You've earned your first merit badge, Gud. Hold onto it. And keep sending.

Better a fast rejection than the policy that some agents have adopted of "no answer is the same as a rejection," especially when it comes to email queries. Unless they have an autoresponse in place that lets the sender know the query was received, then you have no way of knowing whether it's a rejection or they never got the query in the first place.

I still have some non-responses from when I was querying agents two years ago. It's bad practice, IMO.

But still.... a R sucks, but you did something most people don't have the guts to do, Gud, so keep going. Like Amy said, you've earned your first merit badge.

that stinks Gud - boomerang that baby back out!

I'll join you on the R bench, Gud. Just heard from my editor that she's passing on my ghost YA proposal. It's too ethereal for her. I know, I know... ghost story, but she likes more grounded in reality stories and this one, while fairly straightforward as ghost stories go, is a bit much for her.

It's disappointing on the one hand, but on the other, it's kind of exciting because now it's going to go out on a wider submission and my agent knows of at least 5-6 editors who are looking for ghost YA. So... once more unto the breach, my friends.

Aw, I'm sorry, Barb. But I'm glad it's going out to some other editors.

we need to get some acceptance~ma going! Gud, for your short story submission, acceptance~ma! Barb, acceptance~ma aimed at any one of your new 5-6 editor prospects.

eta: pompoms, fizzy drinks, and a kick-line of better outcomes

I'm sorry to hear that, Gud and Barb.

(gives the YA proposal she's supposed to be working on the side-eye)

Good Luck Barb, sorry she's passing on it though.

One nice thing about the short story submission is that it's not a query, the story gets to stand on its own merits.

Going through the process so far is making me think I should work on my pitch for the new book now at the beginning. If I can't make a good pitch with my current outline, then maybe I need a more compelling plan. It'll make the real pitch when I'm done easier to write as well I would think.

My wife suggested a different approach, which I'm currently mulling over. This plays up the relationship of the two lead female characters, the MC's friend-interest, which is the more important relationship compared to the love-interest, who doesn't actually get mentioned here at all.

#

The day she was stabbed by the assassin was not the day Aimee’s life hit rock bottom. Nor was it the day Aimee discovered that same, very beautiful assassin was a member of the expedition she had joined or even the day that assassin seduced Aimee’s lover. That day came in the midst of the Wild— untamed lands held by the hostile Fari—when the expedition leader and Aimee’s mentor betrayed her and left her for dead. Aimee discovered then that she had reserves of determination and grit that she hadn’t known she had. Before Aimee can stop her former mentor from taking control of the Dead Mountain and using its powerful magic to remake the world, she must make her way out of Fari lands alive and get into the Dead Mountain. Aimee’s only hope for help, she discovers, is the assassin.

THE DEAD MOUNTAIN is a fast-paced epic fantasy in which the developing friendship between the two female main characters is the key to saving everything. It is a heart-breaking tale of love and loss, survival and triumph. As with Kristen Britain’s Green Rider, the story features a female hero who relies more on her wits and determination than on swords and spells. The manuscript is complete at 120,000 words.

Does it seem like a better approach?