I know exactly what you're saying when you say, "I rewrite more than I write." I went through eight drafts before I submitted my first novel! It's so hard to know when to stop. Even now, while it's on submission, I still want to rewrite it...again and again. Plus, my grammar is very naughty.
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I know exactly what you're saying when you say, "I rewrite more than I write." I went through eight drafts before I submitted my first novel! It's so hard to know when to stop. Even now, while it's on submission, I still want to rewrite it...again and again. Plus, my grammar is very naughty.

Anyway, I got my agent by attending the DFW Writers Conference and pitching during one of the agent sessions. The agent (Dr. Uwe Stender with the TriadaUS Literary Agency) requested my full and signed me within a week. So that was really cool. Dr. Stender is a young agent, very eager. You might try querying him. He's been really successful with non-fiction. He's dying to break into fiction, so he tries really really hard. He had me do some minor revisions and then submitted my manuscript to six major houses. He's lined up a second round of editors in case the first ones fall through. And then if that doesn't work, we're going to go to the smaller houses.

I think the one thing that helped me during my pitch session was that I practiced a one-line pitch until every person I told it to thought it sounded awesome. Maybe you could try that.

Hi JayDee,
It's nice to meet you. I can't believe you live in Pearland! That's so awesome. Do you belong to a writing group? I'm sort of an isolated wanna-be right now. I'd love to join a group.
I do like Frank Peretti. I used to read This Present Darkness and Piercing the Dark... more

Hi JayDee,

It's nice to meet you. I can't believe you live in Pearland! That's so awesome. Do you belong to a writing group? I'm sort of an isolated wanna-be right now. I'd love to join a group.

I do like Frank Peretti. I used to read This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness as a little girl (I'd thieve them from my dad's library!). Anyway, my novel has been on submission for two months now. I've gotten two rejections so far, but they were very nice and one publishing house called my agent to say they were interested in publishing it, but that was two weeks ago and I haven't heard anything since. I'm still waiting on responses from three other houses. This whole process is making me a little looney.

Anyway, it was nice to meet you!

Candace