If you're an author, you've probably experienced Death Comes to the Manuscript, that sad but necessary moment when you close the door on an old piece of writing.
For me, Manuscript Death struck twice recently: novels two and three in my file cabinet have been laid to rest (As an aside -- Novel one was horrendous and needs to stay locked away. Novel four is the one that sold. I'm hoping novel five will also see the light of day).
These two fought the good fight. I revised both for years. Number two I started when my now eleven-year-old was born. It's gone through a POV change, a timeline tightening, and dozens of major overhauls. It received a "champagne rejection"* from a lovely assistant editor at Bloomsbury in 2004. My agent loves it. My editor doesn't. But in re-reading it last week, I realized if I was to overhaul it one more time and try again, there was little I could salvage. It was time to let it go.Number three was eerily similar to Sarah Weeks's PIE, right down to the dueling siblings, the baking contest, and the stolen recipe (there's more, but I don't want to give too many plot points away). The two differences? My story was about snickerdoodles and wasn't half as good as Sarah's. It was time for this one to give up the ghost, too.
I thought it would be hard to walk away from these manuscripts, but somehow it's oddly freeing. They both taught me a lot about writing; both story lines will continue to remain dear to me. They're just not stories for the world at large. And you know what? That's okay.
Has Death ever come for one of your Manuscripts? What was the experience like for you?
*A rejection so positive it's worth celebrating.
How many cliches have I used in this post? Count them up and leave your answer below. One commenter will win a packet of MG and YA bookmarks.
I've had champagne rejections, too! So bittersweet, but they let you know you are on the right track, at least.
ReplyDeleteI've reread some of my mss that I've given up on, and I think I made a good call. They certainly show my growth as a writer, but....
Shelley
It's amazing the encouragement you can milk from a rejection, isn't it?
DeleteI have no idea. I've never fully given up on a MS yet, but I've only completed two, so I'm probably still growing.
ReplyDeleteNo one has the same writing journey. Maybe all of yours will be winners, who knows?
DeleteOh, I've had the champagniest of champagne rejections. The kind that throw every possible compliment around, before saying... "Ah, but no."
ReplyDeleteThat means you're getting closer!
DeleteI have closed the coffin on a couple of incomplete manuscripts, but all the finished ones are still out there, fighting to live.
ReplyDeleteI'm not counting, of course, anything I wrote before 2000. There are two completed MG manuscripts moldering away in their vaults, but I don't usually give them a passing thought. As far as I'm concerned, my writing began afresh in 2005 when I started working on what would become We Hear the Dead. I refuse to acknowledge any novels I wrote before then! :D
I adore We Hear the Dead. So glad it made its way into the world!
DeleteI have a few mss like this, and a few unfinished ones that are sort of on life support, like Dianne mentions. I don't feel bad about it--I tell myself there are more stories where those came from, and I think fondly of the characters sometimes.
ReplyDeleteYes, a manuscript death doesn't mean we can't revisit and enjoy those stories and characters...and allow them to become new, stronger things..
DeleteRecently, an editor asked about a novel I had not finished before we moved to Egypt. I had FORGOTTEN ABOUT IT! Why hadn't I sent it??? Then i reread the first chapter and it all came back to me. The first chapter was YUCK. But it had been so long, I just started over. Still not sure, but I plan to read it, now with distance, and see if it lives or if I'm seeing ghosts.
ReplyDeleteStill not sure, but I plan to read it, now with distance, and see if it lives or if I'm seeing ghosts.
ReplyDeleteLove this line. Keep us posted!