case you've been wondering how my book is coming along, I thought I'd give you a brief update.
Today, I passed the seventy thousand word mark. I had been aiming for 80-100K words, so I'm getting pretty close.
I should be done with the first draft this month. Then, I'll start my re-write, then send it off to my friend for editing, then fix things from his recommendations.
Once I've done these things, then I'll start looking for a literary agent to sell the book to a publisher.
I have no disillusions. After I finish my manuscript, the real work begins. Finding someone who believes in my book and representing it to publishers is both a big deal and lots of work. While my family, friends, and even I believe that it is a good work, finding someone in the business is a little harder.
Even if I find a publisher, that doesn't guarantee success. I happen to think I'm on to something special; there are few other books with the same subject on the market; hardly any of them in the fiction genre.
I pray that the book will be a success, not just for the financial rewards, but that it would honor God by helping people to search for Him. I'd covet your prayers as I complete my part of this project.
Please join me in the support of this project by "following" my main character, Owen Risgby on Twitter and becoming Facebook fan.
Today, I passed the seventy thousand word mark. I had been aiming for 80-100K words, so I'm getting pretty close.
I should be done with the first draft this month. Then, I'll start my re-write, then send it off to my friend for editing, then fix things from his recommendations.
Once I've done these things, then I'll start looking for a literary agent to sell the book to a publisher.
I have no disillusions. After I finish my manuscript, the real work begins. Finding someone who believes in my book and representing it to publishers is both a big deal and lots of work. While my family, friends, and even I believe that it is a good work, finding someone in the business is a little harder.
Even if I find a publisher, that doesn't guarantee success. I happen to think I'm on to something special; there are few other books with the same subject on the market; hardly any of them in the fiction genre.
I pray that the book will be a success, not just for the financial rewards, but that it would honor God by helping people to search for Him. I'd covet your prayers as I complete my part of this project.
Please join me in the support of this project by "following" my main character, Owen Risgby on Twitter and becoming Facebook fan.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Owen Rigsby
I am writing a fiction novel about Owen Rigsby. He is the muti-millionaire lottery winner from Tulsa, OK. You can follow his tweets at www.twitter.com/OwenRigsby and find him on Facebook here.
The book, in pre-release form, is called "Jackpot". That, of course, is subject to change at the descretion of the publisher.
It is a story of greed, lust, revenge and redemption.
I expect to be finished with the first draft this spring.
The book, in pre-release form, is called "Jackpot". That, of course, is subject to change at the descretion of the publisher.
It is a story of greed, lust, revenge and redemption.
I expect to be finished with the first draft this spring.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)