Carol

Hi,

Did I miss the post on whether you heard from the publishing company? You said in a post from Jan 17th that you were waiting to hear back.

As of last night she was still waiting.
Whichever publisher takes her book will have made a wise decision.

Her book will be historical and deathly accurate. It will take you right into the minds of the pilots and their famiies.

I m in such a hurry to read it---I told her to self-publish or go to PA.

The subject holds interest for me--I was a sophmore in High School. I was at a boarding school and they had their emergency drills--I need to see how necessary they were.

Deathly accurate? I know it will be accurate because Carol wrote it, but are you saying a lot of people die?

Sue,

After two weeks I hadn't heard anything from the publisher I had queried, but thanks to Brenda here who checked for me, I discovered the publisher had sent me a message the day after receiving my query that they wanted the manuscripts. (Brenda has been published by this publisher and I had asked her if she thought I should contact them after waiting two weeks.) They said in the return message, which I hadn't gotten until Brenda checked for me, they were making decisions in the next few weeks on books they were going to publish in the next months. I have no idea why I didn't get the email message, but thanks to Brenda I did finally get the exciting information.

So I spent three hours formatting my manuscripts according to the publisher's requirements. Well, most of their requirements anyhow. One I couldn't figure out and decided to forgo taking the time to find out thinking it was better to get the manuscripts out as soon as possible. If the message had gotten to me when sent, I would have taken some time to make sure they were perfect. (I think my server might have dropped the message somehow.)

I sent the manuscripts last Thursday, so now I am waiting.

Alice and Dick,

Thank you for your kind words.

Carol

Dick,

It will be historically correct--not overstated or understated--it will be correctly stated .

Thank you for allowing me to clarify that situation.

I have not been forewarned of any deaths --unless they occur in the stampede to get the book--which is why I prefer to shop online.

Thank you for letting us know, Carol. I was looking through threads and realized that I hadn't heard. I miss a lot as I don't go to all the threads or follow them all.

Thanks again.

That is exciting, Carol. Please know we are all pulling for you.

Thank you for getting us an update, Sue!!

Carol,

I have two books coming out with the same publisher, one due to be released next month and a re-release due out in May/June. I can assure you that if they told you a decision will be made in two weeks, it will. If they offer you a contract the wheels will move very quickly. Both Brenda and I can say that it's been a rollercoaster ride and a wonderful experience.

Good Luck.

Thanks for all your good wishes! I have come close with a few publishers and am hopeful. This publisher does look very good, and I'd love to work with them.

They were extremely complimentary on my query letter, so I think I am on the right track with that part of getting published, which is progress.

A lot of good things have happened to me lately after a lot of bad, so perhaps I am on a roll here!

Carol

Carol, may the good things roll your way!

Well, I received another rejection. This is the fourth publisher to have shown interest out of the seven I have queried, so perhaps the fact I've gotten interest at all is a plus. They said the story dragged from too much fact. I research anything I write, fact or fiction, extensively and that is probably not as much of an asset as it sounds. I do not write fiction often, except for historical fiction.

So I'll try again, somewhere.

Carol

Carol,

I'm so sorry they rejected you. I don't you if you subscribe to the Writer magazine, but there was a very interesting article that may help you. It was in December's issue and entitled "When too much fact spoils a story." If you like, I can scan it and send it to you. (Drop me an email). If you book relies heavily on facts why not submit it to agents who deal primarily with non-fiction?

There are two separate books on the Cuban Missile Crisis. I wrote the novel first, and then friends said since I was "there" to write the "true" story. Thus, the nonfiction book, which includes personal accounts of others, again some who happen to be on this board. It also includes a chapter by a CBS TV journalist and college friend.

Writing the novel was a lot of fun. Characters and plot appeared out of nowhere.

I liked writing the nonfiction book as fascinating information appeared from various resources. But some of the information in the middle could be put in an appendix. Then the story would flow better, and if people wanted more info, they could read on.

For twenty years, as a counselor and psychotherapist, I wrote treatment plans and progress notes. What makes me chuckle is that when I first began writing the notes and they had to be critiqued by a supervisor, the comments over and over were, "You're not writing a story or novel about this person. You're writing facts." So when the publisher said I needed to take off my "nonfiction hat," it might not be possible.

Carol

Carol,
you have good material. However, as you mentioned, too much detail can be a turn-off. Using an appendix may be a wise move.
I'm convinced that with more work, your novel will get published. It deserves publication. Sometimes we get too close to our work and can't see it from a reader's perspective.
Just my opinion.

Thanks Abe. I believe in writing history in ways that will make it interesting and need to practice what I preach. The memoir part is probably all right, and putting the factual material in an appendix would not be difficult. If nothing else, I learned a great deal, and if and when I ever do presentations on the nonfiction book, I will be able to answer most any question!

The past rejections from publishers were regarding marketability, and with the new interest in Cuba, this might not be a problem.

I also know my first chapters are weak. Sometimes I think I should just throw out the first thirty pages and start from page 31.

Carol