Kirkus Review

The first review of my novel by a major publication just came in.  You can read it here. 

In truth, I was on edge waiting for the results of the review.  It's always hard to tell how others are going to receive your work.  Art, in any form, can be pretty subjective.  Sure, there are mechanics and rules that are mostly universal.  But after that, there's really no accounting for what someone is going to like.  Some people loved Napoleon Dynamite.  Other people hated it.  Who's right?

The people who loved it, obviously.  But that's not the point.  I'm just saying that opinions vary widely, and in the hands of reviewer, an opinion can impact the reputation of a novel.  When you enter the field of writing, you have to acknowledge that not everyone is going to like what you produce.  Some will be kinder about it than others, but the fact remains.  Some of those people with their opinions will be in positions of power when it comes to shaping the fate of your writing career. 

When you do the math on that, it adds up to a whole lot of nail-biting whenever the jury's out contemplating a verdict on your work.  It happens with every critique, every review, every submission.  Maybe it's not like that for everyone, but it is for me.

Turns out, the Kirkus reviewer actually had some good things to say about my novel.  In fact, after I read the review, I immediately wondered if they just, "Say such pretty things to all the girls," so to speak.  I checked around.  Short answer:  No.  There were more than a few harsh and unforgiving reviews to be found on the Kirkus pages.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not happy that people's work is getting ripped apart, I just wanted validation that I wasn't given a free pass.  And I wasn't.

Understanding this, I was left with only one conclusion:  They actually liked my book.  Someone who does this every day -- and has read more books than you can shake a stick at -- read my novel, and liked it.

That's a pretty big deal for me.  It was a great moment, and I'm thankful for that.

At this point in my career, I'm not trying to redefine literature or make the best-seller's lists.  I just want people to enjoy the story.  Anytime that I hear someone tell me that they did, it makes all the work worthwhile.

 

***

 

Quick Edit. 

 

I was poking around their site and I saw this:

 

 

Maybe it's not that big of a deal, but just seeing my book listed on the same webpage as a Heinlein novel...  It means a lot to this nerd.  A whole lot.  By no means am I comparing my work to his; don't get it twisted.  It's just the fact that a reviewer felt confident to tell a reader that if they liked Red Planet, that they'd probably like my story is pretty amazing to me.

First Ten Pages

Well, September came and went like a bad smell, and I blogged not-a-damn-thing.  I'm sure the world will never forgive me...

What have I been up to?  Writing.  Editing.  Many, many hours of editing.  If you're not sure what editing really is -- in regard to a novel -- it's basically taking a story you wrote and loved and reworking it so much that you're ready to burn the stupid thing and then eat the ashes.

Why did that make me think of Cocoa Pebbles?

At any rate -- editing.  I've been working on Valley of the Spun, which I'm now considering re-titling, based on some feedback I got.  I recently had the opportunity to attend a workshop put on by Writers Digest, and taught by Paula Munier of Talcott Notch Literary Services.  The purpose of the workshop was to improve the first ten pages of your manuscript to make the story more intriguing, exciting, and captivating. 

Look, I've spent a lot of time over the past several years working on craft (believe it or not) so I was a bit skeptical going into the class.  There's no shortage of people willing to take the eager writer's money and give little or nothing in return.  I decided to take a chance since both the names involved in the workshop were very reputible.  I have to say, I was really pleased with the results. 

At heart, I'm a 'why' kind of guy.  When I know the reasoning behind a rule or theory, it helps me understand and learn.  As we went through the lesson, many of the concepts I had previously read about came together as I heard about manuscript review from the agent's perspective.  A pretty big 'aha' moment.

The best part of the workshop was getting a personal critique from the agent herself on my first ten pages.  Any writer who's ever submitted anything can sympathize with the empty wonder that comes with every rejection letter:  Like a pimple-faced teen in a powder-blue tux, you stand, corsage in hand, wondering why you just weren't good enough to take to prom.  Fact is, agents don't have time to write a personal response to each of the thousands of queries and pages they read -- it's logistically impossible. 

Given that, I've always wanted to know what I could be doing better.  Not just theory in an instruction manual, but for me, specifically, what I could do to strengthen my work.   Many times I thought, "If I just knew what it is I need to improve, then I can get to work on it..." 

I feel like I got that from the workshop, and it meant a great deal to me.  That was a fun interlude, but, now it's back to editing.  Wish me luck.